Immigration harrasment and possible mistreatment

[Boiler 43,618]

All countries do it. It helps if you are travelling from a richer country to a poorer country. But if you look hard enough you can find plenty of examples of all sorts of combinations.

There are millions of people here who entered on tourist visa's and forgot to go home. I know a few people who have used tourist visas's to come and work in the US.

By my calculations the lady here will have spent enough time in the US this year to be resident for tax purposes. Pretty unusual for a tourist.

[Tradewind 6]

All countries do it. It helps if you are travelling from a richer country to a poorer country. But if you look hard enough you can find plenty of examples of all sorts of combinations.

There are millions of people here who entered on tourist visa's and forgot to go home. I know a few people who have used tourist visas's to come and work in the US.

By my calculations the lady here will have spent enough time in the US this year to be resident for tax purposes. Pretty unusual for a tourist.

First she will not "forget to go home" because we don't work that way. Second with no green card she can not work so no tax. Being here alot doesn't make her a resident, it makes her a tourist following a USC her husband. Third I put half the family home in her name so maybe she has some rights as a property owner but not resident rights. We will decide later if we want to live permanently in the USA. Just spent $3000 plus making her a resident of Panama over a 2 year plus process. No hurry to spend another $4000 for USA residency plus if we don't know where we want to settle.

We have options so we are fortunate. No hurry to spend money for another long process. Life in Panama is not all that bad.

That is why many gringos are heading South. Weather is very important to us. Safety is also.

[Boiler 43,618]

The IRS want their cut no matter what your immigration status and tax you on your worldwide income.

I was talking in the round, I am not saying your wife would, but plenty of people do. And how do you differentiate?

[Vicomi 31]

Sorry to hear about your wife's experience! The same thing happened to me on my last visit to the US in April 2012. I was on a very bumpy flight from the UK so felt a bit green around the gills by the time we landed at Orlando POE. Queing in a warm stuffy crowded room (save for one big fan) for over an hour did not help either. So by the time I reached the customs guy I was not looking good. For the first time I was asked a barrage of questions. He asked about all my previous trips to the US, which was several since our relationship started and few before then. He asked for my return ticket (that's fine). Demanded why I did not travel with my passport of country of origin (I have dual nationality),as I previously travelled to the US on a B2 visa on a now expired passport of country of origin. I was travelling with the VWP one. This line of questioning went on for several minutes. Then he questioned why I looked ill and made some vague suggestion that I may be carrying something illegal and then asked if I had any prohibited goods, etc. By now people in the que are looking us out and I'm beginning to feel really ill (probably stress) and just downright embarrased. At this point I'm sure he is going to take me for secondary. I explain why I feel the way I do. He accepts my explanation, stamps my passport and says "This time I'm allowing you into the United states, Miss XXX" with a warning that I should carry my other passport too. Although on some level I understood that he was doing his job I was mad as hell because they way I felt during the questioning. So of course, i have no plans returning to the US in the near future until we obtain the K1 visa. I'm sure next time they'll put me on the nex flight back to the UK, as I have no strong ties here, other than my job.

[PuppyLove 24]

"Everybody does it" or "they're just doing their job" doesn't excuse being rude or intimidating while on the job. I've been harassed by CBP before and they even called to the UKBA to have them check up on me when I arrived in the UK. The UKBA man was extremely polite and calm in asking all the same questions I was asked in the US in a much more unpleasant manner. There is a huge difference between asking questions and doing your job in a professional way (like UKBA) and doing it in a scary, threatening, rude, or disrespectful way (as they do too often in the US). When I came back to the US from my vacation, I witnessed more officers barking at new Asian arrivals as if they were all idiots unable to follow simple instructions when not yelled at. How is it that they can do the same job in the UK in a polite and respectful manner and still get people to cooperate with them, but that its just "standard procedure" in the US to bark at people and make them feel afraid and why is it ever justifiable to treat people so poorly?

OP I understand exactly why your wife cried at such treatment. I cried too the first time it happened to me. Its not fun to be interrogated like you are a bad person or a criminal in the first place, but individual officers definitely can and do make it a lot more of a frightening experience. There is just no need for it. You can get the job done in a more pleasant way and get the exact same results as when you do it the scary and rude way. No American should be tolerating such behavior from government workers or excusing it in any way.

[Tradewind 6]

The IRS want their cut no matter what your immigration status and tax you on your worldwide income.

I was talking in the round, I am not saying your wife would, but plenty of people do. And how do you differentiate?

Not sure of your question "And how do you differentiate?" We want to respect the law so we have no problems. No need to break any immigration laws. I am sure we won't have a problem for her permanent residency in the USA.

[Boiler 43,618]

How do they differentiate between the legit visitor and the many who are not? Once you are in your chances of being apprehended are very low.

UKBA is probably a good example of the other end of the spectrum. I remember flying back to Stansted from Spain at 3 o'clock in the morning, looking rough last off the plane and I needed to rearrange my luggage.

The look of sheer relief from the lady at the desk when she realised I was not an asylum seeker was a sight to behold. Apparently they hang back to get rid of any paperwork.

I looked upon it as they have more of a French attitude.

[Tradewind 6]

Sorry to hear about your wife's experience! The same thing happened to me on my last visit to the US in April 2012. I was on a very bumpy flight from the UK so felt a bit green around the gills by the time we landed at Orlando POE. Queing in a warm stuffy crowded room (save for one big fan) for over an hour did not help either. So by the time I reached the customs guy I was not looking good. For the first time I was asked a barrage of questions. He asked about all my previous trips to the US, which was several since our relationship started and few before then. He asked for my return ticket (that's fine). Demanded why I did not travel with my passport of country of origin (I have dual nationality),as I previously travelled to the US on a B2 visa on a now expired passport of country of origin. I was travelling with the VWP one. This line of questioning went on for several minutes. Then he questioned why I looked ill and made some vague suggestion that I may be carrying something illegal and then asked if I had any prohibited goods, etc. By now people in the que are looking us out and I'm beginning to feel really ill (probably stress) and just downright embarrased. At this point I'm sure he is going to take me for secondary. I explain why I feel the way I do. He accepts my explanation, stamps my passport and says "This time I'm allowing you into the United states, Miss XXX" with a warning that I should carry my other passport too. Although on some level I understood that he was doing his job I was mad as hell because they way I felt during the questioning. So of course, i have no plans returning to the US in the near future until we obtain the K1 visa. I'm sure next time they'll put me on the nex flight back to the UK, as I have no strong ties here, other than my job.

Wow it sounds exactly what my wife went through. He asked her questions like. What did your husband do for a living before. She answered restaurant business and he sternly said what type of food? Angry questions like Why is your husband in the USA instead of Panama. She answers because he wants to and he is USA citizen and can be where he wants to.

How old is your husband was another question? All this stuff was known when she interviewed for this visa and answered.

Did the guy think he was going to trick her? He questions were with anger. When she brought forth her return ticket to Panama it took him by surprised as he did not ask for it.....jajaj He was really trying to intimidate her and scare her. She knew she had a visa and did nothing wrong. He did not seem to care about other entries into USA.

He did ask why she was not a resident of the USA. Most of the questions were about me.

Like why do I live in Panama? What my occupation before? He asked what do you do when you come here? Another question was Did he do the process to get residency here? Why does he live in Panama? Lots of question related my personal life.

Also they took a picture of her. Wrote down nothing, recorded nothing. Most of the time in the office was just waiting, long enough to miss her flight.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Tradewind

[Boiler 43,618]

Others have mentioned that they usually ask questions they know the answers to.

I had one bad experience in Newark, total #######, sent to Secondary where the guy was as a nice as pie.

[Tradewind 6]

Others have mentioned that they usually ask questions they know the answers to.

I had one bad experience in Newark, total #######, sent to Secondary where the guy was as a nice as pie.

Of course they knew the answers. He asked What kind of Restaurant did he have? She answered "a food restaurant" That really pissed him off. He said to a third person so she could overhear. "She's a liar"

Wow it sounds like a great acting job trying to illicit something from her.

The first guy in this case was sweet as pie and the second one had the anger.

Maybe because she was traveling alone they were trying to determine if it was a legal marriage or a pretend one. Thats got to be it.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Tradewind

[Boiler 43,618]

You are over thinking it.

[Teddy B 17,251]

To the OP, I feel bad that your wife had to endure this interrogation. My wife had a similar experience about 2 years ago, she was pulled into a secondary room, interrogated, frisked, finger printed, and then denied entry. Come to find out it was all because we failed to purchase a return ticket for her. My wife is a Canadian citizen and was attempting to enter the US in Detroit, there are no favorites when it comes to this type of treatment. While I don't agree with the treatment both your wife and my wife received, I do understand it as being somewhat neccessary to deter illegal activity.

If I may recap your wife's situation, it may help you understand why she was interrogated the way she was.

Your wife is young, she was traveling alone from Columbia, a country very well known for drug (cocaine) trafficking. She had made multiple trips to the states recently and she had a cold. One does not have to be a genius to put that scenario together. Based on all of this, I would say that she was fortunate to be let in and not denied entry. As someone else also mentioned, your wife should be commended for staying strong and seeing it through.

I am not condoning the Border Patrol's actions, just attempting to help you understand it better.

Edited November 6, 2012 by Teddy B

[Reyan 56]

Whether you agree with what they did or didn't do, you can always file a complaint.

http://www.dhs.gov/complaints

[Tradewind 6]

To the OP, I feel bad that your wife had to endure this interrogation. My wife had a similar experience about 2 years ago, she was pulled into a secondary room, interrogated, frisked, finger printed, and then denied entry. Come to find out it was all because we failed to purchase a return ticket for her. My wife is a Canadian citizen and was attempting to enter the US in Detroit, there are no favorites when it comes to this type of treatment. While I don't agree with the treatment both your wife and my wife received, I do understand it as being somewhat neccessary to deter illegal activity.

If I may recap your wife's situation, it may help you understand why she was interrogated the way she was.

Your wife is young, she was traveling alone from Columbia, a country very well known for drug (cocaine) trafficking. She had made multiple trips to the states recently and she had a cold. One does not have to be a genius to put that scenario together. Based on all of this, I would say that she was fortunate to be let in and not denied entry. As someone else also mentioned, your wife should be commended for staying strong and seeing it through.

I am not condoning the Border Patrol's actions, just attempting to help you understand it better.

Very well thought through. Thank you for your comments.

Whether you agree with what they did or didn't do, you can always file a complaint.

http://www.dhs.gov/complaints

[Harsh_77 716]

Wow it sounds exactly what my wife went through. He asked her questions like. What did your husband do for a living before. She answered restaurant business and he sternly said what type of food? Angry questions like Why is your husband in the USA instead of Panama. She answers because he wants to and he is USA citizen and can be where he wants to.

How old is your husband was another question? All this stuff was known when she interviewed for this visa and answered.

Did the guy think he was going to trick her? He questions were with anger. When she brought forth her return ticket to Panama it took him by surprised as he did not ask for it.....jajaj He was really trying to intimidate her and scare her. She knew she had a visa and did nothing wrong. He did not seem to care about other entries into USA.

He did ask why she was not a resident of the USA. Most of the questions were about me.

Like why do I live in Panama? What my occupation before? He asked what do you do when you come here? Another question was Did he do the process to get residency here? Why does he live in Panama? Lots of question related my personal life.

Also they took a picture of her. Wrote down nothing, recorded nothing. Most of the time in the office was just waiting, long enough to miss her flight.

From what all you have added and they drug test that was performed to me it sounds CBP was more suspicious if she was hauling drugs rather than anything else.

That’s a normal procedure why they are visiting who they are going to see and counter question back to her question what your husband is doing, where are his business etc.

Not everyone who enters US is always clean, you would not believe how much effort are put in bringing in drugs and entering US with counterfeit docs, entering US with fraudulent intent.

If she had like 6.5 months in US in a year that itself is another flag as in general even with multiple entry visa normally one is allowed to stay for max of 6 months in US.