Coco8

Are they just scamming people, though? Because there is no evidence that they are actually getting any of those visas. Publishing in fake journals is pretty easy to spot because there are journal rankings, etc. On reddit, I found out that there are also agencies scamming Indian students who apply for masters in the US and get them into these private universities that somehow have 2-3 masters degrees. Then they get the visa denied because, clearly the university is very scammy and accepts everyone, and they loose all of their money LMAO

Most of the companies you mention have offices and hire people in Europe as well. You could try for jobs there and then move on L1 to the US. Getting an O1 for freelance work is very difficult. O1 is typically to work somewhere; though it's possible for freelance, it would be harder to achieve. I guess it's because most visas are to work for a company rather than to work freelance. You also have visas for creating a company, but those require hiring people, investment, etc., and not for a single-person 'company'.

I would do an AirBnB or something temporary, like others suggest. Renting remote is a hit or miss as well. Some places have nice photos but end up being a dump when you see it in person. Once you are in the city, I'd suggest avoiding apartment complex that are all rentals, because they tend to have more rules and requirements than when an owner is renting a property they own (or at least I've been able to negotiate and they are more flexible if they like you).

My take is that there is no need to rush here. Your 'husband' (since you did a ceremony in India) is on an F1 and graduates January 2026. They should have an OPT for 1-3 years. Why not apply for a marriage visa? It doesn't matter that he is in the US. Given that his F1 ends January, he can still get a job on OPT and then, when the visa is done, go to India for visa stamping. In the meantime, you can get a job again to do the financial support yourself, and maybe get help from your parents. They wouldn't be able to leave the US, though, because it would be iffy to get back in when there is a marriage visa being processed, since that shows intent to stay the US. Anyway, this is just an idea, I don't know what others think.

Mine was rescheduled. I a few weeks later I got a new date. It happens. There could be a number of reasons, from someone got sick and they had to move people around, to something broke in their system and they scheduled too many people for a day. I wouldn't worry.

You need to contact the office of international students of the university

People on this thread were too paranoid. I've been in academia for years and OP's research is covered by ESTA. Also, if OP were to meet a coauthor to work on a paper, that's is still covered by ESTA (no, you don't need a work visa). Or if OP attended a conference and talked about work, or if OP was invited to speak at a seminar (as long as it doesn't have a 'speaker fee', which 99% don't). None of these activities are generating money for anyone and OP doesn't work for a US institution in any capacity or get money from them. Also, if you publish a paper, you don't get paid for that, so it's not generating money.

It seems to me that the advice you are getting is from people giving you advice on the phone and not really representing you. I don't think claiming ignorance, even if true, works for getting out of misrepresentation and fraud. Particularly in this administration. I wouldn't trust any advice you are being given by someone who is not representing you or has not 'won' cases involving misrepresentation or has knowledge of muslim customs. The only idea I have is to try to find some professors of law in your country or in the US (who know about muslim law?) who can write about how this paperwork or ceremony is not viewed as marriage in your country. Maybe trying to explain it is a gray area works. Then you could have this religious officiant say he thinks the paperwork counts as marriage, but if you could find another who thinks it doesn't (not sure this is possible), then that could help you. I honestly don't understand all of these customs, but I don't think saying "We thought doing this ceremony was not marriage, but when I realized we were married, instead of leaving and doing a marriage visa, I tried to fix it retroactively" is enough. Plus, it's been like 2 years since he came to the US on a K1 and you never married. If you truly thought it was not an official marriage, you could have asked another religious officiant or just marry in the court house.

You could get them a credit card extension and give it to them when you see each other (or maybe mail it)? I got a credit card on my dad's name that's an extension of mine and he can use it for stuff back home. I only had to call my bank (bank of america) and we did everything on the phone. They only needed his name.

I don't see why this is an OR situation and not an AND situation. Get married on Zoom Utah and then have a party in Mexico with a ceremony. Also, if you have a party, then I would only assume it looks better than only having the Zoom Utah marriage.

LOL I never get it right. thanks

There seems to be a bit of everything. A case I read about was "this GC holder has turned away and sent back"... but then it said he had a DIY... I get that maybe sometimes they can be lenient, but a DYI is not nothing so if they wanted, they could turn you back. Maybe for Americans having a DYI is nothing XD Another case, like that actress applying for a TN visa was bizarre since they could have turned her back at the border if there was something wrong with her paperwork instead of leaving her 2 weeks at a detention center for no reason!

I'm sorry. If you are so worried, why don't you get married? I don't understand how you call someone fiancé but don't get married to solve the visa issues? The faster you marry, the faster he'll be able to become a citizen and get a green card for his mother.

I thought it was hilarious and sad lol

Are they maybe asking you to put a Hague Apostille on this birth certificate? I think you need to write down the exact words you got from the US embassy. The new copy of the birth certificate is not a problem. Everyone submits new copy with a new stamp dated closer to their application date.

Thank you! This helps. I would still keep my current address where all of my mail goes. And I also have an ID for this state.

Hi! I might get an offer for a job that's only 6 months and I would have to stay in this other state 4-3 days a week, be home/work remote the rest of the week. It's a top company, otherwise I wouldn't consider so much travel XD I want to make sure that I do not have to change my address with USCIS. I'm not going to rent a long term place there, though I'll have to pay taxes in the other state for the days I'm there, etc. I don't want to change my address because this would be 6 months and I'm able to file for citizenship August of the next year (so it would delay for me if I had to change my address). Thoughts? Thanks PS: I hate the address change the most so I can't wait for USC so I don't have to do that again.