VANCOUVER—With international tensions running high and new laws emerging on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border on national security, cannabis, and technology, the carefree days when Canadians could nip across to the States are gone. With these changes come more questions about what can happen to Canadians when they cross the border. To help navigate the murky waters, here is a look at what we know and don’t know about crossing the Canada-U.S. border as we head into the Labour Day long weekend. This information was compiled from previous reporting by Cherise Seucharan and Perrin Grauer.

This guide will be updated as regulations change.

Going from Canada to the U.S.

At any border crossing checkpoint, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials have the power to conduct a search of your car, yourself and your possessions without a warrant.

These search powers extend to electronic devices like phones, tablets, laptops and hard drives.

While officers are always allowed to search information that is stored exclusively on your devices — that is, without connecting to the internet to access data in the cloud — if they have “reasonable suspicion” of illegal activity, they are allowed to search your phone further by looking at apps connected to the internet, or by copying the information in the device, using tools to gain entry, or confiscating the phone altogether.

While there are some limitations on how long phones can be held, officers can apply to extend the recommended time frame. There are reports of phones being held for weeks and months from the American Civil Liberties Union.

If you have private information that do you not want searched, experts advise that you remove the information, or simply leave the device at home and carry a burner phone. If you must carry the device, turn it off as you approach the border. However, some lawyers, such as Meghan McDermott, staff counsel at the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, warn that carrying a burner phone is a red flag for border officers. This guide goes into detail about your rights with respect to devices.

People with a criminal record are generally not permitted to cross the border. CBP officers are legally permitted to search the electronic devices and social media accounts of travellers to find evidence of criminal activity if they believe a traveller may be answering questions untruthfully.

CBP officers may ask Canadian travellers whether they have used cannabis before.

Because CBP treats an admission of drug use the same as a conviction, answering “yes,” regardless of how long ago that cannabis use may have occurred, will land a Canadian with a lifetime ban on entry to the U.S. (formally known as a status of ‘inadmissibility’).

CBP officers may ask Canadian travellers whether they work in the cannabis industry, and if they are travelling to the U.S. for business purposes.

Answering “yes” to both of these questions renders a Canadian “inadmissible” to the U.S., resulting in a lifetime ban.

If Canadians who are cannabis users — or who work in the cannabis industry — answer “no” when asked, they are likewise eligible for a lifetime ban if CBP officers discover they are being dishonest, since lying to a federal officer is an offence under U.S. law.

These protocols apply at any border crossing between the U.S. and Canada (since, regardless of whether cannabis is legal in the state into which Canadians are travelling, the border is governed by U.S. federal law, under which cannabis is a prohibited substance).

It is possible to obtain a waiver to get around a lifetime ban (or status of inadmissibility) from an immigration lawyer, though waivers are only good for between six months and five years, and cost roughly $500.

The number of Canadians being rendered inadmissible for admitting to cannabis use has seen a marked increase in recent years — 50-fold, according to American immigration lawyer Len Saunders.

The CBP says the policy of banning Canadians from entry to the U.S. for admitting to cannabis use will not change, regardless of how Canadian drug law might evolve.

Canadian travellers do have the option — both at land crossings and in pre-flight clearance — of revoking their request to enter if they do not wish to answer questions posed by CBP officers.

If, for instance, a cannabis user revokes her right to enter in order to avoid truthfully answering a question which would result in a lifetime ban, she may have a ‘lookout’ put on her file. A lookout could mean she is subject to closer scrutiny during her next border crossing attempt, but it will not result in a lifetime ban or permanent consequence of any kind.

CBP officers are entitled to use documentary evidence — whether in print, online or on social media, and whether in text or image — of drug use to determine whether travellers are admissible to the U.S.

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Going from the U.S. back to Canada:

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers are stationed at checkpoints into Canada and also have the right to search you, even if you are a Canadian citizen. CBSA can search goods without a warrant and considers phones and electronic devices to be “goods.”

There are tools available to the CBSA that enable it to copy a “disc image” of your phone’s data in its entirety. Software can then be used to unlock the phone’s passwords, even strong ones. Information found on a search of your phone this way can be used to charge you with an offence.

While it is unlikely for things to escalate if you refuse to give a password, there has been one case, in 2015, of a Canadian who was arrested for refusing at the Halifax International Airport.

Biometrics and and facial recognition technologies are being used by the CBSA and in travel documentation. Primary Inspection Kiosks, which have begun appearing at some at Canadian airports, are optional tools that use facial recognition technology to speed up the process.

What we don’t know:

In late 2017, a new law was passed permitting “preclearance” sites at airports, train stations and ferries, where U.S. border officials can perform searches on Canadian ground for people heading to the U.S. While some have already cropped up in select Canadian airports, we do not know when they will begin to be rolled out in train stations and ferries, but that could begin as soon as this fall.

We do not know the exact types of technology available to U.S. border officers or CBSA officers to search phones or devices.

The law is unclear about your options if you are asked to provide your password, but refusing could count as “obstructing” a search.

Whether Canadians who work strictly in the Canadian cannabis industry, with no ties to the U.S. cannabis economy, are subject to lifetime bans — although to be on the safe side, it’s practical to assume they are.

Whether CBP officers currently employ the same at lines of questioning (or practice of administering inadmissibility) for cannabis use and involvement in the cannabis industry during pre-flight clearance.

While it is legal for U.S. CBP officers to ask any Canadian about past drug use, it is unclear how Canadians are selected for this line of questioning. Saunders, the immigration lawyer, has suggested a certain amount of “profiling” is occurring based on people’s appearance and dress.

Perrin Grauer is a Vancouver-based reporter covering Canada’s cannabis economy. Follow him on Twitter: perringrauer

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