marinmarie

Hello everyone

I'm having a bit of a crisis right now. hope someone can help answer some of these questions - because the embassy and lawyers that i have spoken to are not lending much help.

my visa of 5 years is soon to expire, so i applied to renew it and it was unexpectedly denied and i was not given a clear reason to why it was denied. it was denied under 214b and their letter to me was vague.

this is a media visa, and the company i work for are set to send me to the US very soon for work. my current visa is still valid - it was not cancelled and has not expired yet, and the company lawyer has assured us that i can travel to the US still right now on this current visa. is that true? even though the renewal of this visa was denied?

is it likely this recent visa denial will flag up when i arrive at the border and cause problems for me ? if so, how much of a problem would it be?

has anybody read of someone in this situation before? : being denied a reapplication of the same visa they currently hold and then travelling fine on that visa after the denial? i want to know if this denial can lead to them denying me entry into the country, which im so worried about.

the visa denial was totally unexpected so im just trying to prepare for anything else unexpected.

whenever i enter the US on this visa, they stamp me with D/S - which means i dont have a return date, and can stay until my work is finished. are they allowed to change that stamp this time round and give me a date to return by? my lawyer says that no they are not. but do any of you have more knowledge about whether they can? do you think they would?

i was told that if im stamped with DS again, i can stay a longer than my visa expiration date if need be for the job. is that true? i was going to get my return ticket for a week or so after my visa expiration date, but im concerned whether that would not look appropriate?

Noorah101

What is the visa? You never did say.

Rene

ian-mstm

She says it's a media visa which would be an I visa... but she also says it was a 5-year visa which is odd, since I visas are usually only valid in 1 year increments.

For someone whose business is communication - she's pretty vague!

Ian

ian-mstm

Did you Google that? Google is your friend.


Yes.


Yes.


It might show up, but so long as your current visa is valid you are allowed to come to the US and ask permission to enter.


Only a US citizen has the right of entry to the US. Everyone else, including those with visas, can be denied entry. That's the chance everyone takes. Since you won't know what will happen until you travel, there's not a whole lot you can do.


Correct. D/S stands for "duration of status"... so as long as you continue to meet the requirements of the visa, you are allowed to remain in the US.


Yes, they can. Is it likely to happen? No. Could it happen? Yes. AFAIK, the D/S stamp is a privilege, not a requirement.


Don't trust the lawyer. He's not the one who's going to get into trouble!


Yes. A visa is a travel document... nothing more. If you are stamped in D/S, you are allowed to remain in the US even after the expiry date on the visa. The D/S stamp, not the visa, controls how long you are allowed to remain in the US.


That would not be appropriate - because there's no guarantee you'll be admitted as D/S.

Ian

marinmarie

thank you for the responses.

and i don't think i was vague at all. yes it's an i visa. and all the i-visas that have been issued to everybody in my company for the last 10 years have all been issued for 5 years, not 1 year. so i think 1 year is unusual, 5 years in my experience is more common for this visa. unless you are asking to go on a one off trip, and don't work for a company who will be sending you to the states for your job.

yes i have googled 214b....... i was initially temporarily refused first, then officially denied. the reason for the denial was vague, they implied in the letter that a 214b denial can have something to do with not being able to show enough ties to the uk. but a media visa does not require you to have ties to the uk. they also implied there was not enough proof to show that i was going over there to do my job. but they never asked me to submit more documentation in regards to that or even called my employer. the lawyer contacted the embassy and asked for a supervisor to review the case especially because the reason for the denial was not clear. but they said no, and that i should reapply. various lawyers have said do not reapply because it will get refused again. the problem with not being told what the reason for the denial was means i dont know what further documentation to show.

to take this visa out has always been very easy. nobody in our company has ever had any problems. so we're all shocked by this denial. and now im just trying to prepare for problems entering the us on the current visa. your responses and my lawyers insistance that it should be fine makes me feel a bit better about it..

mikelincs

Is there anything in your travel record that may make the visa people worried, given DT's worries about extremists or people from certain countries entering?

ian-mstm

This is correct. You can't appeal a visa denial, but you are allowed to reapply.


What's your citizenship? Are you from a country currently on a US watch list? What about your background? Do you have an Islamic name? Have you travelled to an Middle-East country since you last applied for a visa? The 214(b) is sometimes used when it's something of this nature but they don't want to come right out and say it... so they make out like it's something else!

Ian

marinmarie

thanks guys

i'm white british and no i haven't travelled to the middle east.

it's all perplexing as to why i was denied. in the interview the consular officer didn't seem to like that my work trips to the US have often spanned long periods of time, but this is completely allowed on this visa. you'd assume that logically if they thought i was going to run off to america i would have done it and not reapply for the visa when it expired. i've always returned home for equally long or longer periods of time too. he also asked how many people worked at my company. the lawyer said maybe they wanted to check to see whether the company was a real company and if their work complied with the kind of work this visa is for. but they do. as far as i know they didn't even call up my company.

a visa denial is pretty bad for me because now after this next trip i may have to reevlaute my life and career but worse would be being denied entry. so that is my only concern right now. you would assume that wouldn't happen, but i also assumed a visa denial wouldn't happen.

i've been told that if im denied entry while on a visa i can request to speak to a lawyer who can appeal this. so i've had to fins an immigration attorney in the US to be on call just incase they're needed to come to the airport. i know this is a bit dramatic, but i'm about to go through with that and paying them a retainer fee just incase they're needed. i hope not.

Noorah101

I dont think a lawyer can come to the airport and file some kind of appeal right there on the spot. Make sure you get something in writing that this is even possible.

Rene

marinmarie

as far as i can tell it is possible, after having spoken to some lawyers and read up about this. if you're denied entry without a visa you can't do anything about it. if you're denied whilst on a visa then you can either ask to speak to a lawyer - who they can provide or you can call your own lawyer who would then meet with you and appeal the case infront of a judge.

Noorah101

Oh, ok....in front of a judge, yes....at some point in the future. Not right then and there at the airport. In the meantime, you're stuck in the USA waiting for an appointment with the judge.

Rene

crg

An I holder can only be admitted D/S, deferred, paroled, allowed to withdraw, or ordered removed. They can't be admitted for anything other than D/S.

Twinkle0927

All non-immigrant visa applicants must overcome the assumption of immigration intent. Was there perhaps something that slipped into the conversation during the interview? Is there a love interest in the US? It wouldn't be unusual for someone who comes here regularly for work to meet someone, especially a like-minded person working in the same field. Or did you mention something that might make them think you are intending to stay. I'm not saying you did say that you wanted to stay but something that could be construed that way? Talk of getting a permanent job in the USA one day or something?

I don't know how likely you would be to succeed at an appeal if you were denied entry as you have no right to entry anyway.

scrubbedexpat099

I is a temporary work visa for visiting media, perhaps the visits were a little too frequent.

marinmarie

thanks everyone again for your comments.

@Twinkle0927 the only thing i think the officer wasn't too happy about was that the trips were 1 - 2 times a year and sometimes for long periods of time. but this is allowed on this visa. there are some in the US i have met on this same visa who stay for the entire time. i always return home, and the time spent inbetween trips has been anywhere from a few months to a year. there was no mention of love interest or a possible future in the US, anything like that.

i'm not persuing with this visa denial anymore though. i will possibly reapply on my return after this trip if im needed to go back, with more documentation, or not. my only issue now is trying to prepare for what might happen or what is likely to happen when i arrive at the border.

does anybody know what a g-28 form is? the lawyer who will be on call in the US when i arrive said they are going to send me a g-28 form to take with me, which instructs that im not to speak to anyone or sign anything at the border before speaking to the lawyers first. im assuming i'd only show this form if i was questioned then denied.

if they detain me to a cell, is this illegal? can i ask to be put into a hotel?