Non-American visiting the US? Expect MANY questions...

[nicolas18]

Hi there,

I am currently in Los Angeles and I thought I might warn you guys on what might happen if, like me, you are European (or Australian, etc..) living in Thailand and you suddenly decide to travel to the US for pleasure or business.

Last week, after spending over 19 hours in the air (BKK-NRT, and then NRT-LAX), I landed in Los Angeles and handed my European passport over to the immigration officer. Everything was going well and, after a few standard questions (What is the purpose of your trip?, etc..), he was actually going to stamp my passport.

And then he took a closer look at the stamps in my passport and asked me where I reside. And this is where things got (very) complicated. It went pretty much like this:

- "Where do you live?"

- "What do you do there?"

- "How do you have enough money to travel if you're a student?"

- "Why do you live in Thailand?"

- "What were you doing in Europe before you moved to Thailand?"

- "Are you single or married?"

- "Do you know someone in the US?"

- "Is it a girl or a boy?"

etc etc etc... This went on for ten minutes.

He then took my customs form and wrote some code on it which probably meant "Take a good hard look through that guy's suitcase" since that is pretty much what happened when I reached the customs line.

Thank God, the guy there was actually friendly, unlike the immigration guy. He nevertheless went through all of my stuff and checked stuff on a computer for a good five minutes.

So, if you live in Thailand, are not an American and plan on visiting the US, you should be prepared and expect to spend an extra hour or so answering questions from the folks at immigration and customs.

[Fookhaht]

Glad to see those Homeland Security boys are doing their job!

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

[sirineou]

If I was an American traveling to a European country and at the visa check point in the airport they noticed that before I got to Europe I was actually living in Thailand for a while, and probably noticed visa stamps from my visa runs to Laos , and , or Cambodia, or other countries in south east Asia, How do you think the Immigration Authorities in said European country would have reacted?

[Nana Cowboy]

this happens even to Americans. It's bad luck of the draw when they scrawl on that card for the next guy. it might be 25 trips b4 they do it again.

[Jay Sata]

You've obviously never experienced the welcome at JFK or Miami then?

LAX is the same to the point where I now ask myself do I want to bother with the hassle of the USA.

[Jingthing]

News flash -- it's not only non-Americans. The Thailand connection is still a red flag especially if you're a single man. Go figure.

Here's a tip. These characters are trained to place undue importance on the READING MATERIAL they might find on your person. Perhaps have some fun with them, bring along some Ayn Rand novels ... or perhaps something by Sarah Palin ...

Edited November 27, 2013 by Jingthing

[NeverSure]

America doesn't want you anyway. You just can't take a hint.

(Joking)

[nicolas18]

News flash -- it's not only non-Americans. The Thailand connection is still a red flag especially if you're a single man. Go figure.

Here's a tip. These characters are trained to place undue importance on the READING MATERIAL they might find on your person. Perhaps have some fun with them, bring along some Ayn Rand novels ... or perhaps something by Sarah Palin ...

Errr I don't really want them to think I'm a complete idiot... This being said, the immigration guy saw that I had a bunch of papers in my bag and he did indeed insist on taking a look at them. Thank God, it was just hotel bookings, theme park and attraction tickets, etc...

And, to one of the other posters, EU immigration officials are not as suspicious of people living in Thailand as their US counterparts. I'm talking from personal experience here...

[Jingthing]

OP, you are correct. You were targeted. Yes the U.S. entry people are indeed extremely obnoxious. The most unpleasant entry of any country I have ever entered (easily over 40) and I'm a citizen! I do think the USA is well worth visiting but people should know they have to get IN there first and it will not be fun. There is no point in sugar coating it. Also IF you have anything on your electronic devices that would be considered illegal or suspicious there is a chance your devices will be closely examined which I assume means recovering DELETED files in some cases.

Edited November 28, 2013 by Jingthing

[rijb]

When you meet someone there, be sure to say 'hello yank'! Americans love that, especially if they're from the south.