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Sharkano

ESTA And Tourist Visa Denial Question

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: England
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Ok, I am pretty sure I know the (bad) answer to this question, but for the sake of leaving no stone unturned I thought I would ask the guru's here to see if there is a way out:

THE FACTS:

1. Girlfriend (pre-me) was denied tourist visa 10 years ago on basis she might stay (no return trip ticket, etc.)

2. We become friends and I want to bring her here to meet the fam. She is Hungarian, and so normally would qualify for ESTA. But one of the requirements for the visa waiver program is that you have never been denied a visa.

3. Because she wanted to be truthful she instead applied for a tourist visa. Despite letters from her employer that she had to be back at the office in 8 days and tons of supporting papers, paid return trip etc (none of which were even looked at by the jerk at the Embassy, who spent two minutes with her and then kicked her out) she was again denied a tourist visa last month.

4. We have filed our K-1.

THE QUESTION:

Should we just give up on her coming here to visit before the K-1, or is there some ESTA magic I am unaware of?

Many thanks!

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Wales
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2. But one of the requirements for the visa waiver program is that you have never been denied a visa.

3. Because she wanted to be truthful she instead applied for a tourist visa. Despite letters from her employer that she had to be back at the office in 8 days and tons of supporting papers, paid return trip etc (none of which were even looked at by the jerk at the Embassy, who spent two minutes with her and then kicked her out) she was again denied a tourist visa last month.

2. is wrong

3. with a recently refused visa application she is unlikely to be approved by ESTA, but only one way to find out for sure. You seem to have misunderstood the process, 2 minute interviews are the norm.

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: England
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Thanks for the response, But I don't think I am wrong. This is from the government's web page as to ESTA application:

Many people make the mistake of thinking that if they were denied a visa when they were a citizen of one country, then become a citizen of another country, they can travel to the U.S. under the visa waiver program using their new passport. That is wrong. The eligibility question about having been denied a visa does not ask whether or not the denial was made after you became a citizen of another country. It asks, "Have you ever been denied a visa?" - period. If you answer "No" then we determine that you have been denied a visa in the past, we consider that to be fraud, and you will be barred from entry for a number of years. It is better to admit the truth, and then apply for a visa, than go through the experience of being deported for fraud.

Edited by Sharkano
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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Wales
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That is a different issue.

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: England
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Boiler, thanks for the replies, and we are probably just talking at cross-purposes. The ESTA application asks if you have ever been denied a visa, and I have read this means you can't use ESTA (if you say "yes'). I figured I knew the answer when I started the thread, but just in case someone had found the miracle cure I thought I'd ask. Gracias.

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Wales
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It does not mean that, just asks the question. With a recent B2 refusal it would not be surprising if ESTA was declined,

6 months or more and they seem to come through OK if that is the only issue.

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Wales
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Perhaps I should add though it is too late now, if she has gone through ESTA first chances are she would have been OK.

Very difficult for someone eligible for the VWP to get a B2. You are basically saying 90 days is not long enough and for someone not retired that length of holiday is unusual, especially to the American mindset.

Edited by Boiler

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

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Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Ireland
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I agree with Boiler. A visa denial OFTEN means ESTA gets denied, but it is not automatic, especially when the denial was many years ago. It's only $14 for ESTA, she could try it in a few months and see, though admittedly with a recently denied tourist visa and the K1 pending, her chances are slim.

Bye: Penguin

Me: Irish/ Swiss citizen, and now naturalised US citizen. Husband: USC; twin babies born Feb 08 in Ireland and a daughter in Feb 2010 in Arkansas who are all joint Irish/ USC. Did DCF (IR1) in 6 weeks via the Dublin, Ireland embassy and now living in Arkansas.

mod penguin.jpg

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Filed: Country: Poland
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I'm sorry to be digging this up after 4 days of inactivity, but does everyone seriously consider a denial that happened 10 years ago to be a "recent" one? I mean, I know that people who get denied for a B2 visa, let's say 6 months or 1 year ago, usually get denied for ESTA. But 10 years ago?

Edited by jkb11
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I'm sorry to be digging this up after 4 days of inactivity, but does everyone seriously consider a denial that happened 10 years ago to be a "recent" one? I mean, I know that people who get denied for a B2 visa, let's say 6 months or 1 year ago, usually get denied for ESTA. But 10 years ago?

She was denied for a second attempt recently.

ROC from CR-1 visa (Green Card expiration date was Nov 24th 2016)

 

Link to the evidence I submitted. Be sure to send evidence spanning your entire marriage (especially for K-1) or as far back as you can. Just one or two bank statements will not cut it. I primarily focused on the two years of living here since I came in on a CR-1. If you don't have the fundamentals (i.e. joint accounts/policies), you can explain why in the covering letter. E.g. "While we do not have joint utilities, we both contribute to them from our joint bank account".

 

September 26th 2016: I-751 package sent to CSC

September 28th 2016: Package delivered
September 30th 2016: Check cashed
October 3rd 2016: NOA1 received with receipt date of 09/28/16
November 3rd 2016: Biometrics received with appointment date of 11/14/16.
November 14th 2016: Attended biometrics appointment
October 30th 2017: Infopass appointment to get I-551 stamp
February 26th 2018: I-751 case number (aka the NOA1 receipt number) becomes trackable
March 14th 2018: Submitted service request due to being outside of processing time.

March 15th 2018: ROC approved. 535 days (1 year, 5 months and 17 days)

March 29th 2018: Card being produced

April 4th 2018: Card mailed out

April 6th 2018: Card in hand. Has incorrect "resident since" date. Submitted service request on I-751 case (typographical error on permanent resident card) and an I-90 online.

April 2018 - August 7th 2018: Tons of service requests, emails and now senator involvement to get my corrected green card back because what the heck, USCIS. Also some time in May I sent a letter to Potomac telling them I want to withdraw my I-90 since CSC were handling it.

August 8th 2018: Card in production thanks to the direct involvement of Senator Sherrod Brown's team

August 13th 2018: Card mailed

August 15th 2018: Card in hand with correct date. :joy:

October 31st 2018: Potomac sends out a notice stating they have closed out my I-90 per my request. Yay for no duplicate card drama.

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