I've been travelling between BKK and YVR quite a bit recently, and have now been stopped and subjected to long searches on my last two arrivals into YVR. It's really irritating, and the worst part is that they use this very blunt profile to figure out who to search. Single male, travelling alone, no obvious work (not quite, I consult, and showed them contracts), ticket purchased in Bangkok (half the price there!), and coming from a known drug source country, etc...

This time I asked to speak to the supervisor, and he was mildly apologetic, but said that I might be searched again next time, since I fit the profile. This time, I asked them to at least notify my relatives, who had been waiting outside for me for 2 hours, and they would not do it! I'm really feeling fed up with this, and I travel on a Canadian passport!

Is there anybody I can complain to? I mean, this is after waiting in the immigration line for an hour (huge lines, half the booths unmanned). I know YVR is a great airport, but this customs business does not seem to be very organized (or too organized?).

When I was younger and traveling abroad a great deal I noticed that I had far fewer hassles with Immigration/customs when I arrived at the airport clean shaven, with short hair and with fairly upscale clothing. I think that is the most you can do and even then you if you fit "the profile" they are going to stop you and possibly, protesting it with supervisors etc. may just cause them to give you even more attention in the future.

Some of my latino and black friends seem to get stopped far more often than I and suspect there are racial profiles as well.

Your complaint seems to be a common one if you go read the Air Canada forum. I actually try to avoid arriving internationally into YVR if I can help it now. I find going through U.S. immigration and customs (albeit at certain airports) as a transiting Canadian to be a more pleasant experience. If there is a customs search, it is done very quickly and professionally, with little delay.

I don't know if this frequent inspection only happens at YVR. I've traveled through this airport numerous times and have never been selected for an inspection. However I have seen some of my fellow passengers undergo this type of unpleasantry. The most bizzare incident I encountered was 2 years ago after having just arrived on Singapore Airlines flight. Once we were exiting the aerobridge and into the terminal building, there were immigration officials waiting for us just as we entered the terminal from the gate at the point before we climbed up the escalator (Those who have been through YVR knows what I'm talking about: Exit the plane, go through the aerobridge, into the terminal building, up the escalator, walk through indoor bridges, go down the escalator with the fountain decorations and line up at immigration). Anyhow, they directed every single passenger to take out their travel documents and started checking them one by one. One of the passenger was a Sri Lankan teenager. When he was question by the officials, he indicated that he is entering Canada with a Student Visa as he intends to study at Kwantlen University. Afterwards for some unknown reason one of the official started to communicate on her walkie-takie and indicated that this man would undergoe a custom inspection and gave out the descrition of his physical appearance as well as his passport nationality/numbers. Once we were at the luggage belt waiting for our stuff to come out there were three custom officials waiting at our belt. After this Sri Lankan man picked up his luggage, the three officials immediately approached him and directed him to the custom inspection area. Don't know what happened next because I immediately exited to the lobby but I was still bewildered to why we ended up going through double immigration points (Once at the gate and then at the counters).