{"id":630,"date":"2019-01-15T20:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-01-16T04:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/?p=630"},"modified":"2024-08-07T10:02:35","modified_gmt":"2024-08-07T17:02:35","slug":"how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Susan E. Hill<\/em><\/p>\n

Here are common mistakes people make when using their ESTA\/ visitor visa.\u00a0 Some get away with it, but if you\u2019re caught the consequences are severe, and you could be barred from the United States.\u00a0 Remember, it only takes one officer having a bad day to make your<\/u> day even worse.\u00a0 Here\u2019s a short guide to help you avoid trouble.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no guarantee you\u2019ll be admitted with your ESTA\/visa<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t assume you\u2019ll be admitted just because you have ESTA\/visa.\u00a0 Each time you use ESTA\/visa, the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (USCBP) can question you about your intent.\u00a0 Always be prepared, it is your burden to convince the border officer that you are here for a short visit and that you will return home.<\/p>\n

USCBP is looking for patterns that show abuse of the \u201cvisitor\u201d purpose<\/strong><\/p>\n

Officers are suspicious of people who are constantly visiting the U.S.\u00a0 Frequent trips, especially with short turn-around times, indicate you are trying to establish another home and life here. \u00a0Some people think they can extend their visiting time by crossing the border into Mexico or Canada, then turn right around and get back in for another 90 days or longer.\u00a0 This plan carries a high risk of being rejected at the border because you already had your vacation here, and why would you come back right away? For business, there could be legitimate reasons to visit frequently, but there is little explanation for repeated vacations to the U.S.\u00a0 There is no blueprint or formula to follow; officers look at how often and how long you are here given your personal circumstances.<\/p>\n

You cannot \u201chelp\u201d anyone while you are visiting<\/strong><\/p>\n

The U.S. protects its labor market, and wants to create jobs for U.S. citizens.\u00a0 If you \u201chelp\u201d someone for free, you are taking away a potential job from an American worker.\u00a0 All of the following most likely are unauthorized employment on a visitor visa\/ESTA: working for free; internships; volunteering; exchanging services for lodging, meals, etc.; caring for an ill relative.\u00a0 For business visitors, you can network and plan to advance your business, but you cannot do anything that an American worker would be hired to do, such as manage or operate the business.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Extensions: don\u2019t count on them<\/strong><\/p>\n

ESTA visits can almost never be extended\u2014the only exception is for an extreme emergency and even then you can only get 30 days at most.\u00a0 Visa extensions are confusing and can take months for an answer.\u00a0 Most people get in trouble with the complicated laws when the extension request drags on past their requested extension date, or if it gets denied.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Consequences of ESTA\/visa abuse<\/strong><\/p>\n

The consequences can start with the aggravation and expense of being turned away at the border.\u00a0 Notations could be made in your computer file\u2014no one will ever get to see them and the notations could be wrong or incomplete.\u00a0 This could be held against you in the future.\u00a0 More serious consequences include a removal order which bars you for five years.\u00a0 In some cases you can apply for a waiver to get around the bar, but that is not certain and it involves additional time and expense.\u00a0 In addition, you could be charged with misrepresentation, which follows you for life and requires another expensive and time-consuming waiver.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Be prepared<\/strong><\/p>\n

Document your need to be in the U.S. more than once per year, and how you will support yourself.\u00a0 USCBP officers can look through your belongings and electronic devices: texts, email and social media.\u00a0 If you refuse, then they can refuse to admit you.\u00a0 Items that cause trouble: texts\/emails about helping a friend; business cards on a tourist; American credit cards or ATM cards; equipment\/supplies for your business, and many more items that indicate an intent to work or live here. \u00a0Ask yourself, \u201cHow does this look?\u201d\u00a0 If you are already coming up with excuses and explanations, then you may be in trouble.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Susan E. Hill Here are common mistakes people make when using their ESTA\/ visitor visa.\u00a0 Some get away with it, but if you\u2019re caught the consequences are severe, and you could be barred from the United States.\u00a0 Remember, it only takes one officer having a bad day to make your day even worse.\u00a0 Here\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":878,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tips-and-strategy","category-visas"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa • Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Common mistakes people make when using ESTA\/visitor visas. Be prepared-- all it takes is one border officer having a bad day to make your day even worse.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Susan Hill\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Susan Hill\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55\"},\"headline\":\"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-01-16T04:00:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-07T17:02:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\"},\"wordCount\":685,\"articleSection\":[\"Tips and Strategy\",\"Visas\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\",\"name\":\"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa • Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-01-16T04:00:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-08-07T17:02:35+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55\"},\"description\":\"Common mistakes people make when using ESTA\/visitor visas. Be prepared-- all it takes is one border officer having a bad day to make your day even worse.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55\",\"name\":\"Susan Hill\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Susan Hill\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/author\/shill\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa • Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys","description":"Common mistakes people make when using ESTA\/visitor visas. Be prepared-- all it takes is one border officer having a bad day to make your day even worse.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Susan Hill","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/"},"author":{"name":"Susan Hill","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55"},"headline":"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa","datePublished":"2019-01-16T04:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-07T17:02:35+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/"},"wordCount":685,"articleSection":["Tips and Strategy","Visas"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/","url":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/","name":"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa • Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#website"},"datePublished":"2019-01-16T04:00:48+00:00","dateModified":"2024-08-07T17:02:35+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55"},"description":"Common mistakes people make when using ESTA\/visitor visas. Be prepared-- all it takes is one border officer having a bad day to make your day even worse.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/visas\/2019\/01\/15\/how-to-avoid-trouble-when-using-your-esta-or-b-1-b-2-visa\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How To Avoid Trouble When Using Your ESTA or B-1\/B-2 Visa"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/","name":"Hill & Piibe, Immigration Attorneys","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f704a7620380b179a3f58e1e4c7ddc55","name":"Susan Hill","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/aadfe28ffd2650091d134d4d752904eb76b33704a56998114d82106e02bda76d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Susan Hill"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/author\/shill\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/878"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=630"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/630\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.hillandpiibe.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}