B1/b2 Tourist Visa

[craigrs]

Hello,

The wife was granted a tourist visa B1/B2 No idea how long she is granted to stay in USA.. any idea? How can i buy her a return plane ticket if we have no idea..

anyone know how it works?

Thanks

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Hello,

The wife was granted a tourist visa B1/B2 No idea how long she is granted to stay in USA.. any idea? How can i buy her a return plane ticket if we have no idea..

anyone know how it works?

Thanks

At Port of Entry the Immigration person will usually ask how long will be the stay. I usually reply for my Thai wife and say 30 days, 45 days, what ever the plan is. Then she's been stamped in every time for 6 months!

Well, not quite. Feb 2003 we hit Seattle and she had just 17 days left before her passport expired. We had return tickets in 14 days. The nice immigration lady stamped her in for 16 days, a little leeway. We made the 14-day departure.

Mac

[craigrs]

Mac,

Thanks for the reply.. Well i need to be in the states 6 months, and let me ask fellow posters We are thinking of going next week and should i buy my wife a ticket with a return of about 4 months and hope no problems? Or should i buy a ticket for 6 weeks and hope we get the 6 month stamp? also if she does stay 5-6 months will this hurt her chances of a another tourist visa next year?

Thanks again

[thaihome]

She was given a single entry visa? Pretty much the norm these days is the 10 year, mutli entry, though I have heard cases where the first one was just a single entry.

If indeed it is a single entry, I don't think how long she stays in the US would impact her getting the second one, which will be a 10 year mutli entry. Her retruning on the first one within the time given her on entry will make that automatic.

TH

[craigrs]

Yes TH Its a single entry and buying a 4 month ticket..

[thaihome]

Buy the 4 month return ticket. She will probably get a 6 month stamp on entry and you could change it if you want. Have her come back to Thailand and apply for new visa. Chances are she will be given a 10 year multi entry the secone time.

TH

[andyc2006]

She was given a single entry visa? Pretty much the norm these days is the 10 year, mutli entry, though I have heard cases where the first one was just a single entry.

My wife was given only a 2-year B2 visa, even though she'd been to the US (and followed every rule) and requested the 10-year... Not so sure 10 years is typical.

[andyc2006]

also if she does stay 5-6 months will this hurt her chances of a another tourist visa next year?

So long as she follows all the rules of her visa -- including returning before it expires, based on the stamp at port-of-entry -- her trip to the US should actually help her acquire future visas to the US. It'll demonstrate that she's not chomping on the bit hoping to illegally immigrate to the USA.

[thaihome]

She was given a single entry visa? Pretty much the norm these days is the 10 year, mutli entry, though I have heard cases where the first one was just a single entry.

My wife was given only a 2-year B2 visa, even though she'd been to the US (and followed every rule) and requested the 10-year... Not so sure 10 years is typical.

I’m only saying that based on about 50 Thais in our office (men and women) getting US visas over the past 3 years and all got 10 year. Also have about 5 friends with Thai wives and they all have 10 year visas. A 30ish Thai man that works for me got just got a tourist visa for himself and his mother last month to visit his brother that lives (with green card) in the US. They both got 10 year visas.

I think your wife not geting the 10 yeas is not normal.

TH