B2 Visa - I-94 expiry and travel to Canada

[sita_namburu]

Hi,

I am here in the US on a B2 Visitor Visa.

My current I-94 expires on June 30th. I have filed for an extension on April 15. I am planning on going on a cruise to Alaska from Vancouver from June 30th to July 13th. I have extended my stay in the US till September. I have booked my return flight to India in September.

Is it OK to travel to Canada while my US stay extension petition is pending ? I have a 10 year multiple entry US visa and I also have a multiple entry Canadian Visa.

The Norwegian cruise enters the US and Canadian territories multiple times. I just want to make sure that I will not have any issues with immigration issue in Alaska or during my return back to the US.

I contacted the USCIS. They have asked me to check with the Customs and Border Patrol folks. When I contacted CBP folks, they are asking me to check with USCIS.

Any help in answering this question will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

[pontevecchio]

How long have you already stayed in the USA?

[sita_namburu]

I came to the US on Dec 24th, 2012.

[t75]

You should have planned your entry and travel better to avoid having to apply for an extension. Your reasons are really weak and if the extension is denied (very possible), your visa is void and you can be denied entry into the US.

[pontevecchio]

You have stayed for almost 6 months. It would be a good idea to schedule a Consult with a Lawyer ASAP. If leaving means the EOS is deemed abandoned then you may be able to return and persuade the POE Officer that it was poor planning and you have the tickets to leave in September if he gives you any grief.Talk to a Lawyer.

[sita_namburu]

Folks,

 

I just returned from my Canada, Alaska cruise. I got really scared by the advise posted below by T75. I contacted the US customs and border patrol before my trip and they advised me that I should not have any issues travelling to Canada with an expired I-94 while a petition for an extension is pending. I sent a few emails to the USCIS requesting to expedite my processing for my I-94 extension and I provided them with my Norwegian cruise and flight details. I called them too. They processed my application and gave me an I-94 extension.

 

Once I completed the sightseeing in Vancouver, we were in a line to do the immigration checkin for the Norwegian cruise going to Alaska. The Customs officer took my fingerprints, looked at my multiple entry visa and my expired I-94. He took that expired I-94 away and stamped my passport with a fresh 6 month extension. I then told him that I got a letter of extension approved. He looked at that paper and adjusted the new I-94 with the date given in my approved extension (oct 31 2013). He then wished us a bon voyage.

 

So the bottom line is - if you have a petition with USCIS for a I-94 extension, you can go to Canada on an expired I-94 and a valid passport with a valid Canadian visa without any hassle and come back to the US. 

 

Going to Canada does not imply that your EOS (extension of stay) petition is abandoned.

 

You don't need to talk to a lawyer and get tensed up. Hope this helps.

 

Thanks

Sita

[pontevecchio]

It was always the case that AVR works for trips to Mexico and Canada less than 30 days in duration.  You got lucky as they say because you got an Officer who was inexperienced in the matter. What the Officer did was wrong.. I would not try and mislead other people and make 2 plus five.

[pontevecchio]

I will now rephrase the last post. All you had to say was that your EOS was already approved before the cruise. Hence AVR was always applicable. Your initial post did not categorically state that you had an EOS with I94. If you had said that clearly the response would have been "enjoy your trip" . Hence if it was the case that your EOS was already approved before the cruise ignore my previous reply. You would seem to have come back on the basis of AVR. aka AUTOMATIC VISA REVALIDATION.