"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...
Most people know that beginning next January American boaters
reentering home waters from Canadian waters will be required to produce
a passport at a customs office.


Nice idea on paper...........not in the real world though. How do they plan
on enforcing this?

JimH wrote:
"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...
Most people know that beginning next January American boaters
reentering home waters from Canadian waters will be required to produce
a passport at a customs office.


Nice idea on paper...........not in the real world though. How do they plan
on enforcing this?

They have been requiring returning boaters to go through customs since
forever.
They enforce it by putting you in jail if you don't.

Now to be clear, you don't need to report to Customs if you have only
been aboard your boat in Canadian waters and haven't 1)anchored, 2)
gone ashore, or 3) made contact with any other vessel.

In the past, it was common to come back through Customs with nothing
more than a
driver's license to establish your address and your own declaration
that you were a US citizen. In recent years, they tightened that up to
require presentation of evidence
"satisfactory to the customs examiner" that *proves* your citizenship.
Border agents have been hassling Americans returning without passports,
since the only document that a customs examiner has no choice except to
find "satisfactory" is a valid passport.
Most boaters in the Pacific NW travelling into Canadian waters now
carry passports, and the law tightens up to *require* passports
beginning in 2007.

I am 99.9% certain that the same law applies to people arriving by
automobile, train, and cars or buses.

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
oups.com...

JimH wrote:
"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...
Most people know that beginning next January American boaters
reentering home waters from Canadian waters will be required to produce
a passport at a customs office.


Nice idea on paper...........not in the real world though. How do they
plan
on enforcing this?

They have been requiring returning boaters to go through customs since
forever.
They enforce it by putting you in jail if you don't.

Now to be clear, you don't need to report to Customs if you have only
been aboard your boat in Canadian waters and haven't 1)anchored, 2)
gone ashore, or 3) made contact with any other vessel.

In the past, it was common to come back through Customs with nothing
more than a
driver's license to establish your address and your own declaration
that you were a US citizen. In recent years, they tightened that up to
require presentation of evidence
"satisfactory to the customs examiner" that *proves* your citizenship.
Border agents have been hassling Americans returning without passports,
since the only document that a customs examiner has no choice except to
find "satisfactory" is a valid passport.
Most boaters in the Pacific NW travelling into Canadian waters now
carry passports, and the law tightens up to *require* passports
beginning in 2007.

I am 99.9% certain that the same law applies to people arriving by
automobile, train, and cars or buses.


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

JimH wrote:


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass the fuel dock. Do not
collect $200. :-)


http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/...asureboats.doc

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

JimH wrote:


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass the fuel dock. Do not
collect $200. :-)


http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/...asureboats.doc



In San Diego, you are to check in with customs even if you do not land in
Mexican waters. You can check in by phone, but you must check in.

Calif Bill wrote:
"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

JimH wrote:


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass the fuel dock. Do not
collect $200. :-)


http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/...asureboats.doc



In San Diego, you are to check in with customs even if you do not land in
Mexican waters. You can check in by phone, but you must check in.

Checking in by phone, under the I-68 and NEXUS provisions has become
far more restrictive in the last couple of years and will become even
more difficult in 2007. You will almost certainly need to appear with a
passport to obtain an I-68 or NEXUS clearance, if you can get one, and
you will need a clearance number for everybody aboard. Even when
reporting by telephone, Customs has the option to require you to
present yourself and your vessel for physical inspection at a customs
port of entry- and I think you had darn well better have your
passports.

JimH has been unknowingly violating the law, and it sounds as if he is
under the impression that most of his marina neighbors do the same
thing.

I guess if I were a terrorist trying to get into the US from Canada,
I'd try to land at a private marina in Ohio. Nobody there apparently
cares about customs regulations. :-)

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

Calif Bill wrote:
"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

JimH wrote:


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs
checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass the fuel dock. Do not
collect $200. :-)


http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/...asureboats.doc



In San Diego, you are to check in with customs even if you do not land in
Mexican waters. You can check in by phone, but you must check in.

Checking in by phone, under the I-68 and NEXUS provisions has become
far more restrictive in the last couple of years and will become even
more difficult in 2007. You will almost certainly need to appear with a
passport to obtain an I-68 or NEXUS clearance, if you can get one, and
you will need a clearance number for everybody aboard. Even when
reporting by telephone, Customs has the option to require you to
present yourself and your vessel for physical inspection at a customs
port of entry- and I think you had darn well better have your
passports.

JimH has been unknowingly violating the law, and it sounds as if he is
under the impression that most of his marina neighbors do the same
thing.

I guess if I were a terrorist trying to get into the US from Canada,
I'd try to land at a private marina in Ohio. Nobody there apparently
cares about customs regulations. :-)


Checking in by phone is probably more restrictive in Washington than San
Diego. As most of the boats fishing MX waters do not make landfall. It is
only 13 miles to the Coronado Islands and the offshore banks are further
out. Almost have to get to Ensenada to dock.

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

Calif Bill wrote:
"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

JimH wrote:


I have never checked into US customs when returning from a stay at
Leamington, Canada.

When returning from Canada by car you go through a US Customs
checkpoint.
When returning from Canada by boat you go to your marina. ;-)

Go to jail. Go directly to jail. Do not pass the fuel dock. Do not
collect $200. :-)


http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/...asureboats.doc



In San Diego, you are to check in with customs even if you do not land in
Mexican waters. You can check in by phone, but you must check in.

Checking in by phone, under the I-68 and NEXUS provisions has become
far more restrictive in the last couple of years and will become even
more difficult in 2007. You will almost certainly need to appear with a
passport to obtain an I-68 or NEXUS clearance, if you can get one, and
you will need a clearance number for everybody aboard. Even when
reporting by telephone, Customs has the option to require you to
present yourself and your vessel for physical inspection at a customs
port of entry- and I think you had darn well better have your
passports.

JimH has been unknowingly violating the law, and it sounds as if he is
under the impression that most of his marina neighbors do the same
thing.


No, I used to *knowingly* violate the law. But that was pre 9-11 and I have
not been back to Canada via boat since then.

This whole thing of checking in is on the honors system and virtually
unenforceable. And we all know that terrorist will abide by the law and
voluntarily check in.........eh?