Crackdown on Global Entry "Zero tolerance"
 

http://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-me...-entry-program

“Global Entry provides a level of trust not afforded to regular air travelers,” said Devin Chamberlain, CBP Port Director. “Violations of any kind will result in removal from the program.”

The violators, all returning U.S. citizens failed to declare personal use steroids and prescription drugs and failed to report the transport of currency over $10,000. Two events occurred February 26 and the last March 1, 2014.

This fits in with something a CBP officer told me recently, that they have found people using GE to smuggle drugs. I thought he meant illegal, but I guess I need to refresh my memory about what prescription drugs must be declared.

ETA: I can't find anywhere that asks you to declare prescription drugs, does anyone even know how you would do this with GE? Or even with the blue paper declarations form?

The CBP Web site says that "A valid prescription or doctors note is required on all medication entering the U.S." If I had to guess, the violators brought in prescription drugs (or other controlled substances) for which they didn't have a prescription that was issued in the U.S.

I don't recall offhand whether the kiosk questions specifically address this particular issue, but when there is something to declare (for example, large amounts of medications or those without accompanying prescriptions), GE members can still list the items in the spaces on the back of the paper form 6059B and speak to an agent from the GE lane.

What about prescriptions issued and filled in the USA prior to travel overseas? Do we need to declare standard things like antibiotics that we take every day and travel with everywhere? Or dermatological creams, etc that happen to be prescription?

(or are they more interested in controlled-substance prescriptions like heavy-duty painkillers, psychotropic drugs, etc?)


Here is what CBP.gov says about it--it's vague, in my opinion, about whether ALL medications must be declared, or only those with certain potentially addictive properties (what do you think?):

Medication

Rule of thumb: When you go abroad, take the medicines you will need, no more, no less. Narcotics and certain other drugs with a high potential for abuse - Rohypnol, GHB and Fen-Phen, to name a few - may not be brought into the United States, and there are severe penalties for trying to do so. If you need medicines that contain potentially addictive drugs or narcotics (e.g., some cough medicines, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, antidepressants or stimulants), do the following:

Declare all drugs, medicinals, and similar products to the appropriate CBP official;
Carry such substances in their original containers;
Carry only the quantity of such substances that a person with that condition (e.g., chronic pain) would normally carry for his/her personal use; and
Carry a prescription or written statement from your physician that the substances are being used under a doctor's supervision and that they are necessary for your physical well being while traveling.

This is an excellent question, ESpen36. I was also a bit mystified by this particular CBP news item, and I have been similarly unable to find satisfactory guidance on the CBP website. To mitigate a chronic medical condition, I take a controlled-substance prescription every day. This medication happens to be a steroid. My prescription, renewed every six months, is issued and filled in the US.

While I always carry the doctor's letter-of-medical-necessity (issued when I first got started on this medication), and the original container from Walgreens with the printed personalized label, I have never been asked by US (or any other) Customs officials about my medications.

There is no question about prescription drugs on the blue Customs form that we fill out when returning to the US or on its virtual (kiosk) equivalent. And since I also have GE, it is not clear how and where I should "Declare all drugs...to the appropriate CBP official." Yes I could speak to an agent from the GE lane as mikew99 suggests. But what is troubling is the lack of official guidance and consistency on this, e.g.: Why did these GE sweeps / demotions occur only at DTW, only over a specific period of time? Is this a hint of consistent increased enforcement at all GE airports in the future? Why should we suddenly consider using the blank spaces on the customs form to list personal items that we never previously had to list there?

Also, not all controlled substances are addictive drugs.

GE enrollment is enough of a hassle. Strange if we should now worry about GE status over legitimate prescriptions...

I think you are overthinking this. Their guidance seems clear to me: if you have a prescription medicine, declare it and have appropriate documentation.

If the kiosk does not have a question about prescription drugs, simply say to the officer after the kiosk, "I have some prescription medicine but the kiosk did not ask about them. Do I need to do anything?"

The officer will ask what kind of medicine, you describe what it is, and then the officer will say "you are fine, move along" or "please follow me."

The kiosk is when a declaration is made but a declaration may almost always be amended, which is the reason for the officer after the kiosk, so no matter what you do/say via the kiosk you can change it later.

The sin is in evasion or NOT declaring. If something gets confiscated after declaration you have done nothing wrong and will keep your GE (unless of course, you are in illegal possession of the prohibited/controlled item).

When GE membership is at stake, it's impossible to over-think an issue.

CBP in WA will tell you that OTC pain meds call 2-2-2's (basically like an OTC version of Tylenol-3 - it has codeine in it) can not be brought back to the US from Canada.

I've never seen it in writing, but then I have never seen Kinder-Eggs listed on a prohibited list either. It's perfectly legal to buy both of them in Canada, obviously without a doctor's prescription.

The 'sin' is in the eye of the beholder, CBP. If you 'over-declare' out of an abundance of caution, you can get some real aggro. If you innocently under-declare (like declaring 'chocolate candy' instead of 'Kinder-eggs'), you risk losing GE.

I've bought Paracetamol in the UK when I ran out of aspirin for a headache. Trust me, I declared it. I'm glad I did, because the CBP officer did not know what it was and had to research it to decide if it was allowed. It's available OTC in the UK, of course.

The other thing which is unclear to me is whether one must declare medication which they took with them from the US and have some leftovers of (I always travel with a couple days' reserves just in case). Or is it just meds brought in from elsewhere?

And then there's the issue of samples. Sometimes my docs will give me samples given to them by pharma reps so I don't have to spend the money. They don't necessarily give me a scrip with it so would have to get that I suppose?

Even US citrus fruit taken from the US to Canada and back to the US needs to be declared even when the fruit and receipt clearly indicates US-origin of the fruit.

For US-sourced prescription medications, the same rules for declaration on arrival to the US have sometimes been applied as for foreign-origin-foreign-purchased prescription medications.

My rule for myself is that it is better to excessively declare goods than underdeclare.

Patients ask me all the time for "a copy of their prescription." The whole point is that the pharmacist keeps the prescription when the medication is filled. And I almost never hand-write a prescription anyway (we use electronic prescribing.)

I usually tell people, "If it has your name on it, it's in original packaging from the pharmacy, and there isn't an inordinate supply, you shouldn't have a problem." Maybe I'm wrong, but that seems like common sense.

The only exceptions have been for those going abroad for more than--say--90 days, and they take Scheduled drugs. I'll write a brief letter saying that they're under my care. The other exception is that certain countries, most notably the United Arab Emirates, have specific bans on many medications, particularly anything for mental health. So I'll write a letter in those circumstances.

Otherwise, I think it's unnecessary. I take prescription drugs with me myself, and nobody has ever questioned it.

I remember an incident at a land crossing. An elderly woman had put a benzodiazepine (Ativan or something) into a pill box, out of its original container. She was detained and got some sort of absurd smack-down. It was admittedly a bad idea on her behalf (even if she wasn't traveling), but an absurd power trip by the customs officer.

The article talks about "personal use" steroids and currency over $10,000. Could this be someone buying steroids overseas and bringing them back to the US? That much extra cash. Maybe they didn't buy as much as they were planning.

Two comments.

My pharmacy will give me a copy of the prescription. They really don't like doing it, for obvious reasons, and they are not accustomed to doing it. They make a xerox and hand write over it in large letters explaining that it is only a copy, not to be filled, etc.

Of course, one has to remember that even copies of prescriptions can be challenged as forgeries and labelled bottles don't ensure that the contents are what the label says.

I routinely put pills and vitamins/supplements in different containers to save space. I'm not going to pay the outrageous price for a tiny bottle of aspirin just to have a properly labelled container for my travel supply. The pharmacist almost always dispenses ridiculously large bottles for the amount of pills inside, and even the smallest bottles are way larger than necessary if I only need a week's supply.

I think the ambiguity is deliberate. CBP makes it clear that you are to declare everything in certain categories and CBP will make the ultimate determination. Part of the rationale (although I haven't seen a specific example) is that CBP also enforces local restrictions that a pax might not be aware of.

For example, if you don't decare candy, you may be attempting to bring in Kinder Eggs without realizing that they are banned.

Furthermore, since candy counts as food, it MUST be declared. Even if you have GE....the kiosk question has changed to include the broader term "food," as another thread explains.

Exactly. Some unlucky people will find that there really is some candy that is prohibited.

They do that because rightly or wrongly the presumtion from CBP-ag is always that the fruit could contract a bug or disease outside the US and still bring it back in. Not saying that always makes sense, in Canada in the wintertime for example but that is their operations order.

They even make US persons declare purchases in DoD/military and government/DoS exchanges and commisaries too, though duty is not owed on the product it still has to be declared.

I like to carry a DEA Scrip pad, and we have no problem. leave the PDR at home.

I used to carry a couple of prescriptions with me, but I stopped once we made everything electronic. I also imagine that CBP would be really annoyed if I got a prescription pad out of my bag.

I'll bet this enforcement is aimed at protecting US drug companies. Remember a few years ago all those firms offering to buy drugs in Canada because they're a lot cheaper? Drug companies hate that, and so do what they can to block "reimportation" of drugs.

This is extremely impractical and if everyone took the time to declare their prescription drugs..the customs lines and bag inspections would be completely out of control. Just consider the number of people out there taking prescriptions for high blood pressure, statins for cholesterol, depression, diabetes, allergies, heart problems, blood thinners, birth control, Viagra, hormones...etc.etc etc... I'll bet at least half of all people going through have some kind of prescription drug in their bag.

And I didn't even mention the DEA controlled drugs like opiates, ADHD meds such as Adderal, and benzodiazapenes like Ambien and Xanax..which are the ones that customs are most like to be concerned with. Most people who take prescription drugs don't even know there is a DEA list with scheduled drugs that are more tightly controlled than non-scheduled drugs...they just know it's a prescription.

They are intentionally vague in their guidance and on the questions they ask on the form because they know if they ask a general question like "are you carrying any prescription medications?"...then it would require an act of Congress to increase funding to handle the additional work.

I believe the release of this news is to educate GE members who might think they're immune from searches to think again.

Given that the folks in question also didn't declare that they had currency over $10,000 (which is on the form/kiosk question list), I suspect that the prescription drugs/steroids weren't the main reason they were stopped...just additional things for them to be nailed for at that point.

IIRC the questions are pretty specific when it comes to food, and that not all food qualifies. For example, certain packaged items (I sometimes have things like granola bard or powdered drink mix) don't meet any of the criteria on the customs form. Am I wrong in my understanding?

I've started thinking this myself; they write the regulations such that they won't feel the need to bust someone who simply doesn't declare their leftover medication, in a bottle from a US pharmacy, prescribed by a US provider but can use it in the case that they need an excuse to escalate something.

Your understanding used to be correct for the kiosk. The question on the kiosk has now been changed to match the question on the form, and they both include the word "food."

Actually this is backwards. Candy and chewing gum are the two food-like things that are explicitly *not* food. However note that by "candy" they mean hard candy like Werthers and the like. They do not mean chocolate bars or other types of, uh, confection.

Do you have a link supporting this assertion that candy and gum are not "food?" Food is defined as anything that goes in your mouth and you consume. Breath mints would count as well.

The only exceptions might be multivitamins, calcium supplements, Zicam, and things like that. They would not count as food, but they WOULD have to be declared as medications since they are FDA-recognized that way--the packages say "Drug Facts" on the back.

Question: toothpaste says "Drug Facts" as well....does it count as medication? food? neither?

EXACTLY.

The old question asked more specifically about fruits, veggies, meat and dairy products, etc.

Just repeating what the officer told me in my interview. "Anything that goes in your mouth except candy and chewing gum". When I probed about chocolate bars he made it clear "candy" didn't include chocolate or anything but "candy".

I would concur that doesn't make much sense. I don't think tobacco or drugs count as "food" either, though I suspect you're absolutely right that breath mints count as food. I brought some tea in last time and wasn't sure if that counted so I declared it. The officer didn't seem to think it counted but it's hard to tell if it didn't count or if he was just checking if it was the only thing I had.

Would you risk your GE membership based on one agent's statement?

I believe that one officer has the authority to revoke GE membership. You can try appealing to the Ombudsman.

I'm trying to understand this as well.

First, nothing on the customs declaration form says anything about medications.

Second, the statement on the CBP.gov site specifically says:

"If you need medicines that contain potentially addictive drugs or narcotics (e.g., some cough medicines, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, antidepressants or stimulants), do the following:

- Declare all drugs, medicinals, and similar products to the appropriate CBP official"

So, if you fill out the form truthfully, and don't carry any prescription drugs that are potentially addictive or are narcotics, is it still necessary to declare all prescription medications legally obtained in the US for personal use?

I'm carrying a copy of my prescriptions, and they're in the original containers, but at this point I see no guidance that every prescription must be declared. It's hard to imagine that's really what they want.

Not sure if this is all insurers, or just mine, but my insurer has a web page where I can all of my prescriptions that they've paid for. I just keep a PDF printout of that on my computer, in case it's requested.

Someone a bit more worried, or with more "interesting" prescriptions than my litany of middle-aged BP+Cholesterol+allergy might actually print it to paper.

Redacted a bit:
Before they had that, I just took pictures of the original bottle (I still do, in case

You go on to say:
Just using original bottles works well for someone with a prescription or two -- not so well in a situation like mine where you're carrying 3+ daily prescriptions plus a couple as-needed, let alone really sick people.

I find it much easier to bring them together in a pill organizer and/or one big bottle. Having a picture of the bottle including "white oval labeled M12" (example again redacted) is reassuring just in case, although I've never needed it.

When I used to use restoril to sleep on long flights, I used to bring that in its own bottle and only in the tiny quantity needed for flights, but even there that was less for US customs as for the worry about bringing scheduled drugs into Asian countries -- even ones with a bit more tolerance than the UAE.

Before getting GE, I'd been asked once or twice about "do you have any prescription drugs with you?" and answering "nothing acquired abroad" was always accepted as an answer without either asking what came out of the US with me or to see any of the documentation I had.

I've tried calling the CBP call center multiple times today, and I only get a busy signal. I also sent an email, but it told me to contact my local Global Entry office. I'll let you know if I get any answers.

Which makes no sense from a legal standpoint.

The old question much more closely comported with what the law actually is.

Someone needs to take the new declaration up with the Ombudsman. Its very weasel-worded and leads to way too much unfavorable discretion on the part of individual CBP people.

I just spoke with "Tyler" at the CBP call center. He verified that, yes, all prescription drugs must be declared even though the Customs form and kiosks do not ask.

Tyler was kind, witty, and unsurprised by the question.

He said that it was unlikely that a customs officer would ask for any details, but that "the law has been in place for many years."

He agreed that an officer might be annoyed, might lecture otherwise, but it is actually a dual CBP/FDA rule (to his understanding--seems weird), and that passengers have to "cover their bases" even though it's not on the form.

He was aware of the press release about the "zero tolerance" policy for Global Entry.

Tyler said that if a customs agent becomes irritated or claims that a declaration is unnecessary, it is wise to submit a complaint or talk to a supervisor.

Given the proportion of traveling people with prescription drugs, I wonder if CBP might seek to clarify its policy to a quantity limit or something else to avoid wasting their time. "Here, let me show you my Lipitor" is not one of the goals of US Customs and Border Protection.


I wrote to one of my US Senators this afternoon. I'll see what she says.

So far I've emailed both of my senators, my congressman, and the FDA. I have received no responses.

Seventy percent of Americans take some form of prescription drug. If everyone follows the rule and starts declaring them, we're going to have a huge mess at our CBP checkpoints.

If you can think of anyone else worth contacting, let me know.

I always declare everything that should be declared.

Apart from taking a few minutes of my time, I don't know why people never like to declare things. In the US a lot of things don't have duty, especially electronics that people like to buy abroad.

As for the whole over $10,000 in currency deal, I think a lot people think the US will confiscate or tax it if they declare it. It's not made very clear on the form. Anyways they just want a record.

Figuring out what needs to be declared is the tricky part.

Back pre-GE, I always declared everything acquired abroad down to "misc papers $0;" even then it was never clear that non-scheduled prescription drugs that left the US with me and were coming back in were supposed to be declared and when asked specifically about prescription drugs "nothing acquired abroad" was accepted.

With GE, given the way the questions have been phrased on the machine and how we were told to arrive in the past, it's not even clear how you declare things without skipping the machine and going to an immigration agent -- which is what I've done when I've come back with questionable food products.

The FDA responded.

In their form letter response, they indicate that only scheduled drugs must be declared.

I don't know where one might find data, but that's still a significant number of people crossing through customs. In fact, a lot of people take a benzodiazepine (Ambien, Xanax, etc.) only when they fly.

In fact, the majority of prescriptions I write for these drugs are for flying only.

So there are two problems:
1. A discrepancy between what the FDA says and what CBP claims to enforce
2. Still a questionable need for passengers to stop and declare their Ambien

In fact, the FDA says that this includes passengers leaving the United States. If one were to follow the law, this would mean asking the airline to call a Customs officer to come to the ticket counter or gate to say, "I'm traveling with five Ambien, and the law says I need to declare them to you."

I would say then the best answer would be to follow the instructions of the agency that is actually doing the enforcement.

FB

Does CBP agree with FDA, that prescription drugs also need to be declared to CBP when departing the US (not unlike >$10K)?

RE: declaration on departure. There is some already an example of pre-departure declarations: you have to declare >$10K in cash to CBP (no idea what the procedure is, because I've never done it). Presumably drug declarations would be handled similarly?