I think 214(b) solely bubbles down to how strong your ties to your home country are and if they’re considered compelling enough for you to return after your stay. Things they expect to see include owning property, having a stable job with a good salary, having family members who depend on you, or having investments

Do we have an entry for you in the spreadsheet yet? If the interview was 25 February this year, you're only at around 170 days or so, with current wait times averaging over 340 days. Was this for London and a first time application?

All the best and do keep us posted.

jools

Fairly sure this will catch me out, I had all the documents with me, mortgage statement, birth certs, and absolute binder of documented life and ties to the UK, but all I said was and brief explanation of conviction and purpose of "Holiday" and that was it, no follow up questions, I didn't get to hand over. ah well, wait and see if I get a happy adjudicator.

Note the FAQ section on their website, Nonimmigrant Visas FAQs: Visa Refusals - U.S. Embassy and Consulates in the United Kingdom

My application was refused under Section 214(b). If I send in more documents will I receive a visa?
No. Please see above regarding correspondence following a visa denial. Applying for a non-immigrant visa is not primarily a document-based process.
The main issue in determining if an applicant qualifies for a visa is intent, and documents alone cannot establish intentions. In some cases, documents can help establish an applicant’s intent to return to the United Kingdom by showing that the applicant is well established here.
In other cases, the circumstances are clear enough that documents are unnecessary. If your visa application has been refused it is highly unlikely that any document you could provide would alter the consular officer’s decision.
What does a consular officer look for when determining an applicant's entitlement to nonimmigrant status?
In making that determination the officer considers the applicant’s personal circumstances, travel plans, financial resources and ties outside of the United States that will ensure his/her departure after a temporary visit.

The current process does feel terribly unfair for those whose applications straddle the USA administration change, with far tighter immigration rules, whether published or not, being followed. Unfortunately 214(b) is a very broad and useful category for consulates to reject applications, simply because there is no appeal process. The consulate does not need to enter into any discussions or provide any detailed justification, and there is no appeal process.

jools

Yup - unless they specifically asked for you to hand over the documentation, there was no opportunity to do so, and I suspect they wouldn't have taken anything unrequested as it would have created additional work for them to scan the documents. Maybe the process is different today, but certainly when I interviewed in 2013, I was asked for nothing that I had taken with me except the already emailed ACRO certificate.

jools

First of LondonAlb. I am gutted for you.
secondly my status is now issued and passport on way.

Congrats Ooberjay ! Some good news for those already waiting.

My last conviction is over 15 years ago. I had received a waiver in 2022 and travelled to Florida with no issues. (I dont have a overstay issue, just the criminal record).

I had employment letters for both me and my wife, Mortage statement, nursery contract and bank and credit card statements (which is what I brought to the embassy in 2022). None of which were taken from me. Was told I was being referred for a waiver of ineligibility like my last application and the wait was 6-9months. From my letter, they're saying they didn't even send my application to the DHS.

The wife and kids will go with the inlaws and I'll probably check back in a couple of years to see how the wait times are but won't be rushing to go through this again.

Good luck to everyone else waiting as the last 11 months have not been fun so glad to have some sort of outcome (even though it's not the one I was hoping for!).

Hey,

Thanks for the update, I hate asking people essentially why they cant travel, but its helpful to have some further detail. I had to reread your letter, and agree it the last line does sound like it was never sent over to DHS, but I could have that wrong. I guess either way it wont change anything until the next change over, but its insightful.

I very much doubt it will happen, but there's a lot of people calling for the world cup to be moved due to visa issues, it would shine a spot light on the subject but too little too late for some of us.

I do wonder if when the new fee comes in the policy will open up a little, as in - If the process was changed to an automatic decision in the appointment at the embassy on the day, but cost $250, wonder how many of us would go for it.

Anyway, all the best mate, hopefully things change soon

While we have no way to be 100% sure, my view is that these applications have gone to the ARO for DHS review of the waiver of ineligibility, and it is only subsequent to that that the consulate has re-evaluated the grounds for the visa request and decided to decline under 214(b), sending out a templated letter which would have made sense if the decision were made at or shortly after the interview.

hi everyone I’ve joined because my wife is in the Visa process. I have a have a L1 Visa approved in July. She has a conviction which was over 12 years ago and come into the moral turpitude category. She attended her interview at the London office and the consular officer forwarded her application to the DHS. this was in July and he said you will hear something in approximately two months. Looking at all the threads there are many different times et cetera et cetera and just wondering if there’s any trend that is good, thanks

Without more information it is not possible to provide any feedback really. Was your wife denied a visa but told she would be recommended for a waiver of ineligibility? This is the process we deal with mainly in this thread, and the wait is currently approaching 12 months.

jools

I have just updated the sheet with news from Jimmy501 that he also got denied after being asked to send his passport in.

This pushes the 1st confirmed NO in the current sequence back to the 18 June 2024 and means that of the 14 results we've had from London subsequently, 12 have been refused.

wow, thanks for the update, really not good odds, would almost recommend anyone that is lucky enough to get an appointment and recommended for a waiver to make absolutely clear their intentions to visit and come back, demonstrating in no uncertain terms that they do not intend to overstay.

I may even pop a quick email off to reconfirm intensions, although reckon I'd get a reply saying no further details can't be logged on the case after the interview or some such.

What are you waiting on Lemonhead? Have you been asked to send passport or initial email still?

Hey,

Still waiting on the email, suspect it'll be a few more weeks as the last action on my case was October.