Bird Talk Featuring the letters & concerns of our members SEND YOUR LETTERS TO Bird Talk, c/o CSANews 180 Lesmill Road Toronto, Ontario M3B 2T5 Online at www.snowbirds.org/bird-talk or by e-mail: csawriteus@snowbirds.org Bird Talk Dear Bird Talk, Will Canadian citizens have to pay a “Visa Integrity Fee” to winter in Florida? Arthur Leader Ottawa, ON Ed.: Canadian citizens with Canadian passports do not have to pay the Visa Integrity Fee. Permanent residents of Canada who are citizens or nationals of other countries that are included in the United States Visa Waiver Program can visit the U.S. for up to 90 days without paying the Visa Integrity Fee. If they plan to stay for longer than 90 days, they have to apply for a visa and pay the fee. Citizens of countries that are not designated under the Visa Waiver Program have to apply for a visa and pay the fee. Here is a list of the countries that are designated under the Visa Waiver Program: Dear Bird Talk, I renewed my passport in May 2024 and travelled to the U.S. in November 2024. Upon reviewing my I-94, I noted there is no travel history showing a record of my return to Canada in April 2025. Should I contact the deferred inspection site before I return to the U.S. this coming November, or should I wait to see if the travel history appears after I reach my destination in the U.S.? Larry Funfer Calgary, AB Ed.: If the I-94 website does not show the date of your last return to Canada, be prepared for your next border crossing by carrying evidence of your return to Canada, such as a receipt from a gasoline purchase, a restaurant meal or shopping trip in Canada on the day of your last return. Dear Bird Talk, Does anyone know if and how much (in $) we can bring into the United States without paying a tariff? We want to bring down some foodstuffs such as soups, Melba toast, Clamato juice, etc. and we don’t want to be hit with a 25% duty/tariff when we cross the border to go to Florida in October. Ted Karas Toronto, ON Ed.: Commercially packaged and unopened food products being brought into the United States for personal consumption are generally not subject to tariffs. Just remember to declare it and don’t import meat products. Dear Bird Talk, We are longtime CSA members and Canadian citizens who winter in the Palm Springs area and have done so for the last 13 years. We usually go down around the middle of October and come back at the end of March. That is 5.5 months, which adds up to 168 calendar days, which is under the B-2 Visa 182-day limit. We complete and file 8840s every year. However, when we use your “Substantial Presence Test” calculator which, as you know, prorates the days over a three-year period, we come out in excess of 182 days and technically are non-compliant with IRS policy. Is it your advice that we should base our calculations on the “Substantial Presence Test” and basically forget the 182-day limits as detailed in the B-2 Visa Immigration policy? If so, then to be compliant, we really can only be in the U.S. for four months per year. It almost seems like we have a test for the IRS and one for Customs and Immigration and they don’t coincide very well. Ray Renaud Osoyoos, BC Ed.: You are filing the 8840 Closer Connection Form because you meet the substantial presence test calculation that deems you as taxable on your worldwide income as a resident alien of the United States. By filing the form, you are opting to be treated as a non-resident alien of the United States, despite meeting the substantial presence test. Filing the form deems you as compliant. Visiting the United States for no longer than 182 days in a 12-month period deems you as compliant with U.S. immigration policy. Two different sets of rules for two different branches of government. Andorra Australia Austria Belgium Brunei Chile Croatia Czechia Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Israel Italy Japan Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Monaco Netherlands New Zealand Norway Poland Portugal Qatar San Marino Singapore Slovakia Slovenia South Korea Spain Sweden Switzerland Taiwan United Kingdom CSANews | FALL 2025 | 9
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