scrubbedexpat099

Funny I have never read anything to support that.

Dorothy

They can see when they scan your passport your previous visits without looking at stamps. I'm Canadian and used to very frequently travel to the US by land crossing. My Canadian passport doesn't have any American stamps in it, however they do know when I've been across.

When we emigrated from Canada to Australia we flew out of Toronto to San Francisco. You go through US pre-clearance in the Toronto airport, so don't need to do it again when you get to the US. The border guard there scanned my passport and asked me a whole lot of questions..."Where are you going?", "When was the last time you were in the States?", "Where was that trip to", "Why do many trips of 1 day or less?". There were no stamps in that passport to show that I had ever been anywhere. My Australian entry stamp was/is the only stamp in it.

tintin24

https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlike...ada_sees_when/

Info shown when passport is scanned - Travellerspoint Travel Forums

I just find it strange how with my last visit they didn't seem to know the length of my last stay, maybe they didn't even bother looking at the screen or something?

Dorothy

Unless the country has exit controls then they wouldn't, would they? My Australian passport is full of exit stamps from countries who have exit controls (UAE, Singapore, Thailand, etc)

Pulaski

"Didn't seem to"? Why do you think they didn't know? ..... Was it because they asked you?

tintin24

Yes, when I told them my return date being in 90 days, they just asked if I had stayed for the full 90 days in the past, like they had no idea if I had or not?

Pulaski

It's a trick - they often ask some question like that (When were you last here? How long did you stay last time? etc.) to see if you tell the truth.

It is a very old interview/ interogation technique, to ask a question for which the answer is already known, to see if that is the answer you give. ..... They often ask a question like that of my mother, and she is now quite elderly, but even she knows (without help from me) that it is a game that they're playing.

Noorah101

This I-94 you overstayed. .... was it a VWP trip (I-94W)? If not, what visa were you on? How long was the overstay?

Rene

tintin24

So what would have happened if I gave the wrong answer?

Pulaski

More questions, and if things don't smell right, a trip to secondary.

MarylandNed

Right, there are no US exit controls but passenger manifests are reported (via APIS) to CBP so they know who left the country.

APIS: Advance Passenger Information System | U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Land exits via Mexico or Canada might not be properly recorded. That's why it's important to hand in the I-94 when you're done with it and to keep proof that you actually left the US.

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...l-have-my-i-94

S Folinsky

sometimes the records are not as good as they could be. Even if mistakes happen 0.5% of the time, that still is a lot of people given the volume of traffic.

Orangepants

Well, I used to travel a lot to the US using a B1 for business. I was building a house in Charlotte initially in 2006. Each time I came in, for about 10 days of every month, I was asked how the house was going. It was there in front of him I can assure you. Yes I've been to secondary more times than I can remember. I did have immigrant intent just not on those visits. When I finally immigrated 4 years after the house had been finished, the fella said - enjoy that house you haven't been able to live in for 4 years!

sir_eccles

As one of the comments in those links says, it depends on what database it links to. Always assume they know about what you are trying to hide from them. Any question they ask is unlikely to be random and they certainly aren't asking questions to which they do not already have the answers. If you lie to them when they ask you a question, you are only making more trouble for yourself and possible end up being denied entry.

You are confusing "man in uniform with a rubber stamp" with "exit control". Yes they know when you left.

To reiterate - always assume they know

tintin24

Last question, carry engagement ring, good or bad idea?