When reading it, he discovered that not only didn't anyone staple his I-94W form stub in his passport at his port of entry (ATL - they kept it), so he couldn't give it back on departure, but also nobody put a departure stamp on his passport while leaving from ATL to go back home. He just ran from one terminal to another (he arrived from SFO and left for MXP) and hopped on the plane - there were no CBP officers anywhere, he only went through security.
So, what gives? Is the I-94W stub not stapled to passengers' passports anymore? Has it been entirely replaced by the ESTA system? Or will he get in trouble next time he wants to travel to the US?
OA260 From Ireland, joined Nov 2006, 24873 posts, RR: 60 Reply 1, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 16342 times:
I received an admission stamp instead of a paper I-94W, can I depart without a paper form?
The implementation of the ESTA program allows the Department of Homeland Security to eliminate the requirement that Visa Waiver Program (VWP) travelers complete an I-94W prior to being admitted to the United States. Customs and Border Protections (CBP) has transitioned to paperless processing for VWP travelers arriving by air or sea who have obtained a travel authorization. Most carriers now receive messages pertaining to the traveler's ESTA status as part of the traveler's boarding status. Traveler's entering the U.S. under the VWP who have an approved ESTA do not need to fill out the I-94W form nor be given a green I-94W departure card in their passport. Note: The paper form CBP I-94W will continue to be required for VWP travelers arriving without an approved ESTA.
ajd1992 From UK - England, joined Jul 2006, 2645 posts, RR: 6 Reply 2, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 16333 times:
I don't know about now with the whole I-94W form going out of fashion but a few years back this happened to my family and we had to send off credit card statements, school attendance sheets, utility bills, bank statements, payslips, you name it, it had to be sent off. It took around 6 weeks for them to get back to us and say everything was OK but they also advised us to take copies of EVERYTHING we had posted to them as proof the next time we went to the USA otherwise there was a possibility we'd have still been deported regardless.
I'd give the US embassy a call and see what's what.
legacyins From United States of America, joined Aug 2003, 1823 posts, RR: 0 Reply 3, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 19 hours ago) and read 16245 times:
As stated, with the implementation of the ESTA program for Visa Waiver Applicants, the Green I94W is no longer required for entry to the United States. A passport will be stamped upon entry and the Officer will stamp a date underneath the entry stamp stating how long you will be allowed to stay in the U.S..
The US never had departure control control procedure. This being the 21st Century, electronic records of entry/exit are the norm these days.
LAXintl From United States of America, joined May 2000, 22021 posts, RR: 51 Reply 4, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 17 hours ago) and read 16230 times:
HT From Germany, joined May 2005, 6471 posts, RR: 27 Reply 5, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 16 hours ago) and read 16204 times:
Quoting legacyins (Reply 3): As stated, with the implementation of the ESTA program for Visa Waiver Applicants, the Green I94W is no longer required for entry to the United States. A passport will be stamped upon entry and the Officer will stamp a date underneath the entry stamp stating how long you will be allowed to stay in the U.S..
Even pre-ESTA no departure stamps were applied in visitor's passports.
-HT
Carpe diem ! Life is too short to waste your time ! Keep in mind, that today is the first day of the rest of your life !
BMI727 From United States of America, joined Feb 2009, 14310 posts, RR: 26 Reply 6, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 15 hours ago) and read 16198 times:
Quoting LAXintl (Reply 4): Simply put there are no US exit formalities, so no stamp to be had.
I've never seen it either, but then I'm American.
Why do Aerospace Engineering students have to turn things in on time?
legacyins From United States of America, joined Aug 2003, 1823 posts, RR: 0 Reply 7, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 16154 times:
Quoting HT (Reply 5): Even pre-ESTA no departure stamps were applied in visitor's passports
That is correct. The U.S. never had departure procedures when departing the United States. I stated that upon arrival into the U.S., the Officer will stamp the passport without issuing an I94W.
HT From Germany, joined May 2005, 6471 posts, RR: 27 Reply 9, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 4 days 19 hours ago) and read 16054 times:
CSA checking you in for any flight directly leaving the U.S. used to collect the form.
If you had a feeder flight prior to your longhaul flight, the slip usually got stapled to your longhaul Boarding Pass and then was retained when boarding your longhaul flight. Agents at the gate sometimes also made calls to come to their desk prior to boarding to surrender the I-94W-slip.
At IAH, IIRC, it once was collected when I entered KL's Business Class lounge.
-HT
Carpe diem ! Life is too short to waste your time ! Keep in mind, that today is the first day of the rest of your life !
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5392 posts, RR: 19 Reply 10, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 4 days 18 hours ago) and read 16033 times:
Quoting ajd1992 (Reply 2): we had to send off credit card statements, school attendance sheets, utility bills, bank statements, payslips, you name it, it had to be sent off. It took around 6 weeks for them to get back to us and say everything was OK
I am quite surprised you actually voluntarily gave them so much sensitive info.
Quoting ManuCH (Reply 8): But who did I hand my I-94W stub to when departing, back when it was still needed?
Just about anyone. That was one of the major weakpoints of the whole system, imho. On the entry side of the process it's Orwellian procedure and what not. Nevertheles, you are at least dealing with law enforcement officials and record of such dealing is obtained. On the exit side where mishandling could severely complicate your future travel you had to rely on anonymous, rank-in-file airline staff, hoping he or she will not misplace a piece of paper.
Viscount724 From Switzerland, joined Oct 2006, 21448 posts, RR: 24 Reply 11, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 4 days 12 hours ago) and read 15991 times:
Quoting legacyins (Reply 7): Quoting HT (Reply 5):
Even pre-ESTA no departure stamps were applied in visitor's passports
That is correct. The U.S. never had departure procedures when departing the United States
Canada also has no exit controls. The only time you'll encounter any government formalities (and not the Canadian government) is when departing for a US destination from one of the 8 airports with US customs/immigration pre-clearance.
Maverick623 From United States of America, joined Nov 2006, 4744 posts, RR: 6 Reply 12, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 4 days 6 hours ago) and read 15952 times:
Quoting ManuCH (Reply 8): But who did I hand my I-94W stub to when departing, back when it was still needed?
The airline. Usually the boarding agent would take it when checking your docs at the gate, stick it in a folder, and send it down to the CBP office, where it would be filed away never to be seen again.
Quoting ManuCH (Thread starter): but also nobody put a departure stamp on his passport while leaving from ATL to go back home
I've never, ever had a departure stamp in my passport from anywhere in Europe, and I've been going over there every year for the last 5 years (and once to England in 1993).
HT From Germany, joined May 2005, 6471 posts, RR: 27 Reply 13, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 15932 times:
Quoting Maverick623 (Reply 12): I've never, ever had a departure stamp in my passport from anywhere in Europe, and I've been going over there every year for the last 5 years (and once to England in 1993).
I received Arrival- and Departure-stamps from Serbia earlier this year while changing planes (with new check-in) in Belgrade (BEG) ...
-HT
Carpe diem ! Life is too short to waste your time ! Keep in mind, that today is the first day of the rest of your life !
SNLH From Belgium, joined Aug 2010, 30 posts, RR: 0 Reply 14, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 3 days ago) and read 15855 times:
Quoting Maverick623 (Reply 12): I've never, ever had a departure stamp in my passport from anywhere in Europe, and I've been going over there every year for the last 5 years (and once to England in 1993).
Strange, or do you have an european passport or a permanent resident card from a Schengen country? Because you go through passport control when leaving the Schengen area and normally they would stamp your passport if applicable. They are almost the same except and exit stamp has an arrow to the left in the bottom left corner whereas entry stamps have an arrow to the right.
RyanairGuru From Australia, joined Oct 2006, 2484 posts, RR: 2 Reply 15, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 2 days 1 hour ago) and read 15785 times:
Quoting L410Turbolet (Reply 10): Just about anyone. That was one of the major weakpoints of the whole system, imho. On the entry side of the process it's Orwellian procedure and what not. Nevertheles, you are at least dealing with law enforcement officials and record of such dealing is obtained. On the exit side where mishandling could severely complicate your future travel you had to rely on anonymous, rank-in-file airline staff, hoping he or she will not misplace a piece of paper.
I've never actually considered this but you're absolutely right. Over the years I've had the green card taken out in numerous different places from checking in for my domestic flight connecting to the international leg to boarding my flight out of the country, and virtually everywhere in between.
It would only take an administrative error for it to go "missing"
The other thing that happened quite a lot is that people would simply fly off into the sunset with it still in their passport, oblivious to it even being there. Obviously every agent presumed that somebody else would do, so none of them did. It happened to my step-mum a few years back. She was totally clueless. We only found out when she tried to re-enter the USA 2 years later. That was interesting.....
AMS From United States of America, joined Aug 2003, 1689 posts, RR: 12 Reply 16, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 9 hours ago) and read 15666 times:
Quoting SNLH (Reply 14): Strange, or do you have an european passport or a permanent resident card from a Schengen country? Because you go through passport control when leaving the Schengen area and normally they would stamp your passport if applicable. They are almost the same except and exit stamp has an arrow to the left in the bottom left corner whereas entry stamps have an arrow to the right.
You are correct, All non schengen passports have to be stamped upon entering/leaving the Schengen countries. The UK however does not stamp passports when leaving the country.
web500sjc From United States of America, joined Sep 2009, 588 posts, RR: 0 Reply 17, posted (2 years 8 months 3 weeks 7 hours ago) and read 15655 times:
just a question, but why, when you would do an international transfer in the US, are you required to re check your bag- what is the problem with the UK system (passport control- passenger security- board flight)?
disclaimer- i have only transferred through the UK-
SNLH From Belgium, joined Aug 2010, 30 posts, RR: 0 Reply 18, posted (2 years 8 months 2 weeks 6 days 22 hours ago) and read 15630 times:
Quoting web500sjc (Reply 17): just a question, but why, when you would do an international transfer in the US, are you required to re check your bag- what is the problem with the UK system (passport control- passenger security- board flight)?
disclaimer- i have only transferred through the UK-
You have to clear US immigration and customs when transferring in the US from a non-US origin to a non-US destination just because it's US policy not to allow transfers without entering the country like you could do in most of the rest of the world. They probably want to have also control transit passengers. If your connecting from a US domestic to an international flight you won't have to recheck your bags. + you would only have to pass TSA screening once at your origin airport for as long as you would stay airside => in the TSA screened area. But if you arrive from an international flight you will have to pass screening again.
We have almost the same in the Schengen area, once you've cleared screening in a Schengen area and you don't leave the airside you won't be screened again. But e.g. here in BRU if you arrive from a Schengen flight in the A concourse and connect to a Schengen flight from the A concourse you will just mix with departing and arriving passengers, If you connect to an Africa flight at the end of the concourse you only pass passport control without security screening but this is a no return zone as it's an departing only area, no passengers from africa arrive in this zone. But if you connect to an non Schengen flight from the B concourse you pass the screening in the A concourse and arrive landside so you'll have to reclear security in the B concourse. But if they would install a transfer bus from the A to B concourse with a separate passport control in the secured area then you wouldn't have to reclear screening.
What do you mean with problem of the UK system ?
They just have negotiated an opt-out of the Schengen agreement (together with Ireland as they have a agreement to have no border control between the two countries) and thus they have their own borders and do passport control for everyone willing to enter the country.
And as each country is responsible for the security screening they screen everybody who want's to take a flight except those coming from an domestic flight.
Maverick623 From United States of America, joined Nov 2006, 4744 posts, RR: 6 Reply 19, posted (2 years 8 months 2 weeks 6 days 14 hours ago) and read 15581 times:
Quoting SNLH (Reply 14): Strange, or do you have an european passport or a permanent resident card from a Schengen country? Because you go through passport control when leaving the Schengen area and normally they would stamp your passport if applicable. They are almost the same except and exit stamp has an arrow to the left in the bottom left corner whereas entry stamps have an arrow to the right.
This might be it: I have technically never flown out of a Schengen country. Then again, I flew into Basel (and exited the French side) from the UK, and the guy didn't stamp my passport either. I took a train into Switzerland (two days after they shut down the immigration booths, but before Schengen officially took effect). I then flew ZRH-LCY and didn't receive any passport stamp.
Everywhere else, once I got into Europe, I always took a train.
tennis69 From Qatar, joined Apr 2007, 379 posts, RR: 0 Reply 20, posted (2 years 8 months 2 weeks 6 days 2 hours ago) and read 15540 times:
For the most part the US does'nt have a clue who is in the Country, how long they have been there, when they leave. No idea. It's obvious they really don't care, because if they did, our borders would be secure.
SNLH From Belgium, joined Aug 2010, 30 posts, RR: 0 Reply 21, posted (2 years 8 months 2 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 15526 times:
Quoting Maverick623 (Reply 19): This might be it: I have technically never flown out of a Schengen country
The mode of transport shouldn't matter. But are you traveling only on your US passport?
Maybe they've switched to electronic registration of all Machine Readable Passports
Maverick623 From United States of America, joined Nov 2006, 4744 posts, RR: 6 Reply 22, posted (2 years 8 months 2 weeks 4 days 1 hour ago) and read 15445 times:
Quoting tennis69 (Reply 20): For the most part the US does'nt have a clue who is in the Country, how long they have been there, when they leave. No idea.
You could say this about most countries.... many of whom have a population less than the annual number of legal permanent residents (i.e., legal immigrants) to the US.
Quoting SNLH (Reply 21): The mode of transport shouldn't matter. But are you traveling only on your US passport?
Yes, I only have a US passport and hold only US citizenship.
Quoting SNLH (Reply 21): Maybe they've switched to electronic registration of all Machine Readable Passports
I dunno... when I got off the plane in Basel (via the French side) the immigration officer just looked at my passport, didn't scan it or anything. My passport was scanned, but not stamped, at the airport in Zurich on my way to Dublin. And since Switzerland had unofficially joined Schengen literally days prior to my arrival, there were no border controls between them and France or Germany.
The only stamp I've ever received leaving a country is an admission stamp to the US, at Preclearance in Dublin.
Sponsor Message: 
From Switzerland, joined Jun 2005, 2971 posts, 
From Ireland, joined Nov 2006, 24873 posts, 
From UK - England, joined Jul 2006, 2645 posts, 
From United States of America, joined Aug 2003, 1823 posts, 
From Germany, joined May 2005, 6471 posts, 
From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5392 posts, 
That was one of the major weakpoints of the whole system, imho. On the entry side of the process it's Orwellian procedure and what not. Nevertheles, you are at least dealing with law enforcement officials and record of such dealing is obtained. On the exit side where mishandling could severely complicate your future travel you had to rely on anonymous, rank-in-file airline staff, hoping he or she will not misplace a piece of paper.
From Belgium, joined Aug 2010, 30 posts, 
From Australia, joined Oct 2006, 2484 posts, 
From Qatar, joined Apr 2007, 379 posts, 
Printer friendly format 
