Re-entering the US on a valid visa after illegal entry to Canada
A few friends and I are planning on traveling to Montreal for a weekend. However, one of them is not a US citizen, and is here with a multiple-entry student visa in his Chinese passport, which does not allow entry to Canada. I know that there are many places in Vermont where one can simply walk across the border undetected without going through a checkpoint. Suppose he did that, would he face any problems when (legally) returning to the US at the US checkpoint? I know Canada does not have any exit controls, but would the Americans care that he was illegally in Canada if he already has a valid visa to the US?
Best Answer
When you enter Canada legally you would get an entry stamp in your passport and you are planning to skip that part and I can assure you that the USA immigration department will not let you in when you try to re enter knowing that you entered Canada illegally and would be reason enough for them to believe that your intentions are not good.
When you say Canada does not have any exit control you are mistaken. They may choose to check everything that goes past on any route on any day and not having an entry stamp and failing to explain how you entered Canada will result in immediate arrest.
What you are planning to do is "stupid". You are better of spending your holiday within the USA. It is a huge country and you can find snow at a lot of destinations within USA.
Pictures about "Re-entering the US on a valid visa after illegal entry to Canada"
Can someone come back to the US after being deported?
If you were ordered removed (or deported) from the U.S., you cannot simply turn around and come back. By the legal terms of your removal, you will be expected to remain outside of the country for a set number of years: usually either five, ten, or 20.Can you adjust status if you entered illegally?
Foreigners who entered the U.S. illegally are ineligible to adjust status, even if they are married to a U.S. citizen. But foreigner spouses who did come into the U.S. lawfully (such as on a visa) should be eligible to adjust status.What happens if you cross the border after being deported?
Illegal Re-Entry After Deportation Is An Aggravated Felony If you have been deported from the United States, and you return--or even attempt to return to the U.S.--without permission to do so, you can be arrested for Illegal Re-Entry After Deportation, 8 U.S.C. Section 1326.The Places Where Sneaking Over the US-Canada Border is Legal
More answers regarding re-entering the US on a valid visa after illegal entry to Canada
Answer 2
The US border agent won't care, because he can't be 100% sure whether your friend was in Canada illegally (there may be a second passport issued to him by another country or even by the same country), or some kind of visa that is not in any passport, or or or...). What matters to him is that your friend may enter the states legally.
So, unless RCMP picks your friend up, you are safe. And they could pick him up because one of you sped or overlooked a stop sign; not to mention drinking (which would certainly be involved when you spend a weekend in Canada, right?).
And if he is picked up, and found to be in Canada illegally, he will be deported to China - not the US - at his own expense, because he has a Chinese passport. During that process, the U.S. visa may be revoked, or maybe it isn't. Maybe he is made to know that it is, or he isn't. Taking a flight from there to the U.S. will be a certain inconvenience, and a risk: He can't say for sure before he is through U.S. customs, so there is the possibility to have to pay a third ticket (back to China) because the U.S. won't let him in.
The chances may be as low as 1 in 1000 or 1 in a million, but if Murphy hates your friend, chances don't matter. So I would definitely apply for a tourist visa. His parents would be ashamed to hear that their son can't complete his expensive studies because he went on a weekend trip illegally.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Charles Parker, Javon Swaby, Ryutaro Tsukata, Laura Penwell