F1 visa questions

[jimbob]

Hello,

 

I am from the UK and a UK citizen. I have my F1 visa interview next month at the London US embassy.

 

I have a USC girlfriend, who studies her PhD in the same city (albeit a different university) that I will be going to for grad school. Her parents own the house she lives in, so I would live there with no costs. I found a course which is exactly what I want to do, and I'm lucky to have found it at a university in the same city as my girlfriend, living with her is an added bonus of this whole thing! We have no intentions of marriage or me staying etc, and she's going to do a post doc in the UK when she's finished and join me over there once I've finished studies and moved back home. Is this likely to be an issue if the embassy find this out when questioning me at the interview? Or will they most likely not ask this?

 

I had a J1 visa in 2012 for summer camp, and have visited 4 times on ESTA between Oct 2015 and now (when I met my girlfriend through a friend I worked with at camp). I have never been denied entry, and I have never ever overstayed or done anything outside of my J1 visa or ESTA rules. Should this work in my favour? Or is my amount of visits to the USA going to be questioned?

 

I have the I20 and my grandparents are supporting me. They have the supporting funds for both years, let alone the one that is required for evidence on the I20 form. I also have a scholarship from the school which covers 1/3 of my tuition costs - is this likely to be a positive thing for me at the interview when asked to prove finances etc? My other concern is my course required no GRE, so I didn't take it. Is this going to be a problem? I feel the schools reputation and me getting a scholarship, plus my undergrad GPA of 3.2, should be fine?

 

My issue is the ties to the UK - all I have is a very close knit, big family that all live close together, and I have no intention of moving for good away from this, because this is important to me and such a huge support network! I have a car I'll keep at my grandparents but that's about it. I am worried about ties to the UK side of things?

 

Does anyone have experience with the London embassy, or a EU one? I am hearing that being from the UK, my embassy interview will be pretty straightforward. Is this correct?

 

Sorry for all the questions! I am obviously very nervous and my situation is slightly different to other f1 visa applicants, and I am worried this will be flagged up, questioned etc. I really want to do this course so much and I'm worried I'll get rejected! I appreciate any answers etc!  

Edited April 16, 2017 by jimbob

[ExponentialDecay]

Everyone always says that their situation is different from everyone else's, and it never is. That means you, OP. 

Ties to home are always a tricky one, but I find that officers tend to be lenient with young people because it's understandable that you won't have a lot of assets/property/family/whatever. Bring the deeds to your car, talk about your family, most importantly, don't say you plan to stay in the US, and you'll be fine. 

[financegrad]

Hi everyone!

 

 

I have a question, and maybe somebody knows someone in the same situation.

 

I got admitted to a great US university, and I am going to start my Ph.D. this fall. My F1 visa interview is in a few days, and there is something that bothers me. Last summer I applied for a B2 visa to visit my uncle who lives in the US and invited me over. I was rejected, visa officer said that I could not demonstrate enough ties to my home country - even though I had to come back and finish my master's degree in my home country (because I did not have a wife, kids, and job). 

 

Not surprisingly, I am still single, do not have kids and also unemployed. I understand that they look at F1 applicants who seek Ph.D. differently, but I am still a bit nervous about the interview. Maybe some of you know anybody who was in the same situation? What should I expect on the interview given this previous rejection, should I expect any problems?

Edited June 12, 2017 by financegrad

[fuzzylogician]

You don't need to show the same level of ties to your home country in an F1 interview. It's expected that you won't be studying and any immediate family will go with you. So it should be more straightforward than the B2 interview. Some things you can keep in mind: have answers to questions about funding -- they will ask who will pay for the degree and you should know the answers; they might worry about you working illegally, so it should be clear that you'll have enough funding and there won't be a problem. If asked about post-PhD plans, make sure to say you plan to go back home and find a job there, and not to say anything about wanting to find a job in the US. You could also show that you still have a bank account in your home country and I assume your parents are there too. Those will be some ways to show ties to your home country. Good luck! 

[financegrad]

24 minutes ago, fuzzylogician said:

It's expected that you won't be studying and any immediate family will go with you.

You mean that they expect me to show that this will not be the case?

 

 

I have a fellowship and tuition waiver (all on my I-20), so that should not be a problem. Regarding the family, my parents are separated, my mother and youger brother are in my home country, father is not (and he is not in the US). 

 

 

I wonder, why should bank accounts in home country be helpful? I have something around $6k on them, but it is still transferable. How does this show any connection to my homecountry?

 

 

 

Thank you for the response!

[fuzzylogician]

5 minutes ago, financegrad said:

You mean that they expect me to show that this will not be the case?

No, I mean that if you had a wife and kids, they would most likely join you in the US. This is not relevant for you. 

I have a fellowship and tuition waiver (all on my I-20), so that should not be a problem. Regarding the family, my parents are separated, my mother and youger brother are in my home country, father is not (and he is not in the US). 

Okay. This may or may not come up, but if it does you can talk about being close with your mother and brother, who live in your country. 

I wonder, why should bank accounts in home country be helpful? I have something around $6k on them, but it is still transferable. How does this show any connection to my homecountry?

Again, you can't really show strong ties because you don't have any. Best you can do is weak ties. Keeping the bank account sends a signal that you are holding on to your life in your home country. And yes, the money is transferrable and the account can be closed, that's what makes these weak ties, but it's the best you can do as far as I can tell. 

Thank you for the response!