visa refused in 2003, want to visit usa again

L

londonone2008

Registered Users (C)
Hello all, i have some visa questions if i may,

i went to visit USA twice in 2003. The first trip was for 4 weeks, , my last trip being about 80 days using the VWP.
I went to get a tourist visa upon my return and was refused under section 214b. I hold a british passport and have no other restrictions to travel and no criminal history.

Since my refusal I was under the impression that i could still travel to the USA using the VWP, but it would be likely i would be questioned about my refusal when i arrived.
I recently spoke with the London US embassy who told me that the rules have changed, and now because I was refused a visa I CANT travel on the VWP. This has been confirmed a few times by embassy officials.

I want to be able to visit the US again, to take a trip to NY with a friend in December or January for about 5 days, and to be able to make future short visitor trips over the next few years.

i am 27 and living at the family house that I have been for the last 20 years.
I have been at my recent employment since April 2007 full time as a purchasing manager for a software company. I dont have a wife or my own family.

i want to reapply for a visa but am concerned about my chances of success,
my questions are ;

Will not having my own home be a huge issue in regards to getting a visa ?

Are there any things going in my favour towards being issued a visa, ie the amount of time that has passed since my refusal in 2003, or against me, not having a family ?

Is there any advice you can offer about this situation for me ?

I know that at the interview I can provide utility documents if given the chance, letter from work, bank statements, bills etc, which i can do,

I am just curious as to what you can say about my chances, or to hear any advice or opinions at all.

thank you for reading this, im so happy this site exsists.
regards.
 
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If you are a British citizen and could have used VWP, why did you apply for a B-2 visa in the first place?

londonone2008 said:
i went to visit USA in 2003, my last trip being about 80 days using the VWP.
I went to get a tourist visa upon my return and was refused under section 214b.
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reply

I was in the US for 2½ months in 2003, I came home as not to overstay the VWP but wanted to make plans to go back again that year over christmas, I was advised by the US Embassy that because I had already been there for just under 3 months I would need to apply for a tourist visa if I wanted to go back that year. I simply applied because I thought it was the correct and proper way to do it.
In retrospect yes it has been one of the worst things i could have done.
Regards
 
Visitor visa denials are usually without prejudice, so you can apply again and if you can show you intend to return to the UK, it will be granted.
 
I understand, thank you.
Is there anything else someone can say or advise about my current situation.
I am mostly curious about the issue of not owning my own home etc, and about anything in my favour or against me. Or if anyone has had or is in a similar situation.
Thanks again
 
There was no 'need' as such. I just wanted to go back again for christmas, I thought I was doing the right thing by applying for a visa.
When I arrived in USA (in 2003 for 80 days using the VWP) the immigration staff at the airport said I was welcome to enter this time for under 90 days on the VWP, but if I wanted to visit again afterwards I should apply for a visa at my local embassy. So when I returned home I did, and was refused the visa. Does that make sense ?
 
You have my sympathy. If none of your trips were intented to last beyond 90 days, you should have never applied for a B-2 visa. I am still puzzled why the POE officers advised you to do so.

londonone2008 said:
There was no 'need' as such. I just wanted to go back again for christmas, I thought I was doing the right thing by applying for a visa.
When I arrived in USA (in 2003 for 80 days using the VWP) the immigration staff at the airport said I was welcome to enter this time for under 90 days on the VWP, but if I wanted to visit again afterwards I should apply for a visa at my local embassy. So when I returned home I did, and was refused the visa. Does that make sense ?
Click to expand...
 
hi there,
i know, it was a huge mistake, alas the past is the past and now it seems the best way is for me to reapply for a visa.
I know a lot of time has passed, and my situation has changed, i just want to make sure i get as much info and advice as i can before i do.

if anyone has answers to my above questions, or opinions at all please do reply.
continued discussion and opinions are very much appreciated,
thanks.
 
The key is, you need to provide enough evidence to the US consul that you will surely return to the UK after your temporary visit. Financial ties to the UK need to be clearly demonstrated. Good luck!!!

londonone2008 said:
if anyone has answers to my above questions, or opinions at all please do reply.
Click to expand...
 
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Also, it will be very helpful if you can show evidence that your personal circumstances have changed dramatically since your earlier visa refusal, under 214(b). If you merely supply more documents, without clearly substantianting the change in your situation, there is a good likelihood that you will have 214(b) again.

To overcome 214(b), most people commonly think that it is just supplying more documents, that ain't the case.
 
Hello,

The only real thing that has changed is i have been in full time work for the last few years, more recently at my current position for the last 17 months.
It will say Employment ' Purchasing Manager (Professional) ' instead of last time when it said 'unemployed'

What are dramatic changes in the eyes of immigration ?
i assume they are marriage, mortgage, work ? i could be wrong.
 
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londonone2008 said:
Hello,

The only real thing that has changed is i have been in full time work for the last few years, more recently at my current position for the last 17 months.
It will say Employment ' Purchasing Manager (Professional) ' instead of last time when it said 'unemployed'

What are dramatic changes in the eyes of immigration ?
i assume they are marriage, mortgage, work ? i could be wrong.
Click to expand...

I am still not clear , if it is necessary for your to apply for a visa because you were denied in the past, Who knows the answer for sure, if so can you post a link to the souse of information

All I can say, is if you apply for a B visa you MUST, show strong social, emotional , family and financial ties to your home country, do you own property? where do your family live?
 
Hiya

Here is the VWP page on the US Embassy London's page.

http://www.usembassy.org.uk/cons_new/visa/niv/vwp.html

There is a 'Visa Waiver Wizard' which i went through to check my eligibility.
When i got to the refused a visa part it says to 'call your embassy for more infomation.'

I did that, and they told me numerous times that the rules have changed and now everyone who has been refused a visa under section 214b can not travel on the VWP. This has been said on two different occasions by the telephone operators for the London US Embassy.

BUT -

on the same VWP webpage there is a link that says 'special restricted visas' halfway down the page. the link takes you to this page

http://www.usembassy.org.uk/cons_new/visa/niv/add_req.html

On this new page at the bottom it says

'Travelers who have been refused a visa under the provisions of Section 221(g) or 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act are not prohibited from traveling visa free under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP).However, they will be questioned by an immigration official at the U. S. port of entry regarding the refusal by the Embassy or Consulate. '


Now this is not the same info as i was told by the Embassy operators.

I cant find any infomation online that if people are refused under section
214b that they can no longer travel on the VWP, but the operaters at the embassy certainly are sure that they cant.


*Sue, Yes it is very unclear,
I dont own my own property or have rental contracts. I live at the family house in London which I have done for 20+ years,
I do have lots of utility bills, insurance bills etc, in my own name at this address. *

thanks for reading
 
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so you see my dilema,

I want to reapply for a visa either this year or the start of next, but I really want to understand the situation more.
 
I believe you will have to overcome 214(b) (the biggest hindrance for non-immigrant non-work related visas, where you have to prove non-immigrant intent). Please document and carry as much as evidence as you can to the visa appointment, to prove that you have strong ties to your country of origin.

In few countries where there is high volume of visa applicants, I came across situations from others where applicants were not getting enough time from the consular officer to show evidence, so it can also boil down to some luck factor ultimately.
 
yes it appears that is what i will have to do.
it is very strange though about the contradictions in what people in my situation can do.
 
londonone2008 said:
yes it appears that is what i will have to do.
it is very strange though about the contradictions in what people in my situation can do.
Click to expand...

It may appear strange because situations are similar between cases, however, facts leading to the situation are unique among cases. Hence, each case will have to be dealt separately from that of other cases.
 
hello, many thanks for your reply.
what i meant by strange is the contradictions from the embassy staff in regards to me using the VWP.
I know i have to prove my ties and that every case is different, i have been researching this for a few years.


------ Quote from my earlier post
Since my refusal I was under the impression that i could still travel to the USA using the VWP, but it would be likely i would be questioned about my refusal when i arrived.
I recently spoke with the London US embassy who told me that the rules have changed, and now because I was refused a visa I CANT travel on the VWP. This has been confirmed a few times by embassy officials. ------



What is most confusing is that I was told i can no longer use the visa waiver program.

Not just me, but EVERYONE who has been refused under section 214b is now ineligable to travel on the VWP.

I have not seen any other infomation about this, but quite simply they told me that EVERYONE who has been refused a visa under section 214b now has to apply for a visa and can no longer travel on the VWP.
 
I completely agree with you. It is unfortunate the way some applications are treated.

I personally know of a family, where Children (marrried) are in the US, Mother is a widower and lives in India. The family has business interests (real estate) in India. When the Mother applied for a B-2 visitor visa and she mentioned that she only wants to see her children for 3 weeks (because she is still alive), the consular officer denied by issuing 214(b). Now, all that the Mother wanted was a chance to show evidence regarding real estate property to the consular officer, but she did not get one. She asked me, "forget about the Visa, why am I not even getting a chance to show evidence despite paying Visa fees" and I did not had an answer.
 
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