Are you wary of travelling to USA currently?

[RosaMoline]

I am sure you will tell me I’m BU, but that’s fine!
I’ve been to the states numerous times - Florida (all over, not just Disney/Orlando), New York City, California (los Angeles), Massachusetts and New Orleans.
Myself and 2 adult DCs were planning to go to Orlando again this October. Primarily for Halloween and DS (28) is autistic & very fixated with all things Disney.
DD (30) and I decided not to go ahead and take DS to Disneyland Paris instead. Yes, we’ve been there before, and it doesn’t really compare to the US version (IMO) not even close, but DS won’t mind.
it’s solely down to the current POS in charge and all his minions. America seems (to me) to be on a knife edge, very volatile, and DD being LGBT is understandably unsettled too.
I am not the sort of person who usually would even give a moment’s thought to something like this, but I just have a really uneasy feeling about going there. Chances are, at age 58, I may never go again.
AIBU or would you be thinking twice at the moment about travelling there? (especially Florida which is a red state)
I detest that man SO much!

Why do you have to go though? Can’t you just not get on the plane and have a nice Easter at home? Putting your kids in with a bunch of MAGA people in this climate (which might be hotter by the time Easter rolls around) is going to be horrible for them. They won’t forget that trip in a hurry, why put them through it?

$30k already spent and not recoverable through insurance for a change of mind, that's why. We booked amazing deals mid last year. Flights, hotels, trains, tours etc. We simply can't afford to lose the money because 'we don't feel like going'.

And because the families we'll be staying with (not the battleground ones) are amazing. If I truly thought we'd be in actual danger we wouldn't be going. As it is I think the kids will be mostly oblivious, and the adults will be responsible for steering conversations away from the current shitshow. Grey rocking the political environment while enjoying pretty buildings and mountains, basically.

I wouldn't believe those unverified reports that seem to come from tiktok or social media.

Green Card Holders/LPRs cannot just be detained and leave voluntarily.

The only way LPRs can get themselves into issues is by a) not carrying your green card on you at all times (legal requirement), b) allowing your green card to expire without applying for a new one/not applying for removal of conditions (if on a CR), c) Violating thw terms of your green card (think criminal activity etc) and d) Being refused a green card renewal due to inadmissibility.

There are a lot of reports that seem to gloss over a number of issues that have caused some instances.
I know I've seen the media class undocumented as "prospective LPRs". If a case is in, eg undocumented adjusting status using the I-485 application, then as long as they have the first NOA (receipt notice) then they are protected from ICE until USCIS make a decision on the case.
This gets a bit tricky if an undocumented migrant has already received a "notice to appear" letter, but still through an immigration lawyer can be protected.
Another example I've read frequently is those using the I-485 but leaving the country without a decision and without the I-131 advanced parole... essentially nullifying their original case.

A lot of people are so clouded in their dislike of Trump.
Statistically removals under Trump so far have been at a lower quantity and slower rate then what they were under Biden in 2024.

A lot of the current cases will have had about 6-12 months and a good chunk above that of background research, case building and intel gathering before these raids take place... so a lot of the foundation works will have been done whilst Biden was in charge.

I follow a lot of the scanner pages for the city nearby where I will be moving too. There were a number of raids where residents comments were like "this is Trump" only for it to be announced that it was part of an 18 month cross-agency operation into money laundering and human trafficking.

You seem to have a lot of faith in ICE following the law at a time when the legal system cannot keep up with the chaos.

I am an immigrant to the UK
despite having all the right paperwork I was once locked up by UK customs for several hours
It was deeply scary
and I can still remember every moment 40 + years later

OF COURSE
immigration officials can break the law

only idiots think they cannot
ANYWHERE

Agreed. Or applying it in good faith. Or having available judges to hear cases in good time. Or not just deciding to ‘revoke’ green cards. Or putting you in detention centers far from where you were originally detained and not updating records allowing loved ones to locate you.

@DdraigGoch @Breezeblock

Not that I have a lot of faith. Just that I'm not buying into the faux hysteria and media agenda being pushed.
My political standing doesn't cloud or stop me deep diving into topics.... especially being bored and trying to fill my time whilst going through the long torture that is legal US immigration myself.

Like anything governmental, it's full of red tape and paperwork. Ice aren't just rounding up random migrants etc.

Deportations and removals proceedings take a long time and involve multiple court hearings in front of an immigration judge before a deportation can take place.
Even after a first notice to appear and hearing, an undocumented migrant can still remain in the US and legally adjust status... usually through marriage to a US citizen and concurrently filing an I-130 and I-845. Again once those are filed, the undocumented migrant is protected until a decision is made (current I-130 processing times are on average 16.5 months). As of today the main USCIS focus are I-130s filed in Nov 2023. A lot of approvals from around 22 and 23 Nov.
Worth noting that being undocumented, visa overstay, unauthorised work are all "forgiven" after marriage to a US citizen.

The TPS that Trump has paused isn't the only pathway for undocumented migrants to remain. DACA is another pathway to claim asylum, and again, like above, once that paperwork is in and a receipt number provided then the migrant is protected until such time a decision is made.

Short turnaround times (such as a few weeks) are possible in extreme circumstances and when warranted. This is usually saved for those with a criminal history and who either pose a risk to the public or to national security.

On average the whole deportation/removals process can take up to 3 years.
So a large number of the undocumented migrants who have been deported since Trump has been in office have already been the the pipeline for a substantial amount of time where a large portion of the removals process will have taken place during Biden's tenure.

https://www.migrationpolicy.org/content/ice-arrests-deportations-interior

https://emplawfirm.com/deportation-process-timeline/#:~:text=The%20exact%20length%20of%20the,to%20three%20years%20to%20complete.

Yeah, I'm still not taking the risk of being detained indefinitely without trial. I'll stick to spending my money in countries that aren't threatening to annex their neighbours.

I did a one-year postgrad in the US about 20 years ago. The university arranged for me to have a student visa. All was fine and I enjoyed my stay. But when I left at the end of the course, I forgot to have the visa 'cancelled' or whatever they do to signify that someone has actually left the course.
I've been back three or four times since then and every time I am hauled out of the line and taken to an uncomfortable bare-looking room called Homeland Security, usually with a great mixture of people - some of whom do look dodgy, some in handcuffs - and a whole lot of security staff, usually chewing gum and always with guns. I have to go through the same explanation each time, there seems to be no recording that would ease my passage the next time. Luckily I was a middle-aged (now old), slightly dreamy-looking woman and I got by each time, usually by going into dtizy-old woman chattering mode, emphasising my Yorkshire accent, until the officer gave up in exasperation.
But I will not be going back until this regime changes. I had a friend who would have been sent straight back to the UKfrom the airport because he had arranged his return flight for 91 days after the arrival day (the limit is 90 days, he had got time zones mixed up), except that there and then he booked another flight for the day earlier. Another friend went as a volunteer at a charity and told them that. She was actually sent back because she might have been working and taking a job from a US citizen!
Travel as a tourist, have a flight back arranged and get someone to check that you haven't forgotten anything. So much depends on the mood of the person wielding the rubber stamp at the airport...

I have not changed my mind from when I originally created this thread.
In fact, the news & things I’ve heard have only strengthened my conviction.
For example, a friend in Canada reports that her hairdresser was verbally abused in Florida & spat at by a MAGA, and told to ‘go back home’ - they had Canadian plates on the car, as they had driven there.
The USA is gradually revealing itself to be a hostile nation, so anyone not American should proceed with caution with regards to travel plans.
Never would have thought I’d see the like in my lifetime 😢

I would not go.
There has been enough people handcuffed and detained for a little mistake on a piece of paper. Including a welsh young woman. Her case is mentioned on this article.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/mar/25/dont-visit-the-us-it-just-isnt-worth-the-risks-right-now

A friend went recently and was pulled aside (Canadian). They were told that now they have new AI that goes through all the entries, visa/ESTA applications, anything US entry related for each person that highlights even the smallest hiccup from the past. I am reluctant to go with my family as the current administration has proven in the past that children can be separated from their parents while they process/resolve whatever mistake/ issue they may think there is for weeks or however long it takes and I’m not willing to take this risk.

I agree, it is unbelievable. Like a dream you are trying to wake up from.

As it has transpired recently ICE is paid by the government for each person detained- so more people detained and for longer, the better for ICE. Zero motivation to get to the bottom of issues and to release people.

How convenient, your friend told you today that her hairdresser was asked by MAGA just int Jen for you to post on mumsnet 😂

ICE is a government agency funded by congressional appropriation, just like all other government agencies.

Where did you come across this nonsense?

Well, this is a good friend of mine & I believe her. You don’t have to 🤷‍♀️

I have to go as my dad is American. Al I expect to have changed is the loss of that polite interest r.e being British, replaced with maybe a go home vibe. But really, that started to come in 6 years ago or so.

Meant to say ICe detention centres. Apologies. Most of them are privately owned and run as businesses.

I just watched a video in youtube about a library that sits in the border between US and Canada and now US wants separare entrance and sections for each country..
Has anyone heard of this madness?
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/21/canada-cross-border-library
It has to be true because proper newspapers do have it reported too.
I just cannot bieve this!

I hope not but i really don’t think so. We are going in the summer as we have family there. I don’t think there’s any issue with trump and LGB.

Lots of countries have politicians I don’t agree with. It wouldn’t put me off unless there was actual danger

Why is a library on the border anyway? Surely the existing entrance has to be either in the US or in Canada? Otherwise there is no border.

Border controls are fair enough really. People in the us really don’t want such a high level of illegal migration

Obviously detention centers are funded per inmate!

Well.... Canada and US do not have a fenced border....
Do you want them to have another wall? Like the Berlin wall?

The town is just in the border, half half, as many other places. It is quite common in Europe, by the way. The town was there before someone drew a line on a map