Filling Out the CBP Form I-94

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Provides step-by-step information on the student visa and 

the exchange visa program for the United States. 

Form I-94, is the CBP form that contains information about your date of entry into the United States and the date of expiry of the period of your authorized stay in America. Non-

immigrants who enter into the United States, will have to fill out this form. Form I-94 contains two parts and you need to complete both the sections of this form. The upper portion of the form is the arrival record and the bottom section is the departure record and you will have to return this form to the CBP officials, while you leave the country.

Arrival Record

You need to enter your name, your family name, date of birth and other personal information, in this part. You must also enter your passport number and flight number. You should write the name of the country where you reside and the name of your home country, in the arrival record. You need to enter the name of the city where you boarded and where the visa was issued to you. Moreover, you must enter the address where you will reside, while in the United States. 

Departure Record

In the bottom part of Form I-94, you will have to write your first name and your family name. You must also enter your date of birth and the name of your home country.

After immigration inspection, a CBP officer will stamp your I-94 form and your passport. After stamping your arrival/departure record, the CBP official will retain the arrival record and return the departure record and your passport. You need to keep your departure record and your passport safe. However, the CBP officer will ask you few questions regarding the duration of stay and about the purpose of your trip, before stamping your passport and Form I-94. A non-immigrant in the United States can extend his stay, by filing Form I-539, while in America. If the USCIS approves the applicants petition, the non-immigrant will be granted a new I-94 form.

However, it is the responsibility of the non-immigrant to return the departure record to a CBP officer, when he leaves the country. Form I-94, must be returned into the airline or the shipping line, if you leave the United States by air or sea. If you leave the United States by land, you must hand over the departure record to a CBP officer. If you lose your departure record, while in the United States, you must apply for replacement by filing Form I-102.

If you take a short trip to Mexico or Canada, while in the United States on a non-immigrant visa, you may keep your departure record with you. You may then re-enter the United States and stay there until your authorized period of stay expires. This applies to exchange visitors and academic students, who hold J and F visas. For more information, you may get in touch with a CBP official at the port of departure and the CBP officer will provide information based on your circumstance.