Every day, thousands of passengers go through airport security screening in Canada prior to boarding their flights. There are a number of things you can do to ensure you get through the Canadian airport security screening checkpoint as quickly as possible:

• Pack Smart - Know ahead of time what items you can and can’t bring in your carry-on baggage.
• Speed Up Screening – Plan what you’ll wear before you arrive at the airport.

Make sure you arrive at pre-board screening well in advance of your flight. Once there, you will be asked to place all personal items in the bins provided. 

Do:

• Place your transparent, closed and resealable plastic bag containing your liquids, aerosols and gels into a separate bin. If you are also travelling with exempted liquids, please remove them at this time and place them into the bin.
• Remove laptop computers and gaming consoles from their carrying cases and place them in the bins provided. Place the electronics on one side of the bin, fitting the item length-wise if possible.  This will allow space for other personal items to be placed in the same bin.  Ensure nothing is placed below or on top of the electronics. 
• If space permits, all other personal items can be placed in the same bin as the electronics provided they are clearly separated from and do not conceal the electronics.
  • Empty your pockets and place contents in the bins, including: loose change, keys, foil gum wrappers, bottle openers, carabiners.
  • Take off coats, jackets, and outerwear and place them into the bin.
• Footwear must be removed and placed in the bins if travelling to the US only. This is not a security requirement on domestic flights within Canada. However, some types of footwear – especially those with metal arches (such as steel-toe boots and high-heeled shoes/boots) – may alarm the walk through metal detector and require removal for further screening. To avoid delays during the screening process, consider placing your footwear in the bin even if it is not a requirement for your flight. Footwear can also be placed in the same bin as the electronics and other personal items, space permitting.

Don’t:

• Forget how many bins you took so that personal belongings aren't left behind upon exiting the checkpoint area.
• Remove cell phones, portable media players, digital video cameras, film cameras, netbooks, PDAs, iPods and smartphones from your carry-on baggage. These do not need to be screened separately.
• Pack souvenir or gift items containing liquids, aerosols, or gels (i.e. snow globes, condensed soup, jams and jellies, wine, liquor) in carry-on baggage.
• Bring non-permitted items or dangerous goods.
• Remove camera film from your carry-on baggage. Camera film under 800 ASA/ISO will not be damaged by the security screening X-ray equipment.

Remember, if you set off the alarm while walking through the metal detector, you will have to undergo further screening to determine its source. This may include hand “wanding” and a physical search.

>> For a complete list of air travel prohibited items in Canada including baggage carry-on restrictions, please visit the Pack Smart page.

For information on pre-board screening procedures or air travel within the US, please consult the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Web site, or your travel agent.