Consular shopping

[Jasdeep4865 0]

Hi, my mother in law wants to come to USA.  She is in india and the chance of approval is low there for a tourist visa.  I have heard that it is easier to get a tourist visa if you first go to canada and apply for a tourist visa there.  This is calles third country national processing.  Does anyone have any advice, is it worth it to try to go to canada first vs applying in her home country.  She is 60.  Thanks.

[Boiler 43,438]

Does she have a Canadian visa? Probably not that much difference, Canada is not quite as easy as they imply. I would have thought it would be harder in Canada as they would be unable to properly asses her situation.

[SalishSea 16,774]

45 minutes ago, Jasdeep4865 said:

Hi, my mother in law wants to come to USA.  She is in india and the chance of approval is low there for a tourist visa.  I have heard that it is easier to get a tourist visa if you first go to canada and apply for a tourist visa there.  This is calles third country national processing.  Does anyone have any advice, is it worth it to try to go to canada first vs applying in her home country.  She is 60.  Thanks.

Why would it be any easier?  The law requires COs to view tourist visa applicants as potential immigrants, so she will have to demonstrate the same ties to India regardless of where she interviews.

[SusieQQQ 11,584]

The US officially recommends you interview in your country od residence, though it does not require it (other than for those who previously had visas cancelled etc).  They say:

You should schedule an appointment for your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the country where you live. You may schedule your interview at another U.S. Embassy or Consulate, but be aware that it may be more difficult to qualify for a visa outside of the country where you live. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html

 

Now, in your case, you’re going to assume that a Canadian CO is naive enough to take at face value that your MIL was visiting Canada and then just on a spur of the moment basis decided to visit her child who happens to be resident in the US? 
 

Also, does she have a Canadian visa? If not what is she going to say is her reason for visiting - that she’s planning to visit because she thinks it’ll be easier to get a US visa there?! Anyway Indians have a 26% refusal rate for B visas, that’s not too bad actually.