Secondary questioning(detention) at airport

[bronsie2000]

I am posting this thread after reading similar incident which was posted couple of days back & I am planning to vist US.

This incident happened to me when I visited US first time in June 2009. Although I am 30, married & travelled alone on B1/B2 to visit my elder brother, I had only asked for 5 weeks stay. The officer questioned for 3 to 4 hrs, gave me only a 5 weeks stay & also preponed my return ticket to 5 weeks.

I too was really embarrassed & just wondering why it happened to me only.

Now I am alone planning to visit US again after a gap of 6 months. This time I have an unpaid leave of 6 months form my employer & plan to stay for 6 months. Well, I had returned first time before my I-94 expiry.

This time I really need a concrete reason to ask for a stay of 6 months.

Please please guide with the appropriate reason of stay for a grant of 6 month stay.

Thank you very much in advance.

I really appreciate this website & provides a geat helping hand to many newcomers like me visitng US.

Keep up the good work..All the best.

[smohanty]

Do you seriously expect us to tell you what reason you must give to be granted a 6 month stay in the US? How are we supposed to know why you are coming here?

If you are coming for travel purpose then that is exactly what you need to tell immigration.

Let me tell you this though... you were noticed the last time you came here even though it was for a short duration stay. That means for some reason you gave them the impression that you were a prospective immigrant. And if that is the case then they are sure to have made detailed notes in your immigration record/files.

By visiting again so soon after your previous visit you are definitely giving them reason to believe that their initial impression of you was correct.

So if you do not have a serious and valid reason to visit the US or an emergency that requires you to enter the country at this time (within 6 months of your last trip) then avoid making the trip.

Otherwise you may find yourself in a repeat situation as last time and if they are not satisfied with your explanations you may find your visa invalidated and your self sent back to India from the airport itself.

[bronsie2000]

Thank you very much for your advice. Actually there was a descrepancy in my return ticket which created all the confusion last time.

Actually my brother is returning permanantly from US next year. As I may not get a chance again to visit US in future, I want to make maximum use of this trip. My trip is tourism purpose only & I want cover as many places as I can. We will be touring on weekends only.

I totally agree with you based on my previous incidence that this would be not the right time to visit US(within 6 months). I can delay my trip for a couple of months too.

So please guide me after how many months is it ideal for making the trip.

Thank you once again...

[bronsie2000]

Administrators, please reply.

[txh1b]

Stay away for atleast 1 year. What is your reason for such a quick return and the need to stay in US for 6 months?

[bronsie2000]

Thank you very much. As I have mentioned, I won't get a chance in future to return to US(brother returning back permanantly), I want to stay the maximum period on this trip.

[kabkaba]

When you asked for 5 weeks and had a longer return ticket, they obviously suspected you of wanting to stay longer.

You can try getting a longer (6 month) round trip ticket. Make a good itinerary of your travel, get supporting documentation from your employer, and see how much they can give you.