Second US Visa for Thai Wife

[rjcampbe]

Getting ready to go through the visa dance at the US Embassy again. My wife got a non immigrant B1/B2 visa a couple of years ago to visit family and do some tourist stuff. We went a few times for about 2 weeks each stretch. (We don't want to live in the US and don't want the spouse visa / green card / etc. so just had her travel on a typical tourist visa.)

It expired in January so have to renew for a trip coming up in March...

The process was pretty easy for her the first time, but we had a huge amount of documentation, marriage cert, bank account statements, business documents, school records, land deeds, etc, that was over an inch thick when she went to the interview. In the end, all they wanted to see was the marriage license and the documentation of my job / visa / work permit to live in Thailand...

It was a pain to pull all that info together when they weren't interested in any of it.

Any recent experience with a US visa renewal for a Thai spouse? What do they actually need to see, given the most important data point is three trips to the US in the last 2 years with no visa overstays.

I have to think that the second one is easier than the first, but I don't want to be too casual about it and get rejected.

[Thanyaburi Mac]

My now wife has had four visas, first three were "G/Fs", two valid for 6 months each, which showed that she would return to Thailand, the 3rd was a 10 year visa. Then we got married and she got a 4th visa, also a 10 yearer. For each one she/we had a kilo or so of documents, land chanotes, birthcerts for her three kids, and more. Which, as you say, were never look at, just my passport with a long series of Retirement extensions.

Fine, but next year her current 10 year visa expires so we'll be back again, and back with the full kilo or so of documents.

Biggest change since last interview is that I WILL NOT be able to accompany her to the Consulate, so she needs to be prepared, but she'll have a short covernote from me and my passport in hand with the various extensions flagged, which she'll hand in with a smile right at the get-go.

So, I'd recommend gathering up your same materials as before, Just In Case.

Mac