Visa & More: Frequently Asked Questions

Below, you will find a selection of visa questions we have been asked by our customers over the last few days. Please note that none of the answers below is an actual substitute for individual consulting and can only touch on the real issues. We would like to point out that we do not take responsibility for the correctness of this information.

If you need fast and individual information, our service team is there for you on the phones from Tuesday to Friday between 10am and 5pm. Find the phone number on our homepage and get our experts' advice on everything visa as quickly and as conveniently as possible. Please note that our phone number has changed due to legal requirements!

And as usual, for all questions concerning the green card lottery just call our service team.

YOUR QUESTION: I have done an 18-months internship in the US from September 2002 to February 2004. I had the J-1 Visa. Now I am interested in applying for a tourist visa for six months so I can travel the country and visit all my friends I have made during that time.

OUR ANSWER: You will probably not be able to get another tourist visa (B-2). Your last extended stay was not so long ago and it could be suspected that you intend to immigrate because you cannot prove sufficiently strong ties to Germany. So we recommend to wait at least one year before applying for this, to avoid having the US consulate reject your application. In that case, you would face even longer waiting times. You may, of course, travel under the Visa Waiver Program before, which would allow you to stay 3 months.

YOUR QUESTION: My wife and I are retired and would like to move to the US to live with my wife's sister.

OUR ANSWER: Provided your wife's sister is a US citizen, she may apply for family-based immigration that would allow you to immigrate as well. Due to the limited quota of EB-4 visas, however, you would have to face waiting times of up to 12 years. So we would recommend to apply for an extended visitor visa (B-2) that would allow you to stay fro six months a year at least. With such long waiting times you can, of course, also try the faster, but not quite as certain way of the green card lottery. It is not a problem to apply for the green card in several categories at the same time.

YOUR QUESTION: We have the B-1/B-2 visa and would maybe like to obtain a residence visa, green card or US citizenship. Is that possible for retirees, our reason are allergies that are not as severe in the US.

OUR ANSWER: If you are retired, there is, unfortunately, no separate category that grants you a permanent stay in the US based only on your income (pension money, capital). You may, of course, apply for a category within the immigration system. That would mean, of course, that you would again have to qualify via a job or substantial investment.

YOUR QUESTION: My daughter, 17, would like to visit relatives in the US during summer vacation and maybe do an internship there or job in a holiday camp. What does she have to know for admission into the country/job/internship?

OUR ANSWER: It would be best for her to participate in a special program by an organization for such camps. You can easily find such organizations via internet search engines or via the links on our website. She does not qualify for the typical J-1 visa right now because she doesn't meet the training/education requirements.