US B1/B2 Visa in Limbo for 20 Months

[hasanemam 1]

I am a Bangladeshi citizen residing in Canada as a permanent resident since September 2021. In 2022, I applied for a US tourist visa with the intention of planning a summer vacation trip to the United States. My wife already possesses a US tourist visa, and I require one to accompany her on our travels.

 

Allow me to provide a brief background about myself—I am currently employed as a Project Leader, in the Engineering department of a manufacturing company. I find myself frequently needing to visit the United States, as our company is part of the America region. It is a multinational corporation with over 109 manufacturing units spread across 76 countries. Notably, I submitted my US tourist visa application before joining my current employer.

My timeline for the visa application process is somewhat unique, and my application has been in limbo for a while.

May 6, 2022: Interview - Initial decision - "Refused".
November 29, 2022: Changed to "Administrative Processing" from "Refused".
April 19, 2023: Asked for updated travel purpose and supplemental questions. Sent it on the same day.
April 24, 2023: Asked to send passport for Visa Issuance. Sent it on the same day.
May 5, 2023: Refused again, requesting the previous passport biodata page (remarks: I only have one passport, expiring in May 2024, and no previous passports held). Sent an email explaining the situation.
May 31, 2023: Refused under 221g, requesting to submit a standard CV, a list of all post-secondary institutions attended, degrees awarded, and years of attendance; (2) the exact title and abstract of your degree thesis/research; (3) names and positions of advisors/supervisors; (4) complete work history with dates/locations; (5) list of publications, and (6) source of funding. Provided the requested documents on the same day.
June 2, 2023: Received the passport back without the visa (requested it for upcoming travel to my home country).
 

As of now the status is
Case Created:    06-May-2022
Case Last Updated:    31-May-2023

A U.S. consular officer has adjudicated and refused your visa application. Please follow any instructions provided by the consular officer. If you were informed by the consular officer that your case was refused for administrative processing, your case will remain refused while undergoing such processing. You will receive another adjudication once such processing is complete. Please be advised that the processing time varies and that you will be contacted if additional information is needed. For more information, please visit TRAVEL.STATE.GOV or the website for the Embassy or Consulate at which you made your visa application. For more information, please visit U.S. Consulate General Toronto.

I will become eligible to apply for Canadian citizenship in the next 8 months. If granted citizenship, I will be able to visit the US using my Canadian passport, which alleviates my immediate concerns about the visa. However, the current visa application situation is still a significant concern for me. Is there a possibility to withdraw my current application and subsequently reapply through my employer? Alternatively, what steps can I take to bring a resolution to my current visa application? Your guidance on this matter would be greatly appreciated.

[Crazy Cat 41,836]

You can't do anything to expedite the process.  It may be that your request for them to return your passport and subsequent travel has caused a delay.  You just have to wait it out. 

Edited January 4 by Crazy Cat

[Dashinka 24,488]

Will they issue a visa in a passport that has less than six month validity?  

 

Additionally, if your company is as you say, don't they have a service to do visas?  I know when I need a visa for work travel, I can use the company service, and they take care of everything.  Now they cannot expedite anything, but they are usually pretty good at laying out the exact business purpose for the B1, and showing the need for you to not overstay.

Edited January 4 by Dashinka

[hasanemam 1]

5 minutes ago, Dashinka said:

Will they issue a visa in a passport that has less than six month validity?

 

I applied for a new passport last week, so I will have the new passport in hand before the expiration of my current one.

My company is willing to provide any kind of supporting documents. Do you think if I submit them as additional documentation for my application, it will have an impact?

Edited January 4 by hasanemam
additional information added

[Dashinka 24,488]

Just now, hasanemam said:

 

I applied for a new passport last week, so I will have the new passport in hand before the expiration of my current one.

Sounds good.  I edited my response after your response.  I would go through your company if there is a business reason for you to travel, if not, there is not much else you can do until you get your Canadian citizenship or the consulate finalizes this application.

 

Good Luck!

[JeanneAdil 6,492]

Even,  as a Canadian naturalized citizen ,  u are always subject to CBP to enter the US so be prepared to show proofs listed in the following

 

The burden of proof that the Canadian citizen is not an intended immigrant (plans to make the United States their primary residence) is always on the applicant. There is no set period of time Canadians must wait to re-enter the United States after the end of their stay, but if it appears to the CBP officer that the person applying for entry is spending more time over-all in the United States than in Canada, it will be up to the traveler to prove to the officer that they are not de-facto U.S. residents. One of the ways to do this is to demonstrate significant ties to their home country, including proof of employment, residency, etc.

 

https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-619?language=en_US#:~:text=Residents of Canada who are,to have a valid passport.

[appleblossom 2,482]

52 minutes ago, hasanemam said:

I will become eligible to apply for Canadian citizenship in the next 8 months. If granted citizenship, I will be able to visit the US using my Canadian passport

 

That's still probably 2 years away given the current processing times for Canadian citizenship though, so if you need to visit in the meantime I'd try and get your company's help with the application if you can.

[hasanemam 1]

56 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

Even,  as a Canadian naturalized citizen ,  u are always subject to CBP to enter the US so be prepared to show proofs listed in the following

 

The burden of proof that the Canadian citizen is not an intended immigrant (plans to make the United States their primary residence) is always on the applicant. There is no set period of time Canadians must wait to re-enter the United States after the end of their stay, but if it appears to the CBP officer that the person applying for entry is spending more time over-all in the United States than in Canada, it will be up to the traveler to prove to the officer that they are not de-facto U.S. residents. One of the ways to do this is to demonstrate significant ties to their home country, including proof of employment, residency, etc.

 

https://help.cbp.gov/s/article/Article-619?language=en_US#:~:text=Residents of Canada who are,to have a valid passport.

I am not overly concerned about that, as I am a law-abiding resident with substantial ties to Canada. Financially, I am stable, and my wife operates a small business in Canada. Additionally, we are parents to a newborn who is a Canadian citizen by birth.

[hasanemam 1]

36 minutes ago, appleblossom said:

 

That's still probably 2 years away given the current processing times for Canadian citizenship though, so if you need to visit in the meantime I'd try and get your company's help with the application if you can.

 

Could you kindly advise on the appropriate approach for submitting the supporting document from my employer to the consular office? Is it sufficient to include it as an additional document and send it in an email, or should I seek the guidance of an immigration lawyer or legal professional in this matter?

[JeanneAdil 6,492]

27 minutes ago, hasanemam said:

I am not overly concerned about that, as I am a law-abiding resident with substantial ties to Canada. Financially, I am stable, and my wife operates a small business in Canada. Additionally, we are parents to a newborn who is a Canadian citizen by birth.

but u do have to proof to CBP so be prepared as you have already shown immirgrant intent to country other than your place of birth

[hasanemam 1]

2 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

but u do have to proof to CBP so be prepared as you have already shown immirgrant intent to country other than your place of birth

I can provide valid documents supporting my ties to Canada; that is not a problem. I dont know what else I can do to demonstrate that I do not intend to stay in the US.

[Dashinka 24,488]

29 minutes ago, hasanemam said:

 

Could you kindly advise on the appropriate approach for submitting the supporting document from my employer to the consular office? Is it sufficient to include it as an additional document and send it in an email, or should I seek the guidance of an immigration lawyer or legal professional in this matter?

Does your company employ the services of a travel agency?  In my case, if I need to travel overseas for business where a visa is required we have a travel agency that handles everything.  They will have the list of required documents necessary, but they probably will not help if this is purely a personal B2 application.

[hasanemam 1]

3 minutes ago, Dashinka said:

Does your company employ the services of a travel agency?  In my case, if I need to travel overseas for business where a visa is required we have a travel agency that handles everything.  They will have the list of required documents necessary, but they probably will not help if this is purely a personal B2 application.

Yes, typically, my company utilizes travel agencies for visa and travel services. The challenge lies in the fact that I have already submitted my application for personal intentions. Despite this, my company is interested to assist me by providing all the required documents. My question is, how can these documents be submitted considering that I have already applied for the visa?

[JeanneAdil 6,492]

1 hour ago, hasanemam said:

I can provide valid documents supporting my ties to Canada; that is not a problem. I dont know what else I can do to demonstrate that I do not intend to stay in the US.

Just that as in the post and u r good to go  / most do not take documents to border or on a plane as they don't know its important

don't include a resume and birth certificate or papers that would imply "looking to stay in US/ its more about working in Canada and need to return for that job

[SalishSea 17,819]

Clearly this is not about ties to Canada.  Vetting your CV/background is not standard to evaluate risk for overstay.  
 

If you are applying for a B-1 visa’s for the purpose of visiting, fabricating a “business” reason for a B-2 won’t do you any good.