twofromtunja

If they've been denied a tourist visa and you intend to go the immigrant visa route without them actually being PRs, you do realize they are going to lose that GC quite quickly too?

They don't want a green card - they want a tourist visa. Yes, I realize that they'll lose the PR status, but they don't want it - they only want to visit. Hence, the idea of changing to a tourist visa.

I only know of one person who was able to pull this off and I'm not sure if it's doable or if they just had a special case. The story goes as this, he's a naturalized US citizen and his mother came to the US on an immigrant visa. She was here for almost a year, went back to Colombia for a few months and then came back for another few months. She really did not like it here one bit so he went to the US embassy in Bogotá with her to explain their case and they gave her a US tourist visa without any issues, meaning she's no longer a permanent resident. Now, that's the story I got from them a few years back so I don't know exactly what they had to do, if anything.

Diana

I've heard of this happening, but I haven't heard any specifics. I'm thinking that if the CO won't give a tourist visa because they are afraid that someone might overstay and really intends to immigrate, why wouldn't they say, "oh, you don't want to immigrate but would like to visit? - ok". Seems too simple, which is why I'm wary that there's a problem.

Has anyone ever applied for their parents to come on an immigrant visa and then request to change it to a tourist visa once they arrive in the U.S.A.? My USC wife's parents were denied (once, so far) for a tourist visa, but we want them to be able to visit us here. We know that we could bring them on an immigrant visa, but they're not sure they want to actually immigrate.

Thoughts?

Thanks for your reply...my point is that once they enter as PR applicants, they have to remain here for an extended period of time, which they don't want to do. However, they would like to have a 5 year tourist visa so that they can come and go over a period of time as they please.

If they enter as PRs and then leave, they will have abandoned their residency petition and we will have to do something all over again if they want to visit again.

if they receive there residency they can leave any time they want... there is no extended period of time they must stay before departing... they should however spend more time in the USA than out and that may be where the "rub" is.

If a tourist visa is what the want then that is what they should apply for... however, initially they may need to apply for a single entry visa individually and separately and travel individually and separately... after the first visa the follow ons theoretically easier to get

I think you're probably right...here's the stupid part, (in my opinion)...if this is the case, USCIS in this case is saying, "it's OK if you want to come and live here, but it's not ok for you to come and visit." Given that the majority of immigration fraud occurs because people WANT to stay and then break whatever laws in order to stay, this seems backwards...I want to tell them - THEY DON'T WANT TO LIVE HERE! Give them the stupid tourist visa and all would be good! Of course, granting them a tourist visa would be too easy from my point of view...sigh.

FWIW, the USCIS has absolutely NO say on the issuance of the visa... it is solely the consulate

Ooops...you're right - got rolling there and mixed up consulate and USCIS. thanks for your replies.

Here is our situation: My wife's parents applied for a tourist visa a couple of years ago and were denied. She will soon be a U.S. citizen and we are looking at having her parents come for a visit. My question is: Has anyone ever heard of adjusting the status from a Perm. Resident to a tourist visa? My in laws don't want to live here, but it looks like the only way that they can visit is if we apply for them to come as Perm. residents.

We are also considering having them apply again for a tourist visa. The first time they went was a disaster. The embassy worker didn't ask to look at any of their paperwork (2 homes owned, bank records, work history & letters, etc). He asked why they wanted to come, (which was to attend our wedding reception), and he suggested that we just go visit there instead...and denied the tourist visa request.

Anyway, any advice anyone has is greatly appreciated.

if you are a resident you do not need a visa.... it is impractical to do as you say in the way you are thinking

they would need a visa only if the have abandoned there residency (once the were given residency of course)....

Thanks for your reply...my point is that once they enter as PR applicants, they have to remain here for an extended period of time, which they don't want to do. However, they would like to have a 5 year tourist visa so that they can come and go over a period of time as they please.

If they enter as PRs and then leave, they will have abandoned their residency petition and we will have to do something all over again if they want to visit again.

I have never heard of someone becoming a LPR, then abandoned it for a toursit visa. By definition, a person who wishes to be an LPR is telling USCIS that he/she intends to move to the US. If they leave the US for longer than 6 months, they must file with immigration in order to keep their green card.

If your in-laws enter the US with immigration visa and no intention of moving to the US, I would guess that it could be viewed as immigration fraud which could result in them being banned from the US.

What you are thinking of doing could result in big problems for your in-laws and for any future petitions that your wife may file for her siblings (if applicable).

I think you're probably right...here's the stupid part, (in my opinion)...if this is the case, USCIS in this case is saying, "it's OK if you want to come and live here, but it's not ok for you to come and visit." Given that the majority of immigration fraud occurs because people WANT to stay and then break whatever laws in order to stay, this seems backwards...I want to tell them - THEY DON'T WANT TO LIVE HERE! Give them the stupid tourist visa and all would be good! Of course, granting them a tourist visa would be too easy from my point of view...sigh.

Here is our situation: My wife's parents applied for a tourist visa a couple of years ago and were denied. She will soon be a U.S. citizen and we are looking at having her parents come for a visit. My question is: Has anyone ever heard of adjusting the status from a Perm. Resident to a tourist visa? My in laws don't want to live here, but it looks like the only way that they can visit is if we apply for them to come as Perm. residents.

We are also considering having them apply again for a tourist visa. The first time they went was a disaster. The embassy worker didn't ask to look at any of their paperwork (2 homes owned, bank records, work history & letters, etc). He asked why they wanted to come, (which was to attend our wedding reception), and he suggested that we just go visit there instead...and denied the tourist visa request.

Anyway, any advice anyone has is greatly appreciated.

if you are a resident you do not need a visa.... it is impractical to do as you say in the way you are thinking

they would need a visa only if the have abandoned there residency (once the were given residency of course)....

Thanks for your reply...my point is that once they enter as PR applicants, they have to remain here for an extended period of time, which they don't want to do. However, they would like to have a 5 year tourist visa so that they can come and go over a period of time as they please.

If they enter as PRs and then leave, they will have abandoned their residency petition and we will have to do something all over again if they want to visit again.

Here is our situation: My wife's parents applied for a tourist visa a couple of years ago and were denied. She will soon be a U.S. citizen and we are looking at having her parents come for a visit. My question is: Has anyone ever heard of adjusting the status from a Perm. Resident to a tourist visa? My in laws don't want to live here, but it looks like the only way that they can visit is if we apply for them to come as Perm. residents.

We are also considering having them apply again for a tourist visa. The first time they went was a disaster. The embassy worker didn't ask to look at any of their paperwork (2 homes owned, bank records, work history & letters, etc). He asked why they wanted to come, (which was to attend our wedding reception), and he suggested that we just go visit there instead...and denied the tourist visa request.

Anyway, any advice anyone has is greatly appreciated.

What I am wondering is that the parents are so desperate to visit the US that they are willing to wait upto a year to immigrate as PRs and then they will also just give it up after the visit? What happens if they want to visit again? The time, effort and money spent on this - is it not a better option for the children to visit them?

Don't get me wrong, it just sounds too complicated a process just for a visit.

You're exactly right - it is complicated...and maybe too complicated. But there is also a big feeling on my wife's part (and mine) that she would like her parents to visit her in her home in the US. It is certainly easier to go there to visit, but we would also love to host them here. Maybe we'll try the tourist visa route one more time - the last time they were a bit unprepared. The "downside" to that is that there is a good chance that they'll be rejected again and then there's more $ wasted...not to mention that they feel like second-class citizens and that they are not "good" enough or wealthy enough to receive the tourist visa.

"Becoming a Citizen actually made the situation harder for a Visitor Visa." Why? This doesn't make sense. If she is able to financially support her mother, she could file for her to come as a PR and she would get to "skip" to the front of the line and immigrate.

PR's can not sponsor parents, Citizens can.

I know PRs can't sponspor parents. Citizens can. Maybe I misunderstood. What I was saying was that when she becomes a Citizen, it shouldn't be MORE difficult for her mother to obtain a visa. In reality, it probably doesn't matter. However, if anything it should be better that she's now a citizen because the a rationale could be that "if the citizen really wanted her mother to immigrate, she could file and the mother could immigrate legally," rather than applying for a tourist visa and then planning to overstay.

You're right - the best bet is to go and visit her. However, I certainly understand wanting to have a mother come and visit. Telling someone to go and visit their mother is infinitely easier, but come on...are you a CO? Because that, sadly, seems to be the answer many people get because it's "easier." Meanwhile, honorable and law-abiding foreign parents are left to feel like pariahs and second-class citizens because COs seem to look for any reason to deny.

She wants to see her mother, could wait forever for her to come here.

Probably more an isssue with the system, the CO's know that too many forget to go home and there is no effective system to make them.

I plan to wait for my wife to become a citizen, pay the exorbanant fee for my mother-in-law to immigrate as a PR, have her stay for a month or so, and then she'll abandon her PR status by returning to her home country. Stupid, yes. Necessary because of immigration roadblocks? Yes. Maddening when confronted with the millions of illegal immigrants? Yes. Welcome to the USA!!!

Well you got to vote for them. I did not.

Best bet would be to go and visit her. You can see the rest of your family at the same time.

Becoming a Citizen actually made the situation harder for a Visitor Visa.

"Becoming a Citizen actually made the situation harder for a Visitor Visa." Why? This doesn't make sense. If she is able to financially support her mother, she could file for her to come as a PR and she would get to "skip" to the front of the line and immigrate.

You're right - the best bet is to go and visit her. However, I certainly understand wanting to have a mother come and visit. Telling someone to go and visit their mother is infinitely easier, but come on...are you a CO? Because that, sadly, seems to be the answer many people get because it's "easier." Meanwhile, honorable and law-abiding foreign parents are left to feel like pariahs and second-class citizens because COs seem to look for any reason to deny.

I plan to wait for my wife to become a citizen, pay the exorbanant fee for my mother-in-law to immigrate as a PR, have her stay for a month or so, and then she'll abandon her PR status by returning to her home country. Stupid, yes. Necessary because of immigration roadblocks? Yes. Maddening when confronted with the millions of illegal immigrants? Yes. Welcome to the USA!!!

Yes, they don't have to wait for a visa number so their process should take about 12 months or so. Keep in mind that if they do get their permanent residency they can't stay outside of the US for more than 12 months. It's best if they keep it down to 6 months only. So that's one important factor to consider before filing.

Diana

Even that could be dangerous, better move only if they want to move to the US.

Medical Insurance anyone?

I know somebody who came here as a permanent resident cause her daughter petitioned her. But she don't really want to stay in the US for good so when she arrived here,after 8 months,she went to a field office and changed her PR to a tourist visa,and they did it so,that might be one of your choices.

I was wondering if anyone had ever tried that route...It makes sense that if someone got here as a permanent resident but then wanted to switch to a tourist that a field office might be able to help facilitate that.

Does anyone have any hints/stories about how hard it is to get a parent in as a PR? I know there are some income guidelines for the sponsoring person, but anything other than that? Does the intending incoming parent have to show that they are committed to leaving their home country?

Also - would it help if my wife or me attended the tourist visa interview?

No. The COs don't care about your wife's status when it comes to their tourist visas.

Also - would it help if my wife or me attended the tourist visa interview?

Again, no for the same reasons.

Bottom line is, there is nothing for certain when it comes to these types of visas. They either get them or they don't. Sure, it sometimes helps to show strong ties in Colombia that will guarrantee their return, but in many cases, it doesn't even matter.

The best thing would be to try again, and again, and again until they get approved or until your wife becomes a US citizen and files for them.

Diana

Thanks for the help...I was basically thinking that was the case but wanted to see if anyone thought I was missing something.

One point of clarification - Once my wife becomes a citizen, she can petition for her parents to come here as perm. residents, right? And parents fall into the same category as children, right? (i.e. they don't have to wait in "line" for as long, like brothers/sisters). Is that about a 12 month process from the time of filing to the granting of a visa?

Thanks for the help! Unfortunately, it seems like we'll end up petitioning her parents to come as perm. residents even though really they only want to come and visit...uggghhh...

Hi All,

Any suggestions/ideas on the following conundrum?

A little background: My wife has been here about two years. (We will be completing the AOS paperwork soon). When she becomes eligible, she will apply for citizenship.

When she first moved here (permanently), her parents asked for a tourist visa and were denied at the embassy in Bogota. Here's my question - I know that after she becomes a citizen, we can apply for them to come here permanently. However, they just want to visit. Will it matter/help once my wife becomes a citizen if they apply for a tourist visa? I'm trying to decide if we should just apply as though they are moving here instead of the tourist visa route. Thoughts? (I know that in order to get a tourist visa they have to show evidence that they have strong ties to Colombia, etc. They had this information at the first interview but they weren't asked to show it).

Also - would it help if my wife or me attended the tourist visa interview?

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Sorry for what might be a stupid question, but my wife's I-485 was just transferred to CSC...if she gets her green card before she gets her approved EAD, can she begin working? Also, once she has her green card is she ablt to travel outside the country?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Can anyone tell me if it's necessary for the spouse to attend the biometrics appointment? I would obviously attend if possible, but I'll be out of town on business (and I can't get out of it)...just wondering if we should reschedule.

Thanks...

Quick question for those that have already had the interview:

The interviewer asked things in English?? Spanish?? How did your fiance's respond, english, spanish???

I'm interviewing the hell out of my fiance to get her ready.

Hi all,

I've been following this thread for a couple of weeks...Thanks to all that have posted...

My fiancee had her K-1 interview this morning. She was approved and was told to return tomorrow at 4 pm to retrieve her passport/visa.

My fiancee said that the interview was in Spanish at first and then switched to English when the interviewer asked if she was comfortable speaking English. It was relatively quick and he asked the usual questions i.e. when did you meet? Has he been to Colombia? Have you been to the U.S.?, etc. HE asked to see some pictures as well.

She was the first one to be called for the K-1 interview and was out of there in by 9 a.m.

I wish everyone on here luck and feel free to ask me any questions that you think I might be able to help with...