Morellocherry

Hi. I'm needing some advice as im getting more and more confused on this topic!
I'm from the UK and i live here. My bf is American and lives in the US.
We've planned a trip for my daughter (2yrs) and i to go see him and meet up with his friends and family for christmas. We're planning the trip to be about 4weeks long...only problem is that as im reading more on this subject its worrying me , we met online in may(about 5months ago, facebook being the culprit) and he's been here to visit us in september...but will my daughter and i be let into the country?! its scaring me! i mean i think it would be best to tell the truth , but others ive read or people have told me that i should just say im going to sightsee! We will be staying with him for the duration , i will have enough money for me and my daughter to stay there that long and obviously my bf will be paying for some stuff whilst we're there too....please help me with some advice it would be much appreciated

lisa67

Welcome to BE.
You should be fine. You need to fill in the ESTA online form if you haven't done so already. When you get to the POE just answer the questions the officer asks you, do not offer any extra info. If they don;t ask "are you staying with your boyfriend (and why would they)" then don't offer this information. You are visiting friends for Christmas..have a wonderful time

Morellocherry

but what if i say im visiting friends and then they ask me how i know friends in america when ive never been? would it be ok for me to say im visiting my bf and friends for christmas??

ian-mstm

You tell the truth... your friends visited you in September, and now you're returning the favor.

Have you considered switching to decaf? It'll help your anxiety quite a bit. You have very little to worry about.

Ian

Morellocherry

haha,i suppose you're right...but i just want everything to go well. and ive been reading things and been told loads of scare stories !

Rete

Tell the storytellers to take a hike. Answer all questions at the port of entry, truthfully but do not elaborate. They are usually just mundane questions, i.e. business or pleasure? pleasure = how long will you be staying? 4 weeks. Where will you be staying. With friends for the holidays.

Get the drift.

meauxna

That's exactly what my DH was asked when he first came to the US.

chrisfromusa

You have nothing to worry about, you only have to worry about the short time frame if you were coming here specifically to marry him, but since you're just visiting, they won't really be picky.

meauxna

Well, 'they' do get picky about visitors with Immediate Relative connections to a US citizen.

crg

They get even more picky if the person appears to be trying to hide that fact. Just tell them you're going to visit your boyfriend and then you're going back. Don't throw away your credibility in the first 10 seconds. It's all you have on the VWP because you certainly don't have any reals rights.

ian-mstm

Well, for every "scare story" you've heard, there are literally thousands who have had no problem whatsoever... so, try to keep things in perspective.

Ian

Morellocherry

ok, ian. just asking a question....you've made your point

simplysanrio

I have almost the exact story as you except I'm the US citizen. I met a friend on Facebook in May and he recently came to the US to visit with me in July. He stayed for almost the entire 90 days. When he got to the POE, they did ask who he was visiting, how we met and the officer gave him an "eyebrow" when he said online and let him in. I think it's pretty common these days for people to meet online. Like everyone was saying, be truthful, but don't elaborate your answers. Some people suggest bringing proofs of your ties to home, but my friend didn't and they never asked for it. Better safe than sorry though. Good luck!

Morellocherry

thanks for this msg , its really taken a load off my mind...i had planned on being truthful and was thinking of staying longer...but we'll see. at least i have an idea of a similar situation happening ..thanks

sime303

You should be ok. That is the situation I was in, in 1998. They asked me why I was coming to the US and I said to visit a friend (at that point my future wife was just that). Then the IO asked me if I had a job in the UK and what it was. He seemed quite happy and stamped my passport and sent me to wait for nearly an hour to get my luggage (Logan airport baggage handlers are the slowest bastards in the world).