CDTraveler

I had a bicycle pump and a corkscrew, are those prohibited?

Seriously, though, the CBSA agent repeated variations on a theme with the weapons questions quite a few times. What was unclear about "No, I do not have any guns" the first time?

What was amusing was about 50 yards in I parked and all 3 of us got out of the car for a picture in front of the "Welcome To Canada" sign. Seeing us standing there for several minutes 3 armed guards came over to us and asked what we were doing in a less than friendly tone. When I explained it was the cat's first international trip and we wanted a photograph, they had a good laugh.

TheBOSman

Unfortunately you're paying the price for all of the people who think the Second Amendment applies north of the border.

FWIW Mexico is even more strict on firearms importation and numerous signs are present as one approaches Mexican immigration by road stating this.

Badenoch

I can give you 58 very good reasons (and counting) why the CBSA is stringent about firearms coming into Canada.

It's always good for a chuckle when some American gun owner believes his 2nd amendment rights apply north of the border and gets caught with an undeclared handgun. They usually get to spend time in Canada at government expense in lodging you won't find on Tripadvisor.

CDTraveler

Stringent I don't mind. Repeatedly asking the same question is not the same as stringent, it's just pointless and annoying. She asked, I answered. If she didn't believe me, she had the option to search the car, where she would not have found a prohibited weapon.

Seriously, you find that amusing?

gfunkdave

They ask variations of the same question to see if you change your answer, as might be expected of someone who is making up the answer on the spot. It's one of the basic questioning techniques border patrol and police officers the world over are taught.

GUWonder

CBSA repeatedly finds restricted weapons being brought in over land by US persons who repeatedly claimed they had no restricted weapons. Nagging people with the same question is something CBSA and US CBP do -- birds of a feather more or less.

Negative consequences -- including time behind bars -- happens for even way less than that in the US, land of super-high incarceration rates.

The US Constitution's 2nd Amendment is not applicable beyond US jurisdiction. And as the US is relatively bad about respecting the rights of foreigners beyond the US, it's sort of interesting when US persons wrongfully assume that the US Constitution's enumerated rights are applicable to foreign jurisdictions in which they find themselves.

Badenoch

Yup. Always good for a chuckle when some star spangled dufus doesn't declare his piece and ends up behind bars. He is also the reason you get repeated questions about weapons when you come into Canada. There are too many morons who think the 2nd Amendment is a global right.

The CBSA isn't the welcome wagon. If you don't like it don't come to Canada.

GUWonder

CBSA isn’t as ridiculously over the top as DHS/CBP, but these are birds of a feather with the latter being more aggressive than the former — at least on average.

Boggie Dog

In general terms I don't think it matters to much which direction a person is going when crossing the border. At times it may be quick and easy and other times not so much. There have been several reports just in this thread of exactly that.

VelvetJones

I've just ran in to this last week. I was headed to Canada when I remembered I had a pocket knife in my emergency kit. I was in Vermont when it popped in to my head, I just tossed in to the trash at a gas station. It was a four inch folding knife. I didn't want to even take the chance of bringing it across the border, even though I crossed at a rural spot and the woman working the post seemed almost annoyed that I interrupted her nap. I did get the "are you carrying any fire arms or weapons" question though. The only other questions she asked was "where are you from?" and "What is the purpose of your visit?". The whole stop was less than 30 seconds. That said, I've known people who have had their entire vehicle torn apart for simply not smiling, or smiling too much, while crossing, so it wasn't worth taking any chance for a $5 knife.

Boggie Dog

I honestly don't know the answer, would a knife be prohibited crossing into Canada by land or air?

I often carry a small Old Timer folder in my shave kit. Flying it goes via checked baggage, by ground in the boot.

Badenoch

Depends on the knife. Prohibited are automatic knives (aka. switchblades,) gravity knives, butterfly knives (aka Balisong) and push daggers. Knives that incorporate "brass knuckles" in the handle are prohibited. Assisted-opening knives that are not actuated by a push button are a grey area. Otherwise a folding or fixed knife would be fine.

TWA884

That's similar to California's laws. I suspect that most other states have similar laws.

Boggie Dog

Texas is a bit different. Restrictions on some automatic knives were removed several years ago. This September 1 removed restrictions on all knives except those over 5 1/2" have location restrictions. In short there are no illegal knives, just places they can't be carried. My non-lawyer understanding of current law.

GUWonder

The laws restricting whatever gets classified as a weapon vary from state to state within the US, and the laws restricting such vary even more internationally. And the legal restrictions, domestically and internationally, are often tied to the set of applicable circumstances.