Originally Posted by
jphripjah
You could have just said "Greece." Americans who frequent this website know where it is.
Originally Posted by
BOShappyflyer
Ha, I also thought it odd that the OP phrased it as Greece, Europe.
No real suggestions but I don't think the it's just the CBP that's paranoid. They are just doing their job, and some are more strict than others. The ones in Europe aren't any less strict, especially in London, based on personal experience.
Some years ago, I was taking my mom and sibling for a visit to Scotland (which I've visited before ) and then to switzerland (our main destination) for our vacation. The border control rep in the UK was grilling the few people in front of us. I thought, it shouldn't be that bad, we're only staying a couple of days and then moving on. But he really grilled us, from the usual (length of stay, why we are here) to asking more specific details about our stay. When I said we were on a short holiday and then transiting to Switzerland (our main destination), the guy asked us to see our onwards itinerary (and really looked through it). It's kind of annoying to have to dig it out of my backpack when my stuff is nicely packed, but I guess that satisfied him. So yeah, keep your documentation.
So rest assured that being grilled at border control is not just exclusive to you visiting the US. Some of us get the same royal treatment over in Europe, though Europeans traveling back home may not see it happening since they are in their expedited EU lanes
So you're not alone.
I am still pretty new to the forums so I thought I'd better clarify it's in Europe, sorry about that, lol
just wrote it because I have been asked a few times if I speak Italian because I am from Greece so I thought maybe if they don't know what language Greeks speak, they won't know where it lies either (which would make sense, cause I don't know where all US states lie on the map either).
Now regarding border security, I am not afraid of anything, cause I am obviously not planning on moving over when I have my medical career going on in Europe, but I was curious why staying close to the limit of 90 days would raise a red flag. I understand that they would want to pull me over to secondary questioning, but just because I came once for almost 3 months, I seem to be having a harder time now because besides secondary questioning I was flagged in the system because of that. I just hope it will be less of a hassle if I get a B1/B2 visa, but it's still annoying to go through the process when all I do is being a tourist and spending my money in the USA. I will also carry all documents that certify what I am saying from now on. The thing is, MSP officers were very nice and since I am following what they suggested, there shouldn't be a problem in the future.
Now about the UK, they are stricter than other countries, even with us Europeans, so don't worry about it, but if you enter from any other European country, even Germany who are generally strict, it should be going real fast if your intentions are clear.