US Entry on Saturday

[VisaJourneyLady 33]

I'm glad you got in Gemmie, all of that and you ear too!! I hope you're feeling better now, at least the POE pressure is off. You can enjoy the rest of your stay!

[howdydoodle 0]

I'm going to the US on Saturday after only 7 weeks. I'm worried that I'll be denied entry, even though I have a copy of registration from uni (until June 09), apartment contract (July 09)... emails with my professor talking about an upcoming project.

My question is, when the officer asks why I'm visiting, is it safer to say "visiting fiancee" or "visiting family"? Obviously I don't intend to stay... I don't want him to get suspicious if I say fiancee but I don't want him to think I'm lying if he asks more about the family members and *then* I say fiancee.

Hi,,,,,, to answer your question, my wife just arrived yesterday from Egypt on her B1/B2 visa at Atlanta POE. We've been aproved on our CR-1 by NVC just waiting for the interview in October, check our timeline. We just couldn't wait another 1-2 months without seeing each other, so I got her a round trip ticket and now she is here in Texas 4 weeks with me.

At the POE in Atlanta, she told the officer she is coming to visit her husband and she will return to Egypt in 4 weeks for the interview. He said ok, asked a couple of question about her itinerary, she said Atlanta is not the final destination but San Antonio and he did the fingerprint, stamped her passport with a 6 month I94 and blinked at her, so absolutely no problems saying you are coming to visit your husband, at least from our experience is better to always say the truth.

Well, I hope this helps you.

Alwin

[samantha_lou 0]

Glad to see that you're here safely Gemmie! Hope your ears are feeling better soon too! Xx

[ginger1981 0]

How are your ears?

[Gemmie 142]

Aww thanks guys. Yeah, the POE was so scary to me... I'm coming back at Christmas and then that will be it until the visa is in hand... so hopefully I can sneak through one more time. I still can't believe I'm here. I woke up during the night all confused about where I was. I just didn't think I would make it through.

My ears are still really really blocked and this is after using the "real" wax removal kit (hydrogen peroxide) several times a day. The most it's done is unblock them for a few hours and then it goes back to deafness. Bill is thinking of taking me to a doctor to get it professionally sorted.

The flight wasn't as painful as I expected though. They hurt on descent a little more than usual but I got through it in one piece.

[Nicoxcx 1]

Glad you got threw Gemmie and didnt have to suffer the heartache of being denied entry!, enjoy your time together !

[Gemmie 142]

Thank you!

It was because of the amount of stamps in my passport that was the issue... I have around 6 stamps from the last year and a half entering me into Boston. One look at that and his eyes popped out of his head and he stopped what he was doing.

[Jeraly 4]

Aww Gemmie - I am so glad you made it through - I know how scary it can be! Is there any way your OH could make it to the UK instead at Christmas to save you the trauma?! Also, I don't know id it would be worth checking out, but when I came out here in Feb I went through DUB - you can also go through Shannon so you avoid immigration at the other end. It is still scary as hell but the IO I had was friendly and cheerful and it meant that I could relax the whole way over the Atlantic - which as it was an 11 hour flight, not including the transfer - was a godsend It also means, worst case scenario, that if you aren't let in then you don't have to fly allllll the way home again I would really recommend it for peace of mind

[rebeccajo 14]

Aww thanks guys. Yeah, the POE was so scary to me... I'm coming back at Christmas and then that will be it until the visa is in hand... so hopefully I can sneak through one more time. I still can't believe I'm here. I woke up during the night all confused about where I was. I just didn't think I would make it through.

My ears are still really really blocked and this is after using the "real" wax removal kit (hydrogen peroxide) several times a day. The most it's done is unblock them for a few hours and then it goes back to deafness. Bill is thinking of taking me to a doctor to get it professionally sorted.

The flight wasn't as painful as I expected though. They hurt on descent a little more than usual but I got through it in one piece.

I hear Christmas in the UK is wonderful. All sorts of lovely little traditions we don't have in the US.

I think this holiday season would be a really good time for Billy to experience those traditions.

[samantha_lou 0]

Thank you!

It was because of the amount of stamps in my passport that was the issue... I have around 6 stamps from the last year and a half entering me into Boston. One look at that and his eyes popped out of his head and he stopped what he was doing.

Tell them that you are a HUGE Redsox fan!!

[Gemmie 142]

Christmas in the UK would be easier to deal with, it's just that Bill's grandfather suffers with Alzheimer's and we don't know how long he has "left"... also, my family aren't really as close (all three members of them) so Christmas is pretty much like any other day here. With Bill's family, it's a big holiday where everyone likes to get together.

But I understand it's something we'll have to talk about as I don't think Boston is going to let me go next time... if they do, it will be a miracle.

Also have to consider the Ireland route.

Edited September 10, 2008 by Gemmie

[NickyMcMillan 0]

There is no rule. But they say you should only use visa waiver twice a year max. I recall a guy who got denied entry was told this. The fact you have so many entries in a short space of time, its going to be very risky going through at Xmas.

If I was in your position, If a UK visit is out of the question, then you want to be flying through Dublin. Just make sure you get a flight that uses the Dublin pre-clearance, as not all do.

[Jeraly 4]

Shannon is the same though so you can always go that way... maybe it would be worth having a back-up in place so you can plan to fly through Dublin or Shannon, then if you get denied entry the backup could involve your OH taking a last minute flight to the UK...

Of course, going through immigration you could always say that you wanted to spend Christmas together and explain the situation with his grandfather - they might have a heart and let you through If you have proof you are going through the visa process along with ties to the UK then you can always argue that why would you want to overstay or get married without the visa in hand after paying so much money and taking so much time to do things the "right" way!?