US Visit --departing.
 

Please close or link me to another post about this if asked before....

I was told that we had to go through these US Visit machines when we depart the USA. I was kind of lost about this, because nobody has ever said that to me in US nor the airline.
I thought it was just good enough with the departure card from the I-94.
Could someone tell me the whole story about this as I have several others here at work that are wondering....

Thanks.

Hi Tor,

The US VISIT programme is evolving over time. Not all airports have the check out kiosks yet. (OT, doesn't it make you feel like being at a hotel, you check in and out)

Step 1 is to introduce the kiosks, they are still optional, and not present at all airports.

Step 2 will be to make it compulsory to show your check out receipt before you can board the plane (or they will have handheld machines to check you out there and then)

(Of course, what stops you from checking out and then walking out of the airport or getting on a domestic flight to somewhere in the US ...)

Cheers,

GenevaFlyer

More details at: http://www.dhs.gov/xtrvlsec/programs...mage_0006.shtm

You mean it doesn't work

Sure, it does. It's an extremely effective form of harassment that really inspires people who were fingerprinted and photographed like criminals when they entered the country to want to return.

Absolutely nothing.
I know people who do it, then overstay, leave at leisure, then have no issues when returning as they have a dated receipt.

Actually, I'm quite happy to use a system that provides proof I left the USA (my green visa waiver card has been "lost" by the airline in the past). However, it might help if use of it were enforced, or at least encouraged. I've never recieved any suggestion that I should use the machines nor even been told what they're for, other than when I actually enquired as to what they were out of curiosity. Furthermore, at airports such as SFO there's usually a minder standing by the machine, but passengers never seem to be encouraged to use it - the minders just stand there and sometimes offer to help if someone approaches the machine, but otherwise they do nothing to engage with departing passengers who just walk past. On one occasion when I tried to use the machine it didn't read my passport and the minder said I should keep trying or key in my details via the keyboard... I said I hadn't got time for all that as my flight was on last-call, and just turned around and walked into the gate and handed over the bottom half of the VW form as usual - no reaction from the machine minder to my abandoning use of the machine, nor any problems next time I entered the USA. I thus classify using those machines as largely being a waste of time, at leat for the time being.

A

Worse I've seen staff standing over a US visit machine that is inoperable. Why they couldn't just put an out of order sign on the machine and have the officer do something useful is beyond me.

Leaving via Newark in March we used them for the first time and they had attendants showing everyone how to use it and actually encouraging the use.

My guess? Because they are actually contractors, not government employees, and don't know how to do anything else.

Actually, I would phrase it differently ... they are contractors paid to stand by the machine, and not to do anything else ... so there they stand.

Cheers,

GenevaFlyer

Exactly the reason why I always make sure to use the machines when I am departing from an airport that has them. Luckily so far no airline has yet managed to lose my VW green slip but given this completely outdated and somewhat IT stoneage system of working with manually handled paper slips, it is probably only a question of time ... Most effective and hassle-free solution of all would probably be to have a dedicated international departure zone (like in all the European airports) with your departure automatically computer recorded

Correction: the most effective and hassle-free solution would be to eliminate this harassment completely.

The kiosks at ORD C concourse this past weekend were all turned off and had paper signs taped to the displays thanking people for participating in the pilot and that it was over. I wasn't sure whether that meant they were a failed pilot and they were going away or they were turning them off until they rolled them out to every International departure point in the US or what.

My solution when queried (yup been lost for me too) is to point out stamps from other countries showing I couldn't possibly have overstayed in US. However it does mean I may need to carry my old passport with me for the first visit to US under my replacement passport (soon). Another thing to remember :(