Usa No Passport Controls On Exit

[jonniebkk]

I have noticed a particular thing about travel to the USA...that there are no passport/immigration control when one leaves the country. This is the only country to which I have been that operates in this fashion. Are there other countries like this?

I am a US passport holder so don't get a entry stamp on arrival or any limitation on my length of stay. Do foreigners entering the US receive such a stamp? I would suppose not as nobody checks any such stamp when they leave. Just seems sorta weird...and another example of American exceptionalism

[lopburi3]

Yes people are stamped into the USA just as any other country. On exit the airline checks there documents and obtains there departure cards.

[samran]

I have noticed a particular thing about travel to the USA...that there are no passport/immigration control when one leaves the country. This is the only country to which I have been that operates in this fashion. Are there other countries like this?

I am a US passport holder so don't get a entry stamp on arrival or any limitation on my length of stay. Do foreigners entering the US receive such a stamp? I would suppose not as nobody checks any such stamp when they leave. Just seems sorta weird...and another example of American exceptionalism

The UK is one in my experience who doesn't check. Many EU countries don't when you are flying within continental Europe - it is more or less like a domestic flight.

As for the US not having immigration controls on the way out, this is not technically correct. While there are no physical checks per se and stamping of the passport, BUT you are supposed to hand back in your immigration departure card to the airline check in before boarding. They then hand these over to US immigration and goes into their records of having left the country.

My wife (NZ citizen) went through the frustrating experience of not returning her immigraton card when she left the US - so technically she was an overstay, even though she left the US within her alloted visa waiver.

To cut a long story short, we had to write off to some obscure adress in Virginia giving my wifes passport details and approximate time she left the US (where she flew to NZ where they don't stamp in their own citizens!), and proof that she actually left the US in the alloted time.

We were alright going back after we had sorted this, but in this day and age of security in the US, I wouldn't want to risk homeland security sending you back after a 12 hour flight based on a techicality!

[sbk]

Last time I left the country I saw booths that foreigners were supposed to use to record their departure. All too often, these people tried to board, were sent back to the booths to record their departure and then have to dash back to the plane to get on before it departs. A very poor system, IMO.

[jonniebkk]

OIC...I guess as a US citizen, this is all "invisible" to me. Seems kinda cumbersome. Why not just have passport control lines at exit too? The plane did show a video on arrival about passport control procedures and there was some segment about those thumb-print machines people were supposed to use to record their departures back home.

I never saw any of the machines at the international departures area of SFO on my recent flight back to LOS. Not having any departure immigration lines makes for a quick departure...and the security check is no worse than Swampy's and not as bad as the triple checks at MNL!

Edited May 25, 2008 by jonniebkk

[Jingthing]

It is part of the funny American mentality that everyone in the world wants to get in (so they make it hard) but nobody wants to get out (so they make it easy). I am serious.

More info in the dictionary under the word: Hubris.

Edited May 25, 2008 by Jingthing

[ovenman]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

[Jingthing]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

[Taijitu]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

Last time I took my wife (Thai) to the UK (Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong), there were no immigration controls/passport controls outbound from Heathrow. She was not given any sort of arrival card on landing at Heathrow; she has no exit stamp and her passport was not scanned on departure.

Edit: Punctuation

Edited May 25, 2008 by Taijitu

[Jingthing]

OK, so maybe it's an Anglo thing. But I think Canadians and Australians do stamp you out.

[ovenman]

Mexico doesn't stamp you out either (I was there last month). The airline takes your arrival card upon check-in for your outbound flight.

[Jingthing]

Mexico doesn't stamp you out either (I was there last month). The airline takes your arrival card upon check-in for your outbound flight.

You're right. They don't.

[PeaceBlondie]

True, about Mexico. If you have an FM-2 or FM-3 and need to get it stamped as you exit Mexico, you have to search for an officer to stamp you out. I have a stamp for entering Spain (from London or Ireland), but none for leaving Spain (for Austria). Leaving Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, China, all stamped. But, leaving Ireland, the UK, and Amsterdam, no stamps. I do not see the pattern, unless Europeans stamp less. I see nothing in the pp that I was ever in the UK.

Passports are messy things. Could it that computer programs have replaced the stamps?

[toptuan]

Law of the Universe: The smaller the country, the more red tape...

[Zpete]

I have noticed a particular thing about travel to the USA...that there are no passport/immigration control when one leaves the country. This is the only country to which I have been that operates in this fashion. Are there other countries like this?

I am a US passport holder so don't get a entry stamp on arrival or any limitation on my length of stay. Do foreigners entering the US receive such a stamp? I would suppose not as nobody checks any such stamp when they leave. Just seems sorta weird...and another example of American exceptionalism

The UK is one in my experience who doesn't check. Many EU countries don't when you are flying within continental Europe - it is more or less like a domestic flight.

As for the US not having immigration controls on the way out, this is not technically correct. While there are no physical checks per se and stamping of the passport, BUT you are supposed to hand back in your immigration departure card to the airline check in before boarding. They then hand these over to US immigration and goes into their records of having left the country.

My wife (NZ citizen) went through the frustrating experience of not returning her immigraton card when she left the US - so technically she was an overstay, even though she left the US within her alloted visa waiver.

To cut a long story short, we had to write off to some obscure adress in Virginia giving my wifes passport details and approximate time she left the US (where she flew to NZ where they don't stamp in their own citizens!), and proof that she actually left the US in the alloted time.

We were alright going back after we had sorted this, but in this day and age of security in the US, I wouldn't want to risk homeland security sending you back after a 12 hour flight based on a techicality!

Myself a NZ passport holder, I have a number of times left Honalulu with departure card still stapled in my passport.

We always have rest in Hawai'i before final leg to AKL.

Been back many times and have never had passport checked on way out.

Mexico, was quite awhile ago, but we parked car, put money pay thingie, and simply walked thru a turnstile.

So disappointing, no stamp, but US immigration check us out on return.

OZ in my experience checks both on arrival and departure

NZ immigration neva stamps NZ passports, coming or going.

[pnewso72]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

Australians do not recieve entry or exit stamps when arriving and departing Aust. You have to ask if you want one. It has be recorded electronicaly for several years now. When you think about it, certainly a better way of doing things.

[Zpete]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

Australians do not recieve entry or exit stamps when arriving and departing Aust. You have to ask if you want one. It has be recorded electronicaly for several years now. When you think about it, certainly a better way of doing things.

My passport says otherwise, mind you, tis 12 months since been to OZ

Mite be like NZ, which does not stamp NZ passports, they leave OZ passports unstamped.

You an Ockor?

Edited May 25, 2008 by Zpete

[Jeffro008]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

Australians do not recieve entry or exit stamps when arriving and departing Aust. You have to ask if you want one. It has be recorded electronicaly for several years now. When you think about it, certainly a better way of doing things.

I think without asking you could still get a stamp in random conditions, i got one on arrival last year.

[IMA_FARANG]

I have noticed a particular thing about travel to the USA...that there are no passport/immigration control when one leaves the country. This is the only country to which I have been that operates in this fashion. Are there other countries like this?

I am a US passport holder so don't get a entry stamp on arrival or any limitation on my length of stay. Do foreigners entering the US receive such a stamp? I would suppose not as nobody checks any such stamp when they leave. Just seems sorta weird...and another example of American exceptionalism

Don't be fooled....citizens leaving the country are often entered into a database. Often passports are used as a form of identification by the airlines. Passenger rosters are shared with frindly foriegn governments and names are crosschecked against known terrorists. If you are in the TIDES database you are in a bad way. If you don't know what the TIDES database is, forget I mentioned it.

U.S. citizens also go through a passport check and a check against government databases. Just because you may not see everything, don't be sure it isn't there.

[JaiDamJungLoei]

In my 60 or 70 odd times re-entering the US the Immigration office has stamped my (US) passport 3 times, I have no idea why and i don't think they did either. One of them used the stamp to hold open my passport and left half a stamp impression on the signature page. This has upset a couple of Immigration officers in other countries, until I explain what happened and show them that it looks like part of a US entry stamp.

In my experience entering the EU, my passport only gets stamped about 60% of the time. Twice entering Italy in the last year they didn't even bother to open the passport.

In countries where you have to show your passport to hotel staff to check in, quite often this is due to the hotels being required to report to Immigration all the foreigners staying there. I've seen this somewhere about Thailand, but I can't remember where.

[samran]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

Australians do not recieve entry or exit stamps when arriving and departing Aust. You have to ask if you want one. It has be recorded electronicaly for several years now. When you think about it, certainly a better way of doing things.

My passport says otherwise, mind you, tis 12 months since been to OZ

Mite be like NZ, which does not stamp NZ passports, they leave OZ passports unstamped.

You an Ockor?

never received a stamp in my OZ passport going to/from OZ, always through melbourne and Sydney. Never been stamped in or out of NZ either.

Having said that, my daughter was born in Thailand and was stamped in when she first entered OZ on her OZ passport. My younger sister used to live in Perth and I noticed that immgration were still stamping her there.

Seems no rhyme or reason to it all!

[EmptyMind]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

The last time I left Germany heading for Thailand my Passport was checked but no exit stamp. I did ask for an exit stamp knowing that Thailand might ask me to prove where I just came from and the Immigration guy in Germany looked lost as to why I would want to bother.

Edited May 25, 2008 by EmptyMind

[samran]

Even as an American citizen, your passport gets scanned going outbound. It's done as part of the airline check-in process.

Yes, but no exit stamp is highly unusual compared to other countries.

The last time I left Germany heading for Thailand my Passport was checked but no exit stamp. I did ask for an exit stamp knowing that Thailand might ask me to prove where I just came from and the Immigration guy in Germany looked lost as to why I would want to bother.

when travelling by air thai immigration know that many countries don't stamp out their nationals. I have dual nationailty, and my Thai passport is mainly used only to exit and enter thailand - the other stamps are in my australian passport.

They never ask....

[pampal]

On my way back from Heathrow to BKK, there was no passport control and no exit stamp in my passport

Edited May 25, 2008 by pampal

[jonniebkk]

The last time I left Germany heading for Thailand my Passport was checked but no exit stamp. I did ask for an exit stamp knowing that Thailand might ask me to prove where I just came from and the Immigration guy in Germany looked lost as to why I would want to bother.

Thats a good point...never thought of that. Of course, wouldn't work if coming from US as there is nobody to ask for a stamp - i guess with those departure kiosks, you get some type of receipt you could show. Maybe that is why Thai immigration sometime ask to see (and officially require one to have/show) your flight ticket/boarding pass stub. It proves where you came from if you don't have an exit stamp. Always wondered about that...thought it another instance of Thai inaneness but now makes perfect sense.

My assumption was if I didn't have an exit stamp from my most recent departure, the inference would be I was traveling from the country of my passport.

[EmptyMind]

The last time I left Germany heading for Thailand my Passport was checked but no exit stamp. I did ask for an exit stamp knowing that Thailand might ask me to prove where I just came from and the Immigration guy in Germany looked lost as to why I would want to bother.

Thats a good point...never thought of that. Of course, wouldn't work if coming from US as there is nobody to ask for a stamp - i guess with those departure kiosks, you get some type of receipt you could show. Maybe that is why Thai immigration sometime ask to see (and officially require one to have/show) your flight ticket/boarding pass stub. It proves where you came from if you don't have an exit stamp. Always wondered about that...thought it another instance of Thai inaneness but now makes perfect sense.

My assumption was if I didn't have an exit stamp from my most recent departure, the inference would be I was traveling from the country of my passport.

Actually it makes sense yes, I never thought about why they demand to see your boarding card and they only ask a few people to show it, but when you think about it, it does make sense that if you don't have an exit stamp in your passport then you could have appeared from anywhere.

Another myth solved :-)

[Tinkelbell]

When I go to TL, I would carry two passports (US & TH). The TH/ pp would be used exclusively for getting in and getting out of TL only. And of course, the US/pp used for checking in with the airline when flying out and for presenting US Immigration when flying back home.

I took a good look at my US/pp, only got 2 stamped out of dozen times on arrival on the US soil.

Having just got back from a trip to Spain several weeks ago. One thing I don't quite feel right. May be this is the way they handle the passengers arrivng on the ship. In the past, the cruises I took , started and ended at the same ports in the US.

When we took the cruise from Miami port, we gone through the vigorous security check-in same as airlines passengers. After 14 days of cruising along ports- of -calls around the Mediteranean Sea, our ship ended at Barcelona port.

Walking out of the ship through inside the port building, with the US/pp in our hand, expecting to meet Spain immigration officers to check our passport. kept walking and kept looking, took the long elevator down. Not a single officerw was there, only taxi touts- dozens of them, ended up with the first taxi and off we went to our hotel.

This really puzzled !

We thought it's really easy for someone just walk into the country, just likes that.

Of course, when we flew out of Madrid a week later, no question asked, no problem from Spain immigration. As easy as we came in.

Most likely the cruise shares data codes with the airport immigration ? ? ?

[david96]

OK, so maybe it's an Anglo thing. But I think Canadians and Australians do stamp you out.

In Australia your passport is scanned and stamped by a customs/immigration officer before passing into the international departures area.

[Naam]

I have a stamp for entering Spain (from London or Ireland), but none for leaving Spain (for Austria).

of course not. you were travelling from one EU country to another one.

[A_Traveller]

The ceasing of outbound direct immigration control in the UK was a '90s innovation and discussions about reintroducing it {in that over surveilled society} are in progress. The UK is also not a full implementer of Schengen so border controls have always remained unlike mainland EU. By the by it's TIDE {Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment}, don't you just love the mart element.

Regards

Edited May 26, 2008 by A_Traveller