Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
Jul 15th 2002, 6:20 am
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94 form
at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her passport.
Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without this I-94 form?
If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even detend her without a
I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can help us if the border
patrol is giving us a hard time?
Joseph
at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her passport.
Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without this I-94 form?
If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even detend her without a
I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can help us if the border
patrol is giving us a hard time?
Joseph
Jul 15th 2002, 4:20 pm
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
On Sun, 14 Jul 2002 22:57:09 -0700, dejanews wrote:
> Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
> form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
> passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without this
> I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even detend
> her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can help us
> if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a border
crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about that) and can
only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the checkpoint is then
out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited 72 hours.
If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly, I
don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available right
at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
Ingo
> Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
> form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
> passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without this
> I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even detend
> her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can help us
> if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a border
crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about that) and can
only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the checkpoint is then
out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited 72 hours.
If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly, I
don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available right
at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
Ingo
Jul 15th 2002, 11:20 pm
#3
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
She has a visitor's visa, not a border crossing card. As I understand it Mexican
citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has anyone
been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
-J
Ingo Pakleppa <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>. ..
> On Sun, 14 Jul 2002 22:57:09 -0700, dejanews wrote:
>
> > Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
> > form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
> > passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without
> > this I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even
> > detend her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can
> > help us if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
>
> Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a
> border crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about that)
> and can only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the checkpoint
> is then out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited 72 hours.
>
> If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly, I
> don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
> suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
> the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available right
> at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
>
> Ingo
citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has anyone
been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
-J
Ingo Pakleppa <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>. ..
> On Sun, 14 Jul 2002 22:57:09 -0700, dejanews wrote:
>
> > Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
> > form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
> > passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without
> > this I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even
> > detend her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can
> > help us if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
>
> Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a
> border crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about that)
> and can only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the checkpoint
> is then out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited 72 hours.
>
> If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly, I
> don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
> suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
> the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available right
> at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
>
> Ingo
Jul 16th 2002, 6:20 am
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
I have to admit I'm not very familiar with regulations for Mexicans. It's quite
possible that there is a special rule for them that they don't require I-94s - I
don't recall ever hearing about that and it would kind of surprise me. Such a rule
does exist for Canadians. But they also do not require a visa, while Mexicans
definitely do.
If that's true, I would expect that she wouldn't have a problem.
Sorry I can't be of more help here!
Ingo
On Mon, 15 Jul 2002 14:56:49 -0700, dejanews wrote:
> She has a visitor's visa, not a border crossing card. As I understand it Mexican
> citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
> coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has
> anyone been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
>
> -J
>
> Ingo Pakleppa <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:<[email protected]>. ..
>> On Sun, 14 Jul 2002 22:57:09 -0700, dejanews wrote:
>>
>> > Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
>> > form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
>> > passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without
>> > this I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even
>> > detend her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can
>> > help us if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
>>
>> Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a
>> border crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about
>> that) and can only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the
>> checkpoint is then out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited
>> 72 hours.
>>
>> If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly,
>> I don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
>> suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
>> the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available
>> right at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
>>
>> Ingo
possible that there is a special rule for them that they don't require I-94s - I
don't recall ever hearing about that and it would kind of surprise me. Such a rule
does exist for Canadians. But they also do not require a visa, while Mexicans
definitely do.
If that's true, I would expect that she wouldn't have a problem.
Sorry I can't be of more help here!
Ingo
On Mon, 15 Jul 2002 14:56:49 -0700, dejanews wrote:
> She has a visitor's visa, not a border crossing card. As I understand it Mexican
> citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
> coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has
> anyone been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
>
> -J
>
> Ingo Pakleppa <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:<[email protected]>. ..
>> On Sun, 14 Jul 2002 22:57:09 -0700, dejanews wrote:
>>
>> > Here is an interesting question. A mexican friend of mine was not issued a I-94
>> > form at the Tijuana border. She has a valid visitor's visa but, no I-94 in her
>> > passport. Can we travel past past the Border Patrol checkpoint on I-5 without
>> > this I-94 form? If we are stopped can they issue the I-94 there? Can they even
>> > detend her without a I-94? Finally are there good attorneys in the area that can
>> > help us if the border patrol is giving us a hard time?
>>
>> Does she have an actual visitor's visa, or a border crossing card? If it is a
>> border crossing card, I believe you don't get an I-94 (I'm not positive about
>> that) and can only travel within the first 25 miles north of the border - the
>> checkpoint is then out of reach for her. In that case, the visit is also limited
>> 72 hours.
>>
>> If she used an actual visa, not having an I-94 indeed is a problem (and, frankly,
>> I don't really see how she could have been admitted in the first place). I would
>> suggest the easiest of all solutions: go back to Tijuana, and come right back into
>> the USA. She would be filling out an I-94 form (the forms should be available
>> right at the checkpoint), pay a $7 fee and get the bottom portion of the form.
>>
>> Ingo
Jul 16th 2002, 10:20 am
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Border Patrol checkpoint and no I-94
[email protected] wrote in message
> She has a visitor's visa, not a border crossing card. As I understand it Mexican
> citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
> coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has
> anyone been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
For all intents and purposes a visitor's visa and a border crossing card are the same
thing: a B2 visitors visa, which will allow you a certain distance past the border,
I'm not sure, maybe 10-20 miles? In any case, the I-94 is to allow you to go into the
interior. You won't be able to get past the checkpoint further inland if you don't
have one and could risk being deported so it is a good idea to go back and get one at
the border. You also won't be able to get an I-94 unless you have documentary proof
that you need one. i.e. concert tickets in LA or something similar.
As for dealing with the border patrol at the southern border: They are a huge pain in
the ass and do basically what they feel like whether it is following the rules or
not. I have crossed the southern border about thirty times and every time you cross
you get a different answer. Don't try to argue with them if you are Mexican since
they will simply throw your ass back across the border and you could even end up with
a five year ban. We had a similar situation where someone I know had her I-94 taken
from her as she crossed through on foot, when she asked why the border patrol agent
said "You don't need it any more" when she complained she got a stern look and he
said "If you want another one you should apply again when you're ready to leave" (She
came down from Canada to visit her parents). The next day she went to the office de
permisos right at the border and told them what happened. They said the guy should
not have taken her I-94 and said she should pay the $6 to get another one. Moreover
they wouldn't give her one until the morning she was due to leave, thus opening the
possibility that she would miss her flight back to Canada, leaving her stuck in
Mexico. I argued with them (patiently) pointing out that as she was a Canadian
resident then technically she should have her I-94 with her all the time while down
in the border region and that they should give her another one right now or else THEY
were in breach of immigration rules. After some huffing and puffing they checked,
discovered I was right and gave her one, after she paid the $6. Since she still had
another two weeks to go, she simply kept the I-94 separate in her wallet in case the
same asshole took it from her again, but at the same time have it with her in case
she was asked.
In truth the border patrol are like little petty tyrants and don't mess with them if
you don't know the law. Unfortunately even if you do know the law if you are Mexican
you will get the short end of the stick.
Good luck.
> She has a visitor's visa, not a border crossing card. As I understand it Mexican
> citizens with visitor's visas are not issued I-94s at land crossings if they are
> coming on a brief visit. Does she really have to reenter and get an I-94? Has
> anyone been in this situation before and what is dealing with border patrol like?
For all intents and purposes a visitor's visa and a border crossing card are the same
thing: a B2 visitors visa, which will allow you a certain distance past the border,
I'm not sure, maybe 10-20 miles? In any case, the I-94 is to allow you to go into the
interior. You won't be able to get past the checkpoint further inland if you don't
have one and could risk being deported so it is a good idea to go back and get one at
the border. You also won't be able to get an I-94 unless you have documentary proof
that you need one. i.e. concert tickets in LA or something similar.
As for dealing with the border patrol at the southern border: They are a huge pain in
the ass and do basically what they feel like whether it is following the rules or
not. I have crossed the southern border about thirty times and every time you cross
you get a different answer. Don't try to argue with them if you are Mexican since
they will simply throw your ass back across the border and you could even end up with
a five year ban. We had a similar situation where someone I know had her I-94 taken
from her as she crossed through on foot, when she asked why the border patrol agent
said "You don't need it any more" when she complained she got a stern look and he
said "If you want another one you should apply again when you're ready to leave" (She
came down from Canada to visit her parents). The next day she went to the office de
permisos right at the border and told them what happened. They said the guy should
not have taken her I-94 and said she should pay the $6 to get another one. Moreover
they wouldn't give her one until the morning she was due to leave, thus opening the
possibility that she would miss her flight back to Canada, leaving her stuck in
Mexico. I argued with them (patiently) pointing out that as she was a Canadian
resident then technically she should have her I-94 with her all the time while down
in the border region and that they should give her another one right now or else THEY
were in breach of immigration rules. After some huffing and puffing they checked,
discovered I was right and gave her one, after she paid the $6. Since she still had
another two weeks to go, she simply kept the I-94 separate in her wallet in case the
same asshole took it from her again, but at the same time have it with her in case
she was asked.
In truth the border patrol are like little petty tyrants and don't mess with them if
you don't know the law. Unfortunately even if you do know the law if you are Mexican
you will get the short end of the stick.
Good luck.
