A TRAVELER is warning others about this everyday item that nearly got her an $800 fine after being stopped by the TSA.
Content creator Discovering with Dina shared a TikTok of herself at the baggage claim area of an airport with a suitcase and carry-on.
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“She doesn’t know it yet but a K9 is about to walk up to her and smell the apple that she forgot to declare in customs causing her to almost get fined $500 and get Global Entry revoked,” Dina wrote over the clip.
She explained her situation in the caption, warning others, “DON’T make this mistake!”
Dina said a customs agent told her, “I could fine you $500 right now and revoke your global entry.”
“I was standing there waiting for my luggage and a Customs & Border Control Officer came up to me, saying the K9 is smelling food and asking me if I had anything,” Dina wrote.
“Shoot… I forgot I had an apple on me from Amsterdam that I was supposed to declare at customs.”
After the blunder, Dina said her passport was confiscated and her bags were checked by airport officials.
Dina could’ve been hit with another $300 fine for lying about the apple, and she would have gotten “another $500 fine for actually having the apple and Global Entry.”
She shared some tips on how to avoid making the same mistake, like “declaring purchases over $800, cash including travelers checks over $10,000, [and] ALL food, plants, and animal products.”
“When in doubt, declare it to avoid fines and confiscation,” wrote Dina.
Thankfully, Dina was only given a warning since this was her first offense, but she said it was a reminder to take the rules seriously.
“I genuinely forgot about the apple, and declaring it wasn’t top of mind since they stopped having you fill out those forms on the plane,” she wrote.
“I also didn’t know you are supposed to declare all food, even if it’s processed.”
Several other users shared similar experiences in Dina’s comment section.
“Just lost global entry and $500 over a plum that was completely unintentional,” wrote one person.
Another wrote: “I legit declared an unopened can of Diet Coke bc [sic] they made it seem like I’d be sentenced to the electric chair.”
“Yes! I tell people this, bringing in agriculture is like a step away from being a terrorist,” wrote a third person.
“It is a big deal.”
Earlier this month, two Chinese nationals were charged with trying to smuggle a fungus into the US, which is considered a potential agroterrorism weapon.
University of Michigan researcher Yunqing Jian and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, received federal charges after allegedly posing “an imminent threat to public safety,” said US Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. in a statement.
According to the US Customs and Border Protection, many agricultural products from certain countries are barred from the US “because they may carry plant pests and foreign animal diseases.”
“All agriculture items must be declared and are subject to inspection by a CBP Agriculture Specialist at ports of entry to ensure they are free of plant pests and foreign animal diseases,” the agency said.
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