My brother recently returned from several months on tour with a band. He'd been cashing pay checks and living on the tour bus so had several thousand dollars in cash wadded up in his carry-on bags. The security guy for a domestic flight took it all out and demanded to know how much money he had there, and if he always carried that much, etc. He got the third degree, especially after telling the guy he didn't know the exact figure, but it was a "couple thousand"... and this wasn't even a customs agent (domestic flight)!

Domestically, you can have any amount of cash you wish to have in your possession on your person or in your belongings. It may require transactional reporting, but you are still allowed to have it and carry it domestically. It may still make you suspect (for at least being foolish if not criminal) in many people's eyes.

These guys get a cut of forfeited assets, hence there enthusiasm.

The police in the UK use them too. There was a recent case where they boarded a train in London with the dogs, who found someone carrying around GBP30000, which later turned out to be related to the drug trade.

Dog's are trained to smell out money. I heard somewhere that most US currency has traces of drugs on it so maybe the dogs are smelling for those traces. . . .

This is insane. A TSA person was giving your brother the third degree about some cash? Insane...

Were you going to Colombia? They do screening when I go. Even have cash sniffing dogs. And they search luggage going down too..

I experienced a situation similar to this when approaching the Canadian border crossing to Vancouver this past weekend. On the U.S. side (although you don't have to stop here) the traffic was funneled down into one lane even the Nexus fast lane. A sign was posted regarding carrying over $10,000. Don't know where the inspector was as I was not stopped for a check.

Assuming you were flying CO, don't give Gordo any ideas. 757's can land at DCA and Jungle Jets may someday be able to operate ETOPS.

All that has to be done is a simple "finding" of drugs on the premisis or person and all the cash (as well as any other assets) is/are forfieted.

I was recently questioned by TSA in Boston after they found a few thousand $ in the bottom of my laptop bag. They demanded to know how much it was I asked if there were any limits on carrying cash when travelling domestically they said that yes there was but they refused to tell me what that limit was. I told them it was around $6ks (truthfully) and they did not doublecheck but they still refused to tell me the limit to which I doubt there actually is one.

I was also recently detained in PDX accused of carrying NitroGlycerin which I was to my knowledge not. After a meticulous search of my bags making me miss my flight one of my showergels tested positive for a small trace of NitroGlycerin. I asked if this is an illegal substance I was told that it wasn't. So if it isn't illegal why spend all that time trying to find it??

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KLM PE,HHonors Diamond,SPG Plat,PC Plat,SAS Silver

Be very careful. I had a client who was flying out of cincinati to san antonio. He showed up about one hour before the flight, bought a one way ticket in cash, and got mad at the ticket agent since it took him a long time to issue the ticket which caused him to miss the flight. He had to wait until the next day. He arrived, went through security, and while waiting to board the plane, two plain clothes DEA agents approach him. They ask him how much money he has on him, he refuse to answer. They end up searching his carryon without his consent (remember now he has to let them since he is in the secure area) and they find about $13k cash, confiscate all of the money, and let him go with a receipt. While he was in the air, there were more cops waiting for him. He gets of the plane, and is arrested for an unpaid parking ticket (ironically at the airport). I can just imagine that they had so many hours to try to make a case againts him so they would not have to return the money. Once he is arrested upon arriving in SAT, they completely search him, book him and let him go after he pays the parking ticket. Upon searching him, they went through his wallet and traced all of the phone numbers on the back of business cards he had in his wallet. One number was NADIS positive (ie the number belonged to someone who may have been arrested or is under surviliance by a US agency) and filed a civil forfeiture against him in Lexington, KY for the $13k based solely on him having a phone number of an alleged bad guy, being young, paying in cash, etc. To make a long story short, we settled for about half, since it was going to cost more to defend the lawsuit in Lexington federal court then what the amount of the forfeiture was. HE was young, about 21 and he told me that he had that much money on him because he had just driven up to ohio from Texas to sell a used sports car. His brother had a small used car lot, and we provided all of the evidence to the US attorney's office (cash receipt for the sale, car title, etc... Even when faced with evidence that the money was legal, the US attorney's still pursued. They knew that it would cost more to fight and even told me during settlement negotiations. That was their leverage.

One time I joked with the US attorney handling the case that they should just set up a sting in Vegas, and they could seize a lot of money. He did not think my comment was funny. Most people do not even fight for the money, helater told me. The forfeited money goes to the departments involved in the seizure.

Apparently what tipped the DEA off was the altercation he had the day before with the ticket agent (ticket agent tipped off the DEA) and he was young, paying in cash, on a one way fare. When the big wheels of government spin against you it is scary and you are helpless! Remember Due process says you get a day in court. This was civil so he had to pay the attorney's fees and the fees would have exceeded (tripled) $13k to go to trial in Kentucky.

This BS. I can't express how much this annoys me. This country is going to hell in a handbasket all in the name of security. Enough of this rant.

I had a new experience yesterday when stepping onto the jetbridge from my HKG-LAX flight - there were two immigration officers standing right there demanding to see your passport before even letting you walk to the main inspection area!

Are these idiots so unsure that the guy at the counter can't look at your passport properly that they have to check twice now?

Funny thing was, the customs guys, who normally have a field day with me in LA, just looked at my form and said thanks (and I had stated that I had visited Australia, China, Cambodia and Thailand). Normally this would get me the third degree (I'm a young male who travels alone).

What a way to welcome you back to your own country. I had zero questions asked of me and never have in the aforementioned countries. The US gives me more grief than any other place.

And as far as the TSA questioning you about your money, they can go to hell too. These poeople think they are the new gestapo acting in the name of "security" even for things that fall way outside their realm of responsibility. They didn't say what the cash limit was domestically because they probably didn't know. Morons.

Fortunately, I didn't loose anyone in the terror strikes, and for this I am grateful. However, I am affected quite constantly by the measures of "security" which have been put in place because of this. If I can ever get my hands on a terrorist, they are going to pay hell for this.

Canadian customs stations staff on the jetway of all flights arriving into Vancouver from China as well. I think the preliminary check is to make you sure you haven't flushed your documents down the toilet in flight in a bid to seek asylum upon arrival.

Not sure, just a guess.