Soft landing at Toronto Pearson from the USA: what the of...

Documents Needed

CoPR
Basis of the landing interview questions.
Goods-to-Follow (GTF) list
Itemized list of belongings you'll import later duty- and tax-free; get it stamped and certified by the customs officer at landing.

A new PR completed a soft landing at Toronto Pearson, travelling from the USA, and shared the play-by-play plus answers to follow-up questions:

The landing itself took about an hour. Immigration asked general questions based on the CoPR — reported specifics: date and place of birth, which country you're travelling from, and whether you have any criminal convictions.

Bring a prepared Goods-to-Follow (GTF) list. The member showed the itemized list to the customs officer, who stamped and certified it — a roughly 30-minute step. Members explained what it's for: it lists the items you plan to import into Canada duty- and tax-free when you move permanently, and it's essentially a one-time exercise. A follow-up question — whether items can be added to an already-stamped GTF form — went unanswered, so prepare the list as completely as possible before landing.

Do the admin the next day. The member went to a Service Canada office the following day to get the SIN, and opened a bank account the same day — both doable immediately after landing.

Do: Prepare a complete, itemized Goods-to-Follow list before landing and have the customs officer stamp and certify it.
Tip: Landing questions were basic CoPR facts: date/place of birth, country travelling from, criminal convictions.
Do: Get your SIN at Service Canada and open a bank account right after landing — both can be done the next day.

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