Immigration Services

[Lind]

Hello there everyone,
I just been really worried. Well here's the deal, I usually flight to Mexico (I live in L.A) to see my SO every 4 months if I am able, so that means I finish my school semester, go to Mexico for like... 1 month or 2 months and then come back so I am able to start my new school semester. I am a legal resident, but this last time I was with an immigration officer he ask me A LOT of questions, which I answer with the truth. He wrote something on my declaration of.. don't remember but it was a paper you fill out. When I was about to go to the last officer so I was able to go home, they send me back with some other officer; he checked my bags, got my passport and resident card slide it and wrote something on a computer. I do not know why they did that, and I worried that it would happen again. I know I am not doing anything bad, but this whole thing of immigration officers asking me questions and stuff just gets me really nervous. Has anyone gone through this? I am really scared of leaving the country doesn't get me worry what gets me really nervous, worry, and all that is entering the country back. I get nervous a lot, I am going back to Mexico on January, coming back on February.... but... I really do not want to come back. I am SCARED. Any tips? Or something? Oh! I am 19, so I have no problem on flying and... now that I remembered, when I was making line to see that Immigration officer that put something on the computer, this worker from LAX told me that they do stuff like that to young people, or usually people who look really young which I see no relation with what happened at all... but... I AM TERRIFIED OF THAT HAPPENING AGAIN!

[snow_girl]

There isn't really anything you can do about it. They stop random people and they also might have been curious as to why you are going there every so often for long periods of time. If you have nothing to hide just answer their questions truthfully and don't carry anything that isn't allowed in your suitcase.

[lucybelle]

You should be fine. I got asked TONS of questions after traveling South/Central America for a year then coming back into the states. As long as you don't get that X stamp in your passport, you're just fine.

[Riyko]

A lot of the time they are just putting notes into the computer or filling out the required information the computer is asking. It usually always happens to me when i go into Canada and then back into the US. I used to worry about it, but not anymore. Then i had one of the officers tell me exactly what they were doing and since then i've been fine with it, it's just protocol.

[eveningsky]

Last time I entered the UK, the officer was being really difficult with me. He kept saying he couldn't find the stamp that proved I went back to the US the last time I traveled there. I kept telling him where it was and he kept asking. Finally, he found it and then he gave me a hard time about not being employed because "I didn't have a reason to go back to the US." I had just graduated! Am I supposed to magically have a job? I told him I had just graduated and he said I had to prove that I was employed next time. It made me have a break down because I didn't want to go back to the US and get a job because that would mean I'd be "stuck." Also, what kind of job gives you enough time off that is worth spending $1000 on a plane ticket?
Of course, like everyone said, at least you got through, that's the most important thing. I remember the first time I came back to the US from a foreign country, the immigration officer was very mean. He was all like "WHY did you go there?!?" They are just doing their job and their job is to intimidate you so you don't break their laws. There are some nice ones though. The last lady I got (coming back into the US) said, "Welcome home!" It made me happy even if I was sad to be back.