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@Natasha_Jay I’m wondering what “an incorrect visa” is. As murricans we have no idea what people need to have to come here, but once were ecumenical with Brits. Every day here I feel more outraged and sad, with a sense of impending doom, as if on a melting iceberg calved off from the mother.

@gentlegardener @Natasha_Jay Same. I didn’t think a UK citizen needed a visa to enter either the US or Canada. As far as I can tell the UK is still on both countries visa waiver program.

@KalenXI @gentlegardener @Natasha_Jay So, when we did a big North America trip 10 years ago, we researched the land crossing situation in advance, and it was tricky.
At the time, with a British passport, you could enter Canada from outside North America without a visa for up to 6 months.
Visa-free travel in the USA was possible for 3 months.
Notice the edge case? The rule about Canada didn't apply when entering from the US. In that case, you were limited by the rest of your US visa waiver.

@KalenXI @gentlegardener @Natasha_Jay Given the article talks about being 4 months into her trip, I suspect she's been in the US on an extended travel permit/visa of some sort. That means she's not on an ESTA visa waiver, and therefore needs a separate permit for Canada, for which she probably should have applied before entering North America.
Just to be clear - I don't think the US should have jailed her over this, and Canada probably ought to loosen their rules on this given the US situation.

@pmdj @gentlegardener @Natasha_Jay Ah ok. I thought it meant her trip was 4 months total not that she was 4 months into a longer trip and I didn’t realize that the waiver countdown doesn’t restart once you enter Canada.