Questions tagged [customs-and-immigration]

Customs and immigration covers a range of border control procedures (referred to as 'immigration' in most countries) and import of goods. Prefer a more specific tag where appropriate, some examples of which are listed under tag info.

  • immigration / passport control
    • which deals with people, such as checking of passports and in some cases visas
  • customs
    • which deals with goods, such as imports taxes or contraband

Customs is generally the term used when dealing with the import and export of goods; issues such as taxes, prohibited items, etc.

Immigration is the process by which people are authorized to cross international borders. This includes checks such as travel documents (passports, travel passes) and the ability to entry a country or territory (visas, and visa exceptions).

This tag should be used when your question involves general issues with customs and immigration. Customs and immigration covers border control issues and types of goods allowed to be brought into a country and taxation rules related to them, if any.

More specific tags currently in use include:

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How to intentionally get denied entry to the US, without getting into trouble?

I have a multiple entry visitors visa for five years. I went to USA last year and lived there for one year with my husband (6 months entry and other 6 months of extension). I left USA legally. Now my family wants me to go back and live with my…
151
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4 answers

Immigration officer that stopped me at the airport is texting me. What do I do?

Yesterday my cousin arrived to Chicago from Mexico, she is visiting family there to spend the holidays, this is not the first time she visits. She was stopped by immigration, because they thought it was weird that she was spending the holidays away…
DiegoJ
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Why would you wrap your luggage in plastic?

At many airports you can wrap your luggage with sheets of sticky plastic. Why on earth would you do that? I only see disadvantages. I can imagine the mess when customs ask you to open your luggage. So what benefits am I missing? Photo by Reuben…
user141
114
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5 answers

I have two passports/nationalities. How do I use them when I travel?

I am a citizen of two different countries, and have two passports. How should I use my passports when traveling?
lambshaanxy
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What happens if you are refused entry between two countries?

Last month, I was travelling on a backpacking trip across Russia and the Baltic states (Schengen zone). I'm an Indian by nationality. So I had to get the respective single entry visa for Russia and Schengen Europe. At the border crossing into…
YD8877
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What can I do to prevent passport stamps being put on blank pages?

I'm running low on blank passport pages which are sometimes needed for full page visas such as those issued by Armenia, India, and Vietnam. When I crossed the border into Turkey the other day I got my visa-on-arrival and stamp, but instead of…
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Should I say hello to the passport control officers, or just quietly give them my passport?

What is the etiquette? What do the passport control officers expect? I’m asking from the point of politeness and efficiency.
Vadim Eisenberg
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What happens if you declare more than $10,000 at the US border?

Let's say I need to bring over $10,000 into the US and decide to use cash to save on transfer fees. What would happen at the border when I declare all that cash? Would CBP briefly question me on the source of funds or require some proof to confirm…
JonathanReez
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Why would a visitor destroy their travel document?

While doing some research about freedom of movement and the history of passports, I came across an image on Wikipedia depicting a warning sign next to a toilet door at London Stansted Airport: Close-up: The warning sign reads: WARNING Passengers…
todofixthis
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No Facebook account, will I be able to visit the US?

I heard that the US immigration is asking people for their Facebook or any other social media logins, or at least are planning to do so. I value my privacy so I don't even have a Facebook account and never will. And even if I did, I would not give…
Thomas
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UK visa refusal on V 4.2 a + c (and sometimes 'e')

Many of the UK visa refusals we see here share a common pattern and the prevailing reasons refer to V 4.2 (a) and (c). I do understand that, while the applicants may describe very different individual circumstances, there's a consistent pattern…
Giorgio
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I've been warned to leave the US within 10 days as I will "overstay" my visa, but I have legally left the country by plane months ago. What can I do?

So this year I went to Florida with my family for 2 weeks. We were all tourists and we go to the US almost every year and have no administrative problems usually. This time, however, I recently received a warning that I have to leave the US within…
Greg
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What happens when a town is under quarantine and my visa expires

A friend of mine is currently in Wuhan, China, as the city is placed under quarantine. He is a European citizen and had thus made a tourist visa to visit the family of his wife for the Lunar new year, but got caught in the middle of the quarantine…
Pierre Chevallier
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What happens if you have a medical emergency after deplaning but before passing passport control?

Let's say you are a visa national flying into a UK airport with a valid entry clearance. Between exiting the airplane and passing through passport control you have a medical emergency that requires you to be urgently transported to a hospital. What…
JonathanReez
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In what language should I address foreign customs and immigration?

I'm an American traveling to Central America for the first time this summer. I'll be entering Costa Rica and Panama. My Spanish is pretty good, but not native, and I wouldn't mind using it, but as a general rule, should I try to address the border…
Æzor Æhai -him-
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