B-2 Visa Denial - Tbilisi - Russian Citizen

[jskibo 588]

Don't bother buying a Round Trip ticket to "Prove they will return". 

 

It proves nothing as you can cancel the ticket or just not show up for a flight.

[carmel34 3,626]

1 hour ago, Delta7 said:

The current wait time for an interview in Russia is 300 days due to the country only having one US Consulate left (Moscow). There have been stories of people waiting for an interview and the interview has exceeded the year long time window, requiring them to resubmit their application again. Whereas the wait time in Georgia is 28 days.

It looks they're trying to beat the system, to get around the one year wait time in Russia they go to a nearby country for an interview.  It makes them look desperate to get to the US and willing to cut corners and not wait like everyone else, this could have made the IO be suspicious of their intent.  They have a daughter in the US who used a temporary visa to stay permanently.  Look at the totality of the facts from the IO's perspective, and you can clearly see why their applications were refused.  They can try again, this time in Russia, it might help if they try from their home country, but in the long run be prepared to go and visit them if they are never able to get a visa.

[Delta7 9]

3 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

It looks they're trying to beat the system, to get around the one year wait time in Russia they go to a nearby country for an interview.  It makes them look desperate to get to the US and willing to cut corners and not wait like everyone else, this could have made the IO be suspicious of their intent.  They have a daughter in the US who used a temporary visa to stay permanently.  Look at the totality of the facts from the IO's perspective, and you can clearly see why their applications were refused.  They can try again, this time in Russia, it might help if they try from their home country, but in the long run be prepared to go and visit them if they are never able to get a visa.

A lot of Russians have been going to Georgia since the US and Russia have closed each others consulates in their respective countries. My wife knows people who filed in Russia who's application has expired due to the fact it's only good for a year, and their interview was after the year threshold, making them go through the entire process again. It's not cutting corners, it's just more efficient. But I do understand where you're coming from. My wife didn't "use" her J1 to stay permanently. She, like many others around the country, met someone while on a visa and fell in love. 

Edited June 11, 2019 by Delta7

[Boiler 45,488]

3 hours ago, Delta7 said:

 

 

They said they will try again. I would be willing to buy the plane tickets before the interview so they see the flight itinerary to prove they will go back, but I don't want to buy tickets only to have the next application refused again. 

Why would you be buying anything, he has his own business she works?

[Unlockable 7,314]

4 hours ago, Delta7 said:

 

They said they will try again. I would be willing to buy the plane tickets before the interview so they see the flight itinerary to prove they will go back, but I don't want to buy tickets only to have the next application refused again. 

You making purchases for them will go against their claim for them having string ties. If the own a business and doing well like you stated, it should be reflected as so. You buying them tickets looks like they may be reliant on you.

 

 

4 hours ago, Delta7 said:

A big thing that worries me further is when we have children. The thought of them not even being able to see their only grandchildren here haunts me. Sure, we can visit them. However, it's crazy that they won't be allowed to visit. 

The realization is that there are countless people who never get the chance to visit the US. It is not crazy, it is simply a realization in life. Some people have things when others don't.

 

Point being, there are over 2 billion people in the world that don't have access to proper sanitation like in-home plumbing and clean water. That is 2 billion with a "b". To me, that is more crazy than someone not getting a visitor visa to another country.

 

But the most important thing is the options you have. Although it may not be what you wanted, you still have the option to visit your parents. And as we have seen on here, there are people stuck in the US who don't even get that option.

Edited June 11, 2019 by Unlockable

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

4 hours ago, Delta7 said:

I'll check to see if they have a copy of their papers.

 

The current wait time for an interview in Russia is 300 days due to the country only having one US Consulate left (Moscow). There have been stories of people waiting for an interview and the interview has exceeded the year long time window, requiring them to resubmit their application again. Whereas the wait time in Georgia is 28 days. 

I understand the physical limitations and why they did this, but it is often harder to get a visa in a 3rd country. 

 

 

4 hours ago, Delta7 said:

Valid points, I appreciate the feedback. Yeah, I've been reading a few today, and our first initial reaction this morning when we found out was shock and thought that it was a mistake or her parents did something wrong. I didn't know tourist visas refusal rates were as high as they are. 

The B2 refusal rate for Russian nationals is under 15%. That’s not very high at all compared to many countries. 

But the refusal rate for Georgian nationals is over 62%. Maybe Tbilisi is just more used to denying than Moscow...add in the usual complication of a 3rd county application and possibly that’s why it ended badly for them. I’d suggest they just get on the waitlist for a Moscow appointment in the meantime.

Edited June 11, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[portorusa 431]

Maybe next time the parents apply for B1 for one of them not both, and see if it makes a difference ?

Edited June 11, 2019 by portorusa

[Delta7 9]

1 hour ago, Boiler said:

Why would you be buying anything, he has his own business she works?

When we visited them, they paid for everything, and refused to let us pay for anything other than one meal the 3 weeks we were there. It’s nothing more.

[usmsbow 801]

I bet they'd have better luck at the US Embassy in Moscow. I realize it would be a long wait, but that's your only option at this point. 

[JFH 12,190]

8 hours ago, Delta7 said:

 

 

They said they will try again. I would be willing to buy the plane tickets before the interview so they see the flight itinerary to prove they will go back, but I don't want to buy tickets only to have the next application refused again. 

Buying plane tickets proves nothing more than you have sufficient available credit on your MasterCard to buy plane tickets. It doesn’t prove they will go back. Your own wife didn’t go back. So you, more than anyone, know that people come here and don’t go home for whatever reason. 

[JFH 12,190]

8 hours ago, Delta7 said:

A big thing that worries me further is when we have children. The thought of them not even being able to see their only grandchildren here haunts me. Sure, we can visit them. However, it's crazy that they won't be allowed to visit. 

That’s life. I never met my grandparents on my father’s side either. They both died before I was born. My husband will never meet our nephew. My husband has a lifetime ban from my country and my nephew is so severely disabled that it’s not practical or affordable for my sister to bring him all the way here. It’s one of those things that comes as part of the package when you enter into an international marriage. 

[geowrian 22,337]

9 hours ago, Delta7 said:

I would be willing to buy the plane tickets before the interview so they see the flight itinerary to prove they will go back, but I don't want to buy tickets only to have the next application refused again. 

1) Golden rule: Don't purchase tickets before the visa is in hand.

2) Plane tickets and a flight itinerary don't prove somebody intends to return home. Other than those who entered by land (legally or not), nearly everybody who has overstayed had a return ticket.

[SalishSea 17,828]

4 hours ago, Delta7 said:

When we visited them, they paid for everything, and refused to let us pay for anything other than one meal the 3 weeks we were there. It’s nothing more.

I think Boiler was referring to your plan to pay for their airline tickets.  

[Cathi 5,748]

11 hours ago, Delta7 said:

Good afternoon,

 

My wife and I want her parents to visit us here in the US for 3 weeks this fall, and we had our sightseeing trips all planned (NYC, Washington DC, Niagara Falls, Boston). However, they were denied a Visa today in Tbilisi, Georgia. I was curious if anyone could help us make sense of this decision.

I met my wife while she was on a J1 Visa a few summers back, and we just instantly hit it off. We're still happily married to this day, and have since been to Russia to introduce me to her family. We filed for her adjustment of status during the 30 day grace period of her J1 Visa expiring, and she got her two year green card ~ 6 months after we filed.

 

Her parents both work (father owns a business, and her mom works in a dentists office). They also own a home as well as a car, and have close family nearby. Obviously the CO doesn't know this, but I have asked them if they would want to immigrate here if my wife becomes a US Citizen, and they said they did not think so. They want to stay in Russia, but they just want to be able to see where their daughter moved to, and meet my family, the way I met theirs. 

 

The only thing I can think of is that the CO saw that my wife immigrated here while on a visa, and instantly shot it down. Other than that, I'm at a loss of why it would be rejected.

 

They said they will try again. I would be willing to buy the plane tickets before the interview so they see the flight itinerary to prove they will go back, but I don't want to buy tickets only to have the next application refused again. 

Buying round trip tickets is not proof that they'll return home. It's only proof that you paid for a return flight that their not guaranteed to board.

[TBoneTX 45,287]

This might not be a parallel situation, but applicants for immigrant visas were having to request interviews at consulates other than Moscow.

 

As far as "what more is needed," the only objective factor that might help -- not yet mentioned -- is to demonstrate a good travel history.  Accordingly, your parents should visit at least one other country and return home, then reapply for the U.S. tourist visa after a while.