The three were among the 19 fishermen who were brought here from Ensenada, Mexico, aboard the Lady Christine, a California-based fishing vessel. All 19 men were expecting to fill crew positions on long-line fishing boats.

The 19 were flown from Manila to Los Angeles about three weeks ago and then bused to Ensenada where they boarded the Lady Christine for the 14-day voyage to Hawai'i. Customs and Coast Guard officials said Wednesday that employing foreign nationals on the American-owned boats in Hawai'i's long-line fleet does not violate any federal laws as long as the incoming fishermen are transferred offshore to the boats they plan to work aboard. The foreign workers are paid between $200 to $400 per month.

The foreign crew members may not leave the fishing vessels they are assigned to while the boats are in port except to use the bathroom or telephones on the pier where the boat is docked, according to procedures circulated by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection division of the federal Department of Homeland Security.

Using foreign fishermen aboard Hawai'i long-line boats has been common practice for the past decade, even though the fishermen do no have work visas, or even passports in some cases, federal officials said.

Jim Kosciuk, a spokesman for the Honolulu customs office, said the three men who arrived Wednesday were deported for not following procedures.

"They came in (to the dock) on a vessel (the Lady Christine) intending to be transferred to another vessel," Kosciuk said.

He said procedures would not have been violated had the three fishermen been transferred at sea from the Lady Christine to the boat they were intending to work aboard. Some of the 19 fishermen being ferried to Hawai'i by the Lady Christine were transferred to the Hawai'i long-line boats while the Lady Christine was at sea.

Kosciuk said privacy restrictions prevented him from naming the three fishermen who were deported or saying where they were being sent.

The three were taken to the airport Wednesday night to be sent home "on the first available flight," Kosciuk said. He said the master of the Lady Christine likely will be billed for the airfare.

Meanwhile, a fourth fisherman who arrived via the Lady Christine was allowed to fly home to the Philippines instead of being transported to Mexico after it was learned that the fisherman's father had died in the Philippines.