Office of Immigration Statistics

POLICY DIRECTORATE

Nonimmigrant Admissions 

to the United States: 2010

RANDALL MONGER AND MEGAN MATHEWS

Nonimmigrants are foreign nationals granted temporary entry into the United States. The major 

purposes for which nonimmigrant admission may be authorized include temporary visits for 

business or pleasure, academic or vocational study, temporary employment, and to act as a 

representative of a foreign government or international organization. The Department of Homeland 

Security (DHS) collects information on the characteristics of certain nonimmigrant admissions 

from I-94 admission records (see Box 1). This Office of Immigration Statistics Annual Flow Report

presents information gathered from I-94s on the number and characteristics of nonimmigrant 

admissions to the United States in 2010.1

During 2010, there were 160 million nonimmigrant

admissions to the United States according to DHS workload estimates.2

 These admissions included tourists and 

business travelers from Canada, Mexican nationals with 

Border Crossing Cards, and I-94 admissions. I-94 admissions accounted for 29 percent (46.5 million) of the total 

admissions (see Figure 1). The majority (87 percent) of 

I-94 admissions were temporary visitors for business and 

pleasure, while 6.1 percent were temporary workers and 

families and 3.4 percent were students. The leading countries of citizenship for I-94 admissions were Mexico, the 

United Kingdom, and Japan.

1 In this report, years refer to fiscal years (October 1 to September 30).

2 U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), 

Operations Management Reporting, Fiscal Year 2010.

Box 1. 

Key changes impacting 2010 nonimmigrant admissions

• New technology systems were implemented at vehicular lanes and pedestrian crossings along the Northern and Southwest 

borders to record land admissions previously excluded from I-94 data systems. As a result, the number of I-94 

nonimmigrant admissions in 2010 greatly exceeded totals reported in previous years.

• Visa Waiver Program entrants at air and sea ports no longer submit paper Form I-94Ws. Records for these entries, referred 

to as electronic I-94Ws, are generated upon admission for travelers who register with the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). The switch from paper I-94W to electronic I-94W had no impact on admission counts. For this report, 

I-94 admissions refer to admissions documented with paper Form I-94/I-94Ws and electronic I-94Ws.

DEFINING “NONIMMIGRANT”

Nonimmigrants are aliens whose classes of admission 

are specified in Section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration 

and Nationality Act (INA). Examples of nonimmigrant 

classes of admission include foreign government officials; temporary visitors for business and pleasure; 
2 DHS Office of Immigration Statistics

aliens in transit; treaty traders and investors; academic and vocational students; temporary workers; exchange visitors; athletes and 

entertainers; victims of certain crimes; and family members of U.S. 

citizens, legal permanent residents, and special immigrants. 

Maximum duration of stay is determined by class of admission. A 

person granted lawful permanent resident status3 is authorized to 

live, work, and study in the U.S. permanently; conversely, a nonimmigrant is in a temporary status for a specific purpose and whose 

activities, such as employment, travel, and accompaniment by 

dependents, are prescribed by his or her class of admission. 

3 Commonly referred to as a legal permanent resident (LPR) or “green card recipient.”

THE NONIMMIGRANT ADMISSIONS PROCESS

Defining “Admissions” 

In this report, nonimmigrant admissions refer to number of events 

(i.e., entries into the U.S.) rather than individuals. More than one 

entry on the same day is counted as one admission. Admission 

numbers presented in this report will differ from the number of 

Department of State visa issuances, which includes all visas that 

were issued regardless of whether the foreign national entered the 

United States. 

Eligibility

In order to qualify for admission in a nonimmigrant status, a foreign national must meet all of the following criteria: provide 

evidence that the visit will be temporary, agree to depart at the end 

of the authorized stay, possess a valid passport, maintain a foreign 

residence (in most cases), be able to provide proof of financial 

support, be admissible to the U.S. or have been granted a waiver 

for any grounds of inadmissibility, and abide by the terms and 

conditions of admission. 

Documentary Requirements

Applicants for nonimmigrant admission are required to complete 

a paper Form I-94/I-94W or Electronic System for Travel 

Authorization (ESTA)4 registration to enter the United States. 

However, Mexican nationals with Border Crossing Cards (when 

traveling within the border zone for a limited duration) and tourists and business travelers from Canada are generally exempt from 

these requirements.5

The Border Crossing Card (BCC) or “laser visa” issued to Mexican 

nationals is a machine-readable card that is valid for 10 years and 

contains a biometric indicator, such as a fingerprint. Applicants for 

a BCC must meet the same qualifications as applicants for a B1/B2 

visa (temporary visitor for business or pleasure), have a valid 

Mexican passport, and demonstrate that they have ties to Mexico 

that would compel them to return. 

4 ESTA is an internet-based system that determines the preliminary eligibility of visitors to be admitted under the Visa Waiver Program prior to their embarking on trips to the United States. ESTA 

registration must be renewed every two years or when a visitor’s passport expires, whichever 

occurs earlier.

5 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) officials (seeking N1-N5 nonimmigrant classification) are 

not required to submit an I-94 but may do so to document their admissions.

I-94 Admissions

Visa Required 

If a visa is necessary for entry, the foreign national must apply at a 

U.S. embassy or consulate. The Nonimmigrant Visa Application, Form 

DS-156, must be completed and signed for all applicants; further, 

an interview is required for all applicants aged 14 to 79 years. 

Possession of a visa allows a foreign national to travel to a U.S. port 

of entry but does not guarantee admission. A U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection (CBP) officer determines whether the nonimmigrant may enter the U.S. and the permitted duration of stay. 

Foreign nationals with a nonimmigrant visa must complete the 

paper Form I-94. 

Visa Waiver Program 

The Visa Waiver Program (VWP) allows nationals from participating countries to travel to the United States as tourists or business 

travelers without a visa for a period not to exceed 90 days. It was 

established, initially as a pilot program, in 1986 with the intent to 

eliminate barriers to travel, to facilitate tourism, and to promote 

better relations with U.S. allies. Qualified nationals of VWPparticipating countries must possess a security-enhanced passport 

valid for six months beyond their expected stay; travel on an 

approved carrier and possess a return trip ticket if arriving by air 

or sea; demonstrate both intent to stay 90 days or less and sufficient funds to support themselves during their stay; and effective 

January 12, 2009, obtain approval from ESTA. Prior to full ESTA 

implementation, those entering under the VWP were required to 

complete and submit a paper Form I-94W. As of June 2010, at air 

and sea ports, an electronic I-94W record is created upon admission for ESTA-registered VWP entrants.6 Nationals of VWP 

countries must obtain a visa if they are traveling to the U.S. for a 

purpose other than tourism or business or if their stay will exceed 

90 days. 

At the beginning of Fiscal Year 2010, 35 countries participated in 

the Visa Waiver Program: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, 

Brunei, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, 

Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, 

Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, the 

Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, 

Singapore, South Korea, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, 

Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Effective April 5, 2010, 

Greece was added to the program. 

The Guam Visa Waiver Program (GVWP) permitted nationals of 

participating countries to be admitted to Guam without a visa. At 

the beginning of Fiscal Year 2010, Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, 

Japan, Malaysia, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, South 

Korea, Singapore, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Taiwan, the United 

Kingdom, and Vanuatu were included in the GVWP. Effective 

November 28, 2009, U.S. immigration law was extended to the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). At this 

time, the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program (GCVWP) replaced 

the Guam Visa Waiver Program. Admissions under the GCVWP 

may not exceed 45 days in Guam or CNMI. Australia, Brunei, 

6 The paper Form I-94W is still required at land border ports of entry for VWP entrants. 
DHS Office of Immigration Statistics 3

Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New 

Guinea, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom 

are included in the GCVWP.

DATA 

The data in this report were obtained from TECS, a computer system 

used by CBP, which compiles and maintains information collected 

from nonimmigrants on the paper Form I-94/I-94W and electronic 

I-94W. Information collected from these I-94 records includes 

arrival and departure dates, port of entry, class of admission, country of citizenship, state of destination, age, and gender. 

Major changes in the counting of land border admissions have 

occurred (see Box 1). In previous years, if a nonimmigrant entered 

along the land border multiple times with the same I-94, typically 

only the initial admission was recorded. The new technology discussed in Box 1 now records the initial and subsequent entries of 

individuals using the same I-94. Nonimmigrant data collected in 

2010 thus represent a more complete count of land admissions 

than I-94 data collected in previous years. However, caution 

should be exercised interpreting recent trends in I-94 admissions. 

The technology changes affected admission counts for all countries of citizenship, classes of admission, and states of destination 

but had the most impact on Mexican and Canadian admissions. 

The precise impact of the counting changes is unknown. 

CHARACTERISTICS OF I-94 NONIMMIGRANT ADMISSIONS 

In 2010, there were 46.5 million I-94 admissions to the United 

States. The number of admissions was substantially greater in 2010 

than in either 2009 (36.2 million) or 2008 (39.4 million). The 

increase between 2009 and 2010—131 percent increase at land 

borders versus a 6.7 percent increase at non-land borders—was 

largely due to the more complete count of I-94 nonimmigrant 

admissions at land border ports of entry. 

Port of Entry

I-94 admission counts were higher for nearly all of the land 

border ports of entry in 2010 compared to 2009. Notable 

increases occurred at San Ysidro, CA (128 percent increase), 

Bridge of the Americas, TX (203 percent increase), and Paso del 

Norte Bridge, TX (120 percent increase) (see Table 1). Similar 

increases also occur at other land border ports. Most non-land 

ports of entry showed much smaller increases. 

The leading 20 ports of entry represented 71 percent of nonimmigrant admissions in 2010. The majority of all nonimmigrants 

were admitted through the following ports of entry: New York (11 

percent), Miami (9.2 percent), Los Angeles (7.4 percent), Newark 

(4.9 percent), San Ysidro (4 percent), San Francisco (3.5 percent), 

Chicago (3.4 percent), Honolulu (3.1 percent), Atlanta (2.9 percent), and Houston (2.8 percent). In 2010, these ten ports 

represented over half (52 percent) of nonimmigrant admissions. 

Of the leading twenty ports, seven are land border ports of entry. 

Table 1. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by Port of Entry: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010 

Port of entry

2010 2009 2008

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total .......................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

New York, NY ....................................................... 5,119,971 11.0 4,893,526 13.5 5,263,425 13.4

Miami, FL .......................................................... 4,277,515 9.2 4,148,134 11.4 4,239,190 10.8

Los Angeles, CA ..................................................... 3,420,098 7.4 3,128,072 8.6 3,580,871 9.1

Newark, NJ ........................................................ 2,260,006 4.9 2,155,169 5.9 2,315,029 5.9

San Ysidro, CA ...................................................... 1,862,181 4.0 818,201 2.3 865,594 2.2

San Francisco, CA ................................................... 1,634,512 3.5 1,536,106 4.2 1,754,188 4.5

Chicago, IL ......................................................... 1,567,273 3.4 1,507,469 4.2 1,783,211 4.5

Honolulu, HI ........................................................ 1,456,867 3.1 1,301,172 3.6 1,398,418 3.6

Atlanta, GA ........................................................ 1,341,807 2.9 1,411,368 3.9 1,560,429 4.0

Houston, TX ........................................................ 1,291,591 2.8 1,129,056 3.1 1,232,476 3.1

Agana, GU ......................................................... 1,152,925 2.5 1,032,255 2.8 1,146,422 2.9

Washington, DC ..................................................... 1,124,523 2.4 1,095,936 3.0 1,104,818 2.8

Otay Mesa, CA ...................................................... 1,000,424 2.2 524,899 1.4 522,821 1.3

Orlando, FL ........................................................ 928,145 2.0 860,652 2.4 806,155 2.0

Juarez-Lincoln Bridge, TX ............................................... 905,928 1.9 457,376 1.3 489,361 1.2

Nogales, AZ ........................................................ 847,218 1.8 437,850 1.2 470,010 1.2

Bridge of the Americas, TX ............................................. 741,650 1.6 244,564 0.7 237,274 0.6

Dallas, TX ......................................................... 684,861 1.5 634,135 1.8 684,429 1.7

Calexico, CA ........................................................ 647,442 1.4 447,141 1.2 489,469 1.2

Paso del Norte Bridge, TX .............................................. 646,689 1.4 293,599 0.8 206,676 0.5

Other ............................................................. 13,498,509 29.0 8,131,867 22.4 9,135,726 23.2

Unknown .......................................................... 61,381 0.1 43,007 0.1 95,936 0.2

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010.
4 DHS Office of Immigration Statistics

Country of Citizenship

Mexican and Canadian citizens travel across the land border more 

frequently than citizens of other countries. Because of the technology changes implemented in 2010, more I-94 admissions of 

Mexican and Canadian citizens were recorded than in previous 

years. About 73 percent of the total increase in admissions from 

2009 to 2010 is accounted for by Mexican and Canadian citizens.

The leading countries of citizenship for nonimmigrant admissions 

to the United States in 2010 were Mexico (28 percent), the United 

Kingdom (9.8 percent), Japan (8.2 percent), Germany (4.5 percent), France (3.7 percent), Canada (3.1 percent), South Korea 

(2.9 percent), Brazil (2.7 percent), India (2.5 percent), and Italy 

(2.4 percent) (see Table 2). These ten countries accounted for 

approximately 67 percent of nonimmigrant admissions to the 

United States. 

Table 2. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by Country of Citizenship: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010 

Country of citizenship

2010 2009 2008

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total ........................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

Mexico ........................................................... 12,917,788 27.8 6,601,059 18.2 7,273,511 18.5

United Kingdom ..................................................... 4,539,433 9.8 4,713,284 13.0 5,480,917 13.9

Japan ............................................................ 3,831,174 8.2 3,368,590 9.3 3,906,231 9.9

Germany .......................................................... 2,076,216 4.5 2,023,971 5.6 2,119,640 5.4

France ............................................................ 1,696,770 3.7 1,683,372 4.6 1,711,342 4.3

Canada ........................................................... 1,428,940 3.1 291,642 0.8 285,359 0.7

Korea, South ....................................................... 1,332,387 2.9 906,006 2.5 1,007,466 2.6

Brazil ............................................................. 1,233,457 2.7 959,448 2.6 893,186 2.3

India ............................................................. 1,140,937 2.5 974,306 2.7 1,100,401 2.8

Italy .............................................................. 1,111,973 2.4 1,036,940 2.9 1,086,722 2.8

Other ............................................................. 14,596,504 31.4 13,378,348 36.9 14,336,146 36.4

Unknown .......................................................... 565,937 1.2 294,588 0.8 181,007 0.5

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010.

Class of Admission 

I-94 admission counts were much higher in 2010 than 2009 for 

temporary workers and families, students, and temporary visitors 

for pleasure (see Table 3). The leading categories of admission 

for 2010 were temporary visitors for pleasure (76 percent), 

temporary visitors for business (11 percent), temporary workers 

and families (6.1 percent), and students (3.4 percent).

The greater numbers of TN, L1, and H1B entries in 2010 were 

largely attributable to admissions of Canadian nationals at land 

ports, whereas increases in counts of B2 entries between 2009 and 

2010 were largely attributable to Mexican admissions at land 

ports. Land admissions of both Mexican and Canadian citizens 

contributed equally to higher numbers of F1 entries (see Table 4).
DHS Office of Immigration Statistics 5

Table 3. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by Class of Admission: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010

Class of admission

2010 2009 2008

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total ........................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

Temporary workers and families ......................................... 2,816,525 6.1 1,703,697 4.7 1,949,695 5.0

 Temporary workers and trainees ...................................... 1,682,132 3.6 936,272 2.6 1,101,938 2.8

 Workers in specialty occupations (H1B) ............................. 454,763 1.0 339,243 0.9 409,619 1.0

 Chile and Singapore Free Trade Agreement (H1B1) ..................... 163 – 213 – 153 –

 Registered nurses participating in the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas 

 Act (H1C) ................................................. 295 – 231 – 170 –

 Seasonal agricultural workers (H2A) ................................ 139,406 0.3 149,763 0.4 173,103 0.4

 Seasonal nonagricultural workers and returning H2B workers (H2B,H2R) ...... 69,499 0.1 56,543 0.2 109,621 0.3

 Trainees (H3) ................................................ 3,078 -- 4,168 -- 6,156 --

 Workers with extraordinary ability or achievement and their assistants (O1,O2) ... 63,984 0.1 58,566 0.2 53,735 0.1

 Internationally recognized athletes or entertainers (P1) .................. 72,917 0.2 54,432 0.2 57,030 0.1

 Artists or entertainers in reciprocal exchange or culturally unique programs 

 (P2,P3) ................................................... 20,882 – 15,469 – 17,125 –

 Workers in international cultural exchange programs (Q1) ................. 2,430 – 2,555 – 3,231 –

 Workers in religious occupations (R1) ............................... 21,043 – 17,362 – 25,106 0.1

 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) professional workers (TN) ..... 634,121 1.4 99,018 0.3 88,382 0.2

 Spouses and children of temporary workers and trainees (H4,O3,P4,R2,TD) ... 199,551 0.4 138,709 0.4 158,507 0.4

 Intracompany transferees ........................................... 702,460 1.5 493,992 1.4 558,485 1.4

 Intracompany transferees (L1) .................................... 502,732 1.1 333,386 0.9 382,776 1.0

 Spouses and children of intracompany transferees (L2) .................. 199,728 0.4 160,606 0.4 175,709 0.4

 Treaty traders and investors and spouses and children (E1 to E3) .............. 383,700 0.8 229,301 0.6 243,386 0.6

 Representatives of foreign media and their spouses and children (I1) ........... 48,233 0.1 44,132 0.1 45,886 0.1

Students .......................................................... 1,595,078 3.4 951,964 2.6 917,373 2.3

 Academic students (F1) ............................................ 1,514,783 3.3 895,392 2.5 859,169 2.2

 Vocational students (M1) ........................................... 17,641 – 14,632 – 15,496 –

 Spouses and children of academic and vocational students (F2,M2) ............ 62,654 0.1 41,940 0.1 42,708 0.1

Exchange visitors .................................................... 543,335 1.2 459,408 1.3 506,138 1.3

 Exchange visitors (J1) .............................................. 484,740 1.0 413,150 1.1 459,126 1.2

 Spouses and children of exchange visitors (J2) ............................ 58,595 0.1 46,258 0.1 47,012 0.1

Diplomats and other representatives ...................................... 380,241 0.8 323,183 0.9 314,920 0.8

 Ambassadors, public ministers, career diplomats, consular officers, other foreign 

 government officials and their spouses, children, and attendants (A1 to A3) ..... 214,111 0.5 175,119 0.5 169,267 0.4

 Representatives to international organizations and their spouses, children, and 

 attendants (G1 to G5) ............................................ 141,492 0.3 127,584 0.4 125,669 0.3

 NATO officials and their families (N1 to N7) .............................. 24,638 0.1 20,480 0.1 19,984 0.1

Temporary visitors for pleasure .......................................... 35,131,310 75.6 27,800,027 76.7 29,442,168 74.8

 Temporary visitors for pleasure (B2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19,144,042 41.2 12,680,504 35.0 13,371,671 34.0

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure (WT) ................... 14,821,569 31.9 14,272,553 39.4 15,099,059 38.3

 Guam Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure to Guam (GT) ........ 120,544 0.3 846,970 2.3 971,438 2.5

 Guam – CNMI Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure to Guam or 

 Northern Mariana Islands (GMT) ................................... 1,045,155 2.2 X X X X

Temporary visitors for business .......................................... 5,205,980 11.2 4,390,888 12.1 5,603,668 14.2

 Temporary visitors for business (B1) ................................... 2,944,397 6.3 2,408,092 6.6 3,052,581 7.8

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business (WB) .................. 2,256,611 4.9 1,977,361 5.5 2,546,322 6.5

 Guam Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business to Guam (GB) ....... 904 – 5,435 – 4,765 –

 Guam – CNMI Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business to Guam or 

 Northern Mariana Islands (GMB) ................................... 4,068 – X X X X

Transit aliens ....................................................... 327,584 0.7 346,695 1.0 387,237 1.0

 Aliens in continuous and immediate transit through the United States (C1) ....... 304,023 0.7 326,704 0.9 365,958 0.9

 Aliens in transit to the United Nations (C2) ............................... 2,987 – 2,613 – 2,646 –

 Foreign government officials, their spouses, children, and attendants in transit (C3) . 20,574 – 17,378 – 18,633 –

Commuter Students .................................................. 53,711 0.1 6,488 – 1,102 –

 Canadian or Mexican national academic commuter students (F3) .............. 53,711 0.1 6,488 – 1,102 –

 Canadian or Mexican national vocational commuter students (M3) ............. – – – – – –

Alien fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens and children ................................ 34,893 0.1 32,009 0.1 34,863 0.1

 Fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens (K1) ....................................... 30,445 0.1 27,754 0.1 29,916 0.1

 Children of K1 (K2) ................................................ 4,448 – 4,255 – 4,947 –

Alien spouses of U.S. citizens and children, immigrant visa pending ................ 30,172 0.1 15,515 – 15,694 –

 Spouses of U.S. citizens, visa pending (K3) .............................. 25,615 0.1 12,937 – 12,849 –

 Children of U.S. citizens, visa pending (K4) .............................. 4,557 – 2,578 – 2,845 –

Alien spouses of U.S. permanent residents and children, immigrant visa pending ...... 8,638 – 5,445 – 8,478 –

 Spouses of permanent residents, visa pending (V1) ........................ 3,620 – 2,482 – 3,609 –

 Children of permanent residents, visa pending (V2). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,206 – 1,424 – 2,270 –

 Dependents of V1 or V2, visa pending (V3) ............................... 2,812 – 1,539 – 2,599 –

Other ............................................................. 92 – 74 – 103 –

Unknown .......................................................... 343,957 0.7 196,161 0.5 200,489 0.5

X Not applicable.

– Represents zero or rounds to 0.0.

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010.
6 DHS Office of Immigration Statistics

Table 4. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by Mode of Travel, Selected Country of Citizenship, and Selected Class of Admission: 

Fiscal Years 2009 and 2010

Class of Admission

Land Admissions Non-Land Admissions

2010 2009

Percent 

change 2010 2009

Percent 

change

 Total ..................................................... 14,538,246 6,298,259 130.8 31,933,270 29,933,295 6.7

Canada

 Total ..................................................... 1,310,916 159,525 721.8 118,024 132,117 –10.7

 Workers in specialty occupations (H1B) ............................. 55,197 6,099 805.0 17,762 16,057 10.6

 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) professional workers (TN) ..... 553,834 52,031 964.4 19,841 25,762 –23.0

 Intracompany transferees (L1) .................................... 98,494 7,508 1,211.9 11,238 10,725 4.8

 Treaty traders and investors and spouses and children (E1 to E3) ........... 31,453 2,306 1,264.0 3,723 3,808 –2.2

 Academic students (F1) ......................................... 278,851 25,596 989.4 14,601 14,699 –0.7

 Exchange visitors (J1) .......................................... 26,293 4,082 544.1 3,408 3,532 –3.5

 Temporary visitors for pleasure (B2) ................................ 73,347 22,628 224.1 13,475 15,739 –14.4

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure (WT) ............... X X X X X X

 Temporary visitors for business (B1) ................................ 28,648 10,077 184.3 5,845 6,759 –13.5

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business (WB) ............... X X X X X X

 All other classes of admission* ................................... 164,799 29,198 464.4 28,131 35,036 –19.7

Mexico

 Total ..................................................... 10,908,618 4,794,510 127.5 2,009,170 1,806,549 11.2

 Workers in specialty occupations (H1B) ............................. 17,876 2,924 511.4 12,696 11,428 11.1

 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) professional workers (TN) ..... 48,747 8,924 446.2 11,699 12,301 –4.9

 Intracompany transferees (L1) .................................... 35,889 5,777 521.2 13,761 14,476 –4.9

 Treaty traders and investors and spouses and children (E1 to E3) ........... 89,060 12,709 600.8 9,231 8,777 5.2

 Academic students (F1) ......................................... 277,337 57,185 385.0 17,827 16,312 9.3

 Exchange visitors (J1) .......................................... 18,854 4,885 286.0 7,927 7,504 5.6

 Temporary visitors for pleasure (B2) ................................ 9,470,250 4,210,932 124.9 1,540,249 1,379,713 11.6

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure (WT) ............... X X X X X X

 Temporary visitors for business (B1) ................................ 549,958 263,158 109.0 338,411 302,495 11.9

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business (WB) ............... X X X X X X

 All other classes of admission* ................................... 400,647 228,016 75.7 57,369 53,543 7.1

All other countries*

 Total ..................................................... 2,318,712 1,344,224 72.5 29,806,076 27,994,629 6.5

 Workers in specialty occupations (H1B) ............................. 43,298 10,076 329.7 307,934 292,659 5.2

 North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) professional workers (TN) ..... X X X X X X

 Intracompany transferees (L1) .................................... 57,080 13,234 331.3 286,270 281,666 1.6

 Treaty traders and investors and spouses and children (E1 to E3) ........... 66,810 14,478 361.5 183,423 187,223 –2.0

 Academic students (F1) ......................................... 100,048 22,912 336.7 826,119 758,688 8.9

 Exchange visitors (J1) .......................................... 43,345 11,996 261.3 384,913 381,151 1.0

 Temporary visitors for pleasure (B2) ................................ 769,343 385,909 99.4 7,277,378 6,665,583 9.2

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure (WT) ............... 967,873 793,569 22.0 13,853,696 13,478,984 2.8

 Temporary visitors for business (B1) ................................ 71,724 36,132 98.5 1,949,811 1,789,471 9.0

 Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business (WB) ............... 46,253 31,094 48.8 2,210,358 1,946,267 13.6

 All other classes of admission* ................................... 152,938 24,824 516.1 2,526,174 2,212,937 14.2

X Not applicable.

*Includes unknown.

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2009 to 2010.

State of Destination

The most frequent states of destination for I-94 nonimmigrant admissions in 2010 were California (18 percent), Florida 

(13 percent), New York (12 percent), and Texas (10 percent) 

(see Table 5). These four states represented the destinations of 53 

percent of foreign nationals admitted.

Age and Gender

In 2010, 61 percent of I-94 admissions were accounted for by 

individuals aged 25 to 54, and 51 percent of nonimmigrant admissions were male (see Table 6). Age and gender distributions have remained relatively unchanged since 2008.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Visit the Office of Immigration Statistics web page at http://www.

dhs.gov/immigrationstatistics.
DHS Office of Immigration Statistics 7

Table 5. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by State of Destination: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010

State of destination

2010 2009 2008

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total .......................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

California .......................................................... 8,251,404 17.8 5,834,364 16.1 6,590,690 16.7

Florida ............................................................ 6,064,266 13.0 5,538,668 15.3 5,978,898 15.2

New York .......................................................... 5,722,492 12.3 4,672,808 12.9 5,586,280 14.2

Texas ............................................................ 4,739,265 10.2 2,601,837 7.2 2,802,857 7.1

Hawaii ............................................................ 1,568,684 3.4 1,356,835 3.7 1,518,771 3.9

Arizona ........................................................... 1,494,581 3.2 915,169 2.5 1,002,557 2.5

Nevada ........................................................... 1,481,485 3.2 1,089,367 3.0 1,299,009 3.3

Michigan .......................................................... 999,172 2.2 342,745 0.9 405,047 1.0

Guam ............................................................ 909,525 2.0 741,875 2.0 1,110,843 2.8

New Jersey ........................................................ 900,765 1.9 818,573 2.3 956,800 2.4

Other ............................................................. 9,040,765 19.5 7,439,223 20.5 8,416,828 21.4

Unknown .......................................................... 5,299,112 11.4 4,880,090 13.5 3,713,348 9.4

Note: The data extraction process in 2010 differed from previous years and may slightly impact the state of destination distribution.

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010.

Table 6. 

Nonimmigrant Admissions (I-94 only) by Age and Gender: Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010

Age

2010 2009 2008

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 Total ........................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

Under 18 years ..................................................... 4,898,300 10.5 3,827,259 10.6 4,249,358 10.8

18 to 24 years ...................................................... 4,413,891 9.5 3,606,833 10.0 3,749,129 9.5

25 to 34 years ...................................................... 10,192,941 21.9 8,122,114 22.4 8,769,195 22.3

35 to 44 years ...................................................... 10,231,864 22.0 7,583,877 20.9 8,516,297 21.6

45 to 54 years ...................................................... 8,100,205 17.4 6,083,712 16.8 6,635,295 16.8

55 to 64 years ...................................................... 5,306,174 11.4 4,274,540 11.8 4,604,662 11.7

65 years and over ................................................... 3,225,188 6.9 2,683,064 7.4 2,814,054 7.1

Unknown .......................................................... 102,953 0.2 50,155 0.1 43,938 0.1

Gender

 Total ........................................................... 46,471,516 100.0 36,231,554 100.0 39,381,928 100.0

Male ............................................................. 23,828,461 51.3 18,563,229 51.2 20,695,141 52.5

Female ........................................................... 21,537,205 46.3 16,844,114 46.5 17,945,196 45.6

Unknown .......................................................... 1,105,850 2.4 824,211 2.3 741,591 1.9

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), TECS, Arrival File, Fiscal Years 2008 to 2010.
8 DHS Office of Immigration Statistics

Appendix A. 

Nonimmigrant Classes of Admission 

Class Description

Temporary Workers and Families

 Temporary workers and trainees

H1B ........ Workers in specialty occupations

H1B1 ....... Chile and Singapore Free Trade Agreement aliens

H1C ........ Registered nurses participating in the Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas

H2A ........ Seasonal agricultural workers

H2B ........ Seasonal nonagricultural workers

H2R ........ Returning H2B workers

H3 ......... Trainees

H4 ......... Spouses and children of H1, H2, or H3

O1 ......... Workers with extraordinary ability or achievement

O2 ......... Workers accompanying and assisting in performance of O1 workers

O3 ......... Spouses and children of O1 and O2

P1 .......... Internationally recognized athletes or entertainers

P2 .......... Artists or entertainers in reciprocal exchange programs

P3 .......... Artists or entertainers in culturally unique programs

P4 .......... Spouses and children of P1, P2, or P3

Q1 ......... Workers in international cultural exchange programs

R1 ......... Workers in religious occupations

R2 ......... Spouses and children of R1

TN .......... North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) professional workers

TD .......... Spouses and children of TN

 Intracompany transferees

L1.......... Intracompany transferees

L2.......... Spouses and children of L1

 Treaty traders and investors

E1 .......... Treaty traders and their spouses and children

E2 .......... Treaty investors and their spouses and children

E3 .......... Australian Free Trade Agreement principals, spouses and children

 Representatives of foreign information media

I1 .......... Representatives of foreign information media and spouses and children

Students

F1.......... Academic students

F2.......... Spouses and children of F1

M1 ......... Vocational students

M2 ......... Spouses and children of M1

Exchange visitors

J1 .......... Exchange visitors

J2 .......... Spouses and children of J1

Diplomats and other representatives

A1 .......... Ambassadors, public ministers, career diplomatic or consular officers and their families

A2 .......... Other foreign government officials or employees and their families

A3 .......... Attendants, servants, or personal employees of A1 and A2 and their families

G1 ......... Principals of recognized foreign governments 

G2 ......... Other representatives of recognized foreign governments 

G3 ......... Representatives of nonrecognized or nonmember foreign governments

G4 ......... International organization officers or employees

G5 ......... Attendants, servants, or personal employees of representatives

N1 to N7 ..... North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) officials, spouses, and children

Temporary visitors for pleasure

B2 ......... Temporary visitors for pleasure

WT ......... Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure

GT .......... Guam Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for pleasure to Guam

GMT ........ Guam-CNMI – temporary visitors for pleasure to Guam or Northern Mariana Islands

Temporary visitors for business

B1 ......... Temporary visitors for business

WB ......... Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business

GB ......... Guam Visa Waiver Program – temporary visitors for business to Guam 

GMB ........ Guam-CNMI – temporary visitors for business to Guam or Northern Mariana Islands
DHS Office of Immigration Statistics 9

Appendix A. 

Nonimmigrant Classes of Admission (continued)

Class Description

Transit aliens

C1 ......... Aliens in continuous and immediate transit through the United States

C2 ......... Aliens in transit to the United Nations 

C3 ......... Foreign government officials, their spouses, children, and attendants in transit

Commuter Students

F3.......... Canadian or Mexican national academic commuter students

M3 ......... Canadian or Mexican national vocational commuter students

Legal Immigration Family Equity (LIFE) Act

K1 ......... Fiancé(e)s of U.S. citizens

K2 ......... Children of K1

K3 ......... Spouses of U.S. citizens, immigrant visa pending

K4 ......... Children of K3, immigrant visa pending

V1 to V3 ..... Spouses and children of permanent residents, immigrant visa pending

Other categories

N8 ......... Parents of international organization special immigrants

N9 ......... Children of N8 or international organization special immigrants

Q2 ......... Irish Peace Process Cultural and Training Program aliens 

Q3 ......... Spouses and children of Q2

Source: U.S. Department of Homeland Security.