secondary inspection

Hopeful0820

Registered Users (C)
I travel overseas frequently on business trips and have never had any problems at the airport before. I just came back from another trip to Asia recently. When I was waiting in line, I noticed that the officer in this line seemed to be new and frequently asked the other officer in front of her questions. When I gave her my passport and green card, I was surprised to see that she swiped my passport instead of my green card. Then she looked at the monitor for a short while and asked the other officer if she should send me to secondary inspection. I was wondering how the other officer could know since he did not inspect me. Since she did not get an answer immediately while the other officer was busy, she gave me back my documents and asked me to go to secondary inspection. She did not even look at my green card during this one minute. I went into the secondary inspection and waited for a few minutes before an officer picked up my documents and worked on his computer for a while. Then he called my name and asked if I live and work here. Then he typed something into his computer for a while and let me go. I asked him why I was sent there and he said somebody else's name was close to mine. I then asked if I would have problems in the future and he said I shouldn't. He said the first officer was probably not sure. The officer was quite polite during the process.

The whole thing seemed strange to me as I had never been in secondary inspection before. I am still concerned if I will go through the same thing again in the future since obviously now I have something unusual in my record. I hope the officer clarified things in their system.

I am wondering if someone here had similar experience and what was the POE experience after that. Thanks.
 
Hi Hopeful0820

I just experienced a very close situation with secondary inspection at POE. I was traveling to Australia back in May 2009 for 9 days when I returned the the US through LAX I was referred to a secondary inspection. I generally traveled internationally twice a year and this was the first time ever I went through a secondary inspection. As usual, I lined up at the US citizen/ legal permanent resident line and presented my national passport and GC when it was my turn. The CBP officer during the primary inspection asked the order of my last name and first name since the orders are different in my NP and GC. She then asked me to perform biometrics: 10 fingerprint scans and she took my face picture (I think all non US citizens including GC holders have been required to do this since January 2009). She then asked about my profession here in the US and I answered her question. After a few seconds she signaled another officer and told me to follow him to the secondary inspection area. I only waited about 5-10 minutes at the secondary inspection area until a CBP officer showed up at a counter, took my NP and GC--which were placed in cubby by another officer, and looked up my data in his computer. A few seconds later he then called my name and told me "You'll be out of here in just ONE second". He stamped my NP with ARC stamp and I was allowed to proceed to the baggage area. I never asked the CBP officer why I was referred to a secondary inspection at POE.
Have you traveled with your GC and NP and encountered the same problem? Any new development on your issue?
 
One can be sent to secondary inspection randomly. This includes US citizens. My wife, born and bred in the Bronx, has been sent to secondary more often than me. It is not the end of the world :)

Have you traveled with your GC and NP and encountered the same problem? Any new development on your issue?
 
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I would like to comment on swiping the passport instead of the GC. One time I was coming back from Canada with my national passport and a I-551 stamp in it. The CBP officer swiped my passport without even looking at the stamp and let me go without asking anything about my PR status (just usual customs questions). I would assume they can look up the status by full name and a date of birth and, possibly, a nationality.
 
I had both happen to me - passport and/or GC swiped. I also see no real pattern on the notes put on the stamp if they stamp the passport (had two trips recently where only my customs form was stamped): ARC, LPR with or without my A#.
More recently, they seem to swipe GC only and just look at the number of stamps in the passport (my experience is mostly from Philadelphia and Dulles). I had one junior officer in training (supervisor behind him in the booth) review every stamp in my passport and make me explain why I travel so much and that I really should no longer have LPR status (which is incorrect because I have in no possible way abandoned my status). The senior guy finally told him to let it go and admit me but the people in line after me told me at baggage claim that they were still discussing my case after I left. This was in Charlotte where they don't have a ton of int'l flights so that probably did not help me!
 
Totally agree. Each officer has his/hew own way to make a determination. On Sunday I returned from Toronto after visiting my mother for Xmas. I crossed the border at the Blue Water Bridge (Port Huron, MI). The officer while swipping my passport asked me what I was doing in Canada. When I told him I was visiting my mother for Xmas, his next question was, "You have any cookies or chocolates on you?" :)
I did. I declared them and he then wished me a good day!!!

II also see no real pattern!
 
It would be interesting to hear the experience of USC non-residents who enter the USA on US passports but reside in other countries of citizenship. Are they more likely to be referred to secondary?
 
THey better not be sending US citizens to secondary unless I m a criminal or I don't Have a passport. I will raise hell if I were to go to secondary...had enough!!
 
If i have a reentry permit, will i have to go through secondary inspection if i use it to enter the US?
 
Not a must. Secondary inspection is only if you are profiled in some way, or something in the computer does not add up. Just having re-entry permit does not make you go through secondary inspection.
 
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