Days in the states

[mamestra]

Have a number of questions, and would also like snowbirds to think about this, first what consists of a day in the US does just crossing the border for gas and coming home count as a day, also before if we flew home over Christmas we were still considered in the US, with the new ability to access records will we still have to count our time home at Christmas as still being in the states. Last question, I noticed that if we were in-transit between the US and Mexico the days in the US don't count, I was wondering if we were in-transit between two destinations in Canada and travelled through the US do these days count. We visit my wife's mom in Alberta and it is a much more pleasant drive travelling through the US hauling a 5th wheel than taking Highway 3 (Southern Trans-Canada). Lots to think about.

[Community Alumni]

We cross back and forth often twice a week to go to our summer seasonal campsite in NY state and we spend several weeks in the fall and winter at our campsite in South Carolina.

I've posed the 'time in the US' question during a meeting we had with the US Customs & Border Protection folks at Champlain NY. Their reply was that day trips do not add to the count. Also when we return home for Christmas, the days do no add to the count. The number of days that count are the total that include overnight stays within a calendar year.

[silversand]

With all the illegals coming in and a virtually non existent border, I doubt you'll be noticed.

...if you are driving a "plated vehicle" over the US border (not humping it into the USA illegally from Mexico with a backpack), that vehicle (whether you are driving it, or someone else is) will be tracked. My understanding is that there are thousands (or, tens of thousands) of license plate tracking cameras mounted at overpasses, and in towns and cities all across the USA (and, Canada), that record, and plot every license plate that cross the scanner, (potentially) generating a time/date/route event. Again, this I understand from reading professional Geo-spatial journals in my field of endeavor.

...so,if you extrapolate the possible queries made on your vehicle from such an alleged network of national scanners (ie. you tell Customs you are going be in the USA for 21 days to visit in Texas, but you never actually go there, instead, arriving to Los Angeles, and leaving the USA by automobile into Canada in 36 days)..a red flag event....you get the picture.

[Fizz]

ksbowman wrote:
With all the illegals coming in and a virtually non existent border, I doubt you'll be noticed.

There is a world of difference between sneaking in on foot and driving in where they scan your plates and passport.

[silversand]

...also before if we flew home over Christmas we were still considered in the US, with the new ability to access records will we still have to count our time home at Christmas as still being in the states...

...my understanding of this is yes, you will continue to be considered "in the US" even if you leave to return to Canada for Christmas. The concept is thus: if you (as a Canadian) make frequent trips to the US over the/a period considered to be a year, US customs may/will consider you to have closer ties to the US than to Canada, and will fill in the short "gaps" that you have returned during, and rack up the entire period as one long visit.

Remember, the US considers ALL visitors as: "presumed to be intending immigrants", and the onus is on the visitor to PROVE "clear and convincing evidence that they do not intend to abandon their home country". So, US customs can absolutely refuse you (the Canadian) entry if you are "a frequent crosser" even though you have physically only been n the US for say, 100 days in a deemed year.

This is in MHO, after researching this topic vigorously over the past 3 years. I am not an immigration lawyer. See an immigration lawyer to verify this with subtleties, and do your own due diligence.

[Trackrig]

We have to watch the same thing about being out of Alaska. The only safe way to do it is to count anytime you're out of state (or Canada)as being out for a full day. It's not worth the time or trouble of trying to count hours and trying to justify your count against their count if it ever comes to it with the government.

Bill