The court has made its decision. Minor rule violations do not result in the cancellation of NEXUS cards.

A recent Federal Court judgment may make it more difficult for Canadian government officials to revoke a person's NEXUS trusted traveler card for a minor offense.

Justice John Norris of the Federal Court of Canada concluded late last month that suspending a Montreal man's NEXUS trusted traveller status for failing to declare some of the cash he was carrying was unfair.

The decision to invalidate the card was overturned by Norris, who directed that the case be "remitted for reconsideration by a different decision-maker."

The verdict implies that losing a NEXUS card and the travel rights that come with it now takes more than a little error, according to lawyer Cyndee Todgham Cherniak, who pleaded the case.

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), according to spokesman Jacqueline Callin, will not appeal the decision.

1.4 million of the 1.7 million NEXUS cardholders are Canadian citizens or permanent residents, according to the CBSA. Hundreds of NEXUS cards issued to Canadians and Americans are canceled each year.

The incident in question occurred in Montreal's airport in October of this year. Paul Abou Nassar, an experienced international business traveler, was getting ready to catch an aircraft to Vienna for a trip to China. Nassar said he had $6,000 US when a Canada Border Services Agency officer approached him and inquired how much cash he was carrying.

When the officer asked to count the money, he discovered that it totaled $7,736 US dollars, which converted to $10,100.12 Canadian dollars at the time. Travelers who have more than $10,000 in cash must report it to Canada's Proceeds of Crime, Money Laundering, and Terrorist Financing regulations.

Nassar's suitcase was examined, and an envelope containing 1,450 Euros was discovered, which Nassar said he had forgotten from a prior trip. The officer seized the cash despite having no cause to believe it was the proceeds of crime or would be used to fund terrorism. Nassar was eventually given the money back and fined $250 for failing to report all of the cash he was carrying.

Nassar's NEXUS card was taken by the police, and he found out a month later that his membership had been revoked. Nassar had "contravened customs and/or immigration program legislation," according to the notice, and was no longer qualified for the program, which requires participants to be of good character.

Nassar requested a re-examination of the decision, claiming it was "an honest mistake and oversight." Nassar's period of ineligibility was reduced from six to two years by the senior program adviser who reviewed the decision, but the revocation was not reversed.

The judge ruled that the financial infraction was insufficient to support the revocation and that the adviser's conclusion failed to explain why Nassar's infraction meant he lacked the good character required for the NEXUS program.

NEXUS cards are canceled more frequently than people know, according to Todgham Cherniak.

Todgham Cherniak said she knows of incidents where a card was canceled because the cardholder's wife had a muffin in her handbag, they neglected to declare a little purchase, or the officer didn't trust the price someone paid for something.

Some NEXUS card cancellations have been arbitrary, according to Vancouver immigration lawyer Richard Kurland. He highlighted a case in Toronto when a person's credit card was suspended because sesame seeds on a bagel were technically illegal under Canadian agricultural regulations.

CBSA officers have had "complete ability and authority" to pull someone's NEXUS card up until now, according to Kurland. Those whose cards have been canceled for minor infractions, according to Kurland, can reapply now that the judgment has been issued.