kicked out of Canada

[neversummer]

Three of the five trips to canuck land i took this summer didnt even ask for ID. Had a hell of a time getting back in though, I only had my Drivers Liscense every time, Havent been able to get ahold of a BC in a while...

[Beck]

Ya, I've had it with the Tim Horton's 'no Refill' policy and the damn roller glides at the Beer Stores, you canooks are a couple of pelts short of a full canoe, hosers. They many not have nukes, but they got touques!

[snoboy]

Gary_Yngve said:

Not to nitpick, but I had my passport. Two of the other folks in the car just had DL and photocopy of birth certificate.

 

Oops, sorry, I should learn to read better.

[Necronomicon]

Dru said:

you should see some of the shit we take from US border guards

 

More like "We take it in the shit from the US border guards."

[MounTAIN_Woman]

An official birth certificate is an original, with a raised seal, issued by the county of your birth. I was able to find out how to get a copy for myself over the internet at the county's website. You'll have to go to them and ask for one. I think it will cost you a couple bucks, but that plus driver's license equals the right form of ID. You will also need that official birth certificate if you apply for a passport, which I also highly recommend. It's the best form of ID out there - I've made many border crossings with no hassles, and also if you ever fly, even on a domestic flight, it makes it easier at check-in time. Nobody ever questions the validity of the US Passport.

 

[lummox]

ha ha ha. the original post cracks me up. dint you fools recognize that the canadian border guard was just looking for mordita.

[catbirdseat]

Dru said:

we could probably rig a CANDU to blow up real good

 

but why would we need nukes when we could send some tourists down to vegas with anthrax spores or just put a bunch of fuel oil fertilizer bombs in boxcars

 

nukes are so 20th century

Dru, I think it is foolish to even joke about such things.

[scrambler]

Gary_Yngve said:

The unbelievable happened. We pulled into the border crossing on the way to Penticton, with half of our car having passports and the other half having drivers licenses and unofficial photocopies of birth certificates. They wouldn't let us in. The border crossing dude was extremely rude and disrespectful, despite the fact that we were being polite. We've all gotten into Canada countless times before, even in the past month, but this time we got screwed. We then tried the crossing fifteen miles away in Nighthawk, and the border guard yelled at us for shopping for a crossing (the other place warned them) and threatened to have us banned from Canada for ten years. What the fuck?

 

We managed to salvage the weekend with some cragging at Leavenworth, but we missed out with hooking up with the other UW car and the VOC folk in Skaha.

 

Did anyone in your group have an arrest record? Some types of offenses are considered differently than here in the States. For example, if someone had a DWI or DUI that occurred within the last 10 years, then that person will have to pay a fee of about $150 and obtain a document for access into Canada. If the offense is more than 10 years old, then you're considered rehabilitated. And, don't lie to the border guards, they have ways of knowing.

 

Weird law. Check the embassy site for more details considering certain legal hassles.

[Distel32]

Must have looked suspicious! They didn't even check my ID when we crossed on our way to penticton, only checked GK's.

[allthumbs]

I'm sensing a lot of whiners here. I hope they make it harder yet to cross the Canadian and Mexican borders. It's too fucking easy now and times have changed.

[catbirdseat]

Distel32 said:

Must have looked suspicious! They didn't even check my ID when we crossed on our way to penticton, only checked GK's.

Luke, you look like Jim Armstrong, the All-American Boy. You are so wholesome in appearance, you could make a good living as a con man.

[Gary_Yngve]

MounTAIN_Woman said:

An official birth certificate is an original, with a raised seal, issued by the county of your birth. I was able to find out how to get a copy for myself over the internet at the county's website. You'll have to go to them and ask for one. I think it will cost you a couple bucks, but that plus driver's license equals the right form of ID.

 

But what happens if you lose your birth certificate? Are you then forever fucked? If you can get an original birth certificate with just a DL, then why can't you get into Canada with just a DL?

[Gary_Yngve]

scrambler said:

Did anyone in your group have an arrest record? Some types of offenses are considered differently than here in the States. For example, if someone had a DWI or DUI that occurred within the last 10 years, then that person will have to pay a fee of about $150 and obtain a document for access into Canada. If the offense is more than 10 years old, then you're considered rehabilitated. And, don't lie to the border guards, they have ways of knowing.

 

Weird law. Check the embassy site for more details considering certain legal hassles.

 

None of us had an arrest record. Our rejection papers listed the reason as insufficient ID.

[Dru]

catbirdseat said:

Dru said:

we could probably rig a CANDU to blow up real good

 

but why would we need nukes when we could send some tourists down to vegas with anthrax spores or just put a bunch of fuel oil fertilizer bombs in boxcars

 

nukes are so 20th century

Dru, I think it is foolish to even joke about such things.

 

the next time Osama and I are sitting around the BBQ eating toasted fetus and drinking the blood of innocent Christians I will tell him you said so

[Scott_J]

Fairweather said:

Billygoat said:

Shit, if they don't need 'em, why the fuck should we?!

 

I sleep better at night knowing we have them.

 

...and NO, Canada does not posses nuclear weapons. I believe they enjoy a nuclear umbrella provided them by The United States, Britan, and France(?).

So true. This is why the Canadians have better social services than the US. Small budget for weapons of mass destruction. Another plus for American criminals in Canada is their prison system. It’s like Club Med compared to ours. Americans always whine that criminals have it too nice; you ought to see the Canadian prisons. I was watching a special on PBS a few years back on this. It’s incredible. You know the old saying: It does not pay to be a criminal, well Canadians have disposed of the myth.

 

[miller]

happened to me too... when asked what i did for a job i told them "guiding" - they accused me of working illegally in canada and turned me around. i cant say the agent i dealt with was very polite either. he said "get real - youre a guide, you spend all of your free time in squamish - we arent stupid, go home." i wasnt guiding in canada...at all.

 

i asked if there was any way i could get in and he told me id have to bring:

 

1)proof of citizenship

2)proof of sufficient funds

3)proof of current employment in the U.S.

4)proof of a current physical residence in the U.S. (a CURRENT rent receipt, utility bill with name and address on it, etc.)

 

#4 got me - and they said a letter from a friend (who's house i stayed at in bellingham) was not good enough. they said they needed proof that i was tied to a residence in the U.S., otherwise i could not be considered a "visitor" in canada. i had been living in france for the past year and could prove that i had a residence in france during the past year, but that wasnt good enough.

 

summer cut short- bugs trip cancelled - no canada. so if youre making a big trip, try to bring all of the things mentioned above - if you dont have them and they are feeling like assholes, they do have the right to deny you entry.

[cj001f]

Gary_Yngve said:But what happens if you lose your birth certificate? Are you then forever fucked? If you can get an original birth certificate with just a DL, then why can't you get into Canada with just a DL?

The County of your Birth will keep a copy of your Birth certificate in perpetuity. They'll issue you an official copy w/raised seal - the original is kept on file. Get a passport - you can apply at most post offices, it's good for 10 years, and it's the best piece of ID you'll ever have.

[rr666]

Border guards are weird... The last couple of times I've been to Squish, they have not really cared. First time, just had my driver's license. The dude said we should of had our passports, but let us in anyway. The next time, we were asked where we were going, how many guns we had and the dude didn't even look at our passports.

 

Sometimes they are anal, sometimes they just don't give a shit.

[TIGHE]

Shit, when I lived in up-state NY we crossed all the time with just our DLs. Never was asked for birth certificate or passport. We got pulled over plenty too.

It was over ten years ago though. WTF

[olyclimber]

Border crossing with our North American neighbors is just different after 9-11. When in college at WWU in Bham we used to go across all the time (50 times a year or so) and never had a single problem either way. Now coming into the US they're checking more, and so Canada is checking more. Also, Canada's recent political changes (for weed, gay marriage, etc) have caused our government to look at the border policies differently, started a sort of Border war. We could see the border between Canada and the US looking more like our border with Mexico. It's too bad, but plan for the worst as far as needing ID when you're going either direction. Also, don't do anything to piss off the guards and look them in the eye when you talk to them. I bring a passport and drivers license, and have exactly what I'm going to tell them I'm going to be doing thought out so it doesn't seem like I'm making it up. Last time up was to do the Bowron Lakes...awesome trip, 2nd time around the lakes for me.

[thelawgoddess]

miller said:

if you dont have them and they are feeling like assholes, they do have the right to deny you entry.

 

exactly. better to have what you're supposed to have. it's been "the rule" for some time now that you need a passport or birth certificate to get through the border. consider yourselves lucky to have gotten through in the past without them. an unofficial photocopy doesn't mean shit. that'd be like trying to use an unofficial photocopy of a hundred dollar bill as a bribe.

[Stefan]

Everyone should get a passport. Forget about the birth certificate thing....although I think you need the birth certificate to get the passport. Birth certificates don't really work when you travel to Europe to get past the arline security. I sure hope you all visit Europe at least one time in your life.

[thelawgoddess]

i agree that passports are sweet, but not everybody needs one. and they can be much more difficult to get for some folks. not to mention more expensive.

[cj001f]

thelawgoddess said:

i agree that passports are sweet, but not everybody needs one. and they can be much more difficult to get for some folks. not to mention more expensive.

A passport's $85, good for 10 years, and all you need is 2 pictures, an offical copy of your birth certificate/immigration form (i.e. what you need to get into canada), and a driver's license. It make's your life alot easier. You need it to travel outside of Canada/Mexico.

[thelawgoddess]

thanks. i have one.

 

you make it sound so easy, and for many people it is, but for some people it isn't. like some people can't get into canada even if they have an official birth certificate or passport. different reasons for denial or making things difficult, but anyway.