B1/B2 Visa

[Fettman 0]

Hey all,

I posted not too long ago that Liliana was going to get a B1/B2 visa to have a job interview here in the US. She got the visa and it is a one year, multiple entry visa. Is there anyway to use this to our benefit? Again, the interview is for a position in Russia, not the US.

If a K-1 visa is still required, etc., can she use the B1/B2 to come visit me or will that not be possible. I appreciate any help you all can give. Thanks!

- Steven

[Fettman 0]

One clarification, she currently does not plan on staying with J&J, it is a good job she can have until she is able to come here. She wants to look at her options here before making a decision. She did not list me as a fiance on any forms she filled out. So, again, any advice would be appreciated. Especially if she can visit me on a visa she has already obtained. Thanks!

[slim 1,533]

She is not your fiancee right now. Not officially, anyway. That means she can do anything the B visa entitles her to do.

Until you file for K-1, she is simply a tourist (or seeking employment) and that's it.

[Fettman 0]

She is not your fiancee right now. Not officially, anyway. That means she can do anything the B visa entitles her to do.

Until you file for K-1, she is simply a tourist (or seeking employment) and that's it.

This is what I thought. Once she becomes my fiancee would her visa still be valid? I know people have talked about getting visas after filing for the K-1, but in this case she has it beforehand. Also, does anyone know anything about the B visas in terms of what you have to have in order to make another entry? For example could I arrange for a business in my town to write an invite or does it even matter since she has been approved for multiple entries? Thanks!

- Steven

[russ 1]

This is what I thought. Once she becomes my fiancee would her visa still be valid? I know people have talked about getting visas after filing for the K-1, but in this case she has it beforehand. Also, does anyone know anything about the B visas in terms of what you have to have in order to make another entry? For example could I arrange for a business in my town to write an invite or does it even matter since she has been approved for multiple entries? Thanks!

- Steven

It is up to the POE to decide how long you can stay and how often.

[Satellite 1]

If that newly issued B1/B2 visa is going to last as long as it takes her school to finish, you can really simply this process if you avoid calling her your fiancée" until she comes here and both decide the issue here in US" if you know what I mean. Yes, the POE will have the last call on determining if she has a valid reason to come here and has reason to return.

[Fettman 0]

If that newly issued B1/B2 visa is going to last as long as it takes her school to finish, you can really simply this process if you avoid calling her your fiancée" until she comes here and both decide the issue here in US" if you know what I mean. Yes, the POE will have the last call on determining if she has a valid reason to come here and has reason to return.

I am a bit confused by what you mean. Are you saying that she can come her under this visa and then while she is here we can get married and follow a different process? We have said nothing about her or I being in a "fiance/e" relationship.

[russ 1]

I am a bit confused by what you mean. Are you saying that she can come her under this visa and then while she is here we can get married and follow a different process? We have said nothing about her or I being in a "fiance/e" relationship.

As long as you don't intend to marry when you enter the US, you can marry someone here while admitted under a different visa. If you had intended to marry, it would be fraud, since you had immigrant intent.

Proving this either way is difficult. Just don't make any decisions about marriage until you enter the country on a B1 and you would be within the letter of the law. USCIS would prefer that you give up the B1 and get a K1 in another country. If you do get married in the US, you can either adjust status here, or get a K3 overseas.

[russ 1]

It's doubtful that USCIS would be scouring this site looking for "intent," but it needs to be mentioned that your line of questioning sounds a lot like intent.

The purpose of the B1 is for a job interview, for a position in a foreign country. This does not show any intent. It is both possible and reasonable to date someone without being sure about marrying them. Getting the B1 for the purpose of marrying would be fraud. That is not what is happening though - it is legitimately for a job. They may break up, in which case the job will be important.

Besides, getting married on another visa type isn't the issue. Using it to adjust status is. Even if they got married in the US, they would probably end up going the K3 route and trying to work out a job transfer with the US employer. As long as your intention at the POE is for a job interview, you aren't breaking the rules.

I did a lot of research before deciding to get married. Nothing wrong with that.

Also, the fact that she is planning for a job in Russia would show that you aren't planning to marry at this time.

Edited November 7, 2007 by russ

[slim 1,533]

All you have to do is see what happens once she gets here.

As posted above, she's coming here for the job, and if the two of you happen to get married while she's here, that's not fraud. Asking about it, and even keeping the strong possibility of it open aren't fraud either. After all, she's not even your fiancee yet!

If anything, you got a lucky break.

When she comes to the U.S., visit her for a while and then make up your minds what you want to do. You are following the right steps already..... She's not a fiancee, she's a visitor!

[Satellite 1]

Just to add to the conversation.

My fiancée came here on a K1 and we weren't sure if we would get married either. Nothing is a 100% possibility. Plus both of us thought it was absurd to immigrate to the US without first experiencing life here. So after 2 months we had a city hall marriage and the K1 (technically used improperly) allowed us to confirm that we should indeed get married. How the hell will a USCIS officer figure any of this out, is beyond me. Same goes in reverse if you came on B visa and then decided to marry and stay. Also keep in mind if you do the latter route, the date of your marriage in comparison to her arrival in the states will have a huge impact.

In the procedural manual followed by the USCIS officers, (FAM code something, too lazy to look it up), it states that if marriage takes place within 30 days of arrival it is presumed that you intended fraud, if it takes place after 60 days it is presumed you did not and it is neutral between 30 to 60 days. So keep that in mind in making any kind of decision. Obviously it is better to have the USCIS overcome a presumption in your favor rather than the other way around.

[slim 1,533]

I did a lot of research before deciding to get married.

So did I.

I just wish I would've done more!

[russ 1]

In the procedural manual followed by the USCIS officers, (FAM code something, too lazy to look it up), it states that if marriage takes place within 30 days of arrival it is presumed that you intended fraud, if it takes place after 60 days it is presumed you did not and it is neutral between 30 to 60 days. So keep that in mind in making any kind of decision. Obviously it is better to have the USCIS overcome a presumption in your favor rather than the other way around.

There is certainly a bias towards K visas here. In the case of my wife, it was a choice between a K1 or F1 (she is a full time student anyway). K1 saved us about 10K a year in out of state tuition. Moving in with me while here on an F1 would not break any rules as far as I know, even if we decided to get married some time in the future.

The B visa will probably allow for multiple entries, so she can come back to see you in the future. If you decide to get married while she is here, the choice is still to either file an AOS here or a K3 in Moscow.

Though I'm not a lawyer, and not telling you to do this, if you do get married and pursue an AOS here, she will almost certianly overstay her I94. She will therefore not be able to travel out of the US until the AOS is adjudicated. The rules as implemented by USCIS encourage a visa overstay in this case. The other alternatives are getting married and petioning a K3 (possibly a good choice, since she will have a good job in Russia), or petion for a K1 (perhaps less of a good idea since she may have the B1). If you do end up getting married, an immigration attorney will probably recommend staying in the US until an AOS is adjudicated.

[slim 1,533]

K1 saved us about 10K a year in out of state tuition. Moving in with me while here on an F1 would not break any rules as far as I know, even if we decided to get married some time in the future.

K1 also "locked her in" as your wife instead of "just living together" as a foreign student and her boyfriend. (Although, you probably would've saved more than 10K a year just having a foreign girlfriend living with you instead of a wife!)

The OP on this topic is not in a dissimilar situation. He has the opportunity to "choose" which way to go with the entire visa process and whether or not to pursue it with a wife here, a wife overseas, or a fiancee that's just so happened to have visited several times in the past year.

This is a perfectly legal way to go, regardless of how it's done. The OP isn't actually doing anything wrong by weighing the options. The fact is the B visa was obtained for the purposes of the job (sure, seeing the person she loves is a great side-benefit) and not for the purposes of seeing the boyfriend. And now since she has the B visa, the rest is all optional!

[Satellite 1]

There is certainly a bias towards K visas here. In the case of my wife, it was a choice between a K1 or F1 (she is a full time student anyway). K1 saved us about 10K a year in out of state tuition.

Certainly true. But each states does it differently. For example in California one needs to be resident for one year to qualify for in state tuition. For a K1 holder that means I-94 / entry stamp plus 365 days. But if you came in one something else you might not qualify:

"Unfortunately, the following visa status holders cannot establish residency regardless of the length of time in California: B-1, B-2, C, D-1, D-2, F-1, F-2, H-2, H-3, J-1, J-2, M-1, M-2, O-2, P-1, P-2, P-3, P-4, Q, and TN/TD."

However, once you get your green card the clock starts to tick even if you did come in on one of the visas listed above. I am not sure from which date you start counting from date of greencard or date of entry. I take it the date of entry or at least the date you got your driver's license will work too. Because residency in California is status / length based. Once you overcome status you can start counting the length. The day you got status doesn't really need to be an issue. So in our case my wife got her green card within a year of arrival, it would not have mattered in terms of tuition.

People have been denied entry for a lot less, and even "contemplating" marriage while she just happens to be traveling on a business Visa can raise suspicions.

I am again confused by your line of thinking. If someone has no "immigration file" - no pending I-129F etc., how does an immigration officer come to a conclusion that a person coming to the states for a job interview plans on marrying? The two just don't go together. They can ask who the employer is, what accommodations, and how long. And unless you say something stupid like I am going to be staying with my fiancé the day before the interview and then we are off to get married the day after, you should be fine.