shirleychang

My mother-in-law's tourist visa is expiring on Jan 16. My husband
applied for her extension of stay and was denied on a letter dated Jan
13. We're arranging for her to leave the country, but we can't tickets
for her to leave until Jan 23. Will that become a problem for her to
return to US in the future?

She got her visa since 1998 and is valid for multiple entries till
2008. She has been here 3 times, including one time in 2001 where she
stayed for 6 months, then applied for an extension to stay and was
granted. So she has never violated immigration laws except for this
time.

Thanks,
Shirley

crg

She'll need a new visa prior to seeking admission again. The current visa will be void pursuant to 222(g) INA.

The worst thing that could happen at the border if she attempts to use the visa again is an expedited removal order with a 5 year bar from reentry unless she lies about the overstay.

The consulate will probably be reasonable if it's obvious that she still has firm ties to her home country.

Folinskyinla

Hi:

She will need to apply for a new visa at the consulate. Provide them with a copy of everything.

BTW, on the pedantic side, the "visa" is the document granted by the consulate abroad for permission to come to a port of entry and apply for admission. Her "stay" and not her "visa" has expired -- although in this case her overstay has cancelled her "visa" as a matter of law.

On the flip side of this pedantic discussion -- lets say a person arrives the day before their visa expires -- the time validity of the visa itself does not control the length of advmission [Caveat: some visas are valid for length of an underlying petition or until a certain age -- the admission time will often co-incide with visa validity].

crg

As a side note. The new visa must be granted in her home country or country of last residence unless granted special consideration.

shirleychang

Thanks for all the info! Yes, I mispoke when I said her visa has
expired. You're absolutely right in that the visa itself grants her
multiple entry until 2008 (although it is now void due to her
overstay). The I-94 admission allowed her to stay for 6 months from
the day she entered US, and that 'stay' period has expired.

We're trying to get her tickets to leave ASAP. She will probably wait
a year or so before returning. She will also proceed to apply for a
new tourist visa next time. We'll keep all the docs handy (esp the
letter from INS denying her extension of stay). My husband did make a
mistake when he was requesting for her extension of stay: he cited
helping with taking care of our kids as a reason. We find out now that
it is wrong and that it constitutes as 'work'. Would that hurt her
next application for a visa? Next time, she's only intending to stay
for a few weeks, not 6 months. She still has strong ties to her home
country, my brother-in-law and all her friends are there. She has no
intention of staying here, except to visit the grandkids.

Also, if it was asked if her visa application has been denied before,
should the answer be 'no' since her visa was granted...but her
extension to stay beyond 6 months was denied.

Thanks again for all your help!

-Shirley

Kevin Keane

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In addition to what everybody else has been saying, I note that the denial
letter was dated Jan 13, and presumably received Jan 14. As a general rule,
after such a denial, she would be expected to depart the country within 10
days. Therefore, Jan 23 may still be OK.

I do agree with what everybody else was saying: apply for a new visa.

There is a chance she may not receive a new visa in the near future. This is
because of her frequent and lengthy stays in the USA. This is likely also
the reason for the denial of the extension.

[email protected] wrote:

    > My mother-in-law's tourist visa is expiring on Jan 16. My husband
    > applied for her extension of stay and was denied on a letter dated Jan
    > 13. We're arranging for her to leave the country, but we can't tickets
    > for her to leave until Jan 23. Will that become a problem for her to
    > return to US in the future?
    >
    > She got her visa since 1998 and is valid for multiple entries till
    > 2008. She has been here 3 times, including one time in 2001 where she
    > stayed for 6 months, then applied for an extension to stay and was
    > granted. So she has never violated immigration laws except for this
    > time.
    >
    > Thanks,
    > Shirley

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