B-1 Visa
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| B-1 Visa for Business Visitors – Complete Do it Yourself Kit – Download Version |
| How to apply for and obtain a B-1 Visa. Complete Do it Yourself Kit. |
What is a B-1 Visa?
A foreign national who has a permanent residence in another country and who does not intend to abandon his/her home country, may enter the United States for a brief specified period in order to conduct limited business activities.
B-1 visas are for business, including a need to consult with business associates, negotiate a contract, buy goods or materials, settle an estate, appear in a court trial, and participate in business or professional conventions or conferences, or where an applicant will be traveling to the United States on behalf of a foreign employer for training or meetings.
The individual may not receive payment (except for incidental expenses) from a United States source while on a B1 visa. The business activity must not involve gainful employment.
Examples of acceptable limited business activities:
Attend scientific, educational, professional, business, or religious conventions.
Work on specific projects in the U.S. and paid by a foreign employer
Participate in commercial transactions such as negotiating contracts and consulting with business associates.
Undertake independent studies such as feasibility studies or market research.
Attend professional or business conferences, workshops, or seminars
Explore possibilities to set up a subsidiary of a foreign corporation, or to make investments
For technical personnel to install or service equipment pursuant to a contract of sale, or to provide after sales service
Attend meetings as a member of the Board of Directors of a U.S. corporation.
Observe business, professional, or vocational activity as long as it does not involve any hands-on activity
For professional athletes to compete for tournament money and not for a salary
For professionals to conduct business consultations with business associates in the U.S.
For purchasing agents of a foreign employer to come to the U.S. to procure goods, components, or raw materials for use outside the U.S.
Restrictions:
The Business Visitor may not receive payment from a United States source while on a B-1 visa. The business activity must not involve gainful employment.
Required documents:
To apply for a B-1 Visa, you must provide the following documents at the US Embassy:
- A filled-in visa application Form DS-160. Separate applications for each person are required.
- A passport, valid for travel to the United States for at least six months longer than your intended visit.
- Two recent passport style photographs of each applicant, with the entire face visible. The picture must be taken before a light background and without head covering.
You should be prepared to provide the following documents:
- Evidence backing up the purpose of your trip. You may show a letter sent by the company explaining the purpose and length of the trip (see letter of invitation below).
- Specific and realistic plans describing why you wish to visit the U.S. A copy of a tour itinerary is usually acceptable.
- Information about the company, like a company brochure or catalog.
- A letter which states that either the firm intends to pay for all cost, or that you have other funds for this trip.
- Demonstration of non-immigrant intent: round-trip air tickets, letter from your work, business, own land, house or apartment leases.
- Applicants who own their own businesses or companies should be prepared to demonstrate both that their company lawfully exists and is operating. Tax documents, bank records, customs declarations, invoices, bills of lading, advertising brochures, etc., can be useful in demonstrating business activity.
Evidence of ties to home country:
Some common documents used to demonstrate economic, social or family ties are as follows:
- Proof of regular and permanent employment, including pay stubs or copies of a series of recent bank statements showing regular income, job letters describing length of employment and how long the employee can be absent;
- Proof of regular pension benefits or investment income;
- Recent tax returns, showing regular income;
- Evidence of business activity or self-employment, such as tax returns, business account statements, invoices, etc.;
- Proof of enrollment in—and attendance at—school (if the proposed travel is during a school term, evidence that the student’s absence has been pre-approved.)
- Proof of ownership of real property, as well as how the owner is currently making use of the property; and/or
- Evidence of family responsibilities, such as birth certificates of small children for whom you are the primary caregiver, and that those children are currently residing with you.
Letter of Invitation:
A person requesting a B-1 visa at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad must present a letter of invitation from the US Sponsor Organization. The Consul has sole discretion in the decision to grant or not to grant any visa. The invitation letter must state the purpose of the visit, the dates of the visit, and also that no salary will be paid by the US Sponsor Organization. [If the visitor will be receiving an honorarium, the visit may not exceed nine days. The letter should include a statement such as "In order to receive this honorarium you have indicated that you have not accepted similar payments from more than five institutions in the past six-month period, per INA Section 212(8 U.S.C. 1182)(q)"].
The US Sponsor Organization letter must also be presented to the immigration inspector at the point of entry into the United States, and the visitor must request entrance as a B-1 Business Visitor. The immigration inspector will decide the appropriateness of the visa classification and will note “B-1″ on the visitor’s entry permit (Form I-94, the small white card stapled in the passport). The notation on the Form I-94 is important. A person may have a B-1/B-2 visa stamp in his or her passport, but the immigration inspector will decide upon the visa classification after reviewing the US Sponsor Organization letter of invitation and will note the I-94 appropriately.
Visa Fee: $140.
Where do I Apply? B-1 Visa for Business Visitors Do it Yourself Kit
You apply for the B-1 Visa directly at the US Embassy in your country. Here is the link to the US Embassy List: http://www.usembassy.gov/
Click Visas
Click Non-Immigrant Visas.
Click: How to apply for a visa, procedures and instructions.
Completing form DS-160:
- Every applicant must have their own completed application form, including small children.
- The form must be completed online; handwritten or typed applications are not accepted. Remember the code you create at the start of the program; you will need it if you want to return to the application later to continue it or correct it!
- Enter the information requested into the appropriate spaces on the form. Please answer all questions.
- Your answers must be in English and must use English characters. Letters like ž, é, ü, or č are not recognized by the system. Please do not use accent marks.
- Review the information you entered for accuracy. You are responsible for the accuracy of the information you submit, even if you had another person assist you in completing your application. Your name, birth date, place of birth, and passport number must read exactly as they do in your passport or travel document. If those items or your purpose of travel are found to be incorrect, your application will not be accepted until you have corrected it.
- Press the Continue button at the end of the form. Failure to click on the Continue button will result in an incorrectly formatted application form.
- Print the Confirmation Page. The barcode that prints on this page is necessary. Bring the Confirmation Page with you when you come in for your interview.
- If you were not able to successfully upload a photograph, please bring two copies of your photo with you.
What if my B-1 Visa application is denied?
A Visa Denial is a document prepared by the Bureau of Consular affairs in a United States embassy in any country in the world.
A visa denial to visit the United States for business reasons is usually based on section “214(b),”
To qualify for a B-1 visa under Section 214(b), applicants have to show that they have a permanent residence and other ties abroad that would compel them to leave the United States at the end of the temporary stay.
What is Section 214(b)?
The Immigration and Naturalization Act (INA) states under Section 214b that:
Every alien shall be presumed to be an immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer, at the time of application for admission, that he is entitled to a nonimmigrant status…
What it means is that a consular officer must view every nonimmigrant visa applicant as an intending immigrant who is planning to visit and then permanently stay in the U.S.
The applicant, therefore, must prove to the officer that s/he is going to return home after the temporary visit. If the consular officer is not satisfied, he is required to deny the B-1 visa application.
How do I avoid being rejected on ground of 214(b)?
- You must be able to show strong ties to your home country, which you have no intention to abandon. This is the most important factor with regard to 214(b). You need to convince the consulate official that your strong ties, whether it is family members, a house or a job, is going to compel you to leave the United States after your short visit for business purposes.
- Clearly organize your supporting documents.
- Answer questions truthfully. Consulate officials do interviews for a living, and have likely asked the same question thousands of times. Guessing is not recommended.
- It helps to show that you have been to the United States before and returned on time.
What are considered “strong ties”?
“Strong ties” may be cultural, social, professional, or any aspect of your life that has a binding effect between you and your country of residence. Family members, a job, a steady source of income, a house, an investment and bank accounts are all examples of “strong ties.” They also differ from country to country, and person to person. So a decent job may be important for one applicant, but not so convincing for another. A student or a retired parent can still get a nonimmigrant visa without a job, for example.
In short, “strong ties” is a vague concept that must be proved by physical evidence. For this reason consulate officers are trained to look at all aspects of a visa application, not one particular document or piece of evidence.
Can I apply again if my B-1 visa application has been denied under 214(b)?
Yes. A visa denial under Section 214(b) is not permanent, meaning that if you have new evidence to support your case, you are permitted to reapply. You are also allowed to apply under a different visa category if your previous application was denied on ground of 214b.
Do I have to wait three or six months before reapplying for a B-1 Visa?
There is no time restriction on resubmitting an application after a refusal. If additional information or evidence is available which may further demonstrate an applicants’ qualification for a visa, an application may be resubmitted at any time. It is always a good idea to check with the consulate to see if they have specific requirements for returning applicants after 214(b) denial.
Does a consulate officer always know that my B-1 Visa application was denied before?
Yes. Your passport contains a stamp after each visa rejection and the record is also on file. Using a new passport or going to a different consulate does not hide the fact that you have been previously denied a B-1 visa.
Can I later apply for green card after entering US on a B-1 visa?
It is possible. However it usually depends on what your intent was at the time of entry in B-1 visa status.
| |
| B-1 Visa for Business Visitors – Complete Do it Yourself Kit – Download Version |
| How to apply for and obtain a B-1 Visa. Complete Do it Yourself Kit. |
