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Old 11-12-2004, 11:10   #1
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"Alien" living aboard a US-flagged boat

I'm engaged to a US citizen and since neither of us can live and work in the same country until some time after we are married we decided to do a cruise first and spend time country hopping in the Caribbean.

I'm wondering if anyone has experience or knows of any problems liable to occur when checking in to the Bahmas, Caribbean Islands or if we are stopped by the USCG. If we are out of US waters it should be fine for me to live aboard my fiance's US-flagged boat - no?

Thanks for your help.
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Old 11-12-2004, 12:00   #2
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First question: From which country are you a citizen? That may make a differance. Do you have a US passport?
My wife being a Canadian citizen, we had very few problems durning the engagement. (10 yeras ago) Things may have changed. Canadians are not trusted as they use to be.

But once married, that changes eveything. If your married outside the US you have to stay outside until your Permanent Residence has been approved.

If married inside the US you can not leave and then come back. You have to stay, but can not work without your PR card.

And with a PR card you can not stay out side the US for more than 6 months, or you'll have to apply for the PR again.

And if you'll ever want to be a US citizen, you'll have to account for all those trips out side the US (dates, longevity & reason).

As for the Bahamas, I'll leave that for someone else.
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Old 11-12-2004, 16:38   #3
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Alien

The US has a slightly different approach to immigrants than other countries. For starters you are refferred to as an alien which has a strange ring to it. It used to be that you had to register your whereabouts every January. You may not be able to get bonded if it is required for your job. You may find other restrictions of that nature. As already mentioned travel may be a problem. You can not vote. If the date was a few years ago you could be drafted after six months if you were a male. Your visits to other places in the mean time will depend on your current passport, I do not think it matters much what boat you are on. I believe the US will not allow you to hold another passport if you have a US passport.
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Old 11-12-2004, 16:42   #4
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Canadians

Delmarrey wrote " Canadians not trusted as they used to be"

Could it have anything to do with the number of US citizens attaching Canadian flags to their back packs while travelling?

I mean this in a good natured way. BC Mike C
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Old 11-12-2004, 16:48   #5
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Re: Alien

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BC Mike C once whispered in the wind:
I believe the US will not allow you to hold another passport if you have a US passport.
BC Mike C
I may be mis-interpreting what you said here, or possibly the order in which you obtain your citizenships matters, but:

I currently hold two passports. One for the USA (where I was born - my home country) and one for Ireland, and by extension the EU (due to my family lineage). The USA allows me to keep both, but I may never renounce my citizenship to the USA if I want to keep the USA passport. Some countries require you to renounce other citizenships you have in order to obtain theirs.

The best bet is to check with the closest USA consulate in whatever country you are in and/or are a citizen of. This way you will get the latest and most accurate information. Just explain the whole thing to them and see what they suggest. It may be even more helpful than answers you get here, since the laws are tending to change very quickly now with our international problems.

Best of luck... it's sure not easy. It took me about a year to get everything together for my Irish citizenship.
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Old 11-12-2004, 18:52   #6
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Passport

Agreed, things do change, your advice to seek an official opinion is sound. I made a brief stop in Cork in 1948, age two.
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Old 11-12-2004, 19:24   #7
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Mike BC,

Not trying to be political here.
It just seems that Canada and the US are going in two different directions now. Not like in the older days where you couldn't tell the difference between the two.

Canada has allowed so much immigration from countries that are anti -American that the favor has moved away from the American life style. Whenever I go up into Vancouver, which is quite often, it is hard to find someone who speaks English without some sort of foreign accent.

Americans are trying to hold on to their heritage while the socialists are pounding away at our society trying to force us into socialized medicine, gay marriage, Christian bashing and child indoctrination.

So in reality Canada has become more of a foreign country then it use to be.
The worst thing is their media tries to influence our society, which failed, as one knows from this last election.

I have nothing against the individual Canadian, just the government! Some of the nicest people I know are Canadian, but they are of the older generation. And I have family up there.

As for the flag comment, I'm not sure what you’re talking about.
The draft was eliminated back in the 70's.
And as for the voting, would you like us to come up and vote in your elections? Although New York and San Francisco would be in your favor.
Passports have two meanings here. One is permanent and the other is temporary. The temp. has to be applied for in advance and approved. As long as they’re real and valid that's what matters.

We have a lot to protect here and need to be cautious......Kind of like the British properties!

Sorry to get off subject! Just wanted to clear up a couple things!
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Old 12-12-2004, 16:13   #8
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aliens

Alice. It is perfectly legal for you to live on the us documented boat anywhere in the world.. coast guard documentation guards against anyone other than american citizens being the skipper or master of the boat. As far as documentation being required to cruise the bahamas that is a bunch of hooey. american state registered boats cruise all over the world and i have only heard of the registration not being recognized in some french island countries .. I'm a german kraut myself and have a boat registered in florida.. i've checked with customs and all is on the up and up.. no problems whatsoever. You will have to get clearance from customs before you leave and will have to enter at a customs office upon your because there are non citizens on board..
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Old 12-12-2004, 20:24   #9
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Delmarrey

I think we still have plenty in common, I just got off a chat session with my Yankee red neck tractor buddies. The flag, last weeks news reported that US citizens were putting Canadian flags on their baggage when travelling. The US is a country of immigrants just like Canada, only Canada is still allowing many in. That Vancouver is full of Chinese folks, well what is the point?? Hawaii has Japanese and Chinese that outnumber the Polynesians. My point about voting was that the US used to draft guys that were not eligible to vote. They drafted landed immigrants before they even got close to having the ability to vote or become bonded or a few other perks that I think they should be eligible for if they are going to be asked to fight for the freedoms that they are not eligible for. Most of the Western countries will have a strain placed on them because of the aging baby boomers. You will find it discussed almost daily on the US business channells. Canada has a plan to relieve the problem by allowing younger qualified folks to immigrate. I regularly tell folks that Seattle WA and Portland OR are very similar to Vancouver BC. There is a slight difference in politics, In Canada the liberals blame the right wing, while in the US the right wing blames the liberals but they both agree that things are going to heck in a hand basket. I don't see it that way, I just think a lot of folks get testy during times of war. We still have enough in common that I will continue to chat. Michael
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Old 13-12-2004, 11:05   #10
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Smile Just an update

I just heard about the flag situation on the news this morning.
Apparently, there is a web site selling Canadian and American kits out there. He stated that most of the Canadian kits were sold as joke gifts from Canadians to American friends, and from Republican’s to Democrat friends

As for the draft thing, that was years ago back when the draft was still in use. But they did not have to serve. They just could not ever become a citizen of the USA. But those who did serve could become citizens after serving for two years or they acquired permanent residence for life. I served with a German guy who took the life PR option because he said he could travel in more places of the world with the German citizenship, but wanted to stay in the US for work reasons.

As well as Chinese,Vancouver is also full of Hispanic, East Indians, Iranians, and other Middle Eastern cultures. There are parts of Vancouver that, when I drive through, I get stares. Like, "what are you doing in my neighbor hood"? And that's even in a Canadian car. All I do is smile!

Hope you don't think I'm being "testy", just trying to keep the INFO correct here.
And if " things are going to heck in a hand basket" why are they trying to change everything? That would mean it was already in heck! Which seems illogical since this country has done so well in the last 228 years.

Your American Friend...................................._/)
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Old 13-12-2004, 12:54   #11
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Canadian Flags for Americans...

I'm not sure why I know this, but the purpose of attaching a Canadian flag to your suitcase is to appear less like an American. Apparently, in many parts of the world, our political pig-headedness and the wealth of under educated "cowboys" who travel abroad treating people poorly has created a bit of a backlash.

After 9/11 (something I saw with my own 2 eyes, while living in Manhattan), many people felt they could lessen their status as a target for angry people in other countries by attaching a Canadian flag to their bags and pretending to be Canadian.

I know a few business travelers who did just that, since security wasn't up to par until more recently.

I would imagine people on this forum would not have any trouble blending in as they travel, since people here, if they have cruised for any length of time, would be respectful and understanding of the various cultures out there. My wife and I are usually mistaken for locals when we travel, and the skin color is the same.
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Old 13-12-2004, 13:55   #12
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Prisoner Exchange Program

I think we should have a priosiner exchange program so the Americans that don't like being an American, can leave. And those who would like to be, and respect the American life can come in.
As for the "political pig-headedness and the wealth of under educated cowboys", they come from everywhere, not just the US.
So, speak for yourself.
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Old 14-12-2004, 06:28   #13
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Re: Prisoner Exchange Program

Quote:
delmarrey once whispered in the wind:
I think we should have a priosiner exchange program so the Americans that don't like being an American, can leave. And those who would like to be, and respect the American life can come in.
As for the "political pig-headedness and the wealth of under educated cowboys", they come from everywhere, not just the US.
So, speak for yourself.
I agree. People who don't like being an American should be shown the door ASAP. No need to have them slowing the rest of us down.

However, I didn't mention people who didn't enjoy being American in my post. I mentioned people who didn't want to be a target in the months following 9/11, when there was a lot of uncertainty in the world as to our security while traveling abroad.

Where were you in 2001? 2002? Were you in WA? Hardly a dangerous place, compared to friends I have who had to go to places like Pakistan, Turkey and Israel for business at that time. I'm sure the thought of "blending in" may have crossed your mind if you were faced with such situations, no matter how much pride you take in our country. This is why people were attaching Canadian flags to their baggage. It has nothing to do with their pride in America at home. It had more to do with survival.

Furthermore, under-educated cowboys do come from everywhere; agreed. However, by reading my post, you can clearly see I am about as far from that mentality as one can get, so I am not really "speaking for myself." in that case. Not sure where you drew the conclusion from... it doesn't follow logic.

Not really trying to start a flame war here, but hey... if I'm going to be attacked personally (as in "speak for yourself, pig-headed under-educated cowboy") , then flame on!
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Old 14-12-2004, 07:46   #14
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Draft

In 1968 I got drafted after six months of legal residence in the US. There were no options, it was a sure ticket to Viet Nam. Oh there were some letters from the different services asking you to join them rather than the other. I am a bit fuzzy on this but it might have been possible to volunteer for the peace cor sp? for four years and avoid active duty. Of course all that has changed since then. I do not see the world going to heck but I certainly here that opinion from many and as I said it is interesting that the reasons for it are quite opposite. It may seem strange but people in Canada will change there investment strategy based on who wins the US election. This topic may be a bit OT but I think it is valid for folks considering travelling to different countries. I am no more in favour or critical of the US than I am about Canada, and I was quite outspoken during the Viet Nam war, and the debt issue in Canada a few years ago. In some areas of Vancouver the white folk are outnumbered 3 to 1. I am comfortable with the idea that we all started the same, perhaps grew apart and now it is time to join up again. For Delmarrey I take no issue with your post, you are speaking from the heart and that is fine with me. Michael
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Old 14-12-2004, 10:34   #15
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2002

The Philippines!
Where were you?
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