Denied entry into the U.S
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 38,410
Thanks for your floo up FlyingStella. I don't know why you are mentioning the 2012 visit to an older man who paid for half of your ticket, or why you think this was a red flag to the customs officer. Did the 2012 visit come up at all in your discussion with the customs officer this time?
How did he accuse you of being a prostitute? That seems odd to me. I don't think 26 year old Canadian women typically travel to Costa Rica to work as prostitutes. What specifically did he say to accuse you of being a prostitute? What did you tell him that you do for a living?
It sounds like he was concerned that you couldn't pay for this vacation and that someone else was actually paying and/or that you weren't really going to Costa Rica, you were planning to leave the airport in For Lauderdale and stay in the US.
How did he accuse you of being a prostitute? That seems odd to me. I don't think 26 year old Canadian women typically travel to Costa Rica to work as prostitutes. What specifically did he say to accuse you of being a prostitute? What did you tell him that you do for a living?
It sounds like he was concerned that you couldn't pay for this vacation and that someone else was actually paying and/or that you weren't really going to Costa Rica, you were planning to leave the airport in For Lauderdale and stay in the US.
#17
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 1999
Programs: FB Silver going for Gold
Posts: 21,805
That accusation isn't so uncommon. A few years back, a school girl (as in high school) from my neck of the woods (SW Canada) flying to meet a parent in the U.S. was accused of precisely that (prostitution) while going through pre-clearance at YVR about a decade back. Ground for suspicion ws because she was in school uniform (of a Catholic school, no less) which did involve a tartan skirt (which most private schools for girls in the area seem to have a fetish for).
#18
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
That accusation isn't so uncommon. A few years back, a school girl (as in high school) from my neck of the woods (SW Canada) flying to meet a parent in the U.S. was accused of precisely that (prostitution) while going through pre-clearance at YVR about a decade back. Ground for suspicion ws because she was in school uniform (of a Catholic school, no less) which did involve a tartan skirt (which most private schools for girls in the area seem to have a fetish for).
#19
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2016
Posts: 3
That was the verbal reason the customs officer gave me for not allowing me entry.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
#20
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: NYC
Programs: DL PM, Marriott Gold, Hertz PC, National Exec
Posts: 6,736
That was the verbal reason the customs officer gave me for not allowing me entry.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
#21
Moderator: Manufactured Spending
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 6,580
That was the verbal reason the customs officer gave me for not allowing me entry.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
He asked me if I knew this guy who I met in 2012, and how I met him, which I replied a dating website. To which he goes, a dating website? How much did he pay you to go there? Which I repeatedly answered nothing. He asked me several times how much I was paid, which is, in my opinion asking if I'm a prostitue without actually using that word.
Then he asked where I work, and if I had pay stubs for the last four months of employment. I said no, I don't typically backpack through Central America with a collection of pay stubs, and he denied me entry.
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
#22
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
Possibly to probably, but still a gamble. On a non-refundable ticket with no great cancellation option to get all the money back from the trip? A gamble that isn't for everyone.
#23
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: USA
Programs: SA Air, Air Canada, KLM, BA,Lufthansa, United, AA, Hawaiian, Air New Zealnd, Qantas, Virgin Atlantic
Posts: 777
How did the officer even know about the 2012 incident? Obviously there was record of the flight, but how did he know who paid for the ticket? That makes absolutely no sense no me.
I feel it is not unusual, if flying to a country of which you are not a citizen, to be questioned if you cannot prove you have either the means to support yourself, or at least a paid return ticket back to your home country.
I am a US citizen, and when flying with a one way ticket from LAX to Auckland, I had to show proof, when checking in, that I had a paid departure booked to leave New Zealand or they would not let me board at LAX.
I feel it is not unusual, if flying to a country of which you are not a citizen, to be questioned if you cannot prove you have either the means to support yourself, or at least a paid return ticket back to your home country.
I am a US citizen, and when flying with a one way ticket from LAX to Auckland, I had to show proof, when checking in, that I had a paid departure booked to leave New Zealand or they would not let me board at LAX.
#25
Moderator: Information Desk, Women Travelers, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Chicago, IL, USA
Programs: AA Gold
Posts: 15,651
I haven't filed a complaint because I am scared and embarrassed to bring this up again, but I'm now running into a problem.. I am moving out of Canada, and the cheapest flights of course go through the states. I would like to get this cleared up so I can fly through there (as much as I don't ever want to go back to the us, it's the easiest way) and I don't know what's the best way to deal with this. I refuse to book an international flight for upwards of $1,000 only to potentially miss it because of this..
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
I really don't know what to do, just thinking about it gives me severe anxiety, and I want to have the best possible chance of never being put through something like that again.
#26
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: San Antonio
Programs: DL DM, Former AA EXP now AY Plat, AC 75K, NW Plat, Former CO Gold, Hilton Diamond, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 27,042
Is the ticket you're thinking about purchasing a round trip or one way? It's safe to assume that a one-way ticket -- even one that shows you're connecting to an international flight departing from the US -- it may also result in denied entry. (Clearly the presence of an international departure did not deter them from denying you back in February.)
#28
Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Watchlisted by the prejudiced, en route to purgatory
Programs: Just Say No to Fleecing and Blacklisting
Posts: 102,095
Ordinarily that works fine when the arrival and onward tickets are on VWP-participating carriers and the onward travel goes to a country beyond those that the US considers to be contiguous to the US.
Last edited by TWA884; Aug 28, 2016 at 3:46 pm Reason: Merge consecutive posts
#29
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 38,410
Is the ticket you're thinking about purchasing a round trip or one way? It's safe to assume that a one-way ticket -- even one that shows you're connecting to an international flight departing from the US -- it may also result in denied entry. (Clearly the presence of an international departure did not deter them from denying you back in February.)
#30
Moderator: Information Desk, Women Travelers, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Chicago, IL, USA
Programs: AA Gold
Posts: 15,651
Why would that matter? Is there any country that actually insists on a round-trip ticket rather than simply an on outgoing ticket of some kind? The only times I've been in a situation where tickets needed to be shown they were happy with onward tickets--in one case a round trip ticket wouldn't have been of any value as we couldn't have returned anyway. (We had a single-entry visa, it was used.)