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Visa Question Visa to USA for Wife

Discussion in 'Passports and Visas' started by SkipJack, Aug 31, 2020.

  1. cabb

    cabb DI Forum Patron Highly Rated Poster ✤Forum Sponsor✤

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  2. Dutchie

    Dutchie DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    Hmm, you're talking about pre-brexit stuff, but you're wrong. I assure you it's probably harder for a Dutch citizen to get a (non EU) spouse approved to live in the Netherlands. One big difference would already be that the aspiring immigrant spouse needs to learn Dutch language and culture while still in their own country, and take an exam (which most fail) before they can even apply for a resident visa. Other requirements are similar to what other european countries ask.
    So I could similarly say that (pre-brexit) it was much easier for a UK person to bring their (non EU) spouse to the Netherlands than it is for a Dutch person to do the same.
    The whole thing is based on article 45 of the EU Charter of fundamental rights. That article establishes that people who reside legally in an EU country can choose their residence freely in any EU member state. So yeah, after going through the trouble to get your non EU spouse a long term residence permit for your own country, you can then move to any other EU country if you wish to live and work there.
    Maybe you didn't intend to, but it sounded like you were describing a uniquely UK "problem".
     
    Last edited: Sep 2, 2020
  3. Always a Poppy

    Always a Poppy DI Senior Member Restricted Account

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    Passing a Dutch speaking exam must be difficult for a non speaker. I have found the language and accent quite difficult to manage (unlike a famous football coach) on several visits to Netherlands. At least with English Filipinos have a start already.

    It is though difficult to go through all the hoops for a UK Settlement visa (not so much for the spouse visa). One of the big issues we found was that information was ambiguous. My wife took two English exams and failed them, only to later find that she only needed to take a 10 minute listening and speaking exam to pass, which was a doddle. The hardest part was the 'Life in the UK' test. That complete and utter nonsense requires the applicant to learn about Guy Faulks, what people in Newcastle are called and how to claim benefits (yes, it was actually in there). The ambiguity and lack of accessible and clear information may have changed, but rules and requirements have tightened further, with minimum income levels and extension of qualifying period to 5 years. We got through it though and all the way to dual citizenship, also helping a couple who are friends to get as far as the settlement visa successfully. It can be done, but it takes time and expense....and a lot of stress!
     
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  4. redhorse

    redhorse DI Forum Adept

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    I recall from past experiences that others posted here that YOUR visa status in the Philippines also is a factor. If you have permanent residency in the Philippines, and the visa to prove it, that is some evidence to support that your wife would return to the Philippines with you and not and not overstay in the US.
    I'll also mention (and this is from personal experience) that US immigration makes some decisions that are seemingly not based on common sense. Our daughter's grand-mother-in-law, a widowed Philippines citizen, was eligible to be petitioned for permanent residency in the US because her daughter (our daughter's mother-in-law) was a naturalized US citizen. But she really only wanted to visit her grandkids in the US for a few months. You'd think her status would give her a leg up on getting a tourist visa, but no, they denied her, on the grounds she didn't have enough ties to ensure she would return to the Philippines. So her family went ahead and petitioned her and she got a green card, even though that was over kill for her situation.
     
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  5. OP
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    SkipJack

    SkipJack DI Senior Member

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    Yes, the relative (spousal) visa is probably the better way to go. The only issue is that I will have to give up the FEIE tax exclusion.

    11. Applying for a family-sponsored green card is not necessarily a cure after being denied a B1/B2 visa. While the foreign spouse need not prove any intent to reside in the U.S. in order to qualify for a green card, still the U.S. citizen spouse must ordinarily prove “domicile” in the U.S., meaning that not later than when the foreign spouse immigrates the citizen spouse must make the U.S. home most nights with the intent to remain so for the foreseeable future.
     
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  6. Caranoche Beauty

    Caranoche Beauty DI Member Restricted Account

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    When I married my American husband, who is 30 years my senior, everyone said it was a sham marriage, wouldn't last, only wants a green card. 8 1/2 years later we are still shamming. Going for "10 they will never make it" in another 1 1/2 years.
     
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  7. Notmyrealname

    Notmyrealname DI Forum Luminary Highly Rated Poster Showcase Reviewer

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    The UK still follows EU rules until the point of final exit on December 31st.

    And how can I be "wrong" when I am describing the difficulty of a UK citizen getting a non-EU foreign spouse into the UK, compared with the simplicity of a person from another EU country getting the same class of spouse into the UK, when you then describe the difficulty of getting a similar class of spouse into the Netherlands?

    I was writing about the UK.
     
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