Marriage / Fiance Visa for Thai Wife Info and Company Reviews and Cautions

[lilbarry1212 3]

Good day to all,

 

I am happy to have found this site and wish to share my experience to all people who are thinking about or currently trying make a Marriage Visa or Fiance Visa for a Thai lady, whether you live in Pattaya or Bangkok or anywhere else for that matter, the process is the same. Please post any other names of scam companies that you may have been victim too and share any info you may have about the visa process to help a future person out.

 

I think by telling you my story, I can help answer a lot of questions you may have, and please, BEWARE OF LAZY/SCAM LEGAL COMPANIES WILLING TO HELP YOU WITH UNREALISTICALLY FAST TIMES OR REALLY CHEAP PRICES.

 

A brief intro to my situtation, I am from the U.S. and have been in Pattaya since Dec 2011 living with my now current wife. I tried to make a visa, marriage or fiance, so my girlfriend could go to the U.S. with me and we could live together. I am a former U.S. Marine and I am now finished with the military and have been studying the last 3 years. My net worth is low which is important for which type of visa you apply for. We started looking for legal help in March 2012 to start the visa process. Here is what I found out:

 

FIRST, BEWARE OF SCAM COMPANIES. The main reason I am posting ths is so nobody goes to the same legal company I did because they stole my money and did NOTHING for me in terms of processing my visa. The name of this SCAM company is "Linian Legal" and they are located on Third Road within a 3 minute walk from the intersection of 3rd Road and Pattaya Klang. They have a big yellow sign that says "Linian Legal" and I wish to tell everyone to avoid there services because they did nothing but steal my money and waste my time until I gave up with trying to get them to do anything and switched companies. Beware, Linian Legal is a scam!!! Do not go to them for Visa help, it seemed like they had other files and cases they were working on, but I was one of the only Visa cases they ever worked on and they just told me they could do it in two months and made me pay the 15 thousand baht deposit up front. They either were stupid or malicious, but the fact they didn't refund my deposit after two months had passed and they didn't even come close to applying for the visa, let alone getting it in that time makes me want to warn anyone else to never use their services.

 

Now, the INFO about visas! Keep in mind, I am from the U.S. and the process is much harder and different for the U.S. then say England or Australia, but I hope this can help if you are from Europe none the less.

 

The process takes about 8 - 12 months, and this is AFTER you submit to the embassy so get started NOW if you think you are serious about the girl.

 

Some people might want to try to submit the visa form without legal help, but be warned that if you make one mistake or are missing one document, it might take months for them to contact you that they need to restart the process because you mispelled something or forgot a document. Unless you live in Thailand or don't mind waiting 2 years or so to live with your wife, I stongly suggest legal help.

 

Now, to get a marriage or fiance visa? This depends on your net worth (or if you're already married). The embassies main concerns is that you are not a pimp making fake visas for girls you want to sell into prostitution, you can take care of her financially when she enters your country and will not immediately (or ever) have to apply for welfare and that she is not Osama Bin Laden's cousin who wants to take down some buildings. That's really all they are concerned about, and what determines if you should get a marriage or fiance depends a lot on your income. If you don't have hundreds of thousands of dollars in your savings or assets it might be hard to get a fiance visa, not impossible though, I sadly don't know the specific amounts that the embassy views as good savings, but they do want to see you have a job that makes over 23,000 dollars a year in order to get the visa. I am a graduate student, so I do not have that income yet. So, with that said, if your income is low, you will need a SPONSOR for a marriage or fiance visa. This can be a parent or rich uncle or family friend who is willing to fill a form disclosing all their assets and sign a statement saying that if this person ever applies for welfare, the gov can come and seize those assets to pay for the programs the thai woman received. However, if you have the income, you don't need to get a sponsor.

 

IF YOU NEED A SPONSOR because your income is low, you should apply for the marriage visa rather than fiance because the embassy person might feel that a fiance is not a strong enough commitment. The fear is that you will get her to the U.S., get in a fight before you are legally married and then leave her on the street with no where to go and no money to get home. But if you are already married, it shows them a stronger committment has been made in your relationship and there is less fear of you leaving her in the cold so it makes it more likely they won't give you grief on your visa applicaiton about low finances or a sponsor. And also, as it was explained to me, is that if your parent is the sponsor, it is taken seriously if you are married because she is like family to your parent so the embassy can't deny a marriage visa over money because it's like the mother is sponsoring a daughter. Not sure how accurate that is, but it kind of makes sense. Keep in mind, to apply for the marriage visa, YOU NEED TO BE MARRIED FIRST. You can get married in Thailand and the U.S. gov recognizes a Thai marriage.

 

SIDE NOTE: GETTING MARRIED IN THAILAND. This can be done in about three days if you have the time, a car and the patience to not go crazy at Thai gov offices. You need to go to your embassy and get a Marriage affidavit saying you are single. then you need to get that translated anywhere and then go to the Thai Foreign Ministy in northern bangkok and get it stamped by the Thai Gov. Then, you can go to a Thai Amphur, most cities have Amphurs including Pattaya, they are like City Halls I guess, and they can marry you there. Do a google search for the process, it's very easy and you can do this yourself if you don't mind running around, or you can pay almost any visa company in Pattaya to do it for you for 15000 baht.

 

If you have the funds and are just in a hurry to get it processed, go for the Fiance visa. How the process for Fiance and Marriage visas work is you send the Marriage or Fiance Petition to the USCIS office in TEXAS or California or New Hampshire. there are a couple offices you can send it depending on where you live. USCIS is US Customs and Immigration, and it will go to their office and sit on their desk for about 3-5 months. For the FIANCE Visa, After they stamp it and check she's not in any terrorist databases or on the FBI wanted list, they will send the package to the U.S. Embassy in bangkok and they will call your girl for an interview. She will have to show a police check and a medical check as well as pictures proving you've actually seen each other in person and ask her questions about you like whens your birthday and other BS. Then the embassy will tell you shortly (either that day or in a few days) if your visa was approved or denied.

 

For the Marriage Visa, you send your Marriage petition to USCIS just like the fiance visa, but after USCIS stamps it, they send it the National Visa Center in New Hampshire I believe. There, they start the green card process and that takes 2-3 months in their office. Then the NVC sends the package to the U.S. embassy and do the interview like explained above.

 

So for the fiance visa your package goes like this:

Mail to USCIS IN U.S. 3-5 MONTHS

They process and send to embassy in Thailand 1-3 MO

Embassy calls your fiance requesting interview in which she must bring photos, health and police docs and your financial info, decision is made shortly after interview.

TOTAL TIME 7-10 months

 

Marriage visa is same as above but after USCIS it goes to Nat. Visa Center adn adds 2 months to the time

 

If you get the fiance visa, you must get married within 3 months of arrival or she will be illegal and likely deported.

 

apx fees:

420 dollars for USCIS

400 some dollars for NVC

no fee for embassy interview (I think)

200 for police and doctor checks

 

Fiance does not include NVC fee but you'll pay that after you get married.

 

Conclusion: if your in a hurry to get the visa, do fiance. If you don't have a lot of cash, do marriage. If you want to wait to get married, do fiance.

 

Please post here any other SCAM companies or if you recommend other companies. I switched to a company TSL and Associate Co., they are located in a huge office with more than 20 employees and they've been there more then 20 years and they told us all the documents we still needed and they were just awesome and fast with everything. They knew the process inside and out, and I am relaying that info to you. But they are important for reviewing and translating all your documents. They charge 54,000 baht which isn't cheap but you pay in installments and other companies like Visa King on Pattaya Klang and Visa King on Pattaya Nua are run by Brits and I'm sure do great work but charge 100,000 baht or 95,000. Not sure if that includes the doctor fee, but its still a little pricey, BUT DON'T GO CHEAP LIKE I DID AND GET BURNED. TSL is right across the street from the embassy and have a great staff. their number is 02-251-8130

 

Take care and good luck!

[alias 111]

Good day to all,

 

I am happy to have found this site and wish to share my experience to all people who are thinking about or currently trying make a Marriage Visa or Fiance Visa for a Thai lady, whether you live in Pattaya or Bangkok or anywhere else for that matter, the process is the same. Please post any other names of scam companies that you may have been victim too and share any info you may have about the visa process to help a future person out.

 

I think by telling you my story, I can help answer a lot of questions you may have, and please, BEWARE OF LAZY/SCAM LEGAL COMPANIES WILLING TO HELP YOU WITH UNREALISTICALLY FAST TIMES OR REALLY CHEAP PRICES.

 

A brief intro to my situtation, I am from the U.S. and have been in Pattaya since Dec 2011 living with my now current wife. I tried to make a visa, marriage or fiance, so my girlfriend could go to the U.S. with me and we could live together. I am a former U.S. Marine and I am now finished with the military and have been studying the last 3 years. My net worth is low which is important for which type of visa you apply for. We started looking for legal help in March 2012 to start the visa process. Here is what I found out:

 

FIRST, BEWARE OF SCAM COMPANIES. The main reason I am posting ths is so nobody goes to the same legal company I did because they stole my money and did NOTHING for me in terms of processing my visa. The name of this SCAM company is "Linian Legal" and they are located on Third Road within a 3 minute walk from the intersection of 3rd Road and Pattaya Klang. They have a big yellow sign that says "Linian Legal" and I wish to tell everyone to avoid there services because they did nothing but steal my money and waste my time until I gave up with trying to get them to do anything and switched companies. Beware, Linian Legal is a scam!!! Do not go to them for Visa help, it seemed like they had other files and cases they were working on, but I was one of the only Visa cases they ever worked on and they just told me they could do it in two months and made me pay the 15 thousand baht deposit up front. They either were stupid or malicious, but the fact they didn't refund my deposit after two months had passed and they didn't even come close to applying for the visa, let alone getting it in that time makes me want to warn anyone else to never use their services.

 

Now, the INFO about visas! Keep in mind, I am from the U.S. and the process is much harder and different for the U.S. then say England or Australia, but I hope this can help if you are from Europe none the less.

 

The process takes about 8 - 12 months, and this is AFTER you submit to the embassy so get started NOW if you think you are serious about the girl.

 

Some people might want to try to submit the visa form without legal help, but be warned that if you make one mistake or are missing one document, it might take months for them to contact you that they need to restart the process because you mispelled something or forgot a document. Unless you live in Thailand or don't mind waiting 2 years or so to live with your wife, I stongly suggest legal help.

 

Now, to get a marriage or fiance visa? This depends on your net worth (or if you're already married). The embassies main concerns is that you are not a pimp making fake visas for girls you want to sell into prostitution, you can take care of her financially when she enters your country and will not immediately (or ever) have to apply for welfare and that she is not Osama Bin Laden's cousin who wants to take down some buildings. That's really all they are concerned about, and what determines if you should get a marriage or fiance depends a lot on your income. If you don't have hundreds of thousands of dollars in your savings or assets it might be hard to get a fiance visa, not impossible though, I sadly don't know the specific amounts that the embassy views as good savings, but they do want to see you have a job that makes over 23,000 dollars a year in order to get the visa. I am a graduate student, so I do not have that income yet. So, with that said, if your income is low, you will need a SPONSOR for a marriage or fiance visa. This can be a parent or rich uncle or family friend who is willing to fill a form disclosing all their assets and sign a statement saying that if this person ever applies for welfare, the gov can come and seize those assets to pay for the programs the thai woman received. However, if you have the income, you don't need to get a sponsor.

 

IF YOU NEED A SPONSOR because your income is low, you should apply for the marriage visa rather than fiance because the embassy person might feel that a fiance is not a strong enough commitment. The fear is that you will get her to the U.S., get in a fight before you are legally married and then leave her on the street with no where to go and no money to get home. But if you are already married, it shows them a stronger committment has been made in your relationship and there is less fear of you leaving her in the cold so it makes it more likely they won't give you grief on your visa applicaiton about low finances or a sponsor. And also, as it was explained to me, is that if your parent is the sponsor, it is taken seriously if you are married because she is like family to your parent so the embassy can't deny a marriage visa over money because it's like the mother is sponsoring a daughter. Not sure how accurate that is, but it kind of makes sense. Keep in mind, to apply for the marriage visa, YOU NEED TO BE MARRIED FIRST. You can get married in Thailand and the U.S. gov recognizes a Thai marriage.

 

SIDE NOTE: GETTING MARRIED IN THAILAND. This can be done in about three days if you have the time, a car and the patience to not go crazy at Thai gov offices. You need to go to your embassy and get a Marriage affidavit saying you are single. then you need to get that translated anywhere and then go to the Thai Foreign Ministy in northern bangkok and get it stamped by the Thai Gov. Then, you can go to a Thai Amphur, most cities have Amphurs including Pattaya, they are like City Halls I guess, and they can marry you there. Do a google search for the process, it's very easy and you can do this yourself if you don't mind running around, or you can pay almost any visa company in Pattaya to do it for you for 15000 baht.

 

If you have the funds and are just in a hurry to get it processed, go for the Fiance visa. How the process for Fiance and Marriage visas work is you send the Marriage or Fiance Petition to the USCIS office in TEXAS or California or New Hampshire. there are a couple offices you can send it depending on where you live. USCIS is US Customs and Immigration, and it will go to their office and sit on their desk for about 3-5 months. For the FIANCE Visa, After they stamp it and check she's not in any terrorist databases or on the FBI wanted list, they will send the package to the U.S. Embassy in bangkok and they will call your girl for an interview. She will have to show a police check and a medical check as well as pictures proving you've actually seen each other in person and ask her questions about you like whens your birthday and other BS. Then the embassy will tell you shortly (either that day or in a few days) if your visa was approved or denied.

 

For the Marriage Visa, you send your Marriage petition to USCIS just like the fiance visa, but after USCIS stamps it, they send it the National Visa Center in New Hampshire I believe. There, they start the green card process and that takes 2-3 months in their office. Then the NVC sends the package to the U.S. embassy and do the interview like explained above.

 

So for the fiance visa your package goes like this:

Mail to USCIS IN U.S. 3-5 MONTHS

They process and send to embassy in Thailand 1-3 MO

Embassy calls your fiance requesting interview in which she must bring photos, health and police docs and your financial info, decision is made shortly after interview.

TOTAL TIME 7-10 months

 

Marriage visa is same as above but after USCIS it goes to Nat. Visa Center adn adds 2 months to the time

 

If you get the fiance visa, you must get married within 3 months of arrival or she will be illegal and likely deported.

 

apx fees:

420 dollars for USCIS

400 some dollars for NVC

no fee for embassy interview (I think)

200 for police and doctor checks

 

Fiance does not include NVC fee but you'll pay that after you get married.

 

Conclusion: if your in a hurry to get the visa, do fiance. If you don't have a lot of cash, do marriage. If you want to wait to get married, do fiance.

 

Please post here any other SCAM companies or if you recommend other companies. I switched to a company TSL and Associate Co., they are located in a huge office with more than 20 employees and they've been there more then 20 years and they told us all the documents we still needed and they were just awesome and fast with everything. They knew the process inside and out, and I am relaying that info to you. But they are important for reviewing and translating all your documents. They charge 54,000 baht which isn't cheap but you pay in installments and other companies like Visa King on Pattaya Klang and Visa King on Pattaya Nua are run by Brits and I'm sure do great work but charge 100,000 baht or 95,000. Not sure if that includes the doctor fee, but its still a little pricey, BUT DON'T GO CHEAP LIKE I DID AND GET BURNED. TSL is right across the street from the embassy and have a great staff. their number is 02-251-8130

 

Take care and good luck!

 

 

Doing it yourself can be intimidating, but if you can't afford a visa agent try here:

 

http://www.visajourney.com/

 

Nice easy to follow guides on how to do it yourself, from a place that isn't trying to sell you anything. I did the visa agent route and discovered Visa Journey afterwards, and used to it learn what the agent was telling me was indeed correct. Note that this site is for US immigration.

[TheFiend 1,181]

I did the Settlement Visa and Indefinite Leave to Remain Visa for my other half when she came to the UK. It's all about evidence of a relationship and proof that you can support them. It's not hard.

 

It was quite funny, just before filing our application called in at one of these "Visa" specialists ( that guarantee successful applications) for some advice and they offered to fill in our form for us, it wouldn't cost too much, so we thought ok, we'll let them do it. When I checked through the form later they had made deliberate mistakes with the information I had given them - obviously they thought I would use their form and the application would fail and we would go back to them because they guarantee success..... their ploy failed.

 

Filled in a new application form, submitted it and 3 moths later the visa came through.

 

I know someone who has used well known UK based immigration specialist and their application failed for the simple reason that the specialist failed to tell my mate his visible income was not enough to support him and his wife. Their application failed but the "specialist" still pocketed the fee.

[Baht 9]

The UK fiance visa is very easy. All you have to do is provide them with the list of things that they want and Bob's your uncle. Bascially boils down to proof of relationship,your job,home and that you can support her because the state will not. I did it all myself.

Edited June 2, 2012 by Baht

[lovedog100 1,372]

Lilbarry, I disagree with you on several points. The first one is doing it yourself. It's not as hard as you are told. The company's you pay, do nothing more than fill out the form, that you supply the information for. You have done the hard part yourself, collecting everything needed. Anyone smart enough to figure out the forums can fill out forms. Most of the agency's are experienced with visa's to the UK, and Germany. There are a hundred people from the UK and Germany for every American in Thailand. Some of the agency's will simi prepare the lady for her interview, by telling her what questions might be asked, and giving possible answers. You can do that yourself, and much better.

 

The US visa is done online now. You can check and double check before clicking submit. You can even fill part of it out, and if there is some information that you need to research, you can save the app, and come back to it later. I spent Two day's filling out my wife's.

 

You said that the fiance is the easiest to get. You are wrong there. If you are living in Thailand, a tourist visa is the easiest to get. For us, 5 weeks from the day I submitted the application til visa in hand. A tourist visa is 6 months, which is plenty of time to see if she will be able to live in the US or not, and if the marriage has any chance of working. She can, as in our case, get a multiple entry visa. Then she can go home every 6 months, and then right back. She will want to go home anyway, and you might want to go as well. After visiting the US once, and returning home without overstaying, another tourist visa, a marriage visa, or fiance visa is much easier to get. She already has a history of visiting the US and abiding by the rules by leaving on time, and not getting arrested for some crime.

 

There are only a few things that are important when applying, that the agency's know. I can tell you those things here.

1. Be truthful on the application. (or as truthful as you possibly can.)

2. Answer every question on the application. Leave NO blank spaces. (this is important)

3. Prepare the lady for her interview. Ask her the typical questions over and over again, until she can answer them easily. She needs to know the purpose for her visit, and it's with in the rules of the visa she is applying for. She needs to know where she will be staying, America, is not a good enough answer. She needs to know about you, what you do for a living, do you own a home or rent, what state you are from, your birthday, have you been married before, do you have children, are your parents alive. She doesn't need to know what high school that you went to, but she should know as much as an American woman would know about the person she is marrying.

4. She needs to arrive to her interview with every document that they would possibly ask for. It should be in a file, or envelope, neatly arranged so she can easily find it when asked.

5. Have pictures showing the two of you together. They want to see your relationship. No bar pictures. Have pictures with her family, at restaurants, tourist attractions, in the mall, stuff like that. I printed 4 pictures per page, and labeled each one with the date, or at least month and year, and where it was. Trip to Koh Samet, at home with family, floating market, beach at Koh Larn. Then stapled then in order by date, they could easy thumb through it and see our relationship from start to that point.

6. For a tourist visa, she needs to show ties to Thailand. A job, house, property, family, children, friends, anything and everything that would show ties. You don't have to have it all, but more is better.

7. If you get married beforehand, go the whole legal rout. It's complicated. You have to go to the US Embassy and get a notarized letter that you are not married. Then go and have that letter translated into Thai, it has to be a certified translation. Then go and have it legalized. Then go to the Ampur and fill out the marriage papers. At that point you are legally married, whether you have a wedding or not.

8. Fill out the application, and make the packet of documents and pictures that she is taking to the interview with her, like you are submitting a report in college and want an A on it.

9. Have the lady read the application, or read it to her. You don't want her answering a question at the interview different than what is on the form. Make sure she knows what everything in the packet she is taking to the interview is.

10. Before you start the process, do as much research as possible. The Immigration, and Embassy website has lots of information on it. Most everything that you need to submit the application, and get married can be found there. Spend a day reading immigration websites.

11. Be patient, this is not a fast process. Don't get mad, it doesn't help. There are hoops that you have to jump through, expect it, and do it. It's not personal, it's just the bureaucratic process.

12. Read another thread found here http://www.pattayatalk.com/forums/topic/56797-thai-visa-express/page__hl__visa

 

Lots of people will tell you how hard it is to get a visa. They may have some experience themselves, or will tell you what they have heard. Do not listen to them. Take your advice from people that have got a visa, not from people that didn't. The people that say it's hard, is what keeps the agency's in business. Anyone that is of normal intelligence, and can work a computer online can get a visa for their lady. You will find that by doing it yourself, you will be more knowledgeable about the process, and will know where you are every step of the way. Your labor will save you about $1000 a day for your efforts. The Agency is the lazy mans way to go, but be advised, even with an agency, you still have to supply every answer on the application, every document and picture. You end up doing most of the work yourself anyway. Why pay someone else big bucks to fill out an application that you supply the answers for, and then put it in a file folder with the documents and pictures that you supplied?

[alias 111]

Much of this is simply not true. It is EXTREMELY difficult for an average Thai (one that members of a mongering forum would be dating/marrying) to get a tourist visa. The US govt. does not care if she has family or children or a low-paying factory job in Thailand. The presumption is every Thai granted a tourist visa has the intention of overstaying that visa, and you have to overcome this presumtion and priove she intends to return to Thailand. Significant amounts of money in HER account, ownership of property that has some value, these are what the govt looks at. They could not care less about her family. Also, it is very much frowned upon to use a tourist visa as a bypass to the marriage/fiancee visa process. Doing this is not a good idea.

 

You CANNOT do a financee of marriage visa online. Period.

 

Take a look here at the link I provided earlier.....

 

http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

 

 

 

 

 

Lilbarry, I disagree with you on several points. The first one is doing it yourself. It's not as hard as you are told. The company's you pay, do nothing more than fill out the form, that you supply the information for. You have done the hard part yourself, collecting everything needed. Anyone smart enough to figure out the forums can fill out forms. Most of the agency's are experienced with visa's to the UK, and Germany. There are a hundred people from the UK and Germany for every American in Thailand. Some of the agency's will simi prepare the lady for her interview, by telling her what questions might be asked, and giving possible answers. You can do that yourself, and much better.

 

The US visa is done online now. You can check and double check before clicking submit. You can even fill part of it out, and if there is some information that you need to research, you can save the app, and come back to it later. I spent Two day's filling out my wife's.

 

You said that the fiance is the easiest to get. You are wrong there. If you are living in Thailand, a tourist visa is the easiest to get. For us, 5 weeks from the day I submitted the application til visa in hand. A tourist visa is 6 months, which is plenty of time to see if she will be able to live in the US or not, and if the marriage has any chance of working. She can, as in our case, get a multiple entry visa. Then she can go home every 6 months, and then right back. She will want to go home anyway, and you might want to go as well. After visiting the US once, and returning home without overstaying, another tourist visa, a marriage visa, or fiance visa is much easier to get. She already has a history of visiting the US and abiding by the rules by leaving on time, and not getting arrested for some crime.

 

There are only a few things that are important when applying, that the agency's know. I can tell you those things here.

1. Be truthful on the application. (or as truthful as you possibly can.)

2. Answer every question on the application. Leave NO blank spaces. (this is important)

3. Prepare the lady for her interview. Ask her the typical questions over and over again, until she can answer them easily. She needs to know the purpose for her visit, and it's with in the rules of the visa she is applying for. She needs to know where she will be staying, America, is not a good enough answer. She needs to know about you, what you do for a living, do you own a home or rent, what state you are from, your birthday, have you been married before, do you have children, are your parents alive. She doesn't need to know what high school that you went to, but she should know as much as an American woman would know about the person she is marrying.

4. She needs to arrive to her interview with every document that they would possibly ask for. It should be in a file, or envelope, neatly arranged so she can easily find it when asked.

5. Have pictures showing the two of you together. They want to see your relationship. No bar pictures. Have pictures with her family, at restaurants, tourist attractions, in the mall, stuff like that. I printed 4 pictures per page, and labeled each one with the date, or at least month and year, and where it was. Trip to Koh Samet, at home with family, floating market, beach at Koh Larn. Then stapled then in order by date, they could easy thumb through it and see our relationship from start to that point.

6. For a tourist visa, she needs to show ties to Thailand. A job, house, property, family, children, friends, anything and everything that would show ties. You don't have to have it all, but more is better.

7. If you get married beforehand, go the whole legal rout. It's complicated. You have to go to the US Embassy and get a notarized letter that you are not married. Then go and have that letter translated into Thai, it has to be a certified translation. Then go and have it legalized. Then go to the Ampur and fill out the marriage papers. At that point you are legally married, whether you have a wedding or not.

8. Fill out the application, and make the packet of documents and pictures that she is taking to the interview with her, like you are submitting a report in college and want an A on it.

9. Have the lady read the application, or read it to her. You don't want her answering a question at the interview different than what is on the form. Make sure she knows what everything in the packet she is taking to the interview is.

10. Before you start the process, do as much research as possible. The Immigration, and Embassy website has lots of information on it. Most everything that you need to submit the application, and get married can be found there. Spend a day reading immigration websites.

11. Be patient, this is not a fast process. Don't get mad, it doesn't help. There are hoops that you have to jump through, expect it, and do it. It's not personal, it's just the bureaucratic process.

12. Read another thread found here http://www.pattayata.../page__hl__visa

 

Lots of people will tell you how hard it is to get a visa. They may have some experience themselves, or will tell you what they have heard. Do not listen to them. Take your advice from people that have got a visa, not from people that didn't. The people that say it's hard, is what keeps the agency's in business. Anyone that is of normal intelligence, and can work a computer online can get a visa for their lady. You will find that by doing it yourself, you will be more knowledgeable about the process, and will know where you are every step of the way. Your labor will save you about $1000 a day for your efforts. The Agency is the lazy mans way to go, but be advised, even with an agency, you still have to supply every answer on the application, every document and picture. You end up doing most of the work yourself anyway. Why pay someone else big bucks to fill out an application that you supply the answers for, and then put it in a file folder with the documents and pictures that you supplied?

[sanuk300 4]

100% true. Tourist visa is imposable. The visa places wont even talk to you if you mention the U.S.

[MM 6,562]

100% true. Tourist visa is imposable. The visa places wont even talk to you if you mention the U.S.

For you and alias: I happen to know lovedog and his wife, and he did get her a USA tourist visa..online..in 5 weeks.

I know several people who have taken bar girls and gogo dancers to the USA from Thailand on tourist visas.

It happens, so don't believe everything you read on the forums...except this, of coarse.

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

[sanuk300 4]

It happens, so don't believe everything you read on the forums...except this, of coarse.

I'm speaking from experience. Not hearsay. I would really appreciate it if you would have one or more of your sources come online here and tell us how they did it. This is not a flame, I am serious. I would really like to know???

[Baht 9]

I would really appreciate it if you would have one or more of your sources come online here and tell us how they did it.

 

http://www.pattayata...ns/#entry963216

Edited June 2, 2012 by Baht

[lovedog100 1,372]

100% true. Tourist visa is imposable. The visa places wont even talk to you if you mention the U.S.

The agency's won't touch it because there isn't any money in it for them. The application is longer, and the assume your lady is a prostitute. Not to mention, as I said, most of the agency's have little or NO experience in doing American applications.

 

Much of this is simply not true. It is EXTREMELY difficult for an average Thai (one that members of a mongering forum would be dating/marrying) to get a tourist visa. The US govt. does not care if she has family or children or a low-paying factory job in Thailand. The presumption is every Thai granted a tourist visa has the intention of overstaying that visa, and you have to overcome this presumtion and priove she intends to return to Thailand. Significant amounts of money in HER account, ownership of property that has some value, these are what the govt looks at. They could not care less about her family. Also, it is very much frowned upon to use a tourist visa as a bypass to the marriage/fiancee visa process. Doing this is not a good idea.

You CANNOT do a financee of marriage visa online. Period.

Take a look here at the link I provided earlier.....

http://www.visajourn...content/k1guide

I disagree. Maybe you didn't catch the part where I said that an American man living in Thailand can get his wife or girlfriend a tourist visa. At that point, he becomes one of her ties to Thailand. I know of men that did this, and I did it myself. Using a tourist visa is not by passing the marriage or fiancee visa. A marriage fiancee visa is for permanent residence in the country, a tourist visa is not. However, the other visas will be easier for a Thai National that has been to, and returned from the US before, without an overstay. The OP stated that he was living in Thailand when he applied for the visa. I just gave it as an option. I do know Thai women that have been turned down for a visa that had Millions of Baht in the bank. They told me that I would never get one for my wife. I did. Who said that they did everything right just because they had money in the bank, and a house that is paid for? They sure didn't have the foot up of being married to an American man that was living in Thailand.

 

The difference, a tourist visa is entirely done online, except the interview by E-filing. The marriage, and fiancee visa, the forms are downloaded online, and then sent in. However, E-filing is expanding, they keep adding to what can be E-filed. I had found a place to E-file for the marriage visa, and filled it out by mistake, before submitting the tourist visa. I don't have the time or energy to look for it now.

 

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/searchusa/?locale=en&affiliate=82601b2ec&vgnextoid=d6f8c08346bc2310VgnVCM10000025e6a00aRCRD&

query=visa&x=0&y=0

 

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/searchusa/?locale=en&affiliate=82601b2ec&vgnextoid=d6f8c08346bc2310VgnVCM10000025e6a00aRCRD&query=visa&x=0&y=0

 

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=254a3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=254a3e4d77d73210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

[lovedog100 1,372]

I'm speaking from experience. Not hearsay. I would really appreciate it if you would have one or more of your sources come online here and tell us how they did it. This is not a flame, I am serious. I would really like to know???

As MM said. I am one of those that did it. MM, Bushcraft, Frosty and others watched us go through the process. In fact, she got a 10 year multiple entry visa. She has been in the US for the last 5 months and 25 days. She flew back to Thailand last night, and will be in the US again in 2 weeks on that same visa.

Edited June 3, 2012 by lovedog100

[MM 6,562]

The one thing in common for all those I know who have gotten a tourist visa to the USA is that the male resided in Thailand for several years prior to the application for the visa.

It might be a coincidence, maybe not. Not all of them (in fact, only lovedog) were married to the lady.

 

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

[sanuk300 4]

MM, am I correct in assuming that lovedog was married to his wife when he got the visa? A tourist visa for a wife would make sense. But I would still like factual proof that any lady, as you say, can get a tourist visa. This has not been my experience. We have been trying to get a visa for one of our nieces for two years. The only visa that is some what possible is a student visa but it is expensive to get and I would like for her to come visit first before I commit to a student program. The foreign student fees are outrageous at the universities. Can you ask some of these people how they did it?

 

edit : sorry I didn't see your post lovedog. So my question still stands.

Edited June 3, 2012 by sanuk300

[MM 6,562]

Sanuk, your situation is different. Read my last post again.

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

[sanuk300 4]

Well, the situation may be different but you stated that "even a bar lady" can get a visa to the US. And what does living in Thailand have to do with it???? It's a US visa and has nothing to do with living in Thailand. The US immigration is in control of visas as far as I know. So I am at a lose as to how "even a bar lady" can get a US tourist visa. I will greatly appreciate further clarification form you and or lovedog. Like I have said, It has been my actual experience that is virtually impossible to get a tourist visa for the majority of Thai ladies. But hey, I am sure there is a way..... I just don't know how?????

[MM 6,562]

Well, the situation may be different but you stated that "even a bar lady" can get a visa to the US. And what does living in Thailand have to do with it???? It's a US visa and has nothing to do with living in Thailand. The US immigration is in control of visas as far as I know. So I am at a lose as to how "even a bar lady" can get a US tourist visa. I will greatly appreciate further clarification form you and or lovedog. Like I have said, It has been my actual experience that is virtually impossible to get a tourist visa for the majority of Thai ladies. But hey, I am sure there is a way..... I just don't know how?????

 

Did you read lovedog's thread yet?

[lilbarry1212 3]

Thanks for all the activity on the post guys. Let me address a few things. First let me say that all my information provided, in the initial post and this one is info I got from my new visa company which I paid for and from my extensive visits to the U.S. Embassy, and this hard researched and expensive info I am hoping to pass onto you. Secondly, it is surely not black and white and every situation is different, so basically, as with anything politics, don't take any of it to the bank.

 

As what they told me about tourist visas... As MM pointed out, you commitment to Thailand is what depends on if you can get a tourist visa for your wife. Not so much your income, but if your girlfriend or wife is really going to come back with you, and that you are going to come back as well. If you own property and have a business and have lived in Thailand for years and simply want you and your wife or girlfriend to visit your family, then it is easy to get a toursit visa. The company told me, that since I had studied at Thammasat Univesity in 2010 on an exchange program, I could commit to attending a grad program there this next fall proving I was really returning to Thailand, then get the tourist visa for my gf, get married in the U.S. while she was there and jump the whole bullcrap of the wait times and processing of the marriage visa. However, they suggested it would be a wasted effort unless I paid the fees and truly committed to the Thai University or else the tourist visa was going to get denied.

 

Hope this helps with the tourist visa explanation, and hope anyone can fill in some holes. I don't claim to be a guru on this, just passing on what I learned myself.

[Baht 9]

I could commit to attending a grad program there this next fall proving I was really returning to Thailand, then get the tourist visa for my gf, get married in the U.S. while she was there and jump the whole bullcrap of the wait times and processing of the marriage visa.

 

The US immigration will not like that one bit.

[lilbarry1212 3]

And I disagree with Lovedogs post saying that doing it yourself is easy. Yes, it is true that you do the hard work yourself, but you pay the company to help make sure you don't forget anything. For example, when you send the documents to USCIS you need to send about 10 other things with the petition form and one of those docs is your wifes birth certificate. (all these thai docs need to be translated btw that the company will do). My wife wasn't born in a hospital but in a house and her birth was recorded but wasn't given an official birth certificate. The "unofficial" certificate which her family got from their local gov't house appeared to be a worthy replacement for an official certificate. But not so! If I would have done it myself and simply sent in the first certificate she had (the one that was good in the opinion of the shit company Linian Legal I hired first told me) the gov't would have contacted us 5 months later requesting an official cert. The new company I hired gave us the very complicated procedure of getting a real and official birth cert. Just this one thing saved us months of delays and days of runaround. This is why you hire the company, not to dot your i's and cross your t's. But if you feel you are intimate eno9ugh with the process, do it yourself. But it is the freaking u.s. gov, they don't care if your happy or not and one mistake could cost you months. And IMO, if there is one thign worth spending a little money on, its getting to live with yoru wife.

[lilbarry1212 3]

The US immigration will not like that one bit.

 

yeah, but you wouldn't tell them that until after you arrived and theres nothin they can do about it cuz you can marry anybody you want who is in the u.s.

[Baht 9]

yeah, but you wouldn't tell them that until after you arrived and theres nothin they can do about it cuz you can marry anybody you want who is in the u.s.

 

Fraud?? Visa fraud??

 

 

You must remember that coming to the US with the sole intention of getting married in the US and filing for adjustment of status is deemed to be visa fraud, and US immigration officers do not take kindly to anyone they feel has committed visa fraud.

 

http://www.visapro.com/Immigration-Articles/?a=1252&z=36

Edited June 3, 2012 by Baht

[davebuczek 21]

The one thing in common for all those I know who have gotten a tourist visa to the USA is that the male resided in Thailand for several years prior to the application for the visa.

It might be a coincidence, maybe not. Not all of them (in fact, only lovedog) were married to the lady.

 

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

 

It seems to be common practice among US embassies that it is easier if you have lived in the lady's country for a few years to get any kind of visa. I had the same experience as Lovedog (except the first time we went we were not married) when I was living in Russia (with my GF then later on wife). I did the whole process myself and it was not that difficult.

 

If I remember correctly, it does make a difference regarding getting a green card for her, depending on how long you have been married, which visa you applied for, etc. I was married for less than 1 year, so her first green card was "temporary" we had to go back in 1 or 2 years for a follow up interview, then she got her permanent green card. That was a while ago, so maybe things have changed.

Edited June 3, 2012 by davebuczek

[lovedog100 1,372]

Fraud?? Visa fraud??

 

 

You must remember that coming to the US with the sole intention of getting married in the US and filing for adjustment of status is deemed to be visa fraud, and US immigration officers do not take kindly to anyone they feel has committed visa fraud.

 

http://www.visapro.c...es/?a=1252&z=36

Sole intention is to have a holiday in the US. Getting married, is just something that happened while she was there, like going to Disneyland.

 

Lilbarry, in your case, she had a birth certificate problem. Maybe you would have caught it, maybe not. However if you do it yourself, and like I said, spend a day doing research, you will know what is expected. The immigration web page will tell you everything that is needed. I printed off the list, and checked them off as they went into the folder. I even double checked everything over and over.

 

When you went in to have what she had translate, they should have told you then and there what you needed. The people that do the certified translations do this over and over, and know. Usually, they have someone that would do it for you, for less than the agency's charge. I was offered to have them take care of the legalization of my document from the embassy for 1,000 baht. That is the one thing that I wish I had taken them up on. I spent all day sitting in a chair, waiting for a stamp on the document that took about one minute once I got to the desk.

 

Sanuk300, Your situation is different. What I referred to was a wife, or girlfriend of an expat. If you are living in Thailand, and can document your relationship. You can get a tourist visa for the lady to go to the US on holiday with you. In my case, Jane was living with me for two years, and she was on two different house leases with me. We had pictures documenting that two years. Her anchor to Thailand was me. I had planned on returning to Thailand after a 3 month visit. As it turned out, it will probably take a year to get back. Still, when I go back, I will being her with me, and she will have made one trip back on her own. I did marry her to assure her visa, but didn't have to. We were married just a couple of days before we submitted the application. They aren't dumb, they could read the date on the marriage certificate. MM has been with Pin for 7 years, and can easily document that relationship. He would probably get a vise for her just as easily, even though they are not married. She is his girlfriend, and her sole support, she will go where he does. When he came back to Thailand, she would be sitting beside him. If you look at, it make sense.

 

In your case with the niece. As far as immigration is concerned, having her aunt in the US, would be a Tie to the US, not Thailand. As others have stated, they assume the lady will not return to Thailand. You have to come up with overwhelming reasons what she would. I could offer some suggestions, but I really don't know the full situation. If her parents have a farm, they are probably planning on splitting up the property on their death and giving it to the children. Have them legally transfer ownership to your niece her part, so that she can show property ownership as a Tie to Thailand. If she is in school, plan for a visit while school is out, and have a paid receipt for her next years tuition. Proof that she plans to return for school.

 

Another thing, read the rules for a tourist visa very well. You may have said something that would violate those rules. If she says something like she wants to go to the US and take a class in hair cutting while there, that violates the rules, she can not go to school while in the US. I know a girl that got turned down because she said that she wanted to visit her aunt and help with her restaurant, again, she wasn't allowed to work in the US. Even if she were to say that she was going to help your wife with your new baby. That is work, and not allowed. Many people screw up in the application because they don't know the rules, and say something in passing that will disqualify them. You would think that helping a US citizen would be a good thing, but it's not. Reapply. You should always keep a copy of everything you send them, so that when you reapply, both applications say the same thing. A change, will look like a lie.

[LBJ 533]

I did a fiance visa in 1990 when I was living in Pattaya long before the internet was around. I went to the US Embassy and got all the instructions and paperwork. By far the hardest thing about it was dealing with the Thai government and all her official documents. Unless you were willing to supplement the Thai pencil pushers income, they would drag out the process until you gave in.

 

Still with all that, it was done in about 6 months and we had it done correctly the first time.

 

I realize things have changed a lot since then but just thought I would add my experience.