Visit visa - Time of stay

[NGorge 44]

Hello everyone.. wanted to understand the length of stay with a B2 visa better. I know visit visa stay cannot be more than 6 months. So it that per year?

Example: Entered US in March. Planning to leave within 6 months - July. 

Can I come back in another 6 months (January) and stay for 6…? 

[SalishSea 17,819]

3 minutes ago, NGorge said:

Hello everyone.. wanted to understand the length of stay with a B2 visa better. I know visit visa stay cannot be more than 6 months. So it that per year?

Example: Entered US in March. Planning to leave within 6 months - July. 

Can I come back in another 6 months (January) and stay for 6…? 

There is no fixed time allowed.   Each border entry is at the discretion of CBP.   They will stamp the allowed time in the passport.  

 

Note that if you are attempting to “live” in the U.S. for 6 months each year, expect trouble and risk to the B visa.  
 

Also-  they will wonder how you can afford to do this, and you should know that remote work is NOT allowed.

[powerpuff 6,697]

IMHO, that’s too soon to return and too long of a visit. I’m a cautious person so I wouldn’t want to risk losing my B2. 

[Dashinka 24,489]

I agree.  CBP tends to look for people abusing their B2s.  There is no set time to stay out of the U.S. after a visit, but the general rule of thumb is double the time inside the U.S.

 

Good Luck!

[mam521 2,062]

Be aware that it's 6mo before you have IRS implications in addition to CBP limitations on your visa.  This isn't a fixed year, but a fixed interval, so if you enter in Feb and stay until July, and try to reenter in December and leave in Feb, you'll have 9 months of accrued time in the US over a 12 month period.  This is going to cause some big, red flags.