I overstayed in the US for 3 months, now I want to go back to the US to visit

[Help needed 0]

Hi everyone,

I'm new to here. And I really need your help.

Here is my story of overstay -

I entered the US with F-1 student visa for grad school in 2008 and kept legal status while I was in the U.S.. When I finished my OPT, I went back to my country on time. After I went back to Taiwan, I got a M-1 student visa for flight school and came back to the US for school. I-94 expired on August 24. 2012.

After finished my M-1, I got a job offer (related to my grad school major) when I was in M-1 grace period. They submitted my H1B application before my grace period ended. Then about a month later, my H1B got denied because of cap-exempt rule. (long story..)

I started to pack and tried to sell my stuff, contract of the place I was living and my car. Meanwhile, Thanksgiving and Christmas were coming, I thought if I already overstayed since the day after H1B got denied, couple of more days overstay shouldn't change anything. I decided to go back after Christmas because I'm the only Christian in my family and we don't celebrate those big holidays in Taiwan anyway. So I could celebrate these two holidays with my friend and her family.

I overstayed for about 2.5 months after h1b application got denied.

I have no intent to stay illegally, otherwise I wouldn't come back to Taiwan after I overstayed. Now my best friend's sister (I'm very close to her family while I was in the US) is getting married in May and I really want to attend her wedding. I'm just wondering what kind of problems I will have when I re-enter the U.S.? Or how can I enter the U.S. without causing any problems?

P.s. my country just joined visa waiver program not too long ago, and I haven't used it yet.

My M-1 visa grace period expired on Sep 23, 2012

H1b application got denied on Oct 17, 2012 (Lawyer told me that we were not going to appeal on Oct 24, 2012)

I went back to my country on Jan 3, 2013

p.p.s. I already got a manager job in a big company in Taiwan. Will this be enough to show I have ties to my home country?

Thanks for your answers and help.

[amykathleen2005 441]

Well you don't have a ban, that doesn't mean it will be easy to get a tourist visa.

[Jason32 5]

It doesn't hurt to try the VWP. You have to fill out an ESTA and see if you get approved for travel. If not, your only other option is to apply for a different kind of visa which may or may not be approved. An employment letter showing you have ties to Taiwan is great, but will only help you for, say, a tourist visa B2, or at POE. I'm not an expert in any of this by any means, so if someone else has more information than me, please respond.

Anyway, I hope that helps.

Here is the link for the ESTA:

https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta/

Good luck!

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

The chances of being approved for VWP with such a recent overstay are near zero and you will also have a hard time getting a visitors visa. You may have a wait for a few years before coming back.

[Help needed 0]

thanks guys, for your response. If anyone has more opinion, I'd like to hear them.

I also found this, (sorry, can't post a link yet due to being a new member)

britishexpatsdotcom/wiki/Visa_Waiver_Program

it says,

An overstay or breach of conditions if you had a U.S. visa does not make you ineligible to use the VWP (so long as you did not overstay long enough to cause a 3 or 10 year ban to be imposed, and the ban is still in force) but you may want to avoid the risk of problems on arrival by obtaining a U.S. tourist visa. Of course, applying for a tourist visa does carry a risk of refusal.

Can anyone verify this statement is true? Since I overstayed on M-1 student visa instead of VWP.

Thanks again for your help!

Edited January 22, 2013 by CarrieW

[hmh33 117]

It's true. You could try for the ESTA. Answer all the questions honestly.