British citizen ESTA and b1/b2 visa denials after overstay married to a usa inmate .

[EvaGold 0]

I am a British citizen and i went to America on April 30th 2011 on an ESTA visa simply to visit America and friends , while there i married my husband who is an American citizen by birth on 5/18/2011 in his prison , who id meet thru a pen pal exchange programme, He was and still is incarcerated in Philadelphia for violent offences non-involving children .

He was a juvenile at the time and was sentenced to life x 2 and consecutive 30 then 20 years However since the Supreme Court has ban mandatory juvenile life sentences and made its decision retroactive he has a chance of getting out of prison in the future. his case is still being litigated.

While in America in 2011 i overstayed from April until September which means i over stayed by 3 months , which of course i apologise for and i was not aware that my ESTA visa was only for 3 months . I returned back to the UK as i have no intent to apply for asylum and my husband made no applications for me i was completely unaware that i had broken the law and could not return on a ESTA visa.

I have remained in England since 2011 and I applied for my ESTA visa in May 2016 it was denied with no reason given and i was advised i could apply for a b1/b2 visa which i did however on the 15th jun 2016 my visa was denied under 214(b).

when i asked why it was denied she said : 1. i overstayed my visa 2. because I'm married and did not list it on my b1/b2 visa (I'm unsure if i did or did not ) and she accused me of working bc i attended a trade show in USA dealing with afro Caribbean hair which i wanted to re attend this year for my own start up Business in the u.k i reiterated i did not work . she also advised i need '' stronger '' ties to England : i have grown up in England since age (4) ,I have a child (the child is from a previous relationship ), a home (privet rented ) , a small start-up business and caring responsibilities to a relative with dementia and am re-enrolling in university in London , i also travel around Europe(France , Spain , Germany ) and always returned to England. I'm unaware what stronger ties to England i could provide to the US embassy.

I have no criminal history and have never posed a risk to others or myself , am healthy physically and have income to support myself so I believe my ESTA and b1/b2 visa denials are solely because of my overstay and because I'm married and I'm extremely concerned it may prejudice my attempts to re-enter America for any reason I have not seen my husband in 5 years and we have been married for 5 years and so i am relying on legal advice before we make any further applications and exhausting the circumstance. but my husband is adamant we pursue a CR1he wants me to become a citizen, i am worried so soon we would be denied . any advice?

[Anitafeliz 1,133]

I belive when you were here in 2011 you could have adjusted. USC spouses are forgiven overstay...and inmates can petition you but who will do the leg work here? Will his family help get him the app and his birth records and all the other requirements?? also you havent seen each other since 2011 not sure how this would impact proving the marriage bonified.

Good luck

[EvaGold 0]

I belive when you were here in 2011 you could have adjusted. USC spouses are forgiven overstay...

Im not so sure as this was not the case for a B1/B2 VISA

inmates can petition you but who will do the leg work here? Will his family help get him the app and his birth records and all the other requirements??

Yes his family will do the leg work we are also getting a lawyer to ensure that everything is done correctelly.

also you havent seen each other since 2011 not sure how this would impact proving the marriage bonified.

I was not abel to see him since 2011 but we talk every day via my USA NO. on skype / write and e-mail ( inmates can now e-mail ) etc... there is a lot of evidence we can present thats not a concern .

I'm more concerned about applying for a CR1 so soon after 2 visa denials and from my experience you have no chance at explaining your circumstances to the USA embassy in London .

[aleful 1,905]

hi

filing for esta was a waste of time, once you overstayed, you don't qualify ever again for a visa waiver, you have to file for a tourist visa

Edited June 16, 2016 by aleful

[EvaGold 0]

hi

filing for esta was a waste of time, once you overstayed, you don't qualify ever again for a visa waiver, you have to file for a tourist visa

I know that now i did not know at the time i filed for it i did not even know i overstayed i assumed i had 6 months it was a mistake i regret , i wish i had known at the time an ESTA visa was for 3 months,in the uk a Standard Visitor visa is up to 6 months i assumed America would be as accommodating. i was wrong!

[Anitafeliz 1,133]

I belive when you were here in 2011 you could have adjusted. USC spouses are forgiven overstay...

Im not so sure as this was not the case for a B1/B2 VISA

inmates can petition you but who will do the leg work here? Will his family help get him the app and his birth records and all the other requirements??

Yes his family will do the leg work we are also getting a lawyer to ensure that everything is done correctelly.

also you havent seen each other since 2011 not sure how this would impact proving the marriage bonified.

I was not abel to see him since 2011 but we talk every day via my USA NO. on skype / write and e-mail ( inmates can now e-mail ) etc... there is a lot of evidence we can present thats not a concern .

I'm more concerned about applying for a CR1 so soon after 2 visa denials and from my experience you have no chance at explaining your circumstances to the USA embassy in London .

Ok i hope it works out for you i wouldnt know what to do with out my fiancee since 2011

[EvaGold 0]

Ok i hope it works out for you i wouldnt know what to do with out my fiancee since 2011

thank you believe me its not easy but love conquers all

[Anitafeliz 1,133]

thank you believe me its not easy but love conquers all

It does indeed... are you planning on living near the prison hes in?

[JFH 12,191]

What made you think you could stay for six months? The terms and conditions when you apply for an ESTA approval say 90 days max, your passport would have been stamped for 90 days. What did you say at the airport when you arrived when you were asked how long you would be staying? I guarantee you didn't say "six months" or you would have been on the next plane back to Heathrow.

You don't know if you gave the correct marital status on the form? Who are you trying to kid?

You'll struggle to prove a bona fide marriage to a lifer you haven't seen in five years and married 18 days after arriving in the country for the first time. And it's not the government's fault you haven't seen him in 5 years. I've heard they don't consider the marriage to be bona fide with a prisoner unless you have regular contact (non-glass) visits.

My husband did time in the USA. There's no way I'd ever get on the wrong side of immigration. Because of his past and his lifetime ban from the UK, the USA is our only hope of being able to live together.

[EvaGold 0]

It does indeed... are you planning on living near the prison hes in?

Yes lucky he is less than hour away from the capital of PA , I am saving money to buy a 1 bedroom house to rent there while he is in prison i will send him half of the money from the rent and save the other half and if he comes home we will have somewhere to stay together if he is on parole .

This is going to be a long journey for us my husband said for me to apply for citizenship right after we married and i refused if i had known we would be separated this long and me unable to get to him id have applied while i was there.....

[dwheels76 5,468]

Yes lucky he is less than hour away from the capital of PA , I am saving money to buy a 1 bedroom house to rent there while he is in prison i will send him half of the money from the rent and save the other half and if he comes home we will have somewhere to stay together if he is on parole .

This is going to be a long journey for us my husband said for me to apply for citizenship right after we married and i refused if i had known we would be separated this long and me unable to get to him id have applied while i was there.....

Sorry but you have been misinformed. US Citizenship does not work that quickly. You first have to become a LPR (Legal Permanent Resident). Than 3 years after being a LPR and married at least 3 years to same US citizenyou can apply for US Citizenship.

[EvaGold 0]

What made you think you could stay for six months? The terms and conditions when you apply for an ESTA approval say 90 days max, your passport would have been stamped for 90 days. What did you say at the airport when you arrived when you were asked how long you would be staying? I guarantee you didn't say "six months" or you would have been on the next plane back to Heathrow.

You don't know if you gave the correct marital status on the form? Who are you trying to kid?

You'll struggle to prove a bona fide marriage to a lifer you haven't seen in five years and married 18 days after arriving in the country for the first time. And it's not the government's fault you haven't seen him in 5 years. I've heard they don't consider the marriage to be bona fide with a prisoner unless you have regular contact (non-glass) visits.

My husband did time in the USA. There's no way I'd ever get on the wrong side of immigration. Because of his past and his lifetime ban from the UK, the USA is our only hope of being able to live together.

1. i did not read T&C

2. i was not asked anything when my passport was stamped the man in fact was very nice and asked me where i was going (State) and where id be staying and that was it he waved me threw in NJ

3. Re Martial status yes im not sure what i put down i don't remember -- im sure i put married she said i didn't and i can't say anything bc i already handed the forms over

5.Our visits where contact and i have evidence of our correspondence etc.. i can meet the bona fide threshold as i already asked a lawyer re this issue

I hope you and ur hubby are happy and doing well

Sorry but you have been misinformed. US Citizenship does not work that quickly. You first have to become a LPR (Legal Permanent Resident). Than 3 years after being a LPR and married at least 3 years to same US citizenyou can apply for US Citizenship.

thx for the info i will bring it up to the lawyer

[mallafri76 1,012]

From now on you can only visit the US with a visitors visa. Getting a visitors visa is quite difficult when being married to a USC, as you're assumed to have immigration intent just because you're spouse is living in the US.

USCIS and NVC will only look for the bare minimum to meet the requirements but once you reach the embassy phase, be prepared for extensive scrutiny due to your husband being in prison. Most of the time, the CO has already made up his mind just from reading the case file so make sure to put as much evidence as possible already with the I-130 petition. Visitation really is key but since you haven't been allowed to visit for five years, I'd attach a letter from your husband to the petition to say that due to his wife's previous overstay and a tourist visa denial, you two have not been able to see each other in person since XX but you are in constant contact through emails and phones. Then attach lots of email logs, copies of emails, phone logs etc. Honestly, it's gonna be an uphill battle due to your lack of visits and your husband currently serving a life sentence but you never know.... Good luck.

[JFH 12,191]

Sorry but you have been misinformed. US Citizenship does not work that quickly. You first have to become a LPR (Legal Permanent Resident). Than 3 years after being a LPR and married at least 3 years to same US citizenyou can apply for US Citizenship.

She would have to wait 5 years after being an LPR as incarceration does not qualify for involuntary separation for marital union purposes.

[Boiler 45,956]

VWP would have required a return ticket within 90 days amongst other things, so much sounds very odd about the overall situation.

I would have thought you have a very limited option for a tourist visa, but nothing stopping you reapplying.