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I use https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/history-results to obtain my most recent travel history from and to the US.

My French passport got renewed in April 2012, and I was in France at that time. I then flew to the US in August 2012, using this passport (not the old one). However, https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/history-results doesn't mention this arrival in August 2012. How is that possible?

A friend of mine renewed his South Korean passport in April 2012 in South Korea, when he was in South Korea. He then flew to the US in August 2012, using this passport (not the old one). https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/history-results does mention this arrival in August 2012.

According to the I-94 FAQ:

CBP maintains arrival and departure records. The I-94 website will provide the arrival/departure date and port of entry/exit for the passport entered into the query. The website will provide records for the past five years.

The provided travel history may not reflect: land border arrivals/departures, closed loop cruise arrivals/departures, air carrier reservation updates, and United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updates, changes of status, extensions of stay or adjustments of status. U.S. Citizen and Lawful Permanent Resident travel is NOT provided on this website. If this travel history is not complete, there is no action to take. CBP documents travel from a variety of sources. This travel history is only a tool to assist the public and is not an official record for legal purpose.

The FAQ does mention the possibility of an incomplete travel history, but I wonder about the causes.

Misc:

  • We both entered on an F1 visa.
  • I checked the travel history for my old passport: there is no arrival in August 2012, as expected since I used my new passport.
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    I don't know the reason, but my travel history there is also messed up. There are missing trips, and entries into the USA correctly recorded but the corresponding exit completely missing. None of these issues have affected my travel to the USA (so far!)
    – user1014
    Jan 24, 2017 at 18:13
  • @ByronSchmuland were you admitted for duration of status ("D/S")? Franck: as an F-1 student, you will have been admitted for D/S, so as long as your status is maintained, the dates of your entries and exits are not particularly relevant. I realize this doesn't answer the question, but it does address the worry that might be underlying the question. It may also help explain past carelessness on the part of CBP. My wife is D/S, and her records are a total mess, though in recent years the system has been far more accurate (perhaps since 2012 or so).
    – phoog
    Jan 24, 2017 at 18:15
  • @phoog I enter as a Canadian tourist; I don't know the exact details. They don't even stamp my passport half of the time.
    – user1014
    Jan 24, 2017 at 18:20
  • @ByronSchmuland aha, that makes sense, too. Canadians have much looser requirements around duration of stay in the US (considering immigration rules only, not tax liability), so some degree of laxity isn't terribly surprising.
    – phoog
    Jan 24, 2017 at 18:25

1 Answer 1

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The I-94 automation process rolled out in 2013. Before that, passengers were given paper forms, and not all entries were tracked the same way. Five years is just the broad guideline of how long the website is able to provide data, but the website is only as good as the underlying database, and that database is far from perfect.

In short, there's nothing really to worry about. You entered before the latest system was up and running.

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