Overstayed welcome without knowing....

A friend of mine overstayed his 6 month period in the state for more than a year. Hes now been back in Canada for some time, returned to his kid and job. Hes now not sure if he should go to the border or wait a few years before trying to return.

Does he face a 10 year ban? What is the best thing to do to speed up his return to the states? Should he go to the border and tell the truth asap? Any advice would be great. Thanks!

Your "friend" can be subject to a five year bar for accidentally overstaying. (how do you not know your in another country a year too long?) Anyways, if he does not lie, it could be only five years, if he lies, that would be fraud and subject him to being inadmissible for the rest of his life.

On the other hand, if he comes across a less that knowledgeable Officer, the Officer may not put two and two together. The bar can be overcome with a 212 waiver also.

Its just that he didnt know about the bar, like a lot of us younger peeps.. Thanks for the info!

so should my friend (and yes, I really am helping someone ) go the the border, tell the truth and get the form 212? And where do you fill out this form 212? What is the proper timeline once you've visited the border?

So one more question. Ive been looking over the form 212 and it talks about the subject being removed from the country. In this case my friend wasnt removed and is voluntarily returning to the border to deal with his bar. Now does the form 212 still apply to his situation??

Sorry for the confusion.

If he is barred, he can then apply for the waiver.

What I was trying to convey was the fact that lying will make him inadmissible forever, whereas, fessing up if asked, would likely only bar him for 5 years with the possibility of getting a waiver for the bar.

That is, if the question even comes up, tell the truth, if the question of his time in the USA never comes up, he may get away with it. Until he tries to travel to the USA, it's anyones guess.

thanks again!