Bringing mother and sister in law in on tourist visa

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

12 minutes ago, Umka36 said:

It's the bad apples who ruined it for everyone else. Finding those rotten apples has been pretty futile in the US. Maybe Brazil will one day be part of the ESTA program in the not so distant future.

Don’t get your hopes up, with a B refusal rate of over 12% Brazil is very far away from the 2-3% required for countries to be admitted into the ESTA program.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Statistics/Non-Immigrant-Statistics/RefusalRates/FY17.pdf

Edited September 18, 2018 by SusieQQQ

[brazilhelp 3]

So the other question I had... for my MIL, we thought it might be helpful if I go with her to appointment. We are heading to Brazil in a month and could try to set up appointment to coincide with our visit. It would at least be helpful if I could walk into the consulate with her, even if i can not be present at the interview. Does anyone know if this is feasible? She is a person of modest means and I just want to help her stay calm and cool, especially when last experience went so poorly.

[p-ana 933]

1 minute ago, SusieQQQ said:

Don’t get your hopes up, with a B refusal rate of over 12% Brazil is very far away from the 2-3% required for countries to be admitted into the ESTA program.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Statistics/Non-Immigrant-Statistics/RefusalRates/FY17.pdf

Oh wow. Didn’t know it was that high. I seem to remember a few years ago it was all over the news there it was close to going to use the waiver program... looks like it’s gotten really bad and so far away from it. They do have good reason for that high rate of denials. 

3 minutes ago, brazilhelp said:

So the other question I had... for my MIL, we thought it might be helpful if I go with her to appointment. We are heading to Brazil in a month and could try to set up appointment to coincide with our visit. It would at least be helpful if I could walk into the consulate with her, even if i can not be present at the interview. Does anyone know if this is feasible? She is a person of modest means and I just want to help her stay calm and cool, especially when last experience went so poorly.

It won’t hurt, you can do it if you want 

[brazilhelp 3]

Sanctuary cities exist because the system is broken. We need to fix the system so that they can track down people who overstay their visas, and catch illegal aliens. We need a guest worker program to allow cheap labor to come in, OR increase wages so Americans will take those jobs. System is so messed up.

[brazilhelp 3]

4 minutes ago, p-ana said:

It won’t hurt, you can do it if you want 

Well, question is well they even let me in. In my mind, it seemed like a great idea. But more I thought about it, more I realized they may laugh at me and never let me in.

 

I had though of hiring attorney to go with her to appointment. Not sure if that is even possible.

Edited September 18, 2018 by brazilhelp

[SalishSea 18,074]

7 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

Don’t get your hopes up, with a B refusal rate of over 12% Brazil is very far away from the 2-3% required for countries to be admitted into the ESTA program.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Statistics/Non-Immigrant-Statistics/RefusalRates/FY17.pdf

Interesting list, but I wonder why the adjusted refusal rate is higher for some VWP countries.....NZ for example is 22%.

[Unlockable 7,315]

48 minutes ago, brazilhelp said:

 

I wonder what the economic loss is to the US every year due to this draconian tourist visa process. If they fixed immigration, they could simply deal with the bad apples instead of punishing everyone.

Over 6 million B1/B2 visas are issued every year since 2014. No significant economic loss.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Statistics/AnnualReports/FY2017AnnualReport/FY17AnnualReport-TableXVIA.pdf

 

16 minutes ago, brazilhelp said:

 

I had though of hiring attorney to go with her to appointment. Not sure if that is even possible.

You nor an attorney will have influence of a decision. 

Edited September 18, 2018 by NuestraUnion

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

29 minutes ago, brazilhelp said:

Sanctuary cities exist because the system is broken. We need to fix the system so that they can track down people who overstay their visas, and catch illegal aliens. We need a guest worker program to allow cheap labor to come in, OR increase wages so Americans will take those jobs. System is so messed up.

There already is a guest worker program for cheap labor to come in to the US to work and it is the H2b visa. 

[brazilhelp 3]

I had no intent, nor was naive enough to assume that i could influence the decision. I would only be there to help her through process. moral support. For the uninitiated, it can be a trying experience.

[brazilhelp 3]

20 minutes ago, NuestraUnion said:

Over 6 million B1/B2 visas are issued every year since 2014. No significant economic loss.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Statistics/AnnualReports/FY2017AnnualReport/FY17AnnualReport-TableXVIA.pdf

 

You nor an attorney will have influence of a decision. 

So what you are saying is if 8, or 12 million tourists came to the US, it would not add to the economy? You must not have majored in economics...

[geowrian 22,338]

33 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Interesting list, but I wonder why the adjusted refusal rate is higher for some VWP countries.....NZ for example is 22%.

The overwhelming majority of people who apply for a tourist visa from a VWP country have issues that prevent them from using an ESTA in the first place.

 

2 minutes ago, brazilhelp said:

So what you are saying is if 8, or 12 million tourists came to the US, it would not add to the economy? You must not have majored in economics...

Maybe. But if a large percentage of them decided to work or stay, it has its own economic issues that may or may not offset the added revenue from legitimate visitors.

[brazilhelp 3]

2 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Maybe. But if a large percentage of them decided to work or stay, it has its own economic issues that may or may not offset the added revenue from legitimate visitors.

agreed. but the issue remains, we need to be able to track down illegal immigrants, people who overstay their visas, etc. If we don't, then it only encourages people to stay or cross illegally. It is kind of pathetic. We need a national ID program that shows nationality. Only way to do it.

[SalishSea 18,074]

Just now, brazilhelp said:

agreed. but the issue remains, we need to be able to track down illegal immigrants, people who overstay their visas, etc. If we don't, then it only encourages people to stay or cross illegally. It is kind of pathetic. We need a national ID program that shows nationality. Only way to do it.

Nationality is not the same as legal status.  Most "illegals immigrants" in the US are here via overstays, so scrutiny and vetting at the consular level is indeed the most appropriate method of prevention.

[carmel34 3,650]

54 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

The CO or USCIS officer or CBP officer or whoever is a human with all the subtleties that go with it.  They consider all the facts in front of them, listen to the person they are interviewing, and make a decision.  

I stand corrected.  I should have said "They make a decision based on the facts they choose to consider...."   Again, human nature, and very unpredictable from one person to the next.

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

51 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Interesting list, but I wonder why the adjusted refusal rate is higher for some VWP countries.....NZ for example is 22%.

It is official department of state data. And my assumption would be that seeing as they are VWP countries, the vast majority of those who apply for B visas are not able to get an ESTA which often means some issue like a criminal record or previous overstay - exactly the kind of issues that are likely to result in a visa being refused. (Other reasons to apply for a B might be things like travel to countries on the “list” or wanting to stay more than 90 days, which are less likely to get refusals.)

Edited September 18, 2018 by SusieQQQ