B1 Visa, Annotation

[usvisaquest]

Hi, my son's nanny was granted a US B1 Visa. However, there is an annotation as follows: Domestic Helper, then my name as her employer. She was given one year. We are both based in the Cayman Islands. Since she lives in the Philippines it is also in her best interest to travel by herself when she goes home for a vacation. Is it possible to apply or renew her visa after the one year is up or even before it is up and apply for a B2 instead? Or will it automatically be renewed as a B1 Visa with that same annotation?

Thanks so much in advance for your kind response.

[peace999]

there is no automatic renewal of a B1 visa.

Was she granted her visa in the phillipines? Mostly the visas granted are B1/B2. Is hers a standalone B1?

And your question about changing to B2 is not clear. Why B2? And What are her plans after one year of nanny work with you in the US?

[rayb]

Interesting that the "Domestic Helper" shows the visa holder as being in the Cayman Islands, as that is a British Protectorate, and a U.S. visitor visa wouldn't normally allow her to stay in Grand Cayman for that long. Normally a "domestic helper"-annotated visa requires the employer to be with the applicant at the Embassy for the visa interview.

There can't be a whole lot of Filipinos in Grand Cayman, though I saw a Filipino "sari-sari" store there a couple of years ago. The Cayman Islands locals were often employed as crew on ships years ago and that often led to marriages with Filipinas. Iceland is a good example of that, as the Filipino community in Iceland, several hundred strong, owes its start to Icelandic crew members marrying Filipinos after layovers in the Philippines.

To retain the "domestic helper" annotation, you should probably expect the visa type to remain B1. If the duration of the visa was only for one year, you, the employer, might have to be with her when she reapplies.

--Ray B

Hi, my son's nanny was granted a US B1 Visa. However, there is an annotation as follows: Domestic Helper, then my name as her employer. She was given one year. We are both based in the Cayman Islands. Since she lives in the Philippines it is also in her best interest to travel by herself when she goes home for a vacation. Is it possible to apply or renew her visa after the one year is up or even before it is up and apply for a B2 instead? Or will it automatically be renewed as a B1 Visa with that same annotation?

Thanks so much in advance for your kind response.

[usvisaquest]

Annotation, B1 - Urgent Request for Advice

Hi, English is not my first language and I guess my concern is not so clear.

My son's nanny was given a B1 Visa with an annotation as follows: Domestic Helper, [Employer Name]. The employer being myself. The validity is one year. She just got it last May.

I am a permanent resident of the Cayman Islands but my son's nanny is on a work permit.

She goes home to the Philippines every two years and since she does not have a US Visa (that is, before), she always goes through UK. The fare is more expensive via this route.

Although she has a US Visa now, I suppose she will not be allowed to go/travel through the US when she goes home (Philippines) for a vacation next year?

If that be so the case, would it make any sense to apply for another visa, so she can be given a B1/B2 without any annotation?

Kindly advise.

[rayb]

Why would your nanny not be allowed to transit through the U.S.? There are some missing pieces in my understanding of your nanny's status:

1. How and why did she get a U.S. B1 visa if her principal location was to be the Cayman islands?

2. What visa type did she have before in order to work as a nanny in the Cayman Islands?

But the real question is probably "Why do you think she would not be able to go the U.S. route in order to return to the Philippines?"

When I was in Grand Cayman a couple of years ago there was a big shell of the former Hyatt (?), and we were told that Hyatt (?) was not planning to rebuild or restore its presence there. Is the shell still there, like a skeleton? (Was it Hilton, rather than Hyatt?). If Hyatt, it's ironic that the Hyatt in Baguio, Philippines, was destroyed in an earthquate in 1990 and never rebuilt. I was in the second that was initially damaged by the earthquate just 3 months before the earthquake in 1990 (or '91).

Please forgive the sidebar.... I try to pick up trivia info whenever I get the chance.

--Ray B

Hi, English is not my first language and I guess my concern is not so clear.

My son's nanny was given a B1 Visa with an annotation as follows: Domestic Helper, [Employer Name]. The employer being myself. The validity is one year. She just got it last May.

I am a permanent resident of the Cayman Islands but my son's nanny is on a work permit.

She goes home to the Philippines every two years and since she does not have a US Visa (that is, before), she always goes through UK. The fare is more expensive via this route.

Although she has a US Visa now, I suppose she will not be allowed to go/travel through the US when she goes home (Philippines) for a vacation next year?

If that be so the case, would it make any sense to apply for another visa, so she can be given a B1/B2 without any annotation?

Kindly advise.