U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has told carriers that it will stop routinely stamping passports at primary inspection. The notice came through CBP's Carrier Liaison Program (CLP) in a bulletin dated 1 October 2026. It is aimed at airlines as much as at travelers: alongside the stamp change, CBP reminds carriers that the passenger data they transmit through APIS feeds the electronic arrival record that now replaces the stamp.
For airlines, OTAs, and travel-tech teams, the change is small at the border and large in the contact centre. A passenger who leaves the arrivals hall with a clean passport page is the expected outcome, and the record that proves their admission is only as good as the manifest data the carrier sent.
This note is for operations, product, and partner communications. It is not legal advice and it is a separate subject from the Schengen stamp deadline. The EU piece is passport stamps until 6 October 2026. This note is the United States.
What CBP announced
Based on the 1 October 2026 CLP bulletin as reported, and on CBP's own I-94 guidance. On the morning of 5 October 2026 the bulletin itself was not listed on CBP's public Carrier Liaison Program page. Scope and date below come from that reporting plus CBP's I-94 and APIS pages. We will add a cbp.gov bulletin link when one is published. This note does not invent one.
What has stayed the same: visa and ESTA requirements, the Visa Waiver Program's rules, and who decides admission. An approved ESTA or visa still only allows a passenger to seek admission. CBP decides at the port of entry. The fee change effective 16 October 2026 is a different note: ESTA fee rises to $40.62.
Why this matters to carriers and OTAs
The I-94 for air and sea arrivals is built from the travel record, chiefly the carrier's manifest data. CBP says it "gathers travelers' arrival/departure information automatically from their electronic travel records," and records departures by air or sea "electronically via manifest information provided by the carrier." Without the routine stamp, that electronic record is the admission evidence the passenger can retrieve.
Data errors become passenger problems. A transposed passport number, a wrong date of birth, or a mis-keyed nationality in APIS can surface as a missing or wrong I-94 when the passenger needs it for an employer, a university, a government agency, or a later trip.
"I didn't get a stamp" will hit the contact centre. Some passengers will assume something went wrong at the border. Front-line agents need a short, correct answer that stays out of immigration advice.
Return-trip and onward checks lose a visual cue. Agents who used a U.S. entry stamp as an informal sanity check, including on overstay questions, can no longer rely on it. The record is electronic. The passenger looks it up.
Passenger messaging
Use plain wording in confirmations, pre-arrival emails, apps, and FAQs for U.S.-bound itineraries. A missing stamp is the expected outcome at primary inspection. Admission is a separate fact, recorded on the I-94.
Arriving in the United States? CBP no longer routinely stamps passports at the first inspection desk. Your admission is recorded electronically on your Form I-94. After arrival, you can view and print it at i94.cbp.dhs.gov or in the official CBP Link app. If you want a stamp, you may ask the CBP officer. If your record looks wrong, contact CBP.
Agent and crew scripts
Contact centre and OTA support, after arrival.
Cabin crew, optional arrival announcement. One line in the pre-arrival U.S. briefing: "CBP may not stamp your passport. Your entry is recorded electronically on your I-94."
Station staff and ground handling, outbound from the United States. An unstamped passport is the ordinary admission record. Departure is recorded electronically from the carrier's manifest.
APIS data quality checklist
CBP's APIS rules are in 19 CFR 122.49a (arrival manifests, commercial air), with programme information on CBP's APIS page. With the routine stamp gone, tighten the basics.
Product checklist for OTAs and travel tech
What to watch next. Publication of the CLP bulletin on CBP's carrier bulletin page, and any follow-up on port-by-port rollout. Whether CBP updates its I-94 FAQs and traveler pages to mention the stamp change. Contact-centre volume on "no stamp" questions in the first two weeks.
Airlines catching passport-data issues before departure can use how airlines reduce denied boarding with visa data. OTAs putting official-link messaging into the booking flow can use the eVisa API for OTAs and airlines. Support teams can take one email per entry-rule change.
SimpleVisa does not issue or retrieve I-94s.
Coverage alerts send one email per rule change for the destinations you pick, from the partner console. Systems can take the same events as webhooks; the shape is in the developer docs. The live requirement for any passport is always in the requirements checker.
This article is general industry information for travel businesses. It is not legal or immigration advice and does not replace CBP guidance or the official bulletin. Admission decisions are made by CBP officers. Check official CBP sources before changing passenger communications or operating procedures.
CBP, I-94 verified 5 Oct 2026 · Official I-94 website verified 5 Oct 2026 · CBP, Carrier Liaison Program overview verified 5 Oct 2026 · CBP, APIS verified 5 Oct 2026 · 19 CFR 122.49a verified 5 Oct 2026 · VisasNews, 2 Oct 2026 (secondary, bulletin date and scope) verified 5 Oct 2026 · TRAICY Global, 5 Oct 2026 (secondary, bulletin date and scope) verified 5 Oct 2026