B2 visa and overstay

joanie_NY

New Member
Hi, I have a few questions regarding a B2 visa and overstay.
My niece, 18 years old is holding a B2 visa, she was granted for 6 months when she came in to U.S. Before her I-94 expired, she applied for the extention for another 1.5 years. The INS mailed her the approval a year later and approved for only 6 months, but she didn't realize the date on the approval notice was only till Aug 2008 until the day before her flight back. Then, she thought it was the INS' typo. She informed the INS but was told, by law the maximum time period she could extend is 6 months. So, that means she's overstay now but she has just been accepted to a college here and wanted to go back to apply for her F1 visa. Now, we know she is in trouble, but how likely she will get her F1 visa and even if she gets it, will she has any problem coming in the U.S. again? I heard for overstay, she can't come back for at least 3 years and her B2 automatically invalid.

1. How many times can you file an extension?
2. What's the maximum length the INS can grant for extension?
3. Does the person has to go back to her own country to apply for F1 visa, currently she's holding a B2 visa?

Any other option to keep her going to college here?

Thank you in advance for your advice.
 
Assuming she left the US before accumulating 365 days of overstay:-

A1: Irrelevant, she is outside the US
A2: 6 months per an approved extension
A3: Yes, she is outside the US. However she is subject to a three year ban already.

Assuming she is still here:-

A1: Irrelevant, she needs to leave ASAP, before the 10 year ban kicks in
A2: Irrelevant, she needs to leave ASAP
A3: She cannot AOS to F-1 since she is out of status

1. How many times can you file an extension?
2. What's the maximum length the INS can grant for extension?
3. Does the person has to go back to her own country to apply for F1 visa, currently she's holding a B2 visa?
 
If you or she had about visa extensions, you would have discovered that the maximum possible is 6 months.

Since she overstayed significantly, a visa officer will be very suspicious of her application for F1 visa. A visa is not guaranteed even with admission to a unioversity in the US. I suggest that she look at other countries or at institutions in her home country.

Her B2 is definitely invalid, and she is not likely to get another any time soon.

Her only hope of not having a 3 year bar is if a significant part of the overstay was before she turned 18. But there is still the issue of trying to live in the US for 2 years on B2 visa. Was she attending school in the US? Did she pay the proper tuition, or did she take US taxpayer dollars to attend? She was not entitled to attend while on B2 visa.
 
Thank you TripleCitizen and Concerned4us for the advice.
She was home schooling here. She just turned 18. She knows her chances of coming back in the next three years is very slim. But, she will try to apply for F1 in her country. At the mean time, she's also searching for colleges in other countries.
My question is,
Even if she gets her F1 visa and tries to come to U.S. this winter, could the immigration officer deport her at the entry point here?

Thanks.
 
if she's still in the US, the only way for her to stay would be to get married. then, her overstay would be automatically pardonned.
 
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