Letter of Invitation for B1/B2 visa (parents)

[Crazy Cat 39,218]

Just having family inside the US is an "invitation"......no letter needed.

[abum 324]

Just now, missileman said:

Just having family inside the US is an "invitation"......no letter needed.

fair point

[WeGuyGal 1,052]

The only docs b2 applicants may carry to an interview are those that show ties to their country, and even with those, odds are they won't be looked at. 

[Unlockable 7,306]

Agreed that an invitation letter is not needed. In the cases we've seen it seems to be more helpful to make the applicant feel better.

 

All a letter shows is why the applicant wants to come to the US. And as @geowrian pointed out, it cannot guarantee a person will not violate the terms of the visa.

 

An example is there was a case on another forum* where a guy had his mother-in-law (MIL) come for a visit for his wife. After few months, when it was time for the MIL to leave, he noticed that she had no interest in leaving. He found out that her "visit" was really a ruse for his MIL to come to the US to stay. He attempted to have her leave, even tried buying her a ticket and driving her to the airport. The MIL threw such a tantrum and made a huge scene that the airport security refused to let them enter. He was asking for help on the forum because he was at his wit's end because he now has an unauthorized immigrant living in his house that he did not agree upon. Legally, there was not much he could do.

 

*I really really wish I could hunt down that thread. I fear that it may have been on immigrate2us which is now closed down.

[payxibka 10,044]

Far too many people are under the misconception that if you provide a letter of invitation that tbe Eagle will magically #### a visa

[abum 324]

1 hour ago, NuestraUnion said:

Agreed that an invitation letter is not needed. In the cases we've seen it seems to be more helpful to make the applicant feel better.

 

All a letter shows is why the applicant wants to come to the US. And as @geowrian pointed out, it cannot guarantee a person will not violate the terms of the visa.

 

An example is there was a case on another forum* where a guy had his mother-in-law (MIL) come for a visit for his wife. After few months, when it was time for the MIL to leave, he noticed that she had no interest in leaving. He found out that her "visit" was really a ruse for his MIL to come to the US to stay. He attempted to have her leave, even tried buying her a ticket and driving her to the airport. The MIL threw such a tantrum and made a huge scene that the airport security refused to let them enter. He was asking for help on the forum because he was at his wit's end because he now has an unauthorized immigrant living in his house that he did not agree upon. Legally, there was not much he could do.

 

*I really really wish I could hunt down that thread. I fear that it may have been on immigrate2us which is now closed down.

hurm i think that might be this forum, i remember a thread like this too...

 

thanks for the comment

1 hour ago, payxibka said:

Far too many people are under the misconception that if you provide a letter of invitation that tbe Eagle will magically #### a visa

that's the point of forums like this, people sharing knowledge and opinion.

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

3 hours ago, NuestraUnion said:

....

 

*I really really wish I could hunt down that thread. I fear that it may have been on immigrate2us which is now closed down.

I remember a story like that, i think it’s somewhere on VJ.

[HonoraryCitizen 179]

I think the question of whether an invitation letter helps or harms a visitor visa application or not should be considered in proper context. Yeah I know someone quoted what is on the Department of State website about it not being needed however in life there is theory, and there is practice and many times things are different in practice than what is claimed in theory. I should know, I have invited thirteen of 17 friends and family to the USA over the past nineteen years I have been here.

 

I will just give one scenario (which is very typical) to buttress my point. Suppose your friend/family say they are coming to visit for three to six weeks (as most applicants from my original country typical ask for), an invitation letter offering room and board saves the applicant anywhere from $2000 to $4000 (using hotel rates) for the duration. That significantly reduces the kind of ballpark figure consular officers will be expecting the applicant to possess in their bank accounts (of course I know consular officers assess a bigger financial picture than the closing balance in an applicants bank account however having a good closing balance helps) for the vacation length.

 

Given the reality that most people from my country (and countries of similar socioeconomic status) cannot realistically show more than about $4000 in their bank accounts, having an invitation letter makes the application more credible because it is believable when an applicant says they are going to use $1500 to $2000 of their $4000 savings on a vacation to the USA. Additionally in my country the consular officers routinely ask for it, maybe 80% of the time.

 

So in my opinion, despite the Department of State disclaimer, in practice at least for developing country applicants (like mine) invitation letters definitely help. Of course if you're wealthy or coming from an affluent country where spending $3000+ on a vacation is normal and won't raise a consular officers eyebrows, you do not need an invitation letter.

Edited January 16, 2019 by HonoraryCitizen

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

1 hour ago, HonoraryCitizen said:

I think the question of whether an invitation letter helps or harms a visitor visa application or not should be considered in proper context. Yeah I know someone quoted what is on the Department of State website about it not being needed however in life there is theory, and there is practice and many times things are different in practice than what is claimed in theory. I should know, I have invited thirteen of 17 friends and family to the USA over the past nineteen years I have been here.

 

I will just give one scenario (which is very typical) to buttress my point. Suppose your friend/family say they are coming to visit for three to six weeks (as most applicants from my original country typical ask for), an invitation letter offering room and board saves the applicant anywhere from $2000 to $4000 (using hotel rates) for the duration. That significantly reduces the kind of ballpark figure consular officers will be expecting the applicant to possess in their bank accounts (of course I know consular officers assess a bigger financial picture than the closing balance in an applicants bank account however having a good closing balance helps) for the vacation length.

 

Given the reality that most people from my country (and countries of similar socioeconomic status) cannot realistically show more than about $4000 in their bank accounts, having an invitation letter makes the application more credible because it is believable when an applicant says they are going to use $1500 to $2000 of their $4000 savings on a vacation to the USA. Additionally in my country the consular officers routinely ask for it, maybe 80% of the time.

 

So in my opinion, despite the Department of State disclaimer, in practice at least for developing country applicants (like mine) invitation letters definitely help. Of course if you're wealthy or coming from an affluent country where spending $3000+ on a vacation is normal and won't raise a consular officers eyebrows, you do not need an invitation letter.

You’ve listed your country as North Korea, isn’t there a travel ban in place?

 

i also think you’re making a common mistake of assuming that because someone shows an invitation letter and gets a visa, that there’s any causality involved. Well, maybe there is for North Korea, but it’s not exactly the most typical of countries re US visitors, is it?

 

before i immigrated I got 4 tourist visas to the US (the first two only one year duration). Never showed invitations from anyone, ever. Lesson: The plural of anecdote is not data.

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

Just checked the stats, year before the travel ban something like 50  North Koreans got B visas to the US (100 total got visas, rest mostly diplomatic). Out of almost 10 million B visas issued . Um, yeah so not really a good precedent for everyone else.

Edited January 16, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[HonoraryCitizen 179]

28 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

i also think you’re making a common mistake of assuming that because someone shows an invitation letter and gets a visa, that there’s any causality involved.

I took enough advanced classes in statistics to know that correlation is not causation. I think I elaborated on my reasoning pretty clearly. Too bad if it wasn't clear enough to you and that you missed where I wrote that maybe 80% of the time, from those I know of in my country the consular officer asked.

 

Quote

 In fact, there are no required documents for tourist/business visa applications.

https://do.usembassy.gov/need-invitation-u-s-citizen-someone-u-s-order-qualify-tourist-visa/

And yet how many people go for a US B visa without a bank statement? It would be extremely foolhardy to go for a visa interview without a bank statement.

 

Like I wrote earlier, there is theory and there there is practice. 

Edited January 17, 2019 by HonoraryCitizen

[geowrian 22,335]

Nobody knows what a CO thinks or will decide. But there is anecdotal evidence at best that an invitation letter has role in the decision. Official stance is that it has no role.

 

Many tourist visa applications are issued without an invitation. Many are refused with one. There is nothing other than speculation and conjecture that such a letter had any role in the process.

 

Edit: Keep in mind the overwhelming majority of tourist visa applicants are refused under INA 214(b) - immigrant intent. Nothing in an invitation letter could be conceived as a tie or reason to return home.

Edited January 17, 2019 by geowrian

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

3 hours ago, HonoraryCitizen said:

I took enough advanced classes in statistics to know that correlation is not causation. I think I elaborated on my reasoning pretty clearly. Too bad if it wasn't clear enough to you and that you missed where I wrote that maybe 80% of the time, from those I know of in my country the consular officer asked.

 

And yet how many people go for a US B visa without a bank statement? It would be extremely foolhardy to go for a visa interview without a bank statement.

 

Like I wrote earlier, there is theory and there there is practice. 

Me. 4 times. I never took a bank statement to any US B visa interview. I did take letters from my employers, and proof of home ownership when I had a home, as required to show ties to return back home. And yes, I got every visa I applied for. Again, the official guidance is that applicants have to show why they will go back home. 

 

(Your advanced stats training will also tell you how much confidence to place in 80% of 50 cases out of 10m cases as any kind of indicator.)

Edited January 17, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[Boiler 43,429]

I would anticipate that the number who take a bank statement is small, not something I have come across or did.

 

The number who take it and it is looked at minuscule.

 

And no doubt an issue for Consulates where such documents can be obtained at a reasonable cost.

[Chris Duffy 1,256]

20 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

(Yawn)

 

Well, this is what the official Department of State website says:

 

Note: Visa applicants must qualify on the basis of the applicant's residence and ties abroad, rather than assurances from U.S. family and friends. A letter of invitation or Affidavit of Support is not needed to apply for a visitor visa. If you choose to bring a letter of invitation or Affidavit of Support to your interview, please remember it is not one of the factors used in determining whether to issue or deny the visa.

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html

But it can make a difference, regardless what is written.

 

Seen it before