Immigration oddities - AEP to MVD
Aug 22, 2003 | 4:55 pm
#1
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Immigration oddities - AEP to MVD
I had forgotten about this one.
Uruguay is one of the four founding members of the MercoSur, so as walked up the staircase to gates 14/15 of the Aeroparque Metropolitano this afternoon, I was surprised to see immigration. Even more funny was the fact that they have both immigration offices one next to the other, meaning one counter has the Argentine immigration officer stamp your passport, and the one right next to it has the Uruguayan officer take it back from you, and again stamp it - all of this on Argentine soil. That means you have officially entered Uruguay while still on the ground in Buenos Aires...
I wonder how it is on the way back... I will find out on Monday I guess.
Uruguay is one of the four founding members of the MercoSur, so as walked up the staircase to gates 14/15 of the Aeroparque Metropolitano this afternoon, I was surprised to see immigration. Even more funny was the fact that they have both immigration offices one next to the other, meaning one counter has the Argentine immigration officer stamp your passport, and the one right next to it has the Uruguayan officer take it back from you, and again stamp it - all of this on Argentine soil. That means you have officially entered Uruguay while still on the ground in Buenos Aires...
I wonder how it is on the way back... I will find out on Monday I guess.
Aug 22, 2003 | 5:01 pm
#2
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">That means you have officially entered Uruguay while still on the ground in Buenos Aires... </font>
Aug 23, 2003 | 2:28 am
#3
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Aviatrix:
Not as unusual as you think... flying to the USA from some (all?) Canadian airports you go through US immigration while on the ground in Canada (certainly the case at YOW, and I believe it's the same in ther places)</font>
Not as unusual as you think... flying to the USA from some (all?) Canadian airports you go through US immigration while on the ground in Canada (certainly the case at YOW, and I believe it's the same in ther places)</font>
Aug 23, 2003 | 4:48 am
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Aviatrix:
Not as unusual as you think... flying to the USA from some (all?) Canadian airports you go through US immigration while on the ground in Canada (certainly the case at YOW, and I believe it's the same in ther places)</font>
Not as unusual as you think... flying to the USA from some (all?) Canadian airports you go through US immigration while on the ground in Canada (certainly the case at YOW, and I believe it's the same in ther places)</font>
goodo
Aug 23, 2003 | 9:47 am
#6
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The Garage part is no longer... but the airport is still a sort of time warp.
Aug 23, 2003 | 8:08 pm
#7
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It's the same AEP to PDP. PDP is a neat little modern airport, and I seem to recall that they had the double stamp process there too. At least they did when I was there a couple of years ago.
Aug 25, 2003 | 8:23 am
#9
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Maybe I wasnt clear in my original post. What is sort of odd is not so much that you clear Uruguayan immigration on the ground in Buenos Aires, but that the two separate booths are right next to each other in a departure hall at the Buenos Aires city airport. Its like you fill out the forms, give them to the Argentine immigration officer and he doesnt even have to hand them back to you - instead he could just turn on his revolving chair and hand them to the Uruguayan immigration inspector, that is sitting right next to him.
All the other similar immigration posts Ive seen are posts that are manned only by an official of one country.
All the other similar immigration posts Ive seen are posts that are manned only by an official of one country.
Aug 25, 2003 | 8:25 am
#10
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by stimpy:
It's the same AEP to PDP. PDP is a neat little modern airport, and I seem to recall that they had the double stamp process there too. At least they did when I was there a couple of years ago.</font>
It's the same AEP to PDP. PDP is a neat little modern airport, and I seem to recall that they had the double stamp process there too. At least they did when I was there a couple of years ago.</font>
BTW, on the leg back from Uruguay, you have to do a standard two step process, Argentine immigration is done at AEP.
Aug 27, 2003 | 6:02 am
#11
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We flew from EZE to MVD last year on UA (the VERY shortest flight they have It'l), and came back by ferry.
At the ferry terminal at whatever town in Uruguay you leave from the 2 guys also stood next to each other, and were laughing about it all.
At the ferry terminal at whatever town in Uruguay you leave from the 2 guys also stood next to each other, and were laughing about it all.
Aug 27, 2003 | 7:36 am
#12
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Gaucho100K:
Even more funny was the fact that they have both immigration offices one next to the other, meaning one counter has the Argentine immigration officer stamp your passport, and the one right next to it has the Uruguayan officer take it back from you, and again stamp it - all of this on Argentine soil. That means you have officially entered Uruguay while still on the ground in Buenos Aires...</font>
Even more funny was the fact that they have both immigration offices one next to the other, meaning one counter has the Argentine immigration officer stamp your passport, and the one right next to it has the Uruguayan officer take it back from you, and again stamp it - all of this on Argentine soil. That means you have officially entered Uruguay while still on the ground in Buenos Aires...</font>
It's a long way from where you are, but this quite common procedure also exists on the Eurostar train between Paris and London. At Paris Gare du Nord the British officers sit directly behind the French exit officers, and you have to show your passport twice in 10 seconds. Likewise at London Waterloo on departure you show to the French, although the British no longer bother for departing passengers.
You haven't actually left the country at this stage. If you then commit some crime in the terminal, such as stealing from one of the shops, you will be arrested by the police from the country on whose soil you are still standing.
Aug 27, 2003 | 12:21 pm
#14
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<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">What is sort of odd is not so much that you clear Uruguayan immigration on the ground in Buenos Aires, but that the two separate booths are right next to each other in a departure hall at the Buenos Aires city airport. Its like you fill out the forms, give them to the Argentine immigration officer and he doesnt even have to hand them back to you - instead he could just turn on his revolving chair and hand them to the Uruguayan immigration inspector, that is sitting right next to him.
All the other similar immigration posts Ive seen are posts that are manned only by an official of one country.</font>
All the other similar immigration posts Ive seen are posts that are manned only by an official of one country.</font>
Aug 27, 2003 | 10:42 pm
#15
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Yes, but since neither country has outbound immigration checks you still only need show your passport once each time. There are, however, any number of land border crossings throughout the world where you are checked by officials of the country you are exiting, just so you can immediately proceed to be checked by officials of the neighboring country you are entering. Sometimes the border stations are right next to each other; sometimes they're a few kms apart. Sometimes you get to have your bags searched by two different sets of customs agents too! Oh well, just one of those funny things about the way the world works. I would, however, find this odd if it happened in an airport.