A foreigner has $11,000 and they are flying to the US. They claim it on FinCen 105. They show the form to the CBP agent. What happens next?

Question

A foreigner has $11,000 and they are flying to the US. They claim it on FinCen 105 and the CBP Form 6059-B. They show the forms to the CBP agent. What happens next?

The purpose is a long family vacation(4 months) 2 US citizens (husband and son) and 1 Chinese citizen (wife).

I am aware that money divided among the 3 people totaling 10,000 or more still requires the same FinCen 105 for. I am also aware that it is expected that tourists are able to prove that the have enough money to support themselves upon arrival. All three of us do not have a US bank account to wire money.

A follow up question for the comments - Are their anyways to make an account while abroad before flying so that some of the funds can be wired to the US account in advance?

Answer 1

There should be no problems with CBP; they'll take the form and may ask some questions, but it is completely legal.

I would be worried to carry so much cash around though, and many places might not readily accept cash. You cannot rent a car (without a huge cash deposit), and you cannot book hotels or anything else online with the cash. If you have any way to have a credit card, prefer that. If this is not possible consider even buying a refillable card in a supermarket after arrival.