DCF & travel relation questions

[serra142]

Hi,

I am an US citizen living in India for last couple of years. Married to Indian citizen. Planning to go back to US at some point. Not sure about exact timeline. want to apply for DCF at Delhi and keep visa ready.

1. While DCF is going on, can my wife visit US on visitor's visa if I can get that also? If we make this, it would be just one month trip and come back to India.

2. Once she gets her visa, how long can she wait before entering US? Is there any rule that she has to enter with in certain time or can she wait for an year or 2 and then enter?

3. Once she enters on IR visa, she has to keep visiting US every 6 months. right? or does she still has an option to come back to India to stay for an year or 2?

Thank for any answers. I will update my DCF timeline once I start it.

Regards
Serra142

 

[nkm-oct23]

1. While DCF is going on, can my wife visit US on visitor's visa if I can get that also? If we make this, it would be just one month trip and come back to India.

If she has a US visa, you can take a chance and travel to US. Keep in mind that US immigration can refuse entry if she is questioned about DCF filing (due to immigrant intent)
If she does not have a visa, she will be refused a visitor visa if her DCF petition is filed.

2. Once she gets her visa, how long can she wait before entering US? Is there any rule that she has to enter with in certain time or can she wait for an year or 2 and then enter?
Once an immigrant visa is granted, she has only 6 months from the date of visa interview to travel to US. The immigrant visa cannot be extended. And she cannot travel after the visa expires.

3. Once she enters on IR visa, she has to keep visiting US every 6 months. right? or does she still has an option to come back to India to stay for an year or 2?
She has to live in US, not just visit every 6 months. If she want to be away from US for upto 2 years, it is possible by obtaining a Re-entry permit (application to be filed in the US after getting green card, fingerprinting also required).

 

[serra142]

Thanks nkm-oct23. That makes sense about IR and visitor's visa conflict.

Is there ever a case where they apply it to US citizen's spouse and reject the entry. I am wondering because Kids and myself are US Citizens. Only wife isn't as of now. We would be living together either in US or India. I thought it's obvious that she has a chance and most likely intent to immigrate.

6 months back I was at US embassy (bangalore outreach) applying for kid's passport and ssn. While chatting about when we would be moving back, I asked the lady about the procedure to take my wife. She suggested I take visitors/tourist visa (don't remember the exact word, but one of them) and move to US. Then we talked about DCF, but didn't strike me that it could be an issue.

If I decide not to go via DCF, what is the common procedure to take my wife with us when we move permanently to US? Take her on visitor's visa and then start the process (I-130) after moving there or first only I move and then start the process....Is there any other way we can actually be together in US and go through the process?

Thanks
serra

1. While DCF is going on, can my wife visit US on visitor's visa if I can get that also? If we make this, it would be just one month trip and come back to India.

If she has a US visa, you can take a chance and travel to US. Keep in mind that US immigration can refuse entry if she is questioned about DCF filing (due to immigrant intent)
If she does not have a visa, she will be refused a visitor visa if her DCF petition is filed.

2. Once she gets her visa, how long can she wait before entering US? Is there any rule that she has to enter with in certain time or can she wait for an year or 2 and then enter?
Once an immigrant visa is granted, she has only 6 months from the date of visa interview to travel to US. The immigrant visa cannot be extended. And she cannot travel after the visa expires.

3. Once she enters on IR visa, she has to keep visiting US every 6 months. right? or does she still has an option to come back to India to stay for an year or 2?
She has to live in US, not just visit every 6 months. If she want to be away from US for upto 2 years, it is possible by obtaining a Re-entry permit (application to be filed in the US after getting green card, fingerprinting also required).

 

[Jackolantern]

With you living in India, they might approve her tourist visa if you have not filed a petition for her, as she can use the fact that you live in India to convince them that she won't immigrate to the US. But once you file for, forget about that. She probably won't get the visa, and if she gets the visa she'll probably be refused entry and sent back on the next flight.

When do you expect to move back to the US?

If I decide not to go via DCF, what is the common procedure to take my wife with us when we move permanently to US?

DCF itself is the common procedure when filing for an immigrant spouse who lives outside the US and the USC spouse also lives outside the US.

 

[serra142]

With you living in India, they might approve her tourist visa if you have not filed a petition for her, as she can use the fact that you live in India to convince them that she won't immigrate to the US. But once you file for, forget about that. She probably won't get the visa, and if she gets the visa she'll probably be refused entry and sent back on the next flight.

When do you expect to move back to the US?


DCF itself is the common procedure when filing for an immigrant spouse who lives outside the US and the USC spouse also lives outside the US.

Don't have a fixed date yet. Depends on the job. It might be in the middle of next year or around that I will start thinking of moving. I was in between jobs last month and tried to move back. Realized visa process isn't as simple as I thought. Kid is born in India but took us citizenship. He first need to get visa and then OCI/PIO to get out of the country looks like. Wrongly assumed wife's visa would be like few days work at delhi embassy.

If I get a chance I will go through DCF when we have to move. If I have to move to US first on job and then sponsor wife, I guess DCF is out of question.

Thanks
Serra