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My parents had applied for their B2 visa in 2012 and their petition had been rejected as they had stayed beyond 6 months during their last visit and were thought to potentially migrate to the US. We applied again the end of last year and happy to say they got a B2 visa. So here I am sharing my /their experience with you all.
The only change from 2012 to this time in 2016, is that my dad is over 80 and my mom now walks with a walking stick. Everything else is the same from a financial and social standpoint - my brother and I live in the US and my parents have no other children in India. We had all the papers in order and we did their I-134 along with all necessary documents - bank statements, employment letter, pay stubs,W-2 and 2015 tax return - to suggest we will provide them financial support as needed when they visit.
They had their fingerprinting done approximately 1 week prior to their interview date it Mumbai. They had a wonderful experience during both their visits - and were assisted well on both these days. We also prepped them well - no extra documents, no food and drinks, no big purses or phone and no extra jewelry- to make it easy for them for security. We also prepped them on potential questions and answers using information on this web site.
The CO was polite and they had a courteous Hindi interpreter.
They were asked general questions -
CO :Why do you want to go to the US?
Parents:To visit places - New York, New Jersey, their grandchildren's university towns and touring some places that they were not able to do in their last few trips.
CO: How many grandchildren do you have?
Parents:3
CO:How soon do you want to go?
Parents: Preferably summer of 2017
CO:How many months do they plan on staying?
Parents: 2-3 months.
CO - Who are they going to visit?
Parents: Children, grandchildren, friends and some relatives.
CO to my dad:When did you retire?
Dad: 1995
CO:How do they manage financially?
Parents: Savings and some from property owned.
CO: Go visit and come. Please leave your passports
The CO did not ask them to produce any documents to show their financial assets ( which is not a lot) nor the affidavit of support papers we sent.
We (my brother and I ) are both citizens but have never wanted to apply for their GC as they were never interested in settling down in the US.
The other main thing we did this time is we approached my local federal congressman via email for their support in this matter. Most Congressmen and Senators have websites and can be approached via email. They had us fill out a B-2 Visa support letter application that asks for details of my parents nature of visit, social, occupational and financial ties. Based on our answers, they wrote a letter to the CO and probably emailed it to the Mumbai office and a copy was sent via email to me. I forwarded this letter to my parents and they did take a print out of this to their interview. The CO never asked for it. The letter does have a disclaimer at the end which states the final decision rests in the hands of the CO.
My parents petition got approved. So thankful for this.
Some suggestions as a lot of people have already mentioned in past posts -
Be honest and truthful in all your answers.
Prep your parents with likely questions and ask them just the way a CO would ask - there is a link to questions asked on this website.
Prep them regarding things to take - they are strict with phones, food etc. Told my parents to take the bare minimum things so that they do not get flustered at the security.
If things go smoothly, I think the full process takes an hour but may be that is because my parents were seniors.
Good luck and thank you immihelp - wonderful resource and support forum
The only change from 2012 to this time in 2016, is that my dad is over 80 and my mom now walks with a walking stick. Everything else is the same from a financial and social standpoint - my brother and I live in the US and my parents have no other children in India. We had all the papers in order and we did their I-134 along with all necessary documents - bank statements, employment letter, pay stubs,W-2 and 2015 tax return - to suggest we will provide them financial support as needed when they visit.
They had their fingerprinting done approximately 1 week prior to their interview date it Mumbai. They had a wonderful experience during both their visits - and were assisted well on both these days. We also prepped them well - no extra documents, no food and drinks, no big purses or phone and no extra jewelry- to make it easy for them for security. We also prepped them on potential questions and answers using information on this web site.
The CO was polite and they had a courteous Hindi interpreter.
They were asked general questions -
CO :Why do you want to go to the US?
Parents:To visit places - New York, New Jersey, their grandchildren's university towns and touring some places that they were not able to do in their last few trips.
CO: How many grandchildren do you have?
Parents:3
CO:How soon do you want to go?
Parents: Preferably summer of 2017
CO:How many months do they plan on staying?
Parents: 2-3 months.
CO - Who are they going to visit?
Parents: Children, grandchildren, friends and some relatives.
CO to my dad:When did you retire?
Dad: 1995
CO:How do they manage financially?
Parents: Savings and some from property owned.
CO: Go visit and come. Please leave your passports
The CO did not ask them to produce any documents to show their financial assets ( which is not a lot) nor the affidavit of support papers we sent.
We (my brother and I ) are both citizens but have never wanted to apply for their GC as they were never interested in settling down in the US.
The other main thing we did this time is we approached my local federal congressman via email for their support in this matter. Most Congressmen and Senators have websites and can be approached via email. They had us fill out a B-2 Visa support letter application that asks for details of my parents nature of visit, social, occupational and financial ties. Based on our answers, they wrote a letter to the CO and probably emailed it to the Mumbai office and a copy was sent via email to me. I forwarded this letter to my parents and they did take a print out of this to their interview. The CO never asked for it. The letter does have a disclaimer at the end which states the final decision rests in the hands of the CO.
My parents petition got approved. So thankful for this.
Some suggestions as a lot of people have already mentioned in past posts -
Be honest and truthful in all your answers.
Prep your parents with likely questions and ask them just the way a CO would ask - there is a link to questions asked on this website.
Prep them regarding things to take - they are strict with phones, food etc. Told my parents to take the bare minimum things so that they do not get flustered at the security.
If things go smoothly, I think the full process takes an hour but may be that is because my parents were seniors.
Good luck and thank you immihelp - wonderful resource and support forum
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