Legal ways to enter and stay in the US
The truth about US tourist visa applications
I
N March 2024 alone, the US State Department issued 967,731 non-immigrant visas in its 271 diplomatic posts worldwide.
The US Embassy in Manila issued 20,718 non-immigrant, temporary visas, with B1/B-2 visitor visas leading the way at 10,319, followed by C-1 seafarers (7,656), F and J student and exchange visitors (588), H-2B nonagricultural temporary workers (164), H-1B (121) and H-2A (12).
There were 134 visas issued to derivative beneficiaries of H temporary work visa holders.
Fiancées and children of US citizens were issued 984 K visas. Take note that while technically, K-1 visas are in the non-immigrant category, applicants are treated as intending immigrants not subject to Section 214 (b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
A K-1 visa holder is expected to get married to the US citizen petitioner within 90 days from arrival and then apply for adjustment of status as the spouse of the US citizen, usually in the CR1 immigrant category.
AI version of applying
A search for “how to apply for US visitor visas” generated this response with AI assist:
A visit to the US Embassy in Manila website confirms the following steps:
1. Go to the US Embassy website at https://ph.usembassy.gov.
2. Click the A US Visa link in the white box at the bottom of the page.
3. Click the link to the Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application page (DS160) at https://ceac.state.gov/genniv.
4. Enter your country and complete the captcha test.
5. Click Start an application.
6. Pay the visa application fee.
7. Complete the DS-160 form.
8. Schedule an appointment on the website. You will need your passport number and MRV fee payment receipt number to schedule an appointment.
9. Visit the US Embassy or consulate on the date and time of your visa interview. You will need to bring a printed copy of your appointment letter, your DS-160 confirmation page, and one recent photograph taken within the last six months with a white background. Simple, right? Yes. And more tips. The US embassy also publishes several videos online occasionally (e.g., “Visa Hour,” “MaVisang Usapan.” “Pros and Cons”) as well as Consular Tips and Guide.
The most recent guide, “Walang Sikreto sa Visa, no additional fee,” garnered 505 views. It is a takeoff from the “Walang Sikreto sa Visa Campaign” by the US Embassy in 2019-2020 to alert visa applicants on potential visa scams. That original video on applying for a visitor visa in “4 easy steps” on YouTube garnered 461,000 views https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= AOlyM5CI2z8&t=38s&ab_channel= U.S.EmbassyinthePhilippines. Step 1. Pay the visa application fee. Step 2. Fill out the DS 160 application form.
Step 3. Schedule your interview. Step 4. Go to the interview at the US Embassy in Manila.
There is, however, an “Open Secret,” i.e., “The devil is in the details.”
And remember the most current US Embassy announcement should be more reliable.
For example, the original “Walang Sikreto sa Visa” video has BPI as the designated bank to pay the visa fee. It is currently RCBC. Second, Air21 has been replaced by LBC as the official courier.
The embassy still interviews more than 1,000 visa applicants every day. Due to the pandemic and presidential ban on interviews, there was a backlog of interview schedules of up to 999 days. At the date of writing (May 11, 2024), the waiting time for applicants who need to be interviewed is 60 calendar days.
Completing the DS 160 application form remains virtually the same. You do not need to pay anyone to complete the form since you know your own personal information, e.g., date, place of birth, address, phone number, etc. You can proceed with DIY mode throughout the application process — there is no need to pay a dime. Just spend your time.
Who are you, though?
Unless you are a repeat visitor visa applicant, chances are the consul interviewing you will see, hear and assess you for the first time. The consul does not know you from Adam or Eve, instead relying on the information you provided in your submitted DS 160.
The latter part of the “Walang Sikreto sa Visa” emphasizes the fact that you must be “open and honest with us” – the interviewing consul.
“Open and honest” is a double-edged sword.
All non-immigrants — especially visitor visa applicants — are “intending immigrants unless proven otherwise.”
The State Department’s non-immigrant visa statistics show a visa rejection rate of 15.77 percent — or about 160 for every 1,000 applicants daily, or approximately 3,200 a month.
Once in the US, not all visitor visa holders comply with their visa conditions. Thus, the monicker “tago ng tago,” or TNT, was born. In 2019, the Migration Policy Institute reported approximately 370,000 TNTs.
Back to the “open and honest” issue.
If you have a relative who belongs to the 370,000 plus TNTs, will you be “open and truthful” about it? How could you prepare for this potential question during the interview? All the guides in print or on YouTube cannot help you out regarding this moral dilemma.
In an interview last year, Consul General Mark McGovern said applicants may bring letters of recommendation from even the highest government officials, but third-party letters “mean nothing…we don’t even look at it.”
Applicants may bring tons or volumes of documents, and the consul may not even look or ask for them. Consuls interview applicants, not the documents. They read your DS 160 and your body language: how you look (dressed for the part), the way you answer the questions and your overall demeanor. Fumbling through folders for supporting evidence is not a good sign. Neither is insisting that the consul look at your documents.
Memorizing the reason for the visit is also a no-no. If you lose track of the sentence and appear to be at a loss for words, say goodbye to your visa application and be issued a 214 (b) refusal, i.e., the consul is not convinced you are coming back, or that your interview performance was less than believable, and you are an intending immigrant.
That is the truth.
Next: Staying in the US after admission on a tourist, visitor visa