needle

Just asking this question from reading another thread. Appears a lot of people here met their spouse/gf etc via online dating etc initially then went to meet them in the US

Now my query is when the con off asks your purpose of visit and you say going to meet someone who you never met before and ?possibility of a relationship isnt that a major red flag?

To those that done it may I ask how did you answer the question? Are the con off more uptodate with modern dating ways these days?

Thanks

Speedwell

They understand. Until you have a relationship there is no point mentioning it. "Visiting friends" is good enough.

If you are particularly worried, you can arrange to bring evidence of ties to the UK (owning real estate/having a mortgage, evidence you have a job and they expect you back, dependent family, evidence that you are in school in a degree program, the more the better) and evidence you can cover yourself financially for the duration of the stay (a credit card will do the job, or bank statements).

Pulaski

It happened to me. Thankfully I wasn't sent to "secondary", but ended up with a lecture from the immigration officer at the airport.

The problem was that the question after I said that the purpose of my visit was "Visiting a friend", was "How long have you known this friend?", and then "When did you last meet her?" (at that point I hadn't, face-to-face) ...... The FOURTH question in the sequence was "Are you going to get married?" .... At that point I was sensing a return flight to the UK was in my immediate future!

After a couple of minutes of further questioning, during which I was eventually asked a second time if we were going to get married, I was given a stern lecture by the officer that I was not allowed to get married while visiting, which I later learned was a barefaced lie, and allowed in for my week-long visit, during which we did not get married!

It all had a happy ending, but I have always recommended avoiding clearing immigration at smaller airports in favour of the largest hubs where the CBP officers appear more worldly wise and less inclined to unwarranted nosiness.

civilservant

I always said 'visiting my girlfriend' and didnt get a second question in 5 trips (one in which we got married)

It helps that I went through ATL and there were 600 people behind me!

civilservant

I always said 'visiting my girlfriend' and didnt get a second question.

It helps that I went through ATL and there were 600 people behind me!

needle

Am a bit surprised as surely going to meet a gf/bf whom you never met before must be a major red flag! The idea is to keep potential immigrants out. If I was a con off and heard the words meeting a possible future spouse surely the de facto response should be 'on yer bike back to heathrow mate' or whatever the US equiv. is for that. :P

Noorah101

It doesn't seem to be a red flag. Part of the requirements for filing an I-129F towards a K-1 fiance visa is that the two of you MUST meet in person, before anything can be filed. So the UKC must make a trip to the USA to meet in person (or the USC make a trip to the UK, or they can meet in a 3rd country).

Rene

BubbleChog

Same here. I think people meeting people online is also becoming pretty much the norm. Since I've been here me and my husband have been to 6 weddings all of them except 1 met online in some way

Pulaski

Which is exactly why I never said I was visiting my girlfriend, and certainly not my fiancée, and why, as per civilservant, after that I mostly took flights through major hub airports not Podunk International, which at that time I think only had two international flights per day. When I did come to get married I specifically routed my flight through a major hub, and was waved through immigration with only brief questioning and a stamp in my passport, having established a pattern of arriving, and leaving again!.

Guindalf

I came through in '96 and, not only had we not met, but we were headed to Virginia to help some friends move! I couldn't even give an address that I was staying at! That got me into secondary!

I was almost sent home, but I think the officer took pity on me. I had about $400 and a return ticket for five days later and eventually was allowed through.


We've been married for almost 16 years now!

Nutek

They were more interested in why I had a pile of Hard Drives in my carry on.

1996... Newark

Pulaski

Now I am too!

/nosey

Marocco

They usually just want to know if you are travelling for business or pleasure... They don't want your life story.

Nutek

Doesn't everyone carry at least 4?

(I was bringing some over to do some upgrades for Mrs N.).

Pulaski

So you weren't just pleased to see her, you had some hardware for her!