Planes,
trains and automobiles, throw a cruise ship in there and that could
be the summary of my last four years. After enough travel I pretty
much know what documents I need, when to present them and whatI can
and can’t do during the immigration process.
One
thing I didn’t know is that US Customs request that you register
any cameras, laptops or electronics before you leave. This way you
have proof that you didn’t buy them overseas and bringing them back
in the country illegally.
I
almost learned this lesson the hard way coming back into the US from
Germany on my last trip. The customs agent asked for proof that I
bought my video gear before I left and didn’t purchase it in
Germany. I didn’t have proof, I bought my gear last summer and it
didn’t even cross my mind that I had to do it. I offered to show
him footage but he seemed that he enjoyed giving me a hard time
more-so than worried about my items.
Here
are five ways to show US Customs and Border Protection that what you
have is in-fact yours and wasn’t purchased on your trip:
1.
Register your electronics.
The easiest thing to do is register your gear with the US Customs and
Patrol. You can see what the customs and border protection require
here.
Personally,
if it was only a couple hundred dollars and you weren’t carrying it
in your case or around your neck, I would worry about it – but
that’s up to you.
2.
Time-stamp feature. Cameras these days have a time stamp feature;
if you’re worried about being asked about it turn the time-stamp
feature is on when taking photos. Consider leaving some time-stamped
pre-trip photos on your camera.
3.
Dated publication. Before you leave take a photo of a newspaper
or a big newspaper headline that someone can’t forget.
4.
Receipt. Although it may be a pain, travel with a receipt of your
electronic so if asked, you can pull it out and show the custom
agent.
5.
Photos of home. Keep some photos of your house on your camera or
video. This way if it gets escalated to this level, you have
something to show. Not saying this will get you out of it, but it
can’t hurt.
99.9-percent
of the time you will not be questioned about anything you bring, it’s
that .01-percent that you have to worry about. This was my first
time, in dozens of times dealing with customs, but it does happen. I
am sure the agents look for certain traits and key countries of
travel.
It
probably didn’t help that I wrote that my method of transportation
to North Carolina was Carnival Sunshine, when I should have wrote
Luthansia airlines, considering there isn’t a cruise port anywhere
near Charlotte, NC.
Safe
travels.
Source:Cruise
Radio News
