CONSULAR OUTREACH TO AMERICAN CITIZENS IN NEWFOUNDLAND

UNCLAS HALIFAX 000206 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR CA/OCS/ACS/WHA, CA/PPT AND CA/P E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CASC CPAS CA SUBJECT: CONSULAR OUTREACH TO AMERICAN CITIZENS IN NEWFOUNDLAND ¶1. SUMMARY: In early October CONOFF and ACS assistant traveled to St John's, Newfoundland to provide services for American citizens living in the region. CONOFF met privately with nearly 50 American citizens to provide consular services normally available only in Halifax and to discuss issues ranging from acquisition and transmission of citizenship, upcoming changes to cross-border travel under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI),and procedures for voting from overseas. She also met with contacts at Canadian Citizenship and Immigration and Canadian Border Services Agency in St John's. The visit succeeded in raising the level of WHTI awareness in Newfoundland and Labrador and helped highlight the Consulate General's role in providing needed government services to the resident American community. To the extent that funding is available, Post would like to make this a regular outreach effort. END SUMMARY ¶2. Consulate General Halifax has consular responsibilities for the provinces of Atlantic Canada (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland/Labrador),and the French islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon. Routine consular services are performed in Halifax, requiring extensive (and expensive) travel for the sizeable American community living in the outer reaches of this district. As part of Mission Canada's broader WHTI program, post determined that a visit to St John's, with a particular focus on encouraging passport applications, was in order. Prior to the visit, post ran a Public Service Announcement in local newspapers and CONOFF was interviewed by VOCM, a popular St John's radio station. ¶3. In only two days, post processed 35 passport applications, many from people who were applying for the first time. (This compares with just 21 applications taken from residents of Newfoundland and Labrador by the Consulate General in the prior twelve months.) Most applicants had questions about whether certain relatives met the criteria for citizenship and they expressed hope that the visit to St. John's could become a regular event. The savings in time and money we were able to offer American citizens living in Canada's poorest province were considerable, especially considering that an applicant would probably have to purchase a round trip air ticket, stay overnight and take off two days from work or school to apply in Halifax. One family of six that applied for passports probably saved over $1000 by taking advantage of our visit. In addition to passports, Americans were able to apply for Consular Reports of Birth Abroad and Social Security numbers. Furthermore, CONOFF used this opportunity to increase awareness, not just of WHTI, but of the benefits of registering online, the Embassy's public website and procedures for absentee voting. ¶4. CONOFF also met with the provincial managers at Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). The CBSA Director for Newfoundland and Labrador, John Fagan, used the opportunity to pull together his managers for an impromptu training session on U.S. visa and border procedures. CONOFF, drawing on guidance from the Department, also briefed these officials on the latest status of WHTI implementation and answered their questions about expected changes. (Note: In contrast to the predominant negative tone in the Canadian media towards WHTI, our colleagues in border security look forward to the day when a passport will be required to cross the border between Canada and the United States, in the words of one investigator, "the sooner, the better." End Note.) ¶5. COMMENT: This was the first time Consulate General Halifax has made an outreach trip to an outlying district to provide passport and other services for American citizens. Newfoundland in particular has a sizeable American community with strong ties to the United States, as the U.S. Naval Base at Argentia operated here from 1941 until 1994, and many of Newfoundland's present-day American community report some family ties to that base. Post is extremely pleased with the results of this trip and, contingent upon adequate travel funding, plans to make the consular visit to St. John's a regular event. END COMMENT. FOSTER