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I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

226 points proberts | 1 comments | 05 Dec 25 16:04 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source

As usual, there are countless immigration topics and I'll be guided by whatever you're concerned with. Please remember that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases for obvious liability reasons because I won't have access to all the facts. Please stick to a factual discussion in your questions and comments and I'll do the same in my answers!

Previous threads we've done: https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=proberts.

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miotintherain ◴[05 Dec 25 16:44 UTC] No.46163747[source]▶
Hi Peter, thanks for the AMA!

I work for an American company and I am based in Europe. I visit the US for work every now and then. I heard a lot of horror stories regarding border entries. If I am ever in a situation where the border police asks for access to my personal phone and pin code, what are my options? Can I refuse and what happens then?

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proberts ◴[05 Dec 25 18:26 UTC] No.46165193[source]▶
You are within your rights to say no but if you say no, almost certainly CBP will assume that you are hiding something and deny you admission.
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criddell ◴[05 Dec 25 19:39 UTC] No.46166254[source]▶
Can they deny you admission when you are a US citizen?
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OptionOfT ◴[05 Dec 25 19:57 UTC] No.46166459[source]▶
They can not. Neither US Citizens or Green Card Holders can be denied entry.

Sources: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-when-encounter...

https://www.aclunc.org/our-work/know-your-rights/know-your-r...

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1. ◴[05 Dec 25 20:46 UTC] No.46167065{3}[source]▶