... in response to Babushka visitor visa?, posted by Apk1 on Dec 25, 2002apk (Lee?),
We have been on both the up and down sides of that roller coaster with my mother-in-law. She also lives on a pension, owns an apartment and a dacha, and has no husband or other children in Russia. She had never been out of the country when she first applied for a visitor visa a year ago in February.
We were hopeful that she would get a visa because she was the daily caretaker for her now 90-year old mother, and had documents from the doctor to explain the need for full-time live-in care. She also had a letter from her sister from Ukraine, telling the dates that she could come stay with her mom.
The interview was quick; the interviewer was very rude; and the application rejected without any review of the case. This caused a lot of pain for all involved at the time.
This year, we decided to go the Congressional letter route. We were able to get one Senator's office to find out what was recorded in her file (answer: nothing about the documents presented, so we could argue that she didn't get a fair hearing). Our represenative wrote a letter asking for a careful review of the new application; the other Senator's office emailed a concern to the Embassy.
She was approved without any questions and was able to come visit in March and April.
She applied again to come over for Christmas and New Year's and was sent the visa without an interview. Visits are now limited to 30 days unless you ask for longer, but the visas are multiple entry and good for one year.
So, what to do in your case? Here is what I would think:
1. Try to assemble as much documentary evidence of her ties to Russia (even clubs/organizations/groups she participates in; relatives she cares for; ownership of a car, whatever). Include copies of the deeds/ownership papers for the flat. The point is to get legitimate arguments on paper, and give the consular official a chance to either look at them (which may help, but may not) or reject them out of hand (bad for the first application, but maybe better for the second).
2. Don't expect it to make any difference at all. If she has never been out of the country before, the application will probably be rejected. Try to warn all concerned that this is a possibility beforehand.
3. If the application is rejected, contact the immigration/INS liasons in your Representative's and two Senators' offices and explain the situation. They have heard this story many times. Some will be sympathetic; others not very. In our case, the "not very" was the one who was able to get a response from the Counsulate that confirmed our story about the lack of any review of the case before being rejected.
4. If the Counsular official has carefully reviewed the evidence, documented the materials submitted with the application, and noted the reasons for rejection, there is not too much you can do about it. They are pretty much the final word without appeal. However, in the more likely event that he/she did not put all of this in the file, you can make this the basis for your request for Congressional assistance with a new application.
5. If you can get a good letter out of any of the three Congressional offices, your chances for approval on the second application go way up. In our case, the Representative's letter was stapled on top of the application when my mother-in-law went for her interview. There were no questions the second time, just polite formalities while the approval was granted.
I don't know how universally applicable this is, but hope it helps. I do know that life can be rough for a while after a rejection, and much sweeter after an approval. Good luck with your quest.
Steve M.
