Timelines for US tourist visa question.

[Thom1 0]

I am new new here and I appreciate all opinions and help. I will read all the topics and posts eventually. TIA

 

My widowed GF lives in Vietnam and myself in the US. She has 2 children school aged and owns property but no real job.

I recently filled a DS-160 tourist visa form for my GF  to sign and file soon for a US visa. It asked for a date to visit and a length of stay. If she is accepted, can we change the start date of travel easily. Do they give you time adjust or is it date certain?   Nov. 1 for 4 weeks now. Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks.

[Boiler 45,434]

You just put your anticipated dates

 

The way you describe things it is unlikely to be an issue

You just put your anticipated dates

 

The way you describe things it is unlikely to be an issue

[Thom1 0]

Thanks for the quick reply.

And will she have 12 months to begin and to complete her 4 week journey?   She has never travelled or flown and I would like to escort her through the potentially harrowing trip. Especially the concourse changes and such, it's difficult enough for me to navigate. And then the airlines...and changes, don't get me started on that.

[Redro 4,611]

57 minutes ago, Thom1 said:

Thanks for the quick reply.

And will she have 12 months to begin and to complete her 4 week journey?   She has never travelled or flown and I would like to escort her through the potentially harrowing trip. Especially the concourse changes and such, it's difficult enough for me to navigate. And then the airlines...and changes, don't get me started on that.

If your girlfriend and her children receive tourist visa they should be valid for 5 or 10 years. 
You might want to prepare yourself for the possibility she does not receive a tourist visa if she hasn’t not traveled before and her main reason to visit the US is to see you. 

[Boiler 45,434]

1 hour ago, Thom1 said:

Thanks for the quick reply.

And will she have 12 months to begin and to complete her 4 week journey?   She has never travelled or flown and I would like to escort her through the potentially harrowing trip. Especially the concourse changes and such, it's difficult enough for me to navigate. And then the airlines...and changes, don't get me started on that.

I managed to double post!

 

B2's are usually issued for 10 year Multiple Visits.

 

Is this somebody you have met?

[Thom1 0]

OK 10 years. Got it. 

I visited in 2019/2020 4 weeks total. And then again 2022/2023 4 weeks total. And plan on returning this time for 2 months or so.

She will be leaving her 16 and 20 year old in Vietnam to visit here. One is fluent in English and high marks. The other only average.

We chat or video daily and know each other.  As I said, she has never travelled and she reads to many facebook tales. As in, you need to travel to Thailand or S Korea first before entering the US. Her life has not let her travel in the past. If she likes it here she may want to come again later. I think I adapt better to Vietnam than she will to the SE coast here. Although Atlanta is only 4 hours away with friends and our Viet parish church has 300-400 members to ease the separation anxiety.

[Boiler 45,434]

As has been intimated a B is a long shot but cheap to try.

[Thom1 0]

She will say, " We should have hired a service, I told you so"... But in broken English.

The answers are the answers on the forms. You can't make it up. 

 

I mean who would abandon their kids???

Nevermind thinking out loud again.

[Boiler 45,434]

2 minutes ago, Thom1 said:

She will say, " We should have hired a service, I told you so"... But in broken English.

The answers are the answers on the forms. You can't make it up. 

 

I mean who would abandon their kids???

Nevermind thinking out loud again.

A service? They speak Vietnamese.

 

I have seen so many cases of people leaving small children behind it is not funny, anyway they are adults.

 

They may question her long term plan.

[Thom1 0]

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

A service? They speak Vietnamese.

 

I have seen so many cases of people leaving small children behind it is not funny, anyway they are adults.

 

They may question her long term plan.

She apparently has been told that there are services there will fill her forms for her to submit.  

 

The sad thing is separation anxieties will get the best of her quickly, I imagine. 

She hates to leave her kids for 2 days as it is. We plan no false intents, just meeting friends family and sights. Like I have done there.

It is a courtesy to let her come and see where I live before saying "I Do"

[Boiler 45,434]

Lots of scammers out there sadly, a DS 160 is not complicated.

[Thom1 0]

54 minutes ago, Redro said:

If your girlfriend and her children receive tourist visa they should be valid for 5 or 10 years. 
You might want to prepare yourself for the possibility she does not receive a tourist visa if she hasn’t not traveled before and her main reason to visit the US is to see you. 

Thanks.

I only apply for GF and no children involved. They will stay at home with an Aunt. She has strong relationship ties to Vietnam. No family here. She has never left Vietnam and not seen much of it. She has never been able to travel in the past. But I am prepared for denial. Thanks again

[Redro 4,611]

32 minutes ago, Thom1 said:

  As I said, she has never travelled and she reads to many facebook tales. As in, you need to travel to Thailand or S Korea first before entering the US. Her life has not let her travel in the past. If she likes it here she may want to come again later. I think I adapt better to Vietnam than she will to the SE coast here. 

She is correct. Sometimes travel to other countries does help with people attaining the B1/B2 visa.

Using a service won’t help your girlfriend at all. They will complete the form in the same way you complete it.  And they might actively hurt her case if they decide to invent some information to make her ties to Vietnam seem stronger than they are.

Unfortunately she might not get the chance to visit the US before making the decision to relocate here. She might not even get the chance to visit the US if you relocate to Vietnam and want to visit with family once in a while.

We have several VJ members who are living and working overseas with their foreign national partners and US embassy denies the tourist visa because they believe the foreign national wants to move to the U.S. 

It seems strange but if you follow any immigration group you’ll see people “jump the line” and adjust from tourist visas instead of following the rules. This means foreigners from certain countries with US citizen partners are less likely to obtain a tourist visa because of the precedent set by their compatriots. 

[Boiler 45,434]

Assuming the plan is for you to relocate, evidence of that might help.

[SalishSea 17,791]

5 hours ago, Thom1 said:

She will say, " We should have hired a service, I told you so"... But in broken English.

The answers are the answers on the forms. You can't make it up. 

 

I mean who would abandon their kids???

Nevermind thinking out loud again.

Really???   One is an adult, the other is nearly an adult.   People abandon their kids all the time to immigrate to the US.

 

I wouldn't get your hopes up.  VN is a high fraud consulate, and I'd say her chances are low.