Mixed Insurance Banners Health Insurance for Visitors to USA

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Questions about road trip with multiple USA entries

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Questions about road trip with multiple USA entries

    Hello
    I am a USA citizen, married to a British citizen. We are on a year long trip, and just about to finish off 6 months in South America. We have planned a trip, to start 1 month from now, around the USA and Canada in a car that we would like to do before moving permanently to Australia.

    please read below what my husband wrote...

    Start of the trip...

    USA time "MN to Canadian border" - 62 days
    Canada time "Canadian border to Alaska" - 18 days
    USA (Alaska) time "Alaska to Canadian border" - 24 days

    sub total of days = 104 days which means at the point of leaving Alaska I would have overstayed the i94 90day green visa by 14 days.

    Canada time "Alaskan border to Canadian border" - 9 days

    So we will be at the border of USA asking for another i94 green visa for me for 90 days (max days on that visa type), however I would potentially have a black mark against my name for overstaying my last one by 14days? AND they may not give me a second visa due to not really leaving North America.

    Assuming I get a second i94 visa for 90 days and enter USA (Washington State) ,.....

    USA time " Washington to MN" - aprox 101 days

    Then leaving the country I would have overstayed my second i94 by 11 days.

    End of trip.

    I´m not sure what the consequences are for overstaying by a few days??

    To break it down, the real problem is, will I get that second i94 when trying to leave Canada?

    One of the problems is that there seems to be no consistency in how the immigration officer deals with travelers, some are lenient and what I mentioned above is no problem, some have been harsh......

    What really annoys me about this whole thing is that I am a credible spouse of an American citizen and just want to see her country, and be flexible about it. I´m not trying to work illegally and I can demonstrate that I live in Australia ( mortgage, family etc ). Also my wife has applied for and has permanent residency in Australia now which we got recently - another piece of proof that we ARE planning on settling there and not in the USA.

    Q1. So we start in the US, go through Canada to Alaska, and then back to Canada (having then overstayed the I94 by being in Alaska too long by 14 days). Would we have even have gone through an American border leaving Alaska at that point? Or just a Canadian entry point?

    Q2. How long do you have to be in Canada before it is definitely OK to get a new I94 when entering the USA? Will he have a problem getting a new i94 since he overstayed his last one by 14 days?

    Q3. when we enter MN 3 weeks from now, will it be a problem that my husband and I have not yet booked our return flights to Australia (which we are planning on booking for the end of the year)? We are not ready to book yet, as we are keeping an eye on prices for particular days, but also I can´t see them granting him a 90 day visa if they see we are planning on flying out in 7 months??

    Thank you for any help / suggestions you can give us!

  • #2
    Q1. So we start in the US, go through Canada to Alaska, and then back to Canada (having then overstayed the I94 by being in Alaska too long by 14 days). Would we have even have gone through an American border leaving Alaska at that point? Or just a Canadian entry point? Both. Canadian and US immigration will be on each side of the border.

    Q2. How long do you have to be in Canada before it is definitely OK to get a new I94 when entering the USA? Will he have a problem getting a new i94 since he overstayed his last one by 14 days? More than 30 days. And YES. He will not be allowed to re-enter. He does not have a visa, but uses the Visa Waiver Program and if you overstay that program you CAN NOT use it again.

    Q3. when we enter MN 3 weeks from now, will it be a problem that my husband and I have not yet booked our return flights to Australia (which we are planning on booking for the end of the year)? We are not ready to book yet, as we are keeping an eye on prices for particular days, but also I can´t see them granting him a 90 day visa if they see we are planning on flying out in 7 months?? They will not grant another I-94W (green).

    This plan can not work.

    First of all. The visa waiver program requires the users NOT to overstay, the consequences are serious... it does not matter if it is by a few days or months. Once he has overstayed once, he can not use it again. He will have to apply for a visitor visa. Do not take this lightly. He can not just keep thinking of overstaying, that is not OK.

    Advice: Postpone trip. Apply for a tourist visa which would allow a maximum stay of 6 months with ONE I-94 and fit the whole time in the USA on that time frame.
    Last edited by PraetorianXI; 05-02-2008, 08:11 PM.
    Disclaimer: The information you obtain from me at this forum is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney for individual advice regarding your own situation.

    Comment


    • #3
      Ok
      thank you I understand what you are saying.
      When we left the UK we just thought that if we went to Canada (which would be part of our trip anyhow) and back that that would reset the visa.
      Now I understand that it won´t.

      We are not able to postpone this trip. We are in Central America right now, and fly to MN in 3 weeks time.

      What about if we entered the USA on the i94 and then my husband applied for a B2 visa while we are staying with my parents. Is this possible?

      Thanks

      Comment


      • #4
        OR
        what if we change our road trip schedule, and leave Alaska before his 90 days are up. We plan on then spending a week or so travelling back down to Washington State to re enter the USA. Do you think they would issue another i94 for him for another 90 days at that point, since he did not overstay his previous i94, and we can prove that it is just for a road trip?
        thanks

        Comment


        • #5
          These are the rules that apply to you. Change your itinerary accordingly.

          *You can reenter US on the same I -94 , provided its date is still valid,
          if you spend less than 30 days in canada.

          *If you never overstayed in US, and you reenter US after spending more than 30 days, canada, you will be given a new I-94 with another 90 days.
          You may be asked to prove that you will leaving US( return ticket) before that 90 day period.

          *If you overstay even 1 day in US, you will not be able to reenter on the visa waiver( the green 90 day visa as you call it).
          The border agent will advise you to apply for a visa at home country for future entries, which may be difficult to get after your overstay.

          Comment


          • #6
            Ok
            many thanks for the clarifications.

            We are thinking we will:

            1. enter the US 3 weeks from now getting the i94 visa, and go straight through Canada to Alaska, finishing that trip and reentering Canada before the i94´s 90 days expire.

            2. Then we will do our Canada trip - spending at least 30 days seeing the country, probably more

            3. Then we reenter the USA, getting my husband´s second i94 visa for a further 90 days, and we fly out before that visa expires.

            This would work correct?
            Thanks

            Comment

            {{modal[0].title}}

            X

            {{modal[0].content}}

            {{promo.content}}

            Working...
            X