Have DUI, can I get off ship in Victoria BC

[OurDogCisco]

Try this link: http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/contact/menu-eng.html

[6rugrats]

DH had a DWI in 1987 and DUI in 1989 none since or any other convictions. We will be on a southbound cruise Seward to Vancouver spending 2 nights in Vancouver. When we get off the ship in Vancouver will he have a problem?

 

Can you please come back and post what happened? This question gets asked a lot, but very few posters who ask come back and report if they had problems or not. I think you are wise to find out now because he could have problems. Good luck!

 

Phone numbers in case you didn't find them:

 

1-204-983-3500

1-506-636-5064

Edited April 29, 2014 by 6rugrats

[luv2gamble]

Can you please come back and post what happened? This question gets asked a lot, but very few posters who ask come back and report if they had problems or not. I think you are wise to find out now because he could have problems. Good luck!

 

Phone numbers in case you didn't find them:

 

1-204-983-3500

1-506-636-5064

 

Im going on cruise May 17, I will post what happens when I return. As far as what I have been told by immigration and Canada Border Serv Agency, I will have NO problem getting on ship because Im boarding in Seattle. Its Vancouver they said would be a problem. However, if the DUI is over 5 yrs old, they will let you on and in Canada just for a one time event they call a rehabilitated. If its under 5 yrs, you will have a problem entering country. I am just not getting off at the Canada Port because mine is only 2 1/2 yrs old.

Edited April 29, 2014 by luv2gamble
x

[LeftcoastBC]

Im going on cruise May 17, I will post what happens when I return. As far as what I have been told by immigration and Canada Border Serv Agency, I will have NO problem getting on ship because Im boarding in Seattle. Its Vancouver they said would be a problem. However, if the DUI is over 5 yrs old, they will let you on and in Canada just for a one time event they call a rehabilitated. If its under 5 yrs, you will have a problem entering country. I am just not getting off at the Canada Port because mine is only 2 1/2 yrs old.

 

I keep wondering why you mention Vancouver. You do not go there. Am I missing something.?

 

Anyone cruising out of Vancouver would have had the Issue with getting into Canada at a border crossing well prior to boarding if they were going to have an issue at all.

 

The Poster Lorey2007 may have an issue but not you. The only advice I can give to that poster is to Contact CBSA personally. Or perhaps the "US Direct" program is operating again this year and he/she is on a Cruise Line that offers the service.

Edited April 29, 2014 by LeftcoastBC

[luv2gamble]

I keep wondering why you mention Vancouver. You do not go there. Am I missing something.?

 

Anyone cruising out of Vancouver would have had the Issue with getting into Canada at a border crossing well prior to boarding if they were going to have an issue at all.

 

The Poster Lorey2007 may have an issue but not you. The only advice I can give to that poster is to Contact CBSA personally. Or perhaps the "US Direct" program is operating again this year and he/she is on a Cruise Line that offers the service.

 

I am not going to Vancouver. I was concerned because one of the ports is Victoria Canada. I contacted and spoke with CBSA and they said as long as I dont get off ship in Victoria I would not have a problem, only because I am getting on in Seattle. If I were getting on ship in Vancouver, I would not be able to board.

[filthybeagle]

One member of our party had a DUI issue (over 15 years old) and she had no troubles either getting off the ship or on the ship in Victoria...in fact, no one even asked for passports in either direction. All four of us just walked through the gates together only having to show our sea-pass upon return. Good luck.

[js15105]

Luv2gamble -- just curious how your trip turned out. Any issues boarding in Seattle? We have similiar situation in our family and are cruising from Seattle in July. Thanks!

[LeftcoastBC]

Luv2gamble -- just curious how your trip turned out. Any issues boarding in Seattle? We have similiar situation in our family and are cruising from Seattle in July. Thanks!

 

 

Please do !

[luv2gamble]

Luv2gamble -- just curious how your trip turned out. Any issues boarding in Seattle? We have similiar situation in our family and are cruising from Seattle in July. Thanks!

 

Hi, I am back and all went well. NO PROBLEM getting on in Seattle at all. The day before we were scheduled to arrive in Victoria BC I got a letter delivered to my cabin. The letter stated that a hand selected people were selected by the Canada Border patrol for a second interview before entering the country. The letter stated that a list was emailed to the ship of selected people and I was to report to the front desk 2pm sharp just prior to getting off ship. I called the front desk, they said even if i planned on staying on the ship, it was mandatory I show up. Well, I did, along with about 30 people including some crew members. We waited for border patrol over an hour. they took us ashore before everyone else and took us to a holding area and one by one they took us to the side. They out in out just asked me if I was ever in trouble with the law. I told them my dui story. He had it all in front of him, exactly what I was saying. SO DONT LIE! He said to me, Im sorry but even though I had a minor case, I was not permitted to enter the country. Made me sign a form and I was escorted back on ship. Just cannot go into Victoria. I did ask him, what if I was entering via Vancouver? The officer said, I would not have been able to board the ship. Hope this is helpful.

[LeftcoastBC]

Hi, I am back and all went well. NO PROBLEM getting on in Seattle at all. The day before we were scheduled to arrive in Victoria BC I got a letter delivered to my cabin. The letter stated that a hand selected people were selected by the Canada Border patrol for a second interview before entering the country. The letter stated that a list was emailed to the ship of selected people and I was to report to the front desk 2pm sharp just prior to getting off ship. I called the front desk, they said even if i planned on staying on the ship, it was mandatory I show up. Well, I did, along with about 30 people including some crew members. We waited for border patrol over an hour. they took us ashore before everyone else and took us to a holding area and one by one they took us to the side. They out in out just asked me if I was ever in trouble with the law. I told them my dui story. He had it all in front of him, exactly what I was saying. SO DONT LIE! He said to me, Im sorry but even though I had a minor case, I was not permitted to enter the country. Made me sign a form and I was escorted back on ship. Just cannot go into Victoria. I did ask him, what if I was entering via Vancouver? The officer said, I would not have been able to board the ship. Hope this is helpful.

 

Thanks for the info... It went as I expected ....only you know what the extent of your brushes with the law.

 

I still do not understand fully why if you were trying to board a ship in Vancouver they would not let you board as you would be dealing with US Immigration not Canada's. (All passengers in Vancouver clear US immigration when going to AK) Surely you would be allowed to board having already cleared Canada's Border. Maybe if it was a closed loop there would be some issue on your return? That's where you would meet up with Canada's agents again.

 

Your issues would be at entry to Canada in the first place.

 

Regardless another thread with great info.

 

thanks.

[cruiseryyc]

 

Your issues would be at entry to Canada in the first place.

QUOTE]

 

Exactly he would not have been allowed into Canada to catch the cruise but would have been turned around at Canadian Immigration in the Vancouver airport.

[js15105]

Hi, I am back and all went well. NO PROBLEM getting on in Seattle at all. The day before we were scheduled to arrive in Victoria BC I got a letter delivered to my cabin. The letter stated that a hand selected people were selected by the Canada Border patrol for a second interview before entering the country. The letter stated that a list was emailed to the ship of selected people and I was to report to the front desk 2pm sharp just prior to getting off ship. I called the front desk, they said even if i planned on staying on the ship, it was mandatory I show up. Well, I did, along with about 30 people including some crew members. We waited for border patrol over an hour. they took us ashore before everyone else and took us to a holding area and one by one they took us to the side. They out in out just asked me if I was ever in trouble with the law. I told them my dui story. He had it all in front of him, exactly what I was saying. SO DONT LIE! He said to me, Im sorry but even though I had a minor case, I was not permitted to enter the country. Made me sign a form and I was escorted back on ship. Just cannot go into Victoria. I did ask him, what if I was entering via Vancouver? The officer said, I would not have been able to board the ship. Hope this is helpful.

 

Thank you for checking back and for the update! Glad it went well!

[techexpress83]

So, I have the same issue and want to make sure nothing has changed for 2015. Luv2Gamble, can you please provide the numbers you called. I just get the runaround everytime I try to call any service...its so frustrating.

[martincath]

So, I have the same issue and want to make sure nothing has changed for 2015. Luv2Gamble, can you please provide the numbers you called. I just get the runaround everytime I try to call any service...its so frustrating.

The numbers provided to L2G were from this page:

www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/contact/bis-sif-eng.html

 

If the automated scripts don't cover your scenario, you can press 0 to speak to an actual officer - but beware, speaking with a person means your info is only as good as that individual's training and recollection, the scripts OTOH are always consistent.

 

The DUI issue is one that comes up a lot, I'd be surprised if any officer isn't familiar with it - your problems will arise if your offence is long enough ago that you MAY be deemed rehabilitated, because that is always 100% up to the officer you speak to as you try to enter the country. It's discretionary, with no guarantee of acceptance.

 

If, like L2G, your offence is recent enough you are guaranteed to be denied entry then you should go through exactly the same events L2G described - told to come to a location on the ship, interviewed there & then by CBSA or taken to an office at the pier for the interview, then (politely - we're Canadian!) told to stay on board.

[luv2gamble]

So, I have the same issue and want to make sure nothing has changed for 2015. Luv2Gamble, can you please provide the numbers you called. I just get the runaround everytime I try to call any service...its so frustrating.

 

Hi tech..I cannot remember the number but it was canadian immigration. Hard to get someone on the line but I remember I pressed the option for people who were trying to get clearance to enter country via boat as if they were already in transit like a delivery and were waiting to enter. As long as you have a loop cruise entering cruise within USA and disembark USA you do not have a problem. You just simply cannot get off at any Canada stop or start cruise from Canada. There was a room full of people that were called down b4 docking in Canada and almost all were told they cannot enter country. We just all went back on ship and used the amenities. Good luck!

[jack300s]

This is our 4th trip to Canada on NCL. Two Canada/New England and Two Alaska.

 

We just returned from our Alaska Cruise with a stop in Victoria (5/31 to 6/7). In Victoria it was the same as the other stops in Canada. We walked off the ship and passed through a gate with no questions asked. Upon return we passed through customs and were asked to show our room card key.

 

Hope this info helps.....

[cruiseryyc]

This is our 4th trip to Canada on NCL. Two Canada/New England and Two Alaska.

 

We just returned from our Alaska Cruise with a stop in Victoria (5/31 to 6/7). In Victoria it was the same as the other stops in Canada. We walked off the ship and passed through a gate with no questions asked. Upon return we passed through customs and were asked to show our room card key.

 

Hope this info helps.....

 

No questions were asked because your passport information had already been shared with the Canadian authorities and obviously your names did not spark any interest.

 

FYI this thread is over a year old and I believe the original poster has already come and gone from Canada.

[LHT28]

This is our 4th trip to Canada on NCL. Two Canada/New England and Two Alaska.

 

We just returned from our Alaska Cruise with a stop in Victoria (5/31 to 6/7). In Victoria it was the same as the other stops in Canada. We walked off the ship and passed through a gate with no questions asked. Upon return we passed through customs and were asked to show our room card key.

 

Hope this info helps.....

 

The big question is do you have a DUI on record??

[Putterdude]

This is our 4th trip to Canada on NCL. Two Canada/New England and Two Alaska.

 

We just returned from our Alaska Cruise with a stop in Victoria (5/31 to 6/7). In Victoria it was the same as the other stops in Canada. We walked off the ship and passed through a gate with no questions asked. Upon return we passed through customs and were asked to show our room card key.

 

Hope this info helps.....

 

People need to take this with care. If your offence occurred more than 10 years ago then CBSA has the discretion of deeming you to be rehabilitated and admissible. If a DUI is a misdamenour offence in your state, or if the offence was essponged from your record or if for some reason it never made it on to your record then obviously it would not have appeared on the CBSA crim search.

[inotdown]

I appreciate coming across this post. It looks like I wont be getting off the ship in Victoria. My DUI was over 5 years ago and it looks like one of the consequences is not stepping foot in Canada. My situation could have been a lot worse than worrying about getting into Canada off of a cruise.

 

Live and learn.

[Putterdude]

I appreciate coming across this post. It looks like I wont be getting off the ship in Victoria. My DUI was over 5 years ago and it looks like one of the consequences is not stepping foot in Canada. My situation could have been a lot worse than worrying about getting into Canada off of a cruise.

 

Live and learn.

 

You never know, sometimes people don't have a problem at all. At least you are prepared for the worst.

[Putterdude]

I have been aware for sometime that there is no legislation that requires a cruise ship to provide a passenger manifest to Canadian Customs (CPB), it was only done on a volunteer basis and only about 35% of the time. Which is why DUI and other offences were only detected occasionally. However, I did some reading on this topic yesterday and found that while there is still no manifest legislation, in 2013 CBP established a protocol that said to the cruise lines either voluntarily provide a manifest or we will clear every passenger one by one in Victoria and other first Canadian ports of call and that process could occur on the ship or at the port. Well, you can only imagine what the delays would be like in Victoria....so it seems the cruise lines are now "voluntarily" providing manifests some 96 hrs before arrival in Victoria affording lots of time for CBP to do their reviews and this is why we have seen an increase in the number of reports of people being told that they must remain on the ship....or if they have outstanding arrest warrants being detained and turned over to local police.

[Putterdude]

Just a footnote to my post above, CBP should read CBSA....sorry for any confusion this may cause.

[Racer70]

I'm assuming this isn't much of an issue on Canadian cruises because with the 10's of thousands of cruise passengers going into Canada each year, I'm not hearing too many people with a "minor" conviction in their past say that they were denied entry via cruise ship.

 

With all the cruisers going into Canada, there is certainly a percentage of people on each cruise with a conviction of some type and all of these people are not being denied entry. We would've heard about it big time.

 

I read on this forum before where a former Canadian Border Patrol agent said it was not their mission to deny entry to passengers with minor convictions (DUI etc.) because if they did, it would ruin the cruise industry and tourism for Canada, which means revenue loss.

 

If anyone has a "minor conviction" and you cruised into Canada in 2015, please tell us your story. Were you denied entry or hassled, or were there no issues and you were welcomed into Canada and told to enjoy your visit.

[Putterdude]

I'm assuming this isn't much of an issue on Canadian cruises because with the 10's of thousands of cruise passengers going into Canada each year, I'm not hearing too many people with a "minor" conviction in their past say that they were denied entry via cruise ship.

 

With all the cruisers going into Canada, there is certainly a percentage of people on each cruise with a conviction of some type and all of these people are not being denied entry. We would've heard about it big time.

 

I read on this forum before where a former Canadian Border Patrol agent said it was not their mission to deny entry to passengers with minor convictions (DUI etc.) because if they did, it would ruin the cruise industry and tourism for Canada, which means revenue loss.

 

If anyone has a "minor conviction" and you cruised into Canada in 2015, please tell us your story. Were you denied entry or hassled, or were there no issues and you were welcomed into Canada and told to enjoy your visit.

 

I am thinking that you are living in a dream world. Yes, anyone with a "minor" offence on their record is admissible. If the offence is a misdemeanour offence in a persons state then obviously it will not be on a person's record. However, to suggest that even for a moment that a DUI offence on someone's record would be admitted into Canada is incorrect. A DUI is regarded as a summary offence under the Criminal Code of Canada, not a minor offence, and a person with a conviction for an offence that is considered a summary offence under the Criminal Code of Canada is inadmissible to Canada. Having said that a person with a summary conviction may apply for admission but this takes time and money. A person with a summary conviction is after 10 years is deemed to be rehabilitated and is admissible. Interesting enough a Canadian is not treated the same way by the US CPB, one strike and you are out permanently.

 

If you were to read further on these forums you will find posts from people who this year and last were respectfully asked to remain on the ship during the Victoria stop of a Seattle/Alaska cruise and still others where people were taken away by CBSA officers presumably on outstanding arrest warrants.