All arrivals and departures of foreign citizens entering the US at a US Port of Entry are tracked by the Form I-94. It used to be a physical form until April 2013. Now, the arrival & departure info of foreigners arriving in the US is fully automated and captured electronically without the need for filling out a physical form at airports and seaports, except at land entry points.
In this article, you will find how to find and retrieve I-94 online, how to get corrections done, or, if you have any issues, how to contact CBP for I-94 form issues, common FAQs on the I-94 form.
If you are new to the I-94 form, for background, read full info at: What is the I-94 form, its importance, and what is it used for?
How to Find and Get the Electronic I-94 Online? Download?
The most recent electronic I-94 form can be checked and downloaded online at the DHS.gov Website. Below is the step-by-step guide on how to find the same and download a copy of the I-94 for your records.
Step-by-Step Guide to Get Electronic I-94 Form Online
- Step 1 – Navigate to DHS – I94 Website: Visit CBP DHS.gov I-94 Website
- Step 2 – Go to the menu to get the most recent I-94: From the navigation menu, select the Get Most Recent I-94 menu item or click on the tile that shows the “Get Most Recent I-94” button in the tiles as shown in the below screenshot.
- Step 3 – Agree to the DHS Terms of Service: You will get a pop-up asking for consent and a big disclaimer indicating that you are entering a US Govt website and cannot do anything wrong and they will monitor it. You need to click on “I Acknowledge and Agree” as shown in below screenshot to proceed to next steps.
- If you do not want to consent or if you select ‘Decline & Exit’ , then you will get a different pop-up saying you did not agree to terms like below. You cannot print your I-94 if you do not consent to the terms.
- Step 4 – Enter Your Personal Information: You will need to enter your personal information as it appears in your passport.
- You need to enter your details as it appears on your passport that you have a valid US Visa.
- If you have multiple passports, with your Valid US Visa in Old Passport, then you will need to enter the old passport details.
- If you have used a APC Kiosk on B1/ B2 Visa , you would have scanned the same old passport with valid visa stamping on it, you need to use the same passport details to print your I-94 form online.
- Sometimes, the old passport details may not work, then you need to enter the current passport that is valid. Once you enter the below details, click on Next as shown below.
- You will be asked to enter the below details :
- First name: Your Given Name or first name as it appears in your passport with a valid US Visa.
- Last Name: It is your family name or surname that appears in your passport with a valid US Visa.
- Date of Birth: it is your Date of Birth as it appears in your passport with a valid US Visa.
- Country of Citizenship: You must enter your country of Citizenship here. It is essentially the country that issued your passport.
- Document Number: The document number corresponds to the Travel Document Number. Usually, this is your passport number with a valid US Visa. If it does not work, then you can enter the valid current passport number. If you have used any other travel document, enter that Travel Document Number.
- Step 5 – Display Electronic I-94: Once you click on the continue button, you will get your Electronic I-94 Online, and it will look like in the below screenshot.
- You have the option to print or save the I-94 as PDF as well. Click on the ‘Print’ button on the bottom right-hand corner
- Once you download or print it, it will look like the screenshot below. It has all the details on validity, number, etc.
You can check out Sample Electronic I-94 retrieved online using the above steps.
What is an I-94 Admission Number or I-94 Card Number?
The I-94 Admission Number or Card Number is the “Admission I-94 Record Number” that appears on the electronic I-94 that you get from the CBP I-94 website. Also, in older paper based I-94 forms, it is the ‘Admission Record Number’ that is on the physical card. This number is generated by the CBP system for tracking your arrivals and departures.
Below is where the I-94 Number appears on the Electronic I-94 form
See the below screenshot to see where it is on the physical I-94 card. US Federal Agencies agencies use this number to validate your status in the US.
You can check out Samples of I-94 Arrival Departure Cards Stamped by CBP for more samples and info.
I-94 Not Found or No Record Found For Traveler?
Sometimes, when you search on the CBP website for I-94, you may get a message such as “I-94 Not Found” or an error saying “No Record Found for Traveler” or any such message as shown below; it all means that you cannot find I-94 online for your details.
First, check the below if you cannot find your I-94 online and get the above message.
- Check personal details: Double check if you entered all your details from your passport correctly, such as first name, last name, date of birth, Passport issue country, and passport number.
- Check Passport Number: If you have multiple passports with your valid US visa in your Old Passport, then you should try changing the Passport details from the US visa passport to your current passport or the passport between your old and current one.
If you have entered all your details correctly and still cannot find information online, you need to correct your information by visiting a Deferred Inspection Site or contacting CBP using their Ask Question Option. Let’s look at that option in the below section.
How do I fix I-94 Issues like “No Record Found” and other Issues?
You have two options to fix your I-94 or get it corrected.
- Contact CBP team using “Ask a Question Option” on their website
- Visit a Deferred Inspection Site to get your I-94 Corrected.
Contact the CBP Team using the “Ask a Question” Option on their website
Step 1 : You need to visit the CBP Help website: https://www.help.cbp.gov/s/?language=en_US
Step 2: Click on “Ask a Question” box/option on the main page or other pages. See the screenshot below for how it looks
Step 3: You need to fill out the Form that comes as a pop-up. There are couple of options in there for Topic and Applicable Issue. You must select the appropriate options here.
Topic: In the dropdown of Topic field, you must select “I-94/ Traveler Compliance”. It will look like in the screenshot below
Applicable Issue: Depending on your case, you must select the applicable Issue option here. If you have No Record Found or Not found issue, then you must select the option “Issue with my I-94/Travel History” Option. See the screenshot below for how it looks
Step 4: Enter your email and other details, attach a screenshot of the issue and then click on Next button
Step 5: Complete your Personal Details and then submit the Form. See the screenshot below on how it looks on the CBP website.
Once you submit the form, you will get a response from CBP Support team and they will let you know the next steps.
Visit a Deferred Inspection Site to get your I-94 Corrected
You can visit a Deferred Inspection Site to get your I-94 Corrected. There are about 70 Deferred Inspection Sites across the US, and they will help you fix your I-94 Errors or Not found issues. Sometimes, at the Port of Entry, CBP officers also suggest that you go to Deferred inspection sites to get your I-94 fixed, if there are any issues with their online system.
The officers at Deferred Inspection sites can help you fix the issues of I-94 not found or wrong info on your I-94 regarding your status, biographical info, etc. You should visit a Deferred inspection site close to the place, where you live or your final destination and not at the port of entry. You should schedule an appointment at the deferred inspection site by calling them. Check the list of Deferred Inspection Sites, to get your I-94 corrected, they have the operating hours, phone number, and address.
Common FAQs
The date you arrive in the US is the I-94 Issue date. It is usually printed on the I-94 electronic form online as the ‘Arrival/ Issued Date’ as shown in the above images of Sample I-94.
When you arrive in the US, depending on the visa type you use to enter, you will be given a date that you should exit America, that date is called the I-94 expiration date. On the electronic I-94, you will see that date under ‘Admit Until Date’. If you do not apply for an extension or do anything, you need to depart the US by that date. Check the above sample I-94 image in the article, for example.
If you enter the US on a visa such as Student Visa(F1 visa), you will not have an end date or “admit until date” that is tied to a specific date. DHS would list ‘Admit until date’ in such cases as D/S and it means “Duration of Status”. D/S means that you can stay in the US as long as you maintain the status of your class of admission. So, if you are on F1 student status, you can continue to be in the US on student status as long as you maintain your student status and you do not have a defined particular day to exit the US. You can check more on US Visa vs Status Difference
I-94 entry status corresponds to the class of admission you have used to enter US. It is basically the visa type you have used to enter. In the above image, you can see it as B1 and listed under “Class of Admission”.