TJD

Hello.
I am a US citizen residing in Spain for over 10 years. I married my Spanish wife 7 years ago and we have a 2 year-old born in Spain.

We will be relocating to US in April and I will just be sending I-130 next week. Since this will probably take a few months to get her visa, can she go to US as a tourist in the meantime? Could she be turned back when she gets to customs?

She is planning on returning to Spain in July. Hopefully it will coincide with interviews, etc.

Thanks

Cypher

You should go through the DCF route in Spain itself as opposed to going through the I-130.

The I-130, regardless of where you are takes minimum of 1 year of processing time. In the meantime you can have your wife enter the country on a K3, but that again takes a few months. If you go through the DCF route, you can get your wife into the country that much sooner.

Search through this forum or the newsgroups for DCF.

Regards

TJD

I don't think Spain has DCF anymore.

Eric S.

You should be able to do Direct Consular Filing (DCF) at the embassy in
Madrid, which is usually much faster than the K-3 visa. Check here for more
info on DCF:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/in...pg=compare#dcf

Check with the embassy in Madrid for the exact procedures. I did a quick
check of the embassy's website. This may be the info you need:

http://www.embusa.es/cons/alienrelative.html

But again, check with them to be sure.

Your wife should be able to go to the US as a tourist. She just needs to be
able to convince the Immigration officer when she enters that she will be
returning to Spain. If the 2 of you have any kind of spousal visa in
process, they may question her a little more than a normal tourist.

Examples of things people have used to prove that they are returning to
their home countries:

- Letter from employer or school stating that she is expected to return.
- Evidence of an apartment or home in the home country.

If you are relocating to the U.S., it may be difficult to get those things.
Not sure what other evidence you could bring in her case. Of course, you
may not have any problem at all. But it doesn't hurt to be prepared.

Good luck.

- Eric S.


"TJD" <member22498@british_expats.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Hello.
    > I am a US citizen residing in Spain for over 10 years. I married
    > my Spanish wife 7 years ago and we have a 2 year-old born in Spain.
    > We
    > will be relocating to US in April and I will just be sending I-130 next
    > week. Since this will probably take a few months to get her visa, can
    > she go to US as a tourist in the meantime? Could she be turned back
    > when she gets to customs?
    > She is planning on returning to Spain in
    > July. Hopefully it will coincide with interviews, etc.
    > Thanks
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Eric S.

You may have seen discussions about DCF on this and other forums. What they
are usually taking about is that certain consulates may do DCF for
NON-RESIDENTS of their country. But in your case, you are a resident of
Spain. So you should be able to do DCF no problem.

See my other reply for more details.

- Eric S.


"TJD" <member22498@british_expats.com> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > I don't think Spain has DCF anymore.
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

meauxna

If you live there, they do.
REsident USCs can file the I-130 directly with the Consulate.

Hypertweeky

Spain has DCF but only for residents, he can do it
You are so lucky to be able to DCF in Madrid, it is a lot faster than the K3 route I had to take!!
SPANIARDS!!! wooo!!!

TJD

Thanks to all for the great info.

I guess I was confusiing all these new terms (to me at least).

Can anyone confirm that the best route for me is to send the I-130 to the embassy in Madrid directly. As I am a legal resident of Spain and my wife has no complicated background, they should process it themselves faster. How long could it take?

Just to make sure I get it right, are DHS in Madrid and the embassy in Madrid the same entity?

Thanks

meauxna

http://madrid.usembassy.gov/cons/imm...relatives.html

DHS keeps offices within the Embassy.
Contact them to find out their particular procedure, as every country has its own quirks.
If you want your case to go smoothly, make sure your submissions are complete, with all forms required (there is, for example, more to the I-130 submission than just the I-130). Procedures have recently changed to include a stop at NVC, so it may take a few months, but certainly faster than a potential few years. Immigrant Visa Unit staff at the Consulate in Madrid will be able to advice you as to timeline, procedure and costs.

Spahi

Ya. Please go through the DCF route as K-3(typically 4 to 6 months)
and I-130(1 yr 4 months). If you apply for I-130 and K-3 then you can
not apply for a tourist visa as that will constitute fraud.

lpdiver

IT will also save you time, money, and headaches when you get stateside.

Hypertweeky

Fraud?? No it won't constitute fraud, what the heck are you talking about??

Hypertweeky

I gotta second that!!!

TJD

I finally got it all straight. I am going to file I-130 next week at embassy in Madrid. Supposedly I'll recieve a package in about 3 weeks with DS-230 and requesting additional information. Once I have everything together I can call them to schedule an interview. From what I gather this could take another month but once she goes to Madrid for interview and exam it is all over with.

My original worry still stands however. I have to be in the US by end of April and this whole visa process would not be over til May/June. My wife and child were planning on spending summer here with her family. So if she stays and waits for visa and then spends summer here I won't see my family til Sept (4 months!).

I am still worried about if she can legally go to US with our son (not yet a US citizen) as a tourist while her visa is being approved. If so, then they would come over with me for a couple of months, go back to Spain to finish paperwork and do interview and then come over in Sept once summer is over and she has her visa. 2 months would be a lot easier to bear than 4.

Is there any way she could be turned back if she tries to enter as a tourist with the intention of leaving US within 90 days to finish Visa process?

Potential Timeline:
Send I-130 to Madrid 3/23
Recieve package with DS-230 4/13
Request interview on 4/20
Interview scheduled for 5/20
Visa 5/21!!!

Too optimistic?

Thanks in advance.

Spahi

Hyper,
Please read this following link:
http://usembassy.state.gov/posts/in1/wwwhnivtuv.html

Business and Tourist visa applicants are required to demonstrate their
ties to India. Such evidence is necessary because American law does
not allow the issuance of a nonimmigrant visa to people who may be
presumed to be intending immigrants. Only those who can overcome this
presumption - generally, those who can prove that they have
substantial social, family and economic ties to India and the
financial resources for an expensive trip or course of studies abroad
- are qualified to receive most categories of nonimmigrant visas.

So hyper she does not intend to go back per the post.. so I think that
shall be in violation in the intent of the non-immigrant
visa..deduction is fraud as it is circumventing the orginal intent..
Thanks.
Shantanu