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Help: CBP made a mistake on my Form I-94! How can I request a correction to ensure immigration compliance?

9 Oct

You took an exhausting international flight to the United States. You waited in a long line at the airport to be inspected by a U.S.Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer. After admission, you are excited about your new opportunity in the United States. And then, you dutifully check your Form I-94 admission record online only to discover that the CBP officer has made a mistake on your I-94.  

The I-94 is the ever-important document that serves as evidence of your nonimmigrant status and how long you can stay in the United States. The I-94 is generated upon each entry to the United States. A mistake on the class of admission on the I-94 can impact whether you have employment authorization or not. If the validity date of the I-94 is unexpectedly shortened, you may be at risk of overstaying your status—an immigration violation—if you do not notice the shortened validity date. Unfortunately, CBP officers frequently make mistakes on the I-94, and even in cases of clear government error, the foreign national is responsible for ensuring the I-94 is correct and promptly securing a correction if it is not.  

It is so important that the information on the I-94 be correct to avoid potential immigration problems and being deemed ineligible for tangential benefits that stem from your lawful status, such as the ability to apply for a driver’s license or Social Security card. This is especially true ever since CBP implemented its Simplified Arrival policy and stamp-less entry to expedite the admission process.  

So, what can you do to avoid or correct errors on your I-94? 

First, immediately upon entering the U.S., access your I-94 record and check that the information is correct. The I-94 is electronically available on CBP’s website. You can also use the free CBP One Mobile Application to quickly access a digital copy of your I-94 and up to five years of travel history on your phone. Although cell phone use is not generally permitted in the port of entry’s admission area, you should try to access the I-94 record before leaving the airport’s restricted area so that you can immediately talk to a CBP officer who can help correct any mistakes.  

Next, if you’ve already left the port of entry, you can attempt to request a correction of the I-94 record using CBP’s Traveler Communication Center (TCC) website. On their “Ask a Question” webform, you can select “I-94 / Traveler Compliance” in the topic dropdown menu and then select the relevant request, such as “Issue with my I-94 / Travel History.” If you are a dependent spouse in E or L status and did not receive an “S” annotation, which automatically allows you to work in the United States, you can select “E and L Dependents class of admission change.” You should summarize that your I-94 record was not created correctly upon your most recent entry. You may have to provide copies of the following documents to CBP for the purpose of correction: 

  • I-94 to be corrected; 
  • Copy of your passport biographic page; 
  • As applicable, a copy of visa stamp, I-797 approval notice, endorsed I-129S, etc.; 
  • Copy of entry stamp in your passport, if any; and 
  • Your travel/itinerary tickets. 

 Hopefully, the problem can be solved through electronic means; however, should contacting CBP through the TCC website not result in a correction, you may instead need to contact a CBP Deferred Inspection office to correct the mistake. While some CBP Deferred Inspection sites accept requests via email, others—like those in Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio—only accept in person visits. Before going to a CBP Deferred Inspection office in person, please contact your Foster attorney for case-specific guidance.  

Contact your Foster attorney if you are unable to correct your I-94 admission record using the tips above. Further escalation may be needed. In some cases, the issue might correct itself the next time you travel abroad, or it may be necessary to file an extension petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  

Foster LLP will continue to provide practical immigration insights and provide updates about any developments via Immigration Updates©, social media posts, and blogs on our website at www.fosterglobal.com.