What do governments do with seized contraband that cannot legally be bought or sold, cannot be set free, but ought not be simply destroyed? I'm thinking elephant tusks and rain forest hard woods, that sort of thing.
posted by IndigoJones
on Mar 10, 2008 -
9 answers
Can I, a Canadian citizen, get through the American border, by car, with the following pieces of ID:
[more inside]
posted by ITheCosmos
on Jan 13, 2008 -
19 answers
The father of a close business associate has died and I would like to behave appropriately and honor my associate's loss. They're Catholics in NYC. There is a wake which seems to be scheduled for several different time periods over the weekend. Then there is a funeral mass on Monday during business hours, followed by burial at the cemetery.
[more inside]
posted by JimN2TAW
on Nov 16, 2007 -
20 answers
My Professor this week brought up that she thinks the use of the word "actually" is unique to Boston.
[more inside]
posted by pwally
on Nov 11, 2007 -
46 answers
Taking a little vacation in Mexico City ... what am I allowed to bring into Mexico? The information that I'm finding online is either contradictory or stale. Obviously, I'd like to avoid any situation where I'll be
fined or imprisoned.
[more inside]
posted by kindachris
on Oct 25, 2007 -
5 answers
I'm an American traveling to Cuba legally (under a general license). What are the restrictions on what I can/cannot bring back into the U.S.?
posted by cookie googleman
on Sep 17, 2007 -
3 answers
My lovely wife is planning a hiking trip in New Zealand. This will be her first hiking adventure out of North America. Recently she has started to dehydrate her own food for her multi-day hikes. No preservatives, more tasty, less expensive, and all that. Can she pack this in her luggage and expect to clear customs? Thanks in advance for all your help!
posted by HappyHippo
on Aug 11, 2007 -
27 answers
I'm flying from IAH > DFW > CZM (Cozumel). I've got 55 minutes in DFW. Assuming my IAH > DFW is on time, will I make it?
[more inside]
posted by chrisfromthelc
on Jul 17, 2007 -
19 answers
My wife is going on a cruise this weekend. Her birth certificate and passport are missing. Leaving from California, I'm in Virginia. The ship is stopping in Mexico for fuel. Options?
[more inside]
posted by bh
on Apr 26, 2007 -
15 answers
Australian customs- does anyone have any experience bringing a wooden drum with an animal skin into Australia?
[more inside]
posted by twirlypen
on Feb 20, 2007 -
11 answers
when a foreigner goes through customs, their fingerprints and other details are being stored. who has access to all the information?
[more inside]
posted by krautland
on Dec 10, 2006 -
4 answers
Questions about Jewish funeral customs. My husband's grandmother sadly passed away this weekend and I was hoping for some advice. She was Jewish, I'm not. I have a load of questions inside...
[more inside]
posted by dogsbody
on Oct 29, 2006 -
25 answers
How do you find out for certain exactly what information appears when Canadian border guards run your information through their system? A friend of mine didn't mention a minor incident that was supposed to go off his record from when he was a kid in the 70s. It appeared in their database, and they weren't too happy that he didn't mention it. He granted entry after being roughed-up verbally and doesn't want to go through the same ordeal every time. Since there is no reason to volunteer information that's not supposed to be in the system, how does one know what they are SUPPOSED to say?
posted by augustweed
on Oct 10, 2006 -
18 answers
Are customs officials allowed to search you laptop's hard drive?
[more inside]
posted by ASM
on Aug 27, 2006 -
38 answers
I'll be entering the U.S. after spending 2 months in China. In my luggage I'll have 3 fake watches, 3 fake Polo shirts, a pair of fake shoes, and a fake North Face backpack. Will U.S. Customs find out, and if they do, what would they do?
[more inside]
posted by jbb7
on Aug 26, 2006 -
28 answers
I always assumed that, when making a connecting flight in an international airport, I was under international jurisdiction - the logic being that I clearly haven't 'entered' the airport's host country (haven't got a visa/filled out a landing form/whatever). My personal experience and now
recent events suggest otherwise, so what are the rules about this, and do they vary from country to country?
[more inside]
posted by runkelfinker
on Jul 19, 2006 -
22 answers
How to woo a Scottish/Irish boy.. are there tricks or sexual customs I should know? What is he used to from the local girls?
[more inside]
posted by cior
on Jul 18, 2006 -
42 answers
I'm flying to America tomorrow (from the UK). I will have various loose pills in a... receptacle. Could I get into trouble because customs might suspect they're drugs?
[more inside]
posted by ClarissaWAM
on Jul 12, 2006 -
16 answers
Some friends arrived from overseas yesterday, but didn't clear customs and are being deported tomorrow. Do we have any rights or options in this situation?
[more inside]
posted by b_thinky
on Feb 4, 2006 -
17 answers
How I legally transport an open bottle cognac from Toronto to Boston?
[more inside]
posted by duck
on Dec 27, 2005 -
14 answers
I'm in trouble w/ US Customs and a clothing manufacturer has begun sending me threatening letters for sending myself some knock-off clothing with their brand. Does anybody know anything about trademark law, or has anyone ever worked for customs?
[more inside]
posted by KiddAnnica
on Dec 27, 2005 -
13 answers
Just how much are the customs/Department of Homeland Security people allowed to go through your personal information on your laptop?
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Dec 25, 2005 -
34 answers
Can I send vitamins from the U.S. to someone in the U.K. ?
We want to send a package of vitamins to my wife's father in London from New York. I am worried its not permitted by H.M. Customs and they will trash it. I couldnt find a list of things that arent permitted anywhere on the Royal Mail or HM Customs website.
I know what youre thinking.. its probably cheaper to have them buy it England but we're sending it because we know they would never actually do it.
posted by postergeist
on Nov 20, 2005 -
9 answers
I just got back from Texas with a day trip to Mexico. When coming back from Mexico but a few miles on 100 North IIRC inside the US border, we ran across a border patrol where I, the driver, was asked if the border patrol people could take a look inside the van. I said yes because I knew weren't hiding anything, but I'm guessing it was because we had a few Hispanics with us and a whole lot of luggage to hide people/stuff. Now, I've always heard one doesn't have to consent to allowing a search of the car, so I'm curious if I have said no to letting the border patrol look inside my car? What would have happened if I said no?
posted by jmd82
on Jun 27, 2005 -
11 answers
I'm scheduled to leave for Tijuana, Mexico this Thursday .. I've tried but have exhausted all possibilities for getting a copy of my birth certificate before then. Someone told me that I only need a driver's license if I'm going less than 100 miles past the border ( in San Diego ). Is this true ? Will I run into trouble if I decide to go with only my driver's license? I don't have a passport either. Thanks !
posted by jason9009
on Feb 22, 2005 -
15 answers
Last year, a friend of mine went to Iceland where she spent a night bar-hopping with expat friends. While she was heading for the ladies' room, an Icelandic woman came up to her and proposed that they go together. My friend refused (she'd been hit on several times already and the atmosphere was rather hot) and later asked her friends about the incident: she was told that going to the lavatories in pairs was a local custom of Icelandic girls, but that she would have to accept the next proposal to find out what was actually going on down there. Of course, her friends may have just been pulling her leg, but she's still curious as she'll be back in Iceland this year... Any (girl, Icelandic) mefite with a clue to that mystery?
posted by elgilito
on Jan 17, 2005 -
11 answers
Hypothetical: You're abroad, temporarily resident in the home of strangers. Not a vacation. The shelter was voluntarily offered at no cost. You are vastly rich by comparison to your host/hostess. But you know they will refuse any money you give them, no matter what--it's not a coy negotiation technique. Gifts of baubles and luxuries aren't needed so much as basics. You can give the children sweets, but if you do anything more appropriate, such as buy meat for the household or pay to have the well pump fixed, your hosts will truly be insulted. Yet, you cannot leave without doing something: your religion/conscience/mother/employer requires it, and you might be back. There are no "oh, s/he's a foreigner" excuses. How do you monetarily or otherwise successfully compensate your hosts so everyone retains honor?
posted by Mo Nickels
on Dec 16, 2004 -
26 answers
How seriously do people take customs forms? When coming back to the US from Europe this summer, my SO and I argued extensively on how important it was that we follow the written instructions on the customs cards handed out on the plane. I started diligently trying to recall
everything we were bringing back, including foodstuffs, but she thought that wasn't necessary at all and in the end we just went through the "nothing to declare" line. How much trouble could we have got in, if we only had a few knicknacks and some Turkish Delight? What is supposed to happen, really?
posted by anonymous
on Dec 11, 2004 -
10 answers
(E)URO-COMMERCE filter - i run a mail order business and web site and entertain fantasies of doing the same in europe. does anyone have any knowledge of the shipping/postage/tax/duties situation for inter-european shipping? are there examples of companies who serve europe the way small e-tailers are able to server the whole US via UPS or thhe US mail?
posted by subpixel
on Dec 9, 2004 -
7 answers
I will probably be taking a test to determine whether or not I will get an interview for a job. The test-taking will take place in the offices of the company where I'm interviewing. Should I wear a suit?
posted by kenko
on Dec 7, 2004 -
19 answers
A friend of mine had some trouble with US Customs after traveling through Europe. As it turns out,
Lush soap may violate US drug laws. Customs evidently took her soap, tested it and showed it contained trace amounts of THC. She was detained for five hours, threatened with imprisonment and fined $500. So my question is thus: Is Lush in anyway liable if they are putting marijuana in their products without proper labeling? Is there anyway to appeal or contest the US Customs fine? Has anyone had a similar experience?
[more inside]
posted by elwoodwiles
on Dec 6, 2004 -
26 answers
Can I fly from the United States to Canada without a passport?
posted by jjg
on Oct 28, 2004 -
20 answers
