Will I get back into the USA? Please help

cavanlad1982

Hi,
I travelled to New York for the summer 2 years ago on a J1 VISA. SEVIS came into affect that year. It means the your VISA is only valid for a month until you log your details (where you're working, living etc) on the SEVIS website. When you do this, your VISA extends for 4 months. Unfortunately mine did not go through for some reason and my VISA was cancelled. I found this out after 2 1/2 months so I was already illegal for a month and a half. USIT told me they could do nothing for me. I followed up with the embassy when i got home and was told that I would "PROBABLY" get back when I explained my situation to emigration.

I am now in a job where I have to travel to the USA early next year. If I don't get in, I could lose my job. I can't seem to find the right people to contact. Has anybody been in a similar situation or what do others reckon. I would really appreciate any advice.

Enii

when you are travelling next time be sure to have all your paperwork in order as in have all your living and working details to prove that you will be returning to Ireland. Letter from employer, landlord, bank, etc. I would possibly contact the embassy before you travel again and query what your staus is.

cavanlad1982

Thanks for your reply. What do you feel my chances are?

Enii

Don't really know what your chances are, they have really clamped down after 9/11. However, once you prove that you are going over only for a holiday and are committed to coming back to Ireland you should be OK I reckon.

BuffyBot

I am now in a job where I have to travel to the USA early next year. If I don't get in, I could lose my job. I can't seem to find the right people to contact.

I'd go out on a limb and suggest the US embassy...

cavanlad1982

I followed up with the embassy when i got home and was told that I would "PROBABLY" get back when I explained my situation to emigration.

I did see above. The embassy keep giving me the run around. Appreciate the replies

BuffyBot

You followed it up two years ago - do you not think it might be worth checking again?

Benedict XVI

cavanlad1982 wrote:

I followed up with the embassy when i got home and was told that I would "PROBABLY" get back when I explained my situation to emigration.

I did see above. The embassy keep giving me the run around. Appreciate the replies

You'll be fine, US Immigration are not as bad as their own documentation says they are.
If they ask questions tell them your story and as someone said have good proof that you are not going over to stay and you will be fine. A letter from your employer saying you are going on business should be fine.

In your previous trip how long did you stay ?. If you were there for under 3 months you did not even break the minium allowed stay on a visa waiver.

cavanlad1982

Buffybot, I contacted them twice in the last week and kept getting transferred around. I intend on calling in to Ballsbridge but just want to get some advice before I do.

Benedict, I stayed slightly over the 3 months but the J1 Visa allows 4 months. I paid over 300 euros for the Visa so it was cancelled due to a SEVIS issue which is just some small admin thing. Logic says that I would have just got a holiday VISA and stayed 3 months if I was trying to get around filling out SEVIS.

I had to sign a form at work saying I knew of no reason why I wouldn't get into the USA when I started at Intel recently. Probably wouldn't have got the job otherwise. I might ask my direct boss for a letter cos he is fairly sound. Can you suggest other proof to bring? My Intel ID badge which should prove the letter is valid? A letter from USIT explaining the previous mix up?

Thanks again lads for the help

Benedict XVI

cavanlad1982 wrote:

Buffybot, I contacted them twice in the last week and kept getting transferred around. I intend on calling in to Ballsbridge but just want to get some advice before I do.

Benedict, I stayed slightly over the 3 months but the J1 Visa allows 4 months. I paid over 300 euros for the Visa so it was cancelled due to a SEVIS issue which is just some small admin thing. Logic says that I would have just got a holiday VISA and stayed 3 months if I was trying to get around filling out SEVIS.

I had to sign a form at work saying I knew of no reason why I wouldn't get into the USA when I started at Intel recently. Probably wouldn't have got the job otherwise. I might ask my direct boss for a letter cos he is fairly sound. Can you suggest other proof to bring? My Intel ID badge which should prove the letter is valid? A letter from USIT explaining the previous mix up?

Thanks again lads for the help

The Embassy can be a pain to deal with alright.

All you really have to do is prove to immigration that you are resident and intend to remain resident in Ireland. A letter from you boss will show what you are going to the US for, to prove that your residency in Ireland have your return trip details, credit cards, evidence of bank accounts , tax returns (P60) etc.
The main reason people get turned away is cos immigration think they are going to stay or if they have some sort of 'record', you will be fine, they probably woun't even pass comment on it.

cavanlad1982

Thanks Benedict. Really appreciate it. How come you know so much about it anyway? You have much dealings with this sort of thing?

TowerMan

Hi Cavanlad,

I was in the exact same position as you are in now. I needed to travel to the states for work. I got refused at JFK saying that I had over stayed my visa I had to fly home the same day. Nothing really bad happened at work coz my boss is in the family. Kinda pissed off as I wont ever be able to travel to the states now. Ah well..maybe you will have better luck than me:mad: (but i doubt it...)

BigCon

I had to sign a form at work saying I knew of no reason why I wouldn't get into the USA when I started at Intel recently. Probably wouldn't have got the job otherwise. I might ask my direct boss for a letter cos he is fairly sound. Can you suggest other proof to bring? My Intel ID badge which should prove the letter is valid? A letter from USIT explaining the previous mix up?

Cavanlad, there's a standard letter that you get signed by your sup when you're heading away for a trip - the shift admin should be able to e-mail it to you, I think it might even be on circuit. It has all the info that immigration would be looking for, saves a lot of time when going into the U.S. I reckon if you get this then it'll be a breeze...

Benedict XVI

TowerMan wrote:

Hi Cavanlad,

I was in the exact same position as you are in now. I needed to travel to the states for work. I got refused at JFK saying that I had over stayed my visa I had to fly home the same day. Nothing really bad happened at work coz my boss is in the family. Kinda pissed off as I wont ever be able to travel to the states now. Ah well..maybe you will have better luck than me:mad: (but i doubt it...)

TowerMan,
Were you in exactly the same situation as 'cavanlad', i.e. details did not go through 'SEVIS'.
And if so
1. What did you tell immigration and what documentation did you have ?
2. What did they ask you ?
3. How long had you overstayed, and where did they get that info ? (if you know).
5. What eaxctly did they say when refusing you entry ?
4. Were you barred and how long for ?.

I am curious about these things.

TowerMan

I told them that for reasons out of my control that I could not register when I got there(SEVIS). They said that since I did not do this I could have stayed in the country for as long as I wanted and for that reason I had overstayed my welcome. Also said that my company lied to me.....strange that! Although the company I work for is a well known. The US embassey said my ban was under review. :mad:

cavanlad1982

Thanks BigCon for that info.

TowerMan,
what documentation did u have?
What do you mean they said your company lied to you? What did you company say?
What means did you contact the Embassy? I keep getting the run around although I haven't actually walked in there yet.

I plan on bringing this letter that BigCon refers to. I also plan on bringing a letter from USIT and proof of pay tax in Ireland. Any suggestions for further documentation are welcome.

Benedict XVI

TowerMan wrote:

I told them that for reasons out of my control that I could not register when I got there(SEVIS). They said that since I did not do this I could have stayed in the country for as long as I wanted and for that reason I had overstayed my welcome. Also said that my company lied to me.....strange that! Although the company I work for is a well known. The US embassey said my ban was under review. :mad:

So they told you had overstayed purely based on the fact that you had a problem registering with SEVIS, with no evidence that you actually did.
Did you overstay?
Because if you did not I’d be throwing ever piece of evidence to proved it at them.

Do US immigration have a proper way of verifying if a person (with any sort of visa, green card etc) leaves the country

Cavanlad – You stay you stayed ‘slightly’ over the 3 months, if I were you I’d also bring any documentation to show that you were back in Ireland ‘slightly’ after the 3 months, it is not as good as anything to show that you were there within the 3 months but it might be worth something in showing that you did not ‘extremely’ overstay, and I’d only use it as a last, last resort, they will either say ‘Ah your OK’ or ‘That’s it you over stayed, here have a 10 year banning’.

homeOwner

Benedict XVI wrote:

So they told you had overstayed purely based on the fact that you had a problem registering with SEVIS, with no evidence that you actually did.
Did you overstay?

Do US immigration have a proper way of verifying if a person (with any sort of visa, green card etc) leaves the country

When you enter the US the bottom section of your immigration card that you fill out (even if you are going in on the holiday waiver you still fill one of these cards out) is put inside your passport (usually stapled). When you leave, they take it out at the check in desk. The airlines hand these back to immigration and this is proof that you left the country.

What alot of people do who intend on over staying is they throw this away and "pretend" that they lost it. You get a "stern" talking to from the check in lady but thats about it. Used to be that immigration didnt keep on top of matching these with entry records but that was a few years ago. Since 9/11 they may have gotten their act together more. They definitely have all the info they need to tell whether or not someone left the country. If they dont get this slip of paper back they assume you over stayed.

Benedict XVI wrote:

Because if you did not I’d be throwing ever piece of evidence to proved it at them.

They dont care. Its not a case of being fair or you being in the right. What makes you think they will spend the time trying to validate the proof you give them. They see hundreds of thousands of cases like this every year - they will trust the information they have.

Enii

cavanlad1982 wrote:

Thanks BigCon for that info.

TowerMan,
what documentation did u have?
What do you mean they said your company lied to you? What did you company say?
What means did you contact the Embassy? I keep getting the run around although I haven't actually walked in there yet.

I plan on bringing this letter that BigCon refers to. I also plan on bringing a letter from USIT and proof of pay tax in Ireland. Any suggestions for further documentation are welcome.

Bank details etc. showing that you have been in Ireland for the past while.
Letter from landlor showing that you will be renting for next while or mortgage details to show that this will keep you tied to Ireland.

Benedict XVI

homeOwner wrote:

They dont care. Its not a case of being fair or you being in the right. What makes you think they will spend the time trying to validate the proof you give them. They see hundreds of thousands of cases like this every year - they will trust the information they have.

In the case above the poster says that he was 'barred' based on the assumption by immigration that, seeing as he did not register for SEVIS he therefore could have overstayed.

What I am saying is that if he did not overstay he should provide the evidence to immigration to prove that he did not break any rules and therefore should not be 'barred'

homeOwner wrote:

When you enter the US the bottom section of your immigration card that you fill out (even if you are going in on the holiday waiver you still fill one of these cards out) is put inside your passport (usually stapled). When you leave, they take it out at the check in desk. The airlines hand these back to immigration and this is proof that you left the country.

What alot of people do who intend on over staying is they throw this away and "pretend" that they lost it. You get a "stern" talking to from the check in lady but thats about it. Used to be that immigration didnt keep on top of matching these with entry records but that was a few years ago. Since 9/11 they may have gotten their act together more. They definitely have all the info they need to tell whether or not someone left the country. If they dont get this slip of paper back they assume you over stayed.

I am aware of that being the case for visa waivers, however I am a green card holder and I have been living in Ireland for the past 3 years. A condition of keeping your green card is to have the US as your main residence, something I have not done. I have returned to the US a couple of times for holidays and each time have told immigration that 'I'm back to stay this time'.
Seeing as I only fill out a white customs slip at immigration how do they know when I leave the US. The last time I was there a wile back I noticed that the Aer Lingus staff 'swiped' my passport at check-in on departure form the US. Is this info transferred to immigration ?.

homeOwner

Benedict XVI wrote:

What I am saying is that if he did not overstay he should provide the evidence to immigration to prove that he did not break any rules and therefore should not be 'barred'

I understand what you are saying. But what I am saying is that why would they even give him the time of day to argue his case? They see thousands of people every day coming through. If he bought a ticket, went through to immigration at the airport, presented his documents I am sure they would say - our records indicate that you over stayed, blah de blah. You are not coming in. Do you think the person is going to say - "oh, you seem to be correct. Let me take your word for it and assume that the documents you are handing to me are all valid and in order and of course you can come in" - I dont think so. There will be a couple of hundred people in the queue behind him waiting to get through and I dont think he will be successful. Of course he could pre-empt this by going to the embassy here to try and sort it out. But I do not think they will give him an appointment to make his case because THEY DONT CARE. According to them he overstayed. They dont want him to prove anything to them. You talk about "should not be barred". Its not about being right or wrong. Its about them trying to weed out the potential abusers of the visa waiver program. They are not interested in individual hard luck cases.

I am aware of that being the case for visa waivers, however I am a green card holder and I have been living in Ireland for the past 3 years. A condition of keeping your green card is to have the US as your main residence, something I have not done. I have returned to the US a couple of times for holidays and each time have told immigration that 'I'm back to stay this time'.
Seeing as I only fill out a white customs slip at immigration how do they know when I leave the US. The last time I was there a wile back I noticed that the Aer Lingus staff 'swiped' my passport at check-in on departure form the US. Is this info transferred to immigration ?.

I would assume that it is. Its not information aer lingus care about. Anyway, you are not in the same situation as the original poster. You are allowed to come and go as you please. They do not monitor GC holders in the same way they monitor other visitors. Yes you are supposed to live in the US to keep your green card, but they will eventually catch you and take it away from you because they know how many times you enter the US as your passport is scanned each time and you will be challanged at some stage. I know many people who have lost their GCs this way, it took a couple of times but they were caught out eventually.

Benedict XVI

homeOwner wrote:

I understand what you are saying. But what I am saying is that why would they even give him the time of day to argue his case? They see thousands of people every day coming through. If he bought a ticket, went through to immigration at the airport, presented his documents I am sure they would say - our records indicate that you over stayed, blah de blah. You are not coming in. Do you think the person is going to say - "oh, you seem to be correct. Let me take your word for it and assume that the documents you are handing to me are all valid and in order and of course you can come in" - I dont think so. There will be a couple of hundred people in the queue behind him waiting to get through and I dont think he will be successful. Of course he could pre-empt this by going to the embassy here to try and sort it out. But I do not think they will give him an appointment to make his case because THEY DONT CARE. According to them he overstayed. They dont want him to prove anything to them. You talk about "should not be barred". Its not about being right or wrong. Its about them trying to weed out the potential abusers of the visa waiver program. They are not interested in individual hard luck cases..

I am aware that they have no time for 'hard luck' cases I'm just advising that anyone dealing with US immigration who believe that they might have trouble should ahve every piece of documnetation to prove their case with them to 'prove their case'. It up to the treveler to prove immigration wrong, not teh other way round.

homeOwner wrote:

I would assume that it is. Its not information aer lingus care about. Anyway, you are not in the same situation as the original poster. You are allowed to come and go as you please. They do not monitor GC holders in the same way they monitor other visitors. Yes you are supposed to live in the US to keep your green card, but they will eventually catch you and take it away from you because they know how many times you enter the US as your passport is scanned each time and you will be challanged at some stage. I know many people who have lost their GCs this way, it took a couple of times but they were caught out eventually.

I know I will get caught some day but as a green card holder I have to enter the US using it, I cannot go on a visa waiver, some day I'll tell them they can take it back.
However I am just curious as to how much info immigartion have about ones entry to and exit from the US, sometimes it's an awful lot less than people think.

cavanlad1982

I stayed exactly 4 days over 3 months. I know technically I am in the wrong and they can refuse me entry despite my hard luck story. I haven't travelled all that much so I'm not familiar with the procedures.

1. What is the best way to approach the embassy? I keep getting the runaround by ringing. If I land on their doorstep, will they even talk to me?

2. Is there anything I can check for on my passport? No additional stamp was put on it when I left but this is this all recorded on computer?

3. Is there a best time to approach emigration? Should I be very early or late or would that matter. If I'm early maybe there won't be as big a queue which might give me more time to plead my case.

4. Do many people generally get through with hard luck stories? Do people in this situation ever get through without anything at all said to them?

5. I will have proof of a loan, bank details, letter from work stating that this is a business trip which I will be returning from in a week. I also hope to get a letter from USIT to back my story up.

6. Hand on heart, do you think I will get back in? 50-50 chance???

Thanks lads for the info

Ruu_Old

They have records of people leaving the US, because the green I-94 is taken by the airline and returned to the US Immigration. When you leave nowadays, you have to use the correct exit procedures. Theres machines that you scan your passport at when you are through the security gates in any US airport.

cavanlad, i think you'll just have to keep plugging away at the embassy, you wont be let in unless you have an appointment. they can be a real pain, been through a lot with them!

Be early for immigration, get it over and done with then you can relax.

I havent heard of anyone being turned away before but my flight was delayed once, the air steward said that a passenger was being delayed at immigration but they got on shortly i think.

Before i got my green card, i was travelling over there many times a year. I think they got suspicous one day and called me in to "verify" a few things in Dublin airport. I was in terrors, but they were fine, very nice people and just be truthful. Sent me on my way to the US very quickly. They just have to do their job like everyone else. They were super nice when i got my green card and even shook my hand and welcomed me in

I honestly dont think you will have a problem, if you need any more answers dont hesistate to PM.

cavanlad1982

Thanks Ruu.

By contacting the embassy, will this diminish my chances of getting in at all? For example, say if their response is negative, will there be extra emphasis added to my record?

Ruu_Old

Just keep telling them to that you are on standby to travel and you need to find out if you are turned away. In the end though they might just tell you that its up to immigration in Dublin which it ultimately is.

cavanlad1982

Do they bring you into a seperate room to explain your case or do they just refuse you point blank ignoring any argument in front of everybody behind you in the queue? I reckon if I got a fair chance to plead my case, I could show them proof I was coming back plus my story is believable.

If I get through immigration in Dublin, will I have any hassle once I get over there?

Have you been to the embassy yet? No? Well make an appointment now.

Far better to inquire from them , than to be refused at the airport.

I dont think you'll have any problems to be honest.You have a job and your reason for going to the states is your work.
What you did on a j1 is ancient history.You cant hide it, and dont try to hide it.
Be up front by putting on record what you did and why and you should have your situation formalised.
By hiding it or procrastinating , you are more or less ensuring that you will have a problem.

Ruu_Old

yes there is a small room in the US Immigration in Dublin airport where they bring you if they have to verify anything. As said before try and make an appointment.

cavanlad1982

Earthman, it was always my intention to go to the embassy. I said in an earlier post that I just wanted some advice before I went.

Will let ye lads know how I get on.

Thats ok, I was just egging you on so to speak.
It more than probably wont turn out as bad as you think and do let us know how you get on.

galwaydude

best of luck cavanlad

cavanlad1982

Cheers lads

Our man in Havana

Do they still have you in the system when you get a new passport? Do you start out a new record with a new passport?

I know of a guy that was denied 3 vistors visas in the bad old days and he got a new passport to get round the problem.

Enii

I would imagine that all visa denials would be linked to your passport and every new one that you get. I have heard people making claims that you can get in on a second passprt if you get it issued in Irish. Don't know if this is true though.

homeOwner

Getting a new passport might sort things out alright. Believe it or not, most passport systems are not linked at all - even in the same country. For example, if you loose your passport and get a new one and someone finds your old (still in date) one, they can get through a passport check if they look even remotely like you - there is no central place for registering that your old passport is now invalid. Europol might have a register of it having been stolen (if the guards actually pass this info on) but I doubt if the US would twig that your new passport is for the same person as your old one. The systems are just not in place to track that. Hell if you make up a passport number, US immigration have no way of checking if that is even a valid passport number for Ireland.

Might be your best chance. But fess up if challanged, no point in lying and getting caught out, then you are well and truely fcuked.

good luck

Our man in Havana

It may work this time, but they take fingerprints and your picture now. I guess they could link you thru your dabs if you used a different passport each time.