Dates come first
TravelHistoryTool turns records you supply into a proposed list of journeys. The documents can include emails, boarding pass screenshots, PDFs or spreadsheets. Passport stamp reading is in beta. A Google Maps Timeline export can provide additional clues. The list shows the most recent trip first, with a source for each row.
A proposed row still needs your review. We flag a missing return or a conflicting date in yellow. Choose Looks right if the row matches what happened, or Edit to change it. If the records do not establish a date, a blank is more useful than a guess dressed up as a complete journey.
N-400: count days between departure and return
USCIS counts the day of departure from the United States and the day of return as physical presence in the United States. N-400 instructions: Physical Presence For a June 1 departure and June 10 return, we count June 2 through June 9: eight days outside.
For a completed trip, that is the calendar-date difference minus one, with a minimum of zero. The travel table excludes day trips completed within 24 hours. Form N-400, Part 8 Where dates alone cannot establish whether the whole trip was within 24 hours, check the travel times before deciding how to record it. The N-400 page explains the form fields.
UK ILR: count whole days of absence
Home Office guidance counts only whole days abroad, excluding the departure and return dates. Continuous residence guidance: Count whole days Leaving the UK on June 1 and returning on June 10 therefore gives eight whole days of absence. The same example produces the same number as the N-400 calculation, though the governing rules are separate.
The usual Appendix Continuous Residence limit is 180 days in any 12-month period, subject to its specified provisions. Appendix Continuous Residence, CR 3.1 A rolling total counts days within the window, including only the relevant part of a trip that crosses its boundary. We do not turn that total into an eligibility decision. Long Residence transitions need separate review; see the UK ILR guide.
How we combine records of the same journey
Our matching rule groups records of the same crossing direction when their dates are within two calendar days of each other, meaning a tolerance of plus or minus two days. A departure is matched with departure evidence; a return is matched with return evidence. The group is a proposed match for your review, not a new fact about your travel.
Passport stamps and official records take priority over booking emails when we suggest a date. If those sources disagree, we mark the conflict in yellow. We do not average two dates into a third one. Multiple confirmations for one flight should support one crossing, not add more days abroad.
This priority order and two-day tolerance are product choices. No government source prescribes them. Nearby dates may still describe different journeys, especially with frequent travel. Check the places and direction before accepting a proposed merge, and correct any row that combines separate trips.
Cancelled journeys and missing returns
A reservation shows what was planned. It does not by itself establish that the passenger travelled. If a proposed trip was cancelled, remove it from the completed list. If the journey happened on different dates, replace the planned dates with the dates supported by the completed travel records.
A missing return stays unresolved. We do not substitute today, an intended return date or the date of another unrelated document to produce a finished total. A total based on an incomplete list cannot describe all your travel. Review unresolved rows before relying on the sum.
Local dates and time zones
We use the local date at the relevant departure border and the local date at the return border. For the N-400 view, those are the U.S. departure and U.S. arrival dates. For ILR, they are the UK departure and UK arrival dates. Check the arrival date after an overnight flight or a date-line crossing.
This is our date convention. The sources reviewed for this guide do not set out a universal time-zone conversion method for mixed travel documents. We do not present our convention as an agency instruction. If a document uses another time zone or describes a foreign border, compare it with the relevant crossing evidence before confirming the row.
Sources and review date
Checked on 2026-10-29: Form N-400, edition 01/20/25, N-400 instructions, Appendix Continuous Residence and Home Office continuous residence guidance. Read the source for the rule that applies to your records. The matching tolerance and local-date convention above are our own choices; they are not instructions issued by these agencies.
Our matching method is documented above so you can understand the suggested rows. It cannot verify a journey independently. TravelHistoryTool is operated by one person, is not a law firm and is not affiliated with USCIS, CBP or the UK Home Office. We do not assess eligibility, choose a filing date or provide legal advice. Check every date against your own records.