Lake Metigoshe boaters take issue with customs changes

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/06/2016 (3422 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Lake Metigoshe cabin owners are feeling confused, frustrated and in some cases angry about a letter recently sent out by the Canadian Border Services Agency.

The letter informs residents of changes for reporting to customs when people cross the Canada-United States border in a boat.

“As of April 1, 2016, Lake Metigoshe will be designated as a Telephone Reporting Site/Marine where boaters must report to the CBSA by telephone when they arrive in Canada,” the letter states.

Noreen Johnston, secretary-treasurer of the Lake Metigoshe Improvement Association, said the letter has created a lot of turmoil and angst among property owners at the lake whose northern tip stretches into southwestern Manitoba.

Johnston said the letter, which was sent to people who had previously applied for a permit to enter Canada from the United States, requires Canadian boaters who enter U.S. waters to report to the CBSA upon return to Canada and prior to docking at any private residence.

Some residents were confused about whether they had to call CBSA each time they crossed the border in one outing.

“Some people would cross that line 15 times in a day if they’re taking tubers or skiers,” Johnston said.

CBSA spokeswoman Jacquie Callin said boaters will only have to report once in those situations.

“If the boat leaves Canadian soil and is out on the water and crossing the boundary line back and forth, the call to report to the CBSA is made once the boat returns to the dock at Deloraine Beach and the call is made from the telephone reporting station,” Callin said, adding that boaters can also call from their cellphone once they are back in Canadian waters. That call must be made prior to arriving at any cabin, home or private dock.

Boaters are required to provide several pieces of information during that call, including: vessel licence, registration number and name.

Other standard reporting questions are also required, such as the full name, date of birth, citizenship and residency of all the passengers, details about the trip, and if there are any goods on the boat among others.

Johnston said the process is lengthy the first time you call, but that subsequent reports are much quicker once the CBSA has filed some of the information which is repetitive.

Another resident, who wished to remain anonymous, believes the regulations are too restrictive.

“If you don’t land in the U.S. I don’t know why we need to check in with border services,” he said.

Failure to report can result in detention, seizure or forfeiture of the vessel or fines which start at $1,000.

“It’s a silly rule, but the penalties are too high to ignore,” he said.

Brandon-Souris Conservative MP Larry Maguire plans to meet with stakeholders from the lake.

“We have a small portion of that lake on our side, but we do have a lot of shoreline for cottages and homes and I think it’s one of the laws … that doesn’t apply to the situation that we’re faced with,” Maguire said.

Leeds-Grenville Conservative MP Gord Brown has introduced a private member’s bill that will allow U.S. pleasure-craft boaters to sail or motor into Canadian waters without reporting to Canadian customs provided they don’t land.

Maguire said that bill, which he supports, will also include an amendment that Canadian boaters don’t have to report to customs when they return home, provided they don’t land in the U.S.

The bill is unlikely to be approved in time for this summer, according to Maguire, but he hopes it is passed in time for next year.

For Johnston, who recently built a home at Metigoshe but has been coming to the lake for decades, said things have changed.

“We used to laugh at our kids because when we would come out to Metigoshe we used to play baseball when the ball diamond was there and they would say ‘My dad hit the ball so far that it went to the United States of America,’” Johnston said. “Then we would just hop the fence and go get (the ball) because it wasn’t such an issue and now with the cameras you wouldn’t dare do something like that.”

» ctweed@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @CharlesTweed