DENIED

[HFM181818 748]

If the CO decides to return the petition, you cannot order him/her to do otherwise...the CO is not required to speak with you following a denial. 'Insisting' to speak with a CO does not exist. IF the CO chooses not to discuss the denial with you in person, you cannot force him/her to do so.

If they have decided to return the petition, they will have to describe to USCIS why the petition is being returned and the consular chief must sign off on it.

Your presence cannot change that action once decided. Remember, only consular officers can make visa decisions. No other person can, nor can a third party influence the adjudication of a visa application. The COs are NOT required to discuss a visa denial, and in fact, doing so would be a violation of law.

A CO or the Consular chief can opt to allow the USC spouse to be at the interview, but that is optional....and no, a senator or congressman cannot 'order' a CO to allow the USC to attend the interview.

[dwheels76 5,462]

1. Sorry I did mean to say pastor not poster. The pictures she sent were our marriage ceremony pictures at the church. CO said since we did it at the church why didn't we have any of the picture with the pastor together. Also, they want to see our chart records. I'm going to screenshot those from WhatsAPP and put all together on a word document. But the WhatsAPP charts when I screenshot, its not showing the date of the chart. They also want to see remittance slips, I don't have those. I have a house in Ghana so we were not in a hotel.

You don't have any other pictures aside from your wedding? They need to see you guys with others. Looking natural not studio posting. Download whatsapp chat to email open with either word document or notepad all the date stamps are there.

It's very important you get your chat logs to show you communicate. If you have Skype logs, viper, what ever way you communicate you need to show that.All visits together did you submit visa stamps.

Doesn't sound like a very robust petition package you put together so you need to move fast and get there in person with all these things in hand.

Get some affidavits from family mom , dad, siblings, a friend like 3 or 4 attesting to your relationship.

[Joshua@Tinz 52]

1. Sorry I did mean to say pastor not poster. The pictures she sent were our marriage ceremony pictures at the church. CO said since we did it at the church why didn't we have any of the picture with the pastor together. Also, they want to see our chart records. I'm going to screenshot those from WhatsAPP and put all together on a word document. But the WhatsAPP charts when I screenshot, its not showing the date of the chart. They also want to see remittance slips, I don't have those. I have a house in Ghana so we were not in a hotel.

Remittance slips would be when you sent her money....How did you send it? if you did it on your credit or debit card through western union or any other service then you can easily find evidence of that. show them your flights to ghana, and the fact that you have a house there should be ample proof of relationship, I assume she lives in it and if you own it a simple document with your name on the house and her mailing address is the same should trump any pictures you could offer in my mind.....but I am just a newbie here, these experienced members Im sure will offer you great advice

[themartinez 1]

I don't know if this could help, but one thing I did was to send Facebook print screens, some copies of letters with the envelope (because it shows the "official" date on it).

[MrsBonsu 138]

You are being given a second chance, get all of the pictures you can of when you were there with your husband, pics of your trips around town and with family and friends, get family members on your side and her side to right letters of acknowledgment of your relationship and marriage, print out your chats a few pages from the begining of your relationship up until now, copies of your plane tickets, you must understand that this co is a stranger you have to show them that your marriage is real! You will be allowed to enter and go to the window when your husband is called, but be aware that they may not talk to you and ask you to have a seat, this Emabssy will not let you speak to a supervisor or the chief consular if your denied or if they send your case back, so gather proof quickly and neatly and go to support husband! I wish you the best of luck on the next interview ????

You are being given a second chance, get all of the pictures you can of when you were there with your husband, pics of your trips around town and with family and friends, get family members on your side and her side to right letters of acknowledgment of your relationship and marriage, print out your chats a few pages from the begining of your relationship up until now, copies of your plane tickets, you must understand that this co is a stranger you have to show them that your marriage is real! You will be allowed to enter and go to the window when your husband is called, but be aware that they may not talk to you and ask you to have a seat, this Emabssy will not let you speak to a supervisor or the chief consular if your denied or if they send your case back, so gather proof quickly and neatly and go to support husband! I wish you the best of luck on the next interview ????

Sorry wrote husband it should be wife?

[Idy Fdez 34]

1. Sorry I did mean to say pastor not poster. The pictures she sent were our marriage ceremony pictures at the church. CO said since we did it at the church why didn't we have any of the picture with the pastor together. Also, they want to see our chart records. I'm going to screenshot those from WhatsAPP and put all together on a word document. But the WhatsAPP charts when I screenshot, its not showing the date of the chart. They also want to see remittance slips, I don't have those. I have a house in Ghana so we were not in a hotel.

Hi!

I'm really sorry you are going thru this. Yo can print your whatsapp Conversations, It's a little dificult the firs time but I will do my best to explain how:

Go to WhatsApp Chats, (You are going to see every resent conversations) There's a simbol on the right like this one " > " Place your finger on it and slowly slide it to the left but just a little ( if you do it all the way you will save the file on the top)

You will see 2 choices "MORE" and "ARCHIVE".

Tab on "MORE" it will show some choices Tab on EMAIL CHAT ( Select without media will be faster)

Put your email and... that's it!! you will get an attachment ready to be printed :-)

Hope the explanation was good!

[Ebunoluwa 6,136]

If the CO decides to return the petition, you cannot order him/her to do otherwise...the CO is not required to speak with you following a denial. 'Insisting' to speak with a CO does not exist. IF the CO chooses not to discuss the denial with you in person, you cannot force him/her to do so.

If they have decided to return the petition, they will have to describe to USCIS why the petition is being returned and the consular chief must sign off on it.

Your presence cannot change that action once decided. Remember, only consular officers can make visa decisions. No other person can, nor can a third party influence the adjudication of a visa application. The COs are NOT required to discuss a visa denial, and in fact, doing so would be a violation of law.

A CO or the Consular chief can opt to allow the USC spouse to be at the interview, but that is optional....and no, a senator or congressman cannot 'order' a CO to allow the USC to attend the interview.

1. No one said you can 'order' the CO to do otherwise.

2. "Insisting" to speak to a CO definitely exists and I have done it more than once. Understand the definition of "insisting."

3. If the CO chooses not to discuss the denial you can not force him to. DUH !

4. Troubleshoot immediately has been done many times with successful outcomes.

5. Discussing the the visa denial with the USC is NOT against the law, stop posting nonsense. Certain privacy laws do exist for the beneficiary but that

does not mean the case can't be discussed at all. I am living proof for that among other members here.

6.No one said a senator or congressman can 'order' the CO to allow the USC to attend but everything possible should be done to be on the premises

and ask if the USC can attend. Period.

[Lowlie 191]

1. Sorry I did mean to say pastor not poster. The pictures she sent were our marriage ceremony pictures at the church. CO said since we did it at the church why didn't we have any of the picture with the pastor together. Also, they want to see our chart records. I'm going to screenshot those from WhatsAPP and put all together on a word document. But the WhatsAPP charts when I screenshot, its not showing the date of the chart. They also want to see remittance slips, I don't have those. I have a house in Ghana so we were not in a hotel.

Ah ha, this is something for people to take note of! Now I'm thankful we had a second wedding in the Blue Mosque and submitted a photo of us with the Imam, along with his contact information. When we were first married, we only went to the court house and it wasn't any different than getting a car registered. All we had was photos of the two of us outside on the courthouse steps.

So some new advise for all of us. Make sure the person who preformed your wedding is included in some photos.

[LoveinGhana! 55]

Hi Ryan, thank you for your reply. Will they allowed me to go the interview with her if I have my US passport? Also, since the CO she thinks our pictures did not have any poster in it, is it advisable for us to take new pictures when I get to Ghana for the second interview?

You are allowed to attend the interview. Yes bring your passport and the letter they gave your wife for her to come back on another date. Yes take new pictures. Do everything you can to help your case.

Good luck to you both I wish you the best.

[raven52 233]

Agree with Anh map,

Much more evidence, and not things ""after the interview"" and you being there, would certainly help her chances, without it, I would say the results might be the same as the first one.

But, with you there, I think you have a good chance.

[Mike-eeh and Odie 192]

My wife went for her interview at Accra yesterday. CO did not believe in our pictures. She has been rescheduled to come with more evidence on the 26th. My question is, me as a US citizen should I go to Ghana and go to the second interview with her? Will that actually help her get the visa? What should I do now? Please help.

Being at the interview will boost her odds, however, you being there is not the "evidence" they seek. They want additional photos and documents to prove your bonafide relationship.

[HFM181818 748]

Many posters have the mistaken belief that if they throw a big enough tantrum or try to play the 'I have rights' card, a big red carpet will suddenly roll out of the front of an embassy....it won't.

Please review section 222(f) of the INA, in which it states that discussion of the visa interview is strictly limited.

Insisting to do anything at an embassy will not open doors. You have no power over anyone at our embassies. None. Zero.

For others who believe that a phone call from a senator or congressman to a CO will cause instant intimidation has an erroneous view of what power our representatives have....which is mostly to raise their own salaries. They lack the power to order a CO to do anything. There is one and only one thing that a consular official must do that is mandated, and that is answer a written inquiry from a representative within three days of receipt of same. There are no special laws or powers that enable a representative to start ordering visa issuances or head of line privileges for anyone.

Trying to play the 'big shot' in some fashion will by and large backfire. If a CO decides to return a petition or deny a visa, there is nothing one can do about it except (later) address the issues (if possible) that brought about the denial or return of a petition. If a CO decides to allow the USC spouse to attend the interview, that is their choice and theirs alone. It is by invitation only. There is no specific 'right' one has to attend the interview. After all, who is being interviewed? The USC or a foreign born spouse?

Most people (on this site) believe (erroneously) that they know more than any CO...which is quite odd, considering that virtually none of the aggrieved USCs posting have ever been a CO...so how would anyone claim that they know more than one? Even the greenest of COs has interviewed hundreds of applicants, probably thousands, before they are assigned to the immigrant visa section. Their immigrant visa decisions must be reviewed by at least one higher up....

They are not required to believe anything that anyone says, nor writes on a piece of paper. There are very specific protocols to follow and in this regard, the adjudication of immigrant visa applications is far different than interviewing people who are applying for tourist or student visas (and a few other types of non-immigrant visas), where in that arena, decisions are more subjective.

At the end of the day, the CO's opinions and assessment of an application generally rule the day, within certain boundaries. Once, however, they decide (and their boss agrees) to return a petition, it's going to get packaged up and shipped off to USCIS no matter how loudly one thumps their blue passport on the interviewing window, nor how many letters a congressman writes.

It is not a perfect system, but then, the applicant pool is far from perfect either.

In countries in which visa fraud is rampant, thank the fraudsters for making things tougher for the legit folks. The actions of the scammers only fuels skepticism (with good reason) in the hearts and minds of COs.

[Ebunoluwa 6,136]

^^ You are missing the whole point. Again. The USC can and should troubleshoot at the interview if allowed (obviously) or immediately after.
I have news for you, CO's that have said the petition will be returned have CHANGED THEIR MINDS after the USC had spoken with them. Period.

I don't care how many regulations you can cite, some CO's DO change their minds up until a petition is in the diplomatic pouch and on it's way back.

You are too late to tell me and others that, after chit chatting with the CO it certainly was done.

If you were here for a few years reading regional forums then you would understand from people's

experiences how the dice roll. One should try and may be successful as others have been

in the past rather than take your wide sweep of general statements as facts. You may be the one who would lay down and not challenge

a refusal because of how YOU perceive things to be but you are forgetting about a whole lot of discretionary power of a last minute convinced CO

with a USC stepping it up asking questions about a refusal minutes before. CO's are people not robots.
Senators have requested second interviews on behalf of the USC that were granted.

USC have spoken with CO's immediately after refusals and have been successful in a change of mind to approval.

It doesn't happen a lot but it DOES happen so who are you to know who will be successful in trying and who won't.

Nobody suggested to go in there like an arrogant jerk waving the blue book yelling like a mad man

but neither should one run with a tucked tail; there is a middle ground. It seems you only see black and white and not

the 50 shades of grey in between.

Long story short, USC should be on the premises as previously stated.

[HFM181818 748]

I believe you might re-read what I wrote...while some COs might allow a discussion or might be persuaded not to do something, that is up to the individual. I note that you said 'senators have requested a second interview' which is far from ordering one.

A good CO, however, should back their own judgment without influence from other sources. If a CO believes that asking for certain information from other sources might help, they can do that. If the CO has already come to a conclusion, then it's time to make the decision.

[TBoneTX 43,061]

It's clear that HFM181818 has served as a consul, and his statements are not to be dismissed out of hand.

The standard presumption (and advice in these forums) is that evidence of a bona fide relationship can be supplemented with additional evidence that is brought to the interview.

However, there are far too many stories that evidence brought to the interview is not considered or even looked at. I, and my VJ pal who is currently visiting me, are living testament to this reality. Even these 7 years later, and with now-naturalized wives, we remain livid with anger about this. Evidence that our fiancees brought to their interviews was not looked at.

Furthermore, we remain livid over having been ordered -- by a vice-consul, through our wives -- to attend a "joint" "marriage" interview (a euphemism for a Stokes), or the visas would be refused.

At the first interview, our fiancees were told, in essence, "Not enough information! Go away!" At the Stokes, we were told "Too much information! Go away!"

Either evidence that is brought (to whichever interview) is considered, or it isn't. If the consul has already decided before the first interview to refuse the visa, why go through the charade of an actual interview? If the petitioner's presence was desired or expected at the initial interview, why was this not made clear, either through direct communication in advance or by a statement on the consulate's website?

To add insult to injury, neither my VJ pal nor I was Stokes-interviewed by an actual consul. We were interrogated by Foreign Service Nationals, who certainly had no authority to grant the visas. It's equally certain to us that our Stokes interviews were being observed by the original or another vice-consul.

Our FSN interviewers told our fiancees (who were interrogated after we were) that no decision would be made that day. When I heard this, I demanded to speak with an American. The vice-consul eventually came to the window and said that a decision would be made in 2 weeks. No 221(g) paper was ever provided.

After several weeks of personal hell, I phoned the consulate and insisted to every party that I be connected with an American in the Immigrant Visa Unit. After some time, the Section Chief himself came on the line. I explained the promise of review; he said that no one should have made that prompt a promise, and said to send him an e-mail about the matter with his name in the Subject line. Within 48 hours, the visa was granted.

My VJ pal's petition was returned to USCIS, reaffirmed, and sent back to the consulate, and the visa was granted. As stated, we've been married to those "fraudulent, non-bona fide" beneficiaries for years, and they're naturalized USCs. Today, October 9, is the 7-year anniversary of my own "fraudulent, non-bona fide" beneficiary's uneventful admission to the U.S.

We know personally of 4 other couples who experienced the same or worse during this period. Other petitioners were overheard and observed fruitlessly trying to get to speak with a consul.

Of note, my fiancee's first interview was immediately after the tourist-visa interview of an obvious flim-flam artist (she heard the whole thing). The vice-consul threw him out after a drawn-out process. He then immediately called her, without taking a couple of private minutes to clear his mind before resuming his interviews. He asked her only a few questions before throwing her out after barely 4 minutes with (verbatim) "More proof! Second interview! Bring your fiance!" She related to me all the questions and her answers, and I detected nothing that would have set off my own "fraud alert" antennae.

Yes, consuls are "human lie-detectors." Yes, the beneficiaries' country might have been known for high-fraud activity. Regardless, the process and our treatment stink to high heaven, and monkeyshines were obviously occurring. I would like to hear HFM181818's candid, detailed evaluation of what went on and of the issues above, because the answers might be enlightening in the past situation and in the OP's instance.

I would also like to know how suddenly or radically the interviewing policies and procedures of Immigrant Visa Units might change when a new Section Chief is transferred in.

Edited October 9, 2015 by TBoneTX