Twenty-six land ports of entry into Alberta, British Columbia, and Manitoba will operate on reduced hours this winter, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) confirmed in online news releases published on October 9, 2026. The revised schedules take effect on November 1, 2026, and run through March 14, 2027, covering the provinces that border the western United States.

The CBSA described the change as a seasonal "fall back" of operating hours — a routine reduction for the winter period rather than a permanent closure of any crossing. The agency publishes such notices each year ahead of the colder months, when traffic volumes at smaller crossings drop.

Who does the change affect?

The reduced hours apply to travellers and commercial drivers who use the 26 named land ports of entry in the three provinces. Anyone planning to cross the border between November 1, 2026, and March 14, 2027, should check the specific schedule of the crossing they intend to use before departure. Hours vary by port, and the CBSA releases published on October 9, 2026, list the updated times for each location.

What stays the same — and what is not said

The CBSA has framed the move as seasonal. Nothing in the October 9, 2026, releases indicates that any of the 26 ports will close outright or that the reductions will extend beyond March 14, 2027. Travellers should treat that end date as the current commitment, not a guarantee; the agency can adjust hours again if conditions change.

The notices also do not state how many hours each crossing will lose. The reductions will not be uniform across all 26 ports. Before you plan a crossing, verify the exact posted hours for your specific port on official CBSA channels rather than relying on last season's schedule.

A practical caveat follows every seasonal adjustment of this kind: arriving outside posted hours at a land port is not a procedural formality. Ports without 24-hour service close physically. A missed window can mean a detour to a larger, round-the-clock crossing — in western Canada, that can add significant driving distance.

How to verify your crossing

The CBSA publishes current and planned port-of-entry hours through its official channels, and the October 9, 2026, releases name each of the 26 affected sites. Travellers holding appointments, work commitments, or connecting flights on either side of the border should build a buffer around the posted opening and closing times.

Anyone uncertain about how the new hours interact with a specific travel plan should consult the official CBSA schedule or a licensed professional. This article reports the published change; it does not assess individual circumstances.

The seasonal reduction is the third hard number to hold onto: 26 ports, one start date of November 1, 2026, and one end date of March 14, 2027. Everything else — full per-port schedules — sits in the CBSA's own releases, and that is where travellers should confirm it.