We're going on our first ever cruise later this month and in a booklet Silversea sent there is a suggestion that we register our valuables with Customs to prevent delay upon return. We've traveled a lot during our forty-some years of marriage and have never done this, nor have we ever had a problem with Customs clearance. Is this new? Is it worth making the effort to do? Thanks for any guidance.

That recommendation has been around in travel guidebooks for years. Like you, I've never done it, and never had a problem--and I've been tagged a few times for the spot check.

We've never done it either. We just walk through with no problem, never even a spot check.

My wife and I both have gold rolex watches. A couple of years ago when returning through customs, we were taken aside for almost a half hour regarding our watches. We finally convinced customs that we owned them for over 20 years, but we were worried.
Al

Nope, never done it. Knock on wood ;)

We travel with some camera gear and we've registered it. We have a folder we carry with us when we travel and it also has copies of the receipts to prove it's country of purchase.

We also list every little purchase we make on the customs declaration. When my husband was travelling with his first wife they went to Hong Kong. She did not want him to know how much she spent, so she forgot to list some things. They were delayed several hours and were fined too and heavily searched. He was none to happy about it.

I once was questioned about my watch. I simply showed them all the little scratches and they were easily convinced it was not a new watch. ;)

Coming off the Diamond after a crossing I was asked in San Juan if I was wearing anything I had bought while away. If you could have seen me in long airplane flight clothes. Not exactly Chanel. I looked over my body, thinking this guy was nuts. He let me pass and some kind soul told me later it was the gold bracelet I was wearing. I need to get out of the house/cruise more often. :rolleyes:

Mom was stopped one time when we were returning home. She was questioned about her "gold"-by-the-inch necklace. :D We laughed about that one for years.

Thanks for all the responses! I looked up the Customs site and it seems that if one did want to go through this registration thing, the stuff has to be lugged along to a customs office for inspection! Fat chance. I guess the Silversea suggestion is just a sort of lawyerly cya.

Jeremy, When we registered, we called Customs. No need to do that now if you have receipts.

We've never registered jewelry but we were subject to a random customs search once. The inspector didn’t seem to care much about Mona’s extensive jewelry collection but he was fixated on a knock-off Cartier watch I bought for $25 in SoHo. He must have spent 10 minutes looking at it and questioning me. I kept trying to tell him it was a cheap knock-off but he didn’t want to believe it. He thought he’d scare me by telling me if it was an imitation he’d have to confiscate it. When I said OK take it, he lost interest and let us go.

I would suspect the burden should be on Customs to prove you bought something outside the US and are trying to smuggle it in. It’s a little different with expensive electronic equipment where a carnet may be necessary. Tom.

We were told by a costoms inspector in Atlanta that, today, they are much more interested in terrorists than in "ordinary" people bringing in stuff that has been purchased abroad. In fact, they didn't want to even be bothered with us when we tried to pay what we owed.

Nini