4 ms·

Except travelers are not "on us soil" until granted entry by customs. Customs could just deny entry if foreign travelers won't voluntarily consent to search.

Taniwha 7y ago
If you make that argument then the customs officers are also NOT on US soil and have no authority to search phones (or do anything) at all
- wila 7y ago
  But good luck explaining that to them.
  - Taniwha 7y ago
    I agree, I think this is more an argument to be made in court
- flyGuyOnTheSly 7y ago
  The last time I so much as questioned an american customs agent about something they asked me to do, I was interrogated for 2 hours about my life, job, friends, family, phone searched, car flipped through, etc. They even had 2 canine units circle my car and jump in and out of it at least 10 times each. Talk about a heavy handed approach.
  - chii 7y ago
    Some people get off on power, and this job is as close to having power over people as some can get. As long as you know you're not actually carrying contraband or is a terrorist, just smile, comply when reasonable, and then say politely that you'd like to see their manager to file a complaint.
    - atoav 7y ago
      Weirdly enough this isn’t much of an issue in most other parts of the world.
      - refurb 7y ago
        Really? Because Canadian customs officers are known to be a bunch of tough guys too.
        dboreham 7y ago
        I travel across the US Canada land border from time to time (in the mountain west). My experience has been that Canadian officials are universally civil and respectful while US officials are universally not.
        kube-system 7y ago
        In my experience on both sides, pleasantness is directly correlated to the number of cars in line.
        refurb 7y ago
        As a frequent traveler between the US and Canada, I’ve only ever got grief (including accusations of smuggling) from Canadian officials. Going to the Us side it’s usually a simple “have a nice day”. And I have Canadian citizenship.
        maktouch 7y ago
        Same here. https://borderprivacy.ca/ https://borderprivacy.ca/ Signed and donated. It happens to me every, single, fucking, time, losing 1 hour every trip back home.
        leesalminen 7y ago
        Can confirm. Have crossed between New York/Ontario many times over the years.
- joshred 7y ago
  It's already pretty well established as law. There's not really any room to argue.
- JaRail 7y ago
  It depends on the entry point. If I go through US customs in the Toronto airport, it's on Canadian soil. If someone there is having an issue with the process, they can withdraw their entry request and leave. That's perfectly fine and they shouldn't be punished for it. You don't have that option if you use a land crossing as you're physically inside the US.
  - lonelappde 7y ago
    Why would you be in US customs in a Canadian airport? I didn't know that exits.
    - filleokus 7y ago
      Not sure if parent is talking about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_border_preclearance https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_border_precleara... or not, but yes, that's a thing.
      - souterrain 7y ago
        I recommend caution when asking the agents at Shannon if the Republic of Ireland still has sovereignty from the United States of America. In my experience, it hits a nerve.
        devicetray0 7y ago
        Why would you ask that?
    - Taniwha 7y ago
      Many US airports, especially away from the coasts, don't have any immigration/customs facilities, instead flights from Canada to the US go thru US customs in Canada (make sure you get to that flight early) since it's cheaper to put US facilities in a relatively smaller number of Canadian Airports
    - inerte 7y ago
- flukus 7y ago
  But customers officers can't force you to comply can they? So whether or not they have any authority is irrelevant. Of course if you choose not comply you have to turn around.
Broken_Hippo 7y ago
Sure... but I don't know where US citizens will go if they do not have residence in another country. Not everyone getting searched reside outside the US.
- velosol 7y ago
  In that case you as a citizen are allowed to enter, but whatever they're searching (phone, computer, etc) may be detained and you'll be given a receipt and (often) an opportunity to claim it at a later date.

Taniwha 7y ago

If you make that argument then the customs officers are also NOT on US soil and have no authority to search phones (or do anything) at all

wila 7y ago
But good luck explaining that to them.
- Taniwha 7y ago
  I agree, I think this is more an argument to be made in court
flyGuyOnTheSly 7y ago
The last time I so much as questioned an american customs agent about something they asked me to do, I was interrogated for 2 hours about my life, job, friends, family, phone searched, car flipped through, etc. They even had 2 canine units circle my car and jump in and out of it at least 10 times each. Talk about a heavy handed approach.
- chii 7y ago
  Some people get off on power, and this job is as close to having power over people as some can get. As long as you know you're not actually carrying contraband or is a terrorist, just smile, comply when reasonable, and then say politely that you'd like to see their manager to file a complaint.
  - atoav 7y ago
    Weirdly enough this isn’t much of an issue in most other parts of the world.
    - refurb 7y ago
      Really? Because Canadian customs officers are known to be a bunch of tough guys too.
      - dboreham 7y ago
        I travel across the US Canada land border from time to time (in the mountain west). My experience has been that Canadian officials are universally civil and respectful while US officials are universally not.
        kube-system 7y ago
        In my experience on both sides, pleasantness is directly correlated to the number of cars in line.
        refurb 7y ago
        As a frequent traveler between the US and Canada, I’ve only ever got grief (including accusations of smuggling) from Canadian officials. Going to the Us side it’s usually a simple “have a nice day”. And I have Canadian citizenship.
        maktouch 7y ago
        Same here. https://borderprivacy.ca/ https://borderprivacy.ca/ Signed and donated. It happens to me every, single, fucking, time, losing 1 hour every trip back home.
      - leesalminen 7y ago
        Can confirm. Have crossed between New York/Ontario many times over the years.
joshred 7y ago
It's already pretty well established as law. There's not really any room to argue.
JaRail 7y ago
It depends on the entry point. If I go through US customs in the Toronto airport, it's on Canadian soil. If someone there is having an issue with the process, they can withdraw their entry request and leave. That's perfectly fine and they shouldn't be punished for it. You don't have that option if you use a land crossing as you're physically inside the US.
- lonelappde 7y ago
  Why would you be in US customs in a Canadian airport? I didn't know that exits.
  - filleokus 7y ago
    Not sure if parent is talking about https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_border_preclearance https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_border_precleara... or not, but yes, that's a thing.
    - souterrain 7y ago
      I recommend caution when asking the agents at Shannon if the Republic of Ireland still has sovereignty from the United States of America. In my experience, it hits a nerve.
      - devicetray0 7y ago
        Why would you ask that?
  - Taniwha 7y ago
    Many US airports, especially away from the coasts, don't have any immigration/customs facilities, instead flights from Canada to the US go thru US customs in Canada (make sure you get to that flight early) since it's cheaper to put US facilities in a relatively smaller number of Canadian Airports
  - inerte 7y ago
flukus 7y ago
But customers officers can't force you to comply can they? So whether or not they have any authority is irrelevant. Of course if you choose not comply you have to turn around.

Broken_Hippo 7y ago

Sure... but I don't know where US citizens will go if they do not have residence in another country. Not everyone getting searched reside outside the US.

velosol 7y ago
In that case you as a citizen are allowed to enter, but whatever they're searching (phone, computer, etc) may be detained and you'll be given a receipt and (often) an opportunity to claim it at a later date.