Waiting 18 Months

[denise3088 1]

get a lawyer because its just going to get more complicated trust me !

[Nsempa 2]

The OP wanted advice. If you have any good suggestions please offer them, instead of criticizing him. We are not here to be immigration police. Thank you

[Cathi 5,748]

The OP wanted advice. If you have any good suggestions please offer them, instead of criticizing him. We are not here to be immigration police. Thank you

No we aren't, BUT the OP attacked people who do things legally. We are not here to praise people for abusing the system

[Avery Cates 1,141]

Well...

It's always a difficult and frustrating process without and hiccups. You unfortunately caused yourself one. There's really not much you can do besides possibly consult a lawyer at this point and wait.

You perhaps tried to be a little too clever. Sorry, people can't live here on a tourist visa. Just because it allows a maximum of 6 months doesn't mean it's to be abused by staying the maximum multiple times with a couple week "vacation" back in their home country. This is not USCIS' first rodeo, they're well weathered and wise to that sort of thing, and you got caught, hard. You chose to intentionally abuse the system, and it's ####### like that that makes the rest of us have to go through such a process with it all.

What you were doing was of 0 difference to the people who float over here on doors and other nonsense.

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

The family visa process is NOT only about proving a real relationship. That one really annoys me. That is just one of the things they are looking at.

It is also about showing that the immigrants are not inadmissible in any way and followed US immigration law, and are not criminals.

Your step daughter did not follow US immigration laws. So even if you have the best relationship in the world, she is not able to get a visa until she is pardoned by the waiver.

A tourist visa is NOT for living in the US or attending school. Very foolish in your part to think that was how it worked.

[Girl from Celebes 588]

Your fiancee and stepdaughter should be lucky got B-2 visa at first place - should be grateful for that and not take it for granted-. But what you or your fiancee did make another people like me really difficult to get one even though I was NEVER intend to stay there.

And you're now complained about how absurd the system is when comes to your own term. Old proverb says - you reap what you sow -. Best of luck in the rest of your journey!

Edited September 21, 2013 by Girl from Celebes

[Medical Student 1]

My intention is not and will be never be start a war of messages, I'm just telling you what a lot of people think and live through the immigration process, it looks you are mad with the whole expense and waiting...

all the cases have to pay the same fees for what their processes need, in your case, either you accepted or not, is not the right way to live for months and come back to mexico every time your time in the us is about to expire... why? simply because there are visas designed specifically for immigration purposes. and as you can read in any consulate or us embassy, the b2 is to visit the us.... not avoid the hassle of another visa.

In the part of expenses, believe me every one here pay in every stage of the process, you are not the only one. In your case you needed a waiver, so is your process fee. The same will be in adjusting the status, removing conditions, and all the other forms you will need in this journey.

She entered legally, yes, but she was just counting the allowed time to stay, going back to mexico for weeks with the intention of coming back several times with the same intention.... What gives me the reason of assuring she was "living" in the US is enrolling her child in the school.... i mean, if you visit another country you won't go to school there because you are visiting and have to return to your school in your country... you both decide to follow that path... and what i'm telling you is what caused an officer to cancel their visas, not because i want to accuse you of anything, is just the law and they notice it for which ever reason you want... I insist, she entered legally and leave on time, so she doesn't have an overstay but let's be realistic... it is a red flag for CBP officers that is a repeating pattern.

I'm from Mexico, so I know about government process, schools and all the things you are talking about, but is too much to make an statement in general... In fact for a reason you decide it was suitable for you to study there, and as in any country, the permits, the paperwork and all the process have a hassle... at least all the people I know are really kind and welcoming with foreign students... don't know about people you treat with ... but i can assure you is not retaliation in any way against anyone, is just how a lot of things have to follow a procedure.

As I said, the intention is share our experiences and help each other.... and i repeat... you can have a lot of help on the process in the waiver forum and in immigrate2us page. You are in a waiting period, and is advisable you get maybe a consultation with an immigration lawyer (a lot of them offer a first consult free of charge) to help with specifics of your case since waivers are difficult in general. If you didn't receive any notice you should call either the consulate or the service center that have your case. Check the timelines because i think waivers have their own timing.

Finally, all of us understand how frustrating is the waiting but at the end is worth it.. just try to be patient because there is no other way... again... wish you the best.

Carla,

I found your first response insulting and this one as well!

I came for advice and was attacked by you and a few others. Nowhere in my post did I attack anyone. Please quote where I attacked someone. My comments were geared towards a broken system. Did I write that it was not right for two people who have just met to get a visa? Absolutely not!

You made comments about the suffering of Mexicans who are illegal in the US, as if their suffering justifies their being there. You have made presumptions about me despite only knowing the little information that I have provided here. I gave a short history of my experiences with Mexican visa process for students and you imply that what I experienced is not true. You were not there when I attended a seminar at a Mexican consulate and heard the General Consul make bitter comments about the US government. You were not there when other students and I were going through the process both in the US and in Mexico. You come across as if I do not know anything about Mexico and the plight of Mexicans. May I remind you that I lived in Mexico for more than 3 years? May I remind you that I have been engaged to a Mexican for more than 5 years? I have travelled throughout Mexico and have provided healthcare to the poor of Mexico. I have been involved in many aspects of the Mexican government and their laws, including multiple traffic accidents where the other driver was at fault and where the driver fled the scene before the authorities arrived. In each case, the authorities were trying to blame me and I had to go through hell with the insurance companies that were trying to scam me. I was even thrown in prison for one of the accidents until the passenger in the other vehicle who was injured was released from the hospital and admitted to the authorities that the driver of her car was at fault but that she did not know who he was because she had just met him and let her drive her car. I could go on and on about my experiences as well as the experiences of other students in my class, so please do no insult me by trying to imply that I have imagined this stuff.

I know that everyone here has a difficult time and has to pay money, but no, we don't all pay the same amount. Has everyone here paid for a form I-601? Read my original post again and you will see that I attacked no one. It is the system that I attacked that needs fixing. Everyone here was not living with their fiancé for 3.5 years to then suddenly have them separated. Everyone does not visit their fiancé in the foreign country every few months to then suddenly have to say goodbye after a few days. I do not expect or want sympathy; I came for advice. Maybe someone had gone through the same experience. Do not presume to know that we are being punished for their living in the country. You were not there when they were denied entry. They were not denied for living illegally in the US; and all of you who think so are just plain wrong. My fiancée actually got more hassled when entering the country when we were both living in Mexico. After I returned to the US, they were allowed in more easily until the time that they saw my stepdaughter's books. The problem that we have has nothing, I repeat, nothing to do with living in the country; the problem was studying with a tourist visa. And yes, I have already consulted a lawyer, who agrees with this.

The system is broken, and anyone who cannot see that that was my intent in my original post needs to read it again.

[rylforever 18]

I have paid the waiver fee and I have been apart from my spouse since may of 2011. I agree that there are some issues with the immigration system that could be fixed. I also agree with what Carla said earlier as I saw the same tone in your post. The process can be a headache, trust me I know. I only see my husband for a few days every 6 months. However, you knew that you would be in the immigration process and you knew the tourist visa was being abused. No denying that, and although it is difficult we all submitted ourselves to this process to be with the one we live no matter what. I had sympathy for you in the beginning until you started judging others situations and you got called out on it. All cases are different however my husband who was one of those illegals here also is in agreement that although it is a long expensive testing process, there are reasons for this and he is thankful to be given a second chance and permitted to send the i601. Also as for the time frame of the i601 they are apparently working on cases with priority dates of March 2 of this year. And since we all opinionate and judge (lol, it is blunt advice to me ) so much on here, my opinion is the attorney that agrees that what your family was doing with tourist visas isn't abusing the system probably really just wants your money.

[fantonledzepp 159]

Your last post makes it clear to me that you haven't an ounce of humility to even admit that you did something wrong. Rather, you insist on making your case against a "broken system."

Good luck with the lawyer, they'll say anything to get your money.

Edited September 21, 2013 by fantonledzepp

[Avery Cates 1,141]

The system is broken, and anyone who cannot see that that was my intent in my original post needs to read it again.

The system can be imperfect, but the first thing you need to realize is that this isn't a result of a broken system, it's a result of you trying to abuse the system and now having to deal with the consequences.

A tourist visa is exactly what it is, for visiting for an amount of time. It is not a live, work, go to school visa for the use of people staying for the maximum amount of time, going back to their home country for a vacation, and coming back to resume living for another maximum duration. You were abusing it, and got caught. This kind of thing is the whole reason they have border control agents, to weed out the abuse. Unfortunately your shenanigans and others like you make it more difficult for people who are going through the process correctly from the start, and not trying to think themselves clever. Whatever "clever" thing you think up, it's already been done to death before, and the USCIS is wise to it long before now. However you want to word it and define it and play semantics with it is irrelevant.

What's happening now is a result of your actions, and not a broken system.

[Medical Student 1]

The system can be imperfect, but the first thing you need to realize is that this isn't a result of a broken system, it's a result of you trying to abuse the system and now having to deal with the consequences.

A tourist visa is exactly what it is, for visiting for an amount of time. It is not a live, work, go to school visa for the use of people staying for the maximum amount of time, going back to their home country for a vacation, and coming back to resume living for another maximum duration. You were abusing it, and got caught. This kind of thing is the whole reason they have border control agents, to weed out the abuse. Unfortunately your shenanigans and others like you make it more difficult for people who are going through the process correctly from the start, and not trying to think themselves clever. Whatever "clever" thing you think up, it's already been done to death before, and the USCIS is wise to it long before now. However you want to word it and define it and play semantics with it is irrelevant.

What's happening now is a result of your actions, and not a broken system.

This is getting ridiculous. This is the last time I address this issue.

To all those who offered advice and positive comments, I thank you!

To those who have said that I have attacked others, I cannot help but think that, with all due respect, you just do not understand English! If I say that Nancy is fatter than Julie, that is not calling Nancy fat. Unfortunately, many English speakers interpret it that way, but that is not meaning of that statement. Many here have said that I have attacked people on this forum, but no one has provided a quote of where I did that. Comparing my case to others is not attacking others. I believe that any 2 people have the right to get married, even the same day that they meet. Part of the job of this process is to determine if the desire to get married is legitimate. So, if an immigration officer believes that a couple who just met are legitimately in love and really want to be together, why is it taking so long for them to make a decision with our case? We have tons of evidence to show that we really wanted to be married, including having a marriage license and wedding plans in place 3 days after they were denied entry. In addition, we had proof of living in the house in Mexico and of having shared bank accounts, not to mention many other pieces of evidence.

Now, how is this attacking other couples? No where did I write that a couple who recently met should not get a visa. No where did I write that because we have not gotten a visa after 18 months a couple who recently met should not get theirs so quickly. No where did I write that I should be approved. If we had received a denial, I would have been fine with that so that we can move on with other plans. If you can't see that, then I am sorry, but you just do not understand the English language well enough.

Avery, you write that I was abusing the system and got caught. To abuse a system means that you know that you are doing it and trying to get away with it. None of us was aware that what we were doing was illegal. You and others here are too judgmental! Maybe you think that I am like you because I don't see how you can come to that conclusion if you do not know me or know everything about my case.

I have written it in my last post, yet some came back again to say that I was they were living illegally in the US and this is the reason why they were denied entry. To you stubborn and ignorant people, you were not there when they were denied, so how can you know why they were denied? I told you why they were denied. How arrogant and insulting it is for you tell me otherwise? There are Mexicans who have tourist visas and come here and stay for 6 months, leave for a few weeks, and then return for another 6 months. They have been doing this for years. This is not illegal! The officers have the authority to deny entry, as well as authorize an entry for fewer than 6 months. Coming for 6 months and then leaving is not abusing the system when officers have the authority to stop it.

Did the officers think that they were abusing their tourist visas by coming for 6 months, leaving, and repeating this process? Absolutely not! Why I know this is because the officers told them that this had nothing to do with that. When I went to see the lawyer, I told him that I was about to petition for a fiancée visa but that I felt that I should see him before I did. He asked me to tell him everything that happened at the border. I told him that after they were told that it was illegal to study with their visas, she showed him the marriage license to be married 3 days later. They told her that she should then apply for a fiancée visa because a tourist visa is not the appropriate visa to come to the US to be married. She then asked if their coming and staying for 6 months was a problem, to which they said no. They said the only problem was my stepdaughter studying. They asked if they were being banned from returning to the US, to which they said no. They said that if she wanted to marry me, then I needed to file a petition for that visa. I explained all of this to the attorney and he agreed that this had ONLY to do with studying. Why? Because that is what was documented and that was what was said to my family. So, please people, stop it with your know-it-all attitude. You are coming across as being very bitter and trying to accuse and attack someone for what you think we did wrong and for what you think is the reason for your delays. Stop it already. If someone here tells you that they were denied because of reason "A," you have no right to tell them that it was also because of reason "B."

How dare you Avery accuse me of trying to abuse the system? That is the highest insult that shows your all-mighty attitude! You do not know me! The system is definitely broken when the school system tells you that it is okay to enroll your child when it is actually illegal to do so, knowing that it is illegal to do so. If a US government agency actively enrolls students in violation of US immigration laws, the system is broken. How can you not see that?

Another point that I wanted to address is that I have written that we knew we made a mistake, yet people have come on here saying that I do not want to admit to it. Once again, it shows that you cannot read English, or choose to believe what you want to believe and not what I am telling you.

I thought that I would get lots of good advice; I never thought that I would receive such negative comments. You guys need to relax and read carefully what people are writing, instead of ignoring what is clearly written and jumping to your own conclusions.

Why did I ask for advice a few days ago? Well, it has been 18 months. I have to make a decision now on my residency applications about where I will practice medicine for the next four years. My plans were not to work at a border city. However, she is denied her visa, I will want to work at a border city so that I can live with my family and cross the border every day to go to work.

Again, thanks to those who provided some positive comments!

[kmiami15 8]

Medical student, first off, good luck with your residency applications and I am glad you passed your MLEs.... please see below:

Tourism and Visit (B-2):

• tourism
• vacation (holiday)
• visit with friends or relatives
• medical treatment
• participation in social events hosted by fraternal, social, or service organizations
• participation by amateurs in musical, sports, or similar events or contests, if not being paid for participating
• enrollment in a short recreational course of study, not for credit toward a degree (for example, a two-day cooking class while on vacation).

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1262.html

Also.... you mentioned that you had a marriage license and intention to marry in the US after entering with a tourist visa, that´s illegal to do as well.... you cannot enter the US on a tourist visa with the intention to marry a United States citizen... I am not saying that you had intentions of doing things illegally, but remember that immigration officers see things either black or white.... and to them, you were doing something illegal, even if those were not your intentions.... you should have consulted a lawyer before you both decided your fiance was going to move to the US or before enrolling the child in school.... it is just a general concept that in every country you go to, you have to go through legal documents in order to study there... you went through it when you studied in Mexico... I think the people that you should be calling ignorant are those school officials that enrolled the child in school.... we are just trying to provide you with advice.... I understand that you are frustrated, but I do not see any disrespect from the VJers towards you...

Good luck....

Edited September 22, 2013 by kmiami15

[savvy.boy 13]

Immigrant Visa Case Number: ISLxxxxxxxxxx 01 ISL
Case Creation Date: 31-Oct-2008
Status Updated Date: 23-Sep-2013
Case Status: ISSUED

Your visa has been printed. Depending on local procedures at the location where you were interviewed, your visa will be mailed or available for pickup soon. If there are further questions, or if we need updated contact information, you will be contacted.

Thank you GOD.
Thank you Consular Officer , who gave us visa.

Thanks to Visa Journey

this is party time for me.
I am going outside , will buy a burger and cold drink.

wow.
amazing.

only 1 day AP.

here it goes,

Interview: 17 September 2013
Result: both were approved , Consular officer said you will get visa within 7-10 days.

Case update: Ready 18-September 2013
Case Update: Administrative processing 21 September 2013
Case Update: ISSUED 23 September 2013

[Harsh_77 718]

Carla,

I found your first response insulting and this one as well!

I came for advice and was attacked by you and a few others. Nowhere in my post did I attack anyone. Please quote where I attacked someone. My comments were geared towards a broken system. Did I write that it was not right for two people who have just met to get a visa? Absolutely not!

You made comments about the suffering of Mexicans who are illegal in the US, as if their suffering justifies their being there. You have made presumptions about me despite only knowing the little information that I have provided here. I gave a short history of my experiences with Mexican visa process for students and you imply that what I experienced is not true. You were not there when I attended a seminar at a Mexican consulate and heard the General Consul make bitter comments about the US government. You were not there when other students and I were going through the process both in the US and in Mexico. You come across as if I do not know anything about Mexico and the plight of Mexicans. May I remind you that I lived in Mexico for more than 3 years? May I remind you that I have been engaged to a Mexican for more than 5 years? I have travelled throughout Mexico and have provided healthcare to the poor of Mexico. I have been involved in many aspects of the Mexican government and their laws, including multiple traffic accidents where the other driver was at fault and where the driver fled the scene before the authorities arrived. In each case, the authorities were trying to blame me and I had to go through hell with the insurance companies that were trying to scam me. I was even thrown in prison for one of the accidents until the passenger in the other vehicle who was injured was released from the hospital and admitted to the authorities that the driver of her car was at fault but that she did not know who he was because she had just met him and let her drive her car. I could go on and on about my experiences as well as the experiences of other students in my class, so please do no insult me by trying to imply that I have imagined this stuff.

I know that everyone here has a difficult time and has to pay money, but no, we don't all pay the same amount. Has everyone here paid for a form I-601? Read my original post again and you will see that I attacked no one. It is the system that I attacked that needs fixing. Everyone here was not living with their fiancé for 3.5 years to then suddenly have them separated. Everyone does not visit their fiancé in the foreign country every few months to then suddenly have to say goodbye after a few days. I do not expect or want sympathy; I came for advice. Maybe someone had gone through the same experience. Do not presume to know that we are being punished for their living in the country. You were not there when they were denied entry. They were not denied for living illegally in the US; and all of you who think so are just plain wrong. My fiancée actually got more hassled when entering the country when we were both living in Mexico. After I returned to the US, they were allowed in more easily until the time that they saw my stepdaughter's books. The problem that we have has nothing, I repeat, nothing to do with living in the country; the problem was studying with a tourist visa. And yes, I have already consulted a lawyer, who agrees with this.

The system is broken, and anyone who cannot see that that was my intent in my original post needs to read it again.

System is not broken in regard to school refusing the illegals to enroll or informing that they cannot be enrolled in the public school system.

System is made to do it that way, due to pressure from politicians and other Hispanic organizations, churches etc.

In you OP you said you guy were ignorant about law unfortunately that is not an excuse, if you get pulled over for speeding and tell cop you were not aware of the speed limit he is not going to let you go without a ticket.

Attending school on tourist visa is violation of tourist visa, so you cannot claim you did not do anything wrong.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

In my opinion the system is only not broken when everyone undergoes a same and equal process. That all couples file an I 130 and wait it out in home country,. No adjusting from visitors visas , no pardoning overstays just serve your ban no forgiving of illegal entry EVER. No different amount of proof required if you are from the UK or Nigeria. This process should be a formula and not controlled by officers that use their own personal preferences to determine the future of a family.