H1B Visa delayed or denied – particularly for IT consulting firms

After H1B Visa Application is selected in lottery, next step is to get H1B Visa stamped from the U.S. Consulate in home country. This is different case when person who applied for H1B is already in U.S.

Getting H1B Visa in lottery is something great, we don’t have any control or can influence the selection process, but curiosity/thrill is not over yet, until H1B Visa is stamped in the passport. There are chances where H1B Visa stamping can be denied during the Visa interview.

…… consular officers may issue visa 221(g)s because applicants do not appear to meet the minimum requirements for temporary work classification or these applicants’ employers have not demonstrated the ability or intent to comply with the requirements of the requested visa categories.

Consular officers have also delayed or denied H1B visa applications – particularly for IT consulting firms – because they determine the employers in these cases do not have bona fide positions for the beneficiaries. Instead they unlawfully are “benching” employees awaiting work…. read more from murthy.com

More information can be obtaiend from the above link. But, even after getting H1B visa stamping, entry into U.S. can be denied at port of entry too. More details later.

Student Visa : Can I borrow money from relatives?

I had an interesting conversation with one of the frequent readers of this blog, about Visa bank balance and source of money. I want the readers to answer the question. I have partially answered the question from the reader and I’m expecting the readers to answer he last question.

Reader:

I’m admitted in to the University of Connecticut. It’s fees is $23,534/yr(approx. 9.5L INR) + living expense. I have a bank loan of 15L and liquid cash of 7L in my SB. plus assets and investments like PF, LIC, shares, property etc covering upto 16L. Wat are my chances of getting F1 visa? Can u tell me the possibility?

Answer:

You will need to show more liquid cash because you don’t have liquid even for the first year. 8L per year is good Annual Income for parents, but try to get more money into Savings or in FD.

Reader:

So will it be fine if I borrow money from my uncle and have it in account. Will that be a problem in visa?

Answer:

You can do that, but if they happen to ask the source of money be ready to say the answer.

Reader:

Well, can i answer that I have borrowed it from my uncle for my study expense?

I request other readers to help me in answering the question. In that way, we can see what other ideas students have in mind and it will definitely help others readers too.

Bank Balance for students with Scholarship – Reader’s Question

Question from Rajiv

I got I-20 from the University of Mississippi. I got assistantship from the college. In I20 cost for first year education is $21,250. I got $13380 as a fund from the college and I have to show $10000 as family fund. Now how much i have to show in the bank balance?

Good to see that you have assistantship. That reduces much of your worries to get student visa to and  also the amount to be shown for bank balance reduces much. One of my friend had full scholarship and he had taken bank statement for the total cost of education, but he was asked to take away the bank statement from the list of documents in the counter, since he had full scholarship.

Since you have about $13K in Scholarship, you will need to show proof, preferably in liquid cash for the remaining first year and second year. Also, get student loan approval and use that as your back up source.

Example:

First Year : $10,000 ( in Cash )

Second Year : $22,000 ( in Cash )

Backup : $10 Lakhs in Student Loan

Above case will definitely increase your chances for Visa.

Reader’s Question : GRE Twice and Low Score, Visa Rejected Twice, what next?

I’m responding to a comment from the article Low GRE Universities, F1 Visa Tips and more.

The questions was

730 gre score is it enough or shud i take gre again and for English language proof i m showing ielts (band score of 6.0) help me bcoz i screwed visa twice before in July bcoz of my gre score i think but they never asked for scores …….for avoiding risk i m preparing for gre i booked it on 5th of Nov and Got I-20’s from Northwest polytechnic ,Western Michigan and Bridgeport ,but i have rejected twice for Bridgeport ,so shud i change my university or go for the same ……..plz help me out

One thing I like to highlight about the reader’s question before I actually give the solution to the problem. When in U.S. you will have to write professional looking emails to Professors, Human Resource Contacts while looking for jobs, Cover Letter, Resume and so many other places. I have seen so many people when replying to email, they will be not able to write more than one line. I have seen students, not sure how to address the people ( Hi Raghu or Hello Raghu or Dear Raghu ). And email etiquette is something considered very important in U.S.

I have mentioned about writing emails in few of previous articles. I’m sure unless one has practiced writing emails following email etiquette, it will be very hard when you are in the situation forced to write email, but not sure on how to proceed. In the above questions, I can see so many errors ( shud instead of Should, gre ( GRE ), i ( I ), plz ( please), comma should come after the word, then space )

If any professors or HR happen to get such email, I’m sure there will be no reply. So, why can’t you use this opportunity to write professional looking comments, which will be good practice to write emails when you come to U.S. I can highlight what mistakes are in the write and you can correct it. I don’t mind replying to comments, but you will have to face reality when you come to U.S.

Solution:

There are many universities giving admission without GRE Score, but its only with GRE score, Visa Officer will be convinced, if you have capability to complete studies in U.S. With score of 730, its very hard for the VO to feel convinced that you will be able to complete studies in U.S. He might think, you are not academically capable, unless GRE is high and you just want to enter U.S. So, I personally feel, you need to retake GRE again, but if you are sure that you can score more than 1100.

If you are not scoring more than 1100 in practice tests, take time to prepare for GRE and then take the test. If you score again, say 800 in 3rd attempt, VO will not be convinced issuing student visa to you. If you get rejected again, then you are digging a big hole around yourself. If you appear for 4th time for visa, it’s highly impossible to get visa and even in future, if you appear for H1 or other visa types, its will be difficult chances.

So, take a long look and see how much you are scoring in GRE practice tests. If you score more than 1100, take the GRE. If not study for 2-3 more months and see if your score increases, if not spend more time studying. That’s what I would do, if I were in your situation. Good Luck.

Student Visa Dates not available, what do next?

Are you looking for student visa appointment and couldn’t find one?

Last few days, comments and emails I receive are about student visa to U.S. Most of them looking for student visa are looking to book student visa interview dates through VFS Global web site. Couple of students said, they couldn’t find student visa slots for interview in Nov or December for both regular and emergency student visa category. If you are in such situation, don’t panic, Read more

F1 Visa Cancelled due to Fake Bank Statement

I came across this experience from one of the forum

respected sir,

my name is sandeep. sir i have applied for a F1 visa. and i got the visa. but after i got the visa with stamping i got a call from embassy saying comeback to embassy once again with the visa and documents.
i went to the embassy and i gave my visa, my certificates, my fixed deposits, my parents pay slips and bank statement.
they did verification for 4 hours and told me that all my documents were original except the bank statement.
the bank statement was given to me by a consultant. he took large amount of money saying that he would deposit in bank but he cheated me by giving a fake bank statement.
due to this reason my visa got canceled. they gave me one form in which Section 212(a)(6)(c)(i) was ticked. it said that due to producing fake bank statement for F1 visa. the waiver is permanent evethough a waiver may be given in future under certain circumstances.its written to refer form DSL-851a for further details.

sir this has happened for me. sir i want to know whether i can apply again for H1 or B1 or L1 visa other than F1 in future.

thanks..

Response from one of the forum member

It sounds like you were caught trying to enter the country and it was concluded that you were attempting to gain entry on the basis of fraud, resulting in your being permanently excluded from the United States. (Their skepticism probably comes from thoughts like this: How much money was supposed to be in the bank account? Why didn’t you know the balance of your own bank account, or get the statement from your own bank rather than through the forger?) What type of visa were you seeking?

If you indeed wish to get a waiver, I would suggest working with an immigration lawyer.

Reply from Sandeep:

thank you for the reply. i was seeking for F1 visa i.e student visa for studyin MS in USA.
sir i have done nothing wrong from my side. i have done the same documentation which every student who wants to study in USA does.
sir many students nearly 80 students got visas from the documentation of the same consultancy which i have opted.
sir where can i get an immigration lawyer . please do tell me some details about the imigration lawyer and the procedure.
sir i dont want to go for F1. i want to know whether i can go to USA through H1B visa.
Reply from forum member:

It may be that 80 other people committed the same fraud and that you were the only one caught, but that doesn’t change the fact that it was fraud and you were caught.

Source : www.expertlaw.com

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Emergency Appointment and Visa Rejections – F1

I had couple of Scraps in my Orkut Scrapbook and the question was ” My Visa was rejected before through emergency slot visa appointment booking, can I appear for visa again through emergency Slot, since regular slots are not available”. first of all you need to understand the difference between Emergency Appointment and Visa Rejection, Read more

Bank Balance for F1 Visa ( Updated )

I got few more comments and questions on how much liquid cash to show as proof for visa. Refer to your I-20, you can also read the sample I-20 fees breakdown and find what is the total fee for 1 year from section 7. I will list the best case and worst case options for showing bank balance. Best case being, your chances of getting visa is more, and worst case Read more

How Much Bank Balance for F-1 Student Visa

Hello guys, hope everyone for Spring 2008 Semester are busy preparing for visa interview, student loan, visa documents, CA statement. If you haven’t checked the previous posts in I-20 Sample with Fees and Living Expenses Break down and other list of questions from students regarding visa and student loan. In this article, you will know how much bank balance is enough with respect to the amount mentioned in I-20, Read more

I-20 Sample : Tuition Fees Breakdown

In the previous post, I had listed some common questions regarding bank statement, now I will be answering each question in separate article. In this article, I you can find information about How much bank balance to show as proof for student visa. Is $25,000 enough? Before answering the question, let me breakdown I-20 fee structure with sample I-20 from University of Houston , Clear Lake Read more

Bank Statement for F1 Student Visa

To get Student Visa (F-1) Bank Statement is one of the mandatory documents. Many students get visa rejected providing fake financial documents. And its still not clear for many students, how much bank balance to be shown and how does student loan help to get in getting visa.

The format for bank statement for visa is same as the the bank statement used while submitting graduate school application(common mistakes made while submitting graduate school application online). But the question is, how much bank balance to show and how important is to have transactions. If you are wondering to find the answer.

There is no big magic in showing bank or rocket science behind the bank statement, but it does certainly makes affects the decision of a student, who is planning to study in U.S. Some universities, are very expensive and its nearly impossible for all the parents to show financial document to support the cost of education.

Questions about Bank Statement

1. How much bank balance to show.
   

   I-20 Sample

2. What source of funds to show ( savings account, student loan, liquid assets, immovable assets, ..)
3. How to draw fund flow diagram
4. How to show proof for second year college expense
5. Does bank statement for visa differ from bank statement used for graduate school application
6. How long/how many transactions to show for the money deposited in the account
7. Can I open a new account 1 month before the Visa date and show proof form that account?
8. I don’t have enough money with me to show in bank balance, can I get Visa?
9. Some suggest to go through consultancy who will deposit money in our account for some commission, can I get bank statement in that way?
10. I have fake bank statement, can consulates find the fake document?
11. Do you have sample bank statement, I-20, fund flow diagram?
12. What questions will be asked related to Bank Statement?
13. Do I need to take passbook with me for visa interview?

If you have any other questions, speak up in the comment section. I will pen down the answers with sample bank statement and fund flow diagram in coming week.

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Report from U.S. Consulates in India and VFS Global Services

I came across this article from Murthy.com

…. Visa applicants are also prohibited from carrying any items other than their passports and visa-related documents. This facility will be a welcomed option, especially for visa applicants who travel to the consulates from outside Chennai and Mumbai. Individuals will be able to safely store their belongings at the lounge and their accompanying relatives and/or friends may wait there comfortably while applicants are shuttled to the consulate for their interviews.

VFS has indicated that this is an OPTIONAL service, but applicants are encouraged to use this service to avoid inconvenience both to themselves and the consulates. The fee charged for this service is Rs 200 per person, ages 5 years and over.

The lounge at the U.S. Consulate in Chennai is located at : ……

Read the Remainder of this article Report from U.S. Consulates in India and VFS Global Services

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