<p>A friend called today (adult US citizen) about a drunk driving arrest (but NO conviction–case is still pending). He is supposed to fly to Canada and back to US for business but worried about whether he is allowed into and out of Canada with this arrest hanging over his head. Can someone please clarify? The website below only appears to apply to CONVICTIONS. Any help is appreciated as the trip is scheduled imminently & non-refundable tickets & all travel already purchased.</p>
<p>[Entering</a> Canada • U.S. Consular Services in Canada](<a href=“http://www.consular.canada.usembassy.gov/enter_canada.asp]Entering”>http://www.consular.canada.usembassy.gov/enter_canada.asp)
Anyone with a criminal record (including a drunk driving conviction) may be excluded from Canada. A waiver of exclusion may be issued but several weeks are required and a processing fee must be paid. Contact the Canadian Embassy or a Canadian Consulate in the U.S. or use the link below for more information. </p>
<p>A friend had a similar situation and was able to enter Canada while his case was pending. If your friend travels regularly to Canada he will want to do everything possible to avoid conviction on a DUI charge. A waiver of exclusion is indeed discretionary - it is not an automatic and is very difficult to obtain, even with an attorney. My friend, who owns Canadian property, sought a waiver and was denied.</p>
<p>It doesn’t sound like he’d have a problem, given the above wording. My question, as someone who crosses the border frequently, is how would the Customs and Immigration people know? It’s not the type of question that is asked so unless volunteered, that information wouldn’t be available to them.</p>
<p>ALwaysamo, i cross frequently as well and they know a lot more than you think. I had a friend with 2 children who was separated from his wife but had been living common law with another women (another 2 children) for 4 years. When he crossed to the US with one child from each marriage he was asked if this was all one family. He automatically answered yes and the agent asked him when he and his wife got back together. Needless to say they were refused entry as they had not gotten letters from the other parent allowing the children to cross the border. </p>
<p>I went down to bring some stuff to my D last April and got a very nasty border crossing guard. I had all of the required registration material done at Canadian Customs before going down to save myself the hassle BUT the lady at US border asked me to prove that I had a daughter in college in the States. How do you do that. I offered to call the international students office for her but she would not allow that. I even offered the F1 visa number as I keep the number in case of emergency but she said she was not allowed to get that from me as it was not mine. Finally I told her to look up my D’s license plate number and that she had crossed on such and such a date, she did that and accepted that as proof that I had a daughter state side. Both sides can be nasty.</p>
<p>I read several travel forums, and pretty regularly someone will come to the site saying that they were denied entry to Canada by virtue of an old DUI. They apparently DO have access to some kind of criminal data base.</p>
<p>I cross often and have friends in the BP/CBP. They know waaay more than you can imagine, I do get the impression that they do not always choose to access every database. They have a lot of training in getting a gut feeling for the person and don’t do it all by computer, I have been crossing for 10 years and virtually never have an issue, I have friends with a different attitude who get hassled all the time.</p>
<p>In my experience, other than DUI, the Canadians are more mellow than the US guards.
You may find stories of people who were not hassled with a DUI history because the database was not checked, but they are sticklers about it when discovered, though apparently the Premier of BC was allowed to return home after his DUI in the states. It is a funny idiosyncrasy that they are known to be pretty mellow about the use & possession of pot, yet are obsessive about DUI convictions. I have known kids who got caught with pot who were never charged or slapped on the hand and known many with a DUI who are basically banned from Canada.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the above posts. For more info, see below:</p>
<p>He would be flying from HI to Vancouver, Canada & back to HI; he may also try to go down to Seattle or Portland & back to Vancouver to catch his return flight. Would appreciate any additional thoughts. Does this change anything? He would be dealing with folks at the airports. This is the one and only blight on his record and the case hasn’t gone to trial yet–it is in another state.</p>
<p>For charges prior to conviction? Which is what the OP has stated is the case. My guess is that there is no central database that is available internationally for every charge laid.</p>
<p>HImom, I don’t think your friend will have a problem as he hasn’t been convicted of anything yet. He has no obligation to disclose any pending charges that I am aware of. If he is concerned he can contact the Canadian government anonymously and obtain guidance from them. My son had some legal difficulties that made us anxious about travel to Canada and we were able to resolve those concerns prior to making the trip.</p>
<p>He e-mailed the LA counsulate about the issue and will be making his decision soon. Seems like a can of worms I’m happy to avoid. I have told him I will NOT give any advice on the subject.</p>
<p>I told him to print out whatever answers he is able to get from any official source. He may also want to print out the official government website that only addresses convictions. So far, he hasn’t been able to get an official answer.</p>
<p>In no state does simple DUI/DWI constitute a felony charge. Reading this thread it seems one can be denied entry for failure to pay a parking ticket!</p>
<p>Not in the US, toblin, but in Canada it IS a felony charge. Personally, I have crossed 5 or 6 times since mine, including once on a cruise ship, and was never asked about it, although they can access the databases with your passport. I try to avoid going there when I can until “parole” is up :(.</p>