Windsor-Detroit Tunnel heading into Detroit, June 27, 2014. (photo by Mike Vlasveld)Windsor-Detroit Tunnel heading into Detroit, June 27, 2014. (photo by Mike Vlasveld)
Windsor

A Fix For Nurses Denied At Border Coming

The principal attorney at the American Immigration Lawyers Association says by the end of the week advanced level care nurses should not have a problem crossing the border.

Bob Birach says the association has been in close contact with U.S. Customs and Border Protection since last week when several nurses who live in Windsor-Essex were stopped by border security. He says the confusion came from a interpretation of the rules under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

"It's like somebody comes across as an accountant. Three times for the last nine years, they've been getting their TNs," he says. "They come to get it a fourth time, and they're told now you're the CFO of the company."

Professions requiring a TN visa are not clearly defined, and Birach admits border guards have a lot of leeway to interpret them.

"There's been nothing in writing [from the White House]. It's sort of 'hey, we want to tighten up the borders, we want to toughen things up. You do what you think is best until we tell you what to do,'" he explains.

After speaking with CBP officials last Friday, Birach says it was believed there was an understanding. Officials had agreed to verbally tell front-line border guards that nurses do not need a visa, but on Monday, a nurse was again denied entry.

Birach says there was a second meeting with border officials.

"They again put the word out verbally to their frontline officers that advanced practice nurses are in fact nurses and are legally eligible to enter under NAFTA," he says. "But what we, and some of the frontline officers, are looking for is something in writing."

Any nurse that continues to be delayed or turned away at the border can ask to speak with a supervisor.

"Don't be afraid. You're not going to be punished for asking to speak with a supervisor," he stresses. "They want you to use the system that's in place."

Birach says there may be delays for nurses who are renewing their paperwork or applying for status to work in the U.S. going forward until the White House clarifies its directive to tighten up the border.

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