They really had to ask that terrorist question 9 fcking times to me in different tones bc they see my SEA pasport and i'm wearing slightly longer hijab. I was being checked for one more hour even after we called UMass, which is my purpose of coming there, to study there.
I was lucky enough to fly to France for a school trip on my birthday. When the guy looked at my passport he just yelled "happy birthday, welcome to France!" When I came back it was like I was in police custody with how intense and leading the questions felt
The French LOVE to hate Americans so much... I guess the FACT of US(A) having to save their asses TWICE happened so long ago, they don't remember it.....or maybe they secretly WANT TO SPEAK German............????
Yeah they left out where you have to take your shoes off, carry tiny liquids and show them, take out all your electronics, etc etc even prior to all that lol
@@zralokvemigraci When I went to America they literally asked you whether you were a spy and whether you had any explosives on you ... Like dude ... even if I did ... wtf would I say yes to any of that lmao? This was 20 years ago btw.
😅😅😅😅. Sir do you carry dismembered human parts in your suitcase? How can you ask me this?-Noo- After he arrives--Ahem, so Conor where do we throw them? - In the backyard of this house 😅.
I'm flying to the US twice a year and so far the funniest and yet most confusing for me was: "Did you go to college ma'am?" "The equivalent of college, yes. My country has a different school system" "What is your major?" "We don't get to choose majors over there, it's more like an all round thi-" "No" "Okay? My major is... biology?" "Welcome to the states..."
I take 3 weeks in the US when I travel. Since I can only afford to travel every two years or more, I am just using days off because I have to. I can max up to just under 8 weeks of travel at a time. Of course, pretty much no company in the US would actually allow you to take that much time off at once.
i remember landing in germany on my birthday. i handed my passport to the agent he just said "your birthday" i nodded and he replied with "happy birthday enjoy your stay"
Flew to Germany during the summer. Literally just held up my passport like 5 meters before the booth where the control was and the lady just waved me through lol
@@randomnamd627They already know who you are as you have to give your passport number when doing international flights. It is required in the EU. If you or someone on the flight are on their list they have extra steps when getting off the plane. I do not have to have a passport going between Ireland and the UK, Isle of man or the channels islands. Just a government issued ID like a driver license or national card. I do need to fill on my passport details on flights booking for going into Schengen area.
I recently arrived in Germany, it was two days after my birthday. They didn't say anything about that but also didn't ask me anything, just stamped my passport! I was baffled, that was a first
lmao I just went to the UK and the lady said "are you all studying here?" and I said "yeah" and she just said "alright then I hope you have a good time"
Frenchy here, and a few years ago I had to go through customs in Atlanta. The guy there opened his mouth, and damn, that Georgian accent/speech made me fall in love instantly! I could have listened to those inquisitory questions for hours. Anyway, the lovestory ended after the terrorist question and I embarked the next flight to Seattle :-)
I once answered to the question if I brought something from Europe, I replied "a smile", because he looked so bitter. He replied with the most intense and serious voice " you can keep that to yourself!!!"... 😢😂
For my visum from Germany to the US, I had to answer whether "I had ever participated in genocide". (Wish this was a joke!) No, but don't ask me about my grandparents...
@@jbrown4137 my current full time job gave me 5 days of PTO for the first year (and the job involves working lots of evenings, weekend and holidays as well). It goes up in the second year but 5 days for an entire year is just inhumane in my opinion.
I’ve never worked a full time job in the US that didn’t come with 2 weeks vacation as a minimum, plus accruing a certain amount of PTO each pay period. I don’t know where y’all are working that gives you 1 week but that’s pretty sad!
Honestly, the europeans were friendlier about asking, like they just wanted to have a conversation. The American customs were the ones that acted like they had beef with me
I've had the opposite experience. The French are bored and sometimes rude but can get you through in about 20 seconds. The Americans are friendly but have so many bloody questions... why are you visiting, how long are you staying, etc.
European customs scrutinize you more when leaving Schengen rather than entering it. They'll check to make sure you didn't overstay. If you have multiple EU entry/exit stamps on your passport, be prepared to hold up the line as the officer figures out your most recent entry
I do not know about other people but for me passing any Euro passport control is a matter of a minute as I go through the automatic line. To get back to the US, I have to stand in a line that may be up to an hour long, even though I am a US citizen. Sometimes even the Global Entry people have to wait in a line. It is an utter scandal
I remember I came back from south africa (visiting family) and the questions were so unhinged like they felt so oddly specific “do you have any illegal produce” no but what produce is illegal
@@unluckyomens370 In regard to produce, specifically, the reason why customs asks that question is because they don't want to let in vermin or disease from foreign countries that can end up ravaging local crops. This is one of the few *not* unhinged questions that gets routinely asked.
A friend came back on a charter flight from Afghanistan. They had full kit, including unloaded rifles, but had to check in nail clippers. Another wasn't allowed a metal backscratcher. If she could hijack the plane with a backscratcher, she wouldn't need the backscratcher but, more importantly, she was the pilot!
@@Jinxx9081 They had one boom boom and now they have to kill millions and annoy living shit out of everyone. Jesus, if earth has one annoying crybaby, it's USA
@@christofincognito4530 Indeed. Too many tourists here, can't be nice with everybody or they will come back with friends. And trully, one american at a time in the old continent is sufficient, no need to have more
I saw this question on my visit to Japan as well. There was even an asterisk with the footnote saying “note that organizations like greenpeace are considered terrorists”
I am African and I travelled a lot in my 20s and 30s, just having fun around Africa and Eurasia. I actually had nothing ever asked of me besides the usual "do you have anything to declare, or did you buy anything from abroad." I guess I had a very lucky and convenient run in those years.
This is pretty spot on sadly, from my experiences of several airports from the early 90's, only more unwelcoming, interrogatory and usually after a very long que, and I'm a Brit and we love queuing 🤣. I've travelled to a number of various countries over the years and US immigration has been by far the most unnecessarily hostile with a general accusation questioning seeming to all international passport holders, along with general rudeness bein the norm (this coming from a Brit who's experienced French immigration an uncountable amount of times🤣). In mostly all other circumstances though I've found the large majority of Americans to be some of the most friendly, sociable and hospitable people I've ever met.
As an American citizen, I have never been questioned as heavily by the Europeans as I am by the Americans literally every time. The Americans who... don't even have the right to refuse me in the first place.
Sadly this only works with a US passport. With a South American passport you get asked tons of questions and you also have to show how much money you have and an itinerary
Interestingly the only time I, a European, visited the US I was asked literally zero questions, not even about the purpose of my visit. They just waved me through.
@@Gerishnakov German here and first time they were strict with the questioning second time I had like one question, and I was confused that it was so fast (I am half Indian, so I look a bit Arabic if u don't know and I shaved both times to look less like one)
I'm American and have been through Schiphol many times, they are so nice there!! I've had a mix at the US border; they can be pretty friendly or still a bit stiff (though no where near as suspicious as for other nationalities) American and British customs think they have the best countries in the world and EVERYONE is trying to sneak in and stay permanently 😩 (at least several years ago in the UK there's usually e-gates which Americans can use, no way the US would ever install something similar!!) Hope you enjoyed New York!!
@@hiking1388at a small airport they were very nice. I think it was in Portland Oregon. In New York I got so nervous and I had not slept in 1-2 days as I had to rebook the flight and sleep overnight on an airport along the way with my second ticket that had more stopovers, travelling from Europe. It went ok but he asked a lot of questions and seemed suspicious. Also in washington Dulles they even took me aside😢. I guess I seemed nervous but you get nervous when you are «interrogated» and when English is not your first language. Anyone who know me would be surprised that they took me aside. I look rather innocent but I guess that doesn’t always matter. I almost didn’t make my connecting flight as I had to let them check my suitcase first and wait for an hour for them to check if I had a criminal record. That took them two seconds to found out I had not, but I was sat in a room with illegal immigrants and a bunch of other people. (From listening to the conversations). Major stress and very uncomfortable to be «accused» like that.
@mari97216 that's so sad , one of the many reasons why i would never want to visit or even live in america . Reading all of these comments has been enough to make me nervous specially considering I wear a hijab and soon a niqab too ( just wearing mask for now ) . Was this your first time to the US ? I remember 2-3 years ago there was a case where a hijabi woman was told to pull down her pants her undies to check if there's anything inside and she was on her periods . The case got viral for how she was mistreated and all of this went down infront of everybody. Unlike other countries such as UAE and Bangaladesh , there's a separate room for men and women to be body checked . I wonder how come USA airports can't afford such a small thing . Just build a small room with curtains . That would be enough .
I’ve been to few different countries. In my view Honolulu airport has the rudest and most obnoxious security and customs. So easy traveling through Asia customs compared to the us customs
Gibraltar, UK side of the border, I could show my passport from the other side of the street. Not even kidding. The Spanish side... they were only missing a spotlight and a polygraph.
@@adams3560 “You have been randomly chosen for additional screening.” Afterwards... Me: As always, the service has been a pleasure. And why you don't charge for that strip search, I will never know. Am I allowed to give you a tip?
This is real, first time i was in the US the passport control lady keeps asking me questions like what is my subject in university. I was like "are we on a date right now, what is this?"😂
Seriously, I'm a US citizen and was coming home from a professional conference and the border guard asked me so many questions about the conference I'm like, are you trying to go next year or what?
@@caltheantirobot Can you imagine how it is if you're not a US citizen. I was questioned for like 15 minutes (like everyone else flying in from the Netherlands that day on an ESTA, imagine the lines). And the supervisor of the lady who did the questioning had the audacity to reprimand her that she didn't press me hard enough (I pretended not to hear, this happened right as I took my hand luggage and walked towards baggage claim). Also the 2 times where they weren't a..holes at the border were: when I was traveling on a visa (so not ESTA but I got a visa once via the US embassy in my home country, cause I had a very long stay). And one time at 3AM local time in Detroit. Poor border control dude was super friendly, stamped the entry stamp in my passport. Then I saw panic on his face as he held down the stamp. Then from friendliness and panic he turned very stern and was like "what's the purpose of your visit? what is your destination?" then he let go of the stamp with sad puppy eyes, and wished me a nice trip very sadly. I think he was so sleep deprived that he forgot to mess with me. Poor guy I hope he wasn't reprimanded for his accidental friendliness. (He was doing the job alone at 3AM, so I hope no one saw it.) I hope he knows I left the US on time, spent lots of money, didn't break any laws, etc. lol Otherwise they were always bad.
@@embreis2257Frankly you are better off. Yes, there are beautiful places here but nothing that you won’t get elsewhere. I unfortunately became a citizen here else would not step foot especially with the atrocious behavior by border control.
I just returned from my first trip to Europe. Damn, that was the mist relaxing airport experience ever. Traveling through USA and Mexico is the most stressful airport experience every single time.
Maybe they ask this question to spot human trafficking. Sometimes humans are forced to carry illegal stuff in their suitcases and if maybe they explain their situation they can help their situation.
Illegal substances are not only subjected to weapons or drug but food as well. For example, my aunt got a fine of $500 for bringing 4kg of pork from Vietnam, which is illegal because any meat product from outside America without special permit is dangerous to bring I because it may contain diseases. Something with exotic fruits with seed because it may disturb the environment once it grow.
@zwegchen I only found this year why "did you pack your own suitcase" gets asked. A pregnant Irish lady was solo travelling on an Israeli EL AL flight bk in the day, 1986. Her fianceé was Jordanian, going on a different flight. He packed her case with semtex, false bottom on case. He was prepared to blow her, his unborn child and the plane with 375 other passengers up. Person questioning her got suspicious and thankfully all was good. The Irish lady testified at his trial.
@@ndtung3221how did they find it? I’ve brought food and objects from foreign countries but they never stopped me when they put the bag in the detectors
@@ndtung3221how did they find it? I’ve brought food and objects from foreign countries but they never stopped me when they put the bag in the detectors
I live in the Czech Republic(which is part of the EU). When traveling within the EU, there is simply NO passport control. They check your luggage and that's it. When traveling out of the EU, usually you can use EasyGo gate. It's fully automatic. You only need to put your passport into a scanner, then the gate scans your face and you're good to go. It only work's with biometric EU passport and only if you're older than 15. Usually, it takes less than 30 seconds to get through it. Overall, I love traveling in EU.
@@polymath6475 i've had bad experience in Leipzig as a Dutch guy working there for some time as I didnt speak any german and apperently that was really offensive lol, but also worked in Berlin for the same contracter and there they were very nice so it might be a Leipzig thing which I can understand as some of these streets look like the USSR left yesterday
Last time when I came home to Hungary from Romania the border check was almost non-existent, despite Romania not being a member of the Schengen. I still remember when we asked the duty officer on the Hungarian side of the border: "Shall we open the trunk?" and he replied: "I'm not in the mood to write loads of paperwork for nothing. Most probably you went there to buy booze, ciggies or fuel anyways, but it seems like you don't have much of the first two, and the third one is not illegal. Welcome home, brothers, and off you go!"
I heard Border Control of GB, when they were still in the EU, one accepted Whatsapp-photos of the ID from two students on an international exchange from my school. 😂
@@hannasalveter8066When I was a kid growing up in the UK about 30 years ago, you used to be able to board ferries to France without showing your passport.
@@hannasalveter8066 every time I used to enter the uk with my paper id card they used to inspect it for minutes, sometimes even calling an expert. Then they just let me enter, all they cared for was whether my is card was genuine or not apparently
I'm from Geneva and I lived literally on the Swiss-French border. Never bothered to have an ID with me, but I speak with the very distinctive accent of my city 😅
@@hannasalveter8066That was legal. Under freedom of movement, when someone claims EU nationality, the officer has to prove that the person is not an EU national and give every chance to prove EU nationality before denying entry. In the above case, the officer could at best ask to report back with the right ID within a specific date.
And how they ask you these questions with a straight face I’ll never know because they sound like jokes. Crossing over to Canada and back was like this. Well, coming back was “welcome home”. 😂 Born here after all!
Well after any amount working in an airport, you probably don't care about their answers unless they're your problem. Like in customer service when someone says something crazy, sometimes it's not worth interacting.
As someone from the Czech Republic, I'm used to traveling freely throughout Europe without even needing to carry a passport when driving. Even at airports, it's usually a breeze-no questions, just a smile and a "Happy travels!" This actually applies to almost all of Europe (not just the EU), with a few exceptions like Russia. So, you can imagine my shock when I traveled to the US with my big dog-it was a nightmare at the airport! They treated us like we were criminals with some sinister plan, and they seemed to think my dog was the mastermind behind it, lol. Once we got through that ordeal, the US was great, and I had an amazing time during my two-year work trip. But, man, I am definitely not going through that kind of experience again!
I was traveling in the UK, with my dad, in 2004. We wanted to take the chunnel to Calais, but I forgot my passport in the hostel. We had a color photocopy on us, but I just knew this would be a problem. So I told my dad I’d just stay in Dover while he went. He didn’t think it would be an issue, and he didn’t want to go alone. So I get to French customs on the UK side. Predictably, I got completely harangued by the customs agent, but he let me through anyway. When we got to the depot outside Calais, we were told to flash our passports at the guards, who were very serious-looking French soldiers with sub machine guns. I was sure I was going to get arrested, but they just waved me through. When it was time to return home, I spoke to UK customs on the French side. The guy was extremely nice and understanding, saying he’d call his counterparts on the other side so they wouldn’t give me a hard time. So, for the first time, all day, I was feeling good as we pulled into the station on the UK side, but nope! I got harangued again, AND they searched my bag. I totally had it coming, but I came away from the experience with the belief that customs agents in France are nicer than in the UK, regardless of nationality. I should have stayed in Dover.
The UK is really serious about terrorism. They search my bag once. Made a mess of it too but I felt they were being really careful about their country.
YMMV. Got a very nice officer in Atlanta, even though my fingerprints didn't match and I was sent to secondary. Guy was great about it. SFO: can't remember. Unremarkable interactions. JFK, that was back when you got those stupid forms before you landed. A bunch of questions didn't apply, so I skipped them all. I didn't notice there was a field all the way to the bottom of the form. Officer (with a *thick* south asian accent): "So, what was your flight number?" Me: "" Officer: "Do you have the ability to write, or are you expecting me to write it down for you?" And he kinda threw the passport too, so that's not just a French thing.
I'm american so my experiences are gonna be different. But my experience with american customs have been mixed. The agent at dulles and O'Hare were friendly but at DFW he obviously didn't want to be there. However the agents in the other booths were friendly. My only other experiences with customs are in japan who are just pure business like and in the Netherlands which was easy but this was prior to 9/11 so everything was easier then.
My favorite experience of all time. It was 2006 or so and I flew into Paris for a 1 week trip to attend a language school. On arriving at CDG I was asked the typical questions and the customs guy decided to have a look through my bags. Way, way back in the day there was an author who I think was called Geneviève. She wrote some books on "street French" called "Merde, alors" and something like "More Merde alors". Anyway these were in my bags. When the agent saw these he started chuckling and said "OK you can go."
Well, do you think people like Hitler and Mao would say yes? I really wonder...they probably wouldn't because it wasn't actually them killing the people but their brainwashed underlings so...
I remember that on the old visa waiver form we could use years ago. I think there was another question about overthrowing the government, one journalist put "sole purpose of visit" as his reply in the 60s. Still got in.
That's totally accurate 😂 Europe: I hate my job man... can't wait for my next holiday US: I WILL APPLY THE LAW AND I WILL ARREST YOU IF YOU DON'T COMPLY I'm french and when I went to the US for tourism the staff was so aggressive for no reason that i had to remind myself not to laugh and not to tell a joke 😅 The french customs officer on the other hand didn't even look at me or talk to me. I had clear confirmation I was back in Paris 😂
No, but they are forced to lie. Same goes for questions about drug dealing. They do NOT expect terrorists/drug dealers to answer "yes". However, their "No" is now on the files. And in the future - even if it is DECADES later - that lie to enter the US can us help getting rid of them. They entered the US by misrepresenting themselves, therefore they can be deported more easily. Even if they get a plea deal regarding their terrorist past.
The main purpose of that (category of) question is so that they can prosecute you for lying if it turns out you ever did any terrorist act (even if it's well outside the statute of limitations, you had a minor role in it, etc.). They don't expect terrorists to tell the truth.
I went to London in April, first time out of the country since I was in the navy decades ago. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. When I got there I went through the self serve gate with my passport, followed the nothing to declare signs until I got to the trains and that was it. When I returned to the US, at Newark on a Monday morning, there was hardly any line, showed my passport to the guy in the booth, he never said anything or even looked at me, gave me back my passport and that was it. No customs, no questions, nothing. Just left the airport.
In fact, a Salvadoran colleague of my brother had to go to the US for work and they didn't let him in and they asked him for a lot of extra documentation. When he finally got all that documentation and tried to travel again, they asked him why his company had sent him to the US and he explained that he had to explain how some new machines worked to the US company's workers and again they didn't let him in because according to that guy "there's no way an American needs someone from outside to come and explain anything to him" 🙃🙃🙃
@shrek19yearsago78 lol define "developing country", because socially, culturally, and traditionally... USA is the most underdeveloped country on the planet.
@@AirbornSoul013 I didn’t say that people loved us, I’m pretty sure most people here in the states could care less whether they love us or not, however i did questioned why do millions of immigrants want to come to the U.S from all over the world which you haven’t responded to and some even die trying by crossing the southern border that right there should already give you an indication of what a developed and undeveloped nation is. Now I’m not saying America is perfect but it’s definitely better than many other countries probably not better than some European nations but at the same time it’s not an honest comparison because the U.S is 20 times bigger then every single European nation and has more people.
It wouldnt matter. Even if you HAD 4 weeks vacation, you would be browbeaten and shamed for actually trying to USE more than 3 or 4 days of it. I used to save up for 2 years so I could take THREE week vacations (usually to Germany) and everyone in the office looked at me like I was crazy when I talked about it.
I've noticed a lot of us citizens argue that everything in Europe is expenscoe which it isn't. Might be a conspiracy theory to try and keep Americans poor. If they get cheap better quality food in there they are possibly ruining the nation! /s
The weirdest in US for me was TSA agent shouting angrily on people in the queue for not removing shoes, next to a big ass sign which said don't remove belt/shoes (in text)
TSA is the bottom of the bottom of the barrel. In fact they don’t hold any legal authority, all they can do is call an actual Law-Enforcement-Officer, they are basically mall cops with an attitude.
I had a different experience going into Canada. My older brother lives there and a few years ago he flew down to Utah and we did a road trip up to Canada (Nevada, California, Oregon and Washington, we stopped in each state and did something there. Spent about 1 week in California for Disneyland) When we got to the Canadian border, they grilled us with questions super hard since my brother has dual citizenship, we were asked who he lives with (His dad) Then he asked us what our relationship is to my brother (My mom said I am his mom and his sister is in the back) he then asked us if it's my dad who lives in Canada, we had to tell him that my brother and I have different dads, so it was very awkward to give his the details of that. We then were asked what the purpose kd our visist was and we said to visit my brother and that it is also to celebrate his birthday, we were asked if we had alcohol in the car or illegal substances from the U.S (My mom said no) He noticed we had a lot of badge and things in the car, we told his that has been a road trip so all of our items like pillows and blankets are in the car and a mino cooler to keep snacks in there. He also spent a long time looking at my moms ID and then back at her cause her ID photo hadn't been updated for almost 10 years and she had super long brown hair in the photo and she recently cut it really short and went blonde, he told her update her ID photo. Then he let us in. Leaving Canada, they checked our IDs and said bye, come again soon!
I’m so early, just experienced this when i just visited Germany for the first time. It caught my whole family off guard by the 2 questions they asked lol
@@royaventureraBefore 9-11 it was almost like going on a train. You could also bring 2L of soda with you and nobody cared. After 9-11 the world went crazy and now we have this fake feeling of safety because they added tons of stupid rules and regulations that stop nobody that is willing to do harm.
Kind of curious what questions you get asked by american customs as americans. I only ever get are you bringing anything not legal, how long my stay was, and did I bring back any souvenirs and if so the dollar amount.
@@The_Lone_Aesir When re-entering the United States from a trip abroad, the most I've been asked is what countries I visited, the purpose of my trip, and if I was bringing anything I needed to declare. Then they just say “welcome home.” The annoying part is the line, not the questions. Now I've got Global Entry so they asked at an interview months ago what will be the purpose of my travel and what countries I plan on visiting and the last time I entered the US, the CBP officer just barked “phone or kiosk” and I showed her my phone and she waved me through. It was the fastest customs and immigration experience but it was also the rudest I've ever seen them.
I am Russian. Russia is far worse. As a tourist you need to register everywhere you go. Literally every single city you go to you have to register there if you are a foreigner. if you fail to do so you will be expelled from the country for 5 years. And many authorities do not take these duties seriously, they do not register you correctly and you end up being expelled from the country even tho you did not make any mistakes. One foreigner entered Vladivostok by plane and immidiately boarded a train to Moskow. That train ride takes a whole week. Upon arrival he was seriously fined for not registering in Vladivostok.
Yep. I travel a lot and never get treated worse than returning home to the U.S. I'm pretty sure customs can do their job and still be decent people. After all, we do pay their salary.
It often feels like they intentionally get people riled up waiting to talk to a customs agent. I think they're trying to sweat the bad guys and just get everyone else in the process. I've learned to stop in the restroom first and to not be in a hurry. Usually the agents are fine, just not near enough of them. They've heard everyone's shifty bs already so by the time they get to me I just smile, hand in my form with all the money I spent, let them check my duty-free bag and recommend a nice dram to try after work (my duty-free always has Scotch). They always say welcome home.
Add Ireland to the list. I'm American, a few years ago I went to study abroad in France. I was so nervous about going through passport control that I had prepared answers and documents to anything the officer could've asked me. Then when I got there, he just took one look at my passport, stamped it, and told me to go ahead. I was like "it was that easy???? He didn't even ask me anything!" During my winter break (while still in France) I decided to go to Ireland for a week while I was so close to it. I got to the passport control, handed her my passport and expected to just walk through. Except that lady just interrogated me. I literally started sweating and thinking she might actually deny me. "What is the purpose of your visit?" "Tourism" "Be more specific" "Uhhhh well I'm going to Dublin" "What are you going to do there?" "Visit Temple Bar" "And?" "Well I don't have everything planned out" "How much money do you have?" "Can I see your hotel reservation?" "Do you have any other bags?" And the weirdest one "do you know anyone here?" "No" "Then why are you here?" Me in my head: "so you're not allowed to visit a country if you don't know anyone there???" Eventually she let me through and when I got to my hotel room I just sat down like holy shit
Yeah tbh we baaaaarely tolerate americans. Especially ones that go to templebar. You might not know this but our friendliness is just our version of formal manners. It security doesnt need to display them, they wont. Our two cultures are too different to coexist peacefully. Like our manners mean not talking loudly. Its an invasion of personal space to be in 50 feet of an American because of the volume. Its important to have humility here, being self deprecating is a virtue. Using conspicuous consumption, and exuberant confidence to establish social status is not perceived positively. And money, my god. You never tip a barman. Thats like saying hes a child, your junior, beyond patronising. You never buy someone something or offer them money for helping you out. Its a slap in the face. The list could continue forever. Be happy and all. Have a good time. As a guest tho, and behave like one. Our friendliness is just because were hosting you.
@@ByrneMJames WHAT???? I'm british and the shit they say to us is annoying but we don't treat them like that just because they are american that's so rude.. They just want to visit it's not their fault..? 😭
As a child I stranded with my parents in an airport and to use the wifi their you had to pick why you are using the internet option were: „Citizen“ „Working“ „tourist“ „Terrorist“ I was young, my English was bad and I didn’t saw the difference between the last two options 😂 luckily I picked the right one 😂
Missed the part where US forces you to provide fingerprints and photos and asks the address of everywhere you're visiting and how much money you have...
@pscar1 japan does it too when you enter their customs. Although it let's you pass through the 2nd part of the customs with just a facial recognition.
That plus they tell you not to use your phones, not talk amongst eachother, are rude as fuck to kids (if ur a diff ethnicity and have a family its over for u lol)
@@aoutsky they just wanted to know if you were going to blame your pet dog if anything exotic was found in your luggage. "Merde! No monsieur, that hashish is not mine! It was my pet dog Alphonse that packed my suitcase!"
@@waleedalarmanazi159 Ah yeah, if i want to do a joke first i need to learn new alphabet, lenguage, choose if i should adapt the quotation marks to the joke, adapt it to the english words that are near it, adapt it to a context and then explain that is not meant to offend and may not be accurate...
Yup. I’m always on edge when going through US Customs because it always feels like an interrogation. Meanwhile, my first trip to Germany was like “how long are you staying? Do you have a return flight ticket? Welcome to Europe!”
I had a totally different experience, German custom officials were a mean bunch when I interacted with them. Felt like everyone was a undercover anti terrorist special ops. Too overkill imo.
Well, to be fair here, it definitely should be like an interrogation when they are trying to protect the country. 9/11 was only 23 years ago and America is hated by many countries specifically in the Middle East. They need to detect anyone who is trying to do harm.
US: Where are you from? Me: From Colombia US: which part of Colombia are you? Me: Boyaca US: Welcome to the United States Of America. Please, Go ahead.
I'm an African American US citizen born and raised in the US. See the redundancy Everytime I fly back into the US from Europe, I'm screened; taken aside for further questions and having my passport checked. Because the law enforcement in the US is trigger happy, I stay calm.
As an EU citizen you can use an automated control gate at a European airport if you return from overseas. It scans your passport and your face. After 10 seconds the gate opens and your in. Nobody is asking any questions then.
I'm from Europa and I only know about the US police from the news (not in a good way). What I am imagining is: I would also try to be very, very, very calm (while probably sweating like a little piggy throughout and having a smoke immediately afterwards). :D
We have different backgrounds, as I am a white US citizen (but also born and raised here), though I also get screened, taken aside for further questions, and have my passport checked when flying back from continental Europe to the US (it also happened in London). I've done it enough at this point that it isn't a coincidence. I have an aggressively Slavic last name that a lot of ignorant border control workers at US airports assume is Russian (it's not). My parents are also born/raised US citizens and I always get asked what nation they're from, even as a solo traveler. The only time I didn't have prolonged questioning or bag searching was when I was travelling with a romantic partner with a common English surname. It takes a LOT to keep calm after being exhausted from the long flights (you're so right re: trigger happy, detain happy, tase happy enforcers). You have my sympathies and respect.
When you have to fill in the ESTA, the website asks you for the exact address you'll be staying at, your medical history, whether or not you've ever been engaged in any criminal or terrorist activity - so by the end you're sweating and wondering if you're going to be sent to jail. And then it just goes : Your application has been approved. Welcome to the United States. 😁
@kittyk1014 the funny thing is I had to fill one out for my 6 week old daughter even though I'm a US citizen. My daughter was born in Switzerland and the US government red tape made it so we didn't get my daughter's US passport. One question asked did you commit any crimes against anyone? I felt like saying yes. What my daughter did to the lower half of my body was a crime. I knew they wouldn't find it amusing.
@@kittyk1014 Before ESTA, they gave you these slips to fill out on the plane. Coming from Germany, it would ask whether you've been involved in any crimes of the Nazi regime. I was very tempted to fill in "My birthday's stated above, you do the math!"
I'm Canadian and going into the US is different each time. Sometimes is quick and harmless, sometimes it's a numerous questions. Once I had to book a hotel room (and cancel it later) despite that I was going to stay with a friend, just for them to let me out of the airport. Another time while driving over, they had me enter their office, searched me car, then made me sign an affidavit that I wasn't smuggling beef into the US (you know, after they just searched my car and didn't feed any beef). There's no telling what I'm going to get each time. And when the airport is super busy but they still decide they're doing long and aggressive questioning with each traveller, you simply miss your flight b/c you showed up over 2 hrs early but you needed to show up 3.5 hrs early.
But is that actually at US immigration/customs pre-cleareance at Canadian airports? I've never had the pleasure if we can call it that way...my trips to Canada have only involved border land crossings and all cases except one quick and corteous on both sides, that one time it was not it was an early morning crossing into the US, I was sent to secondary inspection, quite a few people in line, desks were very short staffed and I was cleared to go more than 2 hours later.
I will never forget when I traveled NY to Canada. Going into Canada was amazing. Getting back into my own country from Canada was a nightmare. And to add insult to injury, they CHARGE you. I had to PAY MONEY to get back into the country I was BORN into. It's insane.
Was the charge the till for a border bridge? If so then that's just a toll because in the past I crossed into New York via I-87 which is a land crossing and they didn't have a charge
I can relate, entering Schengen at Warsaw/frankfurt the guy didn't bother asking me anything beyond the simple how long and the purpose. Exiting Schengen at Frankfurt, the passport was stamped and handed back to me and I had to ask "is that it?"😮
Here in Kenya at the American embassy, they put you through hell. They reject your visa multiple times and they don't even refund the visa money. It made me completely disinterested in visiting the US. I decided to choose to visit Europe and Asia. The Americans got attitude 🚮🚮
My friend had that, cost her something like $400 for each attempt and it took maybe 3 attempts to get a work visa for America. It should be illegal to not refund your money! It's basically theft. Like a mini money-making enterprise the USA has going on the side.
@@mademoiselledusfonctionell1609 i ve never been to the us and sure nyc would be an interesting city to visit, but huge cities are always different from the country side. i visited frankfurt a few times and wouldnt want to again if it werent for events, but smaller cities on the rhine or bavaria are of course a whole lot different and nicer to visit
@@keisuketakahasi4584 I get it. It's just that New York was so filthy. Toxic green fluids in the gutter... Since then, my home town has deteriorated as well. People just drop their trash. (No brains and no hearts.)
Honestly, every time I travel to the US, customs officers greet me like I'm something they found on the bottom of their shoe. The way they ask questions too is also bonkers - as though they're trying to reenact a scene from a police procedural. I understand the need to be aware and alert for potential threats but there is really no need to treat every incoming passenger like a perp in an interrogation room.😑
Australian border security is brutal, i once saw a Chinese family have their 3 children forcibly taken to another line on the other side of the room even though they were perfectly fine where they were waiting for their parents. The parents looked so visibly distraught because they didn’t know why or where they were taking them which made the border security officer more angry and started yelling at them. I felt so bad for them.
In European airports they just ask to see it, then they scan it with some device and then they say have a nice trip and let you to your flight. (As a European)
Of course it is. Same for the EU. You just cross the border. There obviously isn’t a fence or patrols on every single Meter of the border. The hard part is actually staying and living a life without getting caught and kicked out again i guess.
Yes! I flew to the US when I was 17, and I was pretty suprised about them asking questions since it's so different in Germany. I spoke to a young man, just a couple of years older than me, and he was pretty nice with it
Recently I was flying to Germany. Despite the fact that I have 3 years valid Schengen, the passport is full of stamps, they asked me: - purpose of the visit - how many DAYS exactly I'm planning to stay? Count! - do you have a back ticket? Show! - how much money do you have? Show! - what exactly are you planning to do in Germany? Your plan? And my things else, I don't remember, but it took ~10 min. They have every right to ask this but I consider this as discrimination. Germany never changes.
@@JosieThenFarmer When we are friendly to you, you call it shallowness. When we smile at you, you think we are stupid. When we are all business, you get offended that we're not nicer. You are never satisfied. I'm starting to think the reason y'all can't go 30 years without a war is that you're all just jerks.
@@cisium1184 I’m sorry but the Netherlands is quite famous for not going in to war? We are like Switzerland😂 Don’t know what you are projecting Edit: I also wanted to add that my country is also quite known to be accommodating to other people and cultures. We speak a lot of languages, we are kind, first country to legalize gay marriage ect ect.
My father, sister and I went to abroad (Germany) for a week (It was my first time to visit another country) and my dad didnt even understand, So I translated for him and answered questions instead of him but I remember it was the most stresfull moments in my life cause that man I was talking to were so serious and I was panicking too much
But other man there helped us and talked with me and he was literally so kind, he even asked me which grade I was at school, So not everyone is nice of course but most of them (at least the ones I met) were helpful and kind to me in Germany
visited the US once until now. i was aksed a million questions at the passport control and then was asked to go to the second immigration control. then it was like in a movie. They asked me the same weird questions all again for like 45 minutes: do you speak arabic (no - i am (black) german), did you have connections to marocco?... no; what are you doing here...vacation, etc. and all over again. and the officer was far away from friendly. after he asked me, what i do for a living/work and hear me answering i am a police officer (ofcourse i had to proof it) his attitude changed completly, he gifted me some badges from his uniform and i could go XD
You missed my favorite one. "Why are you attempting to enter the US?" "I...I live here...?"
"Well they wouldn't let me in at the other border."
"Why are you _attempting_ to enter the US?" Sure is some ominous phrasing.
Haha as an American who travels frequently, I’ve never been asked this
US are always provocative
I wonder if it depends on where you’re coming from? It was a relatively quick and easy process coming back to the US for me as a citizen.
Remember, terrorists are not allowed to lie if you ask them if they're a terrorist
It's in the constitution
They really had to ask that terrorist question 9 fcking times to me in different tones bc they see my SEA pasport and i'm wearing slightly longer hijab. I was being checked for one more hour even after we called UMass, which is my purpose of coming there, to study there.
Nothing wrong, you belong to "the most peaceful religion" , so better safe than sorry
@@ВладимирТ-н9ъ Found the rat.
@@ВладимирТ-н9ъyeah "safe" because a terrorist would just say yes I'm a terrorist
"Are you a terrorist?"
"Yes, but I'm not here for work"
best comment
😂😂😂
"Welcome to the USA, have a great day!"
😂😂😂😂
So travlling for pleasure not work:-)
I was lucky enough to fly to France for a school trip on my birthday. When the guy looked at my passport he just yelled "happy birthday, welcome to France!" When I came back it was like I was in police custody with how intense and leading the questions felt
Even though it was your homeland?
@JustRememberWhoYoureWorkingFor Yes, unfortunately so.
The French LOVE to hate Americans so much...
I guess the FACT of US(A) having to save their asses TWICE happened so long ago, they don't remember it.....or maybe they secretly WANT TO SPEAK German............????
Yeah they left out where you have to take your shoes off, carry tiny liquids and show them, take out all your electronics, etc etc even prior to all that lol
Were you perhaps dressed in Sharia symbols? 🤔
“Are you planning or attempting to commit a crime?” Is like my actual favorite
Has anyone asked you this question for real? :D
@@zralokvemigraci When I went to America they literally asked you whether you were a spy and whether you had any explosives on you ...
Like dude ... even if I did ... wtf would I say yes to any of that lmao?
This was 20 years ago btw.
😅😅😅😅. Sir do you carry dismembered human parts in your suitcase? How can you ask me this?-Noo- After he arrives--Ahem, so Conor where do we throw them? - In the backyard of this house 😅.
I'm flying to the US twice a year and so far the funniest and yet most confusing for me was:
"Did you go to college ma'am?"
"The equivalent of college, yes. My country has a different school system"
"What is your major?"
"We don't get to choose majors over there, it's more like an all round thi-"
"No"
"Okay? My major is... biology?"
"Welcome to the states..."
@@stargazer3759 xD epic 'murica moment
"Using all my vacation for this trip. So one week." Spoken like a true American.😆
😂😂😂😂
I take 3 weeks in the US when I travel. Since I can only afford to travel every two years or more, I am just using days off because I have to. I can max up to just under 8 weeks of travel at a time. Of course, pretty much no company in the US would actually allow you to take that much time off at once.
@@richard_aguirre
Gotta keep those (wage) slaves in their place. 😉😊
You gotta fight.. for your right.. to vacay
Truly I expected to hear 3 months or something 😂😂😂
i remember landing in germany on my birthday. i handed my passport to the agent he just said "your birthday" i nodded and he replied with "happy birthday enjoy your stay"
Flew to Germany during the summer. Literally just held up my passport like 5 meters before the booth where the control was and the lady just waved me through lol
They only ask question to colored people. To white they are your bretherens.
@@randomnamd627They already know who you are as you have to give your passport number when doing international flights. It is required in the EU. If you or someone on the flight are on their list they have extra steps when getting off the plane.
I do not have to have a passport going between Ireland and the UK, Isle of man or the channels islands. Just a government issued ID like a driver license or national card. I do need to fill on my passport details on flights booking for going into Schengen area.
I recently arrived in Germany, it was two days after my birthday. They didn't say anything about that but also didn't ask me anything, just stamped my passport! I was baffled, that was a first
lmao I just went to the UK and the lady said "are you all studying here?"
and I said "yeah" and she just said "alright then I hope you have a good time"
Frenchy here, and a few years ago I had to go through customs in Atlanta. The guy there opened his mouth, and damn, that Georgian accent/speech made me fall in love instantly! I could have listened to those inquisitory questions for hours. Anyway, the lovestory ended after the terrorist question and I embarked the next flight to Seattle :-)
yooo fellow Georgian here! glad you like the accent lol
😂😂😂😂😂😂
As a Georgian- feel free to take one of us back with you next time and get some friends to do the same, there’s too many of us here 😂😭
@@RedHeadNdProud 😂
@@RedHeadNdProud Well, there was a certain Jimmy Carter, he would have been someone to invite at home and serve a good glass of Italian wine !
I once answered to the question if I brought something from Europe, I replied "a smile", because he looked so bitter. He replied with the most intense and serious voice " you can keep that to yourself!!!"... 😢😂
"I wasn't giving it to you"
That dude got peak maidenless behaviour😂
😂😂😂
I lol'd at this 😂
@@td2222That's when you get "randomly" searched lol
„Well, I *am* a terrorist, but I am on vacation right now“ 😂
CIA approved terrorist on vacation for that little extra
😂😂😂
That answer would definitely delay your arrival for a couple of hours.😅
I would pay someone a thousand bucks to actually say this at customs 🤣🤣🤣
😂 I will just plot this time around so needless to worry as I won't be bombing in this trip
“Are you a terrorist?”
“Yep! Glad you asked”
😭
😂😂
Love the sarcasm 😂😂
@@Lekanpourtout its not sarcasm! its literally a question they ask!
@@qbi4614 i know but I'm talking about his response to the question
Somehow I can see an elderly couple answering with yes because they thought they were asked if they are tourists by someone with a dialect.
For my visum from Germany to the US, I had to answer whether "I had ever participated in genocide". (Wish this was a joke!)
No, but don't ask me about my grandparents...
😅
Germans don't need a visa to the US - was this very long ago?
America is so barefaced saying that while supporting Israel
That “using all my vacation time… so just one week” line is so accurate and so brutal 😭
And you travel to a different country within Europe every day 😂
@@Jacqueline_Thijsen If it Tuesday it must be Belgium (Lovely film if you want to watch it)
@@jbrown4137 my current full time job gave me 5 days of PTO for the first year (and the job involves working lots of evenings, weekend and holidays as well). It goes up in the second year but 5 days for an entire year is just inhumane in my opinion.
What's, "Vacation time"? Don't you mean days that are supposed to be used for vacation but you have to use for when you're sick?
I’ve never worked a full time job in the US that didn’t come with 2 weeks vacation as a minimum, plus accruing a certain amount of PTO each pay period.
I don’t know where y’all are working that gives you 1 week but that’s pretty sad!
Honestly, the europeans were friendlier about asking, like they just wanted to have a conversation. The American customs were the ones that acted like they had beef with me
I've had the opposite experience. The French are bored and sometimes rude but can get you through in about 20 seconds. The Americans are friendly but have so many bloody questions... why are you visiting, how long are you staying, etc.
European customs scrutinize you more when leaving Schengen rather than entering it. They'll check to make sure you didn't overstay. If you have multiple EU entry/exit stamps on your passport, be prepared to hold up the line as the officer figures out your most recent entry
@@hola542Cus we're tired of people bombing us lmao
@@redneckchemistrywhat are you even talking about??
@@redneckchemistry never forget 🗽
I do not know about other people but for me passing any Euro passport control is a matter of a minute as I go through the automatic line. To get back to the US, I have to stand in a line that may be up to an hour long, even though I am a US citizen. Sometimes even the Global Entry people have to wait in a line. It is an utter scandal
But you can just walk into US from Mexico.
Do you know if it’s the same in Spain?
I remember I came back from south africa (visiting family) and the questions were so unhinged like they felt so oddly specific “do you have any illegal produce” no but what produce is illegal
@@elenataylor4611no you cannot just walk. Why don't you try?
@@unluckyomens370 In regard to produce, specifically, the reason why customs asks that question is because they don't want to let in vermin or disease from foreign countries that can end up ravaging local crops. This is one of the few *not* unhinged questions that gets routinely asked.
Backgroundcheck for weapon purchases: ❌
Asking where you‘re working at the airport: ✅
There are background checks for weapon purchases
This is objectively false
Best. Comment.
the throwing of the passport 💀☠️
“Thanks!” … smile …
Harder 💪🏽
She may not regard the visitor as a potential terrorist, but that's no reason to not be rude.
the way i cackled 😭😭😭
Roya has such dedication to accurate presentation that she tolerated being hit in the face that hard. She did it for us 🥺
Everyone at American customs treats you like YOU’RE about to hijack their plane 😭
Well to be fair, America used to have super relaxed security in regard to airports… that didn’t turn out well, so now they just overcorrected 😂
Hmmm...
A friend came back on a charter flight from Afghanistan. They had full kit, including unloaded rifles, but had to check in nail clippers. Another wasn't allowed a metal backscratcher. If she could hijack the plane with a backscratcher, she wouldn't need the backscratcher but, more importantly, she was the pilot!
They all view themselves as the last line of defense
@@Jinxx9081 They had one boom boom and now they have to kill millions and annoy living shit out of everyone. Jesus, if earth has one annoying crybaby, it's USA
"Are you a terrorist?"
"Depends whether I had baked beans for breakfast or not ..."
Underrated comment
😂😂😂😂
Once I'm done in the airplane toilet it'll look like a bomb went off in there
Man tragically shot after threatening TSA officer.
Headline next morning.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
" I'm using all my vacation for this trip. So one week. " How true.
The throwing of the passport after savage date reply is soooo epic 😂😂😂😂😂
French politeness
@@christofincognito4530 Indeed. Too many tourists here, can't be nice with everybody or they will come back with friends. And trully, one american at a time in the old continent is sufficient, no need to have more
@@jeanregnaut2361 🤣🤣 Priceless, thank you 🤣❤️
"Are you a terrorist?" is a legit question from the tourist Visa application 😅😅
I saw this question on my visit to Japan as well.
There was even an asterisk with the footnote saying “note that organizations like greenpeace are considered terrorists”
@@TsunamiNR bro what???
Wait, WHAT?!
that just weeds out the idiots
"And what if I said yes?"
When I visited France, they didn’t even ask me a question, just glanced at me and tossed me my passport 🤣
Same. Same lol.
And if you are from Europe you usually just have to flash your passport at the border inspector and they let you through
@@dakzibbon6589 Europe stopped requiring passports for european citizens like 10 years ago, all you need is your country issued ID
@@rafaelmesaglio1399
One of which is the passport, so that's the safest bet when going abroad
I am African and I travelled a lot in my 20s and 30s, just having fun around Africa and Eurasia. I actually had nothing ever asked of me besides the usual "do you have anything to declare, or did you buy anything from abroad." I guess I had a very lucky and convenient run in those years.
This is pretty spot on sadly, from my experiences of several airports from the early 90's, only more unwelcoming, interrogatory and usually after a very long que, and I'm a Brit and we love queuing 🤣. I've travelled to a number of various countries over the years and US immigration has been by far the most unnecessarily hostile with a general accusation questioning seeming to all international passport holders, along with general rudeness bein the norm (this coming from a Brit who's experienced French immigration an uncountable amount of times🤣). In mostly all other circumstances though I've found the large majority of Americans to be some of the most friendly, sociable and hospitable people I've ever met.
"It's just this? Don't you ask more questions?"
"Do you think this is a date or something?" 🤣🤣🤣👍
As an American citizen, I have never been questioned as heavily by the Europeans as I am by the Americans literally every time. The Americans who... don't even have the right to refuse me in the first place.
Sadly this only works with a US passport. With a South American passport you get asked tons of questions and you also have to show how much money you have and an itinerary
EU: *Ah tourist, moving on..."*
US: *"aRe YoU tRyiNg To cOmMit 9-11!?"*
Interestingly the only time I, a European, visited the US I was asked literally zero questions, not even about the purpose of my visit. They just waved me through.
@@rongeurtsvankessel1908 Easier when your white.
@@rongeurtsvankessel1908German?
@@Gerishnakov German here and first time they were strict with the questioning second time I had like one question, and I was confused that it was so fast (I am half Indian, so I look a bit Arabic if u don't know and I shaved both times to look less like one)
I was shocked when I first visited New York from the Netherlands 😂 they were so harsh! flew back home and they were like “welcome baaaack :):):):)”
I'm American and have been through Schiphol many times, they are so nice there!!
I've had a mix at the US border; they can be pretty friendly or still a bit stiff (though no where near as suspicious as for other nationalities)
American and British customs think they have the best countries in the world and EVERYONE is trying to sneak in and stay permanently 😩 (at least several years ago in the UK there's usually e-gates which Americans can use, no way the US would ever install something similar!!)
Hope you enjoyed New York!!
@@hiking1388at a small airport they were very nice. I think it was in Portland Oregon. In New York I got so nervous and I had not slept in 1-2 days as I had to rebook the flight and sleep overnight on an airport along the way with my second ticket that had more stopovers, travelling from Europe. It went ok but he asked a lot of questions and seemed suspicious.
Also in washington Dulles they even took me aside😢. I guess I seemed nervous but you get nervous when you are «interrogated» and when English is not your first language. Anyone who know me would be surprised that they took me aside. I look rather innocent but I guess that doesn’t always matter.
I almost didn’t make my connecting flight as I had to let them check my suitcase first and wait for an hour for them to check if I had a criminal record. That took them two seconds to found out I had not, but I was sat in a room with illegal immigrants and a bunch of other people. (From listening to the conversations). Major stress and very uncomfortable to be «accused» like that.
@mari97216 that's so sad , one of the many reasons why i would never want to visit or even live in america . Reading all of these comments has been enough to make me nervous specially considering I wear a hijab and soon a niqab too ( just wearing mask for now ) . Was this your first time to the US ? I remember 2-3 years ago there was a case where a hijabi woman was told to pull down her pants her undies to check if there's anything inside and she was on her periods . The case got viral for how she was mistreated and all of this went down infront of everybody. Unlike other countries such as UAE and Bangaladesh , there's a separate room for men and women to be body checked . I wonder how come USA airports can't afford such a small thing . Just build a small room with curtains . That would be enough .
I’ve been to few different countries. In my view Honolulu airport has the rudest and most obnoxious security and customs. So easy traveling through Asia customs compared to the us customs
Flew into san Francisco, got an interrogation for a 3 day stopover. We were flying back from Europe.
"Were you involved in the holocaust?" - that one always gets me. Like, huh? I'm 40.
Wot? Not really.
I've passed passport control in greece. They didn't even talk to me. They just looked at the password, stamp and gave it to me.😂
Greece was super chill for me as well lol. They checked my bags for free when I was leaving and said “don’t worry about your bags” 😂
Gibraltar, UK side of the border, I could show my passport from the other side of the street. Not even kidding. The Spanish side... they were only missing a spotlight and a polygraph.
That happened to me in France. He just said bienvenue en France and handed me passport back
same for me in Hungary, Peru and South Africa (I'm Brazilian)
Same for Germany left passport control and was out in the main airport. Nobody even checked my bags.
"Do I look like I am joking to you?"
Me: Absolutely! Yes!
And you finish in prison 😅
“You have been randomly chosen for additional screening.”
@@adams3560 “You have been randomly chosen for additional screening.”
Afterwards...
Me: As always, the service has been a pleasure. And why you don't charge for that strip search, I will never know. Am I allowed to give you a tip?
This is real, first time i was in the US the passport control lady keeps asking me questions like what is my subject in university. I was like "are we on a date right now, what is this?"😂
Seriously, I'm a US citizen and was coming home from a professional conference and the border guard asked me so many questions about the conference I'm like, are you trying to go next year or what?
@@caltheantirobot Can you imagine how it is if you're not a US citizen. I was questioned for like 15 minutes (like everyone else flying in from the Netherlands that day on an ESTA, imagine the lines). And the supervisor of the lady who did the questioning had the audacity to reprimand her that she didn't press me hard enough (I pretended not to hear, this happened right as I took my hand luggage and walked towards baggage claim).
Also the 2 times where they weren't a..holes at the border were: when I was traveling on a visa (so not ESTA but I got a visa once via the US embassy in my home country, cause I had a very long stay).
And one time at 3AM local time in Detroit. Poor border control dude was super friendly, stamped the entry stamp in my passport. Then I saw panic on his face as he held down the stamp. Then from friendliness and panic he turned very stern and was like "what's the purpose of your visit? what is your destination?" then he let go of the stamp with sad puppy eyes, and wished me a nice trip very sadly. I think he was so sleep deprived that he forgot to mess with me. Poor guy I hope he wasn't reprimanded for his accidental friendliness. (He was doing the job alone at 3AM, so I hope no one saw it.) I hope he knows I left the US on time, spent lots of money, didn't break any laws, etc. lol
Otherwise they were always bad.
@@andij605 a country which is wired like that doesn't deserve my money nor my person. the US has been blacklisted as a destination for me since 2004
@@embreis2257 I do not think America will miss you ...
@@embreis2257Frankly you are better off. Yes, there are beautiful places here but nothing that you won’t get elsewhere. I unfortunately became a citizen here else would not step foot especially with the atrocious behavior by border control.
I just came back from my holiday in Europe and that was just the exact question their custom asked, and she said, “have a great time”.
Thank you!! 🙏 😊
I just returned from my first trip to Europe. Damn, that was the mist relaxing airport experience ever. Traveling through USA and Mexico is the most stressful airport experience every single time.
yep even travelling domestically is a pain
Imagine been Cuban and coming from Colombia in Miami airport.
@@irfanberd I know Iranian's who simply not even try.
Sadly true, glad that I dont have to travel to the US anymore. Will definitly not go for holiday there. All txs to your wonderfull customs
Mexican airports don't really seem to police scammers
Literally just needed to change planes in Atlanta and they were acting like I was going to singlehandedly bring down their republic.
Cause they pulled that trick in the natives so they worry about the uno reverse card 😂
Yeah, went to the VS the first time.Atlanta... wow.. I'm Dutch, but what an offensive attitude they have.
@@MegaDraadloos lmfao but its no surprise with how racist the US is😂
Same when I changed planes in China.
I had the most horrible and traumatic airport experience in my life in Atlanta... never want to go back there in my life
"are you a terrorist?"
"No, not this week, I told you I'm on vacation"
That’s accent when she says date or something is just ..❤
Loved it
"do you have anything illegal in your suitcase?"
"yes i do actuallly, thanks for asking 😊😊"
Maybe they ask this question to spot human trafficking. Sometimes humans are forced to carry illegal stuff in their suitcases and if maybe they explain their situation they can help their situation.
Illegal substances are not only subjected to weapons or drug but food as well. For example, my aunt got a fine of $500 for bringing 4kg of pork from Vietnam, which is illegal because any meat product from outside America without special permit is dangerous to bring I because it may contain diseases. Something with exotic fruits with seed because it may disturb the environment once it grow.
@zwegchen I only found this year why "did you pack your own suitcase" gets asked. A pregnant Irish lady was solo travelling on an Israeli EL AL flight bk in the day, 1986. Her fianceé was Jordanian, going on a different flight. He packed her case with semtex, false bottom on case. He was prepared to blow her, his unborn child and the plane with 375 other passengers up. Person questioning her got suspicious and thankfully all was good. The Irish lady testified at his trial.
@@ndtung3221how did they find it? I’ve brought food and objects from foreign countries but they never stopped me when they put the bag in the detectors
@@ndtung3221how did they find it? I’ve brought food and objects from foreign countries but they never stopped me when they put the bag in the detectors
I live in the Czech Republic(which is part of the EU). When traveling within the EU, there is simply NO passport control. They check your luggage and that's it. When traveling out of the EU, usually you can use EasyGo gate. It's fully automatic. You only need to put your passport into a scanner, then the gate scans your face and you're good to go. It only work's with biometric EU passport and only if you're older than 15. Usually, it takes less than 30 seconds to get through it.
Overall, I love traveling in EU.
Try riding a bus from Prague to Leipzig, those German guards are quite menacing
@@n.v.9000 2024 May 27 is the exact date approx 8am departure. Sorry, 84 years later than your guess.
@@n.v.9000 and the guard inspected my passport and wives for quite a long time
I told him nur für Urlaub, wir besuchen Berlin die Museum zu sehen und zwei Tagen nach werden wir Wien fliegen. he really didn't like my German
@@polymath6475 i've had bad experience in Leipzig as a Dutch guy working there for some time as I didnt speak any german and apperently that was really offensive lol, but also worked in Berlin for the same contracter and there they were very nice so it might be a Leipzig thing which I can understand as some of these streets look like the USSR left yesterday
Last time when I came home to Hungary from Romania the border check was almost non-existent, despite Romania not being a member of the Schengen. I still remember when we asked the duty officer on the Hungarian side of the border: "Shall we open the trunk?" and he replied: "I'm not in the mood to write loads of paperwork for nothing. Most probably you went there to buy booze, ciggies or fuel anyways, but it seems like you don't have much of the first two, and the third one is not illegal. Welcome home, brothers, and off you go!"
I heard Border Control of GB, when they were still in the EU, one accepted Whatsapp-photos of the ID from two students on an international exchange from my school. 😂
@@hannasalveter8066When I was a kid growing up in the UK about 30 years ago, you used to be able to board ferries to France without showing your passport.
@@hannasalveter8066 every time I used to enter the uk with my paper id card they used to inspect it for minutes, sometimes even calling an expert. Then they just let me enter, all they cared for was whether my is card was genuine or not apparently
I'm from Geneva and I lived literally on the Swiss-French border. Never bothered to have an ID with me, but I speak with the very distinctive accent of my city 😅
@@hannasalveter8066That was legal. Under freedom of movement, when someone claims EU nationality, the officer has to prove that the person is not an EU national and give every chance to prove EU nationality before denying entry.
In the above case, the officer could at best ask to report back with the right ID within a specific date.
And how they ask you these questions with a straight face I’ll never know because they sound like jokes. Crossing over to Canada and back was like this. Well, coming back was “welcome home”. 😂 Born here after all!
When I said I was on vacation they literally asked me “why?”. I was so dumbfounded I just said “cuz they’re good?”
😂 I'm surprised the French Agent didn't burst out laughing at the the American Tourist and her
"One week Vacation" 😂
Haha yea
I'm surprised the American tourist didn’t burst out laughing at the French agent for being French. I would have
You'd go to France just to laugh at French people? @@darris1939
Well after any amount working in an airport, you probably don't care about their answers unless they're your problem. Like in customer service when someone says something crazy, sometimes it's not worth interacting.
Why would we laugh at people we feel sorry for? That’s just cruel.
As someone from the Czech Republic, I'm used to traveling freely throughout Europe without even needing to carry a passport when driving. Even at airports, it's usually a breeze-no questions, just a smile and a "Happy travels!" This actually applies to almost all of Europe (not just the EU), with a few exceptions like Russia.
So, you can imagine my shock when I traveled to the US with my big dog-it was a nightmare at the airport! They treated us like we were criminals with some sinister plan, and they seemed to think my dog was the mastermind behind it, lol.
Once we got through that ordeal, the US was great, and I had an amazing time during my two-year work trip. But, man, I am definitely not going through that kind of experience again!
Nobody smiles in Czech
Us airports suck. I skip them now and rather rpay a bit extra to go straight to my destination without the need to enter the US.
... but was your dog the mastermind?😀😀
It's all because of that minor little incident back on 9/11/2001.
@@CaroBVB09-pn4vz no, masterminds are usually cats
I was traveling in the UK, with my dad, in 2004. We wanted to take the chunnel to Calais, but I forgot my passport in the hostel. We had a color photocopy on us, but I just knew this would be a problem. So I told my dad I’d just stay in Dover while he went. He didn’t think it would be an issue, and he didn’t want to go alone. So I get to French customs on the UK side. Predictably, I got completely harangued by the customs agent, but he let me through anyway. When we got to the depot outside Calais, we were told to flash our passports at the guards, who were very serious-looking French soldiers with sub machine guns. I was sure I was going to get arrested, but they just waved me through. When it was time to return home, I spoke to UK customs on the French side. The guy was extremely nice and understanding, saying he’d call his counterparts on the other side so they wouldn’t give me a hard time. So, for the first time, all day, I was feeling good as we pulled into the station on the UK side, but nope! I got harangued again, AND they searched my bag.
I totally had it coming, but I came away from the experience with the belief that customs agents in France are nicer than in the UK, regardless of nationality.
I should have stayed in Dover.
The UK is really serious about terrorism. They search my bag once. Made a mess of it too but I felt they were being really careful about their country.
American security is the rudest ever. They are obnoxious.
YMMV. Got a very nice officer in Atlanta, even though my fingerprints didn't match and I was sent to secondary. Guy was great about it.
SFO: can't remember. Unremarkable interactions.
JFK, that was back when you got those stupid forms before you landed. A bunch of questions didn't apply, so I skipped them all. I didn't notice there was a field all the way to the bottom of the form. Officer (with a *thick* south asian accent): "So, what was your flight number?" Me: "" Officer: "Do you have the ability to write, or are you expecting me to write it down for you?"
And he kinda threw the passport too, so that's not just a French thing.
Ha. Never been to Canada?
Lol, USA CBP is a warm up for Canada's CBSA.
Do you remember the very big, very famous reason for such strict airport security or are you too young
I'm american so my experiences are gonna be different. But my experience with american customs have been mixed. The agent at dulles and O'Hare were friendly but at DFW he obviously didn't want to be there. However the agents in the other booths were friendly.
My only other experiences with customs are in japan who are just pure business like and in the Netherlands which was easy but this was prior to 9/11 so everything was easier then.
My favorite experience of all time. It was 2006 or so and I flew into Paris for a 1 week trip to attend a language school. On arriving at CDG I was asked the typical questions and the customs guy decided to have a look through my bags. Way, way back in the day there was an author who I think was called Geneviève. She wrote some books on "street French" called "Merde, alors" and something like "More Merde alors". Anyway these were in my bags. When the agent saw these he started chuckling and said "OK you can go."
I have to check out those books
You passed the vibe check.
😂😂😂😂😂
I have to read those books now! 😂
That was shitty of her!!!!!!!!!!
The US legit asking you if you've ever committed genocide on your visa application
Well, do you think people like Hitler and Mao would say yes? I really wonder...they probably wouldn't because it wasn't actually them killing the people but their brainwashed underlings so...
USA is a insane country 😂
I remember that on the old visa waiver form we could use years ago. I think there was another question about overthrowing the government, one journalist put "sole purpose of visit" as his reply in the 60s. Still got in.
No they don't have an issue with genocides.
So, Netanyahu cannot enter the US? He just did 🤣
That's totally accurate 😂
Europe: I hate my job man... can't wait for my next holiday
US: I WILL APPLY THE LAW AND I WILL ARREST YOU IF YOU DON'T COMPLY
I'm french and when I went to the US for tourism the staff was so aggressive for no reason that i had to remind myself not to laugh and not to tell a joke 😅
The french customs officer on the other hand didn't even look at me or talk to me. I had clear confirmation I was back in Paris 😂
That one week vacation burn was suttle yet brutal lol 😆
One week isn't a holiday; it's a long weekend getaway.
*subtle
"Are you a terrorist?"
"Do people truthfully say yes to that?"
No, but they are forced to lie.
Same goes for questions about drug dealing.
They do NOT expect terrorists/drug dealers to answer "yes".
However, their "No" is now on the files.
And in the future - even if it is DECADES later - that lie to enter the US can us help getting rid of them.
They entered the US by misrepresenting themselves, therefore they can be deported more easily.
Even if they get a plea deal regarding their terrorist past.
The main purpose of that (category of) question is so that they can prosecute you for lying if it turns out you ever did any terrorist act (even if it's well outside the statute of limitations, you had a minor role in it, etc.). They don't expect terrorists to tell the truth.
@@NYKevin100 is the act of terrorism not charged harsh enough for them, so they need the "lying to an officer" charge on top? That seems weird
@@jujoonline8248 the more charges, the merrier?
@@Sanwise_Gamjee why more if you can just make one harsher and longer why do you need to punish this lie to get that, that's just burocracy in the end
I was once asked, at age 19, if I was ever involved with Germany or it's allies between 1939 and 1945....
Lmaoooo
🤣🤣🤣
I went to London in April, first time out of the country since I was in the navy decades ago. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. When I got there I went through the self serve gate with my passport, followed the nothing to declare signs until I got to the trains and that was it. When I returned to the US, at Newark on a Monday morning, there was hardly any line, showed my passport to the guy in the booth, he never said anything or even looked at me, gave me back my passport and that was it. No customs, no questions, nothing. Just left the airport.
In fact, a Salvadoran colleague of my brother had to go to the US for work and they didn't let him in and they asked him for a lot of extra documentation. When he finally got all that documentation and tried to travel again, they asked him why his company had sent him to the US and he explained that he had to explain how some new machines worked to the US company's workers and again they didn't let him in because according to that guy "there's no way an American needs someone from outside to come and explain anything to him" 🙃🙃🙃
If your from a developing nation it’s super hard to get into America for Western Europeans it’s way easier like French and germans
@shrek19yearsago78 lol define "developing country", because socially, culturally, and traditionally... USA is the most underdeveloped country on the planet.
@@AirbornSoul013 really then why do millions of people from all over the world want to migrate here
@@shrek19yearsago78 lol people inside the USA think the world loves the USA 😂🤣 you guys are funny
@@AirbornSoul013 I didn’t say that people loved us, I’m pretty sure most people here in the states could care less whether they love us or not, however i did questioned why do millions of immigrants want to come to the U.S from all over the world which you haven’t responded to and some even die trying by crossing the southern border that right there should already give you an indication of what a developed and undeveloped nation is. Now I’m not saying America is perfect but it’s definitely better than many other countries probably not better than some European nations but at the same time it’s not an honest comparison because the U.S is 20 times bigger then every single European nation and has more people.
As a german its astounding for me everytime i hear there are countries where you dont have at LEAST 30 days of vacation
* paid vacation *
It wouldnt matter. Even if you HAD 4 weeks vacation, you would be browbeaten and shamed for actually trying to USE more than 3 or 4 days of it.
I used to save up for 2 years so I could take THREE week vacations (usually to Germany) and everyone in the office looked at me like I was crazy when I talked about it.
@@natehill8069 🤯 corporate America really is another level...
As a german, you should be concerned about Germany's economics going down the hill and dragging all EU with it :) while US is flying high.
germany also only has 20 days mandatory, rest is just Tariffvertrag or your normal contract...
"Did you purchase anything overseas" Of course! How else would I eat!
I've noticed a lot of us citizens argue that everything in Europe is expenscoe which it isn't. Might be a conspiracy theory to try and keep Americans poor. If they get cheap better quality food in there they are possibly ruining the nation! /s
Allright, try to relax this might feel a bit funny.
no i only ate from dumpsters
Australia border security can be like this. We’re such a chill country usually but border security is lowkey terrifying
To be fair, who would want to terrorize Australia? The wildlife does that enough.
The European officer's vibe is so accurate! I've never had a passport thrown in my face, but I met a few who definitely looked like they wanted to😂
"I am a terrierrist, we write terrier fan fiction, discuss possible terrierist plots..."
-That one Key&Peele sketch
LMAO
Very underrated skit
Woof ! 🐕😂
The weirdest in US for me was TSA agent shouting angrily on people in the queue for not removing shoes, next to a big ass sign which said don't remove belt/shoes (in text)
TSA is the bottom of the bottom of the barrel. In fact they don’t hold any legal authority, all they can do is call an actual Law-Enforcement-Officer, they are basically mall cops with an attitude.
I had a different experience going into Canada. My older brother lives there and a few years ago he flew down to Utah and we did a road trip up to Canada (Nevada, California, Oregon and Washington, we stopped in each state and did something there. Spent about 1 week in California for Disneyland)
When we got to the Canadian border, they grilled us with questions super hard since my brother has dual citizenship, we were asked who he lives with (His dad) Then he asked us what our relationship is to my brother (My mom said I am his mom and his sister is in the back) he then asked us if it's my dad who lives in Canada, we had to tell him that my brother and I have different dads, so it was very awkward to give his the details of that.
We then were asked what the purpose kd our visist was and we said to visit my brother and that it is also to celebrate his birthday, we were asked if we had alcohol in the car or illegal substances from the U.S (My mom said no) He noticed we had a lot of badge and things in the car, we told his that has been a road trip so all of our items like pillows and blankets are in the car and a mino cooler to keep snacks in there. He also spent a long time looking at my moms ID and then back at her cause her ID photo hadn't been updated for almost 10 years and she had super long brown hair in the photo and she recently cut it really short and went blonde, he told her update her ID photo. Then he let us in.
Leaving Canada, they checked our IDs and said bye, come again soon!
I’m so early, just experienced this when i just visited Germany for the first time. It caught my whole family off guard by the 2 questions they asked lol
Right?? Like I’m always so shocked then treated like a criminal on the way back lmao
@@royaventureraBefore 9-11 it was almost like going on a train. You could also bring 2L of soda with you and nobody cared. After 9-11 the world went crazy and now we have this fake feeling of safety because they added tons of stupid rules and regulations that stop nobody that is willing to do harm.
Kind of curious what questions you get asked by american customs as americans. I only ever get are you bringing anything not legal, how long my stay was, and did I bring back any souvenirs and if so the dollar amount.
Seriously though that was just my first experience the others have been fine.
@@The_Lone_Aesir When re-entering the United States from a trip abroad, the most I've been asked is what countries I visited, the purpose of my trip, and if I was bringing anything I needed to declare. Then they just say “welcome home.” The annoying part is the line, not the questions. Now I've got Global Entry so they asked at an interview months ago what will be the purpose of my travel and what countries I plan on visiting and the last time I entered the US, the CBP officer just barked “phone or kiosk” and I showed her my phone and she waved me through. It was the fastest customs and immigration experience but it was also the rudest I've ever seen them.
"Why you decided to come to the US?"
"Work"
"Hmm, seems like your time in the US is over, have a good flight back home"
I am Russian. Russia is far worse. As a tourist you need to register everywhere you go. Literally every single city you go to you have to register there if you are a foreigner. if you fail to do so you will be expelled from the country for 5 years. And many authorities do not take these duties seriously, they do not register you correctly and you end up being expelled from the country even tho you did not make any mistakes. One foreigner entered Vladivostok by plane and immidiately boarded a train to Moskow. That train ride takes a whole week. Upon arrival he was seriously fined for not registering in Vladivostok.
@@lizvtaz6Et les Russkofs arrivés en Crimée....ils ont été enregistrés par les Ukrainiens ? 👀👌😅😂🤣😁🐓
Yep. I travel a lot and never get treated worse than returning home to the U.S. I'm pretty sure customs can do their job and still be decent people. After all, we do pay their salary.
They didn't get in to be cops and the pay is worse.
@@dingotopruc9642no
Well evidence suggedts you are incorrect in that assumption.
@@dingotopruc9642At least customs agents passed an arithmetic test. Those who fail go to Border Patrol.😂
It often feels like they intentionally get people riled up waiting to talk to a customs agent. I think they're trying to sweat the bad guys and just get everyone else in the process. I've learned to stop in the restroom first and to not be in a hurry. Usually the agents are fine, just not near enough of them. They've heard everyone's shifty bs already so by the time they get to me I just smile, hand in my form with all the money I spent, let them check my duty-free bag and recommend a nice dram to try after work (my duty-free always has Scotch). They always say welcome home.
“Wow that escalated quickly” and “do you think this is a date or something??” Killed me 😂
Also shout out to the "using all my vacation, so one week" joke. The real American experience.
the immediate customer service smile is SO ACCURATE
Add Ireland to the list. I'm American, a few years ago I went to study abroad in France. I was so nervous about going through passport control that I had prepared answers and documents to anything the officer could've asked me. Then when I got there, he just took one look at my passport, stamped it, and told me to go ahead. I was like "it was that easy???? He didn't even ask me anything!" During my winter break (while still in France) I decided to go to Ireland for a week while I was so close to it. I got to the passport control, handed her my passport and expected to just walk through. Except that lady just interrogated me. I literally started sweating and thinking she might actually deny me.
"What is the purpose of your visit?" "Tourism"
"Be more specific"
"Uhhhh well I'm going to Dublin"
"What are you going to do there?"
"Visit Temple Bar"
"And?"
"Well I don't have everything planned out"
"How much money do you have?"
"Can I see your hotel reservation?"
"Do you have any other bags?"
And the weirdest one "do you know anyone here?"
"No"
"Then why are you here?"
Me in my head: "so you're not allowed to visit a country if you don't know anyone there???"
Eventually she let me through and when I got to my hotel room I just sat down like holy shit
Yeah tbh we baaaaarely tolerate americans. Especially ones that go to templebar. You might not know this but our friendliness is just our version of formal manners. It security doesnt need to display them, they wont.
Our two cultures are too different to coexist peacefully. Like our manners mean not talking loudly. Its an invasion of personal space to be in 50 feet of an American because of the volume.
Its important to have humility here, being self deprecating is a virtue. Using conspicuous consumption, and exuberant confidence to establish social status is not perceived positively.
And money, my god. You never tip a barman. Thats like saying hes a child, your junior, beyond patronising. You never buy someone something or offer them money for helping you out. Its a slap in the face.
The list could continue forever.
Be happy and all. Have a good time. As a guest tho, and behave like one. Our friendliness is just because were hosting you.
@@ByrneMJamesJesus, what arrogance. Really ironic considering the topic of your rant just there.
@@coriolisky those are facts of life. Not opinion. If you cant deal dont come here. We do not need or want your money, and you are intolerable guests
Your nationality technically runs Ireland. We don’t even own Shannon Airport anymore
@@ByrneMJames WHAT???? I'm british and the shit they say to us is annoying but we don't treat them like that just because they are american that's so rude.. They just want to visit it's not their fault..? 😭
This is so true! Thanks for putting out there ! 😂
As a child I stranded with my parents in an airport and to use the wifi their you had to pick why you are using the internet option were:
„Citizen“
„Working“
„tourist“
„Terrorist“
I was young, my English was bad and I didn’t saw the difference between the last two options 😂 luckily I picked the right one 😂
Missed the part where US forces you to provide fingerprints and photos and asks the address of everywhere you're visiting and how much money you have...
For real!
European countries really like the monetary questions though. They don't always ask but if they do, you better prove you have money to stay.
Including for US citizens (they also take our picture and prints)! It's always heartwarming to be treated like a criminal when you're coming back home
@pscar1 japan does it too when you enter their customs. Although it let's you pass through the 2nd part of the customs with just a facial recognition.
That plus they tell you not to use your phones, not talk amongst eachother, are rude as fuck to kids (if ur a diff ethnicity and have a family its over for u lol)
I nearly choked when the EU officer flung the passport in her face. So classy!😂🎉❤
So french
So german as well😣
That's simply rude.
I was at Charles De Gaulle waiting for a connecting flight to the US when I was asked if someone helped me pack my bags.
@@aoutsky they just wanted to know if you were going to blame your pet dog if anything exotic was found in your luggage.
"Merde! No monsieur, that hashish is not mine! It was my pet dog Alphonse that packed my suitcase!"
I had to laugh at this. Memories of my last trip to the ‘land of the free’ came flooding back. So true.
"Are you a terrorist?"
"خره , u got me"
If you gonna make an arab joke, at least make it not obviously from google Translate
@@waleedalarmanazi159 Ah yeah, if i want to do a joke first i need to learn new alphabet, lenguage, choose if i should adapt the quotation marks to the joke, adapt it to the english words that are near it, adapt it to a context and then explain that is not meant to offend and may not be accurate...
@@notKyvLearn spelling too, add it to ur precious list.
@@notKyvshit=خره
Disgusting= القرف
You don't need to study a language to make a joke but if you want it to be funnier here's the correct words
Yup. I’m always on edge when going through US Customs because it always feels like an interrogation. Meanwhile, my first trip to Germany was like “how long are you staying? Do you have a return flight ticket? Welcome to Europe!”
I’ve been asked if I brought anything back from my European vacation like four or five times in a row like I don’t understand English 😟
I had a totally different experience, German custom officials were a mean bunch when I interacted with them. Felt like everyone was a undercover anti terrorist special ops. Too overkill imo.
Just wait until you hear about Green Cards.
Mine didn't even ask me anything lol, just stamped and usher the next person
Well, to be fair here, it definitely should be like an interrogation when they are trying to protect the country. 9/11 was only 23 years ago and America is hated by many countries specifically in the Middle East. They need to detect anyone who is trying to do harm.
Me, a colombian: Hi
USA: you're deported, bye.
Me: But...
At The same time your friend Jumper the Wall and got hotel and money from the government.
US: Where are you from?
Me: From Colombia
US: which part of Colombia are you?
Me: Boyaca
US: Welcome to the United States Of America. Please, Go ahead.
I'm an African American US citizen born and raised in the US. See the redundancy
Everytime I fly back into the US from Europe, I'm screened; taken aside for further questions and having my passport checked. Because the law enforcement in the US is trigger happy, I stay calm.
As an EU citizen you can use an automated control gate at a European airport if you return from overseas. It scans your passport and your face. After 10 seconds the gate opens and your in.
Nobody is asking any questions then.
I'm from Europa and I only know about the US police from the news (not in a good way).
What I am imagining is: I would also try to be very, very, very calm (while probably sweating like a little piggy throughout and having a smoke immediately afterwards). :D
We have different backgrounds, as I am a white US citizen (but also born and raised here), though I also get screened, taken aside for further questions, and have my passport checked when flying back from continental Europe to the US (it also happened in London). I've done it enough at this point that it isn't a coincidence. I have an aggressively Slavic last name that a lot of ignorant border control workers at US airports assume is Russian (it's not). My parents are also born/raised US citizens and I always get asked what nation they're from, even as a solo traveler. The only time I didn't have prolonged questioning or bag searching was when I was travelling with a romantic partner with a common English surname. It takes a LOT to keep calm after being exhausted from the long flights (you're so right re: trigger happy, detain happy, tase happy enforcers). You have my sympathies and respect.
So American, going from grilling your ass with 20 questions, to "Have a wonderful trip" 😁😁😄😇
When you have to fill in the ESTA, the website asks you for the exact address you'll be staying at, your medical history, whether or not you've ever been engaged in any criminal or terrorist activity - so by the end you're sweating and wondering if you're going to be sent to jail. And then it just goes : Your application has been approved. Welcome to the United States. 😁
@kittyk1014 the funny thing is I had to fill one out for my 6 week old daughter even though I'm a US citizen. My daughter was born in Switzerland and the US government red tape made it so we didn't get my daughter's US passport. One question asked did you commit any crimes against anyone? I felt like saying yes. What my daughter did to the lower half of my body was a crime. I knew they wouldn't find it amusing.
@@kittyk1014 Before ESTA, they gave you these slips to fill out on the plane. Coming from Germany, it would ask whether you've been involved in any crimes of the Nazi regime. I was very tempted to fill in "My birthday's stated above, you do the math!"
Haha, yes
They only wish you a wonderful trip if you’re white
THE THROWING OF THE PASSPORT 😂
i just got back from Greece and the amount of times I had a receipt thrown at me was insaneee
That's because Greece is the land of tax evasion
i'm so confused because i live in greece and that has never happened to me in my 21 years? 😭
Receipts here are an afterthought usually.
No one really cares about them here including the ones who issue them.
@@tallemajas it might be because i was in tourist-y greece - athens to be precise
@@tallemajas Maybe they don't do that to locals?
😂🤣😂🤣😂 man, I would lmao if I had that in France. 😂😂😂
I'm Canadian and going into the US is different each time. Sometimes is quick and harmless, sometimes it's a numerous questions. Once I had to book a hotel room (and cancel it later) despite that I was going to stay with a friend, just for them to let me out of the airport. Another time while driving over, they had me enter their office, searched me car, then made me sign an affidavit that I wasn't smuggling beef into the US (you know, after they just searched my car and didn't feed any beef). There's no telling what I'm going to get each time.
And when the airport is super busy but they still decide they're doing long and aggressive questioning with each traveller, you simply miss your flight b/c you showed up over 2 hrs early but you needed to show up 3.5 hrs early.
But is that actually at US immigration/customs pre-cleareance at Canadian airports? I've never had the pleasure if we can call it that way...my trips to Canada have only involved border land crossings and all cases except one quick and corteous on both sides, that one time it was not it was an early morning crossing into the US, I was sent to secondary inspection, quite a few people in line, desks were very short staffed and I was cleared to go more than 2 hours later.
I will never forget when I traveled NY to Canada. Going into Canada was amazing. Getting back into my own country from Canada was a nightmare. And to add insult to injury, they CHARGE you. I had to PAY MONEY to get back into the country I was BORN into. It's insane.
Pay money for what? That’s an obvious lie.
Was the charge the till for a border bridge? If so then that's just a toll because in the past I crossed into New York via I-87 which is a land crossing and they didn't have a charge
most countries have exit taxes, but it's included in your flight tickets. if you don't have flights then you have to pay
@@polymath6475 australia's exit fee is $70. it's the fourth highest in the world.
@@fatherson5907
No--you *must* pay a toll to come back into the U.S. from the Canadian side. It has been that way for literally decades..
The way she threw the passport at her like, here go have fun and f#$k off😂
I can relate, entering Schengen at Warsaw/frankfurt the guy didn't bother asking me anything beyond the simple how long and the purpose. Exiting Schengen at Frankfurt, the passport was stamped and handed back to me and I had to ask "is that it?"😮
Here in Kenya at the American embassy, they put you through hell. They reject your visa multiple times and they don't even refund the visa money. It made me completely disinterested in visiting the US. I decided to choose to visit Europe and Asia. The Americans got attitude 🚮🚮
embassy treatment is just the beginning. it gets worse when you arrive at the country
My friend had that, cost her something like $400 for each attempt and it took maybe 3 attempts to get a work visa for America.
It should be illegal to not refund your money! It's basically theft. Like a mini money-making enterprise the USA has going on the side.
I can tell you that visiting the US (I was only in New York) made me not want to visit the US (at least New York).
@@mademoiselledusfonctionell1609 i ve never been to the us and sure nyc would be an interesting city to visit, but huge cities are always different from the country side.
i visited frankfurt a few times and wouldnt want to again if it werent for events, but smaller cities on the rhine or bavaria are of course a whole lot different and nicer to visit
@@keisuketakahasi4584 I get it. It's just that New York was so filthy. Toxic green fluids in the gutter... Since then, my home town has deteriorated as well. People just drop their trash. (No brains and no hearts.)
Honestly, every time I travel to the US, customs officers greet me like I'm something they found on the bottom of their shoe. The way they ask questions too is also bonkers - as though they're trying to reenact a scene from a police procedural. I understand the need to be aware and alert for potential threats but there is really no need to treat every incoming passenger like a perp in an interrogation room.😑
Australian border security is brutal, i once saw a Chinese family have their 3 children forcibly taken to another line on the other side of the room even though they were perfectly fine where they were waiting for their parents. The parents looked so visibly distraught because they didn’t know why or where they were taking them which made the border security officer more angry and started yelling at them. I felt so bad for them.
did everything turn alright for them
In Europe they don't even ask you how much you stay just where you go (optional)
In European airports they just ask to see it, then they scan it with some device and then they say have a nice trip and let you to your flight.
(As a European)
I’m pretty sure it’s harder to get into the US legally than illegally
Of course it is. Same for the EU. You just cross the border. There obviously isn’t a fence or patrols on every single Meter of the border. The hard part is actually staying and living a life without getting caught and kicked out again i guess.
Yes! I flew to the US when I was 17, and I was pretty suprised about them asking questions since it's so different in Germany.
I spoke to a young man, just a couple of years older than me, and he was pretty nice with it
Recently I was flying to Germany. Despite the fact that I have 3 years valid Schengen, the passport is full of stamps, they asked me:
- purpose of the visit
- how many DAYS exactly I'm planning to stay? Count!
- do you have a back ticket? Show!
- how much money do you have? Show!
- what exactly are you planning to do in Germany? Your plan?
And my things else, I don't remember, but it took ~10 min. They have every right to ask this but I consider this as discrimination. Germany never changes.
That throwing the passport to the face 😂 "have a good trip"
Hilarious 😂 but you are TOO nice! If this was Chicago O'Hare Airport- they'd be barking and screaming at you so that you purposefully mess up!
only after making you stand in a two mile long line and be on the verge of death from starvation.
I'm preparing my first trip to the US and I have a layover in O'Hare, I am terrified 😭
How did it go??😂 @@jamesdiluvio945
The passport thrown at her face was FLAWLESS. 😂🤣
It’s always ‘welcome to America when do you leave?’
We've been having a bit of a problem getting people to leave.
@@cisium1184 most countries have that problem:) But most countries are a bit kinder with the questions…
@@JosieThenFarmer When we are friendly to you, you call it shallowness. When we smile at you, you think we are stupid. When we are all business, you get offended that we're not nicer. You are never satisfied.
I'm starting to think the reason y'all can't go 30 years without a war is that you're all just jerks.
@@cisium1184 I’m sorry but the Netherlands is quite famous for not going in to war? We are like Switzerland😂
Don’t know what you are projecting
Edit: I also wanted to add that my country is also quite known to be accommodating to other people and cultures. We speak a lot of languages, we are kind, first country to legalize gay marriage ect ect.
@@cisium1184the Middle Eastern, several South American and Pacific nations have the same question for your coked up army.
My father, sister and I went to abroad (Germany) for a week (It was my first time to visit another country) and my dad didnt even understand, So I translated for him and answered questions instead of him but I remember it was the most stresfull moments in my life cause that man I was talking to were so serious and I was panicking too much
But other man there helped us and talked with me and he was literally so kind, he even asked me which grade I was at school, So not everyone is nice of course but most of them (at least the ones I met) were helpful and kind to me in Germany
"reason for your visit" "i live here. thats a US Passport" "i dont think thats an allowable answer in my system."
Does this actually happen?
@@7stormy334 Not the answer, but the question absolutely.
The passport thrown at the face was just😂😂😂
Basically a documentary. ❤
visited the US once until now. i was aksed a million questions at the passport control and then was asked to go to the second immigration control. then it was like in a movie. They asked me the same weird questions all again for like 45 minutes: do you speak arabic (no - i am (black) german), did you have connections to marocco?... no; what are you doing here...vacation, etc. and all over again. and the officer was far away from friendly. after he asked me, what i do for a living/work and hear me answering i am a police officer (ofcourse i had to proof it) his attitude changed completly, he gifted me some badges from his uniform and i could go XD