adhamra

I have been to the US couple of times for duration ranging from 6-10 days in the past on VWP and the current one is valid until 2020 and I have filled the DS160 form and have got the interview in 3 days time. The reason I am applying for B1/B2 is that with friends whom I am meeting after 10 years planning to do sailing to the Bahamas from FL and you would need a visa if you are on a private vessel.

1. Will my VWP get canceled if I have applied for a visa with whatever the status is Granted/Refused?
2. If I cancel my appointment and doesn't wish to take this further, What happen to my submitted DS160? will it be on my record permanently and accessible to consular officers?
3. What are the chances of getting the visa if you were had been to the US and never had immigration issues and anyone her had got a visa in a similar situation?

shiversaint

1. Your eligibility for VWP may be affected in the short term by a visa refusal, but in general you are not excluded from the VWP for merely being refused a visa if the officer deems you just don't need one.
2. It'll probably be on record for consular officers, yes. I don't know about CBP officers at ports of entry - seems unlikely but always best to assume they know everything you've ever given the US.
3. In almost all cases, people eligible for the VWP do not get a B2, under 214b of the INA. 214b doesn't make you ineligible for the VWP so this loops back to question 1. You have a veryspecific requirement for a B2 though, so I think it's plausible, if not probable, that you'll get it. It would help if you could bring some concrete evidence about your trip, even though the general advice is not to book anything until you have your visa in hand.

SanDiegogirl

Why do you need to obtain a B/1 visa to sail from Florida to Bahamas? Depending on where you are sailing from and to it takes days to get there not weeks. Lots of people do the trip and I'm sure they don't get B/1 visas. You don't need a visa for a private vessel - most sailing to the Bahamas are on private vessels - their own sailing boats.

scrubbedexpat099

I assume the OP wants to enter back into the US and requires a B, seems a very valid reason.

SanDiegogirl

Sorry I am confused.

The OP already has a VWP which is valid until 2020. As I understand it this will allow him to enter the US, get on his boat, sail to the Bahamas and return to the US.

I don't see why he needs a B/1 - or why he should be given one if he is eligible for the VWP.

scrubbedexpat099

Note: VWP citizens do not need an ESTA to travel on the ferries between Vancouver and Victoria, BC and Washington state. They are treated as a land border port.

If coming by sea, as long as it is a cruise ship, you will need to apply for ESTA (check the ESTA website for approved cruise lines.) If you are coming in a private sailing vessel, ESTA is not an issue since you must have a visa to arrive in the U.S. by that mode. VWP is not approved for travel to the U.S. on a pleasure boat.

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...NWpFUXF4Mm8%3D

SanDiegogirl

I assumed the OP was flying into the US - Florida - and taking the sailing boat from there to the Bahamas and back again. Not sailing into the US on a sailing boat.

Maybe the OP could explain what he is actually intending to do.

adhamra

Noorah101

This all sounds doable on the VWP. Problem now is, if you've paid the fee for B2 and you don't go to the interview, it will be a denial and you'll have to do a new ESTA claiming the denial, which then leads to ESTA denials for 6 to 12 months.

If you've paid the B2 fee, go to the interview and hope for the best.

Rene

SanDiegogirl

It is my understanding that if one enters the US on a signatory carrier (flight, cruise) then leaves the US on a private boat and re-enters the US (again on private boat) within that initial 90 day period that no other visa is necessary to re-enter.

adhamra

Dorothy

From what I have read there are only two possible outcomes of a visa application - approved or denied. So, if you don't go to the interview you won't be approved, therefore it's a denial .

Noorah101

Exactly.

Rene

B488

True, but with an important caveat: the application is not legally complete until the OP has appeared in person for interview. That is the moment of application, not payment of the fee. A relative of mine was in this situation (submitted DS-160, paid fee and scheduled interview, then got cold feet), and we checked with an attorney that it's OK to cancel the interview and continue with VWP. The above is what the attorney told us - no application has been made. It all went fine and my relative was admitted on VWP a few months later (in 2018).

BenK91

Is that the norm? I certainly wouldn't want to take that gamble to land at my chosen POE to be lobbed onto the next flight home.