Guest Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Suadum wrote:I would maybe think about a "Finacee Visa" and just use it as a tourist visa (i.e., not get married in the States and return to Thailand). But I am not sure how that affects the applicant's success rate when applying for another visa (especially if she ends up marrying the guy she went to the States with on a finacee visa) and a (very weak) case can be made for fraud. First, I believe you apply for a fiancee visa from the States, so I would have to go back there to apply. Second, as the purpose of this type visa is to re-unite couples who are separated, the fraud case might be stronger than you think as my passport would show that I had been in Thailand except during the time I applied for the visa. While I think the possiblility they would prosecute is remote, they might make things difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaiHome Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Have you read this Visa Denial section of the Bangkok Embassy web site? From this, you can easily see that you did not convince the consular officer your GF was coming back. If all that you have claimed is true, that is to say, you have a job, home, etc in Bangkok, and you can prove a long-term relationship; I find it curious the questions you say you were asked and that your GF was denied. I suspect there is more to the storey. TH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 ThaiHome wrote:Have you read this Visa Denial section of the Bangkok Embassy web site? From this, you can easily see that you did not convince the consular officer your GF was coming back. If all that you have claimed is true, that is to say, you have a job, home, etc in Bangkok, and you can prove a long-term relationship; I find it curious the questions you say you were asked and that your GF was denied. I suspect there is more to the storey. Hi Thaihome, Thanks for taking an interest. I have read the Visa Denial section. I think that's a good that you're skeptical of my story as I am extremely wary of everything I read, not matter what the source. As I stated originally, I am willing to send more personal information to old hands such as yourself (no insult intended, I assure you). I have already sent a thank you note by email to one person who sent me a private message. I've done my best to represent what happened fairly, though of course it is difficult to be completely objective. A note: A couple of things you said weren't quite right. For example, I never said I have a home, if you mean that I own a house or condo in Thailand. I rent a house, and have lived there for quite a few years. Mai pen rai, krub Cheers, JimmyD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted June 9, 2004 Report Share Posted June 9, 2004 Unless you are married to the girl you should not have become involved at all in the visa process as she is the one who must prove herself. If, as you say, she had a good job and assets she might have been able to receive a tourist visa. But when you enter the equation it becomes suspect as you can not speak for her or guarantee what she will or will not do but indicate she may be thinking of marriage (perhaps to your buddy who you will take her to meet in the US?). Thus your statements, until you are married, hold no water and are likely to be counter productive. At least that would be my guess. If your family became involved, showed they could not travel but wanted to meet the bride-to-be perhaps the doubts would be lessened? Or maybe you already covered that base. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 Lopburi wrote:Unless you are married to the girl you should not have become involved at all in the visa process as she is the one who must prove herself. If, as you say, she had a good job and assets she might have been able to receive a tourist visa. She has a good job with a reputable company, but is not rich. There is little chance she would have qualified on her own, and even if she did she would have had to lie about the purpose of her visit on the application. Lopburi wrote: If your family became involved, showed they could not travel but wanted to meet the bride-to-be perhaps the doubts would be lessened? Or maybe you already covered that base. We only stated this fact in the application. Perhaps I should have asked my aging relatives to provide documentation of their infirmity, but I didn't want to bother them. My main fear is that we will be rejected after we get married. We've decided not try for an immigrant visa or a fiancee visa, as most people seem to agree that it would not be the most honest approach. I think most people believe that getting married will help, but that is not unanimous. Scary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grabii Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 Jimmy, One does not apply for a finance(e) visa from within the USA. One applies for a fiancee visa to the US consulate in the country where one lives. Remember, it is the foreign fiance(e) who apples for the visa. The US fiance(e) does not need to be in or live in the USA in order to petition for the foreign fiance(e)to establish the foreign fiance(e)'s eligibility to apply for the visa. If the US fiance(e) is living overseas, they send the petition to the USCIS Service Center that serves their last place of residence in the USA. Those things aside, I do not believe that a K1 visa is a realistic alternative to a B2 visa if the reason for going to the USA is to visit rather than to marry and take up residence. - The time required to obtain the visa, begining with the petition, is lengthy - upwards of 6 months if one lives (or last lived) in area served by the Vermont Service Center, perhaps a year or more if in an area served by one of the other SCs. - It is likely that the consular officer will refuse the visa application, on the basis that it is not the appropriate visa, after all the time and expense that you went through to get to the interview stage, when they uncover during the interview that the visa applicant does not intend to take up residence in the US. I suggest that your girlfriend try again for a B2 visa, and that you review your own documentation proving that you're an expat and her documentation on her job and other ties to Thailand. If you are correct about the thoroughness of her first application then I have to believe that she just drew a bad interviewer or an interviewer who was having a bad day. Maybe she'll be luckier next time. Otherwise, I have to agree with ThaiHome that something does not add up. (Again, if the interviewer questioned why she didn't apply for an immigrant visa, there was something that caused them to doubt that you would continue on in Thailand.) Grabii JimmyD said: Suadum wrote:I would maybe think about a "Finacee Visa" and just use it as a tourist visa (i.e., not get married in the States and return to Thailand). But I am not sure how that affects the applicant's success rate when applying for another visa (especially if she ends up marrying the guy she went to the States with on a finacee visa) and a (very weak) case can be made for fraud. First, I believe you apply for a fiancee visa from the States, so I would have to go back there to apply. Second, as the purpose of this type visa is to re-unite couples who are separated, the fraud case might be stronger than you think as my passport would show that I had been in Thailand except during the time I applied for the visa. While I think the possiblility they would prosecute is remote, they might make things difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 10, 2004 Report Share Posted June 10, 2004 Grabii, Thanks again for all the time and effort you've put into this. Thanks for the information on the fiancee visa, it's interesting to know that if in future we wish to move to the States, we have that path. I think I had actually seen that information before, maybe in the "Stoopid" thread, but that it got stranded in the vast sea of information I've been swimming in lately. Grabii wrote:I suggest that your girlfriend try again for a B2 visa, and that you review your own documentation proving that you're an expat and her documentation on her job and other ties to Thailand. If you are correct about the thoroughness of her first application then I have to believe that she just drew a bad interviewer or an interviewer who was having a bad day. Maybe she'll be luckier next time. I hope you're right. My gut feeling is that you are, but once you've been burned it is hard not to be apprehensive. I'm trying to keep a positive attitude; in my mind, it is not "if," only "when." Grabii wrote:Otherwise, I have to agree with ThaiHome that something does not add up. (Again, if the interviewer questioned why she didn't apply for an immigrant visa, there was something that caused them to doubt that you would continue on in Thailand.) One possible reason for the interviewer to suggest an immigrant visa that you don't mention above is that they may have been trying to soften the blow of refusing her the tourist visa. The intake officer also made the immigrant visa suggestion; I was standing right there when she said it. Perhaps she was not used to such a huge stack of documentation coming in with a tourist visa, along with a Farang standing there. Perhaps she was new. I to this day don't understand know why they said these things. I do know that people make mistakes, including myself. If you're ever in my neck of the woods, I owe you a beer--and to the others in this thread who have contributed. This is not an idle offer, feel free to PM me and find out exactly which neck of the woods I'm in. Cheers, JimmyD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAYBLOOM Posted June 11, 2004 Report Share Posted June 11, 2004 "I want my family to meet my fiance. Many are too old to travel to Thailand, and some will not be around much longer. Is there nothing I can do? What a crazy world." Thais can travel to Bermuda without a visa, just a passport. Maybe your family can have a reunion there. Jay - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 11, 2004 Report Share Posted June 11, 2004 Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately, travel is not an option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 10, 2004 Report Share Posted December 10, 2004 Just thought I'd let people know that eventually we did get a visa. My impression is that if you get a consular officer who is a jerk or who is having a bad day, you can be refused even when qualified. The system appears broken to me. There is no apparent appeal process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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