Question:
“How long can I stay in the U.S. with my non-immigrant visa?”
Answer:
Your length of stay in the United States will be determined by the immigration inspector upon entry into the country. The immigration inspector will base his decision upon his evaluation of your reasons for visiting the U.S. In most cases, visitors are authorized to stay up to 6 months, but it may be for a shorter period of time. For this reason, your passport must be valid for at least 6 months as of the date you anticipate entering the United States.
The date of expiration on your non-immigrant visa does not represent the last day that you can be in the United States. The validity period for your visa represents the time during which you may apply for admission into the United States. Therefore, the date of expiration is the last day that you may enter the United States to request permission to enter the country. In other words, if your visa expires on December 8, 2009, you can travel to the U.S. and request admission until midnight on December 8, 2009. The immigration inspector at passport control will then decide how long you are authorized to stay. In this case, you might be authorized to stay until May 7, 2010, even though your actual visa expires on December 8, 2009.
