Can an Immigration Officer Limit Your Length of Stay
A woman holding a 10 year B1/B2 tourist visa has travelled to the U.S. for the past two years. Two years ago, she visited for a few weeks. Last year she visited for five months. This year, when entering the U.S., she asked to stay for the full six months permitted under her visa. The immigration office said that she could enter for only two months. When the visa allows a six month stay, can the immigration officer cut that stay short?
Re: Can an Immigration Officer Limit Your Length of Stay
A visa authorizes a person to enter the United States for reasons consistent with the visa, within a defined range of dates.
A visa does not define the duration of your stay -- that is decided at the time of entry. There is no reason why an immigration officer must authorize the greatest possible stay, and in fact tourists are rarely admitted for five to six months. If the immigration officer is concerned that you may be working, that you have the intent to immigrate, the immigration officer can restrict the duration of stay or even deny entry on that basis.