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On my last visit to the US, there was some kind of mix up at the immigration. I was with my niece at that time (a GC holder.) Apparently, when they scanned her passport my picture came up with her details but then she was cleared. When my turn came for clearance, the immigration officer said I was already cleared. So they had to do some override or something at that time to clear me by rescanning me and my niece.

How do they note this situation for the next immigration officers? Should I go back through the same airport (San Diego) so they might remember or have a record of what they did, or will I be ok at different airport?

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    I'd be more concerned about what might happen to your niece, if her passport has the wrong picture in it? Oct 31, 2013 at 0:26
  • Her passport ia correct. When they scanned the visa, the immigration officer said she saw my pic but with my niece's details. She did the iris and fingerprint scan for my niece and she was cleared. When another immigration officer was trying to clear me, he said I was already cleared. Kinda confusing. I hope they made a note on their system for what happened.
    – User13
    Oct 31, 2013 at 2:01
  • Had you travelled to the US in the past with your niece? Oct 31, 2013 at 14:13
  • That was the first time we travelled together to the US.
    – User13
    Oct 31, 2013 at 21:43

1 Answer 1

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You should be fine. All entry points across the country are synchronized to use the same records, so any notes made in San Diego will be visible next time you enter, regardless of where you go.

That said, there is a (small) risk is that the CBP officer did not completely fix up your records, so when you leave the country, your exit is not tied to your entry. If yes, because the US has no record of you leaving, you might be considered an illegal overstayer and get stopped the next time you come. If you have proof you left the US, eg. an entry stamp into another country, you can sort this out on the spot; if not, things could get hairy.

In a sane country, this would be sorted out at exit immigration, but Uncle Sam doesn't have that. If you want to check, you could write to the CBP FOIA department and request a record of your travel to the US, which should show your entries and exits, and then you can (try to) take action if your exit doesn't show.

All that said, the mix-up with your niece sounds bizarre and confusing. As a wild guess, I'd guess somebody screwed up some data entry when they were processing your visa, although I still don't understand how they could possibly substitute your niece's details. Which visa do you have, and did she sponsor your application or something?

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    +1 for the information in the 2nd paragraph. Didn't know that record of travel to the US can be requested.
    – Raiyan
    Oct 31, 2013 at 4:28
  • Im on a B2/B1 visa. We came together to the US because she was in the PI for the summer. I accompanied her back to the US. She has the same last name as I do and our initials are the same "RR". Thanks for the information. It made me feel a lot better.
    – User13
    Oct 31, 2013 at 4:35

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