POE officers

[Nemeseax 36]

6 minutes ago, Going through said:

I think quite the opposite----they want to make sure LPRs are abiding by the rules and not using a green card as a glorified tourist visa, hence more scrutiny sometimes with a GC depending on how long one was out of the country.

That is something new to me  ( I am new to all of this- still) ; but thank you for making that more clear. 

[cyclone27 710]

GoIng to secondary is not a big deal - the only thing you lose is time. It is an extremely slow ordeal so have patience.

[Nemeseax 36]

56 minutes ago, cyclone27 said:

GoIng to secondary is not a big deal - the only thing you lose is time. It is an extremely slow ordeal so have patience.

It shouldn't be a big deal  if you were honest.But read my neighbors experience- being treated disrespectfully and accused for nothing IS big deal. 

[cyclone27 710]

By nature they are not friendly and suspicious. They don’t need to be nice - just do what they need to do and move me on.

[Nemeseax 36]

6 minutes ago, cyclone27 said:

By nature they are not friendly and suspicious. They don’t need to be nice - just do what they need to do and move me on.

They don't need to be especially friendly- but what is wrong  with treating people with respect and professionally. And yes it is okay to be suspicious and inspect when needed .I don't know what they achieve by being rude to average tourists or honest USC-s. 

[cyclone27 710]

Having dealt with Customs/Immigration  world wide - they are no worse then anywhere else I’m afraid, 

[Going through 5,671]

Just now, Nemeseax said:

They don't need to be especially friendly- but what is wrong  with treating people with respect and professionally. And yes it is okay to be suspicious and inspect when needed .I don't know what they achieve by being rude to average tourists or honest USC-s. 

Sometimes it's a pressure-tactic.  Many less-than-truthful travelers crumble under pressure, whatever story they've told begins to unravel, and then the truth comes out. 

CBP officers know this.

[Nemeseax 36]

2 hours ago, cyclone27 said:

Having dealt with Customs/Immigration  world wide - they are no worse then anywhere else I’m afraid, 

I have experienced opposite  ( travelled a lot also) , someow the worst has been here  ( once in Australia also).

[TBoneTX 45,845]

7 hours ago, Nemeseax said:

1.  why rude behaviour and disrespect? Any reason for that?

2.  They have complained after that horrible experience- but got just one generic  meaningless answer .

1.  I've been told more than once, "we see a lot of weird stuff."  Nevertheless, in my extensive experience, CBP agents at POEs (and especially at inland checkpoints) are typically in a foul mood and are looking to nail someone.

2.  Don't bother complaining to the CBP National line; try to learn the name of the Port Director at the port in question, and directly mail or fax the complaint to him/her.  Otherwise, address the complaint to "Port Director" of the specific port, and send it there.

Edited April 30, 2018 by TBoneTX

[Unidentified 2,930]

I have had more issues going back to Sweden then I have had coming here. They got hung up on me saying that I live in the US when I was only here on a visa. 

 

I have only been through secondary here in the US once, it was no big deal. I had returned after travelling on an Emergency Advance Parole and apparently it is standard procedure after being paroled back into the country. The only thing that was annoying was the inability to be able to let my husband know that "hey, I made it to the US but I am stuck in secondary" luckily he's a calm man who was busy sitting in the cell phone lot watching Netflix... Took me a couple of hours to get through secondary but it was all good. I have a ton of respect for CBP and what they do and I have never had any issues with them ever. 

[Nemeseax 36]

3 hours ago, TBoneTX said:

1.  I've been told more than once, "we see a lot of weird stuff."  Nevertheless, in my extensive experience, CBP agents at POEs (and especially at inland checkpoints) are typically in a foul mood and are looking to nail someone.

2.  Don't bother complaining to the CBP National line; try to learn the name of the Port Director at the port in question, and directly mail or fax the complaint to him/her.  Otherwise, address the complaint to "Port Director" of the specific port, and send it there.

Agree with your 2. nd part,according to the 1st - okay if they saw " weird stuff " so why not to check that out.

Seems totally unecessary just to nail and bother really random person  with nothing suspicious .I  don' t Know for you ,people- but I dislike " training power " where no need for that- especially not if that happen to honest elderly citizens with health issues. 

[TBoneTX 45,845]

8 hours ago, Nemeseax said:

Seems totally unecessary just to nail and bother really random person  with nothing suspicious

I asked a couple of different lawyers about this, in the past.  They said, "It really can be random -- every third car, every license plate with a "W" in it, whatever.  Just try to abide it; they'll always let you go in a couple of hours.  All that it costs you is time."

 

Easier said than accomplished, but that's the story.

 

To be fair, I'd be in far worse humor than most of them if I had to wear a tight navy-blue uniform in 105-degree heat and check out several dozen cars during my shift -- while dealing with "a lot of weird stuff."  The consulates are the first line of protection for our country, and CBP is the other.  I should try to be more understanding, but I agree that it's not easy.

 

If you're truly being abused or harassed, say, "Sir/ma'am, I'm uncomfortable with this treatment.  Can you please call your Passenger Services Representative over here, or the shift supervisor?"

 

Of great importance:  I talked with a Port Director once, who said, "We [CBP] thrive on the truth."  Accordingly, never ever lie about anything.

Edited May 1, 2018 by TBoneTX

[Nemeseax 36]

1 hour ago, TBoneTX said:

I asked a couple of different lawyers about this, in the past.  They said, "It really can be random -- every third car, every license plate with a "W" in it, whatever.  Just try to abide it; they'll always let you go in a couple of hours.  All that it costs you is time."

 

Easier said than accomplished, but that's the story.

 

To be fair, I'd be in far worse humor than most of them if I had to wear a tight navy-blue uniform in 105-degree heat and check out several dozen cars during my shift -- while dealing with "a lot of weird stuff."  The consulates are the first line of protection for our country, and CBP is the other.  I should try to be more understanding, but I agree that it's not easy.

 

If you're truly being abused or harassed, say, "Sir/ma'am, I'm uncomfortable with this treatment.  Can you please call your Passenger Services Representative over here, or the shift supervisor?"

 

Of great importance:  I talked with a Port Director once, who said, "We [CBP] thrive on the truth."  Accordingly, never ever lie about anything.

I agree,  that job is not easy at all  ( as many other jobs) - anyway, I guess that people are aware for what kind of job they are applying as well as they are adults who probably know how they react to uncomfortable situations, stress etc.

Of course that their work  ( very very responsible one) has to be done properly but just  show some more  respect to people- they are the 1st "representatives "of the US for one foreigner, many tourists leave really a lot of $ in this beautiful country- I  really think that some more professional behaviour is needed. 

I haven' t researched what is the common background of people who apply for that work- sometimes got a really bad impression that everyone could apply  ( of course that is wrong).

 

Edited May 1, 2018 by Nemeseax