Tourist VISA for my gf

[jksun07]

My GF wants to get a tourist VISA to come visit me here in the US.  I know, and I've done my research that it's nearly impossible for her to get one.  However, she has been to Puerto Rico, albeit 15 years ago, and has worked in Panama.  Also, her mom has traveled to the US and to Europe back in the day.  Would any of this have any bearing on her chances for a tourist VISA?  She would be able to fully support herself if she were to come here.

[utopiacowboy]

How did she get to Puerto Rico? She didn't have a US tourist visa back then?

[Ray]

Her mom’s travel record will probably not help at all.

However, if she previously held a valid visitor visa to the US, returned on time according to the terms of her visa, and can show her old passport to prove that, then it would be a big help.

Still, her current financial situation and her ties to her country will likely play the major role in the approval of a visa.

But when she tells them that the purpose of the trip is to visit her US boyfriend, that may be a deal breaker.

Ray

[bcc_1_2]

Heck it seems worth a shot if she has property and money they think she'll return to. It's called a tourist visa and not a meet boyfriend visa for a reason though.

[Dan Las Vegas]

I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for the visa to be approved.....unless as bcc states she has property, money in the bank and even then this is no guarantee.

[mudd]

(I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for the visa to be approved.....unless as bcc states she has property, money in the bank and even then this is no guarantee.)

very true, i know a girl in medellin,  family has $$$, lots of property, she has $$$ and property, whole family received tourists visas but her,not.   probably because she is 24 and good looking. she has  a visa to mexico, and has been to panama. all depends on the interview person in the embassy.

[Chris F]

But when she tells them that the purpose of the trip is to visit her US boyfriend, that may be a deal breaker.

Correction here.....stating the purpose of the trip WILL BE THE DEAL BREAKER if she states it is to visit her boyfriend in the US.

Been there done that when I tried to get my wife who was my girlfriend six years ago a tourist Visa and she told immigration she wanted to visit me...INTERVIEW OVER....DENIED.

She needs to tell immigration she is going on vacation to see the U.S.

[utopiacowboy]

Tell them she wants to go to Orlando to see Disneyworld. My mother-in-law, sister-in-law and her husband and three kids, brother-in-law and another sister-in-law have all received tourist visas on that basis. The frigging embassy must think Orlando is like Mecca to Colombians - they all have to make a pilgrimage once in their lives to see Mickey and Donald.

[gordo75]

That is both disturbing and hilarious. Our government at work, sheesh.

[dennislevy]

it isnt just the obstacle of getting into the US, from (I assume) Colombia.

The girl also has to get permission to leave Colombia....for the US.

And he Colombia will will look at her age, family status, work situation, does she own real estate, have money in a Colombian bank...and a car? Does she have a reason and sufficient motivation to return to Colombia?

I met an American guy and his Colombian wife today near the Embassy in Bogota, they were on their way there to work on her visa to the US. They had met in the US while she was an illegal, had over stayed her original tourist visa by two years and she had been deported back to Colombia. They married here in Colombia

Good guy, friendly beautiful classy looking wife. And my heart ached....because I think they have a huge obstacle in front of them...two actually. she disappeared form Colombia for two years and she was an illegal in the US.

Colombia took her back in...has no legal  obligation to let her out and othrt then her marriage to an American citizen, the US had no reason to let her in...sicne she had previoulsy broke US immigration law.   

 

[Patrick]

My Colombian brother and sisters in-law have been trying for >12 years to get tourist visas.  So far, of the three (all of whom are professionals with property and long employment records) only one has succeeded in getting a tourist visa.  Maybe your girlfriend will get lucky though, who knows?

[jksun07]

Thanks for the help guys! 

Sounds like it's all a crapshoot...or a lottery.  Yes, she did have a US Visa 15 years ago, but obviously that has expired.  She has a friend who got a US Visa good for 5 years without a sponser or property, just a bank account with a modest amount of money.  She also said her friend gave her some advice, such as: don't say or show that you're too poor or too rich, don't mention family in the US, don't mention you want to study at a university (but studying English is ok).  This is purely speculation on my part, but  it seems as if being too rich might work against a person as well because perhaps this person will want to start a new life in the US. 

[utopiacowboy]

Thanks for the help guys! 

Sounds like it's all a crapshoot...or a lottery.  Yes, she did have a US Visa 15 years ago, but obviously that has expired.  She has a friend who got a US Visa good for 5 years without a sponser or property, just a bank account with a modest amount of money.  She also said her friend gave her some advice, such as: don't say or show that you're too poor or too rich, don't mention family in the US, don't mention you want to study at a university (but studying English is ok).  This is purely speculation on my part, but  it seems as if being too rich might work against a person as well because perhaps this person will want to start a new life in the US. 

The fact that she previously had a US tourist visa and did not abuse it is a strong point in her favor. But when you get right down to it, it's a crap shoot.

[Bob_S]

One possible route to go, if she can prove she's at least middle class and can support herself, is to enroll in an English school.  They will arrange a student visa for her.  That way, she can come over, study English, see a little of what the U.S. is like, and even make some friends from around the world.  But the caveat is, she must actually attend class and study English.  If she steps off the plane and into your car and disappears, the school will report her to la immigracion and revoke her visa.  And she must go home when her studies are finished.  Don't think you'll be able to do an end-run around the system and marry her while here.  It will seriously mess up your chances of doing an adjustment of status.  You'll just be able to date her in the evenings when she's not in class.

[Jeff S]

Well, I would think that you could marry her here, just so long as she returns home and then you file to bring her in on a spousal visa, and go through that procedure - but I'm no expert.

[jksun07]

From what I gather from the replies and from what my GF told me, seems like US Visa approval is contingent upon the interviewer's first impression.  Seems like owning property, having a lot of money, or having a good profession don't factor too much into the decision.  She doesn't have any property under her name, but she's got more than enough money to support herself and comes from an estrato 4 neighborhood.  I guess another thing that's working for her is that she's a publicist.  Hopefully she can use her skills to put on a good impression for the interviewer.     

I like the English school idea.  Would she have to do it through Kaplan or can she learn English in a community college? 

[michaelb]

She can go to any school that is approved by la migra. There are a lot of them, some private for profit, some public community colleges, and most anything in between. The key word about the school is 'approved', if they are, they'll be proud to tell you and it's not at all hard verify. But don't think you've found the magic bullet, they're still going to be just as tough about the property ownership, job, family ties etc. as they are for the tourist visa, and even tougher about the money. The approved schools have, in addition to their tuition and other fees, a suggested budget to cover transportation and living expenses. I think they can vary it some depending on the cost of living in part of the country they are located in, but they can't set it unrealistically low and keep their approval for very long. Oh, don't forget that she'll need a health insurance policy acceptable to both the government and the school while she's here. 

[Ray]

She also said her friend gave her some advice, such as: don't say or show that you're too poor or too rich, don't mention family in the US, don't mention you want to study at a university (but studying English is ok).
 

Bad advice!

The visa application form requires you to disclose family members in the US. To purposely avoid mentioning family here is fraud.

If she is coming here primarily to study English, then a student visa is appropriate. If she is coming here to visit you, then a visitor visa is what she needs to apply for.

Ray

[utopiacowboy]

Bad advice!

The visa application form requires you to disclose family members in the US. To purposely avoid mentioning family here is fraud.

If she is coming here primarily to study English, then a student visa is appropriate. If she is coming here to visit you, then a visitor visa is what she needs to apply for.

Ray

Just to illustrate how true this is: When my sister-in-law went to apply for a tourist visa, they asked if she had family in the US. She replied that yes she did, her sister and her niece and nephews. Good thing too because they ALREADY knew that she had family in the US - if she had lied that would have kissed her chances for a tourist visa goodbye forever.

[jksun07]

You guys are right.  I misread what she wrote me.  She meant that boasting about having family members in the US would not help her chances at all.  She just felt bad that I'd have to fly down everytime because she knows how expensive flights can get.

[robert angel]

I like the 'Disney World reason' and saying you want to see other well known parts of the USA for an explanation for entering. Silly or not, almost everyone seems to want to go to Disney at least once -- in fact it's actually a cliche: "We're going to Disney World!" Very 'normal'.

Immigration/UCSIS is not uniform--different US Govt. employees react very differently, resulting in different decisions made on situations that are basically the same. With visa approvals and for spousal and fiancee visas, it depends too much on the person working the case. One desk jockey can be speedily efficient and easy going on scrutinizing details and another a slow slug and a grouch to boot.

Best to keep it simple and humble and hope for the best. The more you say, the more they can read what they want into the conversation.

Glad nobody 'jumped' on jksun07--at times a lot of us are 'thinking out loud' so to speak, but writing what we're thinking as we try and sort things out. I've said some major bozo things before and I'm glad I've been given some latitude--although jksun07's stuff here is definitely not bozo -- in fact it's pretty helpful.