The funny thing is that just a couple of days before I had thought it was strange that some Canadians I met said they avoid travelling to/through the US right now.
In fact, I've been thinking of contacting the Finnish embassy in the US to ask them a question related to this episode (especially customs declaration);
In field 15 of the
Customs Declaration Form, I had written "0"
If you are a visitor (non-U.S. Resident), print the total value of all goods (including commercial merchandise) you or any family members traveling with you are bringing into the United States and will remain in the United States.
Note: Visitors (non-U.S. Residents) are normally entitled to an exemption of $100.
The immigration officer asked whether I had bought anything in Canada, to which I replied that all I had was 3 boxes of chocolate and a can of maple syrup - total worth of 30USD. The officer insisted that I have to enter that amount (30USD) in field 15 - although I pointed out that none of these items would remain in the US. Eventually I had to enter the value of 30USD just to avoid trouble. I do still believe that I was right about this.
I just find it strange that I had to enter information that I thought was incorrect - and this is a form that I had to sign!
Who should I contact regarding this, and do I have a reason to complain?
cheers
okko