We’ve got some good news for those of you who are traveling off island via the airport … the hassle of filling out customs forms is gone!
We’ve had several friends travel off island over the past few days, and all have stated that the airport is no longer requiring US citizens to fill out a customs form prior to entering security. That means no more scurrying to get a form, no more waiting in long lines to actually obtain a form, and no more holdups due to the form being filled out incorrectly. Sounds like a win all around!
Passengers will still have to pass through customs, but rather than filling out the form, passengers are being verbally questioned instead. You will still have to show your boarding pass and identification.
We’re not sure how long this will last, but in the meantime, it’s a pretty nice change.
In the event that the rule reverts back to where we need to fill out the paper forms again, you can do so in advance using an editable form online. Here is a link to that form:
http://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/documents/CBP%20Form%206059B%20English%20%28Fillable%29_0.pdf
I may be missing something but why did they ever require that since you were going from the U.S. back into the U.S? I’m assuming they want to know about other countries you visited while there.
I’ve always thought that was so odd, glad they’ve done away with it for now!
The two important pieces of data they were getting from us were, where we went while there, and the value of the goods we were bringing back. Since I never did that, I don’t know how the other destinations may have affected our limits on the goods we brought back. It will probably be in our best interest to bring a list of goods and their value to the airport.
Customs regulations on the U.S. Virgin Islands are technically different than that of the mainland U.S., though still administered by CBP. That is why you clear customs upon returning to the mainland.
In May, I had to fill out two customs forms in one hour, as we were traveling by ferry from Virgin Gorda and then on to the states. I wish I had been able to photocopy the first one and hand it in at STT!
Andy, they no longer require people to fill out customs forms. Instead, they simply ask you the same questions that were on the form.
Not that big of a deal for us. We always get to airport 3 – 4 hrs ahead of time. Because you never know what you are going to encounter. In all due respect – It always seems like such a goat rodeo. Just chill with it.