Travel to US w/ current tourist visa while waiting I-130

[Emily81 0]

Hi Everyone,

 

Our I-130 was received at the Nebraska Center on Oct. 28, 2019. After much reading here, I can see it'll likely take approximately a year for it to get approved. We will go ahead and mail the I-129F this week and hope that will help in the slightest. We live in Japan, and my work contract ends in mid-Sept. 2020, and was really hoping both my husband and I could move to the US straight from Japan, right after my work contract. He currently has a 10-year US tourist visa that was issued May 2018 and he's visited there twice with it. Now seeing it's highly unlikely he'll have his visa by Sept. 2020, if I move to the US solo (I'm a US citizen) can he still visit me with his tourist visa and while the spouse CR1 visa is pending? If so, how long can he stay without it becoming an issue? And I assume he'd have to have his interview in his home country of Turkey then, since we'll no longer be in Japan after Sept. 2020. Ugh, such exhausting and overly complicated bureaucracy. Thank you for your input.   

[Crazy Cat 41,845]

9 minutes ago, Emily81 said:

if I move to the US solo (I'm a US citizen) can he still visit me with his tourist visa and while the spouse CR1 visa is pending? If so, how long can he stay without it becoming an issue?

Yes, he can visit as long as the CBP officer is convinced he will leave before the end of his authorized stay.  He should be prepared to show evidence of strong ties to his home country.  How long can he stay?  That will be determined by the admitting CBP officer.  Is he guaranteed entry?  No.  Do many, many people visit the US during the process?  Yes.

 

Good luck.

[USS_Voyager 1,972]

5 minutes ago, Emily81 said:

Now seeing it's highly unlikely he'll have his visa by Sept. 2020, if I move to the US solo (I'm a US citizen) can he still visit me with his tourist visa and while the spouse CR1 visa is pending?

Yes, see this: https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/67796-yes-you-can-visit/

 

6 minutes ago, Emily81 said:

If so, how long can he stay without it becoming an issue?

Upon entering the US on the visitor visa, the CBP will assign a duration he can stay. He needs to prepare to provide proof of that he will leave the US at the end of the duration of his visit and his ties to his home country. The bottom line is, he cannot come to "live" in the US on the B1 visa. It's allowed only a temporary visit and needs to be treated and conveyed as such, or else the CBP won't let him in. Of course, what works against him is he has a US citizen spouse living in the US with an immigrant petition for him. They don't him to enter as a visitor and violate the terms of the B1 visa by overstaying the visa or adjust status in the US and circumventing the consular process. 

 

B1 has a maximum 6 months stay possible, however, the CBP can give it any duration that they see fit that less than 6 months. 

[LilyJ 1,258]

Yes he is allowed to use his tourist visa to visit, but whether or not he is allowed in is up to the CBP officer. I wouldn’t recommend staying for extended periods of time as that can lead to suspicion and denial of entry, and it’s recommended that your husband brings proof of ties to his home country to convince the CBP officer that he will actually go back at the end of the visit 

[Emily81 0]

Thank you, everyone, for your suggestions. I agree with what you're saying, as it's more or less what I was thinking.