Visits to the USA

[KimandRuss 0]

They will most likely ask what hte pupose of his visit is. He should say he's on vacation. If they ask where he's staying..he's staying with friends. If they ask if one happens to be his US girlfriend he should say yes. If they question him any more on this he can tell them that he has a K1 in progress (you should be approved or pretty close to it by then). Just tell him to have proof of ties to his home country and to tell the truth.

The rest is up to the CBP

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Hi all,

I was thinking about this thread from this morning and other similar ones over the last few months since I became part of VJ. And since my fiance has a visit from the UK coming up soon, I decided to call the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) who are the agents at the airport that approve your visit. I got a very nice and chatty man on the phone who spoke in an "off the record" manner many times.

I told him I have a fiance' in the UK and have filed a K1 petition, etc, etc. I told him that immigration attorneys (didn't want to get into the who VJ forum explanation) have advised that once you have filed for K1/K3 then you can not come to the US until you have that Visa in hand.

He said, that's silly. If wanted to come in illegally you wouldn't have bothered to file all that paperwork and pay those fees. There's no rule that says you can't come visit the US once you have applied for a non-immigrant visa.

I said my fiance' will come on the K1 in October, but he is coming to visit me in July. "Is there something on those computers at the airport immigration desk that will pop-up saying that he has filed for a non-immigrant visa." He said, "NO." The computer has databases of criminal activities, previous over-stays, terrorist links, FBI stuff, etc.

He said their only concern with people entering the US on VWP is that the intent of the person is to visit friends or be a tourist and go home when they say they are. Some of his "off the record" talk was about creepy looking people who look like they don't have enough money to buy a cup of coffee when they land and when questioned about "what do you do for a living?" can't tell them of any employment or full time student status. The officer has to get a sense that the person is a genuine tourist. He said if somebody enters the US, goes to another country for a week, then enters again, they may be questioned more strenuously. The Officer inspecting you will want evidence that you intend to go back home to your country of citizenship to live as opposed to returning again and again to the U.S. after visits to other countries.

And his final comments were about "creepy" immigration officers at the airport which get to make the ultimate decision and there have been some accused of being rude and unfair, but those are few and far between. There is, however, no guarantee ever that you will be admitted.

So VJers you will have to analyze your own status when you enter the US, but applying for a K visa is not something that keeps you out according to my buddy at the Border Patrol. If you look pretty normal, have a job or student id, have some money or credit cards on you and comfortably answer their questions; then you are probably fine. If you have overstayed, have committed serious crimes, been a drug trafficker, act mentally ill, or leave a couple of days and come back over and over again; then you might get scrutinized. It is a subjective interview with the CBP officer.

[Gallowglass 0]

Well done, great post.

I visited M in May for a week. I had my return ticket, some of the K1 paperwork etc and was a bit worried, so I called the US Embassy here and asked them if the fact that a K1 was in process would be a problem. The response was "not as long as you can show something to say you're coming back - like a return ticket". The previous visit to the US was in Oct 2007, but the two of us travelled from Dublin and returned on that trip.

At the POE, I was asked the purpose of my visit. I replied "Visiting my fiancée and her family".

"Where are you staying?"

"With M and her family in XXXX".

"How long will you be visiting?"

"A week", says I. "It was all I could get off work".

"Enjoy your visit" said the IO, and off I went.

Hi all,

I was thinking about this thread from this morning and other similar ones over the last few months since I became part of VJ. And since my fiance has a visit from the UK coming up soon, I decided to call the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) who are the agents at the airport that approve your visit. I got a very nice and chatty man on the phone who spoke in an "off the record" manner many times.

I told him I have a fiance' in the UK and have filed a K1 petition, etc, etc. I told him that immigration attorneys (didn't want to get into the who VJ forum explanation) have advised that once you have filed for K1/K3 then you can not come to the US until you have that Visa in hand.

He said, that's silly. If wanted to come in illegally you wouldn't have bothered to file all that paperwork and pay those fees. There's no rule that says you can't come visit the US once you have applied for a non-immigrant visa.

I said my fiance' will come on the K1 in October, but he is coming to visit me in July. "Is there something on those computers at the airport immigration desk that will pop-up saying that he has filed for a non-immigrant visa." He said, "NO." The computer has databases of criminal activities, previous over-stays, terrorist links, FBI stuff, etc.

He said their only concern with people entering the US on VWP is that the intent of the person is to visit friends or be a tourist and go home when they say they are. Some of his "off the record" talk was about creepy looking people who look like they don't have enough money to buy a cup of coffee when they land and when questioned about "what do you do for a living?" can't tell them of any employment or full time student status. The officer has to get a sense that the person is a genuine tourist. He said if somebody enters the US, goes to another country for a week, then enters again, they may be questioned more strenuously. The Officer inspecting you will want evidence that you intend to go back home to your country of citizenship to live as opposed to returning again and again to the U.S. after visits to other countries.

And his final comments were about "creepy" immigration officers at the airport which get to make the ultimate decision and there have been some accused of being rude and unfair, but those are few and far between. There is, however, no guarantee ever that you will be admitted.

So VJers you will have to analyze your own status when you enter the US, but applying for a K visa is not something that keeps you out according to my buddy at the Border Patrol. If you look pretty normal, have a job or student id, have some money or credit cards on you and comfortably answer their questions; then you are probably fine. If you have overstayed, have committed serious crimes, been a drug trafficker, act mentally ill, or leave a couple of days and come back over and over again; then you might get scrutinized. It is a subjective interview with the CBP officer.

Edited June 20, 2008 by Gallowglass

[BexandAlan 0]

Great post Nic. Thanks very much!

xxx

[rebeccajo 14]

If you are interested in reading more about Customs and Border Patrol and what happens behind the scenes, and what 'secret powers' the agents hold, research the VJ posts of the member known as "zyggy", who used to be an a CBP agent.