ecpb1992

Hi,

My partner has been in the process of applying for an O-1 visa as a Tennis Professional. We have a sponsor and great job offer and they are very willing to help where necessary. On Feb 3rd, The USCIS received our petition via Premium processing after being filed by our attorney and on Feb 14th we received a RFE (Request for Evidence) and the list on this seems endless and like they’ve ripped the petition into shreds (not literally obviously) – It seems they are being very nit picky but surely if it was that bad they would have denied it? Does anyone have any experience with a request for evidence – time scales, tips on supplying more evidence or general advice?

It’s sent us into a bit of a panic!

civilservant

Tip - supply what they ask for, if you don't the petition will certainly be denied.

Noorah101

Evidently there's no reason for denial, but is not yet clearly approvable, so they need more information.

What does your lawyer say?

Rene

Hotscot

You're saying it's a long list?
Is there any specific difficulty in providing information on their request?

monfed

http://immigrationmagazine.com/47/fr...l-tennis-pros/

Check this link out, it's from the US Open on how to hire tennis professionals.
Has some details regarding o1 visa, concerning evidence you might have to provide (evidence of all-american status, etc.)

Being a rec tennis player myself, I'm curious as to what level your partner played at? Was s/he ranked on the ATP tour or played college tennis in the US?

Oh, and you would have to be married to him/her to get the derivative visa to accompany them.

ian-mstm

I'm not really surprised... that's their job!


Perhaps... perhaps not.


First, any time scale you had imagined prior to the RFE is now tossed out the window. As for tips... there are 3 (and only 3) things you can do when an RFE is received:

1) You respond to the RFE and give them all of the material they ask for;
2) You respond to the RFE and give them some of the material they ask for; or
3) You respond to the RFE and give them none of the material they ask for.

The only thing you absolutely should not do, is ignore the RFE.

Ian

hungryhorace

Petitions are rarely (read: never) denied outright without first an RFE being issued. At least according to my immigration attorney.

ecpb1992

Hi Rene,

We've spoken at length to our lawyer who was pretty shocked at the RFE and under the impression the USCIS maybe ran out of time knowing they had to give a response by the 15th day? I think our major downfall was in the fact that our advisory opinion letter from a peer was from a UK organisation rather than a US organisation - when submitting it didnt specify it HAD to be US but I think that's really the main point.

The difficulty with this situation is that because he is now a tennis coach rather than a player - his achievements are measured through the performance of his students and players that he has coached. One of the main points in the RFE is that all of the major publications are primarily about his students rather than him so we have now gone down the route of providing evidence of his awards and achievements as a player which as a result led to him becoming a top tennis player, making him a much more accredited and valuable performance tennis coach.

Now we've had a couple of days to work through it, It feels a lot more manageable. We are just making sure to cross reference EVERY point made by the USCIS in the RFE so that we have covered everything. I think the stress comes from the timescales going out of the window as it makes it very difficult to plan what happens after as we don't know what the outcome will be!

ecpb1992

Thanks for that article! It's really interesting to read! He was ranked at 550 on the ATP tour and 25 in the UK but hasn't played college tennis as was based primarily in the UK!

Yes, we are aware of the marriage issue, if all goes well i will be going for 3 months as a tourist initially as I am still studying in the UK until summer. After that, well, we'll have to cross that bridge when/if it comes to it!!

civilservant

90 days - NOT 3 months.

ecpb1992

Yep, that was a slip of the tongue. I have travelled regularly to the US and am aware that a tourist ESTA expires after 90 days.

Noorah101

No. An approved ESTA is valid for two years unless something changes in your scenario, such as overstaying a VWP visit, or getting a new passport. So typically an ESTA doesn't expire for two year.

What expires is your allotted time in the USA under the VWP. That is limited to 90 days per visit.

Rene

S Folinsky

FWIW, on the Immigration Lawyer chat boards [including an amusing one called "Cool Immigration Lawyers" on FaceBook], immigration lawyers are bitching about RFE's being issued for no discernable reason.

ecpb1992

Thanks for the info. Going back to the point, I would just like to make everyone aware that I will initially only be travelling for a maximum of 90 days as a tourist. There is no confusion on that part. My primary focus at the moment is with the attainment of the O-1!

hungryhorace

That concurs with what my attorney stated when I underwent my L-1 as well. Hence, the 100+ page submission to ensure the greatest chance no RFE request was forthcoming. Indeed, it wasn't. Money well spent.