Jump to content
Misty1979

Anyone know what kind of food we are/aren't allowed to ship to the US?

32 posts in this topic

Recommended Posts

Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted
What's wrong with packaged chocolates?!!?

I need chocolate....

All I know is that if you want a care package from home, homemade goodies are ok, but purchased goods are generally bad (especially if they are goods that you can get in the US). Oh, and packaged chocolates are definitely considered a no-no. Just my experience.

I'm not sure either.. I take LOADS of chocolate back from the US when i come back, and no one's said anything to me...

like i said, it was my experience. :) When I went to send a care package to Jerry for Valentine's Day (before we were married), the lady at MailBoxes,etc. said to me "I hope you didn't put any packaged chocolates in there, they'll get confiscated." She said something about "that if you can get it in the US, you shouldn't be importing it in and chocolates are big on the no-no list". When my mom went to our local post office to ask if she could mail me jam and such, the postmistress confirmed that if it was homemade, there's not a problem. *dunno*

*Cheryl -- Nova Scotia ....... Jerry -- Oklahoma*

Jan 17, 2014 N-400 submitted

Jan 27, 2014 NOA received and cheque cashed

Feb 13, 2014 Biometrics scheduled

Nov 7, 2014 NOA received and interview scheduled


MAY IS NATIONAL STROKE AWARENESS MONTH
Educate Yourself on the Warning Signs of Stroke -- talk to me, I am a survivor!

"Life is as the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset" ---Crowfoot

The true measure of a society is how those who have treat those who don't.

  • Replies 31
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Filed: Other Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted

not sure what the deal would be with chocolates....unless they were "special brownies"....

I live on the border and when I could go back and forth (not now until my AOS goes thru) we bought all our groceries in Canada and brought them here. The only exception was beef and citrus. Oh and the Duty Free Shops at the border sell chocolate....so ?!?!?! sorry I just don't get that.

I was also told if you bring jerky/pet food/beef products that are clearly labed "MADE IN USA" you would not have any problems. Still that was 1 officers word....so I still wouldn't get any of that.

Oct 1/09 - I-751 package sent

Oct 3 - package delivered

Oct 5 - NOA mailed

Oct 13 - 1st NOA received and additional letters for my daughters I filed with. NOAs stated Resident Status

has been extended for 1 year and that we will be receiving a letter for an ASC appointment for

fingerprints, photo, and signature.

Dec 2009 - Received 10 year permanent resident card.

Feb 2010 - My children received their 10 year permanent resident cards.

Oct 2010 - My children were legally adopted by my USA Citizen husband.

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted
I was also told if you bring jerky/pet food/beef products that are clearly labed "MADE IN USA" you would not have any problems. Still that was 1 officers word....so I still wouldn't get any of that.

I wasn't allowed to bring in rabbit pellets once... rabbit pellets are made from alfalfa.... ?

Bugs in the alfalfa plants or something? But they were ground up and in pellet form!! Whateva.... :wacko:

Filed: Other Timeline
Posted

I think they're just the same with food items as they are with people, it depends on the mood of the CBP.

When I come back from a visit home, I ALWAYS bring chocolate back with me, and sometimes ketchup and tea and other stuff. Never meat or cheese. One time I brought a jar of homemade jam, the person inspecting my bags said "mmmmm....jam..." that was it.

If you're MAILING stuff down however, there are lots more restrictions which are very very very confusing to postal workers, so you're probably better off just ordering from an internet shop and have it shipped, because all that stuff has already been approved by FDA and whatnot to enter the US via that vendor.

divorced - April 2010 moved back to Ontario May 2010 and surrendered green card

PLEASE DO NOT PRIVATE MESSAGE ME OR EMAIL ME. I HAVE NO IDEA ABOUT CURRENT US IMMIGRATION PROCEDURES!!!!!

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted

The few times that I did ship food items to the USA,the Cdn postal worker (with a wink in her eye) said to write homemade by any type of food item!!

Canadians Visiting the USA while undergoing the visa process, my free advice:

1) Always tell the TRUTH. never lie to the POE officer

2) Be confident in ur replies

3) keep ur response short and to the point, don't tell ur life story!!

4) look the POE officer in the eye when speaking to them. They are looking for people lieing and have been trained to find them!

5) Pack light! No job resumes with you

6) Bring ties to Canada (letter from employer when ur expected back at work, lease, etc etc)

7) Always be polite, being rude isn't going to get ya anywhere, and could make things worse!!

8) Have a plan in case u do get denied (be polite) It wont harm ur visa application if ur denied,that is if ur polite and didn't lie! Refer to #1

Posted (edited)

I made little heart shaped cookies for Gene one Valentine's Day one year, and put them in a little heart shaped cookie tin. When filling out the customs forms, I put down that one of the items was cookies. I shipped it Fed-Ex. Well, when Gene got the box, there was a notice on it, that the box had been opened for inspection.

There were missing cookies!! :o:o

He didn't eat any. God knows if they ate them, threw them away, or if they washed their hands! haha :lol:

Anyway, I think it's all in the way you ship things. When travelling by plane, I would shove as many Canadian food items in my suitcase as possible. Sending by mail means you have to declare things.

Carla (F)

Edited by cartoboy123
carlahmsb4.gif
Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted
not sure what the deal would be with chocolates....unless they were "special brownies"....

I live on the border and when I could go back and forth (not now until my AOS goes thru) we bought all our groceries in Canada and brought them here. The only exception was beef and citrus. Oh and the Duty Free Shops at the border sell chocolate....so ?!?!?! sorry I just don't get that.

I was also told if you bring jerky/pet food/beef products that are clearly labed "MADE IN USA" you would not have any problems. Still that was 1 officers word....so I still wouldn't get any of that.

I was talking about mailing the chocolate, I guess everyone else was talking about bringing it with them in person. Like Reba said, mailing stuff is a different ball of wax. As long as I get my mom's raspberry jam, I don't care! :P

*Cheryl -- Nova Scotia ....... Jerry -- Oklahoma*

Jan 17, 2014 N-400 submitted

Jan 27, 2014 NOA received and cheque cashed

Feb 13, 2014 Biometrics scheduled

Nov 7, 2014 NOA received and interview scheduled


MAY IS NATIONAL STROKE AWARENESS MONTH
Educate Yourself on the Warning Signs of Stroke -- talk to me, I am a survivor!

"Life is as the little shadow that runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset" ---Crowfoot

The true measure of a society is how those who have treat those who don't.

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted (edited)
I made little heart shaped cookies for Gene one Valentine's Day one year, and put them in a little heart shaped cookie tin. When filling out the customs forms, I put down that one of the items was cookies. I shipped it Fed-Ex. Well, when Gene got the box, there was a notice on it, that the box had been opened for inspection.

There were missing cookies!! :o:o

He didn't eat any. God knows if they ate them, threw them away, or if they washed their hands! haha :lol:

Anyway, I think it's all in the way you ship things. When travelling by plane, I would shove as many Canadian food items in my suitcase as possible. Sending by mail means you have to declare things.

Carla (F)

Well, I can sort of relate. I brought a rubber chicken with me to Mexico as a weird sort of office joke. He was the mascot around the office, so I brought him with me and took pictures of him on the beach with margaritas, sitting on surfboards, etc. (You can only imagine the looks the other people on the beach were giving me...).

Anyways, when poor Carlos left Mexico, the customs guys had their way with him. I brought him out of my suitcase, and his throat was ripped open and his tongue was hanging out. I think they thought I must have been storing something illegal in him, since they couldn't really comprehend why someone would bring a rubber chicken on their travels. :lol:

Edited by Misty1979

Sept.09/06 Married!!!

Dec.21/06 Sent I-130

Jan.04/04 Received NOA1

Feb.23/06 Sent I-129F

March06/06 USCIS Website States: "Approval Notice Sent."

March15/07 Approval notice arrives in snail mail

March 18/07 NOA1 for I-129F

April 10/07 DS-3032+ AOS fee arrive

April 17/07 Sent back DS-3032 + AOS fee via overnight delivery

May 05/07 AOS arrives in mail

May 07/07 IV bill arrives in mail

May 08/08 Sent back IV bill

May 21 NVC generates DS-230

June 4/07 Mailed DS-230 via overnight delivery.

June 7/07 DS-230 entered into the system

June 18/07 Case Complete!

July 25/07 Medical

September 4/07 Contacted State Senator Re: MTL backlog

Dec.6/07 INTERVIEW..... APPROVED!!!! (After being kept awake all night in dirty clothes standing outside my hotel because Air Canada lost my luggage and my hotel started on fire. Meh, sleep is highly over-rated anyways.)

Dec.18/07 Moved to the US

Oct. 29/09 Citizenship Oath Ceremony

"We come to love not by finding the perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly"

Filed: Other Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted

poor chicken....sounds like someone "choked" him!!!

Oct 1/09 - I-751 package sent

Oct 3 - package delivered

Oct 5 - NOA mailed

Oct 13 - 1st NOA received and additional letters for my daughters I filed with. NOAs stated Resident Status

has been extended for 1 year and that we will be receiving a letter for an ASC appointment for

fingerprints, photo, and signature.

Dec 2009 - Received 10 year permanent resident card.

Feb 2010 - My children received their 10 year permanent resident cards.

Oct 2010 - My children were legally adopted by my USA Citizen husband.

Filed: Timeline
Posted
Well, I can sort of relate. I brought a rubber chicken with me to Mexico as a weird sort of office joke. He was the mascot around the office, so I brought him with me and took pictures of him on the beach with margaritas, sitting on surfboards, etc. (You can only imagine the looks the other people on the beach were giving me...).

Anyways, when poor Carlos left Mexico, the customs guys had their way with him. I brought him out of my suitcase, and his throat was ripped open and his tongue was hanging out. I think they thought I must have been storing something illegal in him, since they couldn't really comprehend why someone would bring a rubber chicken on their travels. :lol:

:lol::lol::lol::lol:

My sister and her husband "borrowed" their next door neighbour's garden troll and took him on vacation too. Hilarious.

iagree.gif
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted
Freeze dried soups aren't going to be a problem. Send as many as you like.

As an aside, I bring back tons of food items, both ways. Never had a problem yet. And neither have my family who bring me items also.

Vanee, where are you moving to where you can't get tuna packed in water? :o:lol:

The local grocery store only has tuna packed in oil. IIRC I saw tuna in water at the health food store across town, but it cost a lot more than the oily stuff, while in Canada, there's no price difference. I might have better luck at larger grocery stores, but they aren't close by.

I probably posted my question in the wrong thread. :wacko: When I saw in the thread title "ship to the USA," I thought about what I can ship via U-Pack. I won't be with my belongings when they cross the border, and if canned tuna isn't allowed, I'll give it to the food bank here instead of the border guards confiscating it. But I'd really like to bring it with me.

To rephrase my question...can canned tuna be shipped across the border with all my other belongings when I move to the US? Also, where can I find detailed information about this online?

On the "Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles" form, there's a box to check for "Fish, wildlife, animal products thereof." But there's no explanation about what the restrictions are.

Thanks for your help. :)

K-1, AOS, ROC
2007, 2009, 2011

Naturalization

2016-05-17 - N-400 package sent

2016-05-21 - NOA1 (IOE receipt number)

2016-06-15 - Biometrics

2016-11-08 - Citizenship interview in Detroit: approved
2016-12-16 - Oath ceremony

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted
I think they're just the same with food items as they are with people, it depends on the mood of the CBP.

I think you're right there. My Sister crossed the border in June with beef sausage rolls. She even told them about it. They said 'as long as it's already cooked, no problem'.

Posted
Freeze dried soups aren't going to be a problem. Send as many as you like.

As an aside, I bring back tons of food items, both ways. Never had a problem yet. And neither have my family who bring me items also.

Vanee, where are you moving to where you can't get tuna packed in water? :o:lol:

The local grocery store only has tuna packed in oil. IIRC I saw tuna in water at the health food store across town, but it cost a lot more than the oily stuff, while in Canada, there's no price difference. I might have better luck at larger grocery stores, but they aren't close by.

I probably posted my question in the wrong thread. :wacko: When I saw in the thread title "ship to the USA," I thought about what I can ship via U-Pack. I won't be with my belongings when they cross the border, and if canned tuna isn't allowed, I'll give it to the food bank here instead of the border guards confiscating it. But I'd really like to bring it with me.

To rephrase my question...can canned tuna be shipped across the border with all my other belongings when I move to the US? Also, where can I find detailed information about this online?

On the "Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles" form, there's a box to check for "Fish, wildlife, animal products thereof." But there's no explanation about what the restrictions are.

Thanks for your help. :)

I had some questions about stuff I could and couldn't bring to the US (I had to leave behind my baby cactus! :( ), so I called CBP. The person I talked to was very nice and very helpful and very patient with all my questions, so you might be able to get some good information out of them over the phone :)

 
Didn't find the answer you were looking for? Ask our VJ Immigration Lawyers.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
- Back to Top -

Important Disclaimer: Please read carefully the Visajourney.com Terms of Service. If you do not agree to the Terms of Service you should not access or view any page (including this page) on VisaJourney.com. Answers and comments provided on Visajourney.com Forums are general information, and are not intended to substitute for informed professional medical, psychiatric, psychological, tax, legal, investment, accounting, or other professional advice. Visajourney.com does not endorse, and expressly disclaims liability for any product, manufacturer, distributor, service or service provider mentioned or any opinion expressed in answers or comments. VisaJourney.com does not condone immigration fraud in any way, shape or manner. VisaJourney.com recommends that if any member or user knows directly of someone involved in fraudulent or illegal activity, that they report such activity directly to the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. You can contact ICE via email at Immigration.Reply@dhs.gov or you can telephone ICE at 1-866-347-2423. All reported threads/posts containing reference to immigration fraud or illegal activities will be removed from this board. If you feel that you have found inappropriate content, please let us know by contacting us here with a url link to that content. Thank you.
×
×
  • Create New...