Advice on visa waiver visits

[JamesRenee 47]

Hello-

Just looking for some advice. I originally posted under "yes you can visit" but didn't receive any feedback & I could really use some right now ? My fiancé and I received our NOA1 today & were notified it's being processed at the TSC. We're aware at this point that it's going to be some time before we receive our NOA2. So obviously we're planning for him to visit. He is from England so he would come over on the waiver & we are planning on him staying for as long as possible which would be just short of 90 days. We also plan on him flying into Detroit. My question is should I worry about him not being able to come for that long? I would be devastated if he was sent back. We plan on having him prepared with a copy of our I-129, a return ticket, and letter from his employer stating he is returning to his job after his stay. We were hoping to be sent to the CSC (as I'm sure most couples are) but now that we know it's going to be longer than hoped for we just really want to be able to spend as much time together as possible. Also- if anyone has gone through Detroit for their POE- how was your experience? Thank you in advance for any help, guidance, etc. It's greatly appreciated

[Megan & Luke 93]

Hopefully you will receive responses from others who have actually visited while waiting.

As long as your fiance can show strong ties to his country (like the employer letter you mentioned) and you have the return ticket he should be fine. There is always a chance that he will be turned away though - even with these items, but highly unlikely if he can show that he has no intention of staying permanently. The other important thing would be to answer the officer's questions truthfully. If they ask about the visa, be honest. Then be honest that he has every intention to return home and show the proof. They may not even ask for any of it!

My fiance returned home to England after a month long stay on the VWP this past June. We got engaged on that trip and filed our K-1 in July. The original plan was for him to come visit me this month, but we were concerned about the same issues you've raised. Instead I am going to visit him for a week at the end of October. We're also at TSC - hopefully things move faster there because they have been quite frustrating so far.

The only thing I would be unsure about is how close his return ticket is to the end of his waiver. I'm not sure what others experiences have been but the POE officers may be iffy if his return ticket is the day before or day of his VWP ending. Just throwing that out there, no idea if that would have any bearing.

Good luck!

P.S. - As for TSC being slow... Recently TSC transferred a number of April and May filers to CSC and many of them have seen approvals. No idea if this will happen again or if it will have a large impact on us still at TSC.. I wouldn't bank on it, but you can always hope for another batch of transfers

Edited September 29, 2014 by Megan & Luke

[T & G 0]

My fiancé has come over about once very 6 weeks for the two years we've been together, including the nearly 7 months since we originally filed. Some of those stays have been 10-14 days. He's had no issues, and hasn't been asked to show proof of employment, etc, he does occasionally get extra questions at entry. I know it's not the same as your situation, though.

Given the long stay you are planning, it is a good idea to show your return flight plans and have the letter from work. Other than that, I wouldn't volunteer any extra info. Answer the questions asked of you honestly, and leave before your time is up. Don't risk ruining your chance of getting the K1 visa by overstaying!

We are nearly 7 months into waiting for our NOA2, thanks to TSC. I sincerely hope your journey is quicker than ours has been, but the visit will help get you through it!

[JamesRenee 47]

Thank you both so much for the advice. The reason we're trying to make it a longer visit is because we will probably only be able to afford one trip during the filing process. We were planning on an 80 day stay which is 10 days shorter than the waiver allows...we wanted to make sure to keep it within the guidelines & have no plans of him extending past the visa date...I know that would pretty much solidify our K-1 being denied so he definitely will go back. It's just nerve wracking. It's definitely disheartening with the delay at the TSC...I can't believe there's that big of a discrepancy between Texas & California. But that's the reason we wanted his visit to be as long as possible because we know we'll be waiting. Thank you both again for your input...I truly hope you hear good news soon! ?

[Stephaniazg 1]

Hello,

My husband is from the UK and since we filed our petition, we were worried as well about his visits. He has come over for plenty of visits, some longer than others, and we had no problem. He always brings proof of employment, and copies of our immigration forms to show that he is coming back to the UK and that we are doing it the right legal way. He discloses this information everytime he gets to custom and has never had a problem and never even gets to the point where he must show proof.

Good luck!!

[JamesRenee 47]

Thank you! You all are such a wonderful stress reliever haha ? Of course I'll still worry until he's actually in front of me- but I can't tell you how appreciative I am because your responses have really helped calm my fears. Thank you all again so very much