Canada with a criminal past

[Grazz111]

Hello,  I am planning my first cruise to Alaska but hit a snag.  I have had several convictions for various crimes and two dui's.  The cruise I want has two stops in Canadian ports and from what I've been reading I may be out of luck.  Does anyone know if I can cruise to Alaska and not disembark in Canada to complete the trip?

 

Thanks

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, Grazz111 said:

Hello,  I am planning my first cruise to Alaska but hit a snag.  I have had several convictions for various crimes and two dui's.  The cruise I want has two stops in Canadian ports and from what I've been reading I may be out of luck.  Does anyone know if I can cruise to Alaska and not disembark in Canada to complete the trip?

 

Thanks

Are you boarding in a US port such as Seattle? If yes, the good news is that your cruise line won't know what your criminal record is as they don't have access to the NCIC database so you'll be able to board the cruise. The passenger manifest is forwarded to the Canadian government only after your ship sails so Canada can't prevent you from boarding.

 

Whether you'll be allowed to disembark in your Canadian ports of call is  at the discretion of the Canadian Border Services Agency. You may be confined to the ship in the Canadian ports or in a worst case scenario if you have any open extraditable warrants you could be arrested.

 

In the best case scenario the CBSA officer reviewing your history could let you disembark, but given your history of multiple offenses I doubt that will happen.

[Ashland]

6 hours ago, njhorseman said:

Are you boarding in a US port such as Seattle? If yes, the good news is that your cruise line won't know what your criminal record is as they don't have access to the NCIC database so you'll be able to board the cruise. The passenger manifest is forwarded to the Canadian government only after your ship sails so Canada can't prevent you from boarding.

 

Whether you'll be allowed to disembark in your Canadian ports of call is  at the discretion of the Canadian Border Services Agency. You may be confined to the ship in the Canadian ports or in a worst case scenario if you have any open extraditable warrants you could be arrested.

 

In the best case scenario the CBSA officer reviewing your history could let you disembark, but given your history of multiple offenses I doubt that will happen.

While this certainly doesn't apply to me I found your facts to this question to be very interesting.

If it's just a "port stop" in Canada how will/do they stop you from going ashore ?

[njhorseman]

6 hours ago, Ashland said:

While this certainly doesn't apply to me I found your facts to this question to be very interesting.

If it's just a "port stop" in Canada how will/do they stop you from going ashore ?

When you disembark you either have your ship's room key card scanned or you are identified by a facial recognition system as you're approaching the gangway. 

CBSA will both advise you that you are not permitted to go ashore and will order the ship's security officer to flag your record in the ship's computer system. If you were to attempt to disembark the security guard at the gangway would see you are not permitted to and would prevent you from disembarking.

[cruiseryyc]

The CBSA receives the passenger list from the cruise line long before you enter Canadian waters.  Once you dock at a Canadian port, if there is an issue "Passenger So and So is requested to report to the Pursers Desk".  Then CBSA officials will interview the individual and determine if they can go ashore or have to stay onboard.

 

"various crimes and two dui's" - I highly doubt you're getting off anywhere in Canada.

[em-sk]

On 9/26/2022 at 2:26 PM, Grazz111 said:

Hello,  I am planning my first cruise to Alaska but hit a snag.  I have had several convictions for various crimes and two dui's.  The cruise I want has two stops in Canadian ports and from what I've been reading I may be out of luck.  Does anyone know if I can cruise to Alaska and not disembark in Canada to complete the trip?

 

Thanks

 

There are a number of things that are illegal in the US and are legal in Canada.  If it is one of these then it would be looked at quite differently.   For example marijuana is generally legal in Canada. 

[dcourt]

What about having Vancouver as your final arrival port on a cruise from Hawaii?  Will they stop you from getting off the ship in Vancouver so you can fly home that day?  You would only be in Canada for less than 12 hours - don't they consider that as transit with no plans of staying in Canada?  I thought I read that someplace.

[Ashland]

3 hours ago, dcourt said:

What about having Vancouver as your final arrival port on a cruise from Hawaii?  Will they stop you from getting off the ship in Vancouver so you can fly home that day?  You would only be in Canada for less than 12 hours - don't they consider that as transit with no plans of staying in Canada?  I thought I read that someplace.

Canada (YVR) used to offer when arriving an in-transit when we were using a ship transfer shuttle to go directly to the ship...but that was years ago. Not any longer offered.

[Heidi13]

21 hours ago, dcourt said:

What about having Vancouver as your final arrival port on a cruise from Hawaii?  Will they stop you from getting off the ship in Vancouver so you can fly home that day?  You would only be in Canada for less than 12 hours - don't they consider that as transit with no plans of staying in Canada?  I thought I read that someplace.

 

If due to criminal convictions, or other reasons, the CBSA Officer determines you are inadmissible to Canada, you may not be permitted to disembark.

[cruiseryyc]

11 minutes ago, Heidi13 said:

 

If due to criminal convictions, or other reasons, the CBSA Officer determines you are inadmissible to Canada, you may not be permitted to disembark.

You might not even be allowed to embark.  Even though the cruise is starting in the US, the ship's manifest is sent to both US and Canadian Border Services before sailing; any issues will be flagged then.

[njhorseman]

1 hour ago, cruiseryyc said:

You might not even be allowed to embark.  Even though the cruise is starting in the US, the ship's manifest is sent to both US and Canadian Border Services before sailing; any issues will be flagged then.

The manifest is not sent to CBSA until after the ship sails.

[em-sk]

On 12/8/2022 at 10:45 AM, dcourt said:

What about having Vancouver as your final arrival port on a cruise from Hawaii?  Will they stop you from getting off the ship in Vancouver so you can fly home that day?  You would only be in Canada for less than 12 hours - don't they consider that as transit with no plans of staying in Canada?  I thought I read that someplace.

 

immigration offices are allowed to exercise judgment.  There role is to protect Canadians.  If they conclude you don't pose a threat to Canada they will let you in.   The fact you have booked onward travel and will only be in the country for 12 hours dramatically minimizes the threat.   No one here is going to give you a sold answer.

 

That said it will be up to the officer to make that call.   

 

As others have said, there will only consider things that are illegal in Canada.  As an example marijuana is legal in Canada.  

 

Edited December 12, 2022 by em-sk

[njhorseman]

5 hours ago, em-sk said:

 

immigration offices are allowed to exercise judgment.  There role is to protect Canadians.  If they conclude you don't pose a threat to Canada they will let you in.   The fact you have booked onward travel and will only be in the country for 12 hours dramatically minimizes the threat.   No one here is going to give you a sold answer.

 

That said it will be up to the officer to make that call.   

 

As others have said, there will only consider things that are illegal in Canada.  As an example marijuana is legal in Canada.  

 

Wouldn't the officer be concerned that the person in question won't actually board their flight and instead choose to stay in Canada illegally? If so is it possible that the individual would be taken to the airport in the custody of law enforcement to ensure they actually board their flight?

[em-sk]

On 12/12/2022 at 4:02 AM, njhorseman said:

Wouldn't the officer be concerned that the person in question won't actually board their flight and instead choose to stay in Canada illegally? If so is it possible that the individual would be taken to the airport in the custody of law enforcement to ensure they actually board their flight?

 

They may.  They will need to make a judgment call. 

 

If they are convinced the person is likely to be trying to illegally take up residency in Canada then a Border services officer may keep them in custody and escort him/her onto the flight out of the country.  

 

If they are convinced the person has deep ties back home and is very likely going to follow through on their plan to leave they may well leave them to do that on their own.  

 

That is the problem with these kinds of questions.  There is a lot of discretion provided.   

 

There are nations of certain countries where visitors overstay their welcome.  Canada imposes visa requirements on those countries.  That is not the US.  Cruise ship passengers are also generally low risk. That said it comes down to the individual and the specifics of their situations.  

Edited December 14, 2022 by em-sk