A reprieve for snowbirds? Trump Administration sued over traveller registration requirement

Immigration advocates are suing the Trump Administration over its upcoming registration requirement for non-U.S. citizens staying longer than 29 days, offering a possible reprieve for Canadian snowbirds.

The U.S.-based American Immigration Council and partner organizations launched the suit this week to try to quash the registration rule. They claim the administration failed to seek public input on an ill-conceived directive affecting millions of people.

On Tuesday, the advocacy groups will ask the District Court for the District of Columbia to impose a preliminary injunction blocking the registration requirement before its April 11 rollout.

“We feel strongly that this rule was issued in an improper and illegal way,” said Michelle Lapointe, legal director at the American Immigration Council. “What they’re rolling out is a system that is arbitrary, it’s confusing, it doesn’t make sense.”

In January, U.S. president Trump issued an executive order called “Protecting the American People Against Invasion.” As of April 11, it requires certain foreign nationals staying 30 days or longer, including many Canadians crossing by land, to register online with the U.S. government. 

The registration form asks travellers for a lengthy list of personal details, such as one’s U.S. address, and where one’s parents were born. Non-Canadians will also have to submit fingerprints. 

The immigration advocacy groups join many Canadian snowbirds who have raised concerns since learning about the registration rule last month. 

“I feel as if we are being targeted as Canadians,” said Rena Hans of Toronto, who owns a condo in Florida. “This is giving me kind of like, a little bit of a totalitarian vibe.”

Stephen Fine, president of the company Snowbird Advisor, which runs a resource website, says he has received hundreds of emails from snowbirds asking questions about the registration requirement.

“There’s a lot of anxiety and a lot of confusion.” 

Fine says one main problem is that the rule’s fine print can be hard to decipher. 

“The regulations came out in a hurry. There still isn’t a lot of clarity on how you complete the process, who’s required to complete the process.”

He says if the lawsuit manages to quash the regulations, it would be welcome news for snowbirds. 

$5,000 fine or imprisonment

Part of the confusion stems from the fact that not all foreigners staying one month or longer must register. Canadians issued an electronic arrival/departure record when entering the U.S. will be exempt. According to immigration lawyers CBC News consulted, typically, international air passengers are issued such records, and land travellers are not.

To find out their status, travellers need to input their travel information online via a U.S. immigration website upon arrival. 

Those required to register must carry proof of registration at all times or face fines of up to $5,000, or imprisonment for up to six months, or both.

Lapointe says that because the rules are complex, people could unknowingly break them, and find themselves in trouble. 

“They could be picked up, arrested, detained, fined.”

Snowbirds David and Dianne Fine (no relation to Stephen Fine) say they plan to return home to Hepworth, Ont., before the April 11 deadline to avoid any problems.

The couple, who are wintering at an RV park in Brownsville, Texas, completed the online registration form in late March. However, they have yet to receive official proof of their registration that they can print and show if required. 

“If we don’t have the right documentation and they happen to catch us before April 11, I guess it means that we go to jail, or face a $5,000 fine, or both,” said Fine, offering a worst-case scenario. 

U.S. immigration lawyer Rosanna Berardi told CBC News she doesn’t believe Canadians will face such repercussions.

However, Fine says, following recent news reports of heightened immigration scrutiny under the Trump administration, he’s not taking any chances.

“[From] what I’m seeing going on in the States the last few months, we don’t know if there’d be leniency,” he said. “That’s what we’re a little worried about.”

CBC News reached out to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Department of Homeland Security to clarify if, come April 11, the paperwork the Fine’s currently have — an email stating the U.S. government has received their completed registration — is acceptable.

Neither responded to that question, or to other questions regarding clarification of the registration rules.

They also did not comment directly on the lawsuit. Instead, both emailed the same one-paragraph reply that re-stated the new rule, and ended by stating that the registration requirement “aligns with the Trump Administration’s ongoing efforts to enhance the safety and security of the United States.” 

Some snowbirds not sure they’ll return to U.S.

The lawsuit specifically references Canadian snowbirds, suggesting if the requirement deters them from wintering in the U.S., it could cause financial harm to Americans. 

“They’re a boon to many communities, particularly in places like Florida,” said Lapointe of the  Immigration Council. “This is an issue that the government should have looked at.”

The Fines haven’t made up their minds if they’ll return to the U.S. next winter, citing the registration requirement and related issues, such as Trump’s trade war. 

They hope the lawsuit is successful so that if they do return, they’ll have one less thing to worry about.

“We’re pretty happy that this could go through and take away all the confusion,” said Fine.