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U.S. Embassy - generous with wife's tourist visa !


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My wife applied this week for a tourist visa at the U.S. Embassy to accompany me to the States. It was granted the next day; and, we were pleasantly surprised to see that the visa is good for 10 years. I should add that we are legally married here, have a son who is a Thai & American citizen, and she does own a home in E. Pattaya ... also, the request was based on my need for her assistance after I undergo major neck surgery. I'd be curious to know the policies of other Embassies with respect to granting tourist visas (under similar circumstances).

 

And, it's a damn shame, although I do understand the rationale, why the Royal Thai Embassy can't be as generous when processing tourist visa requests ... I would think they'd comprehend the concept of the never-ending vacation by now ... especially to The Land of Smiles.

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From what I have experienced and read about it appears that since 9/11 and the supposed greater scrutiny of tourist visa applications, once you are judged eligible, they now tend to give the longer term visas rather the short term common before. This is based my own experience with in Thailand and China over the past 5 years.

TH

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Guest lazyphil

Yes the American Embassy gave my Mrs a ten year tourist Visa with very little fuss last april :), each time (twice we've been) to Austria we've had to apply each time as the tourist visa expires in three months, bit of a hassle frankly :(

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My nephew married a Mexican in Guadalaria in March, 2004. He had met her 2 years previously while in school in Guad. She is a dentist but had never left Mexico but got a visa to visit the U.S. They used that to enter the U.S. and live in L.A., where he works and she immediately applied for permanant status. She obviously can't leave the U.S. until it is granted but customs/immigrations gives no indication of how long tht will take. Most of the reason for the delay is the backlog creeated from the extensive checking after September 11. I know she would like to visit her parents but can't until the status is granted. I assume this is about the same for Thais married to U.S. citizens (non-bar girls) who want to move to the U.S. on a permanent visa.

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Visa doesn't mean a thing when you get back statesite as the immigration folks will still give her a going over. My advice if you can is to accompany her with you when you travel and ideally enter in the same line as she will no doubt be taken to the "secondary" area.

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dean said:

She obviously can't leave the U.S. until it is granted but customs/immigrations gives no indication of how long tht will take...I know she would like to visit her parents but can't until the status is granted.

She can get what is called an "advance parole", which is a silly term for travel papers to be used while wwaiting for an AoS (adjustment of status). No hassle, my got it years back to visit her Mom. Just have a doctor in her home country fax you saying mom/dad is sick. That's enough to get it. No dramas.

 

Cheers,

SD

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Yes, if foreigner awaiting AoS in U.S. residing with American spouse, advance parole is rubberstamped automatically. Only problem, I now understand, is it sets back the pending adjustment to Day 1, which is why my wife's green card was six years in coming, though we followed every rule, whereas others I've known, even wedded to 'illegal aliens', were approved, from same office, in little more than a year.

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That's odd. Ours was not AFAIK. We waited for about 15 months to get the green card after the AoS (she came in on a tourist visa), pretty much on the schedule that they told us. Now this was back in 1992 or so, so maybe different now?

 

Cheers,

SD

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