"Roger Long" wrote:

wrote


I'm not sure the info you got is accurate. I have a "customs &
border patrol" decal that must be renewed each year ($25.), It says
"aircraft/vessel" on it. If this is what you're referring to, I think
you need one.


Well, it was the fellow who answered the phone when I called the Customs
number here in Portland, Maine. I can believe that any US agency could be
so screwed up that they would give out such rank information but, do you
think so?

Can anyone else shed any light? If Customs doesn't know, who does?

Where are you located BTW? Maybe they do it differently in different
regions. He said it was originally a Great Lakes program.

It wasn't. He may be thinking of another program which WAS a Great
Lakes program for people who go back and forth frequently. (Was it the
I-68 Form?)

Customs and INS POE "local rules": Both Customs and INS POEs have "local" rules, which are communicated through locally produced flyers and boater word-of-mouth communications. Neither Customs nor INS has a " Central Office" that can speak on the many Great Lakes POE "local" rules.

....Customs requires that all boats 30 feet and more display an annual $25 Vessel User Fee Decal.


We had to get the decal when we came back from the Bahamas in 2000. We
had to go to the Customs Office in Miami to get it. I got a renewal
the following year by mail.

This is what the
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/pl..._fee_decal.xml
US Customs website says:

On April 7, 1986, President Ronald Reagan signed the Consolidate Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) (P.L. 99-272), which authorizes the U.S. Customs Service to collect user fees for various services. The law, initially established processing fees for air and sea passengers, commercial trucks, rail cars, private vessels, dutiable mail packages, and Customs broker permits. The collection of the COBRA fees for Customs services began on July 7, 1986.

The User Fee was established to offset inspection costs that were previously funded solely by general taxpayer revenue.

User Fee Payment Required
Payment of the User Fee is required if:

* You operate a vehicle for commercial purposes that enters the United States.
* You operate a private vessel that is 30 feet or more in length that enters the United States.
* In order to qualify as a private vessel requiring a decal, the vessel cannot carry passengers who pay a fare.
* You operate an aircraft, which is non-commercial and enters the United States.

There is more detailed information related to the requirements of the User Fee in the Code of Federal Regulations: 19 CFR 24.22.

Cost of Annual User Fee
2007 costs of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) User Fees are as follows:

* Private Aircraft Decal: $27.50 (U.S.) per calendar year*
* Private Vessel Decal (30 feet or more in length): $27.50 (U.S.) per calendar year*
* Commercial Vehicle User Fee – $100.00 – U.S. CBP, $105.00 – Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
o Canadian Border – $205.00 (U.S.) per calendar year
o Mexican Border – $205.00 (U.S.) per calendar year

Note the price has gone up to $27.50

Decal Information
Decals are stickers that are placed on all private aircraft and private vessels (30 feet or more in length) as proof that the User Fee for entry into the U.S. has been paid for the calendar year. If a vessel or aircraft does not have a decal upon entering the U.S., an application must be completed and a User Fee purchased when reporting to CBP. The decal will be mailed from the processing center.