Can wife visit here on a visitor's visa while I-130 pending?

[mikeandlani 0]

hello there can i ask a little question how u apply for temporary visa to visit cos i was wanting to see my huband when he gets home form iraq the I 130 wa s already filed,, i hope u can help me,,or advise me..i eally wanna see my huband after he come off in the plane

you can try and apply for a tourist visa with the usembassy in manila. you can go over the non-immigrant section ln their webpage for the requirements. just keep in mind that you have to establish to the consul of your strong ties to the Philippines for them to issue you a tourist visa. as has been previously discussed in this thread, since you have an existing petition already, it will be doubly hard for you to convince the consul that you have no intent to immigrate. Goodluck!

[mike1966 0]

I believe that the granting of a B2 while a I-130 is pending is very embassy and case dependant. My wife was granted a B2 in June of 2007 and has been to the US four times since then. We used her pending I-130 interview as one of the reasons she must return to the Ukraine. We argued that it would be very foolish to stay in the US illeagally and risk deportation vs returning for the I-130 interview. At her POE in Minneapolis the thing they were most interested in was that she actually had a scheduled flight back to Ukraine.

[aashish 0]

Nope, your wife will be denied a visitor visa since it happens to be a (Non-immigrant) visa and you have already filed an immigrant petition on her behalf.

Your only hope is to proceed with K3. This is not my opinion. It just happens to be USCIS law. You could try out www.murthy.com for more info on USCIS rules for family based immigration.

Thanks

Aash

I sent in I-130 app back in Sept 07. I am still waiting for NOA1 (I-797) which should not come as a surprise to anyone familliar with the comments USCIS has been posting lately in their weekly updates.

Does anyone know

1) If I can have my wife apply for a tourist visa while the K3 application is currently pending

2) If there are any LEGAL restrictions against applying for a tourist visa while the K-3 (I-130 and I-129F) is in process

3) If there are any LEGAL restrictions against travelling to the US on a tourist visa that will jeopardize the K-3 visa application

Please don't opinionate. If you know any links to the uscis that touch this topic or have first hand actual case experience please share them. I couldn't find any conclusive evidence one way or the other in the forums.

Thanks to all contributors

oa

[natashenika 0]

the same happened to my friend's husband he applied 2 times and got exactly the same answer " if you have your petition pending in USCIS you can't get the tourist or visitor visa"

so you can try they will happiy schedule you for a visa appointment take your money as the visa fee and will tell you to come back for immigrant visa

My wife applied for visitor visa and was refused saying "you can't apply for a visitor visa while your I130 is pending"...

But you can always try...

Shamim

Edited February 6, 2008 by natashenika

[steve&mary 1]

Hey guys,

I'm in the same situation as Brian&mel. I am travelling to Texas on Monday for a conference (expenses paid by an American organization). I have a return ticket for 8 days.

I have travelled before to the states while married to USC, but we hadn't applied for the I130/I129F yet, so I was never nervous. I know the precautions to take, and establish that I am returning right away (although, if I can get away with it, stay two extra weeks with my husband, but that would be icing on the cake)

My concern is this: When I reach the POE and they scan my passport, fingerprints, ect. will it show on their computer system that I've applied for immigration I130/I129F? Will the only way for them to know is if I volunteer the information? Yes, it is true I am married to a USC and plan to immigrate, but this trip is BUISNESS/ACADEMIC, and technically nothing to do with even seeing my husband. What do you guys think? Should I volunteer this info? Or only show my evidence of returning if asked? I am very nervous about being returned at the POE, it would be humiliating because these people are paying my way to attend (I am presenting a paper on my research)...and these are the people I hope to be working with once I am able to live and work in the states. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!

[franklie 0]

Hey guys,

I'm in the same situation as Brian&mel. I am travelling to Texas on Monday for a conference (expenses paid by an American organization). I have a return ticket for 8 days.

I have travelled before to the states while married to USC, but we hadn't applied for the I130/I129F yet, so I was never nervous. I know the precautions to take, and establish that I am returning right away (although, if I can get away with it, stay two extra weeks with my husband, but that would be icing on the cake)

My concern is this: When I reach the POE and they scan my passport, fingerprints, ect. will it show on their computer system that I've applied for immigration I130/I129F? Will the only way for them to know is if I volunteer the information? Yes, it is true I am married to a USC and plan to immigrate, but this trip is BUISNESS/ACADEMIC, and technically nothing to do with even seeing my husband. What do you guys think? Should I volunteer this info? Or only show my evidence of returning if asked? I am very nervous about being returned at the POE, it would be humiliating because these people are paying my way to attend (I am presenting a paper on my research)...and these are the people I hope to be working with once I am able to live and work in the states. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!

These are very good questions. I hope someone can answer them as I have similar concerns for my fiancee.

[mike1966 0]

Nope, your wife will be denied a visitor visa since it happens to be a (Non-immigrant) visa and you have already filed an immigrant petition on her behalf.

Your only hope is to proceed with K3. This is not my opinion. It just happens to be USCIS law. You could try out www.murthy.com for more info on USCIS rules for family based immigration.

Thanks

Aash

So the Embassy in Kiev and the POE officers in Minneapolis are just un aware of this "USCIS law"? Both of these entities were well aware of my wife's pending I-130 application and they still granted a B-2. On Feb 7th they also granted a B-2 visa for her son. I am a very lucky man. I get to have my wife and stepson here with me while we wait for their immigration interviews. I sincerly wish that this was possible for all of us. Before I read about another Visajourney member getting one in Ukraine I thought that getting a B-2 approved while an I-130 was pending was impossible too. It costs $131 to apply for a B-2. My opinion is that is a small price to pay for the chance to be with your spouse.

Mike

[mateo 0]

Steve & Mary, They will know when they scan the passport.

My wife arrive today and here is the run down and background as everycase is different.

My wife is 4-5 months pregnant (if it was the first child I could have told you the day). She is traveling with my son an American citizen. Our I-130 was just approved this week. She got to the immigration officer and he scanned her passport, immeditately he put it in a red envelope. He told to go with an individual that appeared moments after scanning the passport. She was taken to a room where there were about 20 people waiting. All kinds of people with strange situations. Finally her turn came and the immigrations officer asked what the purpose of the trip was. Her residence and if she could prove that she would return to Brazil. She told him she had a return ticket and showed it to him. He stamped her passport for 6 months. We are going to change the return ticket to 5 months and 29 days out!!!

So:

1. They will know instantly

2. You need to prove you will return

3. If they stamp you for a month then you can stay a month, naturally, if they stamp you for 6 month then you can stay 6 months.

Since we are on to the NVC portion of our journey I expect this six months we let us ride out the rest of the journey, maybe with a short little stint at the end waiting for the interview in Brazil.

Your milage may vary...

[steve&mary 1]

OMG, Mateo...Thank you so much! That is exactly what I needed to hear! Now I know what to expect, and I won't be caught off guard. I will take sufficient proof that I do not intend to stay. Man, I appreciate the information so much! Thanks a million!

[mikeandlani 0]

steve&mary, i dont think you'd have any problems with the admission. since your trip is a business one, just let the BCO know of the same and present your return ticket. when i flew in dec 2006 for the holidays, the BCO asked how long i will be in america and the purpose of my trip and i told her it will only be 3 weeks as its just to celebrate the holidays with my husband, she then asked how come we are not together, i told her we are still waiting for our papers to process, she asked for my return ticket and after showing it to her, she gave me a 6 month stay.

don't get nervous, just give the BCO straightforward answers. if it isnt asked of you, dont volunteer any information. you'd be fine.

[mateo 0]

Thats good advice.

Be straightforward and confident.

Do not offer any additional information and do not conceal anything when asked and you will have no problems!!!

Just be ready for a little extra time it will take to get through the immigration. If you have a layover and its close you might miss the flight. They already had closed the gates on my wifes flight and had to reopen everything just for her.

Best of luck and let us know how it goes.

M.

[Milton y Claudia 0]

my wife has is going to the Managua embassy on the 20th of this month, the purpose of the trip is that we have

to assist to a friends wedding here in PR @ The Caribe Hilton in San Juan on March 15th

also she needs to sign Life Insurance Papers.

I sent her the Wedding Invitation and a copy of the contract of the Hotel for the Wedding.

I hope we get that just for 3 day visit.

[steve&mary 1]

Thanks so much for the advice guys! I will let you know how it goes tomorrow.

Saludos.

[Ilya R. 0]

They do everything possible not to make any sense, if we are already waiting will it kill them to let us see each other while we wait? And if the argument is that she might stay here illeagally, dont forget almost anyone can do the same by getting a visitor visa, which apparently anyone can get nowadays with some kind of friend in US.of A. No common sense, in fixing broken rules, no common sense in understanding people.

grr

[steve&mary 1]

Hey guys!! I am writing to you from beautiful McAllen, Texas. My POE was Houston Intl Airport, and it was a breeze! The agent was very nice. He asked "What brings you to the U.S."'; Me: "I'm attending a conference where I present the findings of my thesis"; Agent: "Oh, what was your thesis about?". While he asked this he was already wrting on my Customs form and typing on the keyboard. So I told him about my thesis, and he said it sounded interesting. He then asked me to place my index finger on the thingy, and then to look into the camera. Something he did that was interesting to me was that he scanned my visa, not my passport. I have an old passport that has the visa in it, he didn't do anything with the new passport. Anyways, he even chit-chatted with me about my thesis/field. And that was it, stamped for 3 months on B1 status. It took less than 5 minutes. I want to thank mikeandlani and mateo for the support. You are right, you just have to be confident and straightforward with them. Oh, and another thing, he didnt ask to see any documentation, not regarding employment or regarding the conference. But I am so happy I had those papers with me, I am sure they helped boost mty confidence. Sorry I didnt write early, things at the conference are crazy! So busy! And I'm so excited, my husband is flying in tonight, his plane should land in about 30 minutes! Yeah!!!