Notice2026-06164
Addition of Preclearance Facility at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
March 31, 2026
Issuing agencies
Homeland Security DepartmentU.S. Customs and Border Protection
Abstract
This document announces that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has opened an additional preclearance facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport. Preclearance operations allow CBP to inspect and admit travelers and their goods to the United States prior to boarding in a foreign location, creating opportunities for increased security and efficiency. Preclearance enables travelers and their baggage to complete immigration, customs, and agriculture inspections by CBP officers and specialists in a foreign location before boarding a direct flight to the United States, generally eliminating the need for additional CBP (or other U.S. agency) processing or security screening upon arrival.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 61 (Tuesday, March 31, 2026)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 61 (Tuesday, March 31, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16011-16012]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-06164]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Addition of Preclearance Facility at Billy Bishop Toronto City
Airport
AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, DHS.
ACTION: General notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document announces that U.S. Customs and Border
Protection (CBP) has opened an additional preclearance facility in
Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.
Preclearance operations allow CBP to inspect and admit travelers and
their goods to the United States prior to boarding in a foreign
location, creating opportunities for increased security and efficiency.
Preclearance enables travelers and their baggage to complete
immigration, customs, and agriculture inspections by CBP officers and
specialists in a foreign location before boarding a direct flight to
the United States, generally eliminating the need for additional CBP
(or other U.S. agency) processing or security screening upon arrival.
DATES: The Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport preclearance operations
began on March 10, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joshua Serian, Office of Field
Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 202-713-8649 or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#115b7e627964703f42746378707f517273613f7579623f767e67"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="22684d514a57430c7147504b434c624140520c464a510c454d54">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
A. Preclearance Operations
CBP preclearance operations have been in existence since 1952.\1\
Preclearance facilities are established through the cooperative efforts
of CBP, foreign government representatives, and local facility
authorities, through signed bilateral treaties known as preclearance
agreements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ See <a href="https://transportgeography.org/contents/chapter6/airport-terminals/pre-clearance-airports-united-states/">https://transportgeography.org/contents/chapter6/airport-terminals/pre-clearance-airports-united-states/</a> (last
visited February 10, 2026).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Each facility is staffed with CBP officers responsible for
conducting inspections and examinations in connection with preclearing
passengers, crew, and their goods bound for the
[[Page 16012]]
United States. Generally, travelers who are inspected at a preclearance
facility are permitted to arrive at a U.S. domestic facility and exit
the U.S. domestic terminal upon arrival, or connect directly to a U.S.
domestic flight, without further CBP processing.
Preclearance facilities primarily serve to identify known and
unknown threats to U.S. national security before arrival into the
United States, thereby relieving congestion at federal inspection
facilities in the United States, and enhance security in the air
environment through the screening and inspection of travelers prior to
their arrival in the United States. See 19 CFR 162.8. In Fiscal Year
(FY) 2025, over 22 million aircraft travelers were processed at
preclearance facilities. This figure represents more than 15 percent of
all commercial aircraft travelers cleared by CBP in FY 2025. For FY
2026, CBP projects that an estimated 300,000-350,000 travelers will be
processed at the preclearance facility at Billy Bishop Toronto City
Airport, and in 10 years, CBP projects that 1 million travelers will be
processed at that facility annually.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ Information in this paragraph regarding preclearance
facility processing numbers was provided by CBP subject matter
experts on November 5, 2025.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
B. Toronto, Canada, Preclearance Operations
Preclearance operations have been ongoing in Toronto, Ontario, at
Toronto Pearson International Airport since 1952.\3\ Toronto, Ontario,
is listed by city and province as a preclearance office in the CBP
regulations in 19 CFR 101.5. Because the city and province are already
listed in the regulations, the designation of Billy Bishop Toronto City
Airport is being announced here by a notice in the Federal Register.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/news/archive/2015/03/canada-united-states-sign-historic-preclearance-agreement.html">https://www.canada.ca/en/news/archive/2015/03/canada-united-states-sign-historic-preclearance-agreement.html</a> (last
visited February 10, 2026). See also 8 FR 8099 (1943) and T.D. 77-
241 (42 FR 54936, Oct. 121977).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
CBP and the Toronto Port Authority signed a Memorandum of
Understanding on November 21, 2024, implementing certain aspects of the
2015 Agreement on Land, Rail, Marine, and Air Transport Preclearance
between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of Canada to establish another preclearance facility in
Toronto, Ontario, in Canada, at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport.
Preclearance operations at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport are a
second preclearance facility in the Toronto, Ontario, preclearance
office. Operations at this new facility began on March 10, 2026. CBP
will also list this new location on its website.\4\ The Billy Bishop
Toronto City Airport preclearance facility is open for use by
commercial flights. For a list of preclearance offices, please see 19
CFR 101.5.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\4\ A complete list of preclearance locations is available at:
<a href="https://www.cbp.gov/travel/preclearance">https://www.cbp.gov/travel/preclearance</a> (last visited on January 5,
2026).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Signing Authority
The authority of the Secretary of the Treasury with respect to CBP
regulations that are not related to customs revenue was transferred to
the Secretary of Homeland Security pursuant to section 403(l) of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002. This document is being issued in
accordance with DHS Delegation Order 7010.3, Revision 03.2, which
delegates to the Commissioner of CBP the authority to publish notices
relating to the administration of the activities of CBP.
Rodney S. Scott, the Commissioner, having reviewed and approved
this document, has delegated the authority to electronically sign this
document to the Director of the Regulations and Disclosure Law Division
of CBP, for purposes of publication in the Federal Register.
Robert F. Altneu,
Director, Regulations & Disclosure Law Division, Regulations & Rulings,
Office of Trade,U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
[FR Doc. 2026-06164 Filed 3-30-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-14-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on March 31, 2026.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.