Exclusive: Cloudi Saliba had her bags packed, passport ready and was about to sit on a plane for nine hours to Hawaii to visit her husband’s family.

The Smartraveller advice for Australians heading to the US warns that “entry requirements are strict”.

The advisory notes that US authorities possess extensive powers to determine your eligibility for entry, and they may deem you inadmissible for various reasons under US law.

Thankfully, Saliba and her husband were able to get flight credit from Hawaiian Airlines for their $3000 flights.

And they decided to make some lemonade out of lemons: a trip to Bali.

“I went to Bali instead because it we really wanted to go somewhere, I was so bummed out,” she added.

“I intend to attempt traveling to the US once more. You can reapply, although the outcome seems unpredictable. I tried reapplying at the airport, but it was promptly declined.”

Immigration lawyer Sherwin Noorian said this issue sometimes impacts non-US citizens attempting to re-enter the US.

“Customs and Border Protection relies on various data sources such as flight manifests to record departures from the US,” he said.

There are instances where departures of foreign nationals are not correctly logged, which can inaccurately result in an ‘overstay’ on the traveller’s record.”