E-2 Visa Denials

Posted on 

One usually does not associate the US Government Accountability Office with “interesting” reports, but last year’s report on E-2 visas was eye-opening.  Of particular note are the reasons why E-2 applicants are denied.  While the report is limited to examining certain countries, it provides critical insight into the thinking of consular officers and obstacles to obtaining E-2 visas. As a reminder E-2 visas are limited to nationals of countries with whom the United States has commerce and navigation treaties. The full list of countries can be found on the Department of State’s website, with 80% of all E-2 applicants originating from 9 countries: Japan, Germany, UK, France, Canada, Mexico, South Korea, Italy, and Spain. The majority of E-2 visa applicants are related to large investments (>$10 million) – think of managers and essential employees going from Japan to work in a large car plant in the United States.  However, the…

Read more

Department of State Releases 2019 Visa Refusal Statistics – and They Ain’t Pretty

Posted on 

Visa refusals continue to skyrocket under the Trump Administration – and it doesn’t seem to matter whether the applicants are from countries considered “friends” or “foes” of the United States.  While the refusal rates for some countries, such as Vietnam, Philippines and Pakistan, have remained relatively stable, other countries have seen a significant jump.  Brazil, Nigeria, Russia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and China have each seen increases of more than 25% over the past two years, with India and Mexico not far behind.  Below are the visa refusal statistics for B visas for fiscal years 2017-2019. Country % of B Visa Applicants Refused in FY-2017 % of B Visa Applicants Refused in FY-2018 % of B Visa Applicants Refused in FY-2019 % Increase from FY-2017 to FY-2019 Brazil 12.34 12.73 18.48 49.75 China 14.57 17 18.22 25.05 India 23.29 26.07 27.75 19.14 Mexico 22.5 24.93 26.66 18.48 Nigeria 44.95 57.47 67.20 49.49…

Read more

Stunning Newly-Released Department of State Statistics Show Increases in Public Charge, Misrepresentation, Alien Smuggling, 214(b) Denials

Posted on 

The statistics stun – even the most callous observer.  In just two years, the number of individuals denied immigrant visas under the public charge section of the law (Section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act) has increased more than 12 times!  Alien smuggling (Section 212(a)(6)(E)) findings doubled for immigrant visa applicants over the past year.  Misrepresentation (Section 212(a)(6)(C)(i)) decisions for these applicants increased by more than 25%.  214(b) denials for those applying for nonimmigrant visas – more than 2.7 million – also edged upwards. The Department of State’s statistics table lists more than 50 visa ineligibility grounds. But one is hard pressed to remember such a radical increase in denials for a single ineligibility as with the public charge provision over the past two years. Incredibly, this massive increase is not a result of any changes in or amendments to the law itself. This would take congressional action. Rather,…

Read more

How Does the Department of State Count Visa Denials? Or “When is a Visa Refusal Not a Refusal?”

Posted on 

In our previous blog, we highlighted the worldwide B visa refusal rates.  But those DOS published rates do not convey the entire picture. As any politician knows, when making any tally, the actual number is not important, but how one determines that number that is. The Department of State is no different. The Department of State publishes adjusted refusal rates.  The actual refusal rates are not published.  In all likelihood the actual refusal rate is higher, and perhaps in some circumstances, substantially so. So how does the DOS “adjust” its statistics?  It does so by only counting the last consular action on a particular applicant in a fiscal year. For example, if a businessman applied for a visa and was denied two times in 2015, and on his third attempt, he receives a visa in 2015, only the issuance will be counted; the two refusals will not be counted.  If…

Read more

Visa Trends – Higher Refusal Rates in 2015

Posted on 

The Department of State recently published its 2015 refusal statistics for B visas.  Several countries exceed the 60% mark: Syria, Gambia, Federated States of Micronesia, Mauritania, Liberia, Laos, Haiti, Somalia, Guinea-Bissau, Ghana, Cuba, and Afghanistan.  Among the most populous countries, the refusal rates greatly vary: China – 10.03%; India – 23.78%; Indonesia – 8.71%; Bangladesh – 59.96%; Pakistan – 40.4%; Nigeria – 32.56%; Russia – 10.24%; Philippines – 27.96%; Turkey – 13.88%; and Ukraine – 34.03%. These 2015 refusal rates represent an increase over 2014 for most of these populous countries: for example, the refusal rate for India jumped nearly 4%; in Turkey – more than 6%; in Ukraine – more than 6%; the Philippines – more than 3%; in Pakistan – more than 2%; in Russia – more than 2%; and China – 1%. While on the surface these percentage increases may not seem significant, for these countries –…

Read more

Russian Visa Applicants Struck by 221(g) Epidemic

Posted on 

Via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, I was able to obtain visa statistics (221gMoscowstats0001)  for the US Embassy in Moscow.  Russian visa applicants are no exception to the epidemic of 221(g) decisions around the world.  From 2007-2012, the number of Russian B visa applicants at the US Embassy in Moscow subject to 221(g) more than tripled.  Students and employees of US companies also had their applications increasingly scrutinized: the number of students and H applicants subject to delays more than doubled, and the number of L visa applicants encountering 221(g) increased more than eightfold! The good news is that the overwhelming majority of Russian applicants subject to Section 221(g) receive their visas.  However, the spike in the number of 221(g) delays and bureaucratic hurdles encountered by Russian visa applicants contradicts the public Embassy pronouncements about facilitating travel to the US.   If you are the subject of a substantial 221(g) delay,…

Read more

Department of State Publishes 2012 Visa Refusal Statistics

Posted on 

The Department of State has just published its annual B visa denial statistics. This year,the big news is the marked decline in the rate of denial for Chinese visitor visa (B) applicants – from 12% in 2011 to 8.5% in 2012.  This is good news for the Chinese – and the American economy. Other high-volume countries whose citizens were also the beneficiaries of a steep decrease were India and the Philippines, where refusal rates declined from 30.1% to 24.1% and 33.8% to 23.8%, respectively.   Given the usual grouping of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) countries as rapidly developing economic powers, one may be surprised to learn that US consular officers in Brazil deny Brazilian applicants only 3.2% of the time – a rate nearly 8 times less than India and 3 times less than China and Russia.  Just last year, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano announced that…

Read more

US Embassy in Moscow – Part III: Mandatory Travel to Western Europe or “Since when is Spain not a part of Western Europe?”

Posted on 

American law requires that visitor visa applicants have ties to their home country that will ensure that they will return after a visit to the United States.  However, consular officers at the US Embassy in Moscow have recently reinstated another requirement for many first-time visa applicants: it requires them to travel to Western Europe first before it will issue a visa.   This policy is not a new one; it was in place in the early 2000s.  (In fact, I exchanged correspondence with the Consul General at that time, Jim Pettit, on this issue.) During the boom times of the mid-2000s, that policy started to recede. But over the course of the past year, that policy has been re-instated, with travel to Europe being the dispositive factor.   One denied applicant recently was explicitly advised at her interview that if she goes to Europe for a visit, she could then re-apply and…

Read more

US Embassy in Moscow – Part I: Refusal Rate of Russians Doubled. How are Russians worse than Brazilians?

Posted on 

Let us start with the big picture. The refusal rate by the US Embassy in Moscow doubled from 2009 to 2010: from 4.9% to 10.3%.  The official statistics can be found at these links: http://www.travel.state.gov/pdf/FY10.pdf http://www.travel.state.gov/pdf/FY09.pdf Only five countries had a higher increase in refusal rates, and each of those countries is small. In 2011, the refusal rate for Russians remained at 10.3%.  Most notably, the refusal rate in Brazil, a country to which Russia is often compared to in terms of its rapid economic development, is now 3.8%, nearly three times lower than Russia! This doubling of the refusal rate has made the news.  It was the subject of an article in the Moscow Times in August, in which yours truly was quoted.  The Russian government has been pressing the Americans to abolish the visa regime, but under US law one of the requirements for abolition of the visa…

Read more

US Embassy in Moscow: What Changed?

Posted on 

Over the past year, the number of complaints we have received regarding the US Embassy in Moscow has increased exponentially.  What changed? Over the next month, we will discuss this in more detail on this blog.

Read more

How the Department of State Empowers Extortionists and Miscreants

Posted on 

http://www.ilw.com/articles/2012,0424-white.shtm

Read more

Visa Statistics – Moscow Refusal Rate Doubles; India Rate Remains at Over 25%; Ukraine Rate Dips

Posted on 

The Department of State has published its visa statistics for 2010.  The statistics have confirmed what we have seen in our everyday practice: the US Embassy in Moscow has doubled its nonimmigrant visa refusal rate.   It is no wonder that Vice President Biden politely declined Mr. Putin’s request to abolish visas between the countries! The refusal rate jump corresponds with the arrival of a new chief of the NIV section and Consul General. Notable in the statistics is the fact that the refusal rate slightly fell in India, but the consulates there still refuse more than 1/4 of all applicants.  The refusal rates in such countries as China, Vietnam, Ukraine, and Haiti dropped significantly, while the refusal rates in Saudi Arabia increased, although not at the level of Russia. Below are the official statistics: 2010 stats – http://www.travel.state.gov/pdf/FY10.pdf 2009 stats – http://www.travel.state.gov/pdf/FY09.pdf  

Read more