American citizen traveling back to US with foreign friend

9/7/2016 2:53:51 PM

The currently accepted answer depends on automated passport control (APC), but not all airports have APC.

I have traveled to the US with non-US-citizen companions on many occasions, beginning around 15 years ago. I’ve never used APC.

CBP officers have told me on several occasions to bring my non-US companions with me in the US citizens’ line. More recently, I have used the diplomats’ line because I was traveling with someone who was entitled to use that line.

From these experiences, I infer that the basic principle is for people traveling together to approach passport control together, and to pick whichever line they think is best as long as at least one person in the group is eligible for that line.

This obviously might not apply to APC, since APC can’t process all travelers. Since I have never used APC, however, I am not in a position to offer any useful speculation about that.

9/7/2016 4:24:49 PM

This depends on the arrival airport, and whether your friend have visited the USA after 2008.

If you fly into one of the airports which has Automated Passport Control (the link lists all them and it seems like every major airport is there), then YES, your friend can use this line if he visited the USA after 2008:

Who Is Eligible to Use APC?

U.S. and Canadian passport holders and international visitors from
Visa Waiver Program countries are eligible to use APC kiosks. Visa
Waiver Program visitors must have Electronic System for Travel
Authorizations (ESTA) approval prior to travel and have visited the
United States on at least one occasion after 2008.

If you don’t fly to an airport with APC, you need to ask the person managing the citizen/noncitizen line (some small airports don’t even separate them). CBP officers in “US citizen” line are certainly capable to process non-citizens, including even people with visitor visas.

9/7/2016 9:14:25 AM

Your friend is definitely not allowed in the US line. Your better rights don’t extend to them just because they’re your friend.

The big question that I thought you’d be asking is; are you allowed in the non-US line with them?
This one is hazier.

Credit:stackoverflow.com‘

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Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

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