Sailboat buddy called me in alarm, Said the 2009 waterway guide says you need
to clear OUT OF customs in Miami BEFORE leaving for the Bahamas. Any truth to
this?
A lot of the guides say a lot of things that are subject to
qualification. There is a whole lot of cruiser-disseminated information
that is plain wrong. In the process of making our 1st trip to the
Bahamas last spring, we had a ton of bogus information come our way,
while in Boot Key, the flow of hearsay requirements for cruisers was
boggling. I searched the Customs site and I could find no mention of a
customs requirement for pleasure boats when leaving US waters. There is
a requirement to report when arriving. An what your excitable sailboat
buddy may have heard about was a new requirement as of May 2009 for
private flyers leaving the US. It's all on the US Customs website
(www.cpb.gov http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel)
When we arrived in the US in May, I reported to the Customs office in
Port Canaveral. The officer told me that they estimate that 10% of the
cruisers check in, and thanked me for being responsible. I was surprised
to learn that so many don't bother. There are sources of qualified
information available, I would search those out and summarily ignore the
info that comes from any source other than those who wield the
enforcement stick.
Just my unqualified opinion.
Steve Sipe
Solo 4303 "Maerin"
lying Greens Creek, Oriental NC
where it's finally stopped raining for a bit.
Larry N. Brown wrote:
> Sailboat buddy called me in alarm, Said the 2009 waterway guide says you need
> to clear OUT OF customs in Miami BEFORE leaving for the Bahamas. Any truth to
> this?
>
>
A lot of the guides say a lot of things that are subject to
qualification. There is a whole lot of cruiser-disseminated information
that is plain wrong. In the process of making our 1st trip to the
Bahamas last spring, we had a ton of bogus information come our way,
while in Boot Key, the flow of hearsay requirements for cruisers was
boggling. I searched the Customs site and I could find no mention of a
customs requirement for pleasure boats when leaving US waters. There is
a requirement to report when arriving. An what your excitable sailboat
buddy may have heard about was a new requirement as of May 2009 for
private flyers leaving the US. It's all on the US Customs website
(www.cpb.gov <http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel>)
When we arrived in the US in May, I reported to the Customs office in
Port Canaveral. The officer told me that they estimate that 10% of the
cruisers check in, and thanked me for being responsible. I was surprised
to learn that so many don't bother. There are sources of qualified
information available, I would search those out and summarily ignore the
info that comes from any source other than those who wield the
enforcement stick.
Just my unqualified opinion.
Steve Sipe
Solo 4303 "Maerin"
lying Greens Creek, Oriental NC
where it's finally stopped raining for a bit.
