Do I need to declare my money (over $10K) in the US if I'm in transit?
- By
- Aparna Patel
- |
- 24 Jul, 2023
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I will answer my own question since, even though there are some proper remarks in all other answers they are overthinking this, IMHO.
First of all, as @Hilmar pointed out: if you are in transit through the US, you need to fill out two FinCEN 105 forms (one for entry and one for leaving the US). This is all done at the same time, with the same CBP officer.
You just need to declare your money, have proof of funds (which I had). If you sell your car or your house or whatever, you make sure you have a legal document from your country of origin. If you declared your money when leaving your country, have some proof of that.
Also, there is a lot of profiling going on, CBP officers are highly trained and they can now right on the spot who is suspicious and who is not.
Have all your documentation ready, and answer honestly. Be calm and relax.
In our case, nothing was requested, and no questions were asked about our money.
The same thing in Canada when we arrived, we declared the money and that’s that.
I hope this will help other travelers.
WARNING: You are at risk of losing your money!
You actually have to declare it TWICE:
You have to declare cash (or equivalent) over 10k both when entering and leaving the country. See https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-195?language=en_US#:~:text=International%20travelers%20entering%20the%20United,file%20a%20FinCEN%20Form%20105.
Most people don’t know that you need to declare cash on departing the US as well and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) doesn’t advertise it a lot. You need to fill out form FinCEN Form 105 once for import and once for export. You can NOT use the same form for both entry and exit. I honestly don’t know where and how to drop off the export version and retain proof that you have filed it.
Failure to declare is often a trigger for "Civil Forfeiture": the government can confiscate your money just on a paperwork mistake or simply by assuming it’s related for something criminal. They do NOT need to proof anything, file charges, or arrest anyone, they can just take it if they feel like it. The only recourse is to sue the US government for "return of property", which is prohibitively expensive and complicated for most people.
This is a VERY real thing: the DHS seizes over 100 million dollars per year at US airports.
To be blunt here: It’s entirely possible that a DHS officer will say: "you are coming from South America, so I assume that is drug money, and so we will confiscate it". Astonishingly this is entirely legal and happens regularly.
I strongly recommend transferring the money some other way. Even if you do everything correctly and the money is perfectly legal, there is non-trivial risk that it gets confiscated.
More reading
Yes, you must declare the cash.
The US doesn’t have sterile airside transit: all passengers on every international flight arriving in the US (except those flights departing from a non-US airport with a US Preclearance Facility) must pass US Immigration and US Customs when physically arriving in the US, and enter the US. There are no US Preclearance Facilities at airports in South America, so you will pass Immigration and Customs in Houston.
Because you will enter the US, and you’re carrying more than $10K in cash, you must declare the cash when you enter. For you, that’s Houston. Travelers who pass US Immigration and Customs at a Preclearance Facility must declare at the Preclearance Facility.
Credit:stackoverflow.com‘
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