Form I-68 for US/Canadian Crossings on a Boat?

[Byrdman]

Some chatter on a Great Loop site I visit about a Form i-68 form... may only be needed for folks crossing back into the US from Canada on a "50+" boat?? or... with the form being for the folks on board... do we now need these?

Cut-n-paste from the other site... C-Brat feedback please.

Byrdman

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It is a Canadian/US border crossing document that is why customs offices that do not border Canada do not know of them. It is best to

Get this before entering Canada and returning to the US.

Your customs decal for boats over 30 feet is for the boat and the I-68 is for the people.

It require three passport type photos that can be gotten at CVS, Walgreens, AAA and then you are required to show up in person

With your passport and fill out another form that costs $16 a person. Each person entering the US on the boat needs one.

We were told when we started on trip in Feb. after calling customs here in Michigan that they were not needed, but since then

They have started enforcing them. We stopped to check in at Port Huron, MI and were told to get one. Luckily there was a CVS

Close to the marina and immigration at the Blue Water Bridge is only a cab ride away. But that did take a couple of hours.

After that we called Drummond Island, which is another common point of entry and were they did not if they would enforce the

I-68 or not, but that as of Friday the 25th of May there were to be two Customs agents on duty with the harbormaster from 12-8 daily.

This was our experience, but do not know how other entry points will handle this.

This has been an issue for several, on again off again with the US/Canadian border.

 

[MOOSE]

Here we go again.... When applying for an I-68 quite a number of years ago, the head of Immigration at our local office had trouble finding the necessary form in his desk drawer. He then told me, "You don't really need one of these anyway." When I asked him why, he said because the I-68 requirement derives from Immigration laws and Immigration laws do not apply to US citizens, i.e. - you are not an immigrant. So after getting my form, I told him, "Well, maybe I'll see you next year, and maybe I won't." And I have not gotten one since nor do I intend to. We do carry our passports with us everytime we cross over however.
Al

 

[Pat Anderson]

We got some of the first I-68s out of the Blaine CPB office last year - the agent didn't know what it was or how to complete it, it took us a couple of hours. The program may be different in different areas (in fact I know it is) but here it is used to allow telephone check-in for small boat re-entry to the US, although as pointed out, that is not what it is actually intended for. You do not need one here, you can always check in in-person at a designated small boat entry point. Our check in at Point Roberts was quick and easy. We called in, the jovial CBP Officer Proctor got all the basic info over the phone, then asked if we had I-68s, and since we didn't, he had to come down to the dock - he was down in about 10 minutes and cleared us in about 2.

 

[thataway]

The I 68 has been around for some time. It seems to be harder to get now, and probably even more so next year. We got ours years ago at the Port Angeles customs group, with no real hassle. As I recollect we eventaully had to go the airport.

If you are a frequent crosser, or want to check back into the US, without going to a port immediately it is probably a good way to go.

 

[Grumpy]

NEXUS is suposed to be the modern "Do it all" valid for cars boats and planes.
However if you do get it, remember to ask for a Boater Registration (BR) number at same time or you will go though the whole process by cell phone the first time you use it !!

Merv

 

[Pat Anderson]

Plus, NEXUS is valid for five years, I-68s are only valid for one year...we never used them, because everyone on board has to have one, and we always seemed to have somebody on board that didn't...

NEXUS is suposed to be the modern "Do it all" valid for cars boats and planes.
However if you do get it, remember to ask for a Boater Registration (BR) number at same time or you will go though the whole process by cell phone the first time you use it !!

Merv

 

[Doryman]

Plus, NEXUS is valid for five years, I-68s are only valid for one year...we never used them, because everyone on board has to have one, and we always seemed to have somebody on board that didn't...

I just googled NEXUS and am wondering if NEXUS is any better than I-68 if anyone aboard has not gone through the NEXUS process?

Warren

 

[Pat Anderson]

Warren, the deal is if ANYONE on board is not I-68 or NEXUS approved, you have to clear customs in person. Period. Really, clearing customs in person is not that awful...at Point Roberts, which is the logical spot returning from the north, it is easy, the CBP guys have zero auto traffic to worry about, there is just not a lot of traffic any way you slice it. Can't speak to Roche Harbor or Anacortes, which are logical spots coming across from the southern end of the Gulf Islands, I imagine it could be a bit more busy there...