Hey a week ago I was selected for a secondary inspection crossing from Canada into the US. I'm a citizen of the US. Conversation at the border was very brief, the thing I'm really curious about is that on the orange slip he circled the whole category that had "FTD, BAG CHK, K-9, F&W, ATS, DUTY U/F, APV in it." He also wrote SPO NVL. When looking at a few of the other people in the us citizen line pretty much all of them were there for food and agriculture.

I assumed I was chosen because I was crossing at the peace arch and my car had an out of state US license plate (FAR away from Washington, I'm a student in Canada). After an hour of waiting they let me go with little questioning (and checking my car briefly), funny they didn't even ask me why I was going back into the US after all that.

I just wanna know if yall have any insights. I'd prefer not to spend an hour at border control when I go back into the US again.

edited: I wrote ARV rather than APV

Hi everyone! I could use some advice, especially from anyone who’s been in a similar situation. 😊

I’m Brazilian, living in Canada on a work permit, and I have an eTA. My parents are coming to visit me from Brazil by plane. They both have US visas and eTAs to enter Canada.

I’m planning a few short getaways with them, and one of them would involve crossing the Canada-US border by car and then driving back to Canada.

According to the Canadian government website:

Travelling between Canada and the US via any combination of plane, train, car, bus or boat: Your best option is to apply for a visa, as it provides the most flexibility. If you’re already in Canada, you can travel directly to the US or Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon and then return directly to Canada by air, car, bus, train or boat without a visitor visa, as long as you return during your period of authorized stay in Canada. If you leave either of those countries before returning to Canada (including travelling into international waters by boat), you need an eTA if you re-enter Canada by air, or a visitor visa if you re-enter Canada by car, bus, train or boat.

After reading up on this, I’m still a bit confused about whether we’d be able to drive to the US and return to Canada by car using our eTAs. The trip would only be around five days.

Has anyone been in a similar situation and can share their experience? I’d really appreciate any advice or clarification. Thanks in advance! 🙏

Crossed at 1000 islands on Friday by car, and asked the duty free store what was permissible. They had just restored Canadian alcohol to their shelves and had signs indicating we were allowed 1L per person aged 21yo+.

Bought 2 bottles and declared them to CBP who confirmed the personal exemption.

Not me, actually, my dad.

The gist:

-2002(ish) - misdemeanor DV conviction

-Clean record ever since

-does not show up on public record anymore

-wants to travel to Winnipeg as a tourist

Can he get in to CA? There is so much information online, I don't know how to help him follow the right process so he isn't turned away at the border by surprise. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated!

Hello everyone! I (24F American) and my girlfriend (23F Canadian) have been together since April of 2025. We’ve been alternating visiting every few months. I was there 5 days in July 2025, a month in February 2026, 9 days in June 2026, and 13 days in October 2026.

The past two times I have crossed I’ve been asked a plethora of questions about my relationship including what both of us do for work, where we live, what we plan on doing together during our visit, how we met (including what social media platform), and what my previous visits and lengths were. These make me very anxious as I’m worried of being seen as suspicious, turned away, or having future plans disrupted. I have never been taken into secondary and I am always allowed through without any comments about my frequent travel or anything seeming suspicious.

I recently found an advisor who invited me to apply to her research group at a Canadian University. I’ve made contacts there in my career field while visiting as I have been interested in perusing a graduate program.

I’m worried that my frequent travels or their knowledge of my girlfriend living in Canada will pose a risk of not being able to obtain a student visa or not being allowed through the port of entry once I am ready to move for school.

I am able to justify my desire to peruse this program in a Canadian university, but obviously being closer to my (currently 3500mi away) girlfriend is a plus. The graduate program is in geochemistry/earth history and my undergrad is in environmental science, so the line of progression of study makes sense. Funding in the US is also currently notoriously bad right now for this field of study.

I know I meet all requirements for a student visa and have not overstayed my visitor status (my combined time in Canada in 1.5 years is around 2 months cumulative).

Does this line of questioning seem concerning? Will it impact how they see my motives for going to school in Canada? Any advice is welcome.

Thank you in advance!

I'm sure this is a stupid question and I apologize, I am just a very anxious person and want to make sure everything goes smoothly -

Next week I am driving to Michigan to stay 7 nights with my friend for his birthday. I am bringing a box of birthday gifts for him , how exactly do I declare it?

Should I just say " I have a box of gifts, worth around 60$ USD in total ", or do should I list out each item that's in the box?

I have some food for him as well but its just candy and a bag of chips in their original packaging, so I'm not as concerned about how to go about declaring those.

I'm visiting Michigan from Ontario tomorrow for a family event and will be staying with a friend for a few days while there. The friend is of Serbian background, so I bought a bottle of Serbian brandy for us to drink as a thank you for letting me stay free of charge in his house. Initial Google search told me it was fine to bring in, but I had a weird feeling about it so I did another search and found out that the president has put into place a new regulation banning any alcohol made in Canada from entering the country. But while bought in Canada, this brandy was made and bottled in Serbia. Should I leave it at home still or will this pass while bussing across the border? I don't mind having to skip my gift if it's a complication but would prefer to ne able to bring it.

I'm burnt out in my career field and have family close by. Some family said I should apply to be a guard. What is it like?

My husband and I will be heading south shortly and had planned to take two bottles of Canadian liquor as gifts for friends. Typically this would be within the rules.
We are now reading that there is an outright ban on Canadian spirits and they’re likely to be confiscated. Smuggling is out of the question, we enjoy our NEXUS cards.
Has anyone declared alcohol and been permitted to go ahead?

Came from Canada to US through the Nexus lane last night and the border guard went to the back of the car and wrote down our license plate, then took our picture using his low resolution web cam then sent us on our way.

I've never had them do that before. They already have the license plate and pictures through the cameras and sensors when you approach the booth so I'm not sure what policy is driving this new behavior.

Hello!

So I am currently a permanent resident of Canada (Polish Citizen), and I am planning to travel to Detroit, Michigan, by car in February 2027 for a weekend trip. This will be my first time entering the United States. I also do have a valid R B1/B2 US Visa.

Am I required to apply for an I-94 or not?

Would I be able to borrow a family member's vehicle for travel into the US?

Is there anything else I am required to obtain to cross the border?

Currently living in Canada and going to school. Having some health issues, and living with my parents in the states would be immensely helpful. I am a dual citizen, and living in Canada as such (not on a student visa). Would there be issues with me commuting M-F from the states?

Need some advice or maybe reassurance about frequent visits to the U.S.

I'm a Canadian citizen and I planned to take some time to visit some friends between September to December, since I quit work on September 1st and plan to resume back after the Christmas holidays.

I visited September 10-18, and have two remaining visits (Oct 15-23) and (Dec 4-14) and don't have any plans to visit the U.S. for another three or four months.

I have no intention of working remotely/looking for work or marriage while I'm there.

Does this count as visiting way too often, and will I risk of being sent to secondary as I don't have current employment?

I am a US Citizen residing in the United States, I purchased a leather jacket valued at $250 CAD in Canada, I decided I wanted a different size but the shop was closed all the days before my travel back to the states. My family member is going to exchange it for me and bring it down next month when they come to visit. How does this work with them bringing it to me? What is their allowance? I am a US citizen, this is technically not a gift so it wouldn’t fit under the $100 CAD anytime gift exemption. I can’t find any information on this online. Any help would be appreciated.

I am a US citizen crossing the land border a few times per year. Since February, I have been sent inside to secondary inspection every time.

My referral slips say N.H. (name hit) followed by numbers. The first time this happened the officers inside told me (after a lot of answering questions and waiting) someone else shares my name and birthday and is barred from Canada. My passport number and photo are obviously different. It’s gotten faster inside now that I know what to tell them, but I am still flagged every time which is a pain.

Does anyone else have experience with this? Is there a way to fix this permanently, or will I always be stuck going inside at border patrol?

Appreciate any advice! Thank you in advance.

Hai all
Curious to hear from any trans individuals that have crossed into the us via ground recently? I’m a Canadian citizen, transwoman with an F as my gender marker and Im supposed to go to Buffalo for a hockey game in early November and wondered if Trans individuals are under any heightened scrutiny? The last time I crossed was April of
2025 to Detroit with no issues…

So, my husband is a Canadian and I am an American. I have repeatedly visited him through land crossing over the past year and have always come back when I said I would. Well, yesterday I packed my car for a 3 week trip for his birthday and arrived at the border, only to be sent to secondary inspection.

As soon as I arrived there, the officer was very standoffish and I felt like she was individually targeting me and being very inappropriate. I compiled a list of what happened below. I am very shaken up by her repeated power tripping and leading interrogations.

The officer completely refused to look at standard digital bank statements or screenshots. Instead, she demanded that I hand over my unlocked personal mobile device with active, open access to my live banking application so she could manually scroll through my accounts.

When I explained that my savings were from a lottery win that I used to help escape from my abuser (who used to financially trap and abuse me, thus explaining my transitional life phase and why my foundation is shaky rn), she kept asking why I didnt file charges against him. In trumps america? File a charge against a man as a woman?!

The officer repeatedly used leading, open-ended psychological phrasing (e.g., stating, "So you told me XYZ, do you see how...?" and trailing off into silence) to intentionally induce panic, disorientation, and emotional distress while I was trying to provide an accurate narrative. She also said "maybe if your husband was with you..." implying that she would've let me in if he was there????? What the f is wrong with her?

When I explicitly asked for clarity, stating that I did not understand how a temporary transition phase made me a flight risk, she refused to explain the regulations. Instead, she shrugged and repeatedly snapped, "Look it up, look it up"

I clearly articulated my legal long-term plan to file an Outland Spousal Sponsorship Application. The examining officer explicitly stated on the record that she "didnt know what an outland sponsorship application was" ??????

The officer questioned the legitimacy of my marriage as one of the first questions, asking for my marriage certificate. I informed her that my certificate was in my car outside and offered to retrieve it. She actively instructed me not to get it. Later in the interrogation, she used the lack of physical proof regarding the relationship as one of the many convulted reasons to justify turning me away.

When asked what was left of my assets in the United States, I explicitly stated that my furniture, bed, heavy pet trees, and my entire professional music recording studio equipment remained at my U.S. residence. Shrugging, she dismissed these ties entirely and stated, "its not enough, its just a bed and furniture" when i explicitly told her my entire STUDIO EQUIPTMENT is left in the usa and i cannot work without it.

I offered to immediately pre-pay my entire U.S. rent for November and December right in front of her to prove my binding obligation to return. The officer dismissed this compromise entirely, stating that since I had savings, I could "just send the rent and still never return," completely ignoring my expressed distress over losing a massive, non-refundable temporary booking.

The officer falsely implied that my vehicle was full of my entire life's belongings to claim immigrant intent. She completely refused to physically inspect the car or verify my explicit explanation that the vehicle only appeared full due to bulky medical supplies for my pet and a specialized allergy kitchen setup that CBSA has a regular record of me traveling with.

She then issued an allowed to leave and highlighted that I must show proof of residence and financial support next time I come. But the thing is, I literally showed her a weekly lease that I rent and offered to pay the rest of the rent for the rest of the year. And I obviously showed her by entire banking app, which is a violation of privacy. And that banking app shows that I have plenty of savings from the lottery as my support as i figure my life out. I was crying and explaining that the airbnb was only until the end of october and that it was non refundable. And all she said, was, " I can't help you with that. I can't help you with that." All while shaking her head and scoffing as if I was a nuisance. None of her logic made sense, because she told me that until I paid more rent receipts for my current place that I didn't have proper proof of residency. And that until I made more money for my business, that I'd be denied from canada, because I don't have a proof of consistent income. So basically i'm functionally banned from canada until my life gets better?!?!? Which doesn't make any sense. Because no matter what I say next time, they're going to aggressively question me, since me and him just got married. And now I just incurred 1,800 dollars in losses for the airbnb. The lottery isn't a lot. It's only enough to sustain me for a few months. I hate her so much I hate her with all my heart and I dont understand what im supoosed to do to get into canada again because we aren't filing for Residency yet and now I cant make the airbnb and had to cancel it. Im so mad.

Hi everyone,

I’m a US/Canadian dual citizen, and I live full-time in the US. I own a car that’s registered and insured in Ontario. Can I drive it across the border and use it for a cross-country road trip in the US? I tried AI, but it seems like there is no official documentation on US residents using their Canadian car in the US; the documentation covers Canadian residents visiting the US (which is allowed).

Clarification: I have two homes/cars, one in Canada and one in the USA. I keep one car in the US and the other in Ontario (the one in question).

Thanks in advance!

My MIL is Canadian, and she’s planning to take my son (American) with her to Canada for a few weeks. Would she have any issues at customs in Toronto ? What documents should she have on her if necessary?

Hi ! Can you share your exact experience when you crossed with Nexus under H1B status ? After using the Kiosk, were you directed to a CBP agent line that still verifies recent paychecks, I797, letter of employment, or even further such as original petition, RFEs, diplomas, etc.? What documents were asked ?

Which port of entry or Pre-clearance did you cross that verified this ? Thanks

I’m an 18-year-old Canadian citizen flying from Toronto Pearson (YYZ) to Chicago O’Hare, so I’ll be clearing U.S. CBP preclearance at Pearson before departure.

I have one personal disposable nicotine vape for personal use only, and no THC/cannabis, no commercial quantity, nothing being sold or distributed.

I’m NOT asking about CATSA/TSA, lithium battery rules, or where it should be packed. I already understand the security side and that it stays in carry on. My question is specifically about U.S. Customs/CBP and the under 21 issue.

I’m aware that the U.S. minimum age for tobacco/vape sales is 21. I’m also aware that official rules and actual border enforcement are not always identical in practice, which is why I’m specifically looking for recent first-hand experiences from people who were 18–20 going through U.S. preclearance at YYZ with one personal nicotine vape.

If you’ve done this recently:
Did CBP ask whether you had tobacco/vapes?
Did they ask your age?
Did you mention it if asked whether you had anything to declare?
Did they let you through, ask you to surrender it, send you to secondary, fine you, or do anything else?

I’m NOT looking for advice about whether I should vape at my age, quitting, health effects, or whether vaping is a good idea in general. I’m already aware of that discussion and I’m very uninterested in unsolicited commentary on it. I’m asking a narrow customs/enforcement question and would really appreciate answers that stay on that topic.

Also not looking for advice on hiding it or lying to CBP. I’m just trying to understand what actually happens in practice.

Recent YYZ → U.S. preclearance experiences would be especially helpful.

Update:

I ended up deciding not to bring it. I figured that even if the practical risk was probably pretty low, I didn’t care enough about keeping the vape to risk even a small chance of turning it into a customs issue. I grabbed nicorette gum instead so I wouldn’t be raw dogging withdrawal for a week while trying to study lol.

I’ve gone through U.S. preclearance now and it was ridiculously quick. The officer asked where I was going, my status in the U.S., and whether I had anything to declare. I mentioned the two snacks I had and that was basically it.

Also, just to clarify one thing: I’ve traveled and flown solo before. This wasn’t me being unfamiliar with airports or international travel in general; I had just never tried crossing into the U.S. with a nicotine vape while under 21, so I wanted information about that specific customs issue.

And to the people asking “why do you even have a vape?” or acting like the fact that I’m 18 is some insane revelation: that was literally the premise of the post. I knew I was under the U.S. and Ontario age restrictions. That is why I was asking what actually happens at customs.

I’m not really sure what the intended gotcha is in repeating information I already gave you. An 18 y/o having a nicotine vape is hardly breaking news, and whether you personally approve of it has basically nothing to do with how CBP handles it.

I genuinely don’t understand the Reddit impulse to moralize over something nobody asked you to pass judgement on when it adds absolutely nothing to the discussion.

Anyway, thanks to the people who actually answered the question and shared their experiences!

I remember in the 90s my parents and siblings & I would spend one weekend a year in Niagara Falls, Canada for a dance competition.

My dad & I would cross the border into the US for the day just for something to do. But I don't think we brought our passports. We just told talked to the agent and they let us through.

Am I remembering this correctly? Were you able to cross without a passport in the 90s?

Hello,

My brother living currently in the US is willing to send me a car so I can get by (I am based in Ontario - I am not paying him any money for that as it's a gift). However, I do not have any idea on how the paperwork goes and how much money it takes to be able to get it across the border. Any help and guidance would be appreciated.

I'd like to order some comic books/graphic novels from the US to Canada, but I can't tell if they'd be subject to tariffs. Where can I find this info?