How to return to the US..

[Cardboard]

Wondering if someone has dealt with returning to the US, when living somewhere illegally. Also, how to get from Europe back to the US, with no money. I have considered hitching a ship to the carribean, and trying to hitch back to the US from somewhere in central america, or taking the northern route, ferries or sailboats from denmark to Iceland to green land to canada.
I dunno, any advice, or discussion would be interesting.

 

[Pheonix]

if your a legal americian and an illegal somewhere else I'd just turn yourself in and let the americian government pay for your airfare might even be first class.

 

[Cardboard]

not how it works. Nice try though.
If I am deported, I pay for the flight, or I lose my passport, and therefore traveling privileges outside of the country, untill I do. I am also not allowed to return to the schengen area (most of western Europe) for some years. Also, its not first class, its not that simple. You sit in black prison (meaning you have no rights) untill you are deported, which is whenever they feel like it. When you fly you are escorted by an immigrations officer, who of course, flys first class. Upon arriving to the US, you are handed over to the authorities there, to be dealt with as they see fit (and seeing as I have quite a few warrants, and am facing 2 years minimum, that wouldnt be so nice.)
NEXT

 

[cranberrydavid]

Most of the yachts crossing to the Caribbean from Europe to circumnavigate stop at the Azores. I've been told it's easy to hitch to Panama and Mexico from there. The standard route is through the canal and up to Cabo San Lucas, before turning west and crossing the Pacific. From Cabo I'm guessing it would be a reasonable hitch to Tijuana and a walk across the boarder to San Diego with the day tourists.

The Azores are technically part of Portugal, but I don't know how they handle their paperwork, which might be an issue in your case.

I'm afraid that's all I got for you. Hopefully it's a useful piece of the puzzle. Good luck man!

 

[cranberrydavid]

Edits not working yet.

There's also a good chance of finding a northbound yacht at Cabo so you'd be clearing customs at a US port from Mexico which is a cakewalk. Just be aware that many yachts will ask you to pay for your food.

 

[Cardboard]

I have heard about this, the only problem is that its only one short season, maybe one month, I think in the spring.
This is something I have considered though.
There also seems to be quite a lot of transatlantic boats leaving from all over the atlantic coast, just hanging out at harbors and meeting people should work to find someone.
I have also heard of taking cargo ships, by asking around at larger harbors, and met a german guy who went to the US from hamburg, by taking a job on a cargo ship. His job was to check the oil everyday, which was just like checking it on a car, but 100x larger.I will look into it anyways, thanks for the tip

 

[Cardboard]

also, as it seems to be nearly 2000km off the coast of portugal, I would have to figure out how to get there, though I guess this is what you meant by how they handle their paperwork...

 

[cranberrydavid]

I've heard of the freighter angle and I know it can be done, I've just never met anybody who made it work.

The advantage of going through the Azores is it improves your odds. As well as boats from Northern Europe and the Mediterranean bound to the Carribean, you've got traffic from South Africa and the Cape bound for Europe, or just stopping in to reprovision before heading west, and local European traffic who touch in at the Azores in transit just because they can. Horta is the central hub, and from everything I hear it's the way to go. You do have to watch the seasons though.

Also worth mentioning, a short private boat trip to a 3rd world country and then re-entry, either by land or sea, has cleaned up a lot of expired visas. Small 3rd world ports of entry are notoriously sloppy, and cruiser/boat-bums typically have big gaps in their passport stamps, so if you've got a couple of marine ports of entry in your book they'll usually shrug and give you a fresh visa. Just be sure to have a story ready.

 

[Cardboard]

also considered this, I was actually heading to moroko in april, but had to come north because of some other circumstances.

 

[Mouse]

sounds complicated yet exciting. good luck

 

[r3353]

Well, when i returned to the USA from Kiev via New York, the second my passport was scanned, the Dept ov H. Security brought me into a room with illegal immigrants. i had warrants in St. Louis County MN with a 600mile radius. They notified County and they didnt want to come get me, so i was released. i returned 'home' ov my own volition and turned myself in to deal with the shit and get my new passport. im almost positive any border crossing is tapped into the Big Brother Network in this day and age. So if you can make it to Mexico or Canada, id try walking across "un-observed".
Taking a boat is a great idea, but im pretty sure you would still have to register with immigration upon land-fall(any one with experience?), otherwise thats how the illegals would come in, no? i did read about some Polish guy who traveled like 3 years with no paperwork/passport in Central/South America and surrounding islands, but thats just his word and no back up when questioned.

 

[axolotl]

ok so my story is a bit convoluted and i´m not sure it applies, but i have a european passport and one time i got a "free" flight to europe. it actually sucked, i and some friends were trying to enter a country that we didn´t technically need a visa for, but it was a huge airport and security took us aside because we "looked like bums" and didn´t have "enough" cash on us. (the other people in the detainment area had really interesting stories, but that´s for another time). anyway they decided not to let us in, first they tried to get us to buy a ticket, we refused and the airline eventually flew us "home."

so - try at your own risk, but you could probably make the current hysterical security work for you in a number of cases, maybe buying a ticket to the cheapest place not in the same visa zone, ideally where you don´t need a visa for up to 3 months, but make yourself really conspicuous upon entering (dress raggedly, act rowdy, whatever gets their attention, and upon questioning make it clear that you don´t have funds to support yourself in the country and don´t have a place to stay) and if they don´t want you there, whatever airline let you get that far would be responsible to return you to where you "belong"

If I am deported, I pay for the flight, or I lose my passport, and therefore traveling privileges outside of the country, untill I do. I am also not allowed to return to the schengen area (most of western Europe) for some years. Also, its not first class, its not that simple. You sit in black prison (meaning you have no rights) untill you are deported, which is whenever they feel like it. When you fly you are escorted by an immigrations officer, who of course, flys first class. Upon arriving to the US, you are handed over to the authorities there, to be dealt with as they see fit
NEXT

hmm. if you know this for a fact, i´ll take your word for it, i don´t know how deportation works.

in my case, as we were not "deported" just "denied permission to enter" a third country, they kept us detained in the airport for 24 hours, then tried to get rid of us in the quickest and simplest manner, they did say that we´d be accompanied by police on the flight but this was obviously scare tactics to try to get us to pay the tickets ourselves -in the end some ordinary security escorted us to the gate, from boarding on we were normal economy passengers and when we arrived in europe it was like nothing had happened. in general returning to your country of citizenship as an ordinary passenger, unless outstanding charges from your own government show up, there are no questions asked, it´s just "welcome home."

we got stamps in our passports forbidding us to enter the country we had flown to in the next year without applying for a visa, and what we assume is that they will keep our details on file at that airport, but if we were to, say, get new passports and enter the same country by land, sea, or a lower budget airport, it wouldn´t come up.

border security and surveillance is veering towards getting alarmingly tight in the near future, but from what i can discern, so far, the most information they can process when you´re going through most immigration lines is whether or not you are flagged as no-fly/ high-priority suspicious, or avoiding some legal process, unless you look suspicious or are from a country on bad terms with the one you´re entering, they probably will not bother to question you in depth, they simply don´t have the time or resources at this point, and for that reason, super paranoid states like the UK and US are implementing measures to gather all personal details in order to grant you permission to fly some days BEFORE you attempt to enter or leave those countries

 

[Auto]

I got stranded in Laos broke hadn't eaten anything but fruits from trees for about 2 weeks, with no way back I had to go to the US embassy, they won't help you out unless you are destitute. They will make you call your family, I have none since I was a foster child and I didn't have any contact info for anyone else, but they make you call 3 people to try to get them to help you out. I had also overstayed my visa but in Laos it is just a 10 dollar fine per day I was over like 2 weeks, they normally won't pay for the overstay cost but they did for me, they put holes in my passport and bought an overpriced ticket for me to Denver, I can't get another passport until I pay back this $1800 repatriation loan they gave me now.

 

[Kim Chee]

taking the northern route, ferries or sailboats from denmark to Iceland to green land to canada.

...Interesting. Haven't thought about it too much. I'm sure you can figure it out though. As for your two years minimum, would you rather turn yourself in on your terms when you're ready or at their convenience without your say?

 

[Nelco]

what about a barge?

 

[Earth]

This cat makes a whole lotta sense when he just mentioned this:
"...Interesting. Haven't thought about it too much. I'm sure you can figure it out though. As for your two years minimum, would you rather turn yourself in on your terms when you're ready or at their convenience without your say?"

I have to agree - doing things on your terms is way better than someone elses - esspecially when they come down on you.

On a tangent, I just spent a month off and on seeing my Uncle Eckhart who's in town visiting from my old home in Germany. Told him the only reason why I never came back after '81 is that I would NEVER return to the States. What's interesting is the only Germany I know is that of the East / West era.............

But good luck.
Do what your heart tells you to do, and working your way across on a ship is a damn good idea, with emphisis on working - because that's what they are going to expect you to do - so if your work ethic is less than 120% then I would forget that idea real fast....
Besides, it's a big ocean out there - you don;t want to piss anyone off !!

Easy...............

 

[Cardboard]

This thread is a bit outdated, though Im still here, and thought I would drop a few replies while I am reading though it.
Taking a freight ship is more or less out of the question, due to insurance issues these days, you might get a ride on a freighter, but its going to cost you near as much as a cruise.
Other boats (like private yachts) are a good option, and I will be in the south of Europe soon, if my partner can finish dealing with the German court system in time. Here is how this works:
Boats are heading from Europe and africa and converging on the Canary Islands around this time of year (Oct. Nov.) Later, some will move on to the Azores, and continue across to the Caribbean leaving from December to as late as February. Others will head through Cabo Verde in this same time window, and continue on to Brazil. From what I understand, it is possible to find a captain who does not log you in his crew, so when you make land fall, you can walk out of the harbor hassle free (it is the captains responsibility to check his crew log and crew in with the authorities upon land fall, if you're not on the books, you're not there).
Working is just a question of who you are crewing for, some people want a cook, a deck hand, a fuck buddy, a musician, or even just some weirdo to tell stories. Its a lot like hitch hiking, but your in the boat for about a month, so its good to make sure you can stand each other for that much time (especially if you are off the books, cause if you go missing, no one would ever know).
As far as facing the warrants, I rather hope that given enough time, the shit just gets forgotten, whether through statute of limitations, or however. As far as doing time on my terms, its kind of out of the question. If I wanted to turn myself in for this bullshit, I would have done it years ago. My terms are, I didnt break any of my laws, and if some armed thugs want to hold me hostage for 2 years, they gotta find me and take me by force. I dont think there will be a time when I am prepared to give away 2 years. As well, I have never worried about running, as I dont really feel pursued. Just threatened by a justice system that I think is a fucking joke, and refuse to take part in consentingly. As well, if I'm put away, I will threaten suicide, and hope that lands me in a psych-ward, and probably a shorter sentence, followed by them paying me disability. I'm intelligent and strong willed, and I guess they will have a fun time figuring out how my brain works.
The boat info I have from about a year researching, as well as recently picking some friends brains who did this trip last winter. If anyone wants more info, pm me.

 

[axolotl]

This thread is a bit outdated, though Im still here, and thought I would drop a few replies while I am reading though it.
Taking a freight ship is more or less out of the question, due to insurance issues these days, you might get a ride on a freighter, but its going to cost you near as much as a cruise.
Other boats (like private yachts) are a good option, and I will be in the south of Europe soon, if my partner can finish dealing with the German court system in time. Here is how this works:
Boats are heading from Europe and africa and converging on the Canary Islands around this time of year (Oct. Nov.) Later, some will move on to the Azores, and continue across to the Caribbean leaving from December to as late as February. Others will head through Cabo Verde in this same time window, and continue on to Brazil. From what I understand, it is possible to find a captain who does not log you in his crew, so when you make land fall, you can walk out of the harbor hassle free (it is the captains responsibility to check his crew log and crew in with the authorities upon land fall, if you're not on the books, you're not there).
Working is just a question of who you are crewing for, some people want a cook, a deck hand, a fuck buddy, a musician, or even just some weirdo to tell stories. Its a lot like hitch hiking, but your in the boat for about a month, so its good to make sure you can stand each other for that much time (especially if you are off the books, cause if you go missing, no one would ever know).
As far as facing the warrants, I rather hope that given enough time, the shit just gets forgotten, whether through statute of limitations, or however. As far as doing time on my terms, its kind of out of the question. If I wanted to turn myself in for this bullshit, I would have done it years ago. My terms are, I didnt break any of my laws, and if some armed thugs want to hold me hostage for 2 years, they gotta find me and take me by force. I dont think there will be a time when I am prepared to give away 2 years. As well, I have never worried about running, as I dont really feel pursued. Just threatened by a justice system that I think is a fucking joke, and refuse to take part in consentingly. As well, if I'm put away, I will threaten suicide, and hope that lands me in a psych-ward, and probably a shorter sentence, followed by them paying me disability. I'm intelligent and strong willed, and I guess they will have a fun time figuring out how my brain works.
The boat info I have from about a year researching, as well as recently picking some friends brains who did this trip last winter. If anyone wants more info, pm me.

hey cardboard long time no talk are you planning on leaving europe this winter?

i just want to throw in a word of caution re getting into the psych ward. (i personally don´t think that any government will be able to maintain much control in the near future as many things in the world spin out of control but just in case,) declaring yourself suicidal and mentally ill, while it might get you some free cash, also gets you into state filing systems as unstable, a liabiity, and personally unsovereign over your own affairs for life. in other words, with the current US gov, that means that you get your disability money on a card that logs and approves/denies every grocery purchase you make. if you get in legal trouble, it´s seen as relevant that you´re a mental case, for better or for worse. depending on who´s in control, policies they make that apply to the segments of citizenry seen as liabilities, would apply to you. idk i´m aware that there are perks to be taken advantage of but i do my best to stay off any registries for any purpose unless absolutely necessary/ unavoidable.

 

[Cardboard]

Hah, thanks fr the heads up, but I'm already in those registries, for sure. I've been in prison before. They definitely give you a little more relaxed treatment when you get the psych interview in booking...
Them: "Do you hear or see things that other people don't hear or see?"
Me: "yes"
Them: "Please sit down, would you like something to eat? (Guard approaches, brings sandwich) Next question..."
For sure it has its down sides, but at some point, when they pick you up for something big (IE more than one year sentencing). When you are on a registry for being unstable, but still independent, its pretty easy for them to give you this sort of, "you don't bother us, we wont bother you" treatment, and hopefully that means retirement for me.
I have a friend who is in this situation. He was told he was not allowed to work, and that if he quit speaking out against the government, and quit acknowledging the way/ fact that they operate, they would leave him alone. At one point he was working, in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, and was approached by Feds. He just told them that he had no idea who they were, and they needed to leave him alone (more or less following his agreement to quit acknowledging the gov.) They couldn't really convince him that they were the government, or that there even was a government for that matter, and eventually walked away.
I know there all fucked and barbaric, but the most dangerous thing to them is someone who is crazy, strong willed, and intelligent. Mostly because that is what they are, and someone with the same attributes, and different ideals, seems a threat.

 

[wokofshame]

One other way to possibly get to the US again is getting on a fishing boat headed to the international waters of the Grand Banks. Steam out (10-14 days?) fish for a month or however long the trip is, then either fake deathly illness or just convince another boat somehow to pick you up and take you back to New bedford or Gloucester Mass, maybe Pt Judith RI, Cape May NJ thats where grand banks boas will come from. Actually there will be way more canadian boats heading back to Nova Scotia. There will be no fucking with customs at all.
This is totally doable w/ fishing experience, it's just improbable that you will ever be paid for the month of fishing. Grand Banks are the world's richest waters, and boats come there all the way from Russia. I say fish out the month b/c it would be some serious shit if u didn't, the cap'n probaly wouldn't let u go, unless you could do a deckhand trade with another boat