Ex-fiance (never married) - back to the US on a student visa?
 

Dear Experts,

Last year I came to the US on a K-1 visa, but our engagement fell apart and I
returned home on the 89th day, thereby NOT breaching US immigration laws. Right now I
am planning to applty for graduate studies to a US University. Do you think I stand a
good chance of getting a student visa? Will the immigration authorities discriminate
against me saying that since I already considered once comming to the US and marrying
a US citizen they have reasons to believe I may be an intending immigrant this time,
too, and refuse visa on this basis? Do you think it will help if I try to get a
business visa through the US company I work in to "cover up" my last K-1 visa? This
way I could tell them: "look, I came after K-1 and returned back, if I were an
intending immigrant, I would have stayed then, without having to go through the
cumbersome procedure of getting a student visa"? On the other hand, if I apply and my
business visa is denied on the same ex-K1 basis, I could be in a greater trouble...

I would appreciate very much your advice. Thank you in advance!

Re: Ex-fiance (never married) - back to the US on a student visa?
 

Marina,

I assume you are travelling from Russia. The US embassy in Moscow is notorious for
denying visas for no apparent reason. Their explanation usually is that the applicant
did not demonstrate sufficient ties to his/her home country, and there is nothing one
can do about it. This doesn't only relate to 21 year old unmarried pretty girls -
I've seen very serious business people with very serious invitation letters from US
corporations like Boeing denied in the US embassy in Moscow. I've seen others zipping
through approval in very similar circumstances.

In my opinion, yes, there is a chance that they will deny you both a business and a
student visa. The only thing you can do about it is try to prepare to demonstrate
your "ties with your home country" as much as you can, in the usual fashion.

I still think that it is worth a try, though, especially if you are going to graduate
school. Apply, get accepted, get an invitation from the university, go to the
embassy, take as many documents to prove that you want to return after finishing your
studies as you can. Look normal, don't be nervous, don't fidget. Your chances may be
higher than you think.

Udachi,

-s.

Re: Ex-fiance (never married) - back to the US on a student visa?
 

What do you mean the US Company you work in? You are not authorized to work for a US company in the US so that won't fly with the INS. Are you working for a US compay who has a subsidiary in your country? If so, is that company willing to sponsor you for a work visa (H-1B) if you have the qualifications and they job warrants one?

Re: Ex-fiance (never married) - back to the US on a student visa?
 

On 24 Apr 2002 11:30:44 -0700, [email protected] (Marina) wrote:

    >Dear Experts,
    >
    >Last year I came to the US on a K-1 visa, but our engagement fell apart and I
    >returned home on the 89th day, thereby NOT breaching US immigration laws. Right now
    >I am planning to applty for graduate studies to a US University. Do you think I
    >stand a good chance of getting a student visa? Will the immigration authorities
    >discriminate against me saying that since I already considered once comming to the
    >US and marrying a US citizen they have reasons to believe I may be an intending
    >immigrant this time, too, and refuse visa on this basis? Do you think it will help
    >if I try to get a business visa through the US company I work in to "cover up" my
    >last K-1 visa? This way I could tell them: "look, I came after K-1 and returned
    >back, if I were an intending immigrant, I would have stayed then, without having to
    >go through the cumbersome procedure of getting a student visa"? On the other hand,
    >if I apply and my business visa is denied on the same ex-K1 basis, I could be in a
    >greater trouble...
    >
    >I would appreciate very much your advice. Thank you in advance!

There are several things to consider. First, the fact that you returned instead of
getting married will work very much in your favor in terms of establishing that you
are going to comply with immigration laws, as you have already suggested.

On the other hand, it will also demonstrate that you were willing to abandon your
home country and move permanently to the US. So you may have to work extra hard to
establish ties to the US.

Overall, my guess is that the K-1 will help more than hurt you.

Besides, this is all water under the bridge, don't worry about something that
happened in the past and that you can't change anyway!

Ingo

I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. For reliable advice, please consult
with a professional immigration attorney.

For further information, check the following frequently-requested links.

For many questions, you may find answers at
http://travel.state.gov/visa_services.html (Department of State)

or http://ins.usdoj.gov (INS).

For consular policies and visa reciprocity fees, find your consulate in
http://travel.state.gov/links.html

For visa denial and suggestions what to do about them, see
http://travel.state.gov/visadenials.html

For DOL Online Labor Certification: http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/

For information on affidavit of support for marriage to US citizens (I-864), go to
http://travel.state.gov/i864gen.html and http://travel.state.gov/checklist.html

For information on entering the US as a K-1: http://www.k1poelist.com/

For poverty levels, see http://aspe.os.dhhs.gov/poverty/00poverty.htm

For information on H/L/O/P visa extensions at Dept. of State in St. Louis, MO, see
http://travel.state.gov/revals.html

For non-official information, check:

(When using these sites, and any Web sites, please watch out for privacy, as I do not
know all site operators.)

http://www.visalaw.com http://www.shusterman.com http://www.immigration.com
http://members.aol.com/MDUdall http://www.murthy.com/ http://www.richw.org/dualcit/
(dual citizenship FAQ) http://www.ilw.com http://www.srs-usvisa.com
http://www.getusavisa.com http://greencard-lottery.virtualave.net/
http://www.jcvisa.com (H-1B) http://www.h1bresources.com (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.kamya.com/misc/ (marriage and fiancee)
http://www.mindspring.com/~docsteen/...o/visainfo.htm http://www.workpermit.com

This is not an endorsement of any of these Web sites. I am not affiliated with any of
the Web site owners and do not receive nor accept payment in return for listing them,
and typically don't even know them.

(if believe you have a good immigration-related Web site and want your Web site
listed here, please e-mail me).