John Cairns wrote:

Live right across the the river from Canada, never heard that one before.
When you call in to Canada Customs at the marina, all they ask are the basic
questions. AFAIK, you don't need a valid drivers license to sail into
Canadian waters or land in Canada.

Canadian West Coast bureaucrats seem to have a different take on things.
I have worked on both the Alaska and the Washington State ferry
systems which have routes that serve Canadian ports.

The Canadian government demanded that no crewmember of any Washington
State vessel that enters Canadian waters may have a DWI conviction. The
ferry system actually took crewmen off vessels on those runs even though
the vessel, under international law, is a sovereign part of the USA and
the crewmember, who meets all USCG legal and documentation standards to
sail anywhere in the world under US protection, does not set one foot on
Canadian soil.

At the northern end of the Canadian west coast, the guards at Prince
Rupert will allow convicted DWI's to enter the country after paying a
nonrefundable "bond" of some sort. There is no requirement that the
ferry crews have pristine backgrounds beyond what the USCG requires.

It is amazing that the "policy" can be so different across the country.
It is incredible that the US government allows Washington State to
ignore international law and more amazing that the (admittedly few) crew
who have lost or been denied jobs aboard ferries on Canadian runs have
not screamed to high Heavens.

Rick