I-212 for a tourist visa..

[suzy03 0]

I lived in the us since i was 3.. finished highschool started college.. and had a tourist visa while i was there.. flew to mexico and on my way back had my visa revoked and was given a 5 year ban.. ive been in mexico for 7 years now.. i go to college and have a well payed job.. i live in tijuana and i have lots of family and friends in the states which i would like to visit, so i will try and apply for a tourist visa. what steps should i take? thanks!!

[Lex Specialis 38]

The fact that you have family and/or friends in the US, have lived here since you were little, had violated the terms of your visitor visa stay previously, and come from one of the four biggest immigration suppliers to the US (Mexico, China, Phillippines and India) - those are all factors which work AGAINST the US willing to give you a tourist visa.

If you are interested in immigrating to the US, I would suggest you contact an attorney in San Diego to help you apply for a green card through a qualifying relative, assuming you have one. Even if you do, you will need a lawyer since you had that ban once (although I had never heard of a 5 year ban, only 3 and 10 - must have been a long time ago when the rules were different for unlawful presence) and your application would be complicated. If you are just looking to visit, you can certainly apply, play up your ties to Mexico (job, real property, family in Mexico) and play DOWN the ties you have to the US because you are only seeking to come to the US for purposes of visitation. But the odds are against you.