B1/B2 for concert auditions....anyone know about this?

[millefleur 5,050]

So, if a classical musician (student level studying to be professional) was invited to participate in an audition held in the USA, does that increase any chances of getting a B1/B2 visa? Is there such a thing as a B2 being issued specifically for the dates of the concert/audition? Person who is applying is applying alone, not with a group. Person who is applying is also a unmarried female, so yes, a lot of negatives working against them, despite the legit reason for travel.

 

My hunch is that this case will be treated like a typical B1 and it will be difficult to get it accepted for a student, despite being invited to audition. Just curious if any other performing arts folks have any experience with B1/B2 visa situations. I told the person applying that most likely they will be rejected as there just isn't any special visa for performing artists to do auditions and the "strong ties" are what matter, not the reason for going, but they want to see why you will return to your home country. Maybe there are some exceptions and a B2 will be issued for a short stay but I couldn't find any stories about it here.

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

I don’t know about auditions specifically but yes, there have been cases of people who presumably otherwise would not get a visa being granted a single entry short duration visa to attend a specific event. There will usually be an annotation of some sort on the visa about this. 

 

 What is the audition for - a school, a job?

Edited January 13, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[accumbyte 149]

  On 1/13/2019 at 8:55 PM, SusieQQQ said:

What is the audition for - a school, a job?

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An audition should be OK on B-1: http://www.musicalamerica.com/mablogs/?p=13123

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

  On 1/13/2019 at 9:39 PM, accumbyte said:

An audition should be OK on B-1: http://www.musicalamerica.com/mablogs/?p=13123

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Yup - just wondering, as part of the big picture - it’s presumably something for which another visa would be required down the line if successful 

[aaron2020 11,651]

An invitation does not increase the chance of a B1/B2 visa.  The chances for a visa is not based on the reason to go the the USA.  The chances for a visa is based on strong ties to the home country to overcome the presumption that the applicant intends to immigrate.  An invitation does not show a strong tie indicating the person would return home.

[millefleur 5,050]

  On 1/13/2019 at 8:55 PM, SusieQQQ said:

I don’t know about auditions specifically but yes, there have been cases of people who presumably otherwise would not get a visa being granted a single entry short duration visa to attend a specific event. There will usually be an annotation of some sort on the visa about this. 

 

 What is the audition for - a school, a job?

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It is for some competition to play at Carnegie Hall. Merely some kind of competition for young musicians, so nothing more than that. Also no cash prize involved.

 

 

  On 1/13/2019 at 11:12 PM, aaron2020 said:

An invitation does not increase the chance of a B1/B2 visa.  The chances for a visa is not based on the reason to go the the USA.  The chances for a visa is based on strong ties to the home country to overcome the presumption that the applicant intends to immigrate.  An invitation does not show a strong tie indicating the person would return home.

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Yes, I'm aware. This person has their interview in a few days, I'm expecting a rejection based on what I know, the applicant's ties are not very strong. Will post the outcome here once I find out.

[millefleur 5,050]

Annnnd this person's B1/B2 application was approved despite not having very strong ties and being an unmarried young woman.

 

So bizarre. I will never understand how they make these decisions.

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

  On 1/18/2019 at 6:00 AM, millefleur said:

Annnnd this person's B1/B2 application was approved despite not having very strong ties and being an unmarried young woman.

 

So bizarre. I will never understand how they make these decisions.

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I’m happy to hear that. Maybe they feel someone this talented is not a risk for illegal overstay, because she clearly has good opportunities (that could not be used if she was illegal)? Or something...who knows. 

Any restrictions on the visa?

Edited January 18, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[millefleur 5,050]

  On 1/18/2019 at 6:48 AM, SusieQQQ said:

I’m happy to hear that. Maybe they feel someone this talented is not a risk for illegal overstay, because she clearly has good opportunities (that could not be used if she was illegal)? Or something...who knows. 

Any restrictions on the visa?

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Not sure about the restrictions yet, I'll find out.

 

I think the whole "I was invited to play at Carnegie Hall" thing seemed to impress the CO, so I think that was probably the main reason as they were asked questions about what instrument they play, etc. The CO even asked to see documents related to the concert audition too. Also this person speaks no English whatsoever....this might have also helped as I know they are really skeptical about folks who speak English.

 

This thread might be encouraging for other musicians in Russia in the future, so I'm glad I posted here. This just proves that they will sometimes look at supporting docs if it makes sense given the circumstances! Good to know.

Edited January 18, 2019 by millefleur

[Boiler 46,779]

  On 1/18/2019 at 6:54 AM, millefleur said:

Not sure about the restrictions yet, I'll find out.

 

I think the whole "I was invited to play at Carnegie Hall" thing seemed to impress the CO, so I think that was probably the main reason as they were asked questions about what instrument they play, etc. The CO even asked to see documents related to the concert audition too. Also this person speaks no English whatsoever....this might have also helped as I know they are really skeptical about folks who speak English.

 

This thread might be encouraging for other musicians in Russia in the future, so I'm glad I posted here. This just proves that they will sometimes look at supporting docs if it makes sense given the circumstances! Good to know.

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Obviously it varies, in this case talking about the invite and Carnegie Hall is very specific so you would expect it. 

[millefleur 5,050]

  On 1/18/2019 at 9:33 PM, Boiler said:

Obviously it varies, in this case talking about the invite and Carnegie Hall is very specific so you would expect it. 

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Actually, no. I also thought that but I spoke to this person and other people who had the exact same invite to Carnegie Hall got rejected. Sot it's just....very random. *shrug*

Edited January 18, 2019 by millefleur

[Boiler 46,779]

  On 1/18/2019 at 9:47 PM, millefleur said:

Actually, no. I also thought that but I spoke to this person and other people who had the exact same invite to Carnegie Hall got rejected. Sot it's just....very random. *shrug*

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That is odd, does sound like a lot of people with invites, expense paid for them to go?

[millefleur 5,050]

  On 1/18/2019 at 10:36 PM, Boiler said:

That is odd, does sound like a lot of people with invites, expense paid for them to go?

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No expenses were paid, it's a "pay to play" concert. I think honestly it's a kind of deal where they are just selling the famous name of the concert for money.

 

The person who was approved got a 3 year B1/B2 visa with no restrictions. This person also has an extensive travel history of visiting Europe and comes from a rich family (father is paying for the trip). Not sure if any of that helps. I always thought having a wealthy parent pay for the trip of an adult was considered a "weak tie" but who knows. My guess is previous extensive travel history, zero knowledge of English and extremely specific reason for travel is why they were approved. Other than that they have zero ties to their home country and even have parents paying for everything.

Edited January 28, 2019 by millefleur

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

Is 3 years the normal maximum for Russia? Doesn’t seem that long, but certainly not as restrictive as some we have seen.

yes, wealthy family would help = person used to living well and unlikely to become an illegal overstay doing menial work which is what illegals usually have to get on by. Travel history usually helps too.

[millefleur 5,050]

  On 1/28/2019 at 9:48 PM, SusieQQQ said:

Is 3 years the normal maximum for Russia? Doesn’t seem that long, but certainly not as restrictive as some we have seen.

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Yes, the 3 year visitor visa is an option for Russian passport holders. There's a reciprocal agreement between the US and Russia to offer 3 year non-immigrant visas. It's basically the default now unless the person specifies that they want a 1 year visa only (which is cheaper, you have to pay extra for the 3 year one).

 

  On 1/28/2019 at 9:48 PM, SusieQQQ said:

yes, wealthy family would help = person used to living well and unlikely to become an illegal overstay doing menial work which is what illegals usually have to get on by. Travel history usually helps too. 

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Yeah, I mean, that makes sense to me too. I have just seen a lot of threads on VJ saying "you have to pay for your own trip" and that showing that someone else is paying is usually not good. Guess it just depends on the whole picture for each applicant.