Travelling on tourist visa whilst waiting for I-130

[jesternl 1]

thanks for the info and experiences all!
Wife is traveling from Denmark to the US next week, and is relieved to hear that it's not an issue to travel while the I-130 is in process

[Becker 17]

I’ve read all the posts and I’m just trying to gather information and opinions. 
 

I am from the U.K. and have an esta expiring in may. Will I be able to get a new ESTA as we filed our i130 a few weeks ago. I am planning to visit in April/May for another few weeks. Also, can I apply for a new ESTA in April if I have one valid until May? 
 

what is this unspoken rule of being outside the US longer than you come in? Since 2019 I’ve visited the US three times for 70+ days or more and have been out of the US an average of 130+ days between visits. Numbers are rough and one visit I was in 75 days out 76 days. Is this a common issue to make sure you are out of the US for a sufficient amount of time? 

[Boiler 45,322]

US is the land of the 2 week holiday so 10 weeks is beyond usual

 

You mention no reason why your ESTA would not be approved.

 

Just follow the normal guidance to take evidence of your ties, job is the obvious one, letter from your boss showing when you are due back.

[Becker 17]

15 minutes ago, Boiler said:

US is the land of the 2 week holiday so 10 weeks is beyond usual

 

You mention no reason why your ESTA would not be approved.

 

Just follow the normal guidance to take evidence of your ties, job is the obvious one, letter from your boss showing when you are due back.

Which is understandable but I have never entered without telling them the purpose for the visit. Last time the officer asked “how long are you staying this time” and I gave the honest answer. 
 

is it good that I have previous long visits while leaving on time or is it bad that I have frequent visits? The other thing is I’ve never been asked for proof of a return which is good because I am self employed and could do my job anywhere if I really wanted to. I never risk it but I don’t actually have ties back home like other people. The return ticket seems like it’s always been enough 

[Boiler 45,322]

VWP requires a return or onward ticket.

[Lii 2]

My wife just came to Hawaii for 80 days.  We submitted an I-130 in April 2020.

 

At the HNL airport immigration control they had her go to the back room where they questioned her for about an hour.

Questions about our relationship, my employment, etc etc etc.

One question was about her email accounts.  She has a personal email (yahoo mail), a work one.  We also made an outlook email account specifically for her USCIS communications (so it wouldn't get lost in her personal account).  Since using the outlook account to set up her online account for the I-130, she's never used it, so she forgot that she had it.  The officer kept pressing her and she finally remembered she had that account and could explain whey she didn't volunteer it when questioned.

The officer had access to our filed I-130, so he asked a bunch of questions about me (husband) that he derived from the I-130.

She doesn't speak English well, so they had a translator from Hawaiian Airlines there to help the Immigration control officer.

My wife was scared, but in the end they let her come into the US.

One more thing.  I prepared a pocket letter explaining why my wife was trying to come to the US while here I-130 was in processing.  She also brought a copy of her apartment lease and her last paystub from her job.

She said those were really helpful - especially the pocket letter.

 

If someone is traveling with an I-130 still in processing, be prepared for tons of questions at the airport. 

If you're lucky they'll just let you through.

 

Good luck.

[Angell Beal 4]

7 minutes ago, Lii said:

My wife just came to Hawaii for 80 days.  We submitted an I-130 in April 2020.

 

At the HNL airport immigration control they had her go to the back room where they questioned her for about an hour.

Questions about our relationship, my employment, etc etc etc.

One question was about her email accounts.  She has a personal email (yahoo mail), a work one.  We also made an outlook email account specifically for her USCIS communications (so it wouldn't get lost in her personal account).  Since using the outlook account to set up her online account for the I-130, she's never used it, so she forgot that she had it.  The officer kept pressing her and she finally remembered she had that account and could explain whey she didn't volunteer it when questioned.

The officer had access to our filed I-130, so he asked a bunch of questions about me (husband) that he derived from the I-130.

She doesn't speak English well, so they had a translator from Hawaiian Airlines there to help the Immigration control officer.

My wife was scared, but in the end they let her come into the US.

One more thing.  I prepared a pocket letter explaining why my wife was trying to come to the US while here I-130 was in processing.  She also brought a copy of her apartment lease and her last paystub from her job.

She said those were really helpful - especially the pocket letter.

 

If someone is traveling with an I-130 still in processing, be prepared for tons of questions at the airport. 

If you're lucky they'll just let you through.

 

Good luck.

Wow, what a nerve wracking situation. I am so relieved your wife passed through all that. 

 

Could I ask what kinds of details you put in that pocket letter? My husband and I are going through the CR-1 visa and are waiting for an interview, but the Bogota, Colombia Embassy hasn't opened their interview services still. Despite our fear of him traveling to the USA on a tourist visa while we are in the CR-1 visa process, we both want to see each other in the USA for a little bit while we are waiting. 

 

I had sent a message to Customs/Borders and although they said they do not encourage visits during an immigrant visa process, they mentioned that those documents you listed (rent, paystubs) are useful documents. I am interested in knowing how you wrote the letter to guide me in writing something similar. 

 

Thank you so much! I hope you are spending great family time together!

[Lii 2]

4 minutes ago, Angell Beal said:

Wow, what a nerve wracking situation. I am so relieved your wife passed through all that. 

 

Could I ask what kinds of details you put in that pocket letter? My husband and I are going through the CR-1 visa and are waiting for an interview, but the Bogota, Colombia Embassy hasn't opened their interview services still. Despite our fear of him traveling to the USA on a tourist visa while we are in the CR-1 visa process, we both want to see each other in the USA for a little bit while we are waiting. 

 

I had sent a message to Customs/Borders and although they said they do not encourage visits during an immigrant visa process, they mentioned that those documents you listed (rent, paystubs) are useful documents. I am interested in knowing how you wrote the letter to guide me in writing something similar. 

 

Thank you so much! I hope you are spending great family time together!

It was very stressful.  I'm glad that she got in safely.

 

In the pocket letter I explained that my wife would be coming on an VWP/ESTA as a citizen of Japan.

Her native language was not English and provided my cell phone if they needed assistance.

Description of her flight plans and where she would be staying.

Strong statement that she would abide by all State of Hawaii covid quarantine laws.

Strong statement that she had no intent of relocating to the US at this time.

Strong statement that she would not be working in any way while in the US.

Return ticket info.

Explanation that trip was for purely personal reasons.

Explanation that we were married on a Wednesday and I left Japan on the last flight to Hawaii on Thursday - so we had only been together 1 day since being married.  All subsequent trips were cancelled by the airlines because of covid, so this would be the first time together in 10 months.

Requested thoughtful and fair review, given the circumstances.

Politely asked for permission to enter US.

 

I tried to keep it as simple as possible.

 

Good luck!

[Angell Beal 4]

6 minutes ago, Lii said:

It was very stressful.  I'm glad that she got in safely.

 

In the pocket letter I explained that my wife would be coming on an VWP/ESTA as a citizen of Japan.

Her native language was not English and provided my cell phone if they needed assistance.

Description of her flight plans and where she would be staying.

Strong statement that she would abide by all State of Hawaii covid quarantine laws.

Strong statement that she had no intent of relocating to the US at this time.

Strong statement that she would not be working in any way while in the US.

Return ticket info.

Explanation that trip was for purely personal reasons.

Explanation that we were married on a Wednesday and I left Japan on the last flight to Hawaii on Thursday - so we had only been together 1 day since being married.  All subsequent trips were cancelled by the airlines because of covid, so this would be the first time together in 10 months.

Requested thoughtful and fair review, given the circumstances.

Politely asked for permission to enter US.

 

I tried to keep it as simple as possible.

 

Good luck!

Thank you very much. Yes, sounds clear but comprehensive. 

[Angell Beal 4]

On 1/26/2021 at 11:33 AM, Lii said:

It was very stressful.  I'm glad that she got in safely.

 

In the pocket letter I explained that my wife would be coming on an VWP/ESTA as a citizen of Japan.

Her native language was not English and provided my cell phone if they needed assistance.

Description of her flight plans and where she would be staying.

Strong statement that she would abide by all State of Hawaii covid quarantine laws.

Strong statement that she had no intent of relocating to the US at this time.

Strong statement that she would not be working in any way while in the US.

Return ticket info.

Explanation that trip was for purely personal reasons.

Explanation that we were married on a Wednesday and I left Japan on the last flight to Hawaii on Thursday - so we had only been together 1 day since being married.  All subsequent trips were cancelled by the airlines because of covid, so this would be the first time together in 10 months.

Requested thoughtful and fair review, given the circumstances.

Politely asked for permission to enter US.

 

I tried to keep it as simple as possible.

 

Good luck!

Hello again!

You had mentioned that your partner brought her apartment lease and paystub, but I was wondering did these documents need to be translated or notarized for authenticity? Thank you!

[Lii 2]

4 hours ago, Angell Beal said:

Hello again!

You had mentioned that your partner brought her apartment lease and paystub, but I was wondering did these documents need to be translated or notarized for authenticity? Thank you!

Nope.  She said the CBP guy doing the interview at HNL Intl Airport looked at them, but didn't really spend much time reviewing them.  I think the simple fact that she had them was a good indicator that she was trying to show her intent to NOT immigrate at that time.  

 

Also, the CBP office was adamant that she return to Japan on the flight she had booked as the return leg of her round trip.  A few days ago we got an email saying that her flight was cancelled and would not be rescheduled until summer.  So, we called CBP HNL to ask if it was ok for her to return home on a later date.  They were ok with that, even though the interviewer was very strict about her going home on the originally scheduled flight.  In this case, it's not possible, so maybe they're being more accommodating.  Just an FYI...

 

Good luck with your stuff.

[JKLSemicolon 410]

On 11/28/2020 at 8:08 PM, JKLSemicolon said:

I agree with you about a B visa being cancelled when another visa such as a CR-1/IR-1 is issued, however, I am not sure if your other statement about not being able to apply for another visa while you have a pending visa application is correct. This page seems to say otherwise and I recall reading cases in this forum that back that up.

 

In our case, we are planning to submit the I-130 paperwork for the CR-1/IR-1 visa and then have my wife submit her B-2 visa application afterward. The reason for this is to be able to be completely transparent in answering all of the questions for the B-2.

 

We understand that it's going to be a long shot no matter what. I'll try to post back in this thread if there are any relevant updates on our end.

Thought it would be worth posting an update about this:

 

My wife submitted the DS-160 after I filed the I-130, but because the last visa she received was a K-1 (at which point her B visa was cancelled), she is not eligible for an interview waiver for a new B visa. Since no B visa interviews are currently being scheduled in Ecuador we have held off on paying the MRV fee. At this point is is looking more likely that the CR-1 interview would be scheduled before any new B visa appointments are available.

 

In the meantime, I'll be visiting her in Ecuador in about a week and a half (for the second time since filing the I-130). Thankful that option is still available to us at least.

Edited April 8, 2021 by JKLSemicolon

[SalishSea 17,747]

On ‎1‎/‎25‎/‎2021 at 5:32 PM, Becker said:

I am self employed and could do my job anywhere if I really wanted to. I never risk it but I don’t actually have ties back home like other people

Hopefully you realize that without an EAD, you cannot do work of any type whilst in the US, even remotely.

 

And now that an immigrant visa petition has been filed, you may face closer scrutiny about your ties to home.

 

Edited April 30, 2021 by Ryan H
Reason for edit: to remove quote/reply of removed content

[Becker 17]

2 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

Hopefully you realize that without an EAD, you cannot do work of any type whilst in the US, even remotely.

 

And now that an immigrant visa petition has been filed, you may face closer scrutiny about your ties to home.

Why are you hijacking a thread to post the same question you've asked in your thread?

I know that, I just hate the sound of me saying “I work remotely” to them if they ask because if I was on the other side I’d automatically assume they’d work here too. Even though that’s not the intention 

 

I made it to the US now  I know this post was months ago and just wanted to let you know. I was taken to secondary but it was just because I travelled from a banned country

[Ryan H 3,812]

~~~Hijack post and reply to said post removed.~~~