Potential Fiancee Coming to NY on Tourist Visa First

[turveydrop 4]

Hi. It's been a while since I posted anything on the site.

About a year and a half ago, I met a nice girl in Uzbekistan online. We corresponded via Skype and e-mail for about six months before I went to visit her in Tashkent. Things went as well as we possibly could have hoped for. Instant chemistry, an idyllic two weeks, one in Tashkent, the other in Urgench and Khiva with her family, whom I also love. We basically started the K1 process as soon as I got back to New York. But after a few months, she started having her doubts, and I was forced to admit that she had some good points. We'd only spent two weeks together, and she's never been outside of Uzbekistan (except a brief trip to Russia). There was still a lot to think about, and we didn't even know if we had enough for the visa. So, we cancelled the application almost a year ago.

We've kept in touch, and now she wants to come to New York for two weeks on a tourist visa to see if she likes it here, etc. We're wondering how to best go about this. She thinks she'll never get a tourist visa if she tells them about me and why she's really going. I get that, but I see some problems. First, we submitted all of her information with the K1 application last year. Even though it was never processed, couldn't they potentially still have this information? It's been a while, but I may have also put her down as a contact when I got my own visa to go there. Finally, these people are professionals who know every angle and have heard every story. There's a good chance they'll see through it if we come up with some story.

Would it be utterly insane to go in there and just be completely honest about our situation and history? I think a reasonable person would understand and see that she really wants to come here for two weeks, take more pictures for the K1 application, and feel out the whole situation a little more. She also has her parents, a brother and sister, and a grandma back in Uzbekistan, and she would have to say goodbye to them properly after deliberating some more, and I would even go back there again for a traditional Uzbek "leaving home" celebration (even though she and her sister live on their own already).

Thanks in advance. I know there's a lot of good information and experience on this site.

[Robert&Karen 264]

I think it is perfectly fair for her to come here and evaluate life in the USA. Karen has never been out of the UK and came to visit me for 30 days. It was her first trip here. I also lived there for 30 days to see if I'd like it.

I have been to Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and even lived in Tajikistan for a year and a half. It is a very different culture and experiencing the USA first hand is the best way. You will have to check on the type of visa required. She will have to prove she is going back home, so she needs to show connections that she cannot easily walk away from.

Best of luck to you!

[turveydrop 4]

I think it is perfectly fair for her to come here and evaluate life in the USA. Karen has never been out of the UK and came to visit me for 30 days. It was her first trip here. I also lived there for 30 days to see if I'd like it.

I have been to Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and even lived in Tajikistan for a year and a half. It is a very different culture and experiencing the USA first hand is the best way. You will have to check on the type of visa required. She will have to prove she is going back home, so she needs to show connections that she cannot easily walk away from.

Best of luck to you!

Thanks. I agree that it's fair for her to check out New York first. Though it's a big step for both of us, she's the one making the more enormous life change.

It seems a tourist visa is the way to go if we're not doing the K1 yet. I'm aware that she will have to show strong connections to Uzbekistan, but my question is whether her case will be undermined by admitting that she has considered--and is still considering--emigrating, since that obviously shows a willingness to walk away from those connections, though not immediately or illegally.

[skiptex 225]

of course she could visit.. it would only help your case for K1 IF ya'll chose to go that route later..

take lots of pics (together, with family, with friends).. keep all your boarding passes.. and receipts

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

They will know about the previous K-1 petition, so any attempt to lie or cover it up will end in a denial of the tourist visa, and worse, could make her ineligible for any visa of any type in the future. They take lying very seriously. She should be perfectly honest and see what happens. The fact that she thought you guys were rushing things might work in her favor. As said above, she needs to show strong ties to home. Best of luck.

[turveydrop 4]

They will know about the previous K-1 petition, so any attempt to lie or cover it up will end in a denial of the tourist visa, and worse, could make her ineligible for any visa of any type in the future. They take lying very seriously. She should be perfectly honest and see what happens. The fact that she thought you guys were rushing things might work in her favor. As said above, she needs to show strong ties to home. Best of luck.

Thank you. This is precisely what I am looking for, and exactly what I think should happen. People in these positions can spot sincerity, and our situation taken as a whole definitely demonstrates that she is not about to cut ties with Uzbekistan after two weeks in New York, as you note.