San Pedro customs, on back to back

[trbarton]

I'm also doing B2B on the Ruby, April 15 - 24. Since I may just walk off the ship with nothing other than a camera do I need to indicate any $ amount on the Custom form?

I'm also changing cabins between cruises. Can I change cabins early & how does that effect going through customs?

For anyone changing staterooms how early can you move things given that people are supposed to vacate by 8 am? Will anyone assist you or are you on your own? Some people have mentioned about changing drawers from one stateroom to the other. I'm going from Ocean View to inside.

Thanks for peoples help.

For the problems I wondered what the agent would have said if you said "I'm wearing some underware would like to see it?"

Any places I can go on foot between cruises? I have read about some kind of trolly services to get around. Anyone familiar with this & used this?

Tom😎

[caribill]

Ridiculous.

 

Many laws are.

[san diego sue]

WaltD,

I was afraid of a possible strip search. Poor Lew was ready to confess to anything just to get me away from the guy.LOL:D

[RDC1]

Pay no attention to my bag of dirty clothes.

 

I promise there are no liquor or cigarettes on the bottom of the bag, and you don't need

check further because everyone is honest.

 

Having gone through customs at San Pedro many times (LAX is much much worse), I suspect that the event was triggered by the combination of the Princess bags together with the zero claim. From the agents point of view the obvious reaction is that the bags were obtained on that cruise (with customs it is pretty much a you have to prove that they were not obtained outside of the country, not them having to prove that they were). As such his reaction was a gotcha and proceeded to make a point.

 

Now in this case the OP explained that they had carried the bags with them onto the cruise ship, but the agent would not have known that, in an environment where 99.9% of the time they see those bags they were obtained on the ship during the cruise.

 

I have done a lot of international travel (including on a US official (not diplomatic) passport which is something you really want to avoid in some places). Whenever I am faced with an agent (immigration, customs, TSA, etc.) making a statement that I think is incorrect, in the US or in another country, I do not try and argue. My response is "I do not understand, could you please explain". At that point I have always gotten an explanation and usually a calm discussion. If you get defensive or argue the situation usually escalates, and not in a good way.

Edited April 6, 2017 by RDC1

[RDC1]

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.

 

 

You have an $800 exclusion for a 31 day period. If you are on a B2B and file a form for $25 on the first leg, you still have $775 available for the second. The rule does not say that you can only submit one form in a 31 day period. Only that you cannot exceed the 31 day total for dollar value or other limitations such as for tobacco or alcohol.

[Tucker in Texas]

I'm also changing cabins between cruises. Can I change cabins early & how does that effect going through customs?

For anyone changing staterooms how early can you move things given that people are supposed to vacate by 8 am? Will anyone assist you or are you on your own? Some people have mentioned about changing drawers from one stateroom to the other. I'm going from Ocean View to inside.

Tom😎

 

When doing B2B and changing cabins, I have always gone down and introduced myself to the new cabin steward. I've asked if I can put my things in the safe as soon as the room is vacated even though it is not ready for occupancy so I don't have to haul it around until the cabin is cleaned. They have always agreed to let me do it.

 

They have moved all hanging clothes from one cabin to the other and I hang as much as I can (lol). They have moved the suitcases which I have packed and left in the middle of the cabin.

 

I was told on one cruise that we couldn't take anything off but I wanted to do wash while in port. We were on Royal Caribbean and they don't have coin-op washing machines. After a while, it occurred to me that they didn't know I was on a B2B when I got off so I just packed the clothes in my carry on and walked off like I was done with the cruise. Did my wash and then reboarded like I was in embarkation.

 

I have never declared "prizes and freebies" and thank you for giving me the heads up. Like many of you, I really don't spend much but we have always bought a few things in port to take back as gifts. Just entered souvenirs less than $100.

[NavyVeteran]

You have an $800 exclusion for a 31 day period. If you are on a B2B and file a form for $25 on the first leg, you still have $775 available for the second. The rule does not say that you can only submit one form in a 31 day period. Only that you cannot exceed the 31 day total for dollar value or other limitations such as for tobacco or alcohol.

 

According to the U. S. Customs and Border Protection website (quoted in my earlier post #17), your interpretation is not correct. As stated on that website, "you can only apply your personal exemption once every 30 days." The example provided is clear that the exemption can only be used once even if it is not used fully.

[floridalover5623]

According to the U. S. Customs and Border Protection website (quoted in my earlier post #17), your interpretation is not correct. As stated on that website, "you can only apply your personal exemption once every 30 days." The example provided is clear that the exemption can only be used once even if it is not used fully.

Seems clear enough but they never seem to question people returning on subsequent trips. Maybe they just can't get excited enough about $50 worth of T shirts? If you don't list any alcohol it's also never questioned on the first, second or 3rd re-entry.

[NavyVeteran]

Seems clear enough but they never seem to question people returning on subsequent trips. Maybe they just can't get excited enough about $50 worth of T shirts? If you don't list any alcohol it's also never questioned on the first, second or 3rd re-entry.

 

I didn't say that I have ever heard of them enforcing this restriction on a B2B.

 

However, I know that everyone on Cruise Critic wants to know what the rules technically are so that we can all voluntarily follow them to the letter. I know no one on Cruise Critic would care whether the rules are enforced because no one here would ever - ever - try to bend a rule just because they could get away with it.:rolleyes:

[Pierlesscruisers]

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.

 

Okay, Sue, I understand not wanting to become a target, but that would mean that the customs person with the attitude would have to remember your face (unlikely considering how many he sees on a daily basis and the fact that you would have talked to a supervisor a week later) or your name (even more unlikely probably if his memory is as bad as mine :confused:). On the other hand, you might have been the umpteenth person who had talked to a supervisor about him and might have saved some other traveler from having to deal with the guy.

 

 

Anyway, it's done and gone and hopefully, you'll never run in to Mr. Personality ever again! ;p You also have one thing that you can be eternally grateful for...you're not married to that person and have to live with him every day! Plus, you're still going on cruises and he's stuck working at the pier and not going anywhere!!!! There's always a bright side, you just have to look for it sometimes.

 

Hope that your next cruise is better than your last one but not quite as good as the one following!

 

Tom

[waltd]

WaltD,

I was afraid of a possible strip search. Poor Lew was ready to confess to anything just to get me away from the guy.LOL:D

LOL You and Lew are too funny.

[floridalover5623]

I didn't say that I have ever heard of them enforcing this restriction on a B2B.

 

However, I know that everyone on Cruise Critic wants to know what the rules technically are so that we can all voluntarily follow them to the letter. I know no one on Cruise Critic would care whether the rules are enforced because no one here would ever - ever - try to bend a rule just because they could get away with it.:rolleyes:

I guess I'll continue with my own naive way of doing things and IF they question me on one of the earlier departures I'll cut back on the subsequent trips. We are always waaaay under our allotted amounts, except for alcohol.

[toescat]

I have done a couple of b2b's out of San Pedro, we never got off of the ship after the first cruise. Both of our B2B's were to Mexico. We stayed on the ship the entire time while in San Pedro.

[caribill]

According to the U. S. Customs and Border Protection website (quoted in my earlier post #17), your interpretation is not correct. As stated on that website, "you can only apply your personal exemption once every 30 days." The example provided is clear that the exemption can only be used once even if it is not used fully.

 

100% correct, in theory.

 

In practice, they have no way to know if you have used your exemption in the previous 30 days when you are using paper forms for customs. Nobody takes all the forms handed in and enters them in a computer database. Even if they did, when you hand in your next paper form they have no way to check what might be in any database.

 

Now if you are using one of the kiosks at airports for entering in the customs information, it does not ask you to itemize or give a $ amount, only to indicate if you have more than the allowed allowance. I guess that yes/no might be in a database, but a "no" could be for $0 and thus mean you did not use any part of your allowed allowance.

[pablo222]

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

 

You are not allowed to refer to people as idiots here. :)

 

The sanctimonious jumped all over me for that.

[floridalover5623]

100% correct, in theory.

 

In practice, they have no way to know if you have used your exemption in the previous 30 days when you are using paper forms for customs. Nobody takes all the forms handed in and enters them in a computer database. Even if they did, when you hand in your next paper form they have no way to check what might be in any database.

 

Now if you are using one of the kiosks at airports for entering in the customs information, it does not ask you to itemize or give a $ amount, only to indicate if you have more than the allowed allowance. I guess that yes/no might be in a database, but a "no" could be for $0 and thus mean you did not use any part of your allowed allowance.

 

I can agree with your thinking but I'm sure they could see that you've left the ship & returned having your passport scanned. They never even ask if you've stated any dollar amount within the last 30 days. If you don't leave the ship during a B2B your passport isn't scanned & no customs card has to be filed.

[JF - retired RRT]

I have done a couple of b2b's out of San Pedro, we never got off of the ship after the first cruise. Both of our B2B's were to Mexico. We stayed on the ship the entire time while in San Pedro.

How were you able to do that?

Every B2B we've done: San Pedro, Ft. Lauderdale and Houston REQUIRED all passengers to get off the ship, in order to "zero" the ship.

Do you mean you got off, walked through the passport check and walked back on?