bala@CS-Mordred (Bala Krishnamurthy) (07/22/85)
Hello there,
A friend of mine is planning to get married and wanted answers to a few visa
related questions. He requested me to post the following questions so that
Indians with previous experiences (especially those with recent experiences)
could provide some useful hints.
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1) How easy is it to get an F-2 visa? If any of you, or your friends have had
any problems getting F-2 visas for your spouses, I would be grateful if you
could mention the problems and possible ways to get around them.
2) An alternative is to get admission at an University (without aid most
probably) and come as a student (F-1 visa) and get married later. Which is
easier - F-1 or F-2 ?
3) How easy is it to convert an F-2 visa to an F-1 visa, and also the other
way around (in case the F-1 visa expires) ?
4) Assuming the F-2 visa is not given, it seems impossible to then get
admission and then apply for an F-1 visa. However, what if the F-1 is
attempted first and if that is refused, then attempt to get an F-2? Do
you see any problems?
5) If one goes for a job, there are companies that sponsor both the husband
and the wife jointly. Can they, and if so, will they do this even if the
spouse is still in India?
Thanks in advance.
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From what I have heard, the F-2/J-2 situation is not good, to say the
least. The cases I heard about include the spouse (while being interviewed
for a F-2) mentioning about the possibility of studying here which
resulted in her application being turned down. Not having a good answer
also does not help. Repeated applications (another case that I heard
about) do not ensure visas - this particular case involved 5 unsuccessful
attempts.
Looking at these, F-1 seems to have an edge. But a friend has already posted
quoting sad statistics [Murali (?)]. F-1 without aid is definitely harder
than with aid.
F-2 to F-1 and vice-versa: I have no idea. Anyone out there with
experience in this regard?
F-1 turned down, then trying F-2: risky, but you don't lose anything.
Joint sponsoring -- rare (if any).
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Please post your responses -- else mail them to me (bala@purdue.EDU) and I
will forward them to my friend.
**********
Thanks.
Cheers,
bala
Balachander Krishnamurthy bala@purdue.EDU (ever reliable ARPA)
Dept. of Computer Science bala.purdue@csnet-relay (reliable CSNET)
Purdue University {ucbvax,decvax,hplabs}!purdue!bala (semi reliable usenet)
W. Lafayette IN 47907 317-494-7765 (um, well, er... GTE)