Bringing future mother-in-law over for our wedding

[CY & Evy 18]

Hello,

 

Does anyone have experience with trying to get your in-laws here to America to be apart of the wedding?

 

Assuming all goes well with the K-1 Visa and my fiancee gets to come to America, we would like my fiancees mother to be here when we have our wedding. Her mother has never been to America before and from what I hear it's really hard just to get a travel visa over here unless you can show some proof you will return to Vietnam (money/nice job/family).

 

It is just my fiancee and her mother living together. Her mother does not work and I know they do not have a lot of money. We would like to get her mom here permanently as a long term goal, but short term if possible we would just like her to be here for the wedding. What are our options for this? (short and long term)

 

Also, when they do the interview for her mother to get a visa to visit here is the interview in English or Vietnamese? Her mother speaks some English, but not a lot. Appreciate any help!!

Edited April 2, 2017 by CY & Evy

[Unlockable 7,315]

7 minutes ago, CY & Evy said:

Hello,

 

Does anyone have experience with trying to get your in-laws here to America to be apart of the wedding?

 

Assuming all goes well with the K-1 Visa and my fiance gets to come to America, we would like my fiancees mother to be here when we have our wedding. Her mother has never been to America before and from what I hear it's really hard just to get a travel visa over here unless you can show some proof you will return to Vietnam (money/nice job/family). It some cases yes.

 

It is just my fiancee and her mother living together. Her mother does not work and I know they do not have a lot of money. This may play against her chances of getting a visitor visa. We would like to get her mom here permanently as a long term goal, but short term if possible we would just like her to be here for the wedding. What are our options for this? (short and long term) There is only one option for each. A visitor visa for the short term. And when you fiance becomes a US citizen she will file a immigration visa for the long term.

 

Also, when they do the interview for her mother to get a visa to visit here is the interview in English or Vietnamese? Her mother speaks some English, but not a lot. Appreciate any help!! Yes, they can have people who speak Vietnamese.

See my replies above in red.

 

There is not much you can do that will influence the decision to issue your future MIL a visitor visa. She has to apply on her own and show proof that she has ties to her country. If she wants to eventually live in the US that can be used against her as a reason for denial.

 

The reason it is difficult is because there have been a high rate of abuse of the visitor visa. People use it to come here to work and live. In cases where the foreigner has a immediate relative situated in the US, they would apply for a visitor visa and come and stay with them. They know the wait time for the relative to apply for them is long so they come to the US to live with them and pretty much live as an overstayer (illegal) until the relative can apply to adjust their status. This happens so often that it has caused immigration to be very selective on who is issued a visitor visa. If a foreigner has no job, doesn't own a business or property, and has immediate relatives living in the US... they are a high risk.

 

Only thing you finance's mother can do is try. If she gets it, that will be great. If not, then it will be unfortunate but you could try again later of wait until your fiance naturalize. Your wife will not be the only person whose family can't visit for her wedding or other important events like a birth of a child, we see it all the time here on VJ. It is one of the toughest parts of immigration.

[KULtoATL 1,551]

Not trying to be a Debbie Downer but it does seem like your future mother-in-law has a very slim chance of being getting a B2. B2 is solely granted based on one's own merits. 

 

Perhaps you guys can have a little celebration with her and some of your fiancée's relatives and close friends back in VN. Just don't get married there officially or through a recognized Vietnamese ceremony otherwise it might be an issue at the POE when your fiancée enters with a K-1.

 

Additionally, maybe you guys can look into what documents your future mother-in-law might need for the future petition (by your fiancée once she's a citizen) and help her gather those documents that have no expiry while she's still in VN. Documents with expiry will obviously have to wait till the appropriate time.

 

Good luck with whatever you guys and your fiancée's mother decide to do

[ConOfficer 167]

Where are your fiance's siblings and father? What do they do for work? Do they have visas? 

 

If her other kids are non-visa'd, I would say no, 100%. No job, no family (apparently) = no ties. If she has other kids in Vietnam with professional jobs, that changes the calculus. 

 

It's only $160 and 3 minutes of her time to try (plus however long it takes to get to a consulate). 

[CY & Evy 18]

2 minutes ago, ConOfficer said:

Where are your fiance's siblings and father? What do they do for work? Do they have visas? 

 

If her other kids are non-visa'd, I would say no, 100%. No job, no family (apparently) = no ties. If she has other kids in Vietnam with professional jobs, that changes the calculus. 

 

It's only $160 and 3 minutes of her time to try (plus however long it takes to get to a consulate). 

Fiancee is an only child and her father is not involved in her life. Mother & Father = divorced. So it is just the two of them.

 

My mother-in-law has two sisters that live here in America and more brothers and sisters in Vietnam.

 

I know the odds are against us in this situation and it is something we had discussed before pursuing the k-1 visa vs the k-3 visa so that we could get married in Vietnam.

 

I guess my only other question would sponsoring my mother-in-law give her a better chance to pass the interview? Would it be better to have her sister here in America to sponsor her instead or is that a red flag?

[geowrian 22,338]

1 minute ago, CY & Evy said:

I know the odds are against us in this situation and it is something we had discussed before pursuing the k-1 visa vs the k-3 visa so that we could get married in Vietnam.

 

I guess my only other question would sponsoring my mother-in-law give her a better chance to pass the interview? Would it be better to have her sister here in America to sponsor her instead or is that a red flag?

K-3 is obsolete. It would be a CR-1 instead.

 

No. Sponsoring is not applicable for tourist visas. It's usually detrimental, actually. Being supported by a family member is a tie to the US. She must show her own ability to support herself while in the US. That said, she still needs to be truthful if they ask about any other family or why she's visiting.

[KULtoATL 1,551]

There's no such thing as sponsoring a B2. So really, it depends a lot on her own ability to prove her strong ties back in VN and that she will return to home. Given that her daughter is immigrating to the US and she has two sisters there too, the CO might think she has strong intentions to move over immediately with the B2.

[CY & Evy 18]

18 minutes ago, geowrian said:

K-3 is obsolete. It would be a CR-1 instead.

 

No. Sponsoring is not applicable for tourist visas. It's usually detrimental, actually. Being supported by a family member is a tie to the US. She must show her own ability to support herself while in the US. That said, she still needs to be truthful if they ask about any other family or why she's visiting.

 

17 minutes ago, KULtoATL said:

There's no such thing as sponsoring a B2. So really, it depends a lot on her own ability to prove her strong ties back in VN and that she will return to home. Given that her daughter is immigrating to the US and she has two sisters there too, the CO might think she has strong intentions to move over immediately with the B2.

Thank you both for the replies. I'm not sure where I got the idea of sponsoring from, but I kept reading on other websites about sponsoring a visitor.

 

I guess when the time comes we will get her mom to attempt the interview. Worst thing that could happen is they say no.

[ConOfficer 167]

19 minutes ago, CY & Evy said:

I guess my only other question would sponsoring my mother-in-law give her a better chance to pass the interview? Would it be better to have her sister here in America to sponsor her instead or is that a red flag?

As others have mentioned, you cannot sponsor someone for a nonimmigrant visa. You're just wasting paper if you give her a letter to bring (though it's perfectly fine for her to say that her son in law is paying for her flight). Your wife can file an immigrant visa petition for her when she becomes an AmCit. 

 

It sounds like she'll need to wait until you're wife naturalizes. Then again, the refusal rate for Vietnam is only 30% which isn't that high. I would say no - I've been burned by too many old ladies who swore they just wanted to spend a week with their grandchild. It's also a really bad case. But you might get the right officer at the right time. Worth a shot. 

[geowrian 22,338]

20 minutes ago, CY & Evy said:

Thank you both for the replies. I'm not sure where I got the idea of sponsoring from, but I kept reading on other websites about sponsoring a visitor.

 

I guess when the time comes we will get her mom to attempt the interview. Worst thing that could happen is they say no.

No problem. Yeah, many (less-reputable) sites tend to have that as a recommendation. We hear it often here.

 

Exactly. Good luck!

[KULtoATL 1,551]

16 minutes ago, CY & Evy said:

 

Thank you both for the replies. I'm not sure where I got the idea of sponsoring from, but I kept reading on other websites about sponsoring a visitor.

 

I guess when the time comes we will get her mom to attempt the interview. Worst thing that could happen is they say no.

Of course, she can try  And as you have said, worst thing that could happen is the CO says no. 

 

If she's going ahead with an application, make sure she knows your address in the US if she's staying with you and is able to tell the CO her tentative travel dates as well as a tentative itinerary of what she would be doing while she's an America. If she's applying before your marriage takes place, make sure she refers to you as her future son-in-law or her daughter's fiance to support her reason of applying for a B2 i.e. to attend the wedding. 

[WandY 430]

I've been to the Consulate in Saigon. It's a tough one. I saw a lot of visa denials, including K-1. Your future mother-in-law will probably be denied, but maybe it's worth the expense and time to try. She doesn't need to speak English. On another note, I highly suggest you attend the K-1 interview. It will help your chances - and it's quite an experience!

[CY & Evy 18]

On 4/3/2017 at 11:42 AM, WandY said:

I've been to the Consulate in Saigon. It's a tough one. I saw a lot of visa denials, including K-1. Your future mother-in-law will probably be denied, but maybe it's worth the expense and time to try. She doesn't need to speak English. On another note, I highly suggest you attend the K-1 interview. It will help your chances - and it's quite an experience!

 

It's worth a try for sure no matter how dim it looks.

 

I plan on being there for the interview. It will give us the best chance. Hoping to get the NOA2 this month... luckily I'm taking a trip back to Vietnam next week to spend some time with my fiancée 😊

[WandY 430]

That's great that you are going to the interview - smart move on your part. I bet you are successful. I actually enjoyed the interview process. The consulate is a crazy place. Get there about 7 a.m. and stand by the door (just to the right of the main window facing the street). Don't listen or talk to any of the scammers standing around in the street - ignore everyone. Just take whatever paperwork you need (copies of everything you sent). As you can imagine, the consulate is a high-security area, so they don't like a lot of backpacks and bags. Dress nice, but no need to overdo it. When you are waiting to be called, just sit and chat - don't look nervous. Be confident. Your VN fiancee will go to the window first - they won't let you stand there with her. However, go up to the window with her - they will tell you to sit down, but at least they know you are there. They will call you later - I think my fiancee was interviewed for about 10 or 15 minutes and then they asked me to come to the window. She will get her passport/visa in about a week or so. Good luck!!!  (I used to live in Huntsville. Graduated from UNA in Florence. Bama is a great state!

Edited April 4, 2017 by WandY