Plane tickets required at interview?

[NateM 0]

Hi everyone,

I am in Bangkok with my fiancee, and she is scheduled for her K-1 interview on the 18th.

One of the documents she received from the Embassy a while back (in the packet including the checklist, etc..), it says "***You are strongly encouraged NOT to make any nonrefundable travel plans until the visa is printed and in your passport.***

To me, this sounds like it's basically saying not to purchase any plane tickets until your fiancee is completely cleared/given the green light to go to the US. However...

My fiancee says some of her friends (who know other women who have gone through the K-1 process) have told her that she absolutely must be able to show a plane ticket or something similar - like an itinerary - at the interview, showing her travel arrangements to go to the US have already been made.

So I'm a little confused, as the two lines above seem a bit contradictory... Unless it means that you must purchase plane tickets, but make sure they are refundable tickets rather than nonrefundable tickets?

Anyway, we are flying standby from a benefit my uncle has who works for a major airline. He is supposed to send me an itinerary via email, but I just learned his wife is sick and in the hospital, so I'm a bit worried whether he'll be able to send it in time. Any advice or clarification on what the rules are? Is this anything I should be worried about? Any help would be appreciated.

Nate

[gary9891 10]

You are NOT required to show any future travel tickets or the like at the interview. Your fiancee friends may have confused the requirement to show ticket receipts from when YOU visited her as proof of meeting. You are right, don't purchase any tickets until visa is in hand and she has the ok to go.

Hi everyone,

I am in Bangkok with my fiancee, and she is scheduled for her K-1 interview on the 18th.

One of the documents she received from the Embassy a while back (in the packet including the checklist, etc..), it says "***You are strongly encouraged NOT to make any nonrefundable travel plans until the visa is printed and in your passport.***

To me, this sounds like it's basically saying not to purchase any plane tickets until your fiancee is completely cleared/given the green light to go to the US. However...

My fiancee says some of her friends (who know other women who have gone through the K-1 process) have told her that she absolutely must be able to show a plane ticket or something similar - like an itinerary - at the interview, showing her travel arrangements to go to the US have already been made.

So I'm a little confused, as the two lines above seem a bit contradictory... Unless it means that you must purchase plane tickets, but make sure they are refundable tickets rather than nonrefundable tickets?

Anyway, we are flying standby from a benefit my uncle has who works for a major airline. He is supposed to send me an itinerary via email, but I just learned his wife is sick and in the hospital, so I'm a bit worried whether he'll be able to send it in time. Any advice or clarification on what the rules are? Is this anything I should be worried about? Any help would be appreciated.

Nate

[NateM 0]

Thanks, Gary

That's the feeling I get too.. Anyone else care to comment?

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Hi everyone,

I am in Bangkok with my fiancee, and she is scheduled for her K-1 interview on the 18th.

One of the documents she received from the Embassy a while back (in the packet including the checklist, etc..), it says "***You are strongly encouraged NOT to make any nonrefundable travel plans until the visa is printed and in your passport.***

To me, this sounds like it's basically saying not to purchase any plane tickets until your fiancee is completely cleared/given the green light to go to the US. However...

My fiancee says some of her friends (who know other women who have gone through the K-1 process) have told her that she absolutely must be able to show a plane ticket or something similar - like an itinerary - at the interview, showing her travel arrangements to go to the US have already been made.

So I'm a little confused, as the two lines above seem a bit contradictory... Unless it means that you must purchase plane tickets, but make sure they are refundable tickets rather than nonrefundable tickets?

Anyway, we are flying standby from a benefit my uncle has who works for a major airline. He is supposed to send me an itinerary via email, but I just learned his wife is sick and in the hospital, so I'm a bit worried whether he'll be able to send it in time. Any advice or clarification on what the rules are? Is this anything I should be worried about? Any help would be appreciated.

Nate

Let there be NO CONFUSION!!! There is absolutely no need to have any plane tickets at the interview and I strongly suggest you DO NOT buy any plane tickets before the interview or until you have the visa IN YOUR HAND.

[KandD 1]

She must be confused with boarding passes from the petitioner. Proof of having met in person.

[Jasman0717 9]

She must be confused with boarding passes from the petitioner. Proof of having met in person.

No way would I buy tickets before the visa approval

[ThaitoUSA 15]

Though it's a closed topic already, I concur. Do not purchase any airline tickets until the visa is in hand. I am contemplating not purchasing the wedding rings till then either!

[bora bora 1]

We bought ours in advance since I traveled to Brazil to be at the interview with my husband. We felt confident enough that we'd be approved (I know a lot of people would say it's not a good idea) and everything worked out perfectly for us. I know it's a risk but it was fine for us.

I also figured that if something went wrong at the interview we could just change the dates and pay a fee to fly another day.

[moonhunt 1]

No need to purchase the ticket.

US Embassy strongly recommend not to buy the ticket.

It may be confused with fiancee's travel record.

Some officer may ask travel records for soon-to-be or current spouse to visit them in Thailand showing boarding pass or immigration stamp from the passport.

So it is not the ticket for future travel.

Sometimes because of Administrative Processing, and/or computer system/network issue, visa issurance can be delayed.

I don't know about the airline in Thailand.

If you want to purchase one-way ticket to U.S., usually there is special discount for immigration, which may show the immigration visa during check-in.

[David Allen 3]

Hi Nate,

I will be arriving in Bangkok on the 22nd for our interview on the 24th. To my knowledge there is no requirement for travel plans in advance of the visa. I have never heard of that before..

Good luck with the interview - and PLEASE post how everything went. I'll be very interested to hear what they ask.

-David

Hi everyone,

I am in Bangkok with my fiancee, and she is scheduled for her K-1 interview on the 18th.

One of the documents she received from the Embassy a while back (in the packet including the checklist, etc..), it says "***You are strongly encouraged NOT to make any nonrefundable travel plans until the visa is printed and in your passport.***

To me, this sounds like it's basically saying not to purchase any plane tickets until your fiancee is completely cleared/given the green light to go to the US. However...

My fiancee says some of her friends (who know other women who have gone through the K-1 process) have told her that she absolutely must be able to show a plane ticket or something similar - like an itinerary - at the interview, showing her travel arrangements to go to the US have already been made.

So I'm a little confused, as the two lines above seem a bit contradictory... Unless it means that you must purchase plane tickets, but make sure they are refundable tickets rather than nonrefundable tickets?

Anyway, we are flying standby from a benefit my uncle has who works for a major airline. He is supposed to send me an itinerary via email, but I just learned his wife is sick and in the hospital, so I'm a bit worried whether he'll be able to send it in time. Any advice or clarification on what the rules are? Is this anything I should be worried about? Any help would be appreciated.

Nate

[daniel333 0]

You should not buy your plane tickets before you have the K1 visa in your hand. The travel arrangements and ticket arrangements are necessary fort touristic visas not for the K1 Visa.

good luck.

[M. 0]

I concur with the other replies, but want to add that David *did* have his ticket in hand at the interview -- we were so desperate to be together again that we booked a flight for a week after his interview was scheduled. Of course, we broke all the rules and had also planned a wedding/elopement for a very specific date before he even had the interview date set, but in the end everything went like clockwork.

(I should note that we only booked the chapel, dinner, hotel, and photographer we did because they offered refundable deposits; the only non-refundable things that could have been screwed up by USCIS were his ticket to the US and our tickets to Vegas. But it all worked out in the end.)

[daboyz 36]

Hi Nate,

I will be arriving in Bangkok on the 22nd for our interview on the 24th. To my knowledge there is no requirement for travel plans in advance of the visa. I have never heard of that before..

Good luck with the interview - and PLEASE post how everything went. I'll be very interested to hear what they ask.

-David

Hi everyone,

I am in Bangkok with my fiancee, and she is scheduled for her K-1 interview on the 18th.

One of the documents she received from the Embassy a while back (in the packet including the checklist, etc..), it says "***You are strongly encouraged NOT to make any nonrefundable travel plans until the visa is printed and in your passport.***

To me, this sounds like it's basically saying not to purchase any plane tickets until your fiancee is completely cleared/given the green light to go to the US. However...

My fiancee says some of her friends (who know other women who have gone through the K-1 process) have told her that she absolutely must be able to show a plane ticket or something similar - like an itinerary - at the interview, showing her travel arrangements to go to the US have already been made.

So I'm a little confused, as the two lines above seem a bit contradictory... Unless it means that you must purchase plane tickets, but make sure they are refundable tickets rather than nonrefundable tickets?

Anyway, we are flying standby from a benefit my uncle has who works for a major airline. He is supposed to send me an itinerary via email, but I just learned his wife is sick and in the hospital, so I'm a bit worried whether he'll be able to send it in time. Any advice or clarification on what the rules are? Is this anything I should be worried about? Any help would be appreciated.

Nate

My wife's interview is on the 23rd, but I'm not going to arrive in BKK until the 27th. I want to make sure she has the visa.

[defunct 0]

The US government doesn't care if you use the visa or not.