To think it's crazy to be planning a holiday to the USA right now

[Fragmentedbrain]

I know border control there has never been a relaxed experience but the risk of being detained arbitrarily for weeks or longer seems unacceptably high now.

Never had that sort of trouble. But then I usually use Eurostar and travel by train/ferry to wherever I'm going (even as far as Finland, Romania or Malta).

Why would anyone want to go there anyway? I wouldn't want to give them my money.

Do not go it's extremely dangerous.

The ESTA requires you to add your accommodation details. It’s not rocket science to add something to satisfy this requirement.

I have had to produce a paper copy of a hotel booking at US immigration to prove this.

The rest of the family have EU passports. It’s a standing joke that they’ll all be pissed in the bar by time I’ve got through.

I’m still mightily fucked off at my employer at the time that wouldn’t allow me to get an EU passport while I could.

Ok, that's a question from someone who has never been to the USA

I’ve just returned from Texas visiting family. I travelled with my young child who has a different surname from me and I am not white - but am a UK citizen. I warned my child about border staff and not to speak unless spoken to etc.

We breezed through, barely any questions, nothing about our different surnames, asked nothing about his dad, no one asked for my phone. Just fingerprints, why are you here, how much money do you have with you and do you have any meats etc in the treats you brought for your family. Lady was pleasant and even slightly chatty. My child walked away saying “mum, why did you say they are mean, she was nice”

I had been worried after reading stuff online, but it was absolutely fine.

It will most likely be fine, many tourists go through with no issue. There was someone from Ireland detained recently. He had a medical event. In the past they would have accepted the medical letter. But they put him in prison for two weeks.

That story completely put me off.

Same as they always have.

We’re choosing not to travel to the US to spend money and our supermarkets are highlighting Canadian products so we can avoid buying American. The border crossings are much quieter as Canadians are also not travelling into the US.

Regularly travel to the USA as both DH and I have family there. DH is black and has a green card, teen/adult kids (mixed) and me (white) don’t.

We haven’t noticed any difference, personally. Immigration at some airports has always been tense - long queues, rude staff, I’ve been ‘detained’ for additional checks several times, DH once (pre-Trump). JFK and Miami airports are particularly bad.

Last went earlier this year (JFK) and other than long queues there were no issues. Going back (Atlanta) in the autumn. DH has experienced more obviously race-related hassle at Charles de Gaulle than at any American airport.

It does…sort of… can’t be bothered to look now but the information is there (looked it up earlier when I first read this thread). if you are coming in on a tourist visa most people will have a a plan for where they will be staying and what they will be doing while visiting.

The border control agents are looking for signs that you’re not planning any shenanigans. A red flag is accommodation. Just watch any tv show about border control in any country and you’ll see the same. the show about Australian immigration has many episodes where they turn people away for the same thing.

The Border Control Agents (in all countries) have heard every wooly story out there and know what to look for.

You mean the guy that ‘allegedly’ committed a felony and overstayed his visa?

As it should be.
🇨🇦

That isn't true.
🇨🇦❤️🇺🇸

Well we are having a great time in the US! No issues at immigration- why would they be?! We go every year and always have the best experience- sunning ourselves on the west coast. Never had any issues with immigration ever- in fact we only ever seem to get the nice border officials

Ridiculous. Teach him to think critically & you’ll be doing him the world of good.

We’re there currently having an amazing time. I’m no fan of DT but the Americans are as lovely, friendly & welcoming to tourists as they always have been. Immigration agents were stern (as they always have been) but it was fine & our 18 year old DS went through immigration on his own as a US citizen for the first time ever - no issues & the usual ‘welcome home’ from the immigration agent for him (despite his English accent). It’s all good if you’re visiting on a legitimate holiday.

Nope. US immigration officials at airports are stony faced, no smile, no hello. They are rude and unwelcoming.
I’ve just gone through Japanese immigration at Tokyo Haneda and you couldn’t ask for a more friendly welcoming to their country.
Don’t visit the US unless you absolutely have to. There are far nicer, more welcoming countries to visit. Japan for one.

Well we always go up and set hello and in about 20 odd trips I have done they have all said hello back. They are exactly the same as border force when we land back in the Uk. We ended up having a quick chat about places to see when we landed this time so as long as you are polite when you greet them you have no issues.

we genuinely have a great time very time we come as a family . We have met so many lovely people in many states (I’m up to 32 now) and they love chatting to Brits. I honestly can’t recommend coming enough. I don’t have any family here or any political allegiance- it is just such a fascinating and fun place to come .

Would you go to any country where the president of that country had fucked children?

Go by all means. It's highly unlikely that you will be detained. However, if you value the environment, human rights, human decency and don't agree with criminals running the country, I would vote with your feet and give it a skip. Canada is much nicer.

You don’t take citizenship. If he qualified for it upon birth (based on requirements for passing it down from a parent) then he automatically has it. He has to prove it to get the passport but not the citizenship that he will already have. It doesn’t matter that he is British and born/lives in uk, you can have two citizenships.
Therefore, if he does qualify as an American citizenship then he should have got a passport and be traveling on it.

Mom and her four American-born children detained after visiting Canadian border: ‘What authoritarianism looks like’

I go a few times a year for meetings.

As long as you have an ESTA, haven't told fibs to get it, no criminal record, accommodation for your stay, enough money and a legit reason for travel (tourism is legit), you're likely to be fine.

Being white does help, sadly, when it comes to getting pulled for 'random' screening.

When I tell them I'm there for meetings, they do sometimes ask a few more questions to see if I need a work visa, but what I'm there for is covered by the ESTA. Sometimes I just tell them I'm there for tourism, they rarely challenge that.

If you are unlucky enough to get pulled, and you've got a load of anti-US/Trump/Israel/whatever on your socials, good luck at the moment. Delete before travel.

I wouldn't recommend deleting social media apps from your phone either, especially if you're young. They'll be naturally suspicious and just search you up.

I travel with a large group of people, various nationalities and ethnicities, and while some of us have been pulled, none of us have been detained or turned away.

The only people I know that can get into the US are people who've lied about past criminality on an ESTA (which they don't investigate outside of very serious crimes), then declared said criminality on a visa application. That'll almost always get you a lifetime ban.

I think it has always been a potential risk that has increased since Trump. I have a friend who was accidentally born in the middle east (his father was some sort of ambassador and he was born before they were scheduled to return to the UK for the birth) and he had a rough time at the border when Obama was president. Somehow I don't think he'll be trying now!

Last time I went I entered via Canada and they asked me if I lived in Canada three times in slightly different ways. I am autistic so this sort of thing stresses me out anyway and it was difficult for me not to point out that he'd already asked me that. Plus, the guy had pretty much my high level life story in front of him from my ESTA, he knew I didn't live in Canada! Definitely won't be going under Trump but the second someone more reasonable gets in I'm there.

My friend’s American BIL and her DSis won’t be travelling to the US whilst Trump is in power. He works for the US forces in GB, so he gets fast tracked through immigration. Apparently he’s concerned that she might get deported and he wouldn’t know for hours.