Rudeness by US customs/immigration officials
May 25, 2006, 11:33 am
#1
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Rudeness by US customs/immigration officials
I know this topic has been covered before. But it was focused when one of my colleagues in the office and his wife just returned from a 2-month round-the-world trip, through North America, Australia, Asia, etc, and was describing it today to us all.
They did about 12 countries. They said that entering each one the entry officials were efficient, well trained, and seemed to be bought into giving a satisfactory initial experience. Except for one country. The USA.
They entered a couple of times, because they hopped into Canada and back. And they described disorganisation, shouting, looking bad tempered, getting annoyed with non-English speakers, treating the travellers as a nuisance, and having a general attitude which in a customer-facing industry would have them removed from front line service in no time at all.
It's my experience as well. The USA used to be held up as an example to the travel trade, and it was true of the immigration officials as well. But in recent years they all seem to have gone, replaced by a different generation who seem to delight in giving the opposite initial impression.
I do believe that it is a standard career path in the US for those leaving the military (not officers, but the ranks) to go into the immigration service. But do they get no training about the different world ? And is there no supervision to see how they behave ? Could they take some training from other countries ? After all, these travellers are voluntarily coming to spend their money in the country.
They did about 12 countries. They said that entering each one the entry officials were efficient, well trained, and seemed to be bought into giving a satisfactory initial experience. Except for one country. The USA.
They entered a couple of times, because they hopped into Canada and back. And they described disorganisation, shouting, looking bad tempered, getting annoyed with non-English speakers, treating the travellers as a nuisance, and having a general attitude which in a customer-facing industry would have them removed from front line service in no time at all.
It's my experience as well. The USA used to be held up as an example to the travel trade, and it was true of the immigration officials as well. But in recent years they all seem to have gone, replaced by a different generation who seem to delight in giving the opposite initial impression.
I do believe that it is a standard career path in the US for those leaving the military (not officers, but the ranks) to go into the immigration service. But do they get no training about the different world ? And is there no supervision to see how they behave ? Could they take some training from other countries ? After all, these travellers are voluntarily coming to spend their money in the country.
May 25, 2006, 11:51 am
#2
Join Date: Jan 2006
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I couldn’t agree with you more. It is absolutely appalling the hassle & harassment you get when dealing with the DHS & TSA when all you did was purchase an airline ticket.
I love visiting the U.S. & have done so many, many times over the years & have had some wonderful holidays. But the more I encounter the various “agencies” that you have to deal with when travelling in & out of the country, the less & less I am inclined to go back.
I’m sick & tired of being barked at to “stand here”, “go there”, “do this”, “don’t do the other”. I’m fed up of the sullen & downright growly attitude you get from the immigration “officials” when they are checking your documents.
As the OP has said, you are willingly entering their country to spend your tourist Dollar. These guys really need to learn that the word Tourist is not the same as Terrorist !!!
I know that the U.S. economy will not miss my tourist revenue, but I think I’ll be broadening my horizons in the future. There’s a whole wide world out there & I for one really don’t need or want the sort of harassment you get when entering the U.S. or travelling though it’s airports these days.
I love visiting the U.S. & have done so many, many times over the years & have had some wonderful holidays. But the more I encounter the various “agencies” that you have to deal with when travelling in & out of the country, the less & less I am inclined to go back.
I’m sick & tired of being barked at to “stand here”, “go there”, “do this”, “don’t do the other”. I’m fed up of the sullen & downright growly attitude you get from the immigration “officials” when they are checking your documents.
As the OP has said, you are willingly entering their country to spend your tourist Dollar. These guys really need to learn that the word Tourist is not the same as Terrorist !!!
I know that the U.S. economy will not miss my tourist revenue, but I think I’ll be broadening my horizons in the future. There’s a whole wide world out there & I for one really don’t need or want the sort of harassment you get when entering the U.S. or travelling though it’s airports these days.
May 25, 2006, 11:55 am
#3
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Dallas, TX USA
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Originally Posted by WHBM
I know this topic has been covered before. But it was focused when one of my colleagues in the office and his wife just returned from a 2-month round-the-world trip, through North America, Australia, Asia, etc, and was describing it today to us all.
They did about 12 countries. They said that entering each one the entry officials were efficient, well trained, and seemed to be bought into giving a satisfactory initial experience. Except for one country. The USA.
They entered a couple of times, because they hopped into Canada and back. And they described disorganisation, shouting, looking bad tempered, getting annoyed with non-English speakers, treating the travellers as a nuisance, and having a general attitude which in a customer-facing industry would have them removed from front line service in no time at all.
It's my experience as well. The USA used to be held up as an example to the travel trade, and it was true of the immigration officials as well. But in recent years they all seem to have gone, replaced by a different generation who seem to delight in giving the opposite initial impression.
I do believe that it is a standard career path in the US for those leaving the military (not officers, but the ranks) to go into the immigration service. But do they get no training about the different world ? And is there no supervision to see how they behave ? Could they take some training from other countries ? After all, these travellers are voluntarily coming to spend their money in the country.
They did about 12 countries. They said that entering each one the entry officials were efficient, well trained, and seemed to be bought into giving a satisfactory initial experience. Except for one country. The USA.
They entered a couple of times, because they hopped into Canada and back. And they described disorganisation, shouting, looking bad tempered, getting annoyed with non-English speakers, treating the travellers as a nuisance, and having a general attitude which in a customer-facing industry would have them removed from front line service in no time at all.
It's my experience as well. The USA used to be held up as an example to the travel trade, and it was true of the immigration officials as well. But in recent years they all seem to have gone, replaced by a different generation who seem to delight in giving the opposite initial impression.
I do believe that it is a standard career path in the US for those leaving the military (not officers, but the ranks) to go into the immigration service. But do they get no training about the different world ? And is there no supervision to see how they behave ? Could they take some training from other countries ? After all, these travellers are voluntarily coming to spend their money in the country.
abroad are rude and have a very arrogant attitude ("Lick my boots and maybe I'll give you a visa for the nonrefundable US$100 that you just paid."). Again, there is no excuse for this and these people should be sacked ASAP.
May 25, 2006, 11:59 am
#4
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As to be expected, things haven't improved since more and more that work immigration in the US now are told by the government (their employers) that they are part of the frontline in the so-called war on terror.
May 25, 2006, 12:03 pm
#5
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There are still some good one out there though. Having heard all of the nightmare stories about rude immigration officers in the US I was dreading a couple of trips I had to do there last year. However 100% of the immigration officials I met were very friendly and polite. Yes all but one time I got questioned and searched which is a bit of a hastle but the officer doing was alwsy very friendly.
Now the TSA people manning the x-ray machines after check in are another matter.
Now the TSA people manning the x-ray machines after check in are another matter.
May 25, 2006, 12:22 pm
#6
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Originally Posted by JPB
There are still some good one out there though. Having heard all of the nightmare stories about rude immigration officers in the US I was dreading a couple of trips I had to do there last year. However 100% of the immigration officials I met were very friendly and polite. Yes all but one time I got questioned and searched which is a bit of a hastle but the officer doing was alwsy very friendly.
Now the TSA people manning the x-ray machines after check in are another matter.
Now the TSA people manning the x-ray machines after check in are another matter.
May 25, 2006, 12:29 pm
#7
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A lack of professionalism, common courtesy, and customer centric actions is pandemic within governmental ranks in the US. We live it daily when trying to deal with getting drivers licenses, county assessors, court houses. That's no excuse, just the reality. I wouldn't think it would be any better with customs and immigration.
May 25, 2006, 12:34 pm
#8
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My recent experiences in the US:
ORD: All quite pleasant.
LAX (been through there twice recently): Both immigration officers on entry were very courtious and professional. Likewise for the people you have to take your checked in luggage to after you've checked in (laughable, I know).
The TSA people at the LAX security lines OTOH are just about the rudest I've encountered anywhere and I'm sure I very nearly got into trouble for saying things like "could you possibly mind if I finish taking my laptop out of the bag before I take my shoes off".
For the Internaut LAX rant, see:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...&highlight=LAX
ORD: All quite pleasant.
LAX (been through there twice recently): Both immigration officers on entry were very courtious and professional. Likewise for the people you have to take your checked in luggage to after you've checked in (laughable, I know).
The TSA people at the LAX security lines OTOH are just about the rudest I've encountered anywhere and I'm sure I very nearly got into trouble for saying things like "could you possibly mind if I finish taking my laptop out of the bag before I take my shoes off".
For the Internaut LAX rant, see:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showt...&highlight=LAX
May 25, 2006, 1:51 pm
#10
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As an American, my experiences are mixed.
To elucidate:
1) On entering the immigration hall, there are often people directing traffic. Perhaps because I am an American, I find these people generally efficient and direct, rather than rude. Yes, they shout -- to be heard over the conversations of hundreds of people in the hall -- but not with anger or malice. Occasionally, they may be a little more forceful with people who blocking traffic, or are using cell phones (which large signs say are forbidden). I find cell phone users to be particularly problematic in these lines because they are invariably paying far more attention to their callers than the environment around them, and end up causing backups. Those from gentler, quieter cultures may find this shouting rude.
2) Once you reach them, the Immigration Officers are generally basically polite, some are friendly, a few sullen. Only a few seem to be trying to create a positive impression, but I can say that it is true of almost every customs official I have encountered everywhere. Most just look at the passport, maybe flip through the pages to find a vacant place to stamp and then move on. My worst experience to date was entering Canada to attend a workshop. It took heaven and earth to convince the immigration officer that I wasn’t going to work in Canada. Her attitude the entire time was smug, skeptical and verged on rudeness.
I must admit that I don’t expect customs officers anywhere to be tourist agents for their country. That said, I understand that some non-U.S. citizens have had some pretty bad experiences entering the U.S. I suspect the culprit is only partially a training/supervision issue, and part of it is an understaffing issue, which certainly affects staff morale.
To elucidate:
1) On entering the immigration hall, there are often people directing traffic. Perhaps because I am an American, I find these people generally efficient and direct, rather than rude. Yes, they shout -- to be heard over the conversations of hundreds of people in the hall -- but not with anger or malice. Occasionally, they may be a little more forceful with people who blocking traffic, or are using cell phones (which large signs say are forbidden). I find cell phone users to be particularly problematic in these lines because they are invariably paying far more attention to their callers than the environment around them, and end up causing backups. Those from gentler, quieter cultures may find this shouting rude.
2) Once you reach them, the Immigration Officers are generally basically polite, some are friendly, a few sullen. Only a few seem to be trying to create a positive impression, but I can say that it is true of almost every customs official I have encountered everywhere. Most just look at the passport, maybe flip through the pages to find a vacant place to stamp and then move on. My worst experience to date was entering Canada to attend a workshop. It took heaven and earth to convince the immigration officer that I wasn’t going to work in Canada. Her attitude the entire time was smug, skeptical and verged on rudeness.
I must admit that I don’t expect customs officers anywhere to be tourist agents for their country. That said, I understand that some non-U.S. citizens have had some pretty bad experiences entering the U.S. I suspect the culprit is only partially a training/supervision issue, and part of it is an understaffing issue, which certainly affects staff morale.
May 25, 2006, 2:32 pm
#11
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Oh come on, American immigration officials aren't worse than those in other countries. True, few of them are friendly, but most of them are fairly efficient. You can always have a bad experience when one of them has a bad day, but that can happen anywhere. I've had worse experiences in Europe (FRA, CDG, anyone?), Canada, and even tropical paradises like Tahiti.
Criticize the US where citicism is due; ridicule the immigration forms, ..... about TSA, laugh at the multitude of threatening "Illegal to XYZ" signs, lament the difficulty of obtaining a visa, etc., but be fair and admit that bad immigration experiences are not limited to one particular country.
Criticize the US where citicism is due; ridicule the immigration forms, ..... about TSA, laugh at the multitude of threatening "Illegal to XYZ" signs, lament the difficulty of obtaining a visa, etc., but be fair and admit that bad immigration experiences are not limited to one particular country.
May 25, 2006, 2:44 pm
#12
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Originally Posted by Internaut
The TSA people at the LAX security lines OTOH are just about the rudest I've encountered anywhere and I'm sure I very nearly got into trouble for saying things like "could you possibly mind if I finish taking my laptop out of the bag before I take my shoes off".
May 25, 2006, 3:00 pm
#13
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Major difference in attitude tends to be whether you are an American/Permanent resident or not. The attitude to those without resident status is often suspicious in nature. Quite a turn off for those coming to visit.
May 25, 2006, 8:03 pm
#14
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Originally Posted by jpdx
I've had worse experiences in Europe (FRA, CDG, anyone?), Canada, and even tropical paradises like Tahiti.
May 25, 2006, 8:13 pm
#15
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I have never had any major problems with airport immigration coming into the US. I've generally found them to be professional and efficient.
Coming in by car from Canada is a total other story. Those people are downright sullen, suspicious, and worst of all extremely inefficient. It took me 90 minutes to get across the border from Vancouver back to Seattle once. Over an hour crossing into New York State. That's totally absurd under any circumstances short of an active state of war and a known and imminent threat against that border station. It's not even that those officers was really using the "War on Terror" as cover to get aggressive with people: they are just slow and inefficient.
I've been questioned pretty hard going into Canada and the UK on a couple of occasions, but never to the extent where I was delayed any length of time. I don't mind thorough procedures and I don't mind getting questioned - as long as the process is efficient and professional and gets me on my way fast.
Coming in by car from Canada is a total other story. Those people are downright sullen, suspicious, and worst of all extremely inefficient. It took me 90 minutes to get across the border from Vancouver back to Seattle once. Over an hour crossing into New York State. That's totally absurd under any circumstances short of an active state of war and a known and imminent threat against that border station. It's not even that those officers was really using the "War on Terror" as cover to get aggressive with people: they are just slow and inefficient.
I've been questioned pretty hard going into Canada and the UK on a couple of occasions, but never to the extent where I was delayed any length of time. I don't mind thorough procedures and I don't mind getting questioned - as long as the process is efficient and professional and gets me on my way fast.