Some Canadian O and P travelers recently have been told by CBP officers that their admission may be denied for not having the original I-797 approval notices when they seek to enter the United States. In a recent meeting, CBP confirmed that presentation of a photocopy of an approval notice is sufficient for CBP to verify the petition validity and grant admission. The issue arises because Canadian nationals are exempt from the visa requirement for O and P visas and often are approved with multiple beneficiaries but only receive one original approval notice. Because the beneficiaries frequently do not travel together, only one person will have the original and all others only copies.
