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My U.S. Border Nightmare

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Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#251

Post by arandomJohn »

electromagnetic wrote: post #201
k-mcgrady wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good advice. I experienced the same thing when coming into Canada recently as a non-Canadian. The agent asked me if I had been to Canada before and I said know. He then found a stamp on my passport (which was only there because I got a connecting flight to Chicago from Toronto - I never left the airport) I got another round of questions and even further questioning by a second immigration officer. Granted, I am stayi…

I spent about 3 hours in Canada Immigration on my first trip to Canada, I now live here. IMO Toronto Pearson's border control are the worst I've ever experienced. I made the honest mistake of being honest. I was working as an electrician for my fathers company, which meant I had a plenty of money and as much holiday time as I wanted (I declared I was taking 2 weeks, and the officer acted like this was a lot). My seco…

I was detained for several hours at the Montreal airport trying to enter Canada. The immigration officer at one point started yelling at me about Wal-Mart and how Canada isn't like Wal-Mart and the workers in Canada have rights! None of which had anything to do with me. I assume she was having a bad day and decided to take it out on the first American she came across.

She began insisting that I pay $1000 cash to enter the country with my laptop and printer. I refused to give her cash but offered to pay with a credit card. That got me detained for another hour, sitting alone locked in a room.

Finally she brought someone else out that wasn't irrationally mad at me and she charged my credit card $250. The entire thing was surreal.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#252

Post by nraynaud »

pmjordan wrote: post #217
nraynaud wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This border is a bit particular, it's the place where a long religious war has taken place.

They may not be religious, but many borders (probably most of those which aren't due to the natural geography?) are the subject or result of some kind of conflict. So is this border really that special? Probably most borders in Europe were the subject of conflict within the last 100 years, but we've ended up with the Schengen agreement nevertheless.

I think this is a very recent conflict. Not over the border exactly, but between the religions.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#253

Post by ojbyrne »

wmoxam wrote: post #231
true_religion wrote: post #170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm wondering when that's going to happen because it seems that the US has always treated people this way since nigh on the beginning of its time. It's one of the few countries in existence with a century-long isolationist movement, and in decade after decade has had anti-immigration sentiment run high for one immigrant group after another.

Not really. The US-Canada border was far easier to cross pre-911. You didn't even need a passport to cross up until 2004.

At one point in the nineties I was driving from Canada to Maine and actually had to wake up the guard at the border crossing.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#254

Post by artmageddon »

yardie wrote: post #242
choros12 wrote: post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat". Reading: they can stop anyone for any reason anytime at any place. EU is not much better than US. I hold Polish, German and US citizenships. Europe is actually worse because they think that they treat people better when in reality they are much worse it just doesn't get as much attention because it is not US.

Funny, I'm an American working in the EU and my experience has been loads better than when I go back to the US. Growing up in the places I have you learn to say as little as possible to authorities (ie, don't give too much rope to hang yourself). In every country I've visited it's known your flight number, know your hotel address, know your return date, and if anyone asks, you are just visiting. Getting into specific…

> Growing up in the places I have you learn to say as little as possible to authorities (ie, don't give too much rope to hang yourself)

It's very true. There's a reason that, when your Miranda rights are read upon a rest, they say "...anything you say can and will be used against you.."

I'll leave it up to the viewer to judge this video with a defense attorney talking about why it's never good to talk to the Police: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc

(48mins in length)

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#255

Post by kjetil »

Are people in the US aware that visitors have to agree to be fingerprinted to enter the country? When I told an (American) friend about this the last time I visited the US, she refused to believe it.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#256

Post by leot »

krschultz wrote: post #218

You need a laywer. Plain and simple. There are very good lawyers for this type of stuff - unfortunately they are not cheap and I assume the cost would eat most of the YC investment. But it can be cleared up and worked out if you want to. Having done business across this border before I'm sorry to say this is a very typical story. Recreational travel across the US/Canada border is quite simple but both sides are stick…

It's really not that complicated, at least when going between the US and Canada. A lawyer is perhaps a good idea for getting an H1-B, but beyond that, not so much. Immigration law is more straightforward than other areas, it seems. Perhaps because it's less adversarial.

I used this guy's website to successfully (and without hassle) get a US work visa: http://www.grasmick.com/

I'm constantly back-and-forth between the US and Canada, on a variety of visas. Generally, US customs officials based in Canada are far nicer. It's good to try and minimize the possibility that they'll be cranky or see you as suspect. I never feel like I have a right to enter the country I'm not a citizen of.

Also, if you're frequently back-and-forth between the US and Canada, you might consider getting a NEXUS pass. If you're Canadian it's just $50, good for five years, and should minimize border agent hassle.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#257

Post by leot »

kjetil wrote: post #255

Are people in the US aware that visitors have to agree to be fingerprinted to enter the country? When I told an (American) friend about this the last time I visited the US, she refused to believe it.

No, not all of them. Not all the time. Canadians entering from Canada, and usually people entering on a tourist visa, don't need to be fingerprinted.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#258

Post by [deleted] »

tnuc wrote: post #57

The biggest mistake made here is the inconsistency. He was invited to do business training yet has no job to go back to. At least he didn't do anything stupid enough to get banned for ten years. Next time: Try being nice to the border guard. Let them do their job but at the same time try to engage in some conversation that is of interest to them. Don't try to engage to much. Social engineering goes a lot further than…

[deleted]

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#259

Post by leot »

jakejake wrote: post #51

It would have gone much smoother like this: Border Patrol: What is the purpose of your visit? Liar: I'm helping my friend move Border Patrol: How long are you staying? Liar: Heading back on Monday. Border Patrol: OK, have a good trip. The problem is, well, primarily that he chose to lie when crossing the border. But, more specifically he chose the wrong lie to tell. If you're crossing the border and planning to lie a…

Strangely, neither the U.S. nor Canadian border agents stamp passports upon departure. They often have to resort to using people's credit card statements and cell phone records to verify when a person was in one country or the other.

Re: My U.S. Border Nightmare

#260

Post by mahyarm »

choros12 wrote: post #211
DrJokepu wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As long as you have a EU (Schengen) passport, another EU (Schengen) member state can only deny your entry if its authorities can prove that you pose a "genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat". The burden of proof is on them. It's very likely that even if you have refused to answer eventually the border control officer would have granted you entry.

"genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat". Reading: they can stop anyone for any reason anytime at any place. EU is not much better than US. I hold Polish, German and US citizenships. Europe is actually worse because they think that they treat people better when in reality they are much worse it just doesn't get as much attention because it is not US.

How do you have german citizenship and two others at the same time? I thought germany was a one citizenship state. Or is it in practice that you can avoid that rule fairly easily?
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