One of the most dreadful and stressful parts of international travel is going through customs and getting flagged, right! Want to speed through customs without getting through that big hassle?
The answer is simple. Follow the Customs and Border Protection rules and you will definitely make it home without a splitting headache.
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#1 – Spending Too Much Money
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The last thing you can ever expect after coming back from a wonderful and enjoyable vacation is getting flagged at customs because of the cost of the number of goods you have brought with you. Surprised? Don’t be.
In fact, going beyond the duty-free limit you are supposed to respect is a sure way of inviting that dreaded delay at customs. In the U.S, travelers are not allowed to spend more than the allowed duty-free amount during their trip, which in return depends on the country they are visiting and for how long they are willing to stay there.
According to the Customs and Border Protection website, travelers can only bring back home $800 worth of goods they have bought while on a vacation without having to pay any taxes.
As for those who are coming back from a foreign country and have been out for less than forty-eight hours, they cannot exceed $200. If you are still confused, you can go back to CBP website and check the rules stated before you ever step out of your house, and spend accordingly.
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#2 – Visiting Certain Countries
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Some countries and regions are more notorious for drug smuggling than others. Therefore, travelers returning back home after a visit to such places should automatically expect to raise suspicion and be detained for this matter.
This might sound a bit weird but still, it makes sense. A SmarterTravel staff member said that he has once been through such an experience when he came back to the U.S through Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.
He said that he was with his traveling partner when he was detained by customs and was taken to a small room where he had to answer a list of questions and only after the officers had all the answers that he was set free to go home with not a single explanation.
Another U.S traveler experienced almost the same thing when returning from his trip to Panama. The guy said that he was really frightened to see twenty CBP officers carefully watching everyone get off the plane.
He also adds that the officers didn’t stop there but got even closer along with their drug-sniffing dogs in order to check the luggage.
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#3 – Using a Cell Phone or Camera
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There are some people who like to document each and every moment of their lives and share it with their followers on Instagram.
Whether it is consciously or unconsciously done, using a cell phone, camera, or any other device in the customs processing area is a big No.
It is totally forbidden and can cause officials to confiscate the device and you will never have it back. Rules are rules and you must respect them!
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#4 – Visiting a Farm
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If you have visited a farm during your trip or have been in a very close contact with livestock, you must not lie about it and indicate it by checking “yes” in the customs declaration form you are asked to fill in when you return to the United States.
If your answer is “yes”, then expect to be pulled aside for a separate and secondary inspection and you may even have your stuff sprayed with disinfectant to prevent the spread of livestock diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease. At the end of the day, these strict procedures are only for your safety and that of other U.S citizens.
The perk? Maybe all this hassle is for your own benefit after all. Most of the times the agricultural inspection line is not crowded and normally shorter than the general customs line. So, maybe you will spend less time in agricultural line than in the other.
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#5 – Having Passport Stamps from Certain Countries
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Home or abroad, having stamps from a certain country in your passport, no matter how old or new the stamps are, can get you into so much trouble and cause you unwanted headaches at customs.
A good example is having a passport with an Israeli passport stamp can create a problem while trying to enter certain Middle Eastern countries.
To fix the problem, Israel started recently using a pilot program via which visitors receive a separate entry card instead of a stamp. Israel is not the only example as there are many other countries, like Cuba, for instance.
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#6 – Traveling With a Pet
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You can’t do without your four-legged friend. Then, make sure to check the entire requirement needed to avoid being flagged at customs, including vaccination and health certificates.
And that’s in addition to providing all the right and legal documents that your pet need to be allowed in the country you are willing to visit. Make sure you do all this before you fly!
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#7 – Carrying Fruit in Your Bag
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Don’t forget that the well-trained customs dogs can still sniff out the fruits you had in your bag one week ago. So, be careful! It’s true that this won’t get you into trouble but there is always a possibility that you may get flagged for an agricultural inspection.
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#8 – Wearing Your Hiking Boots
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The hiking boots you are traveling with might be risky. Therefore, you need to declare them in the declaration custom form you are supposed to fill in.
As for many countries concerned with biosecurity believe that the hiking boots may carry a trace of soil, water, or seeds and can create a serious issue.
Some of these countries, we find Australia and New Zealand where you must declare and wait in the agricultural line for your boots to be cleaned or thrown away very simply!
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#9 – Not Knowing Where You’re Staying
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Not in the US my dear. You’d better save your adventurous spirit to yourself and book yourself a room in the hotel before you ever land in America. Unless you are staying with a friend or a family member.
The first thing you are supposed to fill in that customs declaration form is your full address. Oh, yes and in case you have forgotten about it, be ready to sit for an investigation with CBP agents. Who knows, they might even deny your entry.
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#10 – Bringing in Fresh Food
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Like it is the case in many other countries, you should always declare the food you have with you. Otherwise, you either toss it or pay a refine of $300. I don’t think you are ready to pay that, right!
Unfortunately, you don’t have many choices here. However, according to Smarter Travel, the customs officer may allow you keep some prepackaged food or candy which you have bought as a souvenir but all the fresh food will be confiscated.
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