Terenz....

I was merely using the Algerian example as one of the reasons that the US has applied political pressure on Canada to more strictly review who is let into this country.

We have been criticised for having lax policies and our country has been referred to as a conduit for people attempting to enter the US for whatever reasons.

In answer to your other question, when I flew thru LAX, I was mixed with other inbound international pax at the INS counters. When I finished there and ran the gauntlet of customs agents I was free to go anywhere I wanted, and basically I could have disappeared into LA.

I had to leave the terminal and walk over to another one for my connecting flight....which incidentally was an international flight as well.

At 7am it seemed odd....since the previous 3 South American airports I had been thru that night all held me in a sterile area during aircraft changes....etc.

[This message has been edited by Carioca Canuck (edited 12-25-2000).]

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I am a Canadian Citizen and was never given any hassle at either YVR or YYZ. I always get the usual question like where did you go, what are you claiming and welcome home.

However, as terenz said, i am always given the extra hassle at HNL and couple times by the same guy. He always pull me aside and ask extra stupid question like why am i only here for 3 days, who paid for the trip, whether i am going to Maui, what do i do for a living.... while virtually no one else on the whole 767 got questioned that way. The stupid thing is that I was only transitting through HNL on my way home from SYD with absolutely no intent to enter the US.

I'm a US citizen and have entered Canada ~50 times in the past 30 years; about 49% of the time by car, 49% by air, and 1 time by bus. Most trips are pleasure, some business, and a few for shoping (IKEA, Labello).

The only time that passing Canadian immigration was more than a 10-second deal was the bus trip. (I may not have looked and smelled my best on that one, as I was stoned to the bone when the bus left Boston at 12.30am, and my roommmate and I finished off a bottle of screwdrivers during the trip.)

My worst experience entering Canada was when I had my two older children (mid-teens) with me for a long weekend using frequent flyer miles. Canada immigration was virtually apoplectic that I didn't have a letter from their mother (we are married and living together) allowing me to take them out of the country. I had never heard of such a thing -- certainly not for kids that old. Canada acted like I should have known and was seriously planning to send us back.

I suggested that they just call my wife and have a conversation with her, if that would make them feel better. Making the offer seemed to do the trick. They let us pass, but said never do that again! I haven't.

Bruce

I cannot count the number of times I had to refuse visas to people in New York who were travelling alone with their kids without consent letters from the other parent--let alone the number of times I had to explain it to Americans on the phone.

The most ironic occurence was when one of my subordinates--a locally engaged visa officer--took her daughter to Montreal to visit family; and forgot to take a consent letter from her husband.

Maybe I'm just stupid (or stubborn), but how does the immigration officer know if the consent letter that someone is carrying is valid? I could easily write my own letter and sign my wife's name to it. In any case, why not just speak with the children, who are standing right there and aren't little babies, after all? Am I missing something?

Bruce

While I'm not familiar with Canada's requirements, Mexico has an immigration law requiring a consent to travel letter for unacompanied minors or minors traveling with only one parent. The letter must be notarized by a notary public before departure and presented upon demand to immigration officers. This is how they reasonably determine that the letter is genuine. Interestingly enough, there is no requirement to provide the letter in Spanish. In the event that the "missing" parent is deceased or divorced, then a certified copy of the death certificate or divorce decree is substituted for the consent letter.

I once asked a immigration officer at MEX about the purpose of the law. He told me it was to help prevent incidents of international kidnapping, particularly in child custody cases. I suspect that this is also the reason for Canada's law and they would probably want a notarized letter from the absent spouse.

tmorse6570 A guy from Switzerland sitting next to me wasn't asked anything.

(why didn't you introduce yourself? I always have a FlyerTalk-luggage-tag on my carry-on-luggage)

Canada, USA and Mexico have similiar laws that covers the situation of one parent taking a child over the border. HOWEVER, Never have I been asked to show proof but I do carry a "blanket" notorised letter just in case.

I have crossed the Canadian/US border about 600 times by car and without a doubt the Canadians are the friendliest border guards I have met anywhere in the world. They are only concerned about what I bought and the booze and smoke thing. This may have to do with the fact Canadian Border crossings are guarded by Tax Collectors (Customs officers) and not immigration officers.

The opposite is true of the US. US borders are guarded first by INS and second by Customs. I rank US immigration up their with the Chinese Red Guards. I have been strip searched, accused of robbing a local vendor, accused of lying and swore at. A few years back when Australians were given Visa Waiver Status, I was one of the first Australians a US immigration officer encountered under the new system. He demanded to see my Visa. It is very difficult to inform a US immigration offficer that I did not need a Visa. He "consulted" with a colleague and he confirmed that I did not need a Visa anymore. The Immigration officer raised his voice - said "Jesus Christ, Everybody is getting in" and threw my Australian Passport over the counter to me. Welcome to America!

Yes, what Empress says about HNL is true. US INS officers do indeed check your passport if you are "transiting" between flights from Canada to the South Pacific. I assume this is because HNL airport was never originally designed as a secure transit airport. I think they believed that if a passenger got off in Honolulu then it must be the final destination. Heavens forbid an Aussie may actually change planes on the way to Canada or vice versa.

It is all a mute point anyway. I have always argued that immigration entry controls are useless if there were no mechanisms to keep track of who actually left. Canada gives out 90 day entry permits but it does not keep track of who leaves. The US gives out SSN to temporary workers but it has no exit controls that would keep track of who overstays their Visas. The system has many holes in it.

Now if only Toronto Airport can get their act together and combine USA arrivals with International departures with a secured transiting area. That bus ride in the middle of December between terminals certainly does not make Toronto an attractive hub!

Merry Christmas Y'all

I have a friend in Buffalo who is a supervisor with the I.N.S. and I happen to know he doesn't even like Chinese food.

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We drove to Vancouver from Seattle a couple of years ago. There were long lines--a summer weekend--but the officials were polite to us.
The next year we flew into YVR from Reno and again, had no problem. 2 times to Canada and no problems on entry.
Although, once we had been on a cruise in the Mediterranean where we visited both Egypt and Israel. On return to the U.S., we were standing in the long customs re-entry line and our line was moving very, very slowly, while the lines on either side were quicker. I hesitated to move by using my grocery store experience--if you see a quick moving line and move to it yourself, then the line you've moved to ceases to move and the line you moved from then begins to move quickly. While moving out of line to check out other lines, I noticed that the customs inspector in our line was wearing a yarmulke. I figured if he's questioning everyone this long, we would be questioned even longer having been in Egypt then Israel, so we moved to a different line (and got through quicker).

Years ago I was crossing into Canada to see Niagra from their side (a decision I immediately wanted back). I was driving a panel van w/ CA tags, no windows (but well decorated with daisies, black lights, and excerpts from "DR's Trip" - anyone remember that one?) - and two babies under 3. My van was pulled over, completely emptied - back seats and all. I was searched, as were the babies. When they were as satisfied I wasn't running drugs into Canada, they said I was free to go. Did they offer to help me put the backseats back in? No. After strapping the babies into one front seat, struggling to get the backseat even into the van's door - all this encompassing about 20 minutes - a guard finally strolled over and threw the back seat into the van. I had to secure it, reinstall the car seats, etc. The whole episode took over 2 hours. I have never driven into Canada again. I love every city I've visited in Canada, but the border always scares me. That being said, it's unlikely anyone would look at me today and think "pusher" !

Being from Spokane (which is 90 miles from the border), we make many trips to Canada. They are always efficient and polite (even when they took our firewood and some sort of vegatable). The kids get a big kick because they are often asked who we are! They keep telling us that one of these days they will say they don't know us and that we tricked them into the car. I found out the hard way that flying into the country they can be a lot more picky about your documents than driving in, but I got in and will be better prepared the next time.