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British tourist detained by US authorities for 10 days over visa issue

(www.theguardian.com)
205 points n1b0m | 4 comments | 10 Mar 25 18:32 UTC | HN request time: 0.726s | source
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decimalenough ◴[10 Mar 25 19:58 UTC] No.43325298[source]▶
If she is on a "four-month backpacking trip around North America" and tried to return to the US, she has exceeded the 90-day limit allowed by the Visa Waiver Program (which counts days both in the US and "adjacent territories") and is now an illegal overstayer. The unpaid labor stuff and getting refused entry to Canada is icing on the cake.

For the record, I'm no fan of ICE/CBP, but it looks like they're just enforcing the law here.

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1. cpncrunch ◴[11 Mar 25 00:25 UTC] No.43327831[source]▶
There is no mention of her using the visa waiver program. In fact it talks about her "tourist visa" (which allows up to 6 months).
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2. gruez ◴[11 Mar 25 00:45 UTC] No.43327965[source]▶
>In fact it talks about her "tourist visa" (which allows up to 6 months).

No, if you read the article carefully it never stated that she had a tourist visa at all. Only that she was told "she should have applied for a working visa, instead of a tourist visa". That's not the same as her possessing a tourist visa. Moreover a "tourist visa" (of 6 months) isn't something you can apply for at the border. If she just showed up at the border, then by all likelihood she's getting in via the Visa Waiver Program, which has a 90 day limit.

So it sounds like what happened was that she drove across the US border from Canada, tried getting in using the Visa Waiver Program, the border guards grilled her, she cracked under pressure (ie. admitted she was going to do stuff inconsistent with the Visa Waiver Program), and they tried to deport her back to Canada. However, Canada doesn't want to take her back so she's stuck in limbo.

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3. cpncrunch ◴[11 Mar 25 00:57 UTC] No.43328048[source]▶
The article is annoying unclear on the issue of what visa she had, but you're probably right.
4. toast0 ◴[11 Mar 25 05:27 UTC] No.43329411[source]▶
I think she drove (or walked, mode of transportation is unspecified) across the border into Canada, was told her visa was inadequate for her planned activity and to return to the US to apply for a proper visa, when she did return to the US, she was detained.

The article is confusing though. This BBC article has a much clearer and more detailed timeline of her travels.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c80y3yx1jdyo