Travelling to US from Canada

gobbyash

Hi

We flew into Vancouver and stayed north of Seattle last month.

We were met by our American relatives who brought us back over the border by car.

This is what happened:

When we were on the flight we were given a form to complete. i think it was a form for non residents. We showed this at Vancouver as we arrived and everything was straightforward. They asked us a couple of questions - thats all.

We then went by road to the Seattle area. When we got to the Canadian/American border we pulled in and had to complete some formalities.

Everyone has to get out of the car and go into the border crossing building.

You will need to fill in a form be finger printed show proof of return flight tickets and be able to prove where you are staying. If with friends make sure you have their full address.

There is a fee of US$6 each person.

There were 6 of us and it took about 30 minutes from start to finish, but if it is busy I have heard it can take a couple of hours.

Hope this helps.

Regards

gobbyash

aardvark0

I did something similar to gobbyash in May 2002. I crossed the border by car with 3 Canadian friends at the Abbotsford/Sumas for a day trip. For the Canadians it was very straightforward, but on learning that I was British it was into the office for 15 minutes for a short interview and to get my visa waiver forms sorted out.

The immigration officer was polite and with a sense of humour. On asking me if I had any human communicable diseases I mentioned that I had a cold. He took a step backwards, and conducted the rest of the interview from there.

I got the impression that their slight concern was that it was soon after 9/11 and I had stated that I worked in the Aerospace industry, which they wanted to know about in some detail.

However it was overall a very straightforward process, and not an unpleasant one.

Unfortunately, later that day as we crossed back into Canada, I neglected to give back back the form that indicated that I was leaving the country. If this is not rectified, next time you go to the States, it looks like you overstayed your welcome and you could have problems.

I found on the US embassy website back home that this is not unknown, and they have an address for you to send the form to with a covering note, which I duly did. I trust that they recieved it and processed it; they don't provide any feedback!