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What is an I-94 Admission Card?

This is the Form I-94 Arrival Departure Card that is issued by officers of the Customs and Border Protection Bureau (CBP) of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  It is the CBP officers who check your passports and other documents at airports and land-crossings into the U.S. 

After the officer looks at your visa and asks a few questions, she or he writes a code on the I-94 Admission Card that represents the “visa status” granted to you.  Your visa status determines what you can do while you stay in the U.S. – for example, whether you are a Business Visitor (B-1), a Student (J-1 or F-1), a Trainee (J-1), a Research Scholar (J-1) or an Employee (H-1B). 

You must hand in your Admission Card when you leave the U.S., as the Department of Homeland Security tracks these Cards to confirm that you did not stay in the U.S. past the time permitted.

An I-94 Card looks like this:

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