My mother-in-law from Spain entered the US under the ESTA/VWP and, by mistake, overstayed her visit by one day. She entered on January 13th and left on April 13th. Today, as she was going through US immigration to re-enter, 4 months after her last entry, she was taken to the Immigration offices, interviewed, and refused entry because of that one day overstay. She will no longer be able to use ESTA. Will this refused entry affect her ability to get a visa?
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Are you sure she was denied entry simply because of the one day overstay, rather than because of the attempt to use the Visa Waiver Program despite being ineligible due to the prior overstay?– Patricia ShanahanCommented Aug 4, 2017 at 12:31
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Bormally, for a non-leap year, her entry stamp should have been until April 13th, and she should be fine.– phoogCommented Aug 4, 2017 at 13:55
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1@phoog You are miscounting as well. Jan 13-April 13 includes 19 days in Jan, 28 in Feb, 31 in March and 13 in April for a total of 91 days. Remember to include both Jan 13 and April 13 as days in the country.– Jacob HorbulykCommented Aug 4, 2017 at 15:53
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@JacobHorbulyk the US doesn't count the day of entry. Numerous images of VWP entry stamps on the internet confirm this.– phoogCommented Aug 4, 2017 at 16:22
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1 Answer
Yes, it will affect her ability to get a visa. From now on, she has to answer if she was ever refused entry with "yes" and that will lead to extra scrutiny.
It probably won't lead to an automatic rejection of future visa applications, but it will matter. And regardless of the rights or wrongs of the old refusal, she will have to mention it.
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Furthermore, the visa should be valid for ten years and will allow her to visitfor up to six months at a time.– phoogCommented Aug 4, 2017 at 16:23