SAN DIEGO – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the San Diego Field Office ports of entry seized a combined $148,693 in unreported currency on three separate occasions.
“Travelers are constantly reminded that transporting any amount of currency is not illegal,” said Anne Maricich, CBP Acting Director of Field Operations in San Diego. “However, all currency equaling $10,000 or greater must be reported to CBP officers when traveling in or out of the country to avoid facing potential criminal prosecution or the seizure of their currency.”
The most recent interception occurred Sept. 10, at the San Ysidro port of entry when a 37-year-old male and his vehicle were referred for further examination. The driver gave a negative declaration for currency and presented his passport card to CBP officers when applying for entry.
During the examination, a currency and firearm detector dog alerted to the trunk area of the vehicle. Upon further inspection of that area, CBP officers discovered bundles of undeclared U.S. currency totaling $49,600.
Three days earlier, CBP officers at the Calexico downtown port of entry intercepted two currency smuggling attempts while conducting routine outbound inspections. Both male drivers were heading into Mexico and gave negative currency declarations to CBP officers. During their inspections, CBP officers discovered several bundles of U.S. currency concealed underneath the travelers’ clothing totaling $45,988 and another $53,105 was found taped to the traveler’s legs.
In each of these instances, CBP officers seized the U.S. currency and the vehicles. All drivers were released from CBP custody.
There is no limit to how much currency or other monetary instruments travelers may bring to or take out of the United States. However, federal law [31 USC 5316] requires travelers to report all currency of $10,000 or greater to a CBP officer and complete U.S. Treasury Department Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments [FINCEN 105].