Transit Visa - Travelling Through 2 States/Long layover

[Kryssie1067 2]

Hello all,

 

 I am new to this site, and I didn't see a forum specifically for C1 visas, so forgive me if I'm posting in the wrong place

 

Anywho... My husband got his US transit visa a few days ago here in Nigeria. It's good for 2 years. We're planning a trip to Jamaica for a little getaway with my mom. We would have to pass through the US on a 12 hour flight from Lagos.

 

Now here's our little dilemma: I've read that on a transit visa, obviously you must be moving onward to your final destination when your flight is ready to depart. Now, the cheapest ticket we were able to find to Jamaica from Lagos has 2 stopovers in the US. One in Atlanta, which is a short 2 hour layover, and then one in New York which is an overnight layover for 22hours.

 

It sounds like a long journey but I was quite grateful for the overnight flight so we can rest up before hopping back on the plane straight to our final destination.

 

My question to you all is this: Is my husband able to make this journey on his transit visa? I've read that if one plans to stay in the US for even a day, then a B1/B2 visa is required.

 

Does this apply for super long and stressful layovers? We don't want any trouble on our journey and we have zero intentions of leaving the airport unless we absolutely have to (like finding an airport hotel to lodge until our flight the next morning).

 

Any assistance would be great!

 

Thanks guys,

Krystal

[JFH 12,191]

The only advice I can give you is from the perspective of an airline. I have worked on this industry for many years. 

 

A layover such as you mentioned there, whilst involuntary, is not a transit when it comes to transit visas etc. You are crossing one midnight with a break in the journey of more than 12 hours. So you would be considered an arrival and departure by the airline. And that's assuming the onward flight flies as currently scheduled. If it is subsequently schedule-changed and the gap becomes even longer you face even more problems. 

 

Although this ticket  might seem cheap, it isn't really when you think you have to spend 22 hours in an airport - that's going to cost you a lot in terms of food and drinks. Spend $100 more on a ticket with a less risky routing. 

 

You will also find that travelling such crazy routes will immediately draw attention to yourself. You might find you are earmarked for extra security screening. Airline personnel are trained to be wary of passengers with crazy itineraries. Especially if you are coming into Atlanta and then going north to New York for 22 hours to go back south to Jamaica. 

Edited June 17, 2017 by JFH

[Kryssie1067 2]

12 minutes ago, JFH said:

The only advice I can give you is from the perspective of an airline. I have worked on this industry for many years. 

 

A kayovet vet such as you mentioned there, whilst involuntary, is not a transit when it comes to transit visas etc. You are crossing one midnight with a break in the journey of more than 12 hours. So you would be considered an arrival and departure by the airline. And that's assuming the onward flight flies as currently scheduled. If it is subsequently schedule-changed and the gap becomes even longer you face even more problems. 

 

Although this ticket  might seem cheap, it isn't really when you think you have to spend 22 hours in an airport - that's going to cost you a lot in terms of food and drinks. Spend $100 more on a ticket with a less risky routing. 

 

You will also find that travelling such crazy routes will immediately draw attention to yourself. You might find you are earmarked for extra security screening. Airline personnel are trained to be wary of passengers with crazy itineraries. Especially if you are coming into Atlanta and then going north to New York for 22 hours to go back south to Jamaica. 

Well that sounds just awful, my goodness. If it's possible that I can find a shorter layover in New York, would it be the same?

 

From what I'm seeing now, the difficulty we had was that the shorter layovers were like 11 hours in Atlanta and 12 in New York which is insane because what would we do in both states for such a long period of time. It would have been better for one long layover in one state so we can head on to our destination.

 

However, I'm not entirely sure of the "rules" on a transit visa. It literally just sounds like "get in and get the heck out as fast as you can." Ha. But our problem is the distance which is why the flights are ridiculous. As of now, there is only one direct flight from Lagos to the US and that flight is quite expensive. I mean anywhere from $2,300 to $3,000 per person. Hence why we chose the 2 stopover option.