Renewing visas in a third country has its
conveniences but there are risks, too.
By Christina
shanahan
When Vijay Kumar’s F-1 visa expired in
April 2007, he was faced with the decision of whether to seek renewal
at his home consulate in Andhra Pradesh, India, or travel to a closer
United States consulate in Mexico instead. Vijay, a Central Michigan
University student, said he knew that the renewal process in India
could be “long and hectic,” and he therefore opted for
Mexico.
But the concern didn’t end there, Vijay
said. “There was a bit of tension in my mind [when] considering
what would be the status of a person if his or her visa was rejected
[upon arriving in Mexico]. Where would he or she go?”
Luckily for Vijay, his experience in Mexico was
successful. “It was an easy and friendly process,” he said.
Many students, like Vijay, are choosing to renew
their visas at the United States’ neighboring consulates, namely
Canada and Mexico, as opposed to their home countries, not only due to
proximity and convenience, but also because of the much higher
likelihood of approval in these countries, according to New York
immigration attorney Eugene Goldstein, Esq.
However, along with the benefit of having a
higher chance of one’s visa being approved comes certain
stipulations. Steve Royster, spokesman for the Department of State in
Washington, DC, said that while it is a matter of personal convenience
whether students choose to renew their visa at a consulate outside of
their home country, it is necessary for these students to be extra
diligent with documentation. This is due to possibility of being unable
to return to the US. if the visa is already expired and renewal is
denied at the consulate.
“For students from far away, [renewing in
Canada or Mexico] involves less travel time,” Royster said.
“But a disadvantage is that you have to make sure you have all of
your paperwork done because the consul will have a difficult time
evaluating your case because they are not as familiar with it [as a
consul in your home country would be]."
Despite the benefits of convenience and shorter
processing times, university officials often caution international
students to think twice before going to a consulate outside of their
home country for visa renewal. David Austell, director of the Office of
International Students and Scholars at New York University, said that
as a general rule, his office always advises students to seek visa
renewals in their home country.
“A US consulate is never under obligation
to issue a visa to a student, and if the student fails to get a visa
after applying in a country which is not the home country, the student
would have to return to the home country to apply for the visa before
re-entering the United States,” Austell said. “Thus, the
possibility of additional time wasted and expense incurred may outweigh
the benefits of convenience.”
Austell emphasized that there is nothing a
university or an international students office can do to aid a student
in such a scenario.
Austell, Goldstein and others offer the following
guidelines for students considering visa renewal outside of their home
country to limit the chances of being far from home and without a visa
to return to the US.
Renew before your visa expires
Goldstein said that prior to Sept 11, 2001, one
could go to a US consulate in an adjacent country for a period of up to
30 days for a renewal and still be able to re-enter the US if denied.
But, he explained, due to post-Sept 11 terror concerns, the holder of
an already-expired student visa that has been denied renewal must
depart directly for their home country from the consulate. Hence,
Goldstein advises students to schedule an appointment at a consulate
before the actual expiration date on the visa if seeking renewal
outside of the home country. This way, if denied, the student can still
re-enter the United States for the time remaining on the original visa.
Check (and double-check) your supporting
documentation
Required documentation at a foreign consulate
might include an official letter of enrollment from the student’s
college or university, proof of financial support, and a support letter
from the academic adviser, Austell said. As always in applying for a
non-immigrant visa, like an F-1 or J-1, the student must overcome the
“presumption of immigrant intent” during the visa
application process, he added. “This means that the visa issuance
officer in the US consulate presumes that a non-immigrant visa
applicant intends to [stay permanently in] the United States, in which
case a non-immigrant visa will not be issued,” Austell said.
Familiarize yourself with post-9/11 security
regulations
Due to heightened US security clearance measures,
citizens of “State 7 Countries” are generally not eligible
for processing at a US consulate in Mexico or Canada and should apply
in their home countries, said Ben Huynh, Texas immigration attorney and
managing partner in the Huynh Law Firm.
Students from a “List of 20+
Countries” are generally not eligible for third country
processing either.
“The ‘List of 20+ Countries’
includes countries whose citizens, especially males between 16 to 45
years old, may utilize Third Country National Consular Processing on a
case by case basis and may require extra security checks,” Huynh
said, referring to a process that could take anywhere from three to
four days to two to three weeks.
Be prepared to find accommodations
If there are delays at the consulate or if the
visa renewal takes longer than anticipated, students will need to find
a place to stay for the additional time. Royster said that this could
be a slight disadvantage to being outside of the home country.
“It means staying in a hotel instead of relaxing at mom and
dad’s house.”
Speak with an adviser at your college or
university for individual assessment
There are often specific requirements for visa
application in specific countries, such as Canada, Austell explained.
“It’s very important that the individual international
student seek direct advice from her international student adviser at
the college or university so that individual needs can be assessed and
proper advice given [prior to travel].
