Us Immigration: The B-2 Tourist Visa
Although there are many resources on the internet about United States Immigration, most internet researchers are looking for specific information about a specific visa for those of a specific nationality. The following article is a brief look at the US Tourist Visa for Thai Nationals.
The United States Tourist Visa can be a difficult travel document to obtain for the wife, husband, fiance, girlfriend, boyfriend, or significant other of a United States Citizen. So Americans become exasperated or upset by the fact that United States tourist visa applications are often denied by the Consular Officers at the United States Embassy in Bangkok or the United States Consulate-General in Chiang Mai. In many instances, once the applicant (or the applicant's sponsor) is provided with information regarding the relevant law, the reason for the application's denial is nearly self-evident.
The American Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) delineates clear rules about how Consular Officers should view visa applications and applicants. Pursuant to section 214(b) of the INA, a Consular Officer must presume that all applicants for non-immigrant visas are, in reality, intending immigrants. To be more precise, in the case of US tourist visa applications the Consular Officers must presume that anyone applying for a B-2 Tourist visa is, in fact, an undisclosed immigrant. The officer must be completely convinced that an applicant is not an undisclosed intending immigrant in order for the statutory presumption under section 214(b) to be overcome. In cases where a Thai applicant has an American boyfriend, fiance, or husband the presumption of immigrant intent is not easily overcome which leads to a situation in which the tourist visa applicant will likely be denied.
In some instances, the US Citizen counterpart is resident in the Kingdom of Thailand. In these scenarios, overcoming the legal presumption of immigrant intent may be easier as the Consular Officer may view the American's residency in the Kingdom of Thailand as a strong mitigating factor that would make the Thai applicant return. That being said, these adjudications are essentially based upon the Officer's discretion as well as the unique set of facts in each case and therefore any hypothesizing about a Consular Officer's probable decisions would be an exercise in mere speculation.
For those interested in taking a Thai loved one back to the United States to reside, the US Tourist Visa is not the correct travel document for this purpose. Even still, US Citizens should look to the K-1 visa, the K-3 visa, or the immigrant marriage visas (CR-1 or IR-1) as a lawful method of bringing a Thai loved one to the USA.
A word of caution: to those who would use dishonesty or subterfuge to obtain desired immigration benefits be warned that use of such tactics would likely result in unforeseen complications as the Consular Officers at US Embassies and Consulates abroad are highly skilled at detecting misrepresentations and a material misrepresentation of fact in a visa application could lead to a finding that the applicant is inadmissible to the United States. Further, it is becoming more and more obvious that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers are on the lookout for those using B2 tourist visas to immigrate to the United States of America through subterfuge. If a CBP officer finds that one is an undisclosed immigrant they can place the traveler in expedited removal proceedings. After removal, the traveler would be barred from reentering the USA for a statutorily prescribed period of time.
The United States Tourist Visa can be a difficult travel document to obtain for the wife, husband, fiance, girlfriend, boyfriend, or significant other of a United States Citizen. So Americans become exasperated or upset by the fact that United States tourist visa applications are often denied by the Consular Officers at the United States Embassy in Bangkok or the United States Consulate-General in Chiang Mai. In many instances, once the applicant (or the applicant's sponsor) is provided with information regarding the relevant law, the reason for the application's denial is nearly self-evident.
The American Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) delineates clear rules about how Consular Officers should view visa applications and applicants. Pursuant to section 214(b) of the INA, a Consular Officer must presume that all applicants for non-immigrant visas are, in reality, intending immigrants. To be more precise, in the case of US tourist visa applications the Consular Officers must presume that anyone applying for a B-2 Tourist visa is, in fact, an undisclosed immigrant. The officer must be completely convinced that an applicant is not an undisclosed intending immigrant in order for the statutory presumption under section 214(b) to be overcome. In cases where a Thai applicant has an American boyfriend, fiance, or husband the presumption of immigrant intent is not easily overcome which leads to a situation in which the tourist visa applicant will likely be denied.
In some instances, the US Citizen counterpart is resident in the Kingdom of Thailand. In these scenarios, overcoming the legal presumption of immigrant intent may be easier as the Consular Officer may view the American's residency in the Kingdom of Thailand as a strong mitigating factor that would make the Thai applicant return. That being said, these adjudications are essentially based upon the Officer's discretion as well as the unique set of facts in each case and therefore any hypothesizing about a Consular Officer's probable decisions would be an exercise in mere speculation.
For those interested in taking a Thai loved one back to the United States to reside, the US Tourist Visa is not the correct travel document for this purpose. Even still, US Citizens should look to the K-1 visa, the K-3 visa, or the immigrant marriage visas (CR-1 or IR-1) as a lawful method of bringing a Thai loved one to the USA.
A word of caution: to those who would use dishonesty or subterfuge to obtain desired immigration benefits be warned that use of such tactics would likely result in unforeseen complications as the Consular Officers at US Embassies and Consulates abroad are highly skilled at detecting misrepresentations and a material misrepresentation of fact in a visa application could lead to a finding that the applicant is inadmissible to the United States. Further, it is becoming more and more obvious that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers are on the lookout for those using B2 tourist visas to immigrate to the United States of America through subterfuge. If a CBP officer finds that one is an undisclosed immigrant they can place the traveler in expedited removal proceedings. After removal, the traveler would be barred from reentering the USA for a statutorily prescribed period of time.
