tht

Not to make things worse. But you need to be careful to check future visas / countries you visit, a lot ask as part of a visa application / border entry if you have ever been denied entry / deported from a county, which this may count as, and places like Canada share information with the USA.

All the stuff you have said is why my friends who did the whole backpacking thing did the US first and spent less than a month here. They basically say the $'s spent being here for a month will let you "travel" in places like Thailand for 6 months or more with a quick "visa run" to Vietnam or Cambodia when the visa is running out.

bewildering

That is very harsh. But I guess from their perspective you have no ties to the UK, and a very nebulous plan for your 3 months in the US. Also, I imagine the stress of the situation probably did not help you make a coherent case.

The last 3 presidents smoked weed, and the last 2 used cocaine. Unfortunately, the DEA still classifies weed as a schedule 1 drug - more harmful than Meth (schedule 2) Hopefully they didn't record that you are a drug user as a reason to deny entry.

I suspect your B visa will be tough unless you get some ties to the UK. But some more knowledgable person will chime in on the B visa. Good luck.

Pulaski

As I noted above, without knowing why they even stopped and searched her, we'd only be guessing. For all we know, she may never be allowed into the US again.

Jerni

Hi grace,

I was denied entry so I can appreciate what a horrible experience you had. My denial was quite a long time ago and I was traveling on a B1. You'll want to look at the paperwork they gave you, there will be a sheet called Withdrawl of Application for Admission/Consular Notification (should still be called something similar). It will list the exact reason why you were denied entry. Hopefully this was the option they gave you (option to withdraw you application for admission).

It is totally down to the officer who initially inspected you - when I was being escorted back to the plane, the officer (different one than the one who denied me) was actually really nice but for me the kick in the teeth was when he said "you know if you'd come through my line, I would have just admitted you", I don't think he said it to be mean as he seemed genuine and sincerely sorry about what was happening. I'll never forget that and even when arriving to the US with a Greencard now the thought always runs through my mind about whether I "picked" the right person.

I was actually treated quite poorly during the whole ordeal and when I got back to the UK I wrote letters to several US departments explaining what happened. A few months later I reapplied for a B visa and it was approved. Whether my letters had any bearing on that I'll never know (doubt it). But in the end everything worked out OK.

The key as others have mention is what section of the INA is noted on that Withdrawl of Application notification.

hungryhorace

Probably about 98% of the UK population.

scrubbedexpat099

I was thinking the same.

Back to the topic does it matter anytime soon, you are next off to Canada, perhaps something for the future when you are back home and settled and are looking to visit the US?

civilservant

+1 - one of the 98% right here.

mikelincs

another one here...

Pulaski

I think 98% is a bit too high an estimate, but whatever the number, I am also part of it.

sir_eccles

I did not inhale!

crg

A VWP refusal will not typically get a copy of that form since they have waived a right to review and therefore will not be granted the opportunity to withdraw from proceedings.

I assume they were found to have failed to overcome the presumption of being an intended immigrant and VWP refused.

S Folinsky

One of the requirements of VWP is possession of non-refundable travel ticket out of the US. So the foregoing sentence has me wondering.

BTW, when I was in practice one of the more frustrating exercises was to ascertain the true descriptions of what happened in the port of entry. Unfortunately, the client was tired, jet lagged, did not really understand the system -- so their description was not the most reliable. And the CBP paperwork [I-213 and "sworn statement"] often had a feeling of "a man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest." [Thank you Paul Simon "The Boxer"].

tht

She said "and that my flight to Canada was mid January". So it sounds like she had an onward ticket as required. Are you asking why they sent her to the UK instead of Canada or something else?

Pulaski

(i) She was denied entry, but not for lack of an onward ticket
(ii) Her onward ticket wasn't valid until January
(iii) She had to buy a ticket to somewhere that would let in her in, amd presumably didn't want to show up in Canada three months early.

md95065

While it is certainly the case that most reasonably priced airline tickets are "non-refundable" I wasn't aware that the "non-refundable" part was a requirement for visitors using the VWP.