IR-1 Visa Interview at the US Embassy in Thailand – The Red Card by Valerie Sedycias
The U.S. visa process can be fraught with complications, but at the end of the interview process is. The following information is intended for those interviews at the Consular Section of U.S. Embassy in Bangkok , Thailand .
The immigration process for the spouse of a U.S. citizen or boyfriend can be time consuming and complicated. The culmination of this process is the U.S. visa interview is performed by a consular officer at a U.S. Embassy or U.S. Consulate abroad.
As the winds of the U.S. Immigration process down comes the Thai-American couple to begin to contemplate the U.S. interview visa. Many applicants in Thailand are concerned about the U.S. visa interview, as they are often under the mistaken impression that it is the work of consular officers to intimidate the applicant. This is simply not correct. U.S. consular officials are responsible for the adjudication of visa applications to be submitted to the Consulate. In many cases this is simply an exercise of due diligence to ensure that the couple is actually in a relationship of good faith and that no legal grounds for inadmissibility exists. That said, in situations where an applicant is seeking to deceive or defraud the Consular officers the outcome of such attempts can be very harmful. Staff at the U.S. Consulate have been trained to identify the discrepancies in the U.S. visa applications and are also given a mandate to find out the truth about the past of an applicant if relevant to the issuance of the visa. Therefore, in situations where an applicant is lying on a visa application is a fairly high probability that the application will be placed in the administrative process to be investigated by the Fraud Prevention Unit. An interview with an officer of the Fraud Prevention Unit, although done with courtesy, you will likely see the applicant under intense scrutiny to ensure that the consular officer to determine the facts of the case. Fortunately, in applications where the fraud is not a problem applicant's interview will likely be a relatively stress-free affair.
After the interview the applicant is likely to be presented with one of the two documents. If the consular officer believes that more information is needed, then a 221 (g) denial letter will be issued. This document merely states that the visa was denied under the authority of section 221 (g) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act. Under this provision, the consular officer may refuse to grant a visa until additional documentation is provided. The remedy for this deficiency depends on the documentary evidence requested.
Under the current management procedures at the American Embassy in Bangkok, the visa application if approval is obtained, then the applicant's passport will be conducted and the consular officer will give the applicant a "red card". This is a small card bearing the date stamp and time that the visa can be collected. It was considered a "red card" due to the fact that the ink used to stop the tab is red.
For those who have retained an attorney licensed U.S. Bangkok's current policy of the Embassy is that the lawyer can pick up the passport of the applicant if the applicant is unable to do so. That said, unlicensed operators who call themselves "Companies visa", "visa agents", "counsel" or "immigration consultants" can not contact the embassy on behalf of applicants for family visa if you do not have a license to practice law in the U.S..
