I went through Rouse's point many years ago on my way back to Boston. I had a pretty similar experience - I was the only car and the US border guard asked me why I chose that crossing. I told him it was because I wanted to drive down through Grand Isle for the scenery (which was the true reason)
Best way to avoid getting harassed by immigration?
- Thread starter figuroxxx
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My experience driving through the small crossing at Coburn Gore is that they TYPE of vehicle your are driving matters. In a truck I was questioned a lot. In a mid sized SUV--far less. Incongruous items like car seats, etc. will also cause extra questions.
I kinda messed up returning to the US my last trip and changed my cover event last minute. Should have stuck with the original. Then I made the additional mistake of reading this thread before making it up to MTL this weekend. Went ahead and cleared my phone and computer, put together a full schedule of plausible events. Got to Coburn Gore and there was one pickup in front of me he was waved through in less than 45 seconds. I got up there and was also waved through in less 45 seconds. Didn't even get the alcohol, firearms, fruit questions. Which seemed surprising since there were hunters everywhere. So yeah a minute and half and I clearly was worried about nothing.
Yes and after 8-10 years of going through this drill, 40-50 trips to Canada and no Canadian laws violated, and no DUIs, arrests or customs violations, the same computer "system" will say you are no longer a risk and let the dude through after 3 token questions. Which, as has already been stated here, basically summarizes my experiences going to Montreal over the last 18 years or so. You guys just have not paid your dues yet. Pay your dues and then you will coast 99% of the time crossing the border. You are risks, until you prove that you are not.
Yes, that actually makes a lot of sense. It is not at all clear what one can do to clear that flag.
Yes it is. Go to Canada for a number of years and do not violate its laws, rack up DUIs, get arrested, get speeding tickets or develop some other issues, and the flags will clear. HELLO!!!!! This is the way LE operates everywhere.
Thank you as always for sharing your infinite wisdom and offering this most practical advice. I am certain that no member of this forum has even considered violating Canadian laws, least of all the one known as "Bill C-36".
I have never violated any Canadian laws to my knowledge, however what is most significant and relevant is that I was never caught violating any Canadian laws. Because unless you are caught , nothing shows in their so called "system." If that continues to be the case over time, the harassment will abate and finally stop at some point, as previously mentioned.
Why would an Albertan visit Montana or Idaho? There is nothing there.
Lots of people in the Lower Mainland of BC go to the Bellingham for shopping monthly or more.
People in Winnipeg go to Grand Forks or Fargo all the time, it's a nice day trip.
I live in northern NY and have traveled by car at varying frequencies to Montreal for both business and pleasure. I used to get FAR more questions (and occasional secondaries) than what I do now. When not going for business, I have straight up told the agent that I was going to Montreal to get a massage. The farthest the line of questioning went was which place and if I had been there before and if I had an appointment. It’s not illegal to get a massage. You might find an agent that thinks it’s morally reprehensible but it’s not illegal.
My latest trip was to Toronto instead of Mtl. I went to a different border crossing and on this trip I had to provide the agent proof for every last detail of the conference I was attending. So every time you think you’ve got it figured out, you don’t. Mind you I haven’t even had a speeding ticket in about 20 years.
i was more worried about coming back through the Champlain crossing after telling the agent I was in Toronto. But I guess I’m dope with coming back to the US because I was still through after 2 questions and 30 seconds.
My latest trip was to Toronto instead of Mtl. I went to a different border crossing and on this trip I had to provide the agent proof for every last detail of the conference I was attending. So every time you think you’ve got it figured out, you don’t. Mind you I haven’t even had a speeding ticket in about 20 years.
i was more worried about coming back through the Champlain crossing after telling the agent I was in Toronto. But I guess I’m dope with coming back to the US because I was still through after 2 questions and 30 seconds.
I just say that I'm going to visit a friend and half of the time they cut me off saying "have a nice day" before I can even finish saying the word "friend".
I often feel this way, like it was all done for nothing. I take the precautions that I do not for the times when everything goes smoothly, I do it for when things go sideways. And you never know when that’s going to happen. Same reason I wear a helmet on my bike, you never know when it’s going to come in handy.
I was under the impression that it's a catch-22. If you have anything incriminating on your phone, they won't let you in. If you don't give them access, they won't let you in.
I'm glad I found this thread. It's something that concerns me too. I tend to wipe my Canada phone and have everything in the cloud when coming from the U.S. My work phone is clean, but I'd still feel unhappy with strangers rooting around my business. My computer does have some porn on it, but thankfully I've never been asked to allow them to root around its files. Do we have to give them access to our computers when they ask?
I'm not about to tell them I'm there for hanky panky so I've always said tourism. I like the city, which is true, and I like how far my money goes.
If I said I was coming to visit a friend without a real person in mind, would that be dangerous? Would they go down that path of asking for a name, then history, and look for holes in my story? I could easily think of a friend and use all that information.
I could also say I'm thinking of buying real estate, which is also true, but would that arouse class resentments?
On another message board, I read a report of an aggressive border agent coming across text conversations with agencies and turning that person away. That would be horrible -- presumably you could never enter the country again.
I'm not about to tell them I'm there for hanky panky so I've always said tourism. I like the city, which is true, and I like how far my money goes.
If I said I was coming to visit a friend without a real person in mind, would that be dangerous? Would they go down that path of asking for a name, then history, and look for holes in my story? I could easily think of a friend and use all that information.
I could also say I'm thinking of buying real estate, which is also true, but would that arouse class resentments?
On another message board, I read a report of an aggressive border agent coming across text conversations with agencies and turning that person away. That would be horrible -- presumably you could never enter the country again.
You bet.
Yes, I believe that would be dangerous. I think they might want to ask for a name and then try to contact that person to verify that s/he is expecting you.
I have never done that, but I know for a fact that on more than one occasion they called the hotel I said I was going to stay at to verify that I do indeed have a reservation. As always, it is best to stick as close to the truth as possible.
I am surprised they just didn’t ask for your reservation information rather than make a call. It should be on your phone or printed out. I would have simply asked to see it. 99% of travelers either book travel on their phones or print out receipts. Why make unnecessary calls? If someone is lying they are busted immediately. Make the call only if they don’t have or can’t produce a receipt. Once again this is common sense. This was not good border interrogation technique.
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