For Marc. ...47 seconds

is all it took when crossing the board this afternoon. I timed it from the time we were called forward by the boarder guard to the time she told us we could leave.

Just pulled up and gave her our passports. She asked us where we lived, the value of what we had bought and how long we were in the U.S.

Just thought you'd like to know for that trip you're planning.

sometimes the line going down to the US can be two-hours long since the US agents want to know where you're going, why, how long you're staying, what you do for a living, your zodiac sign, shoe size, blood type, favorite movie, etc. Multiply this by the thousands of people crossing the border and it adds up to a slow process.

--
MY 2000 S, Ocean Blue, Metropol Blue, Savanah Beige.
Bought June 2000 - Sold May 2010

I've never experienced quite THAT many questions when headed into the US. Maybe I just have an innocent face.

Quote
frogster
sometimes the line going down to the US can be two-hours long since the US agents want to know where you're going, why, how long you're staying, what you do for a living, your zodiac sign, shoe size, blood type, favorite movie, etc. Multiply this by the thousands of people crossing the border and it adds up to a slow process.

Lines can be long at times and sometimes and there can be delays. Usually caused by people either not being honest and being caught bringing undeclared goods across the border. That can sure delay things.

Actually, I was delayed one time. We had crossed back into Canada at a border crossing with a big outlet mall on the US side. I hadn't bought anything. That's what I declared and the agent didn't believe me, so they spent 15 minutes seaching the car and of course found nothing.

Lesson learned. I always buy something and declare it, specially if the crossing is near an outlet mall. Never been stopped since.

I think they also know that if there's a woman in the car, that it would be impossible that nothing was bought.

but I can time my crossing and the location to avoid the crowds/wait.

But another worry was traffic tickets. I have no outstanding tickets but I read that many traffic citations in the USA are considered serious enough in Canada to prevent entry.

The last ticket I received -- in Texas has been cleared: deferred judgement and I have the letter from the court stating the citation was dealt with to the satisfaction of the court -- but I'm worried about older tickets that I of course dealt with properly I have no paperwork even an accurate memory of when.

Sincerely,

MarcW.

I cross the boarder, probably more then once a month and the wait times depend greatly on how/when one travels across. The questioning seems to vary greatly. Since I'm probably a statistical anomaly(disabled), my experiences might be skewed but they like explanations for what's in front of them, or things get tense/terse quickly. The best situation, is seemingly to cross on "off" times when there are few people(statistics found on border crossing.customs sites). The guards seem more relaxed and civil on both sides. Rarely have we gone through that quick(47 seconds), but sometimes it is close.
With the high Canadian $, the border seems to have much longer lines, at more of a constant rate then a year ago. The train is a nice way to avoid waiting in the lines, but the mudslides have made it about as reliable as old 986 ignition switches.
regards