252.1—Examination of crewmen.

(a) Detention prior to examination. All persons employed in any capacity on board any vessel or aircraft arriving in the United States shall be detained on board the vessel or at the airport of arrival by the master or agent of such vessel or aircraft until admitted or otherwise permitted to land by an officer of the Service.

(b) Classes of aliens subject to examination under this part. The examination of every nonimmigrant alien crewman arriving in the United States shall be in accordance with this part except that the following classes of persons employed on vessels or aircraft shall be examined in accordance with the provisions of 8 CFR parts 235 and 240 :

(1) Canadian or British citizen crewmen serving on vessels plying solely between Canada and the United States; or

(2) Canadian or British citizen crewmen of aircraft arriving in a State of the United States directly from Canada on flights originating in that country. The crew of a vessel arriving at a United States port that may not require inspection by or clearance from the United States Customs Service is, nevertheless, subject to examination under this part; however, the master of such a vessel is not required to present Form I-95 for any crewman who is not an applicant for a conditional landing permit.

(c) Requirements for landing permits. Every alien crewman applying for landing privileges in the United States is subject to the provisions of 8 CFR 235.1(d)(1)(ii) and (iii), and must make his or her application in person before a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer, present whatever documents are required, establish to the satisfaction of the inspecting officer that he or she is not inadmissible under any provision of the law, and is entitled clearly and beyond doubt to landing privileges in the United States.

(d) Authorization to land. The immigration officer in his discretion may grant an alien crewman authorization to land temporarily in the United States for: (1) Shore leave purposes during the period of time the vessel or aircraft is in the port of arrival or other ports in the United States to which it proceeds directly without touching at a foreign port or place, not exceeding 29 days in the aggregate, if the immigration officer is satisfied that the crewman intends to depart on the vessel on which he arrived or on another aircraft of the same transportation line, and the crewman's passport is surrendered for safe keeping to the master of the arriving vessel, or (2) the purpose of departing from the United States as a crewman on a vessel other than the one on which he arrived, or departing as a passenger by means of other transportation, within a period of 29 days, if the immigration officer is satisfied that the crewman intends to depart in that manner, that definite arrangements for such departure have been made, and the immigration officer has consented to the pay off or discharge of the crewman from the vessel on which he arrived. A crewman granted a conditional permit to land under section 252(a)(1) of the Act and paragraph (d)(1) of this section is required to depart with his vessel from its port of arrival and from each other port in the United States to which it thereafter proceeds coastwise without touching at a foreign port or place; however, he may rejoin his vessel at another port in the United States before it touches at a foreign port or place if he has advance written permission from the master or agent to do so.

(e) Conditional permits to land. Unless the crewman is in possession of Form I-184 and is landed under paragraph (d)(1) of this section, the immigration officer shall give to each alien nonimmigrant crewman permitted to land a copy of the Form I-95 presented by the crewman, endorsed to show the date and place of admission and the type of conditional landing permit.

(f) Change of status. An alien nonimmigrant crewman landed pursuant to the provisions of this part shall be ineligible for any extension of stay or for a change of nonimmigrant classification under part 248 of this chapter. A crewman admitted under paragraph (d)(1) of this section may, if still maintaining status, apply for a conditional landing permit under paragraph (d)(2) of this section. The application shall not be approved unless an application on Form I-408, filed pursuant to paragraph (h) of this section, has been approved authorizing the master or agent of the vessel on which the crewman arrived to pay off or discharge the crewman and unless evidence is presented by the master or agent of the vessel to which the crewman will be transferred that a specified position on that vessel has been authorized for him or that satisfactory arrangements have been completed for the repatriation of the alien crewman. If the application is approved, the crewman shall be given a new Form I-95 endorsed to show landing authorized under paragraph (d)(2) of this section for the period necessary to accomplish his scheduled reshipment, which shall not exceed 29 days from the date of his landing, upon surrendering any conditional landing permit previously issued to him on Form I-95.

(g) Refusal of conditional landing permit. When an alien crewman is refused a conditional landing permit for any reason, the Form I-95 presented by him at time of examination shall be endorsed “Permission to land temporarily at all U.S. ports is refused” and the Form I-95 shall be given to the master or agent of the vessel or aircraft and, in the case of vessels, the alien crewman's name shall be listed on the Form I-410 delivered to the master of the vessel upon completion of the examination of the crew. If an alien crewman who has been refused a conditional landing permit is in possession of Form I-184, the Form I-184 shall be lifted by the examining immigration officer and, except in the case of an alien crewman who is refused a conditional landing permit solely because he is not in possession of a valid passport or visa, the Form I-184 shall be voided. In the case of an alien crewman refused a conditional landing permit because he is not in possession of a valid passport or visa, the Form I-184 shall be delivered to the master or agent of the vessel with instructions to return it to the alien crewman after the vessel has departed from the United States.

(h) Authorization to pay off or discharge an alien crewman. Application to pay off or discharge an alien crewman, except an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, shall be made by the owner, agent, consignee, charterer, master, or commanding officer of the vessel or aircraft on which the alien crewman arrived on Form I-408 filed with the immigration officer having jurisdiction over the area in which the vessel or aircraft is located at the time of application. The applicant shall be notified of the decision, and, if the application is denied, of the reasons therefor. There shall be no appeal from the denial of an application on Form I-408.

Code of Federal Regulations

[23 FR 2788, Apr. 26, 1958, as amended at 27 FR 11875, Dec. 1, 1962; 29 FR 13243, Sept. 24, 1964; 29 FR 14432, Oct. 21, 1964; 32 FR 9633, July 4, 1967; 33 FR 9332, June 26, 1968; 33 FR 17137, Nov. 19, 1968; 58 FR 48779, Sept. 20, 1993; 62 FR 10388, Mar. 6, 1997; 69 FR 53333, Aug. 31, 2004]