Tourist Visa - A miracle

[calmissile]

On the third attempt Larissa was granted a tourist visa to the US today.  I will post details when I have time.  Out of 35-50 applicants she one of very few granted this morning.  One woman applied for a tourist visa to attend her American fathers funeral and was denied.  How sad!

I personally want to thank Jone, Daryl (Canada), Skidoodle, JayH, Kevin (KF) that provided info and support to the cause.

All of those denied had the usual 3 minute interview just like Larissa had on her previous denials.  Today, she had to endure two 20 minute interviews with 2 different interviewers and they asked about everything including her divorce, childrens birth certificates, property ownership, etc.  Fortunately she had all the info for the CR1/CR2 with her and could provide proof of everything asked about.

[jone]

I'll bet I know who you're voting for in the next Congressional election.  Happy day.

[mendeleyev]

One woman applied for a tourist visa to attend her American fathers funeral and was denied.  How sad!

I'm going to assume that she was truthful from your mentioning her circumstances. How anguishing that must be for her. Meanwhile the government has likely approved 100 more "students" to come study from Saudi Arabia. Perhaps time to begin preparing for an American revolution.

[mendeleyev]

I had to call on Congressional assistance years ago for Mrs M's visa, too.

[Hammer2722]

Congratulations Doug! I am really very happy for you. Olushka and I are very much looking forward to meeting your wife soon. I guess sometimes it does pay to be persistent!!!!

[Gator]

Congratulations Doug!   

Do I understand correctly - you and your wife submitted a CR1 visa application which is still pending, and after that she submitted an application for a tourist visa, which was approved?  If so, that is remarkabale and runs counter to advice given to us two years ago by a RW immigration attorney.

Oh Happy Days!

[calmissile]

I'll bet I know who you're voting for in the next Congressional election.  Happy day.

Yes, I owe it to him to campaign for him.  We are also going to bring a couple of bottles of Vodka back for the gals in the office that did the work.  And thanks to you for making the political connection for us.  Maybe if you have time, we can get together while Larissa is in California.

[calmissile]

Congratulations Doug!   

Do I understand correctly - you and your wife submitted a CR1 visa application which is still pending, and after that she submitted an application for a tourist visa, which was approved?  If so, that is remarkabale and runs counter to advice given to us two years ago by a RW immigration attorney.

Oh Happy Days!

Gator, I'll post details later.

[Wayne]

I very glad to hear that your wife got the visa! So she will come for the holidays?

[calmissile]

I very glad to hear that your wife got the visa! So she will come for the holidays?

Yes, 3 weeks

[TS]

The age of the person helps on the visa.  More than 35 usually easier to get.  Also, if they tell the truth in the interview process on why there coming it helps.
We have had around 20 of my wifes family visit and known of them had any issue of getting a tourist visa.  They told the truth on why coming and I wrote a signed letter they brought to the interview.  This letter was short and to the point.
 
 

[calmissile]

A few words for newbies about Tourist Visas from Ukraine to the USA....

The rules (unwritten for the most part) have changed recently concerning Tourist Visas.
My comments are limited to what I have learned and experienced in the past few months.  It may not apply to all US Foreign Embassies.

All applications for visas are now done only on line.  You can no longer submit paper applications.
Everything is now via the website and there is no telephone contact information where you can actually speak to a live person and ask questions.

There is still the presumption that the applicant intends to immigrate illegally and it is up to the applicant to overcome this presumption during the visa interview.   

Unfortunately, the US web sites do not provide any specifics as to how someone is supposed to accomplish this monumental task.

My wife was denied a tourist visa 2 times in the past year.  Once before we were married and once after we were married.  According to her, the interview lasted about 3 minutes as were all the other applicants.  She was denied out of hand.  The interviewer would not accept the documentation that she had prepared to demonstrate why she is not likely to overstay a tourist visa.  In fact, the interviewer shoved the documents back to her when she tried to get him to read them.  When she told me this I was upset.  She spent 2 weeks preparing the documents which included her divorce certificate, birth certificate, records of property owned in Ukraine, child's birth certificates, records of kindergarten attendance of her 4 year old, etc. etc.   It became clear to me that this is an intentional strategy of the US Government in order to institute policy changes on a day to day basis without having a record that can be challenged.   None of the supporting documents are kept by the agency either.  Only the application and letter of denial or approval.

For the present attempt for her to obtain a visa, I researched all I could find on the topic.  Very little worthwhile, current info is available.  It used to be a lot different.

For the record...... No One, except the applicant can attend the tourist visa interview.  That includes husbands as well!
Thanks to some of our members at RWD, I also got some useful advice and suggestions.  Jone recommended that I contact my Congressman (that he knows personally) and seek the advice of his office.  I had explained what happened during the previous attempts and particularly that the interviewer does not even read the supporting documents.  The Congressman had me send them Larissa's application as well as all of the supporting documentation she had prepared.  His office then forwarded it all to the embassy with the simple request that is do what they can to assist his constituent.  A response from the embassy stated that they would do everything possible within the law and rules to assist his constituent.

Larissa was already disappointed from previous attempts and felt that the US Government did not like her.  LOL

Prior to leaving the US to make this personal trip to witness her interview in person, I had tried to contact the embassy to learn if I, the husband could attend the interview.  I was not able to get an answer before leaving, although some people had indicated that they had attended the interviews of their family members in the past (for a tourist visa).  I was optimistic.

Prior to leaving, I had also made an appointment with the Citizens Services at the embassy.  I wanted an answer about attending the interview as well as to inquire about the specific requirements to overcome the presumption of overstaying a visa.  The appointment was made on line (the only way) and there was no correct box to check for the reason for the appointment.  Fortunately, there was one of them that had "other" and that was good enough for me.  LOL

Upon arrival at Kiev I received a response to the question about attending Larissa's interview.  The answer was an emphatic NO WAY!  It is not permitted for any Tourist Visa interviews.  It IS permitted for spousal and fiance interviews.

My interview was scheduled for 8:30 A.M. and Larissa's interview was scheduled for 9:30 A.M.   I decided to attend my interview and discuss the interview process and try to determine in greater depth how to overcome the obstacles.  The meeting with the embassy official was interesting even though it did not provide any concrete answers to my questions.  First of all, the official stated that I could not attend the interview of my wife.  When I stated that on previous occasions, they would not even read the documents she had provided.   The official then went on to tell me about the process and the reasons it is so difficult to obtain a tourist visa.

One of the most interesting comments he stated was that "Many applicants in the past sought to avoid the high cost of finace visa and spousal visa fees since you could file for a Tourist Visa for only $180 and then vanish once they arrived.  He further stated that the cost for applicants to obtain an immigration visa was $2,000 - $20,000 using and attorney.   The tourist visa for $180 was simply a cheap way to get to the US and of course they would also disappear into the ether.   

I had not heard of or thought about this reasoning for tightening up on tourist visas, but it seems that there were some legitimate reasons.  After my interview I went back to our car and had little hope that the visa would be approved.  We sat and chatted.  Larissa did not even want to go to her interview.  She was still humiliated from the previous denials and did not want to face another one.  With a little coaxing and TLC, she reluctantly got out of the car and picked up her ream of documents.  Off she went.  I did some praying for the first time in many moons.

As I watched the clock and chain smoked, I was waiting for the inevitable.  Finally after 1/2 hour I was wondering why she had not come out yet.  By 3/4 hour I was beginning to have some hope.  More praying!
After about an hour I had the feeling that she either was approved or was put in the stockade for creating a disturbance.  LOL

Finally at 1.5 hours she returned to the car with a big smile.  Approved at last!

In her debrief to me she stated that of all the many people at the interviews, she thinks she was the only one approved.  In one case a women applied for a tourist visa to attend the funeral of her American father.  She was denied and crying up a storm.  What a shame!

Furthermore, the reason it took her so long was that instead of the 3 minute interview/denial, she had two 20 minute interviews with different consular officials.  They asked her about everything you would ask a spousal or fiance visa applicant.   Fortunately, she had taken all of the CR!/CR2 docs with her even though I told her they were not necessary.  Score one for Larissa!


I did not realize it, but you have to have the Visa mailed to you at a predetermined address.  The embassy indicated it would take 3-5 days to arrive.  Unfortunately that is way past my present airline reservation to leave.  We also need to get Larissa a round trip ticket hopefully departing on the same flight I will be on.  So, the airline tickets are going to be a logistical problem and I will miss a lot more work than planned but it will be well worth it.

Now, if only I had been more optimistic and hired a housecleaner before I left.  LOL

We plan to fly to Seattle soon after arrival and in addition to meeting my family, we hope to meet up again with a number of our RWD forum members again that live in the Seattle area.

[lonedrake]

Congrats!  Perseverance pays off.  I would have never even tried after two failed attempts. Good for you

 Also thanks for the providing the details to this.

[BillyB]

On the third attempt Larissa was granted a tourist visa to the US today. 

I've read a lot of tourist visa threads and some people say third time is the charm. But the reasons for that may vary. People have said there is a a very rude interviewer that denies tourist visas almost 100% of the time. She was pregnant when my MIL applied the second time for a tourist visa and probably has had her baby now so she's probably not working to the delight of many tourist visa applicants. My MIL got her twice in the first two interviews. I didn't want to take any chances so I asked my congressman for help and my MIL was approved on the third time. Interviewer was very polite too.

[calmissile]

I've read a lot of tourist visa threads and some people say third time is the charm. But the reasons for that may vary. People have said there is a a very rude interviewer that denies tourist visas almost 100% of the time. She was pregnant when my MIL applied the second time for a tourist visa and probably has had her baby now so she's probably not working to the delight of many tourist visa applicants. My MIL got her twice in the first two interviews. I didn't want to take any chances so I asked my congressman for help and my MIL was approved on the third time. Interviewer was very polite too.

You are supposed to be guaranteed a different interviewer each time.  Hope to see you in Seattle.

[ML]

WOW Doug, I really commend you for taking the time to prepare this write up concerning the latest scoop re tourist visas from Ukraine to USA.

Should be interesting and worthwhile reading for anyone who is trying to go this route.

The words of the man to you talked to at Embassy confirms what many of us have said over the years.  That is that the people who are trying to get (and mostly refused) visas are victims of their own country men/women who have proceeded them and violated the terms of the tourist visas.

What really ticks me is how so many FSU mobster/mafia types are here in the USA.  How the fock did they get any type of visa to enter USA?

Thanks again Doug; I don't think I  would have taken the time to type up this info while I was 'in country.'

[calmissile]

WOW Doug, I really commend you for taking the time to prepare this write up concerning the latest scoop re tourist visas from Ukraine to USA.

Should be interesting and worthwhile reading for anyone who is trying to go this route.

The words of the man to you talked to at Embassy confirms what many of us have said over the years.  That is that the people who are trying to get (and mostly refused) visas are victims of their own country men/women who have proceeded them and violated the terms of the tourist visas.

What really ticks me is how so many FSU mobster/mafia types are here in the USA.  How the fock did they get any type of visa to enter USA?

Thanks again Doug; I don't think I  would have taken the time to type up this info while I was 'in country.'

There was another important comment made and I can't remember exactly how it was worded.  It was something along the line......." We know that if we let your wife/fiance get into the US on any kind of temporary visa, she can then apply for a change of status and remain in the US while it is being processed". 

Not exactly worded correctly, but it was in response to me arguing that my wife would have to return home if she was granted a tourist visa.

I recall talking to an immigration attorney a couple years ago, and this is one of the tricks they use.   There are many other variations that attorneys use that most people are not familiar with.  There are business visas.  You can form a partnership with someone and then justify entry on that basis.  Then there are student visas and several other types as well.   I think these are the vehicles that attorneys and the wealthy use instead of doing it the hard way like the rest of us unwashed.     

[calmissile]

It's been a couple of hectic days since Larissa's tourist visa was approved.  The procedure is that the embassy tells you that you are approved and keeps your passport.  Your told that you will receive a confirmation email and told to pick up your passport (with the visa) in the next 3-4 days.

This created a problem in that my return flight home is for tomorrow (Tues) and I don't know if the visa will arrive to today or not.  Also, I can't buy her tickets until I know when the visa will arrive.

After Larissa called the embassy today she was told that she could pick up her passport at TNT in an hour.  We tracked down TNT (which is actually a courier sort of service, like FedEx) at the old Kiev airport.  Sure enough the gal sitting at the desk had Larissa's visa.   She could not wait to get to the car, ripped open the envelope and withdrew her passport.   What came next was a surprise.  She gasped and showed me the visa.  It only has two dates on it.  Dec 1, 2013 and Dec 1, 2018.   As far as we can tell, she was granted a 5 year tourist visa.

Once in a rare while, things really fall into place.  After arriving home, I emailed and called my AAA travel agent in the US and asked if there was any possibility to get Larissa on the same flight as I am on tomorrow morning.  Sure enough, within a half hour I received the confirmation email for her flight.  Instead of waiting for a flight later in the week, we managed to get to fly together tomorrow.

I guess perseverance does pay off.   Thanks again to JonE and the other members that provided the tips to make this happen.

[Wayne]

Well Doug, I am glad that you and your wife can be together for the holidays! Good luck!

[Slumba]

Congratulations Doug!  Have a safe trip back to USA...

[calmissile]

Thanks for all the nice comments.  As planned, we were booked on the same flight(s) coming back to California.  I noticed that Larissa's ticket did not have seat assignments.  I suspected that since it was only a few hour notice between booking her ticket and acutally getting on the plane, it was impossible to get seating together.   Calling my AAA agent shortly before the flight confirmed this.  Seating assignment is transfered to the gate at this point.

Oh, well.  We were so happy about the visa approval, this is a small price to pay.  Upon arrival at the airport in Kiev, the gal at the counter rearranged seating and was able to get us a window and center seat together.  In Amsterdam, the plane was full and changing the seating was impossible for the gate agent.  As luck has it, I had an aisle seat and Larissa had a window seat in a different row.  The woman that had a middle seat next to Larissa was very cooperative to trade seats with me, so problem solved.  Sometimes things just fall into place.

Customs control at LAX was a mess.  Some ladies in blue uniforms were directing people into different lines and it seemed to not matter whether the lines were labeled Citizens or Visitors.  It was very slow getting through customs.  I asked one of the ladies in blue whether we should split up and get in the correct lines or if we could be processed together.  She indicated that since I was a citizen, just take my wife with me and they would process us together.  Sure enough, once we got to the customs agent it was a breeze.

After Larissa was approved, I asked the agent to confirm that she had a multi-entry visa for 5 years.  She indicted "Yes, but if she were to be coming and going on a frequent basis, immigration might conclude that she is living in the US and revoke her visa".   Just a little tip for those in the same situation.

One of my friends picked us up at LAX and we headed for Redlands.  As soon as my phone started working we received a couple welcome home calls from RWD members.  Thanks.

We were both dead tired and wanted to sleep.  Instead of asking Larissa to cook dinner, I suggestd that we go out to eat.  A local pub has Taco Tuesdays where a lot of locals hang out and I decided to chance it that she would eat tacos.    A couple Corona's and tacos and Larissa was ready to fall asleep.

It was a great trip with a great outcome!  Now for a month of adjustment to life in the USA for her.  Hopefully, we will get to Seattle this weekend and she will meet my family as well as some of the RWD members that live in the area.

Anyone in Seattle that wants to get together this weekend should PM, Email, or Skype me and we can set up a place and time.

Photos will follow as we experience her visit/adjustment to life in the US.     


ML, I forgot to answer your question about concurrent visas.....
No, we have not yet filed the CR1/CR2.  Larisssa has some personal business to clean up before we can file the CR1/CR2.  All the paperwork is done, its just waiting for the trigger.  It should happen in the next 2-3 months.  It would appear that she can come and visit me on her tourist visa during the processing of the spousal visa, which is good in that it is more difficult for me to get away from the new job.

[GregfromGa]

This thread caught my eye. The girl that I am planning to go see sooner rather than later. Probably early to mid January, well she is some kind of professor at some college. She has a multi entry EU visa and she has traveled to 15 different countries including Canada. At almost 39, I would have to think her chances are above average at her maybe coming here so she can watch one of my kids while I ride with the other one on the Fly Dumbo @ Disney. Am I wrong to assume she has a better than average chance?  When should she apply? How long is the process. We are looking at this summer, mid June to early August.

[calmissile]

This thread caught my eye. The girl that I am planning to go see sooner rather than later. Probably early to mid January, well she is some kind of professor at some college. She has a multi entry EU visa and she has traveled to 15 different countries including Canada. At almost 39, I would have to think her chances are above average at her maybe coming here so she can watch one of my kids while I ride with the other one on the Fly Dumbo @ Disney. Am I wrong to assume she has a better than average chance?  When should she apply? How long is the process. We are looking at this summer, mid June to early August.

I really have no idea about the success of someone else.  It was a difficult journey for us.  If you want to chat privately about it send me a PM or we could go to chat when we are both available.

To put it bluntly, single women from the FSU are almost always denied tourist visas to the US.  The process is very quick.  The woman can apply on line for a tourist visa application.  The form is very simple and does not allow for the data to be supplied that would convice the consulate that she will not overstay the visa.  That is only done at the interview.  Most cases, takes 3 minutes and then the form letter for denial is handed them.

Once the confirmation of the application is emailed to her (in a couple of days), she can go to the website and schedule the interview.  The interview can normally be scheduled in a matter of days.  Between the time she receives the confirmation of the interview and the appointment, she has to go to a specific bank and pay the visa processing fee (about $180).

Remember that in our case, we are married.  I don't have any info that would suggest that it made a difference one way or the other.   The most difficult job will be to convince the consulate officer that she cannot and will not overstay her visa, if issued.

[Faux Pas]

I really have no idea about the success of someone else.  It was a difficult journey for us.  If you want to chat privately about it send me a PM or we could go to chat when we are both available.

To put it bluntly, single women from the FSU are almost always denied tourist visas to the US.  The process is very quick.  The woman can apply on line for a tourist visa application.  The form is very simple and does not allow for the data to be supplied that would convice the consulate that she will not overstay the visa.  That is only done at the interview.  Most cases, takes 3 minutes and then the form letter for denial is handed them.

That's just not true cal. In the past it was a very different matter, not so much nowadays. 5-6 years ago these things started easing in a dramatic fashion. Prior to that a single woman who met all of the requirements most likely would have been denied and no reason given. Travel history and reason to return are the biggest factors as I understand it. Presently, most who qualify are approved. Why the change of heart I have no idea but, I know personally a few RW who travel to the U.S, and were approved the first time.

[Lily]

Congrats to Larisa on her visa Doug!    and I am very happy for you that you are going to spend the holidays together! 
 
As a holder of a 10 years multiple entry visa to the U.S., I, too, can go and come home almost as many times as I want. However, that does not save me from an interview with a U.S. officer right on the border, and from an obligation to provide a plausible information about what is the purpose of my every visit and the address where I am going to stay in the U.S. Even a holder of a valid visa can face a situation when she or he is denied entry to the U.S. if the border officer is not satisfied with the information.
The border officers can deny you admission at any time.
 
Luckily my Canadia citizenship is on its way to me    Curious whether the Canadians are being asked the same questions and may be denied as well...