U.S. Embassy in Jamaica

Mission

The Office of International Affairs (OIA) is the overseas investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). OIA works closely with all elements of ICE, and serves as a key component in the President’s international crime control strategy.

Roles and Responsibilities

ICE’s Office of International Affairs provides operational and programmatic management of ICE attachés at foreign embassies and consulates worldwide; OIA also coordinates and supports  foreign investigative activities of ICE.

ICE work with foreign counterparts in combating transnational crimes involving national security, financial, smuggling, illegal arms exports, forced child labor, child pornography, human trafficking, intellectual property rights, commercial and immigration fraud violations.

ICE assists host-country counterparts in the development and implementation of legislation and regulations; provides training to foreign officials; responds to government and public requests for trade, travel and business information; supports the implementation of treaties, agreements and international cooperative programs.

Acquiring and developing intelligence related to cross-border criminal activity is also important to OIA’s mission

Specific Functions

ICE offices are multi-disciplined, consisting of Special Agents, Detention and Removal Officers, Intelligence Analysts and Administrative Support staff.  The ICE Attaché is responsible for the investigation and  enforcement, both criminal and civil, of violations involving Titles 8,18,19, 22, 31,49 and 50 of the United States Code (to include enforcement of laws via memorandum of Understanding for U.S. Secret Service, Department of Commerce, ATF, Department of State, Consumer Protection & Safety Commission, etc.), and any other matter as directed by the DHS Secretary.

These areas of responsibility are traditionally thought of in terms of:

• Alien smuggling and human trafficking
• Contraband smuggling (imported and exported merchandise)
• Money laundering violations, including bulk cash smuggling, hawalas, Black Market currency exchange and traditional money laundering schemes
• Illegal export or diversion of controlled U.S. technology
• Illegal export/import of conventional weapons
• Illegal export/import of military equipment and WMD related technology
• Trade fraud violations, including Intellectual Property Rights, tobacco smuggling, forced child labor, prison labor, quota evasions, textile trans-shipment, anti-dumping duty evasions and other traditional customs fraud schemes
• Illegal import/export of cultural property, stolen artwork and other items
  Child pornography, sex tourism and child exploitation
• Prime Bank Instrument fraud
• Document and benefit fraud
• Facilitation of repatriations
• International fugitive investigations
• Extradition of criminal suspects to the United states
• Genocide and human rights investigations
• Investigations of document counterfeiters/printers overseas
• Interdiction operations at foreign airports
• Extra-territorial prosecution for violations against the United States
• Repatriations of third country fugitives
• Intelligence collection

ICE is also responsible for enforcement of health, and safety issues, including tainted or prohibited foodstuffs, unsafe toys and consumer products.  They coordinate with foreign counterparts the sharing of information under bilateral agreements and Mutual Legal Assistance Agreements and coordinate the establishment of foreign vetted units working with ICE to expand criminal investigations and prosecutions in areas such as money laundering and alien trafficking/smuggling.

The Office of the ICE Attaché cultivates and maintains close liaison with local law enforcement, intelligence, regulatory and trade representatives and organizations throughout their geographic area of responsibility.  The Kingston ICE Office is currently responsible for Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

Additionally, the Kingston ICE Office initiates, oversees and is the primary contact for several Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) security programs including the Container Security Initiative (CSI), Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT), BASC and FAST.  This includes being the primary overseas points of contact for the importing and exporting communities, responding to questions about importing regulations and providing outreach and information on various programs, including the Bio-Terrorism Act and the African Growth and Opportunity Act.

• G-146 Form  Voluntary Departure Orders (PDF 395 KB)
• I-94 Recording departure from the U.S. after the fact (PDF 80 KB)

Recording departure from the United States after the fact (Returning I-94 forms)

If you returned home with your Department of Homeland Security Form I-94 (white) or Form I-94W (green) Departure Record in your passport, it means that your departure was not recorded properly. It is your responsibility to correct this record. You must provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sufficient information so we can record your timely departure from the United States. This will close out your earlier record of arrival to this country.  If you do not validate a timely departure from the United States, or, if you cannot reasonably prove otherwise when you apply for admission to the U.S. in the future, CBP may conclude you remained in the U.S. beyond your authorized stay. If this happens, the next time you apply to enter the U.S. your visa may be subject to cancellation or you may be returned immediately to your foreign point of origin.  In particular, visitors who remain beyond their permitted stay in the United States under the Visa Waiver Program cannot reenter the U.S. in the future without obtaining a visa from a U.S. Consulate. If this occurs and you arrive at a U.S. port-of-entry seeking admission under the Visa Waiver Program without a visa, CBP Officers may order your immediate return to a foreign point of origin.  If you failed to turn in your I-94 Departure Record, please send it, along with any documentation that proves you left the United States to:

ACS – CBP SBU
1084 South Laurel Road
London, KY 40744

Do not mail your Form I-94 Departure Record or supporting information to any U.S. Consulate or Embassy, to any other CBP office in the United States, or to any address other than the one above. Only at this location are we able to make the necessary corrections to CBP records to prevent inconvenience to you in the future.  To validate departure, CBP will consider a variety of information, including but not limited to:

Original boarding passes you used to depart the United States;
Photocopies of entry or departure stamps in your passport indicating entry to another country after you departed the United States (you should copy all passport pages that are not completely blank, and include the biographical page containing your photograph); and Photocopies of other supporting evidence, such as:

• Dated pay slips or vouchers from your employer to indicate you worked in another country after you departed the United States,
• Dated bank records showing transactions to indicate you were in another country after you left the United States,
• School records showing attendance at a school outside the United States to indicate you were in another country after you left the United States, and
• Dated credit card receipts, showing your name, but, the credit card number deleted, for purchases made after you left the United States to indicate you were in another country after leaving the United States.

To assist us in understanding the situation and correct your records quickly, please include an explanation letter in English. Your statement will not be acceptable without supporting evidence such as noted above. You must mail legible copies or original materials where possible. If you send original materials, you should retain a copy. CBP cannot return original materials after processing. We strongly urge you to keep a copy of what you send to ACS-CBP and carry it with you the next time you come to the United States in case the CBP officer has any questions about your eligibility to enter.

If taking short trips (30 days or less) to Canada, Mexico, or the Caribbean Islands during the course of your visit to the U.S., hold onto your I-94 or I-94 (W). It should only be turned in when you leave the U.S. to return home. Delays beyond the traveler’s control, such as cancelled or delayed flights, medical emergencies requiring a doctor’s care, etc. are not considered unauthorized overstays, however, you will need to bring proof of the cause of your overstay next time you travel to the U.S. in order for it to be forgiven. For airline delays, ask the airline for a letter affirming the delay or a copy of your cancelled boarding pass.

Address:
US Embassy
142 Old Hope Road
Kingston 6
Kingston, Jamaica W.I.