Immigration Laws :: A Pain in the Ass

Alright so this one is going to be downright venting of my frustrations hence please don't read unless you are really bored.

Till morning I was blessed and happy that in a week's time I would be home enjoying a vacation with Mom & Dad in our super cool old house in India. This would not only give me a chance to live with them for 2-3 weeks after 2 years but I will also get to meet my friends, relatives, Grandmother. All in all I was planning to have a blast of a time before coming back and starting to work here in the US of A.

All was well yesterday when I had booked a ticket, talked to the foreign student officer and made lists of what all gifts I should purchase. There was this bit of a doubt instilled in me last night by a friend to the effect that I shouldn't leave the country while I am switching visas; I might not be allowed back into US.

So I was a woman on a mission today....I talked in length with all the foreign student officers, opened the exact code regulation on the US Homeland Security website and gained an accurate understanding of all possible circumstances that I could face. To my chagrin, despite the fact that the law was on my side and that I would have all the necessary legal documents to re-enter the country, it was ultimately at the discretion of the immigration officer who would interview me once I landed in the US to decide whether of not to let me enter......Isn't it strange..

On one hand I have all the papers necessary to enter the country but on the flip side I may still be deported back from the US. This is by the way true for all non-US citizens on any kind of visa. Anytime you can be asked to leave the US with/without any specific cited reasons. Moreover, you cannot legally challenge the decision of an immigration officer....

While as an objective person I realize that for a country of the stature of US it must be difficult to manage foreign citizens in the country especially since the 9/11 episode and that every precaution must be taken so as not to allow unlawful entry of people or lawful entry of criminals...I still find the immigration laws strange..Why???

If it were the case that a terrorist was trying to enter the US and an immigration officer would realise something is fishy and/or even recognize him, would he in such a case deport him? No I am pretty sure the US would let him enter, charge him, keep him here and try him in a court of law. But for others who have mainatained a clean history in the country and are here for educational/business purposes clearly indicated by legal paperwork they would much rather deport a person at the slightest hint of suspicion/doubt/whim....

Still not convinced about this anomaly in the immigration department's workings, I talked to 4 different immigration lawyers..What they told me was even more shocking...They said that I had a 25% chance of not being allowed back into the country at the whim/discretion/mood/background of the immigration officer..More so they advised me that if it was an emergency for which I needed to go to India, I should go ahead but if not, I should take the safe route and stay here...They also asked me questions about my religion, ethnic origin, etc..because in case I was Muslim/Sikh or a male with a turban I was 100% at risk of not being allowed back into the US.....

At the end of the day I felt angry, mad and sad because I won't be able to see my parents..They will advise me not to risk my career goals etc. for a 15 day visit to India and tell me to go vacationing in the US itself, but I know inside their hearts will be broken ...More so because now I won't be able to meet them till sometime next year when post my work permit the processing of my next visa H1 will start, which will again take a few months.....

A dialogue from a popular comedy Hindi flick came to mind when I tried to console myself -

In Gujarati language:
"Carom ramvanu, juice pivanu..Majja ni life!!"

Translated to English:
"Play carom (a board game) and drink juice...Life is fun!!"

While my freinds go and enjoy in India and I get bored here, my motto for the remaining summer will be -

In Gujarati language:
"Blog karvanu, swim karvanu, desi jamvanu..Majja ni life!!"

Translated to English:
"Blog, swim and eat Indian food...Life is fun!!"