# Visa rule warning as tourist detained at US border

By Gavin Thomas  
BBC News  
5 days ago

A Welsh woman has spoken about being held in "horrendous" conditions after she was accused of "violating" her visa and was stopped at the US border.

Becky Burke, 28, had planned a "life-changing" trip around North America. However, she was stopped at the US border, accused of violating her visa, and denied entry into Canada. She is now detained at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Washington State.

Speaking to the BBC, Ms Burke said: "They keep saying in all their booklets that this is not a prison. It's hard to distinguish from my conception of a prison."

ICE said: "All aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States regardless of nationality."

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## Analysis - North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher

Immigration experts tell the BBC that once Ms Burke informed Canadian officials of her plans and they denied her entry, a suspension of her visa waiver and detention on the US side was probably unavoidable.

Many countries strictly interpret what constitutes compensated work, even if no money changes hands. And under the best of circumstances, processing within by the US immigration system can move slowly.

Circumstances are far from usual in the US at the moment, however. The Trump administration has stepped up immigration enforcement across the US, so these experts caution that anyone entering the country should be careful to ensure that all their documents are in order and that they are clear about their intentions upon entering the country.

According to the experts, we probably won't have any advance notice of when she is allowed to get on a plane and leave. It could happen, and her family find out about it after the fact.

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