San Pedro customs, on back to back

[Colo Cruiser]

Question.....I am on a 4 night cruise out of San Pedro. Ports a re Santa Barbara and Ensenada. Will we have to go through custome?

 

 

Yes upon return to LA.

[Daniel1313]

The way that guy looked at me, I was sure we were going to a secondary strip search area.

Who would have thought that on a back to back anything needed to be declared. In fact on a Regal back to back this

February(In Ft. Lauderdale), I actually filled out the form with stuff we had already purchased. The guy didn't even collect it,and on final week we filled out a new one with the two weeks worth of purchases, including what we bought on the ship.

Blue bags, didn't give them a thought, they were stuffed in my carry on.

How can two government officials act so different.

So for San Pedro disembarkation, both weeks it was the guy in the far left, small white beard. He was not old about maybe 50years old.Look around before you get on a line. He may have changed locations.

Thanks for the heads up on this guy. We leave San Pedro on 4/15. I'll have to keep him in mind while getting off the ship.

 

How do they expect you to come up with an monetary value when there is none? I guess we better start declaring the little goodie bag they give elites...

[pablo222]

So if you are in transit take nothing off the ship with you except what is needed to go through customs.

 

Seems like the guy was going his job. As you are in-transit, you have no duty free allowance.

Customs is certainly allowed to ask you what you are bringing into the country, and check

to verify.

 

If they guy didn't check, next week on cruise critic there would be posts about how to

smuggle during a back-to-back stop.

[floridalover5623]

Seems like the guy was going his job. As you are in-transit, you have no duty free allowance.

Customs is certainly allowed to ask you what you are bringing into the country, and check

to verify.

 

If they guy didn't check, next week on cruise critic there would be posts about how to

smuggle during a back-to-back stop.

The thing of it is, if you get off the ship with the rest of the crowd, they have no way of knowing that you're doing a B2B. (at this point in time)

[tonit964]

My dad had a customs agent tell him that his passport card was not good for cruises. Gave him a big lecture and finally let him go. My dad was laughing at him (in his head). That's exactly what the card is for, cruises, no flying.

[floridalover5623]

My dad had a customs agent tell him that his passport card was not good for cruises. Gave him a big lecture and finally let him go. My dad was laughing at him (in his head). That's exactly what the card is for, cruises, no flying.

Could he have been coming back from somewhere else than Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda?:confused:

Their website says;

The passport card is a wallet-size travel document that can only be used to re-enter the United States at land border-crossings or ports-of-entry by sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda.

[tonit964]

Could he have been coming back from somewhere else than Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda?:confused:

Their website says;

The passport card is a wallet-size travel document that can only be used to re-enter the United States at land border-crossings or ports-of-entry by sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda.

 

 

No, it was a closed loop Carnival cruise this past November out of Long Beach. My dad won't fly voluntarily:D

[RDC1]

Did you bring the Princess bags back on board. If not then technically the agent was correct. If your dirty laundry was in Princess bags that you were going to leave in the car then you were bringing something into the country, that while it cost you nothing, was not zero value. If you had the laundry in your own bags that were not clearly Princess bags then probably nothing would have been said. If you had put $5 misc items, again no issue.

 

The problem is a zero declaration with highly visible bags (minimal, but not zero value) clearly obtained on ship. You may not like his attitude but technically he is correct.

[RDC1]

One more comment.

 

How did you react when he said that you were in violation. I noticed that you said that that he said "you are not listening to me". That implies that maybe you were not listening to what he was actually saying and as such may have helped contribute to the escalation in his attitude. Your post implies that even when you posted this you still did not quite get his point.

 

I suspect his point was what I said earlier. You marked zero yet clearly were carrying bags that indicated that some non-zero entry was required.

[san diego sue]

Wish you were there to see the intimidation. Our friends without asking him , he mentioned the bags and my visit.

I tried to tell him I didn't get the bags on that cruise but he shut me up.Princess actually ran out of bags the previous cruise and those were not given to me by Princess on the cruise. I let him talk (rant) , I was afraid to open my mouth. I wasn't clear on what he was asking because I knew I brought NOTHING except my own dirty clothes off the ship. It took 5 full minutes with he and I staring each others in the eyes (his request) before he made the point about the bags. At that point I said nothing.

 

And I was listening , not talking, And violation was a small part. He said I committed fraud on a legal document (the form) Who would have thought he meant the bags. How many of you have a collection of Princess bags? I always have a few in my outer pocket of my suitcase, trunk of my car for groceries etc.

This was my 53rd Princess cruise. I know how to fill out customs forms and have been honest every time. So adding worthless bags not something I would even think to put on form.

Lesson learned, in transit bring only necessary forms and ID's off.

Edited April 4, 2017 by san diego sue

[Sillyjilly]

One more comment.

 

How did you react when he said that you were in violation. I noticed that you said that that he said "you are not listening to me". That implies that maybe you were not listening to what he was actually saying and as such may have helped contribute to the escalation in his attitude. Your post implies that even when you posted this you still did not quite get his point.

 

I suspect his point was what I said earlier. You marked zero yet clearly were carrying bags that indicated that some non-zero entry was required.

 

She didn't make any purchases so of course she would mark zero. I do this all the time when I make no purchases.

[Sillyjilly]

Did you bring the Princess bags back on board. If not then technically the agent was correct. If your dirty laundry was in Princess bags that you were going to leave in the car then you were bringing something into the country, that while it cost you nothing, was not zero value. If you had the laundry in your own bags that were not clearly Princess bags then probably nothing would have been said. If you had put $5 misc items, again no issue.

 

The problem is a zero declaration with highly visible bags (minimal, but not zero value) clearly obtained on ship. You may not like his attitude but technically he is correct.

 

No, he isn't. We all walk off with bags. It doesn't mean we purchased anything. The guy was an idiot.

[Sillyjilly]

Wish you were there to see the intimidation. Our friends without asking him , he mentioned the bags and my visit.

I tried to tell him I didn't get the bags on that cruise but he shut me up.Princess actually ran out of bags the previous cruise and those were not given to me by Princess on the cruise. I let him talk (rant) , I was afraid to open my mouth. I wasn't clear on what he was asking because I knew I brought NOTHING except my own dirty clothes off the ship. It took 5 full minutes with he and I staring each others in the eyes (his request) before he made the point about the bags. At that point I said nothing.

 

And I was listening , not talking, And violation was a small part. He said I committed fraud on a legal document (the form) Who would have thought he meant the bags. How many of you have a collection of Princess bags? I always have a few in my outer pocket of my suitcase, trunk of my car for groceries etc.

This was my 53rd Princess cruise. I know how to fill out customs forms and have been honest every time. So adding worthless bags not something I would even think to put on form.

Lesson learned, in transit bring only necessary forms and ID's off.

 

I think he forgot to eat his Wheaties.

[caribill]

She didn't make any purchases so of course she would mark zero. I do this all the time when I make no purchases.

 

The form asks for the value of anything obtained abroad, not just what you purchased.

 

If you win a prize at trivia, it is not a purchase but should be declared.

 

If a friend gives you a gift, it is not a purchase but should be declared.

 

And if Princess gives you a blue Princess bag, it should be declared. (Of course the OP did not get the bags on that cruise, so they did not have to be declared.)

[Sillyjilly]

The form asks for the value of anything obtained abroad, not just what you purchased.

 

If you win a prize at trivia, it is not a purchase but should be declared.

 

If a friend gives you a gift, it is not a purchase but should be declared.

 

And if Princess gives you a blue Princess bag, it should be declared. (Of course the OP did not get the bags on that cruise, so they did not have to be declared.)

 

Ridiculous.

[floridalover5623]

She didn't make any purchases so of course she would mark zero. I do this all the time when I make no purchases.

We hardly make any purchases when traveling any longer but I always mark down $50 or $75 when filling out the form. It just looks better in case you run up against one of those types of individuals.

Last cruise one agent asked me what the $75 was spent on. When I told him just shirts he just asked if I had bought liquor.

I think he was trying to read my expression as an indicator to look into it further. ;)

[NavyVeteran]

We hardly make any purchases when traveling any longer but I always mark down $50 or $75 when filling out the form. It just looks better in case you run up against one of those types of individuals.

Last cruise one agent asked me what the $75 was spent on. When I told him just shirts he just asked if I had bought liquor.

I think he was trying to read my expression as an indicator to look into it further. ;)

 

You are definitely supposed to list the value of anything received that did not come from the United States - whether it was a purchase, a gift, or a promotion.

 

However, you suggestion is not appropriate for the middle of a B2B. If you list $50, then you will actually need to pay duty on the $50. As I quoted in an earlier post, you cannot use your personal exemption more than once within thirty days. If you declare $1 on the first leg of a B2B and don't pay duty, then you have used your personal exemption. You will NOT have a personal exemption available when you return at the end of your cruise.

[floridalover5623]

You are definitely supposed to list the value of anything received that did not come from the United States - whether it was a purchase, a gift, or a promotion.

 

However, you suggestion is not appropriate for the middle of a B2B. If you list $50, then you will actually need to pay duty on the $50. As I quoted in an earlier post, you cannot use your personal exemption more than once within thirty days. If you declare $1 on the first leg of a B2B and don't pay duty, then you have used your personal exemption. You will NOT have a personal exemption available when you return at the end of your cruise.

In that case I should be removing from the ship all the declared items at the time I file my customs form, correct?

[NavyVeteran]

In that case I should be removing from the ship all the declared items at the time I file my customs form, correct?

 

That is my understanding, but don't rely on my advice. I recommend you look at the link I posted earlier to the official customs website.

[floridalover5623]

You are definitely supposed to list the value of anything received that did not come from the United States - whether it was a purchase, a gift, or a promotion.

 

However, you suggestion is not appropriate for the middle of a B2B. If you list $50, then you will actually need to pay duty on the $50. As I quoted in an earlier post, you cannot use your personal exemption more than once within thirty days. If you declare $1 on the first leg of a B2B and don't pay duty, then you have used your personal exemption. You will NOT have a personal exemption available when you return at the end of your cruise.

 

That is my understanding, but don't rely on my advice. I recommend you look at the link I posted earlier to the official customs website.

 

I could live with removing my purchases during a B2B rather than at the end as long as I have everything.

Somehow I doubt that they even take the time to cross reference cards from prior cruises but they very easily could. They've never questioned me when leaving the ship on the last trip even though I had filed customs cards twice previously. B2B2B

[NavyVeteran]

I could live with removing my purchases during a B2B rather than at the end as long as I have everything.

Somehow I doubt that they even take the time to cross reference cards from prior cruises but they very easily could. They've never questioned me when leaving the ship on the last trip even though I had filed customs cards twice previously. B2B2B

 

I have never heard of their questioning people on a B2B about using the exemption more than once in thirty days. They do not ask on the customs form if you have used the exemption within the last thirty days. I doubt anyone will have a problem. But I don't want to be the first one caught after they update their software to check their database.

[floridalover5623]

I have never heard of their questioning people on a B2B about using the exemption more than once in thirty days. They do not ask on the customs form if you have used the exemption within the last thirty days. I doubt anyone will have a problem. But I don't want to be the first one caught after they update their software to check their database.

The absolute worst they could do to us is charge us duty for a few more T shirts which amounts to nothing. Our purchases these days are minimal after cruising many years.

[Pierlesscruisers]

Had a really weird experience in San Pedro . We were on the Ruby for a back to back. First week a Coastal with stop in Ensenada. And the second week Mexican Riviera. Well, at the end of first week being in transit, had to still.

 

Sue, to my way of thinking, the only mistake you make was not, after you left the agent giving you the 3rd degree was in not asking another agent if you could talk to a supervisor and explaining, very politely and calmly to the supervisor when he arrived exactly what had transpired with the first agent and letting him take it from there while you and your spouse walk off to your car. I'm sorry that you had to deal with such a person. At least you've got an interesting story to tell now! Hope your next cruise makes up for this one!

 

Tom

[san diego sue]

Thanks Tom.

Asking for a supervisor was something I thought about once we were safely back on the ship. I thought that when we exited on second leg (this past Saturday) I would look around and see if there was someone that possibly was a supervisor hanging around.We travel via San Pedro often and actually didn't want to be a target later on future cruises, so decided to just drop it.

Edited April 6, 2017 by san diego sue

[waltd]

San Diego Sue how do you get yourself into these crazy situations? :) Why would anyone want to pick on cute and petite you????? Hey some day it will be a fun story to tell over a drink on one of your many transatlantic crossings.