Staunch allies Canada and the United States on Monday signed a new cross border arrangement that would pave facilitate for the faster clearing of border choke points as well as speed up travel between the two North American nations. This applies on all forms of travel be it air, land or sea.

The Agreement on Land, Rail, Marine, and Air Transport Preclearance is part of the Beyond the Border Initiative issued by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and President Barack Obama in December 2011. It specifically aims to extend customs preclearance to border crossings in order to boost the efficient flow of people and goods, at the same time maintaining strong border security.

Border officials from the U.S. are entitled to enter Canadian land to inspect and the goods or people wanting to enter the U.S., omitting the usual routine of inspection upon arrival. Canadian border officials will also do the same thing on U.S. soil.

The exact implementation of the plan, however, has yet to be determined. The proposal needs to secure approvals from both legislative chambers of the two countries. It had been earlier sought for implementation in 2011, but Canada and the U.S. failed to make the necessary legwork, thus missing a late 2012 deadline.

Another noteworthy component of the agreement is that while customs officers from the U.S. will be while on Canadian soil, they cannot make arrests while doing their preclearance jobs. It is still up to a legitimate Canadian law enforcement officer to make the arrest. The plan is expected to generate more jobs for both sides of the two countries since it will need to create new preclearance facilities.

A statement issued by the Office of the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness said preclearance operations were first implemented in Canada , but a formal air transport preclearance agreement was only reached in 1974. Each year, roughly 11 million passengers are pre-cleared for flights to the U.S. at eight Canadian airports under the current bilateral air preclearance framework - reducing wait times for these passengers and often reducing the number of connections they required.

The new comprehensive Agreement will replace the existing 2011 air transport Agreement once it enters into force. In addition, Canada and the U.S. committed to implementing a truck cargo pre-inspection pilot in Canada. Phase I of the pilot was implemented at the Pacific Highway crossing between British Columbia and Washington, from June to December 2013. Phase II was implemented at the Peace Bridge, between Ontario and New York, from February 2014 to January 2015. An evaluation of the pilot will be completed by July 31, 2015.

For more information on the Beyond the Border Action Plan, check here.

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