Hi guys,

I have a question regarding entering the USA and especially regarding the immigration officers of the border control.
Every time you enter the USA, you are questioned by the immigration officers and often it will happen that they'll ask you about how you pay for the trip and what's your job / your source of income.


1. How would you handle the situation and how would you answer if you are playing poker for a living? Is there any smart way to answer here? Should I just be honest and right away say that I play poker professionally?

2. What kind of documents would you prepare for this?

3. Did you have experiences yourself? Good/Bad?


Thanks for answers in advance! I am very frightened about the situation as I already heard some annoying and stressfull things about the US immigration officers and the questioning.

As a pro poker player you're supposed to be a good liar so there's that. Never give the border officer the impression you're going to do any kind of job that creates an income because that would need a work visa which I suppose you don't have. I am not going to advise you to say anything incorrect in particular but I'll just say when you describe your travel purpose and job situation there are various angles you can take

First of all, thanks for your reply!

So if I say I am an professional online poker player and I would play a little bit from the US, then this would be a big problem? But what about all the live poker pros who go to USA for like 2-3 months and clearly try to make money there? They can just enter too so there is not really a problem, right?

On the other hand: Could I not just say that "yes I play online poker, but I won't be playing in the USA since I am not even able to access the pokerroom I am playing from there? (Pokerstars EU)

When you are talking about angles, can you please give some examples as I am not really know what you are really referring to.
Because as soon as I am dishonest I feel like I could get into problems. So I just want to know if there's any problem for them if I just tell the truth about playing online poker professionally for a living.

I’ve traveled to the U.S. a couple of times for poker tournaments, and I can totally relate to your concerns. The immigration officers can sometimes seem intense, but I’ve always tried to be straightforward. I just say I play poker professionally, but I also mention that I have other sources of income to show I’m not solely relying on gambling.

The immigration officers can sometimes seem intense, but I’ve always tried to be straightforward. I just say I play poker professionally, but I also mention that I have other sources of income to show I’m not solely relying on gambling. As for documents, I’d definitely have some proof of earnings or tournament results on hand, and maybe a letter from your bank or sponsor to show you’re financially stable. It’s good to be prepared, and I’ve heard that getting things like a Hague Apostille for documents can make things smoother when it comes to international legal stuff. I’ve had both good and bad experiences, but in the end, honesty seems to be the best approach.