Extending B1/B2 Visa

[Galbania 0]

Hi.  First of all, thank you for helping me with my wife's K1 3 or 4 years ago.  My wifes father in law has a B1/B2 Visa.  Last year he entered the country and stayed for just under 6 months.  This September he entered the country again and is approved for 6 months.

 

But, we would really love to have him for 8 months as I am traveling extensively for work until then and he is helping to keep up the house and care for our daughter.

 

One entry my wife asked the USCIS guy for 8 months and he said "I can't do that because theoretically you could just hire someone to do those things, but go ahead and apply for an extension as they are more lenient".

 

So, we are fixing to do that and I was wondering if anybody had any tips and tricks to increase the probability of approval.

 

Thanks

[NikLR 13,231]

For exactly the reasons stated by the USCIS guy, it's highly unlikely an extension will be granted.  While visiting a visitor cannot be doing work such as childcare and housekeeping.  

[Unlockable 7,315]

There are no tricks for an approval because theoretically he is not suppose to be doing it. USCIS is very strict on this.

 

This is common where people want their relatives to stay longer so they can help around the house. Be very careful as it can be interpreted as working  and your father in law would lose his visa. Then you would really be in a pickle. 

 

Extensions are usually granted for extreuous situations. This just simply sounds like you want help. Highly unlikely he will get approved. But if he does he should definitely wait a great deal of time before returning.

 

Its tough but you may want to consider alternate plans. We know help is expensive, I've had to pay over a $1000 a month for camp. Many Americans don't have an option to have relatives help out so we know it can get expensive.

 

If you do a search on hear you will find many cases where people were denied visitor visa because they were found to use it for babysitting.

[Jorge V 195]

To expand on what @NuestraUnion says, many people have had their visas revoked at the point of entry for saying that they intend to babysit their own grandchildren while the parents work/travel. Once the visa is revoked it is near impossible to get a new one.

 

It sounds odd at first but it does make sense when you think about it. As the officer said if your father in law weren't available then you'd have to hire a US worker or business to perform the work. He is displacing a US worker/business by being here on his B1/B2 visa. Once you accept this it's not too difficult to make the argument that he is performing work on a visa meant only for tourism. You could say "well, we're not paying him so it's not work". This actually makes it worse as the US labor force now has to compete against free. Imagine if restaurants or construction companies started accepting "volunteers" on B1/B2 visas. There's no way the local labor force could compete. The fact that the "volunteers" are family really makes no difference.

 

I hope this gives some context. I'm honestly surprised that your father in law was allowed to enter after your wife admitted he would be performing work. Many people on here aren't so lucky. I would also strongly recommend that you do not apply for the extension. It has slim chances of getting approved and you're just giving USCIS another opportunity to revoke his visa by claiming housework and childcare as reasons for extending his stay.

[Galbania 0]

Not the answers I wanted but this makes sense, thanks everybody.