Need Advice: US Tourist Visa

[mhark033 0]

Why do you want to go to the US and for how long?

Have you travelled before? If not, why not, considering you make decent money?

Do you have any ties to the US (family there)

Have you applied for a US visa before?

The answers to those questions will also influence your chances, but overall I think the others are correct- it is difficult for a young, single person to get a tourist visa.

Why do you want to go to the US and for how long?

A: I want to spent vacation with my friend. and to stay away from stressful work area just to refresh a bit.

Have you travelled before? If not, why not, considering you make decent money?

A: no, this is my first time to travel abroad and since my friend had invited me there to have some vacation so i decided to have some 4 weeks there. Including the fact that they will accomodate me to their house.

Do you have any ties to the US (family there)

A:none

Have you applied for a US visa before?

A: no this is my first time

[mhark033 0]

Having an excellent school records is nothing to do with strong ties to your home country. I applied B-2 visa back in 2010. I worked at one of well-established companies in my country. I brought my saving bank account book, land certificate, my credit cards billing statements, insurance policies, letter from my employer stated I am one of their employees and will going back at certain date for my work commitment.

The consular officer who interviewed me did not even look up to those papers I brought after she asked me who I will going to visit to the US which was I replied back, " my boyfriend". She then gave me a green paper stating " filing petition for K-1 visa".

Again, it is up to you how good you're to prove that you'll come back to your home country. It is no harm to try and will cost you money to pay visa fee. You'll never know what outcome is if you don't try. Good luck and please come back here and tell us what the result is.

I will come back here to tell my story wether success of ailed but im hoping that it would be a successfull one

Btw i will visit a friend (he is a boy). He and his family was so close to me since they where here in the philippines. Btw he and his family had migrated last january. and for that he invited me to come their to visit and have some tour

[Girl from Celebes 588]

I will come back here to tell my story wether success of ailed but im hoping that it would be a successfull one

Btw i will visit a friend (he is a boy). He and his family was so close to me since they where here in the philippines. Btw he and his family had migrated last january. and for that he invited me to come their to visit and have some tour

Tell them you'll pay for plane tickets and show them you have plenty amount of money to spend for vacation. Otherwise, they are going to think you will use B-2 visa to stay illegally in the US like many other people do.

[EndlessStory 53]

Are you a girl? Since your friend is a boy, they might think otherwise. Are you saying $100k or 100k peso? They will really look at that too because 100k peso to USD is around $2k so they will ask you how are you going to go there on vacation with $2k savings for 4 weeks

[Pilipiniana 1]

hi mharko33,

Having a good job and a good salary is a plus factor.Actually no one can really predict if someone will be approve for a US Visa, maybe sometimes depends on the mood of the consul. My male friend who is 26 still a college student and still single was approved a US visa. Was asked who will pay for his trip he just said the truth that his parents will pay and that his purpose was to visit them in the USA. Got his tourist visa. Maybe that's what they call luck. One piece of advice is just to be

simple and be yourself during the interview and keep calm. Do not Show off like many others do, wearing many jewelries just to show the consul that they are rich.

Go and try, Good Luck.!!!!hope you will make it.

[Mike-eeh and Odie 193]

I am 23 y.o. and im having only 100k as my savings.

is my money is ok? how much money do i need?

i have a permanent job in a prominent company here in the philippines having 35k-45K salary per month?

Please give me some tip for passing the Interview.

When you say "100k" do you mean pesos or USD? Not that it really matters because money is easily transferred from one bank to another.

While having alot of money is definitly a plus factor, what you really need to convince the CO is not your wealth, but rather your ties to the country. You must convince the CO that your country is so good, and you have it so good in your country, that you would have not any reason to stay in the USA.

Some things you can offer as proof are:

1. Land/title deed.

2. Proof of employment and a letter of returning to work.

3. College tuittion/class schedule for next semester.

4. Bank with savings ($5,000 USD or more seems like a good magic number).

In the end, it's not all about what you present, but how well you present it.

Good luck!

[notusinganymore 31]

Not to seem as if I'm undermining the Philippines but basically, there is nothing in the Philippines that cannot be found in the US and there are more. How will you prove that after seeing what the US have, you will be going back to the Philippines?

Employment. If you hold a high position as if the company could not function without you physically present in the country for a period of time (e.g. CEO, administrator) I believe that shows something but I'm not saying having an employment letter won't help especially if it has a time frame and say that you are in a contract. It just weighs more.

Family. Having family in the Philippines is helpful because it means you have people to come back to.

Purpose. Say for tourism? You should be prepared to at least give them an idea on how you want to spend your vacation. Name a few places you want to see. If you name a person especially of the opposite sex as your purpose of visit, they will instantly assume a different kind of visa. You can name them after stating your purpose for tourism and say that they will accommodate you during your stay. That should help explain why you'll only be carrying P100K. In the US if you have P100k for 4 weeks and you don't pay rent, utilities, and possibly food then you are good! The P100k should exclude your airfare though.

Education. This is not about your transcripts. It's about an ongoing education because it tells US consul that you will be coming back to continue your studies.

Passport. Would have been nice if you were traveling so that's out of the list.

Properties. Isn't there anything you have? Lease, ongoing payments for land, or bill payments perhaps? I'm just throwing this out. It's something to say that you are paying something and somehow will need to comeback. It won't be a definite factor as US consul might think that you will go to the US to earn money to pay off stuff but at least have something to come back to after your vacation.

You can try applying with what you have now. If they deny you then you can prepare other documents that they possibly ask for and apply again. There is no limit to the application. Some people get denied 8 times and approved the 9th time. You might be able to prove strong ties with the Philippines so I say go for it! If I have your salary despite the proof that you currently have I'd try and try since it's my vacation aka sanity we are talking about.

Edited April 29, 2014 by emmandenn

[JBones 7]

You have nothing else to do but show up for the interview, be confident and just tell the truth.

Don't fall into the trap of trying to pad your bank account by borrowing money and depositing it just so you have a bigger figure to show the consul. It will arouse more suspicion in the part of the consul when he/she sees the unusually large deposits six months or so before your interview.

I got my first US visa when I was around your age and I didn't have a lot of money in the bank plus no properties. Another thing that could have been taken against me was the fact that two of my sisters were living in the US.

I asked God for help, dressed appropriately for the interview, looked the consul straight in the eye and answered his questions.

You will be fine. If this visa is for you, you will get it.

[JayJayH 546]

I am 23 y.o. and im having only 100k as my savings.

is my money is ok? how much money do i need?

i have a permanent job in a prominent company here in the philippines having 35k-45K salary per month?

Please give me some tip for passing the Interview.

$100,000 USD!? That should be enough for most vacations..

100,000 PHP = ~$2,200 USD

If you plan to visit the US on $2,200 USD, whether it's 'enough' or not depends entirely on what your plans are. There is no set limit to how much money you need for a vacation. The only requirement for a tourist visa is that you can reasonably afford your vacation.

For example, if your plan is to visit your aunt and uncle in California for a week or two and stay with them, $2,200 isn't unreasonable if your plane ticket is already booked.

On the contrary, if your plan is to live it up in Las Vegas for a month, then spend an additional month in New York City, any consular officer would raise an eyebrow or three.

[mhark033 0]

Are you a girl? Since your friend is a boy, they might think otherwise. Are you saying $100k or 100k peso? They will really look at that too because 100k peso to USD is around $2k so they will ask you how are you going to go there on vacation with $2k savings for 4 weeks

I am a male my friend has promised that they will going to accomodate me in their home and they will shoulder any travel expenses and meal as well

do i need to have the affidavit of support? or do i need just the invitation stating they will shoulder everything when im in the US

[mhark033 0]

hi mharko33,

Having a good job and a good salary is a plus factor.Actually no one can really predict if someone will be approve for a US Visa, maybe sometimes depends on the mood of the consul. My male friend who is 26 still a college student and still single was approved a US visa. Was asked who will pay for his trip he just said the truth that his parents will pay and that his purpose was to visit them in the USA. Got his tourist visa. Maybe that's what they call luck. One piece of advice is just to be

simple and be yourself during the interview and keep calm. Do not Show off like many others do, wearing many jewelries just to show the consul that they are rich.

Go and try, Good Luck.!!!!hope you will make it.

Thank you so much for this. It ease me though

[mhark033 0]

When you say "100k" do you mean pesos or USD? Not that it really matters because money is easily transferred from one bank to another.

While having alot of money is definitly a plus factor, what you really need to convince the CO is not your wealth, but rather your ties to the country. You must convince the CO that your country is so good, and you have it so good in your country, that you would have not any reason to stay in the USA.

Some things you can offer as proof are:

1. Land/title deed.

2. Proof of employment and a letter of returning to work.

3. College tuittion/class schedule for next semester.

4. Bank with savings ($5,000 USD or more seems like a good magic number).

In the end, it's not all about what you present, but how well you present it.

Good luck!

Is it ok if i borrow money then ill deposit it on my bank?

[mhark033 0]

Not to seem as if I'm undermining the Philippines but basically, there is nothing in the Philippines that cannot be found in the US and there are more. How will you prove that after seeing what the US have, you will be going back to the Philippines?

Employment. If you hold a high position as if the company could not function without you physically present in the country for a period of time (e.g. CEO, administrator) I believe that shows something but I'm not saying having an employment letter won't help especially if it has a time frame and say that you are in a contract. It just weighs more.

Family. Having family in the Philippines is helpful because it means you have people to come back to.

Purpose. Say for tourism? You should be prepared to at least give them an idea on how you want to spend your vacation. Name a few places you want to see. If you name a person especially of the opposite sex as your purpose of visit, they will instantly assume a different kind of visa. You can name them after stating your purpose for tourism and say that they will accommodate you during your stay. That should help explain why you'll only be carrying P100K. In the US if you have P100k for 4 weeks and you don't pay rent, utilities, and possibly food then you are good! The P100k should exclude your airfare though.

Education. This is not about your transcripts. It's about an ongoing education because it tells US consul that you will be coming back to continue your studies.

Passport. Would have been nice if you were traveling so that's out of the list.

Properties. Isn't there anything you have? Lease, ongoing payments for land, or bill payments perhaps? I'm just throwing this out. It's something to say that you are paying something and somehow will need to comeback. It won't be a definite factor as US consul might think that you will go to the US to earn money to pay off stuff but at least have something to come back to after your vacation.

You can try applying with what you have now. If they deny you then you can prepare other documents that they possibly ask for and apply again. There is no limit to the application. Some people get denied 8 times and approved the 9th time. You might be able to prove strong ties with the Philippines so I say go for it! If I have your salary despite the proof that you currently have I'd try and try since it's my vacation aka sanity we are talking about.

Is it advisable to have a affidavit of support from my friend who is right now a minimum wage earner or he can just right a letter of invitation stating that he and his family is ready to accomodate me.

the only property i have is my gadgets and as well as my postpaid plan that i pay for 1k pesos per month

Thank you so much

[Thane 8]

Is it ok if i borrow money then ill deposit it on my bank?

So I'm guessing it was 100k php, in which case you may need to save a bit more money, since plane tickets are going to be at least half that and food is going to be a ton more, especially for the duration you mentioned.

[mhark033 0]

You have nothing else to do but show up for the interview, be confident and just tell the truth.

Don't fall into the trap of trying to pad your bank account by borrowing money and depositing it just so you have a bigger figure to show the consul. It will arouse more suspicion in the part of the consul when he/she sees the unusually large deposits six months or so before your interview.

I got my first US visa when I was around your age and I didn't have a lot of money in the bank plus no properties. Another thing that could have been taken against me was the fact that two of my sisters were living in the US.

I asked God for help, dressed appropriately for the interview, looked the consul straight in the eye and answered his questions.

You will be fine. If this visa is for you, you will get it.

ok so its not advisable to borrow money. Thank you so much please pray for me too