Is it recommended I enter the US only in the city where my university is situated?

6/16/2017 10:40:53 PM

This answer does not cite any official sources but here’s a thought experiment:

Consider yourself an Australian citizen based somewhere near Sydney and your school being on the East coast close to New York. As far as I can tell, there are no direct flights between Sydney and New York, all possibilities requiring a connection somewhere on the West coast. However, whichever flight you may be taking from the West to the East coast, it will (should; everything else is impractical) always be a domestic flight and hence all customs and immigration shenanigans will take place once you first set your foot on US soil airport concrete in the West. The immigration officer will be aware of this and just attempt to make sure your story is sound.

We have, in this experiment, constructed a case in which landing somewhere completely different is a no-issue because we can argue why it is necessary.

On the other hand, as also mentioned int he comments, here’s another thought experiment:

Say you are a British citizen living in London and you want to illegaly immigrate into the US by overstaying your student visa for New York University. In this case, there are dozens of flights daily that will take you directly from your city of departure to the state and city you want to arrive in. However, the immigration officer wants to catch you because you intend to do what you shouldn’t be doing. Ideally (in his case) he wants to uncover the unsound bits of your story to establish you as somebody attempting to overstay their visa. Even the tinyest inconsistency matters.

We have, in this experiment, constructed a case in which landing exactly where you are going to study is an issue because you are ill-meaning.

With these two thought experiments in hand, we see that the place of arrival by itself is not an issue. Rather, the issue is how to argue that the place you arrive in is consistent with the plans you tell the officer and your visa. If you have relatives or friends you want to visit en route but can provide evidence of adequate means of travel to your university and the entire story is sound, you will be okay. If you land in Georgia with a study visa for Arizona and just say ‘yeah, I’ll drive over there in a rental car’, that’ll raise a dozen eyebrows.

6/16/2017 4:36:57 PM

Is it recommended that I enter US in the city my university is located and then fly to visit my relatives, or is it okay to enter a different state?

Do not worry about it if you are a bonafide student. It is okay to enter in a different state, just have a coherent and logical reason with evidence why you are doing so. You will probably be asked a cursory question about it at the airport. Also you are allowed to enter up to thirty days before your program starts.

Per the Department of State,

New Students

F-1 and M-1 student visas can be issued up to 120 days
in advance of your course of study start date. However, you will not
be allowed to enter the United States in F-1 or M-1 status earlier
than 30 days before your start date.

How would I know? Among other more recent examples I know of, twenty years ago when my classmate and I were coming to start graduate school here, he and his mother were beside themselves with worry for booking their flight to Denver, Colorado to see relatives before proceeding to Berkeley. I told them not to worry, it would not be a problem if he could prove he is a bonafide visitor. I flew into New York took a bus to Maryland and spent a few days before proceeding to school in North Carolina without a problem. He also had no problem.

CONCLUSION

Ultimately however peace of mind is invaluable. If you still remain uncomfortable with flying into a different state because of possible questions, fly into your school state and then subsequently travel to visit your family. It will cost you a few hundred dollars or less extra, but then sometimes peace of mind trumps saving a couple of bucks.

Credit:stackoverflow.com‘

About me

Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

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