BUT CANADIAN SNOWBIRDS IN FLORIDA (AND ELSEWHERE) MUST ATTEND BIOMETRICS APPOINTMENT…
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2025 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — The Federal Register Wednesday officially published the rule affecting thousands of Canadian “snowbirds” that we reported on earlier this week. Under the rule — which takes effect in April — all Canadian visitors to the United States staying for more than 30 days must register with the Department of Homeland Security. In an initial version of the rule, those visitors were also to be fingerprinted. That has changed.
Under the rule, which you can read in its entirety here, Canadian visitors staying for more than 30 days must attend a biometrics appointment with DHS. While Canadians will not be fingerprinted, they should expect to be subject to a face and/or retinal scan. Most Americans with “Global Entry” or other port of entry registrations have taken part in similar biometrics screenings conducted by the Department of Homeland Security.
Here is the updated relevant language published on Wednesday: “Submission of the registration in myUSCIS initiates the process for the alien’s Biometrics Services Appointment at a USCIS Application Support Center (ASC). USCIS contacts the registrant regarding the biometrics services appointment and the collection of biometrics, including fingerprints, photograph and signature. USCIS uses this information for purposes of identity verification, and background and security checks, including a check of criminal history records maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).[6] USCIS sends an appointment notice with the date, time and location of the registrant’s biometric services appointment.
Once an alien successfully completes his or her biometrics appointment at an ASC, the ELIS case management systems will trigger the creation of “Proof of Alien Registration” with a unique identifier printed on the document. For those aliens, such as Canadian nonimmigrants and aliens under the age of 14, required to register but for whom the fingerprint requirement is waived, the ELIS case management system will trigger the creation of the “Proof of Alien Registration” upon receipt of Form G-325R. This Proof of Alien Registration document will then be posted to the alien’s myUSCIS account. In the myUSCIS account, the alien will be allowed to download a .PDF version of the document, and can print it. This document serves as evidence of the alien’s registration for purposes of 8 U.S.C. 1304(d).[7]“
Canadians required to register can learn more — and set up an appointment — on the USCIS homepage which can be accessed here. Immigration Attorneys tell BocaNewsNow.com that while Canadian citizens should comply with U.S. policy and register, it is more likely than not that “enforcement” will start as educational measures before fines are assessed or criminal prosecution commences.
