Visa/citizenship Questions

[russellmania]

 

 

4 years with no trips to the USA and no plans to ever go there again.

You have not one relative you would like to visit in person? Parents? Children? Grandkids?

 

 

Well, I have one son, two sisters, some nephews and nieces I could visit but my wife can't go without a visa which takes a long time and a lot of money to get and I'm not going anywhere along. I don't go anywhere in the Philippines along so I sure won't go to another country along. We are in love and stuck together like glue.  I encourage my relatives to visit me in the Philippines. It would be a good vacation for them.

 

Someday I may take my wife to the USA to visit my family and to see what its like there but right now we are saving money to build our home in the Philippines.

 

I thought when you are married to a filipina the visa's are easier to obtain...not true?

[pokermike]

Yes being married the visa process actually takes longer. Fiance visa is quicker but there are more complicated. I have done both , currently i am waiting for approval for my spouse. We sent in our application in Novemeber of 2012 and just this month over a year later , our application was approved. it know is being sent back to the main offices on the east coast and then it will be forwarded to Manilla.

It looks like it will be she will be allowed to come to the US in march , so total time 16 months. There are many factors involved in the approval process , even what state you live in can slow things down. Good luck you can count on at least a years wait.   later Poker Mike

[newbster]

I thought when you are married to a filipina the visa's are easier to obtain...not true?

Are you talking about a spouse Visa to make her eventually a U.S. citizen? Or just a visitors visa to allow her to visit the U.S. with you? I see that someone already answered that it takes about a year for spouse Visa - which is what I've read also.

 

Does anyone have experience with just a travel Visa to allow a holiday/vacation with your Filipina spouse in the U.S.? 

 

Also if you have kids in phils can they become U.S. citizens (if you are a U.S. citizen) and RP citizens? i.e. have dual citizenship? This would let you easily take them along on any future trips I guess.

[MikeB]

Does anyone have experience with just a travel Visa to allow a holiday/vacation with your Filipina spouse in the U.S.?    Also if you have kids in phils can they become U.S. citizens (if you are a U.S. citizen) and RP citizens? i.e. have dual citizenship? This would let you easily take them along on any future trips I guess.

I split the visa questions into a new topic of their own.

 

If you are a US citizen and have children born outside the country you file a Consular Report of Birth Abroad - http://manila.usembassy.gov/service/citizenship/first-time-report-of-birth-abroad7.html

From everything I have read it is very difficult for a Filipino to get a tourist visa to the US unless they have significant assets (property, business, money) in their name. The fact that they are married to a US citizen works against them because it's more likely they won't return. That's the way US Immigration sees it.