Immigration Update

New I-94 Arrival/Departure Process for Foreign Visitors

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) will begin electronic I-94 data collection at air and sea ports in May.  When the electronic rollout begins, nonimmigrants will no longer fill out a paper I-94 card when they arrive in the U.S.  CBP will generate records of admission using traveler information already transmitted through electronic means.  With the new process, CBP officers will still stamp passports of arriving nonimmigrants. The stamp will show the date of admission, class of admission, and the date the non-immigrant is admitted until.

The roll out of the electronic I-94 card will be staggered. Beginning this week are the Charlotte, Orlando, Miami, Las Vegas, Houston and O’Hare airports.  If all goes as planned, the rollout will continue across the country in subsequent weeks. Any traveler who wants or needs a hard copy of evidence of admission can log onto the CBP website and print a copy of their I-94 information. 

We recommend all non-immigrants log onto the CBP website to ensure their personal information was correctly entered into their I-94 record after each entry, even if they do not need a hard copy of this information to evidence legal status.  To do so, they will need their passport number, date of entry and class of admission.  If you have questions regarding the new electronic I-94 process, please contact a member of the Moore & Van Allen Global Immigration Team.