No. Tell the truth. If applicants' ties to China are adequate to overcome the presumption of immigrant intent (INA section 214b), a tourist visa will be issued. Problems arise if applicants mislead the interviewing officer as to their intent in visiting the United States. Once a misrepresentation is made, it will be difficult to believe other information supplied by the applicant.
Visa officers are required to evaluate the applicants overall situation in reaching a decision. Statements indicating that the applicant intends to return to China are helpful, but under the requirements of U.S. law the statement alone is not adequate to show that they qualify for a visa.
The approved DHS I-20 is just one piece of information the interviewing officer must consider when deciding whether a visa may be issued. Remember, under Section 214(b) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act, all applicants must prove that they will leave the United States after the purpose for which you entered the United States comes to an end. In student visa cases, applicants may intend to stay in the United States for many months and even years pursuing a course of study. Consequently, visa officers must consider the applicants overall circumstances when deciding whether to approve a student visa. Student visas must be denied if it appears that the applicant's primary purpose of travel is not to obtain an education, but, rather, to facilitate an indefinite stay in the United States. The fact that a school has admitted a student to study and issued the student an I-20 is, therefore, only one factor we consider.
In most cases where an applicant is denied a visa, the applicant fails to show strong that he or she has strong enough ties outside the U.S. to convince the officer that the applicant will depart the United States after a temporary period. Many refused applicants believe there is a document or a special way to answer questions that will enable them to successfully reapply for a visa days or weeks later. However, as the problem for applicants refused under section 214(b) lies in their overall situation, no single answer or document exists which would prove satisfactory in all cases. Applicants are encouraged to reapply only when their overall circumstances have changed. For example, an unemployed recent graduate may decide to reapply following a sustained period of steady employment.
Our experience shows that being an only child has not deterred many travelers from remaining indefinitely in the U.S. While this factor may be one among others relevant to an individual's personal circumstances, it would not usually, in itself, be sufficient to establish eligibility.
A guarantee letter, like other forms of written documentation, will be considered by the interviewing officer. However, a letter, by itself, does not establish the applicant's ties to a permanent residence outside of the United States. Similarly, pledges from highly placed persons that an applicant will return to China do not automatically enable the applicant to overcome section 214(b). This is because U.S. law does not permit visa officers to delegate to others their authority to evaluate the applicant's actual overall circumstances.
I have a letter (or fax) to show you which will help you understand my situation and my strong ties to China. Can I send it to you so you can read it in advance of my interview?
Any information which is relevant to the visa application should be brought to the interview. Mailing information to the Embassy/Consulates in advance will not be helpful. The visa interview is the proper setting for us to consider all information.
Applicants are generally not required to take any particular tests to qualify for a visa. However, we note that motivated and serious student visa applicants often take such tests when seeking admission to schools in the United States. The fact that a student has taken one or more of these tests may help show the seriousness of the applicant's study plans.
No. United States law assigns the responsibility for issuance or refusal of visas to consular officers overseas. They have the final say on all visa cases. Additionally, United States law is designed to insulate the decisions in visa cases from outside influences. An applicant can influence a reversal of a prior denial only through presentation of new convincing evidence of strong ties.
The matter is a personal decision for each applicant. However, in most cases it is not necessary for applicants hire a travel agent to assist with a visa application. Travel agents will often charge to fill out forms which are available for free. Our experience shows that many applicants are coached by intermediaries to provide answers which are misleading. While the truthful answer would not have harmed the application, the discovery of a misleading answer often puts the entire application in doubt.
We frequently receive questions from Chinese students, workers, and residents in the U.S. who want to know how their parents can qualify to receive visas to enter the U.S. for tourism. In our experience, many of these applicants are eligible for visas, but a significant number overstay or fail to return.
In adjudicating visitor visa applications for parents of Chinese students, workers, and residents, our visa officers tend to focus on factors that help us determine whether the applicants possess compelling ties to China:
If the applicants have traveled to the U.S. previously, how long did they stay? If they stayed longer than 6 months, did they have DHS approval to do so? (Note: Please have the applicants bring their DHS extension approval notices to their interview).
- If the applicants have traveled to the U.S. previously, how long have they been back in China?
- How many children and grandchildren do the applicants have in China?
- Have the relatives in the U.S. ever returned to China to visit their families as is normal for foreign students, workers, and residents in the U.S.?
Are the parents active professionally in China; if so, what are their income and the nature of their work?
The answers to these questions relate to whether applicants can fulfill the statutory requirement in Section 101 (a)(15)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act to show that they have a permanent residence in a foreign country that they have no intention of abandoning. In other words, persons who are absent from China for periods of a year or so may have trouble showing that they possess social or professional obligations in China that are sufficiently powerful to ensure that they will go home following a temporary stay abroad. Applicants are advised to be ready to address these issues during their visa interviews.
Often, older applicants do not understand why their applications to return to the U.S. a second time are denied, even though DHS approved an extension of stay during their previous visit. Usually, these applicants stayed in the U.S. for a year or more and have been back in China only a short while. Under these circumstances, the applicants have great difficulty establishing that they have compelling social or professional obligations in China sufficient to ensure that they will return to China, thereby making them ineligible to receive another visa. People who find themselves in this situation may wish instead to invite their U.S. relatives to visit them here in China.
Questions not answered here may be faxed to the Nonimmigrant visa unit at (86)(20) 3884-4424.
For additional information please visit the Department of State's web site at http://travel.state.gov/, or call the Visa Information Call Center at 4008-872-333 (For Caller in Mainland China)
86-21-3881-4611 (For caller outside Mainland China)*
* The Department of State wishes to advise callers that the charges for international calls are solely the responsibility of the caller. Currently, callers are experiencing significant wait times before reaching a live operator.
While there is no prohibition for third country nationals to apply, applicants should be aware that anyone who does not have legal permission to reside in China (residence permit or work visa) AND has been living in our Consular district for at least one year will be unlikely to overcome 214(b). Anyone who does have legal permission to reside in China AND has been living in our Consular district for at least one year should be prepared to show evidence of these facts and will need to demonstrate that they possess a residence in China that he/she has no intention of abandoning. Applicants prove the existence of such a residence by demonstrating that they have ties in China that would compel them to leave the U.S. at the end of the temporary stay.
In general, adult applicants should be prepared to be interviewed alone, one at a time by a consular officer. Minor children may be accompanied by a guardian adult, and at the consular officer's discretion those needing assistance or escort may be interviewed together with another individual. American citizens may not accompany applicants to the interview, but are welcome to attend our American Citizen Hour every Monday from 3:00 - 4:00 p.m.
The United States Embassy and Consulates General in China are opened for normal business, including nonimmigrant visa processing. There are no new or additional requirements for applying for a U.S. nonimmigrant visa at this time.
United States Customs and Border Protection currently do not impose any general mandatory quarantine or prohibitions on travelers arriving from identified SARS areas. However, the United States Public Health Service reserves the right to quarantine travelers on any international conveyance that is transporting an infected passenger.
For further information or updates on SARS, check the CDC web page at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/sars/.
The photograph of each visa applicant must be an unmounted full-face photo, taken within the past six months. A "full face" photo is one in which the applicant is facing the camera directly. The applicant should not be looking down or to either side, and the face should cover about 50 percent of the area of the photo. Although variations in hair styles and in head coverings make it difficult to rigorously define the term "face," in general, the head of the applicant, including both face and hair, should be shown from the crown of the head to the tip of the chin on top and bottom, and from hair line side-to-side. It is preferable that the ears be exposed. The key requirement is that the photographs clearly identify the applicant.
The photograph should measure 2 inches square (roughly 50 mm square) with the head centered in the frame. The head (measured from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin) should measure between 1 inch to 1 3/8 inches (25 mm to 35 mm) with the eye level between 1 1/8 inch to 1 3/8 inches (28 mm and 35 mm) from the bottom of the photo. Photos must be in color and must be taken against a white or off-white background. Photos should be printed without borders. Photos should be stapled or glued to Form DS-156, Nonimmigrant Visa Application. If the photograph is stapled, the staples should be placed as far away as possible from the applicant's face. Photos taken in front of busy, patterned, or dark backgrounds will not be accepted.
Nonimmigrant visa applications should include a photo that meets the requirements outlined above. These are identical to the requirements for U.S. passport photos. Applicants are free to use the services of any studio that can produce photos meeting these requirements; however, it may be easier to get the required photos at studios that can already produce U.S. passport photos.
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All individuals applying for U.S. nonimmigrant visas must present bank receipts showing payment of the full RMB 930 nonimmigrant visa processing fee.
