Please note: The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) recently released to its offices and to the airlines an announcement regarding a new automated I-94 system. We reprint the announcement here:

INS has introduced a new automated system which captures Form I-94 arrival and departure data electronically at air ports of entry (POE) and uploads nonimmigrant information to the Nonimmigrant Information System (NIIS). The system is currently in operation in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and is used in the inspection of US Airways flights from
Munich, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, and Amsterdam. The system will also be expanded to additional POEs in fiscal year 1998 in cooperation with US Airways, Northwest Airlines, and Continental Airlines.

The Automated I-94 System employs magnetic stripe technology, which is currently being used by the airline industry to produce machine-readable boarding passes, to capture and store I-94 data. The automated I-94 Arrival Card looks similar to an airline boarding pass and contains Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) information including basic passport as well as flight information. It is produced overseas by the airline during check-in and is given to the traveler along with the boarding pass. The new I-94 Arrival Card combines the I-94, I-94W, and I-94T and is produced for all non-U.S. citizen travelers, including
Canadians and U.S. permanent residents. The check-in agent places the I-94 Arrival Card in a brochure (similar to an airline ticket jacket) containing information about entering the United States and the conditions of the Visa Waiver Pilot Program (VWPP) and gives it to the traveler upon completion of check-in procedures. Travelers entering the United Status under the VWPP must sign and date the card.

If a participating carrier is unable to produce the automated I-94 Arrival Card, the traveler is given the revised Arrival/Departure Card I-94A-OT to complete manually. The I-94-OT card is similar in size and shape to the automated cards and also contains a magnetic stripe.

At the POE, the traveler presents the I-94 Arrival Card along with his passport to the immigration inspector. The inspector uses the automated systems at the POE to "read" the I-94 Arrival Card information, access the APIS record, and electronically confirm the arrival. Upon completion of inspection, the inspector creates the arrival record by adding the actual arrival information (date, place and class of admission, the date to which the traveler is authorized to remain in the United States, and any special conditions regarding the stay), and produces the automated I-94 Departure Card. The system generates an I-94 admission number that is printed and encoded on both the arrival and departure cards. The arrival record is stored in a local database and nonimmigrant records are uploaded to NIIS daily.

The automated I-94 Departure Card, which shows the particulars of the admission, is given to the traveler to be kept in his possession until he surrenders it upon departure from the United States. Currently, I-94 Departure Cards are collected by the carrier and returned to the INS in the normal manner. The departure information is then electronically captured, and the nonimmigrant departure information is uploaded to NIIS.

Under certain circumstances, it might not be possible for INS to produce the automated I-94 Departure Card at the POE. If the departure card cannot be printed, the inspector will endorse the I-94 Arrival Card (automated or manual) and return a portion of the card to the traveler to be used as his I-94 Departure Card until he surrenders the card upon departure from the United States. These departure cards are also collected by the carrier and returned to the INS in the normal manner. The departure information is then electronically captured, and nonimmigrant information is uploaded to NIIS. Regardless of the version of the I-94 which is used, the inspector continues to place the INS admission stamp in the traveler's valid travel documents.