Travel advisories for visitors to the US

The US State Department occasionally puts out "travel advisories" for US citizens who plan to travel abroad. These are tips and guidance to US citizens about problems or issues that they may encounter while traveling.

With this in mind, I would like to offer some of my own "travel advisories" to people who may wish to visit the US. These advisories are not "official", but instead offer practical tips and common sense advice:

1. Make sure that you do not have "immigrant intent".

Under US immigration laws (Section 214(b)) visitors to the US are presumed to want to immigrate to the US. In other words, you are presumed "guilty" until you prove you are innocent of wanting to immigrate. In order to be eligible for a visitor’s visa, or to enter the US as a visitor, the person must prove that he has absolutely no intention to live, work, or immigrate to the US. If the person is unable to overcome this presumption, or the immigration officer believes that the person wants to immigrate, the person could be refused admission or entry to the US, by a US Immigration Officer at the port of entry, even though he has a valid visitor’s visa in his passport.

2. Try to land in the US on a weekday instead of the weekend.

If you arrive on a weekend and encounter problems at the airport, you may be detained or held in custody for the whole weekend. It may be very difficult to reach an attorney on the weekend, and the courts are closed until Monday morning.

On several occasions, I have received frantic calls from people on a Friday night or Saturday morning, telling me that their relative is being detained at the airport. In such a situation, there is little that can be done, at least until Monday morning when the courts are open. So, these people might have to spend the weekend in a detention center, (assuming that they are not immediately removed from the US on the next flight out).

3. Make sure your friends and relatives in the US remove their "collect call blocking" from their telephones.

If you are questioned or detained at the port of entry, your only way to call friends and relatives might be by calling collect. (There usually are no pay phones in the detention centers). Request friends or relatives in the US to unblock their phones so you will be able to get through. Or better still, get their cell phone numbers. Most have cell phones, so chances are your friend or relative has one.

4. Bring along US coins with you or buy a phone card, so that you can call from a pay phone.

While there may not be pay phones at detention centers, there are pay phones at the airport. Or, bring along your cell phone, but be sure that it works in the US. A most practical way is to buy a phone card which can be used on a pay phone.

5. Make sure that you have clear, detailed, and specific plans for your vacation.

When you arrive at the port of entry (airport), the immigration officer may ask you the simple question of, "What is the purpose of your visit?" You had better have a reasonable and truthful explanation as to why you are visiting America. If your answer is "I don’t know" to questions about where you will be staying and what you will be doing, then you most likely will be pulled aside and interrogated in greater detail.

6. Be truthful in your answers to the immigration officer, and in the written statements you sign.

Sometimes the immigration officers at the airport will take the person’s written statement, as to the person’s eligibility to enter the US as a visitor. When a person is asked questions, he should, of course, be truthful. However, you should not agree with or sign any statements that are incorrect or inaccurate. I have come across many people who have signed statements which they claim contain untrue, incorrect, or inaccurate information. When I ask them why they signed, they said that they were scared, confused, or tired, so they just signed the statement without reading or understanding it. Remember, once you sign a statement, that statement can be held and used against you. Your belated explanations that it was inaccurate or incorrect will not help. So, make sure that if you sign anything, it is true, correct, and accurate. If you do not understand a question, ask that the interviewer clarify or reword the question, so that you do understand the question. If you don’t know the answer to a question, don’t guess. Be honest and say that you don’t know the answer. If you don’t remember, again, don’t guess. Just be honest and tell the interviewer you don’t remember. Read everything carefully before signing.

7. Don’t overuse your visitor visa or treat it like it was a green card.

Some visitors treat their visitor’s visa like it was a green card. They keep coming back to the US, stay for several months, return to their home country, and a few weeks later, they are back again in the US. If a visitor comes to the US too often, the immigration officers may start thinking that this visitor is intending to immigrate to the US. In such a case, you risk having your visitor’s visa canceled at your port of entry and being sent back on the next flight out.

8. Don’t overpack for a brief vacation.

I have come across some cases where a visitor was seeking to enter the US for a brief, two-week vacation (or so they say), but brought along three balikbayan boxes of clothing and other personal items. Their luggage may also contain their diplomas, transcripts, resume, job offers from US employers, etc. The bottom line is that a visitor’s visa is only for purposes of visiting the US, either for vacation or for business. It is not a green card, does not entitle you to stay forever, nor does it allow you to work.

The best travel advisory is that as long as you comply with the terms of your visas, you will undoubtedly be welcomed with open arms by the United States Department of Homeland Security, and you will have a very pleasant vacation. Bon voyage!

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