B2 visa refused status after 2 plus years

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

7 minutes ago, African Zealot said:

What’s the alternative? Reapply and fall into the black hole all over again? In my opinion there are no great solutions and this is the least bad of a set of difficult choices.

 

 

The alternative is to wait for the AP to conclude. As I said, not an easy decision. No way to know if (seeing as after all it has been going on for about two years already and we know this is not unheard of for Pakistan) they are about to come off AP and get their B visas imminently 🤷‍♀️ Birth certificates are such a strange request for a b visa that it’s impossible to know imo. If OP (who seems much too invested in this to just be a friend - “we have done everything to get an answer from the embassy, ” -but that’s another story) agrees with you and thinks it’s worth another 2 year wait to get them immigrant visas then sure that’s the route they should take, but I did think it worth highlighting that that route will almost certainly kill the B visa option.

 

Edited October 29, 2021 by SusieQQQ

[Boiler 45,282]

24 minutes ago, African Zealot said:

What’s the alternative? Reapply and fall into the black hole all over again? In my opinion there are no great solutions and this is the least bad of a set of difficult choices.

 

Yes however I am all ears what alternative solution you propose to be honest.

Difficult to make recommendations as we very rarely know the full situation.

 

Where do they want to live, we all know there will be a point where commuting half way around the world is impractical 

 

Sounds like money is not the issue but maybe it is

[mitzab 285]

2 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

Of course they’re not going to tell you.

 

You didn’t answer my previous question about whether they just want to visit the US or live there so can’t answer the ir5 question.

They would not mind living here full time, both are retired and just travel around to visit the grand kids every where

So it really does not matter to them.

1 hour ago, African Zealot said:

In my opinion even if they don’t want to live there full time, still file the IR5. When they get the green card, they use it for two or three years like a regular visa then relinquish it voluntarily. In theory and anecdotally,  a voluntary relinquishment of the green card increases one’s chances of being subsequently approved a visitors visa.
 

It’s a couple thousand dollars but then it’s worth the opportunity to be seeing grandchildren and visiting. They really have no other choice and it is not illegal.

 

All the best!

Even if they want to travel after the green card as long as they still follow the timelines I am sure they will be okay, they do have other grand kids in Pakistan they would like to visit but majority of them are stateside, They will not think on relinquishing it as long as they will have freedom of travel once the green card and all is done. I am reading that IR5 itself should not take that long for pakistan it is taking between 6-9 months from filing to the interview.  (a couple of friends parents just went through and got approved in 7 months, she said they filed for them in Feb 2021)

As far as green card is concerned, I am not sure exactly how long will it take but if it is a resonable time and not two and half years like in this case they should be fine waiting as well. 

 

 

You mentioned that after arrival in the US it might take upto 2 years to receive the green card? Is that normal time frame?
In case they had to go for emergency travel we always have the reentry permit option as well (I used that when I was studying in Pakistan) but that was decades ago not sure what is happening on that.


So again it is boiling down to the same two points

 

1) It does not matter if the tourist visa application is in Limbo, it will not hurt to apply for IR5 and file i130 for them right away?

2) Let's say all goes well and in the next 9 months they get the visa and arrive here, will just need to assess how long will it be before they get the green card. 

 

Again, guys much appreciate this discussion.

 

 

 

[Boiler 45,282]

9 months would be remarkable 

 

On entry they get a stamp good for a year and then the card will be mailed

[SalishSea 17,717]

13 hours ago, mitzab said:

Hi guys 

 

I apologize if this has been answered before and if it has please guide me towards the right forum.

 

My friends parents has visited the US multiple times, they both got B2 visas twice as well.

 

They applied again in march of 2019 after their visa expired. They were given 221g for administrative processing and asked for some documents which were provided (birth certificates)

 

Since then CEAC shows refused to both

 

On one the case was last updated on 3rd April 2019 and one other it shows case was last updated August 20th 2019

 

Both cases were created on 2nd April 2019.

 

After inquiring multiple times they got (seems to be a generic response stating that the case is in administrative processing and can take upto 90 days) it's been over 2 years. 

 

1) what are the options here?

2) has the embassy just sent it back to NVC/CEAC for the case to die?

3) can they re apply but how do we know that if the application is dead already? Is there a way to revoke it?

 

4) the son is now a US citizen, would it be better to just apply for a IR1? Quicker and better? If yes what should be we do about the Bermuda triangle B2 visa application which we don't know is dead or not? How will that effect the IR1?

 

Any guidance toward the right thread or any input and answers will be highly appreciated.

 

This is for Islamabad embassy in Pakistan

 

 

Thanks

So were they planning to travel on a B2 and try to adjust status?   Just wondering, since you’re asking about an immigrant visa, which is for living in the US.

[SalishSea 17,717]

43 minutes ago, mitzab said:

They would not mind living here full time, both are retired and just travel around to visit the grand kids every where

So it really does not matter to them.

Even if they want to travel after the green card as long as they still follow the timelines I am sure they will be okay, they do have other grand kids in Pakistan they would like to visit but majority of them are stateside, They will not think on relinquishing it as long as they will have freedom of travel once the green card and all is done. I am reading that IR5 itself should not take that long for pakistan it is taking between 6-9 months from filing to the interview.  (a couple of friends parents just went through and got approved in 7 months, she said they filed for them in Feb 2021)

As far as green card is concerned, I am not sure exactly how long will it take but if it is a resonable time and not two and half years like in this case they should be fine waiting as well. 

 

 

You mentioned that after arrival in the US it might take upto 2 years to receive the green card? Is that normal time frame?
In case they had to go for emergency travel we always have the reentry permit option as well (I used that when I was studying in Pakistan) but that was decades ago not sure what is happening on that.


So again it is boiling down to the same two points

 

1) It does not matter if the tourist visa application is in Limbo, it will not hurt to apply for IR5 and file i130 for them right away?

2) Let's say all goes well and in the next 9 months they get the visa and arrive here, will just need to assess how long will it be before they get the green card. 

 

Again, guys much appreciate this discussion.

 

 

 

They won’t even have had an interview in 9 months, let alone a visa.

[SalishSea 17,717]

47 minutes ago, mitzab said:

They would not mind living here full time, both are retired and just travel around to visit the grand kids every where

So it really does not matter to them.

Even if they want to travel after the green card as long as they still follow the timelines I am sure they will be okay, they do have other grand kids in Pakistan they would like to visit but majority of them are stateside, They will not think on relinquishing it as long as they will have freedom of travel once the green card and all is done. I am reading that IR5 itself should not take that long for pakistan it is taking between 6-9 months from filing to the interview.  (a couple of friends parents just went through and got approved in 7 months, she said they filed for them in Feb 2021)

As far as green card is concerned, I am not sure exactly how long will it take but if it is a resonable time and not two and half years like in this case they should be fine waiting as well. 

 

 

You mentioned that after arrival in the US it might take upto 2 years to receive the green card? Is that normal time frame?
In case they had to go for emergency travel we always have the reentry permit option as well (I used that when I was studying in Pakistan) but that was decades ago not sure what is happening on that.


So again it is boiling down to the same two points

 

1) It does not matter if the tourist visa application is in Limbo, it will not hurt to apply for IR5 and file i130 for them right away?

2) Let's say all goes well and in the next 9 months they get the visa and arrive here, will just need to assess how long will it be before they get the green card. 

 

Again, guys much appreciate this discussion.

 

 

 

I think you’ve misunderstood.   The “two years” is not for receiving a green card once in the US.   It’s for receiving the immigrant visa that enables them to eventually get a green card.

[mitzab 285]

27 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

So were they planning to travel on a B2 and try to adjust status?   Just wondering, since you’re asking about an immigrant visa, which is for living in the US.

No that was not the plan, because they already had a couple of tourist visa. They were not expecting this kind of delay for the issuance of the tourist visa.

 

I asked about the immigrant visa because since the B1/B2 is taking so long (upwards of 2 and half years and still no response) it would be a better option. There are some centers which are showing much faster processing (I am not sure if that matters)

 

37 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

They won’t even have had an interview in 9 months, let alone a visa.

even if their Petitioners filing state comes under Nebraska?

 

 

 

 

36 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

I think you’ve misunderstood.   The “two years” is not for receiving a green card once in the US.   It’s for receiving the immigrant visa that enables them to eventually get a green card.

great information

 

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

1 hour ago, mitzab said:

They would not mind living here full time, both are retired and just travel around to visit the grand kids every where

So it really does not matter to them.

Even if they want to travel after the green card as long as they still follow the timelines I am sure they will be okay, they do have other grand kids in Pakistan they would like to visit but majority of them are stateside, They will not think on relinquishing it as long as they will have freedom of travel once the green card and all is done. I am reading that IR5 itself should not take that long for pakistan it is taking between 6-9 months from filing to the interview.  (a couple of friends parents just went through and got approved in 7 months, she said they filed for them in Feb 2021)

As far as green card is concerned, I am not sure exactly how long will it take but if it is a resonable time and not two and half years like in this case they should be fine waiting as well. 

 

 

You mentioned that after arrival in the US it might take upto 2 years to receive the green card? Is that normal time frame?
In case they had to go for emergency travel we always have the reentry permit option as well (I used that when I was studying in Pakistan) but that was decades ago not sure what is happening on that.


So again it is boiling down to the same two points

 

1) It does not matter if the tourist visa application is in Limbo, it will not hurt to apply for IR5 and file i130 for them right away?

2) Let's say all goes well and in the next 9 months they get the visa and arrive here, will just need to assess how long will it be before they get the green card. 

 

Again, guys much appreciate this discussion.

 

 

 

Some confusion here. An IR5 is an immigrant visa. As soon as they enter on that they are permanent residents. The wait is not for the plastic green card that proves  their LPR status, the wait is to get the IR5 visa in the first place. 

The timeline you stated (6-9 months) seems remarkable considering that the ir5 category was banned for about a year (April 20-March 21) so a case filed in feb 21 would have been behind a year of backlogged cases waiting for interview. Indeed, the Nebraska service center is the only one that could possibly process a case anywhere near that fast, then there’s still a few months for nvc processing, and then they immediately got an interview despite all the backlog? Either they got Nebraska plus an expedite, or something was misunderstood in the timeline. But sure if they are happy to spend more than 6 months a year in the US then ir5 makes the most sense. 

[HRQX 4,145]

39 minutes ago, mitzab said:

even if their Petitioners filing state comes under Nebraska?

Service Centers are not based on petitioner's residence.

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

On timelines. There is a page on VJ that keeps track of them, here.

 

https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=&op1=3&op3=20&op5=&op6=All

 

on the first part there is an IR5 case in Pakistan- funnily enough via Nebraska - filed in Dec 2018, that only just interviewed in October. (I’m not very familiar with these timeline tables as it’s obviously a small sample and I think the uscis processing times page is more reliable but still it’s a very interesting counterpoint to the case you mention.)

 

Fwiw average IR i130 processing times across all centers has been a little over 10 months so far this year https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/historic-pt , and then NVC has been taking about a week to open cases and another 3 months to process documents https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/nvc-timeframes.html So your best guess at a timeline from i130 submission to documentarily qualified is around 13 months (assuming you can submit documents as soon as they ask for them); and then there is the wait for an interview, which can be months at some consulates. 
 

 

Edited October 29, 2021 by SusieQQQ

[RnJ2021 59]

Some observations:

- They attempted to renew their visa under the prior administration which was hostile to certain classes of petitioners. I'm not sure how much of that filtered down.

- Security is an increased probability as USA intelligence learns more about who in Pakistan supported the Taliban and other terrorist organizations. Clearly these folks did not but they may be tarred by some arcane association.

-. If security is the issue, then there is no point in applying for the IR-5

-. Emirates Air has good connections to Dubai from almost everywhere.

[JeanneAdil 6,410]

Not Refused as you think of it

they are posting Refused on the CEAC site until the AP is done

 

then it will say either issued or denied

[mitzab 285]

Once again 

 

Thank you kindly for your time and invaluable input. Definitely helped me make a case.

 

We will go ahead and file the IR5, the taking a chance on Maybe getting it expedited or getting a shorter wait times are much better than b1/b2 visa which again would have been so much better if they can talk to us and tell us what to do or what to provide.

 

 

1 hour ago, SusieQQQ said:

On timelines. There is a page on VJ that keeps track of them, here.

 

https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=&op1=3&op3=20&op5=&op6=All

 

on the first part there is an IR5 case in Pakistan- funnily enough via Nebraska - filed in Dec 2018, that only just interviewed in October. (I’m not very familiar with these timeline tables as it’s obviously a small sample and I think the uscis processing times page is more reliable but still it’s a very interesting counterpoint to the case you mention.)

 

Fwiw average IR i130 processing times across all centers has been a little over 10 months so far this year https://egov.uscis.gov/processing-times/historic-pt , and then NVC has been taking about a week to open cases and another 3 months to process documents https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/nvc-timeframes.html So your best guess at a timeline from i130 submission to documentarily qualified is around 13 months (assuming you can submit documents as soon as they ask for them); and then there is the wait for an interview, which can be months at some consulates. 
 

 

Similar point, his wife applied for her parents. It went through Nebraska, the case was moved to pakistan embassy in about 7 months (all happened this year) they were able to secure the interview in the first week of October.

 

So again there are definitely examples out there either direction. Again my objective is not to hear what I like but have a discussion on pros and cons here,  they are stuck for 2 1/2 years,  why not go ahead and file IR5 and that way in the future they don't have to go through this. 

 

Cheers

 

Ps: I'll make sure to post their progress here so that way if anyone is in similar boat especially from Pakistan they might be able to see what's happening .

Edited October 30, 2021 by mitzab

[SalishSea 17,717]

5 hours ago, RnJ2021 said:

They attempted to renew their visa under the prior administration which was hostile to certain classes of petitioners. I'm not sure how much of that filtered down.

Huh?  Do you think there are petitioners for B visas?