The team at McBean Law wants you to know that getting a ban from the United States may not be as hopeless of a situation as it might seem at first. Today, we will go over some common reasons why you might be banned, and steps you can take to overcome this hurdle.
If you are interested in more topics like this, please consider subscribing to our newsletter to get weekly updates on immigration news, relevant topics, and more! You can also find us on YouTube where we do weekly Q&A sessions.
LaToya McBean Pompy is an immigration lawyer who immigrated to the United States from Jamaica. Her experience sparked an interest in helping many families be together in the U.S. by founding McBean Law. If you need help with your or a loved one’s visa, contact us here or call us today at (888)-462-4006 to schedule a private consultation with LaToya and her team of New York immigration lawyers who are here to help you.
Why Were You Denied Entry?
See this topic on our YouTube channel – Visitor Visa Cancelled and Banned. How Can Visitors Return to United States?
The first thing you need to figure out is why you were denied entry into the United States in the first place. There are many reasons for this, so our team at McBean Law will go over a few of the most common ones.
Improper Travel Documents
The first reason why you may have been denied entry into the United States is using an improper travel document upon your arrival.
This can include using someone else’s document instead of your own, or a document that is in your name but that is back-stamped. On the other hand, you may have presented a passport belonging to a country different from your country of origin, for which you should not be able to hold a passport. This includes using a U.S. Citizen’s passport that does not belong to you, or that you are not permitted to own.
All of these issues will be red flags for customs officers, and they may deny you entry into the United States on the basis of improper travel documents. They will turn you around, place you on the next flight back to your country of origin, and ban you from entering the U.S.
Unauthorized Employment
Another reason why you may have been banned from the U.S. is engaging in unauthorized employment either currently or in the past.
If you have ever been in the United States under a visitor’s visa and engaged in unauthorized employment, whether that be babysitting or working in construction, this may raise a red flag if you are found out and then try to re-enter the U.S. at some point.
If the customs officers take your phone and their search shows you planning to meet up with an employer or customer, or if they even suspect that you may have engaged in unauthorized employment, they will turn you around and send you back to your country of origin, as well as ban you from re-entering.
Suspicion of Overstay
If the customs officers suspect that you are planning to overstay in the United States, they may turn you away at the port of entry and ban you from re-entering the United States in the future.
Many things can arouse suspicion of overstay. If you have family living in the U.S., or a romantic partner, they may suspect that you plan on remaining there for an extended period of time to be with them longer than your visitor’s visa would allow. If you don’t have your return flight details prepared, they might find that suspicious as well.
In addition to this, they may also sound the alarm if your situation back in your country of origin is not stable. If you do not have a job or support system back home, they might suspect that you wouldn’t want to return and would rather stay permanently in the U.S.
Past Immigration History
If you have a past immigration violation on your record, the customs officers may catch it where immigration did not.
Past immigration history can have a detrimental impact on your ability to re-enter the United States in the future. This, of course, depends on the significance and severity of your past immigration violations – if you have been deported in the past, for example, this would be a major issue that customs would see as a red flag.
If this is the case, and customs decides that your past immigration history is an issue, they will turn you around, send you home, and ban you from entering the United States again.
What Can You Do?
So, what should you do if you are in this unfortunate situation of being a visitor wanting to enter the United States, but you get turned away and banned from entering?
First, ask yourself how long the ban is. If you are unsure or haven’t been notified on the length of your ban, it is always a good idea to partner up with an experienced immigration lawyer who can bridge the gap between you and the government in order to get these answers and put you on the right track.
After this, you can wait out the ban period. If the ban is not permanent, you can remain in your country of origin or travel elsewhere, waiting for the ban on re-entry into the U.S. to be lifted so you can finally come in.
If you don’t want to wait it out, you can try to apply for a non-immigrant visa waiver. This will set aside the issue on your immigration record and allow you to re-enter the United States safely under a non-immigrant visa. This option is very tricky and complex, and our team deals with these kinds of cases often; It is a good idea to partner with an experienced immigration lawyer if this is the path you want to take on your re-entry journey.
In fact, we have a terrific success story from a PhD student client who had various fraud and misrepresentation on her record – she came to us after multiple denials, and we helped her with a F-1 student visa. She interviewed at a very tough and strict embassy in London, and her case was ultimately approved! She is in the United States now getting her PhD.
Planning Your Roadmap to Success
Whether you are seeking assistance with visa applications, green cards, citizenship, or any other immigration matter, we are here to help you every step of the way. Our mission is not just to provide legal services but to empower our clients with the knowledge and resources they need to achieve their immigration goals. With proper legal counsel, persistent preparation, and meticulous attention to detail, your success can become reality too. Partner with professionals like McBean Law to chart your visa journey’s triumph.
If you are interested in more topics like this, please consider subscribing to our newsletter to get weekly updates on immigration news, relevant topics, and more! You can also find us on YouTube where we do weekly Q&A sessions.
LaToya McBean Pompy is an immigration lawyer who immigrated to the United States from Jamaica. Her experience sparked an interest in helping many families be together in the U.S. by founding McBean Law. If you need help with your or a loved one’s visa, contact us here or call us today at (888)-462-4006 to schedule a private consultation with LaToya and her team of New York immigration lawyers who are here to help you.
