Heavy handed Yanks

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fiveflipflops

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Hi All, Just read noonsite.com there is a posting to do with the movement of boats within the USA. It would appear from reading the article that someone has just been fined U$5,000 for moving his boat from one pontoon to another in the same marina but failed to inform Homeland Security. On reading the article my understanding is that each time you move anchorage or berth you have to call up Homeland Security so that they know where all the aliens are! kind of puts you off going to the States. Anyone currently cruising USA could they advise on what is happening currently. I look forward to any comments.
David and Emma
s/y five flip flops
 
They do tend to spoil things by going over the top, For my 60 birthday my wife packed me of to Alaska for 3 months a life long ambition a small tent and a 90 pound rucksack I flew to Vancouver then made my way by ferry via the inland passage to Scagway then by bus overland to Alaska what a disappointment beautiful country completely spoilt the parks all regimented by park rangers, rules and regulations, planes flying all over the place takeing tourists to sand banks on rivers to shoot a caribou. I was glad to get away , On my way back via the Alaskan highway I stopped at a campsite in the yukon and on the notice board it said canoe the Yukon so I hired a canoe in Whitehorse and paddled 500 miles to Dawson city ( The old gold prospectors route) what a difference no police, no rules , a pristine wilderness camp as the fancy takes you build a fire absolutely fantastic the difference in Canada and the 56 state without going into to much detail was mind boggleing
 
I was cruising the US from March to November last year. Apart from the requirement to have a US visa on arrival by yacht, there were no restrictions much different from anywhere else and we cruised freely. There are a few foodstuffs you can't enter with, I seem to recall beef and chicken. I have never been required to provide an itinery beyond a verbal outline of our intentions.

Most countries get pretty uptight about yachts that enter without reporting. Once you've arrived your first duty is to report, you can't gad around. A $5,000 fine for evasion is tough but I'm not surprised.

US and Canadian subjects need only phone in, but us UK aliens need to see US Customs & Border Protection each time we enter, but not as we move about, don't worry about that. I believe nationals of some countries (not generally yachtie ones) may need to contact CBP each time they move state.

Canada is a little bit easier, no visa is needed and sometimes but not always a phone call suffices to clear Canada Border Services Agency. The Canadians are mostly fussy about the amount of booze you bring in (strictly limited). Also, no firewood!

There have been suggestions recently that all yachts in US waters should be tagged so they can be monitored by satellite. Now that would be heavy handed, if it happens.
 
It is true that the cruising permit for foreign yachts says and has always said: "Upon arrival at each port or place in the United States, the master shall report the fact of arrival to the designated Customs officer at the nearest port of entry. Such report shall be made immediately upon arrival." So it isn't a new requirement.

The verbal instruction to me last time I entered was that I would need to re-report only each time I entered a new US territory, e.g. USVI, PR, mainland USA, Hawaii. Plus on leaving the US of course.
 
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It effects foreign flagged yachts to the point that they cannot move from berth to berth without reporting.

CRAZY!

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It is crazy, more so with the first statement in this advise from an Australian vessel who reported their experiences :

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* There is no need to check in if you anchor, only if you go to a marina.

* If you have an itinerary and know which marinas you will be visiting tell the person you are checking in with and ask them to note it directly into the system. Ask if there is a need to check if you move to another local marina and log the response. This worked for us every time.

* Record any comments made to you by Homeland Security when you check in. Make sure that you keep a log of EVERYONE you speak to with the time and date and make sure you get their name rank and serial number. You will probably need to produce the record at some time to confirm that you checked in.

* The vast majority of officers don’t know there is even a requirement to check in and those that do, don’t know what to do anyway so you will probably have to guide them through the process. Some officers will just write down your details with the idea of logging you in later. Do not accept this and ask to speak to a supervisor.

* There IS a record of you and your boat on the system but you need to make sure they actually log you in. We had several people tell us that we hadn’t checked in when hand scribbled notes didn’t seem to make it into the system. Only check in during business hours and avoid lunch times.

* If possible try to renew your cruising permit at Palm Beach with Tony Grigorio.

* Security for people coming into the US on private boats is nothing short of farcical and a waste of public money. We also arrived into New York and Norfolk from offshore in the dark without a murmur.

* Despite flying two Australian flags on our boat in 2 ½ years of cruising and anchoring close to alleged high risk targets like the Statue of Liberty, Norfolk, Downtown Washington etc etc., we were never questioned by ANY authorities.

* I can only presume that you have a better chance of winning the lottery than a $5,000 fine.

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Well - I'll be testing this myself soon as I'm moving from West Coast Florida to the Bahamas in the next two weeks.

If you don't hear back from me you may need to organise forum food parcels cos I haven't cleared in any US port in the last 3 years. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif
 
Probably not a good idea to arrive in the US muttering 'heavy handed Yanks' I would think. The Americans can be generous to a fault but when they choose to enforce a law-it gets enforced.
The requirement to notify each and every internal British boat movement existed 12 years ago but was not enforced at all then afaik.
 
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