mre5765

Yes I remember that report, and your nephew's mistake was to explain his secondary reason for visiting the USA. And NEXUS kiosks are less likely to be inoperable at airports than land crossings.

I have Global Entry and it is a silver bullet, period, even when I get an X on my receipt.

Fredd

Yes, I'd agree about not "over-explaining" had it been a one-time visit.

There's a fine line between that and downright lying though. My nephew's main purpose in obtaining NEXUS was so he could visit her most weekends. It is not at all unusual for border officials to ask "why are you entering so often?" and not at all surprising they'd be suspicious of, say, a young Canadian male entering the U.S. once every week or 10 days by himself and explaining he's "sightseeing" or "shopping" or "seeing a show."

The circumstances the OP describes unfortunately inhibit the possibility that his or his girlfriend's border crossings will be stress-free IMHO.

This reminds of a letter to the editor I read in the Blaine Washington weekly newspaper awhile back, in which the Canadian writer is complaining about all of the question asked of NEXUS pass-holders. Scroll down to the second letter here.

Ari

It may have been unfounded (and you why explain below), and I'm sorry for that, but calling it libel is just silly. "Plonked"? Please; look around and know where you are.

polonius

When will people learn? It's ALWAYS a mistake to answer customs agent's questions. They try to ACT like they are your friend, but they are NOT there to help!

ESpen36

Customs officers are most definitely not there to help. They have a job to do, and they are just trying to do it. They are charged with enforcing many, many different federal laws and must make immediate, on-the-spot judgments hundreds of times a day about whether a traveler is "suspicious" enough to merit a search. Neither CBP nor CBSA has the resources or time (or, frankly, mandate) to search every single traveler, so the officers must be picky. The way they make these determinations is to ask questions, in part to hear the answers and in part to observe body language and reaction to the questioning itself. It's a tough job, and IMHO, the officers don't get paid enough for what they have to do.

In any event, with regard to answering questions, I disagree in part with your statement that it's "always a mistake" to speak to Customs officers. Here's why:

- if you fail to answer questions in front of a Customs officer of a foreign country, you could be denied entry to that country for failing to answer questions (hey, it's their country, after all!)

- if you fail to answer questions in front of a Customs officer of your own country of citizenship, you could be detained for hours as a meticulous search of you and your accompanying property is carried out, although you ultimately could not be denied entry


I'm all for civil rights, but honestly, I wouldn't stand on principle to the extent that I have to wait for hours as they go through my luggage with a fine-toothed comb, if I could have avoided all of it just by answering a few questions. Just my opinion.

neuron

For the OP, the Agent probably thought your GF was attempting to move/work in the US illegally and living off of you (they can be very paranoid and some of their questions/comments extremely jarring). For future trips, I would recommend that she carry proof of her intent to return to Canada (for some reason, it seems a RT ticket is not enough). A bank statement, payslip, rental or home ownership record may be enough to convince them. As for Nexus, if she qualifies, I would strongly advise applying for it, for nothing else, you have less chance to be interrogated by the CBP agents (I think its supposedly 3%, though in some cases, more). If you are doing a lot of transborder travel, it would also be recommended that you do so also.

As for her moving to the US, depending on her profession, it is easiest to have a job offer and, if so, apply under the TN-1 visa which is done at the border/airport. If you are considering moving to Canada, there are a few who have done it in the past, as well as others who may be able to offer advise, but Canada tends to use a merit basis for immigration for skilled workers and professionals. The Gov of Canada website can be found here. from my friends and colleagues who have moved to Canada, they have had little difficulty. There is also a family category for spouses and common-law partners.

AtariBaby

This is an extremely helpful thread so far, much more information to consider than some more topic-specific sites I'm asking at. But I shouldn't be surprised-- this forum is one of the smartest ones I've lurked on. I realize this is a passionate subject so I'm grateful for everyone keeping cool heads. And please, keep it coming.

I have a lot of acronyms to look up and I have a friend who has faith in a certain immigration lawyer; although his specialty is Brazil, I'll reach out to him.

König

This is mostly hypothetical situation because most foreign border patrol officers will not ask you even few questions - if you have proper documentation to enter the country, you enter the country. No fishing expeditions there.

mre5765

Custom's agents are police. If avoidable, never talk to police, period. With a million laws on the books, everyone has broken the law. Shut up, and you won't incriminate yourself.

The point of joining a trusted traveler program like NEXUS or Global Entry is to avoid further conversations with border police other than the initial interview to obtain such status. That was Polonius' point.

His purpose was to attend a conference right?

Interesting, did that come up in the interview? For my Global Entry interrogation I was asked why I wanted Global Entry (answer: because your colleagues in ORD now force green card holders to be processed in the foreign visitor line and the last time I entered via ORD I nearly missed my connection).

If he was asked, and said it was to visit his fiance who was studying in Canada, then this should have been pointed out to the CBP officer. If he was asked, and he did not say it was to visit his fiance (now wife), then he has a problem, and needs an attorney.

Let me get this straight: your nephew, and apparently (based on the letter you linked us to) other NEXUS holders entering the U.S. over land are routinely being interrogated?

It would appear that NEXUS is for expediting land crossings is a waste of money and an utter fraud. Your nephew should get his money back for NEXUS.

Getting back to OP and his gf, in that case, the gf should look into getting NEXUS and use it for crossings via commercial aviation.

Fixed it for you.

I don't know if the forum is smart, or merely stocked with people with lots of experience dealing with the "authoritah". But I learn something every day here.

N1Hawk

AtariBaby,


I'm in the same situation as you but in reverse countries. My girlfriend lives in Cleveland, OH and I live in Canada. I drive down to see my girlfriend every 3-4 months and I'm always stopped by USA Border Patrol. I'm harassed all the time I get to Fort Erie about why I'm dating a USA girl and why not a Canadian Girlfriend. It's normal for them to hold you at the border for at least 5-10 mins depending on how many people are lined up at the border. I was pulled into the same situation and harassed by United States Border Patrol @ the Windsor/Detroit border on the way down to visit my girlfriend. They questioned me why I chose that border, how much money I make and stuff like that in a cramped little room. Now I choose to cross at the Fort Erie Bridge into the USA because they have not held me more then 10 mins anymore. I think they are finally figuring out that I'm serious about coming back to Canada! If you and your girlfriend need advice about crossing borders please pm me as I've dealt with them for 2 years now.

N1Hawk

Firebug4

NEXUS for the land border allows you to use a NEXUS lane. If the Port does not have a NEXUS lane you will be processed just like everyone else.

FB

Fredd

He was attending a scientific conference - he might have been a presenter at this one - and visiting his then-fiancee (now wife) before flying there.

I don't know if this came up in his NEXUS interview or not. They are both finishing up their PhDs, he in Canada and she in the U.S.

On this particular visit to the U.S. he could have avoided volunteering the information that he was also visiting his fiancee, who is also a Canadian but studying at an American university. That wouldn't apply for the many other weekend visits he's made and he would basically have had to lie about the purpose of his visit, never a good idea in my opinion, both for moral and for strategic reasons.

In fairness, my nephew thought his problem on this particular occasion might have started when he had to back up and move from the NEXUS lane to a regular lane, since the NEXUS lane had closed for the night. It's truly surprising and even astonishing to me that he would have been subjected to the interrogation as a holder of a NEXUS pass. Obviously I can't vouch for the the accuracy of the anonymous letter writer to the Blaine WA (Peace Arch) weekly paper, but I did find it interesting.

I don't mean in any way to hijack the thread but just pointing out that there may be no easy solution. I think neuron's suggestion about carrying a copy of a bank account or some other proof ties to the home country (Canada in this case) might be useful. ^

SNA_Flyer

Canadians are the only nation I have little sympathy for when it comes to complaints about bad encounters with our CBP folks. Canada's customs/immigration folks are very often just as bad to US Citizens.

Have her get a Nexus card if she is eligible, it might help.

polonius

You can answer the questions, just don't "over answer". Generic, one word replies are the best. "What is the purpose of your trip?" "visiting" "Who are you visiting?" "friends". Too many people, who actually believe the nonsense about "if you don't have anything to hide..." get into trouble because they start volunteering stuff that wasn't asked. They also think it's best to keep answering. I typically will answer normal questions, but when I sense that they are getting aggressive, I put an end to it, which is usually effective. Whenever they start grilling me about details, I just say things like, "your questions sound an awful lot like you are testing me to me to see if my [airquotes] 'story' is consistent. If you want to find something out, ask me and I'll do my best to respond honestly, but I'm not going to play the 'gotcha' game with you." Or when they ask the same question for the third time, I respond with "the answer to that is the same the first two times you asked me. If you are having troubling remembering it, I'm happy to write it down for you, but I'm not playing the (airquotes) 'check answers for consistency' head game with you." In my experience, this brings the questioning to an end and then they stamp you in, usually with a comment like the one I got at Luton: "It's our job to be suspicious, sir".

thegeneral

She was questioned. No big deal. They want to be sure that she's coming to visit and not work. They could do that with everyone who came into the country if they wanted.

She should continue to answer their questions honestly, openly and briefly.

You weren't harassed. They did their job. Quite frankly, you should have known that being questioned by a possibility. It is for everyone who crosses the border.