Travel Warning : Nightmare at INS POE for H1B Applicant!
Posted Dec 07, 2001
Many people have travel plans for the upcoming holidays. For those of you traveling from overseas, we recommend the exercise of common sense combined with extreme caution when applying for reentry into the U.S. On Nov. 2, 2001, we reported an incident involving innocent inquiries by an engineer on a long haul flight regarding the operation of an airplane emergency door. The NewsBrief, entitled Restrain your Curiosity when Traveling! – A Cautionary Tale is available on MurthyDotCom. We now have learned of an incident where an otherwise innocuous business card resulted in an H1B applicant's having been denied entry into the U.S.
The applicant had been working in the U.S. on valid H1B status. He traveled out of the country for the Thanksgiving holiday, in November 2001, to attend a friend's wedding in Italy. The return flights were diverted from originally being Washington, D.C. to San Francisco to instead come into Chicago and then go on to San Francisco. Upon his return, the INS officer at the Chicago Port of Entry (POE) noticed that the H1B applicant had a business card with him. The INS officer asked to see the business card. Apparently, the business card was for a side business / hobby which the H1B visa applicant hoped to pursue upon obtaining appropriate employment authorization document (EAD). The I-485 had been filed about a month earlier, so the person was expecting the EAD within the next month or two.
After asking some questions, the INS officer at the Port of Entry determined that the alien was probably violating the terms of the H1B status by intending to work without authorization. The H1B applicant was a professional who was working for the H1B employer and had maintained status throughout his life. He had attended a weekend photography course at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He repeatedly pointed out to the INS officer that he had never worked for the photography business, that he had just put some details up on the website about 5 days earlier, and that he was hoping to do some studio shots as a photographer and as a hobbyist in the future. The INS officer refused to allow the H1B visa applicant the right to use his cellular telephone to contact an attorney or call any friends, forced him to sign a statement that he intended to work in the U.S., threatening to put him into detention if he did not sign the statements to that effect. The H1B applicant was denied entry to the U.S. and chose the option of buying an expensive, one-way ticket, rather than spending a night in an INS detention facility. He was returned on the next flight back to his home country of India.
In light of this and similar post-9/11 incidents, we remind our MurthyBulletin and MurthyDotCom readers that your luggage and belongings are always subject to search. This is even more prevalent since September 11th, as part of INS increased security measures. Out of an abundance of caution, it is better to assume that all of your personal items will be searched. We have heard of situations where letters and photographs were used against people to deny them entry into the U.S. It is recommended that travelers pack as lightly as possible and limit their carry-on luggage to those items that are absolutely necessary. This is both a practical solution to avoid lengthy waiting for check in at the security gates and should assist in smooth processing upon reentry to the U.S. © The Law Office of Sheela Murthy, P.C.
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