The other day I spoke with a lawyer about getting my friend a tourist visa to come to the US. She is a poor shop owner in a small town in Kamphaeng Phet. She owns no property of her own except for the shop, since her house has been placed in the names of her children. Her income is quite minimal, but enough for her to get by at a reasonable standard for her area.

The lawyer said they are looking for the following in this order:

1) Employment - history, salary, and a need to return

2) Money - bank statements, fair amount of money to cover trip expenses, and income

3) Family Ties

4) Return ticket

Since my friend had only #3 and #4 she would likely be denied. The recommendation was to consider a fiance visa or to try for the tourist visa after depositing a fair sum of money into her account some time prior to her applying for the visa. The estimate was approximately $5,000 USD.

I wanted to spend some time with her and show her around here, but I did not want to make a large financial committment and a marriage for a visa is certainly not an option for me.

Is this advice accurate? Being advised to deposit $5000 into her account does not seem to be sound legal advice to me which leads me to question the rest of the advice as well.

You question the advice about putting money in her account, but you don't question the advice about getting a fiance visa? If you apply for a fiance visa and it's uncovered that the relationship between the both of you isn't what you say it is...she could be barred from ever entering the USA, and you could go to prison. You should put on your thinking cap...

Oh, well I think the relationship is established enough so that we could probably qualify for the fiance visa. Its just a bit too soon for my taste.

I think the fiance visa was meant as a suggestion for a way to be successful in the future. Not a way to scam an entry into the country. The lawyer made it clear that the requirements for that was to be able to establish evidence of a relationship.

I will accept defeat at this point and attempt to carry things on without her visiting me here. Like many others, it is just frustrating to me, I was hoping that there was a reasonable way to do this.