We all know the phrase officers at the border say when we cross to the United States: “Anything to declare?”, and most times we automatically say no, even though we have no idea what are the products we must declare.

Previously, we have mentioned plants you must not cross in floral arrangements, or bouquets. The majority are decorative plants that are put in arrangements. Not declaring that a floral arrangement has one of these plants could cause a thousand dollar fine, which is why it’s better to know what are the things you must declare!

To avoid a fine you must declare certain articles. After the first fine, a special punishment is applied which is why it’s important to know if you are acting correctly and declaring what you must, according to CBP.

The following is an official list of articles you must declare when crossing the border to the United States.

Food and Agriculture

Declare all foods, plants and agricultural articles before crossing to the U.S.

Alcohol

It is permitted to cross a liter (or three beers) per traveler each month, tax free. Anything in excess must be declared.

Tobacco

A box of cigarettes is allowed (200 cigarettes or 100 cigars) per traveler each month, tax free. It is known that tobacco is cheaper in Tijuana which is why people tend to buy many cigarette boxes, but it is only permitted to cross 200 max. You must declare If you carry more.

Money

Money or monetary instruments that exceed $10,000 dollars must be declared, if you do not declare you carry more than this amount, you can get punished in different ways. Either they take your money or your visa, it depends on the officer on duty. The amount is per car, it doesn’t matter how many people cross, it must not exceed $10,000 dollars in total.

Pharmaceutical products

Medication (up to a supply of 90 days) must be declared and must be on its original package with a prescription by the name of the traveler.