CBP Opens Preclearance Facility at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport

Content

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 Joshua.Serian@cbp.dhs.gov.

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.

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

  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)

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
.

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.

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

Footnotes

(1) See https://transportgeography.org/contents/chapter6/airport-terminals/pre-clearance-airports-united-states/ (last visited February 10, 2026).

(2) Information in this paragraph regarding preclearance facility processing numbers was provided by CBP subject matter experts
on November 5, 2025.

(3) See https://www.canada.ca/en/news/archive/2015/03/canada-united-states-sign-historic-preclearance-agreement.html (last visited February 10, 2026). See also 8 FR 8099 (1943) and T.D. 77-241 (42 FR 54936, Oct. 121977).

(4) A complete list of preclearance locations is available at: https://www.cbp.gov/travel/preclearance (last visited on January 5, 2026).

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