VISA for dependent parents

[mlk]

Hi all,

I am a H1B holder and have to go to US for long term stay. I have a widowed mother who is completely dependent on me.

Is there a way I can have my mother with me in US for the complete term (may be more than an year) of my stay? I have heard that dependent VISA is not provided to parents. If my parent travels with Visitor VISA, how many extensions are possible?

Please let me know if there is a way to have dependent parent with me for a long term stay in US.

Regards,
MLK

[immihelp]

There is no way to get long stay.

There is no place in law for family issues.

She can visit the U.S. just like any other tourist for a short time. Max possible is 6 months + 6 months = 1 year.

[rohit_chd]

need to get my mother in US

Hi, i would be travelling to US on a L1 visa soon. My father expired few months back and now i need to take my mother to US as there is no one here to take care of her. Can someone suggest me how can i get my dependant mother in US? I know there is a tourist/visitor visa where she can stay for a maximum of 6 months. Is there a way her stay can be more than 6 months? can someone share their personal experiences which can be helpful? I am really tensed on how to resolve this. Please help

Thanks
RG

[ramabalaji]

Your question is answered by immihelp below your query.

[rohit_chd]

still not clear

not exactly..'immihelp' mentioned that max stay can be max 6month+6months=1 year, but what i know is that at a stretch it can be max 6 months. That is why i wanted to know how it can be extended to 1 year? my understanding is that after 6 months my mother has to go back to India for a certain duration and then can come back again for 6 months. But how 1 year (or more) at a stretch?

[anna1234]

You cannot stay more then 6 months at one stretch as you mentioned she has to come back stay for some time and then come back. Also the 6 months is not guarnteed its all depends on the Point of Entry officer he can give say 3 months, 1 month or 6 months and she has to go out of the country after this time. Also make sure to show as much as documents and strong ties to India for her to convience the visa officer for getting the visa. Since she is alone, consulate always think that she will stay back if you cannot show very strong india ties.

[ramabalaji]

not exactly..'immihelp' mentioned that max stay can be max 6month+6months=1 year, but what i know is that at a stretch it can be max 6 months. That is why i wanted to know how it can be extended to 1 year? my understanding is that after 6 months my mother has to go back to India for a certain duration and then can come back again for 6 months. But how 1 year (or more) at a stretch?

At POE depending on the answer given to IO, a date is mentioned in I 94 form and one can stay in USA till that date. Duration of stay can be 15 days, 1 month, 3 months or a max 6 months as decided by the IO. What immihelp mentioned is that assuming your visitor is given a max stay of 6 months, you can extend the stay for another 6 months by filing I 539 form which is called extension of stay. You need to have a convincing reason for requesting extension of stay.
Hope this clears your doubt.
Good luck

[rohit_chd]

Thanks, some more queries

Thanks a lot for all your replies.
Further, Can you guys please help me with what all documents are required for filing a visitor visa for parents (like in my case), what is the process/steps, how much time and money it takes? Can i file her visa only once i am in US or can i do it before that also so that i can take her along with me? I was thinking of talking to some travel agent but i know that will cost me lot extra money, not sure how complex the whole process is. Useful tips from experiences will be really helpful. Please advise