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Or, you could save yourself a lot of trouble and start carrying a copy of her birth certificate with you. It's not like you don't carry assorted documents when you go from country to country anyway, so it is no more work to carry a birth certificate along with everything else.
Maybe you should worry more about leaving a country than about getting into a country. There are places in this world where you can not take a child out of a country without legal proof you have the right to take them.
That's the problem, she doesn't have a birth certificate as Finland doesn't do birth certificates. Never a problem leaving the country, nor going to other countries (though so far only tried Estonia and Sweden with her)
Most of the time the guards seem to be robotic. I've had rude and odd questions from just about every place I've visited, including the U.K.
I've had really pleasant and sometimes amusing experiences from the same countries.
That said, the only time I've seen a guard shout at people military boot camp style was in a land crossing into the U.S.
That story is tempered by the fact that one of the most friendly and amusing crossings I had was also at a land crossing
into the U.S.
Then again, I've crossed the Canada/US border more than any other, so I'm bound to have a broader range of experiences.
I had to go through UK customs at Gare du Nord in Paris before I got on the train. It was the evening of November 7. I was flying out of Gatwick on November 11.
I filled out the form that asked how long I'd be in the UK. I wrote "4 days". The customs woman snarled at me and asked me to verify when I was leaving London. I said November 11. She said, "That's FIVE days. FIVE. November 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11. FIVE." And with a flourish she crossed out my 4 and wrote 5 on the form. I was thinking, "how did you get this job if you are that effin' stupid?" But, I just said thank you and moved on. Meanwhile, the guy at the next station over is chatting up my 24-year-old daughter and barely glanced at her form.
Last edited by Mightyqueen801; 05-03-2016 at 09:53 PM..
I had a fun experience going into Tunisia some twenty years ago. The border guard was only interested in talking football (soccer) and we had a good laugh about it.
Which really annoyed the long line of people behind me.
It's border protection and I'm not mad at this. I've been to London twice from the US and got the 3rd degree both times. "who are you?" "where are you staying?" "what do you do for a living?" "why are you coming to the UK?" i just answered the questions truthfully and in no time went on about my business. i'm no criminal and i have nothing to hide. when i went to Paris, I got less hassle but I'm sure that's different now given current events
Went through Heathrow from the US two years ago - no problems at all, other than the extremely long lines at the end of a very long trip.
I've never had any drama going into or out of another country. I did, however, get a bottle of expensive sesame oil confiscated at the Denver airport, which was my fault but still ticked me off. I totally forgot it was in my carry on bag.
It's border protection and I'm not mad at this. I've been to London twice from the US and got the 3rd degree both times. "who are you?" "where are you staying?" "what do you do for a living?" "why are you coming to the UK?" i just answered the questions truthfully and in no time went on about my business. i'm no criminal and i have nothing to hide. when i went to Paris, I got less hassle but I'm sure that's different now given current events
I think that it's always wise to remember that the prime qualification for a job as a border entry official is ZERO sense of humo(u)r.
All the following were my fault, as I have a natural propensity to be light humo(u)red.
Arriving at JFK once, in 1976, the guy looked at my passport and said, "Do you have relations in New York?"
I replied, "If I get the chance." It went whoosh, right over his head, but he let me in.
Crossing the border from upstate New York into Canada in the mid 80s, in a rental car with New Jersey plates, the border guard said, "U.S. citizen?", I said, "No, I'm British."
He said, "Would you check with immigration please."
I parked, and walked into an office, where a guy was seated, reading a newspaper, with his feet up.
I put my passport on his desk, he opened it, looked through it, then said, "How long do you intend to stay in Canada?"
I said, and my hand to God, I was kidding, "Does it matter, it belongs to us doesn't it?" He stood up, raging, and said, "No it don't f**king belong to you. or your poxy country!"
I said, "You've got our queen on your money, and we invite you to all our wars."
He stamped my passport so hard I thought he'd broken it, scribbled 48 hours on it, and said, "Two days, then get the hell out!"
Lastly, arriving in Brisbane, Australia about 6 years ago, the immigration guy said, "Do you have a criminal record?"
Bearing in mind the fact that convicts were transported to the Australian colony from Britain in Victorian times, I said, "I didn't think that was still necessary."
He said, "That was funny, the first time I heard it."
Departing Portland OR i was dragged off and placed in a glass cubicle looked lke a tardis no " would you come with me please just, YOU come over here", in full view of everyone i think the machine sucks dust from clothes, drug dust. Being an edlerly lady it was a bit of a shock. Now i get an Xray most places i go.
Crossed the land border between Yugoslavia and Hungary by road in the early 80s. Advised by old hands to leave 200 Marlboro visible in the trunk. Did so and got through in less than 30 minutes with no hassle (remarkable! ). A few miles down the road pulled over and popped the trunk - Malboro gone. Claimed them on expenses when I got back home. Just how it was...
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