Sailing the USA as a Brit!

[svtadpole]

Originally Posted by osirissail

Sorry, I meant you missed "reading" the word "generally" - you included the word but did not acknowledge its meaning. That is not uncommon as we all read what we want to hear most often and miss the modifiers that actually are quite important.

Supercilious Tw*t .... head up yer own ar*e .... condescending g*t ...

Now try " reading what you want to hear " .... Oh yes .... dont miss the " important modifiers "

[pablothesailor]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

You missed reading the word in your own post! LOL

Now, whats your problem? Why make things more difficult than they need be? Are you an anarchist? Do you hate authority?

The easiest way to get into the USA as a foreigner (not Mexican or Canadian) is to go to ANY US Embassy and get an interview and proper Visa.

Visa waiver is really designed for package tourists with return flights or onward flights.

The interview is about 10 minutes long and really not invasive. They just want to count the number of heads on your shoulders and check you exist and take your fingerprints.

Its easy, you can do it in any language and I found it quite fun.

You might not respect Americans, but as its their national day, just spare a thought for their security difficulties.

They have nice, happy officials and I have always had trouble free entries, but I make sure my paperwork is right before going in.

So take my advice and stop making stuff difficult. Go see the friendly dude in his embassy or consulate in the country you are in and do the interview.





Screw them around or try to make things difficult and they will win.... they will screw you longer, deeper and more painfully than you do them.

Hi Mark,

Once ive had the interview, and lets say i get the visa without problems (I own UK property which should be a plus), how long can I stay in US waters as far as you understand, and is there a way to extend this time one way or another,eg, leaving US waters for a spell then returning? thanks, Pablo!

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by pablothesailor

Hi Mark,

Once ive had the interview, and lets say i get the visa without problems (I own UK property which should be a plus), how long can I stay in US waters as far as you understand, and is there a way to extend this time one way or another,eg, leaving US waters for a spell then returning? thanks, Pablo!

6 months.
But I don't know if it re-sets for another 6 months if one sails, say to Canada for a day. (I doubt it, but a month in Canada might reset it. I can't find anything definitive about it on the net)

I am trying to do it all in 6 months because I don't want to go up as high as Canada, but head from the Caribbean direct to New York or Rhode Island and then come back down towards the Caribbean slowly over the summer doing the inland waterways.

The Americans wouuld probably take a dim view to re-setting the 6 months if one sailed the 30 miles from Florida to the Bahamas and back Or a weekend in Cuba


Mark

[osirissail]

Here are some links on how to extend your stay in the USA: Visitors Visa Extension

"Many individuals who come to the United States on a visitor visa would like to extend their visa. They can apply for an extension of stay in the U.S. The extension may or may not be granted depending upon the reason for the extension, and whether the USCIS is convinced that the applicant does intend to return to his/her home country after the temporary stay in the U.S.

Suitable Time to Apply
Please note that you should not apply for an extension of stay within 3 months of coming to the USA otherwise USCIS may conclude that even before entering the USA, you were planning to extend the visa which might be in contrast to what you might have said at the consulate or at the port of entry.

You should apply at least 45 days before the I-94 expires.
The duration for which the person can stay depends upon the expiration date of the I-94, and NOT on the expiration date of the visa stamp. The date on the visa stamp is irrelevant. As long as you apply for the extension before the expiration date of the I-94, you would be in legal status (up to 240 days) and you will not have stayed in the U.S. unlawfully.

No Easy Alternatives
You can not go to neighboring countries (Canada, Mexico) either by air or road, and come back to get a new I-94 and therefore avoid the lengthy process of applying for extension. A new I-94 will NOT be given. You can't even go to neighboring islands such as the Bahamas etc and come back to get new a I-94. You will have to actually travel outside of North America and come back.

Extension Duration and Consequences
Usually an extension will be given for the duration you ask and give justification. However, the maximum duration for extension you can ask for is 6 months. Also, you can not apply for a visitor visa extension as many times as you want. The maximum you can stay on B1/B2 visa is 1 year.

As long as you stay in the U.S. legally and do not violate any terms of the visa that you are on, you will not get into any trouble while applying for a greencards, just because you applied for a visa extension. "

So Yes you can extend and get a total of one year.
And No, you cannot "pop over" to Canada/Mexico/Bahamas to reset your "clock."