Applying for Admission into United States

Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law, Dallas

Lot of people thinks that if they have multiple entry visitor visa to United States they can come at any time and visit here. It is true to a certain extent, but if you stay majority of time in a any given year in United States and not in your home country, then the CBP officers are the airport may deny your application for admission to United States. Visa is only a documents which allows you to board the plane from your country of origin and to come to the immigration counter at the port of entry (airport in U. S. A. or pre-clearance port of entry in another country on your way to U. S. A) and to seek permission to enter United States. In other words visa is not a guarantee for anyone to enter into United States. It is just like a passport issued by your country to travel outside while a visa allows you to board a plane finally ends its destination in United States.

All persons arriving at a port-of-entry to the United States or pre-clearance port of entry in another country or in the originating country are subject to inspection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers.  CBP officers will conduct the Immigration, Customs and Agriculture components of the Inspections process. Aliens seeking to lawfully enter into the United States must establish their admissibility to the satisfaction of the CBP officer. This is done as part of the inspection process since all  travelers who are applying for admission into the United States at the port of entry may not be eligible to be admitted and are classified as inadmissible aliens.

Under INA § 212(a)(1)(A), aliens seeking to travel into the United States who have certain health-related issues may be inadmissible. Should it be necessary, a physical and/or mental examination of an applicant for admission should be conducted by a panel physician. When CBP officers encounter an alien at a port of entry who may be inadmissible under public health grounds, the CBP officer may refer the alien to a panel physician. In those circumstances, the CBP officer will provide the alien with the list of panel physicians. In that case, the alien will have to go to one of the panel physicians for an evaluation before again presenting themselves for admission. The panel physician will notify CBP of the results of the examination, so that CBP can make an admissibility determination. The panel physician evaluation is valid for only one year. Thus, even if you have previously had such an evaluation, if it has been more than a year since the examination was conducted, a new examination will likely be necessary.

Before you travel, if you have any concerns about your admissibility, you should seek legal counsel. CBP cannot provide legal advice to members of the public.  If you are determined to be inadmissible you could, in certain circumstances, be placed into removal proceedings. In some circumstances an officer may, in his or her sole discretion, determine to permit you to withdraw your application for admission. A determination of inadmissibility may have an impact on your future admissibility and may result in the cancellation of your visa, if you have one. If you withdraw your application for admission and returns to your home country it may not prohibit you from obtaining some other visa or additional documents to prove your eligibility and seek admission again. It should be remembered that you should not never ever use fraudulent documents to enter United States and if found it will be a permanent bar for you to enter United States for the rest of your life.

In order to increase efficiency, reduce operating costs and streamline the admissions process, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has automated Form I-94 at air and sea ports of entry. The paper form will no longer be provided to a traveler upon arrival, except in limited circumstances. The traveler will be provided with a CBP admission stamp on their travel document. If a traveler needs a copy of their I-94 (record of admission) for verification of alien registration, immigration status or employment authorization, it can be obtained from. www.cbp.gov/I94.

Form I-94 is the DHS Arrival/Departure Record issued to aliens who are admitted to the U.S., who are adjusting status while in the U.S. or extending their stay, among other things. A CBP officer in the past generally attaches the I-94 to the non-immigrant visitor’s passport upon U.S. entry. The visitor must exit the U.S. on or before the departure date stamped on the I-94. I-94 automation will not impact a traveler’s ability to enter the U.S. CBP will continue to create an I- 94 record for all travelers who require one, but the paper form will be created in an electronic format and not provided to the traveler. If a traveler re- quires a paper version of Form I-94, it will be available at www.cbp.gov/I94

CBP will provide each traveler with an admission stamp that is annotated with date of admission, class of admission and admitted until date. Travelers will not need to do anything differently upon exiting the U.S. Travelers issued a paper Form I-94 should surrender it to the commercial carrier or CBP upon departure. The departure will be recorded electronically with manifest information provided by the carrier or by CBP. If travelers did not receive a paper Form I-94 and the record was created electronically, CBP will record their departure using manifest information obtained from the carrier.

The I-94 admission record is created electronically and maintained in CBP systems. CBP will verify the I-94 electronically to re-validate an expired visa if the traveler meets the conditions of automatic revalidation. If entry occurred prior to automation, a paper form must be presented in order to comply with validation requirements. Rather than distributing a paper Form I-94, CBP will scan a traveler’s passport, generating an electronic arrival record with data elements found on the current paper Form I-94. CBP will make the electronic I-94 available at www.cbp.gov/I94. Travelers may visit this website to print their electronic I-94 number before applying for immigration or public benefits, such as a driver’s license or a Social Security number.

Since automation only affects air and sea arrivals, a paper Form I-94 is still issued at the land border ports of entry. Also, CBP intends to continue to provide a paper Form I-94 to certain classes of aliens, such as refugees, certain asylees and parolees, and whenever CBP determines the issuance of a paper form is appropriate. Individuals without a foreign passport will be sent to CBP’s secondary inspection upon arrival into the U.S., where they will receive their electronic I- 94 number. These individuals will be issued a paper I-94 with the pre-printed number crossed out, and the actual electronic I-94 number handwritten upon it. If an applicant was admitted incorrectly to the U.S., the applicant should visit a local CBP Deferred Inspection Site or port of entry to have his or her admission corrected. A list of Deferred Inspection Sites and ports of entry can be found at www.cbp.gov, under the “Ports” link at the bottom of the page.

Disclaimer:  Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law, with more than 36 (about 21 years in U. S. Immigration Laws) years of experience as an Attorney, mainly practices in U. S. immigration law and is located in Dallas, Texas. He does not claim authorship for above referenced information since it is obtained from several sources including USCIS, DOS web sites, AILA and other Internet based legal sources, and published for the benefit of the general public. Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law or the publisher is not responsible or liable for anything stated above, since it is generalized information about the subject matter collected from various legal sources. For individual cases and specific questions you are advised to consult any attorney of your choice or contact your State Bar Organizations or local Bar Associations or American Immigration Lawyers’ Association (AILA) for finding an attorney or for any legal help. You can visit our website at: www.indiaimmigrationusa.com or www.indiaimmigrationusa.blogspot.com or www.facebook.com/groups/usattorney for information about U. S. immigration law related matters. Lal Varghese, Attorney at Law can be reached at (972) 788-0777 or at his e-mail: attylal@aol.com if you have any questions.