What NOT to say to a USA border Agent!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Unfortunately the guards don't perceive of themselves as the 'welcoming face to a country' - and I don't get the impression they are very interested in creating that image, either. They want to appear as the big bad tough guys who protect the country from horrible dangerous illegal immigrants or terrorists in disguise -- and everyone is either one or the other. They would probably view the incident you refer to as a 'job well done'.

[emt103c 10]

I'm a USC, was visiting my hubby in Canada frequently. The U.S. border guards would always ask me why I was in Canada, and I would reply, "Visiting my husband," to which they ALWAYS replied, "What is HE doing in Canada?"

I always, without missing a beat would say, "He's Canadian." Which always got a strange look, but no more questions. . .it doesn't strike me as their business why HE'S there, aren't they supposed to be worried about me?

Haha, so what's wrong with your answer??

On an off-topic note, my husband was born in Pakistan, and immigrated to Canada, where he got citizenship. . .so his visa gets issued, after months of Admin. Processing, and security checks and we get to the border with his immigrant visa, and what do they spend all their time questioning him about?? WHY HE LEFT PAKISTAN 10 YEARS AGO! If he carries a passport for Pakistan, and if he ever visits. . . don't we think this might have been covered in the original processing?

*sigh*

[Marilyn. 340]

yeah almost every time my hubby came up to visit me he got "interrogated" at the Vancouver Airport...

one time they sent him over to secondary inspection and the lady asked him why he was there and hubby said i don't really know.. the lady checked over his things and just sent him on his way...

Never go through YVR if you're looking to visit your Canadian boyfriend/girlfriend, fiance(e) or spouse. They go absolutely crazy there. I've heard YYZ is just as bad or even sometimes worse. I suppose that makes sense, though. Both Vancouver and Toronto probably receive the most people and therefore, the highest number of foreign visitors.

yeah it got kind of annoying when he would get questioned almost every time he went through there but he really didn't have any other choice.. he knew how to handle himself though because of the numerous times he crossed back and forth into Mexico...

[jundp 191]

Ok, after all these posts and the one Texanadian made about Blaine...I'm skeered.

P flies into Vancouver in 11 days and then we have to deal with the land crossing.

Come to think of it, on his first visit to the US, we took the ferry to Victoria and they asked questions there. Were we

engaged or planning to get married (we'd only just decided to try the long distance dating thing at that time). At

the time I thought it was odd, now, not so much.

[Flames9_RN 358]

I traveleld monthly to DC from Halifax when I was going through the CR-1 process and never had a problem. Of course I didnt try to agitate them back then,lol

[SapphireDreams 71]

This past weekend when my bf was on his way back to NY going through YYZ, the U.S. Border person didn't ask him any questions... hahaha... he just looked at his passport and said "Have a nice day".

The time before that, he said he was visiting his gf and the border guard asked "When are you going to make an honest woman out of her" hahahah.

He always has the funniest experiences.

I've had a few funny experiences too. One guy kept joking and asking me why I would ever want to date an American, he had finished all his questioning and then at the very end was like, "So, you're SURE you want to date an American??" and laughed. It was kinda nice not to get the third degree for once.

I hope I get someone nice next time I go through. It'll be my first time visiting after filing for the K1.

[thetreble 19]

I've been through secondary searching at YYZ. I've had a couple of uncomfortable experiences, but I came through them all okay I guess. The worst was taking the greyhound through from Montreal to New York. It wasn't me I was worried about, it was the other 50 people. There were always a few surprise guests that took the bus without a passport, or without proper paper work. There were times that I would be at the border for 6 to 8 hours.

[DeadPoolX 9]

I'm a USC, was visiting my hubby in Canada frequently. The U.S. border guards would always ask me why I was in Canada, and I would reply, "Visiting my husband," to which they ALWAYS replied, "What is HE doing in Canada?"

I always, without missing a beat would say, "He's Canadian." Which always got a strange look, but no more questions. . .it doesn't strike me as their business why HE'S there, aren't they supposed to be worried about me?

Haha, so what's wrong with your answer??

On an off-topic note, my husband was born in Pakistan, and immigrated to Canada, where he got citizenship. . .so his visa gets issued, after months of Admin. Processing, and security checks and we get to the border with his immigrant visa, and what do they spend all their time questioning him about?? WHY HE LEFT PAKISTAN 10 YEARS AGO! If he carries a passport for Pakistan, and if he ever visits. . . don't we think this might have been covered in the original processing?

*sigh*

That reminds me of one time I was heading back to the U.S. from YYC, a U.S. Customs Officer decided to ask me a number of questions, including, "How much money do you have on you" and "What did you do in Canada?" I momentarily toyed with responding in a sarcastic manner, since he couldn't keep me from entering the United States; however, I wisely decided against it.

While I knew he couldn't legally stop me from going home, he could detain me, have me searched, arrested and probably make my life a living hell before letting me go. I'm sure I would've missed my plane too, which would've been a real hassle as well.

But honestly... what did it matter to him what I did in Canada when I was coming back to my home country? Asking me questions like that just seemed like a formality at best and at worst, a complete waste of time (both his and mine).

Edited July 5, 2008 by DeadPoolX

[Sprailenes 47]

One time going into Canada, I was the passenger in the car and I was on the phone with my mother and I told her to hold on because we were at the border and the guy demanded I hang up and told me it was rude.

Note: I wasn't talking to her while we were talking to him. I went to say: "Mom hang on" and put the phone on my lap.

The guy was such a douche.

[Ana&D 0]

I've visited US four times prior to meeting D. And there were absolutelly no issues. But it just seems to me that problems arise when one utters words "boyfriend" or "girlfriend" in relation to USC. For instance, when we were coming back from a vacation in Jamaica and I presented my J1 with all support documentation for re-entry (I still had 3 months to go on my internship) everything seemed fine untill the guy asked me if I was travelling alone. As soon as I mentioned I was with my boyfriend who is a USC and already passed through the citizen line, I was taken to a sad lil room and interrogated about my plans and our future. I had to explain several times that I am on J1 and do know immigration laws and do not plan to stay after visa expiration. They finally let me go. But wait, it got better. When I finally found D and we proceeded to customs an officer caught up with us and started asking the same questions all over again, seriously harrasing D for dating me!!!

[HannahP 119]

I think I was sixteen when I first went to Canada to see my now-hubby. Definitely got the third degree. Did I meet him on the internet? (No! But they kept referring to him as my "internet boyfriend.") Did my parents know where I was? Did his parents know that I was coming? Where were we staying? I sat in secondary for an hour while they met up with the boy and called his parents. But I never got hassled again. Makes me wonder what kind of notes they keep in their files about you?

The boy and I got caught trying to sneak booze across the Winnipeg/ND border. (From Canada to the US.) They made us dump it out. He said there was a huge dumpster full of empty bottles. They also searched our car and luggage, but actually left things CLEANER. Can't complain there.

[thetreble 19]

wow you crossed the border by yourself at 16? My parents would have killed me. In fact, I'd still be chained to my bed right now if that was the case. hah

[HannahP 119]

wow you crossed the border by yourself at 16? My parents would have killed me. In fact, I'd still be chained to my bed right now if that was the case. hah

Well, they knew about it/paid for my ticket! We'd already been dating for about six months, with him coming down from ND (where he was going to uni) every other weekend. My dad was like "Well, just don't get knocked up."

[Cloudy9 11]

I want to be a Customs agent! I know I can and would do a better job then the idiots that they have working, lol.

The first time I returned to the US after getting my GC was in Seattle from Victoria in 2004. I handed him both my GC and passport (GC on top). He opens my passport, does something on the computer and then looks at me and askes how long I intend on visiting? Inside I'm saying "What is your malfunction that you didn't see my GC"?!?!?! Outwardly I say that I'm a GC holder and I live in Nevada. He then stamps my passport and says welcome home, LMAO. What an idiot.

This year in April I traveled again to Victoria and on my way back did the same thing, this time they had someone that knew their business and didn't ask me any stupid questions.

Joanne

[Emancipation 2]

I have to say my hubby (USC) has always had a harder time going through the US side.. Now that I have my GC they don't even bat an eye most of the time, but hubby always gets more questions than I! When crossing into Canada of course neither one of us gets any issues.. In fact one time we crossed over at Houlton the guard was actually in the flower beds weeding (with her gun strapped on of course for safety)

They actually had a sign posted on the land crossing this time in Houlton (into the US) that listed the "code of conduct" for the agents - i wish I would have read it closer, but i remember #1 is that they would "warmly welcome you to the USA".. I never noticed signage like this before - so perhaps they are trying a new "niceness blitz"?