# Visiting USA from Mexico for non-USA Citizen



## swbamford (Jan 14, 2011)

Hi,

I have a job offer in Monterrery and am very interested in taking it. I am British and am wondering how easy it is to enter the USA for weekend trips etc. I am a major college football fan so would like to got to Austin regularly at weekends for football as well as shop in Mcallen and Laredo.

Will there be any problems entering the USA for short trips during my time working in Mexico?

Any help you could give would be appreciative


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

Do you have a US visa?


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## swbamford (Jan 14, 2011)

ReefHound said:


> Do you have a US visa?


At the moment yes. It expires in June and obviously I am not renewing it as I am going to accept this job offer. What I want to know is are there any restrictions on a tourist visas if I was going to Mcallen or San Antonio once or twice a month for weekends only?


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

I don't have the specific knowledge to tell you what will happen or what you need to do for sure. I just think you are going to have a hard time getting across the border by land without being a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or possess a valid U.S. visa. Harder than flying from UK to USA. 

That said, UK is one of 36 countries that are in the Visa Waiver Program where you don't need a travel visa for stays less than 90 days. Here is an excerpt from the U.S. Dept of State on this program.

_Overview – What is the Visa Waiver Program?

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) enables nationals of 36 participating countries to travel to the United States for tourism or business (visitor * visa purposes only) for stays of 90 days or less without obtaining a visa. The program was established to eliminate unnecessary barriers to travel, stimulating the tourism industry, and permitting the Department of State to focus consular resources in other areas. VWP eligible travelers may apply for a visa, if they prefer to do so. Nationals of VWP countries must meet eligibility requirements to travel without a visa on VWP, and therefore, some travelers from VWP countries are not eligible to use the program. VWP travelers are required to have a valid authorization through the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to travel, are screened at the port of entry into the United States, and are enrolled in the Department of Homeland Security’s US-VISIT program. *_


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

ReefHound said:


> I don't have the specific knowledge to tell you what will happen or what you need to do for sure. I just think you are going to have a hard time getting across the border by land without being a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or possess a valid U.S. visa. Harder than flying from UK to USA.


I don't understand why crossing the border by land should be any harder than coming into the US by air. I also don't have any specific knowledge of crossing the border by land with a British passport, but I know of no reason why the same visa waiver rules for UK citizens would not be applied by the immigration control at the border as by the immigration control in the airports.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

I think a lot more questions might be asked at the border as to why a British national is entering the US from Mexico by land than if they arrived directly from the UK by air. However, I really doubt you will be denied entry since the UK is part of the visa waiver program and you have a logical story of why you live in Mexico and why you are entering the US. 

If you explain that you are headed to Austin for football, they'll get it. Many border patrol guards are Texans and quite probably UT Longhorn freaks. They will understand why someone would want to make that trip. Perhaps more importantly, they'll want to know why you are residing in Mexico and when you say you have a job in Monterrey, that will make sense to them as well.

Every time my fiance (a Mexican citizen with valid US visa) and I cross the border we are bombarded with questions. We have learned that simple, clear, logical answers to their questions get us across with the least delay. We have never been denied but it came close one time. The problem is my story more than hers -- they are sure that I am a "pollero" smuggling her across the border for profit. They grill me as if I were a criminal suspect many times. They don't like the fact that I say I am retired (I look a lot younger than I really am), I still am using an FMM instead of an imigrante or no-imigrante visa and I am driving a car with Illinois plates.

I now carry printouts of my financial statements and copies of my escrituras and home plans. That is enough to convince them that I am indeed retired and do reside in Mexico. The rest of our story makes sense so they eventually let us pass. Once I get my visa I'm sure it will be easier. They are basically probing for holes in your story and swbamford's story seems to be solid and reasonable.

Bottom line, if your story makes sense you should only have to endure their series of basic questions since your UK passport is a valid entry document.


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## ReefHound (Aug 9, 2010)

TundraGreen said:


> I don't understand why crossing the border by land should be any harder than coming into the US by air. I also don't have any specific knowledge of crossing the border by land with a British passport, but I know of no reason why the same visa waiver rules for UK citizens would not be applied by the immigration control at the border as by the immigration control in the airports.


Crossing by land carries a greater potential for smuggling when you arrive in a vehicle that can carry a couple thousand pounds of cargo than when you arrive by air where you are carrying about 50 pounds of luggage (that has already been x-ray screened).

I didn't say it would be impossible or that he wouldn't be allowed to cross, just that in my opinion he might have a harder time. The reasoning is due to what I said above and also due to varying from the norm. How do you think the numbers of UK citizens arriving in Houston from the UK each day compares to the number of UK citizens crossing at Brownsville each day? There are several million attempted illegal crossings on our southern border each year and I would think a border agent there is going to be more suspicious about anything that seems odd. Whereas a U.S. citizen or a Mexican with a visa might be asked a few questions and have their documents examined and then waved on, he might be directed to secondary inspection for a closer look or background check.

Or maybe not. I'm just projecting my thoughts as if I was a border agent.


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## TundraGreen (Jul 15, 2010)

ReefHound said:


> Or maybe not. I'm just projecting my thoughts as if I was a border agent.


You are probably right. I have walked across at Tijuana lots of times. So that was what I was thinking about. The agents just ask you what you were doing in Mexico and it is over in about 30 seconds, just like at the airports. I wasn't thinking about crossing in the long vehicle lines. That doesn't look like much fun.


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## Mainecoons (Nov 25, 2010)

I would think you could enter on your U.K. passport just as all my U.K. friends do. If you were a Mexican citizen it is a whole lot harder.


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## circle110 (Jul 20, 2009)

Mainecoons said:


> I would think you could enter on your U.K. passport just as all my U.K. friends do.


I have some friends, a Swiss couple. He is an investment banker and She is a public school teacher and they are pretty well off. They were denied a tourist visa to enter the US from Mexico. They were on a year long sabbatical in Latin America and had given up their apartment -- why pay rent for a year you're not living there, right? Well, the US state department declared them indigent and refused them entry into the country because they admitted that they had no permanent address. I'm sure that if they would have used his mother's address or something they would have had no problem but they fit a "profile" by not giving a permanent address.

It's not automatic just because you have a passport from a visa waiver nation or even if you already have a US visa. It clearly states on my fiancee's visa that this document does not guarantee entry into the country. It says on the State Department website that a foreigner is under the obligation to give reasonable evidence that they will return to their country of origin or they will be refused entry.

Do I think most UK or EU citizens will have a problem entering the US? Not at all, it is easy for the huge majority. I think the OP will breeze right through. All I'm saying is that it is not 100% guaranteed. If you have a permanent residence and regular employment or financial security you're pretty much a shoe-in. If not, it may depend. 




Mainecoons said:


> If you were a Mexican citizen it is a whole lot harder.


Oh, yes indeed it is!


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## dimsi (Dec 2, 2010)

Hi! I am a mexican and french citizen and have gone into the US through the Mexican and Canadian land borders with no problems as a french citizen since I would need a visa using my mexican passport. Granted, they do ask where you're going, etc but as long as you explain your situation (work in Mty, want to go to the us for the weekend) it shouldn't be a problem. 

Of course, like the previous post stated, you're not guaranteed entry even if you're from a visa waiver country - it just gives you a right to apply for entry. Then again, every single foreigner is in the same situation at the entry points (mexicans with usa visas, etc)

Do expect to have to get out of your car and get in line like the rest of the Mexican citizens who are coming in and need a permit if going past the border cities. We had to get the green visa waiver form validated, pictures taken, etc. This can take time if there's a lot of people for example on long weekends or special holidays where many people travel.

Just in case I would take your mexican work visa, work contract, paychecks, housing lease or other as proof of your stay in Mty but I wouldn't be too worried.


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