Say I’m a Canadian citizen. If I got a speeding ticket in the United States and I went back to Canada and didn’t pay it could they come after me in Canadian court to get me to pay
Or say I was convicted of a driving offense in the United States would that transfer over to my record in Canada?
(And vice versa the scenario for US Citizens in Canada)
Do both countries share driving information and allow convictions to be carried over country lines?
Can countries force payment on each others citizens?
Depends on the province and state involved.
Some states and provinces have reciprocity agreements with each other. Some don’t. Off the top of my head, I know that New York State has a reciprocity agreement with Ontario (where my relatives live). I don’t know about other states.
If you are in a state with a reciprocity agreement, any infractions you incur while in that state will be reported to your province and will affect your driver’s license and your insurance.
If you are in a state without a reciprocity agreement, there are some fairly new laws that allow that state to send Canadian debt collectors after your deadbeat ass if you choose not to pay. Other than that, there’s not much that they can do to you while you are in Canada. However, if you return to that state, you may find that they have revoked your driving privileges within that state. That makes you effectively driving without a license, and they can basically haul you out of the car at that point and impound your car. They won’t release the car unless someone with a valid driver’s license in that state comes to pick it up, although they might release it to a car hauling company.
They aren’t always that strict about enforcing the rules. If you just forgot to pay a ticket and you come down on vacation with your family, if the police officer is in a nice mood there’s a decent chance he’ll let you go with a stern warning to get the ticket taken care of and he won’t leave you and your family stranded. If you are belligerent and piss off the cop though, that’s pretty much a guaranteed trip to the car impound lot.
ETA: As for the reverse situation (a US citizen speeding in Canada) it’s basically the same thing. It depends on the reciprocity agreements in place, which vary from state to state and province to province. If you are in a reciprocity state/province, you can get points on your US driving license for a speeding offense in Canada.
I believe New York and Quebec also have a reciprocity agreement.