pras_padmini

Did you send monthly or quarterly statements from your bank account spanning the time you have been married? Or just one statement? Same question for credit card?

You can send proof of pregnancy now.

Did you actually take those trips together, or just "plan" them?

Do you have joint utilities?

What would be a "proof of pregnancy"? I sent a few bank statements, but it wasn't spanning the time since we got married. Does it really need to go back that far? I thought they just wanted a few recent ones. I looked at our utility bills, and they only have my name. As for the trips, we took them together.

My wife arrived here on conditional greencard, and after two years, last November we filed the removal of conditions form, with what I thought was plenty of evidence:

1)deed to our home in both our names

2)credit card bill in both names

3)Joint Bank account

4)Photos of us together

5)Travel plans we made together

6)401K with my wife as the beneficiary

7)Life insurance policy, with my wife as beneficiary

8)Joint Federal Tax returns for 2010 & 2011

9)Signed affidavits from neighbors and parents.

Yet they considered this insufficient evidence. I'm really puzzled what more they expect as evidence. We are expecting our first child within two months and I need to send this evidence before then.

I can send my state tax return, and car insurance/registration in both our names, but I don't know what else will convince them. Did anyone face a similar situation where they needed to submit more evidence? Or does anyone know why this was considered insufficient?

I am a bit puzzled whether documents need to be sent from someone residing in the US if their relative is applying for a visitors visa.

This website offers an elaborate explanation of I-134, bank statements, employment letter, etc.

Visitor visa sponsoring

And at the bottom, there's a link explaining how a visitor visa really can be sponsored.

Yet looking at discussions on the forum, people insist that a visitor visa is granted only based on the visa applicant, not a US sponsor and that no such documents are needed. So why the discrepancy?

I'm a bit worried whether my in-laws have sufficient funds, so I would like to show my own assets as well. But at the same time, I don't want the consulate to think that since I have the money to support them, there's "intent to immigrate".

Thoughts?

Hi

I'm facing the same issue.Not able to schedule appointment although i selected 'No' for waiver program.

Please share with if you resolve the issue and i will do the same if i resolve it.

Thanks

SSK

Ok, the issue was resolved. Here is what I did:

1)Waited a few days. Initially, the receipt number is shown, but when you click continue, it takes you to the

dropbox page. Then, a day or two later it shows a blank textbox where you can put the receipt number. If you

enter it, it says "Invalid record". Wait another day or two, and the receipt number is filled in again, and

it takes you to the schedule appointment page.

2)If you are still having issues, click on the "provide feedback". Give your name, passport number, e-mail id

and a screenshot of the page you're having issues with (I sent them the invalid record page)

3)When you get to the appointment page instead of the dropbox page, it is working.

First schedule the consular appointment. Depending on what you choose, time slots before that are available

for OFC appointment. Schedule the OFC appointment as well.

Now it's just waiting, gathering documents, and hoping for the best!

I clicked "no" for visa waiver option, and still there was no option for scheduling.

We're not able to reach anyone over the phone either. Any ideas?

Hi,

I'm helping my in-laws fill out their tourist visa application online (B2 visa in India), and the

http://www.ustraveldocs.com/in/ website is really confusing!

So they paid their fee, and there is a "dropbox" letter that basically says "please print a copy

of this and submit it to the nearest application centre", with the name, passport, and receipt number on it.

The thing is, the links to schedule the appointment seem to lead nowhere. Once you get to the dropbox letter,

you can go back to the main page or view the FAQ, no place to schedule the appointment.

Has anyone tried to use this traveldocs.com/in website? Is it better to just call over the phone?

Do they just have to wait a few days after paying the visa fee to schedule their appointment?

Also, I'm trying to access the website from here in the US, so maybe some options are only available

if you're accessing the website from India - is that possible? Or more likely, is there something

wrong with the links on the website?

Any pointers on how to schedule visitor visa appointments would be appreciated

Your in-laws must be able to convince the CO that they will return on their own merits. Your financial situation, taxes, an invitation letter, etc will do nothing to sway a CO on the issuance of a tourist visa.

...

Tourist visa denials out of India are not rare - in fact, they are pretty common. In some cases, just waiting 6 months - 1 year and trying again will result in a visa.

Okay, that makes sense - if they are the ones applying for a tourist visa, my financial situation is not relevant.

I'm really curious why tourist visas are denied. I know there are cases where the "tourist" visa is abused, so people

try to bring their spouse on a tourist visa, where the intent is to immigrate. And of course there are cases where the

applicant has some sort of criminal record and would be denied. But are there other reasons why a tourist visa is denied?

My father in law is retired so he can't show any job-related ties to India. Luckily, my wife does have a sibling in India, and

my in-laws have siblings in India as well, so family ties can be shown.

It looks like there are two main reasons for visa denial:

221g - missing documentation. Not sure what this means. I thought it's just a photo,passport and the DS form that are required.

Maybe financial information and proof of ties to India?

214b - not showing intent to return. This also sounds somewhat vague. I hope showing family ties and property ownership in

India are enough

Hi,

I'm planning on applying for visitor visas for my mother-in-law and father-in-law (from India).

From reading the visitor guide, it seems that we make ticket reservations *after* receiving the visa.

Is that correct? How do we show their intent to return without booking a return ticket?

Are there other supporting documents that they should take to the consulate interview

(besides passport, DS-160, and photo)? To show financial support, I could provide my 1040

tax forms/bank statements, if that's needed.

Thanks

Well Paris is a big city, but if you want to get to say, "St michel de notre dame" from Charles de Gaulle - I guess if my wife is brave, she can go hop on another train to the Eiffel tower, and make it back to Notre Dame, then back to the airport...the big question is with a 6 hour layover is that enough time? Or maybe, drop the Eiffel Tower and just walk along the Seine near Notre Dame cathedral.

According to this it's 40 minutes: http://parisbytrain.com/rer-train-from-paris-to-roissy-charles-de-gaulle-cdg-airport/

Of course this is again an Indian citizen who has never visited Europe, so I think time isn't the only concern.

40 mins (.66hrs) there

40 min (.66 hrs) back..

1.5 hours (going back thru customs to loading gate, more is probably better.. )

2.83 hours (round it to 3hrs)

so 4hours in Paris.. would say that is realistic?

I hope this is not too far off-topic, but my wife (Indian citizen, US green card holder) will be heading back to the US from India, with a halt in the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. Her layover is about 7 hours...is it possible

to leave the airport, see Paris a bit, and then head back to catch the flight to the US within that time.

Does she need some special visa for that? Do people think 7 hours is enough time to at least see a bit of Paris?

Thanks.

I've been a bit busy over the holidays, so I haven't had a chance to reply.

I see your point about how only citizens can petition their parents, not green card holders.

My wife's parents are not interested in immigrating to the US. They just want to come here

for a visit, for a few months.

What kind of visa would that be? Is it "B" visa? They're not really coming as "tourists" or

on "business" or "medical treatment" but to spend time with their daughter. Is that considered "tourism"?

I looked at the fee structure and it is a bit confusing

http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1263.html

Do the border crossing fees and border security act fees apply? Or is it just the $140 or $150.

A visitor visa appears to be "non-petition based", but I'm "petitioning" my in-laws to visit the US right?

There's a bit of technical jargon here, so I'm hoping someone can clarify.

Thanks

Also, are there specific visitor visa rules for different countries? My in-laws are in India.

I don't even know if it is a visitor visa...it seems like that's the only one that seems

to fit in this alphabet soup of visa categories.

Is this true?

Lawful permanent residents may not petition to bring their parents to live permanently in the U.S.

There must be some way for a greencard holder (my wife is a conditional green card holder) to sponsor their parents

to live permanently in the US.

Or could they come on a visitor visa, then return to their country, and after some specified time, be able to

come to the US again on a visitor visa?

Hi,

I was looking for a guide that would show me how to bring "parents of permanent residents" to America. I am a US citizen, and my wife is a greencard holder. I would like to bring her parents to the US. Would anyone be able to point me to such a guide?

I see that there are these options in the "Guides" section of Visajourney.com (http://www.visajourney.com/content/guides)

Immigration Guides for Other Family Members:

Siblings (brothers/sisters) of US Citizens:

Children of US Citizens or Permanent Residents:

Parents of US Citizens:

Note that there is an option for "Parents of US Citizens" and "Children of...permanent residents".

But I do not see an option for parents of permanent residents. Please help both in correcting the website

as well as providing me with any information regarding the visa process.

Have the processing times gradually been increasing? It took me a little over 3 months from the NOA1 to the I-130 being approved (From Mar to Jun 2010). Yet now the timelines for the CSC and VSC show that they're processing those with NOA1 dates last November. Almost 5 months? Really? Or am I reading the timeline wrong?

Let's just hope the govt doesn't shut down this week, because that would most likely slow things down even more. Or maybe the fact they don't have a complete 2011 budget is what's slowing things down?

Anyway I'm glad to be over the toughest part of the process. Now it's just waiting 2 years for the conditional greencard to become permanent. But I really hope the process improves over time, so visa processing isn't so long, painful, and expensive.

Is there any USCIS or other govt page where you got this information from? I want to be sure what the policy is.

Thanks

Re entry permit is only needed for absences longer than 1 year.

Just passport and green-card needed to enter the USA.

Hi,

My wife, who got her conditional greencard last November, will be traveling to India for 2 months. What sort of documents does she need to show when re-entering the US? Is just the greencard and her Indian passport good enough? I saw something online about a re-entry permit and proof of maintaining US residency. Can someone point me to some official documentation from USCIS or some other govt agency as to what's required for re-entry into the US?

Thanks

Hi,

I'm a US citizen and my wife came to the US last November on the IR1/CR1 visa. If there's any Massachusetts resident who brought their spouse over, what filing status do you use? Can we file as married filing jointly? She stays at home and doesn't have any income, so how can we file separately? But the tax instructions say that "A joint Form 1 is not allowed if both spouses were not Massachusetts residents for the same portion of 2010". My understanding is that for the federal return as long as we were married at the end of 2010, it doesn't matter that we lived apart or that only I had income.

Any tax advice?

Not sure where the best place to post this is, but I just wanted to point out that when I filled out my DS-230 I had mentioned that I wanted a social security number for my wife (arriving on IR1/CR1) automatically assigned. When we arrived at the airport, I asked the immigration officials whether we should contact the CIS regarding the next steps and they said we should hear from them soon. Supposedly the social security number should arrive within 3 weeks.

Well, 3 weeks later, we didn't get any information regarding her social security number. So we decided to go to the nearest social security office (which is unfortunately open during the hours I work). Be prepared for a long wait (you may notice there is a trend here regarding waiting times and any government agency). After 45 minutes, they finally called us in. To our surprise, there was no information in the system regarding the status of my wife's social security number.

To get a new social security number you're supposed to have proof of id, proof of residence, proof of age, and work eligibility. If your spouse is arriving on IR-1/CR-1 visa, all you really need is your passport which has the immigration stamp in it. I brought along our marriage certificate and birth certificate just in case. He asked a few questions regarding whether she's ever opened a bank account, taken the SAT's (why?), applied for colleges, applied for a job, had a tax return filed in her name, and a few other questions. I don't think answering yes to any of the questions disqualifies you, maybe it's just for statistical purposes. In fact one of the questions was "have you ever stayed abroad for an extended period of time", which obviously is yes.

So about 10 minutes later, we were told that the social security number should arrive within 2 weeks, and because we actually saw it entered into the system in a social security office, we should hopefully get it soon.

But to make a long story short - when you bring your spouse to the US, do *NOT* just assume that the social security number will arrive because you checked the box on the DS-230. Actually go to a social security office with your spouse's passport and other documents as soon as he/she arrives in the US and get it filed. You'll need the social security number for just about anything from college applications to insurance to job applications, so the sooner you get it the better.

Hi,

So my wife passed her consulate interview and was able to enter the US last week. There's a visa in her passport saying that she has to enter the US by next April, and of course she's already here. But there's no separate greencard that she was issued (we took the IR1-CR1 route). Because it's been less than 2 years since we got married, it's a condtional greencard.

On our DS-230 we requested a social security number, but haven't heard back from the CIS. Maybe we should visit the actual social security office. But the weird thing is, we didn't get any other forms, just a stamp in her passport.

For health insurance, applying for colleges, etc. when it asks for her visa/alien registration card, social security number, what are we supposed to do?

Thanks

After 9 months of fees, waiting, and countless forms, my wife finally entered the US on the IR-1/CR-1 visa 2 days ago. We handed over the big packet to them, and I think at this point we should be contacted by CIS soon.

What's the procedure for getting the greencard and social security number for her? I should take another look at the stamp in her passport. Is there a guide or a wiki page here with more information on what to do once you enter the US?

It would be nice if she could start applying to colleges, health insurance, etc, but she needs her social security number for that and maybe some greencard number as well. I think I checked the box on the DS230 indicating she needs a new social security number.

Thanks

The only proof I have which shows that I am related to my mom is the Original Family Extract which shows all the names of the family members in 1 sheet.

I would actually recommend contacting the consulate - we had to bring VFS receipts in India, showing we'd paid the fees, and probably wouldn't have known about this unless we contacted the consulate. Get on the phone with them - what do you have to lose? It could be different in Lebanon. Also, since it is the US consulate, Americans will be conducting the interview. Make sure you have no difficulty understanding their accent.

Not to scare you, but yes, there is definitely a chance of rejection. If you aren't able to answer their questions, they may not grant the visa. Here are some sample interview questions, which may be different in your case:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/Consular_Interview_Questions

Are there photos of you with your mother, or do you have access to her or your phone bills? Make sure you bring those. I don't think just a family extract is enough.

Oops...forgot to mention the medical exam - make sure you bring that too! For the Chennai consulate, I think they require 4 passport type photos (white background, 2 x 2 inches)

Here is the link to the wiki page about consular interview questions:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/Consular_Interview_Questions

Ignore the part about police certificates - if you've already submitted this to the visa center, you don't need to bring them. We submitted our police certificates from the passport office, as well as the local police station when we sent in our application to the visa center.

Again, this information is for the Indian consulate. Other countries may have different rules.

This is what my wife brought for the Chennai consulate interview:

1)Affidavit of Support, notarized with original signature (they do this at any bank)

2)VFS receipts. When you contact the consulate before the interview, they will instruct you on where to pay the fees, so bring these receipts

3)Wedding Photo album

4)Her birth certificate

5)Copy of our marriage certificate

6)Chat and phone records - which they never asked for, but good to have I suppose.

7)Interview appointment letter

8)Her Passport. I also gave her a photocopy of my passport.

9)A good background in English. Keep in mind that the people conducting the interview are Americans, so if your spouse has poor English, they may have difficulty understanding each other, which might make it nearly impossible to get your visa.

I think that's really about it, because what you submit to the Visa center gets forwarded there, so all the police certificates, documents have been there. Make sure you take a look at the interview letter, and if there are any documents they expect that you didn't submit, you'll have to bring those.

As for the interview process itself, they really ask a lot of questions. There are some good wiki articles on the types of questions. If we had seen it before, we would have known that they would ask about the number of people that attended the marriage, etc. But my wife's smart and her English is strong (they even complimented her English at the consulate!), so she was able to answer all their questions and they granted her visa. Unfortunately many others who attended the interview were not so lucky and left crying. I don't know if it's because of inadequate documents, or getting nervous by the questions asked.

Did other people have to bring anything else to the interview? I don't see any clear documentation on what is expected at the consulates, and I think it may vary from country to country. For example, are those VFS receipts specific to India?

In any case, my wife's visa was accepted, so we are all delighted...finally after 8 months of documents, fees, and waiting!! They should be mailing the visa to her home within a week or two.

My wife has her interview next week at the Chennai consulate. Am I correct in assuming that all the documents have been sent from the visa center to the consulate? What does she have to bring to the interview? She has the medical exam results (sealed) We submitted the police certificate to the US visa center, so I hope we don't have to go to the trouble of getting them.

When we asked the visa center about the packet that they mailed, they said everything was sent via e-mail. So it must be the Chennai consulate that has the documents right?

Also, what are the possible reasons that they would deny a visa? If the marriage is valid, there are no health issues and her police record is clean, are there other possible reasons why they might deny the visa?

Thanks.

Wow, thank you for pointing out the requirement that the i864 should be notarized. If you haven't received your interview date, you probably have at least until October. I think you can fill out a copy of the i864 sign it, and have it notarized at any bank. Then even if you mail it now, your spouse should receive it well ahead of the interview date.

As for whether it's really required, better to be safe and have it just in case.

For the vaccination exam, make sure you have all your past vaccination records.

I heard for the interview, you should bring photo albums, phone records, anything to prove the marriage was real and that there's an ongoing relationship. And of course, your spouse should know the names of your siblings/parents, where you work, your background, etc.