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Business Visa - B1

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B1 Visa Interview @ Chennai Consulate - Visa Stamped
Got the Passport picketd up today itself (next day of interview) with B1/B2 Visa stamped with 10 Years Multiple entry Visa from the OFC center @ cenetaph road . Thanks all for sharing your experiences and knowledege which helped me a lot in this success . Thanks to Almighty God .. and Best wishes to all others
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Advise Needed - 2 Visa rejects in quick succession
Hi all. My B1 visa application got rejected for the second time today morning in Mumbai. My first visa rejection was over a week back, on 12th March. Need some urgent inputs from all of you. Here's the experience:

Visa Experience 1 (Mumbai)
I needed to work on a 3 month project with a U.S. subsidary of my Indian company. However, I would not have been paid for the same in U.S. and would have continued to receive my salary in INR by my Indian company (case of B1 in lieu of H1 visa).
The travel desk of my company advised me to speak honestly with the Consular Officer. I told everything honestly during interview and the visa was rejected. The Counsel Office handed over 214(b) asking me to apply for work visa. No documents were asked, even when I had all of them.

Questions asked:
Why do you want to visit US? (Answered to work on project)
What is the project about? (Described the project)


Visa Experience 2 (Mumbai - after 1.5 weeks of the first rejection)
The earlier project was scrapped. I was required to visit U.S. for attending business meetings with the same U.S. subsidiary of my Indian company for 2 weeks. I applied again for B1 visa and was rejected again. Here's the experience:
Me: Good afternoon officer.
Officer: Good afternoon. Please give me your passport.
(**I handed over my passport and cover letter on company letterhead. The cover letter mentioned about the meeting and that I need to return in 2 weeks for implementing the learning in India
Officer: Have you applied for U.S. visa earlier?
Me: Yes officer. It was a different case. I had applied for B1 in lieu of H1 because I would not have been paid any salary by any U.S. company, but the counsel officer thought otherwise. Now the project is scrapped. I have to just attend business meetings and come back in 2 weeks.
Officer: Oh, you had applied 2 weeks back?
Me: Yes officer. That was B1 in lieu of H1. But this time, I have to return in 2 weeks.
(***The officer typed and looked on the computer for a minute***)
Officer: Have you been to any other country?
Me: Yes, I have visited Thailand for tourism purpose, for a week.
Officer: What's your salary?
Me: Rs. One lakh one thousand per month.
(*** All this time, he was looking at the computer. In between, he also looked at the cover letter on company letterhead ***)
Officer: I am sorry. This time too, you do not qualify for the visa. (handed me the 214b)
Me: May I know the reason for the same?
Officer: The reason is there is not much change in the overall situation for your visit. I am not convinced about your case. You can reapply whenever you want and there's a change in situation.
Me: Okay, thank you sir.
I am tired of all this - have no clue what should I do. If I get a visa within the next 1.5 months – my company would still allow me to travel to U.S. But I have no idea how… and what to do for the same.
Please advise honestly. Should I reapply?

Thanks.
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B1/B2 Visa
Sad I got rejected again for the second time... Mumbai Consulate

Vo : Good Morning( old lady)
Me: Good Morning mam

Vo: Why are you visiting to US
Me: There is up gradation of software applications and am going to understand the new application

Vo: Explain
Me: I explained in detail ( VO looked to be blank with my explanation or may he got confused )

Vo: How long you gona stay there
Me : Two weeks ( But my DS-160 mentions 3 weeks: again a bad hit I guess)

Vo : can I see your clients invite letter
Vo: Yes, I showed him ( he read it for 30 sec)
 
Vo: Whats your per annum salary
Me: told him in indian currency

Vo: Was typing somthing in his comp and tol sorry sir you dont qualify for US visa, have Patience next time you should get through, Thank you

I have to be in US for by start of May 2013 but now am doubtful whether I would be able to make it or not

Can I reapply in a weeks time?
There wont be any change in one week but is there any chances of getting the Visa approved if I apply?

Help me guys
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B1 Visa Interview @ Chennai Consulate
I had B1 Visa interview at chennai today - 20th March at 8AM .

Came to the consulate at Gemini Circle at 7Am and was standing in the queue ,
already there were lot of people waiting for 7:30AM appointments .

Mine was 8AM and i was waiting , by 7:30 our Queue was made to go to the other end and perform the security
checks , I had my car key and was told to submit with the counter which i did after paying 10Rs fee .

then went inside a hall where there were multiple counters with LCD screens flashing the token numbers .

I was called within 5 minutes , an Indian lady verified my passport and asked for my invitation letter from my company which i showed her . then she wrote a batch number on the token sticker of my passport and returned the documents .

I was waiting for 15 minutes and was sent to another counter in the same hall to do a biometric fingerprinting of my
left hand alone , Then asked to go to the other block where the real interview takes place .

While i entered the other block hall it was almost empty (time was 8:10AM) only 2 counters had 1 or 2 people .

My counter was already empty and i was to report to the VO there immediately . Then started the interview .
the VO was a middle aged person and was very friendly and enthusiastic guy .

VO : Very Good morning , How are you doing ?
Me : Good morning officer , am doing good thanks .

VO : wow YYYY company
Me : Yes sir .

VO: Why are you going sir ?
Me : To attend a training for a project which is going to be migrating to India support shortly .

VO : How many days it is ?
Me : 15 days officer .

VO : Seems this is the first time ever abroad for you ?
Me : In my opinion officer , for every individual there will be definetely a first time and that is how it is to me as well, and i am very much confident about it officer .

VO : ( happily with a smile ) Your Visa is approved sir and you will get it in 4 - 5 days .
Me : Thanks officer have a great day , Bye

He didnot ask for any documents i had and the interview lasted only for less than one minute .
This was my first experience and it was short and sweet and i thank this forum for guiding me a lot .
actually i had prepared for the worst set of questions and all possible documents but nothing was asked .

Be confident and you can challenge your luck .
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B1 visa Interview Experience
Hi All,

I have attended B1 visa interview yesterday(19th March 2013 , Hydrabad) and thanks very much to this forum which help me to get the US visa . I went through almost all the comments written in this forum . Now here is my overall experience
I have applied for 5 week of travel and I was really scared of its approval because 5 weeks for business meeting is not acceptable but thank god in my form I have written training and Business meeting and prepared well for that answer with detailed meeting plan .

I got following question

VO:- Purpose of Visit?
ME: - To attend class room training session of YYYY tool and meet with the different business team, stack holder .

VO:-How long you want to stay in US?
Me:-5 weeks.

VO:- 5 weeks ?(Surprised )
ME :- Yes

VO:- Why 5 weeks?
ME :- I had discussion with the US counter part and they come up the 5 week plan which will include ASASASASAS (Explained my each week plan).

VO:- You have detailed plane with you?
Me :- Yes here it is.(handed over)

VO:-What kind of business meeting ?
ME:-Explained in brief which is written in my Plan document .

Vo:- Which place ?
Me:- Place name in USA?

And then the golden word your visa is approved and have a nice trip.

Tips:-
1) Write and Practice the sample question as many times as you can do.
2) Be confident, calm and hide your nervous.
3) Go through all your document and your talk should be matching with your document.
4) Believe in yourself and god.
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Second time B1 experience at Mumbai consulate
Hi All,

First of all thanks to immihelp, Today i have attended B1 visa interview second time at mumbai consulate,first time my visa had been rejected in May 2012, i was trying almost after an year , reached there little early as my interview was scheduled at 7:45, I reached there by 6:45 so there were very few people ahead me, after security check they make sat on waiting area, after 15 mins of waiting they called 10-8 us inside VO room, after that they assigned us a token...
and fnally i had beed assighned some window. I was not nervous but little bit curious whats gonna hapen because i had faced rejection and what would consulate officer ask about that.
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B1 Visa
Hi

Went for my B1 visa interview on March 19, 2013.
Background: I was in the US for ~9 years on F1 and then H1 visa. My company in US had filed for GC but I returned before the GC came through. I joined a new company in India and have been working for last 3 years now. Current company asked me to file B1 visa.

Here is how the interview went
Questions from the VC

Good morning
How are you?
Please give me your passport
Where are you going
Why are you going
Were you in the US before
Where in US were you before
Did you join current company in india or did they offer when you were in US
How long will you stay in US
Will you take your family with you
Visa is approved. Thank you.

Hope it helps others...
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B1 visa experience at Chennai consulate
Firstly I would like to thank all the folks here for sharing their experiences and offering tips. I have gone through almost all the posts here and I must say it has helped me a lot in preparing for the interview.
 
I am single and have a total work experience of about 1.5 years. I have never traveled before and my passport is as clean as a slate. Even my HR had taken more time talking about how vaisa rejection is not the end of the world than helping me with the interview questions (she had no hopes whatsover!).

In spite of all the above negaqtive points, I decided to give it a try.

The boimetrics was scheduled on 8th March at 1:30pm. I reached the place about an hour before. DO NOT make this mistake since they make you stand outside the gate till your slot comes and I will assure you standing in that balzing Chennai sun for long is not a good idea. The process itself takes about 10-15 minutes. I was out by 2.

The interview was on 11th March at 08:30 am. I reached about 15 min before. There was a long queue outside. I had wore a tie though I didn't see many people wearing tie. After the formalities, I found myself in a hall where the interviews were going on. At this point I would like to say that there would be a lot going on in that hall. So, maintain your cool and don't be too intimated by the proceedings. Just relax and go over the answers in your head. When my token number was displayed, I joined the queue in front of the counter. The officer was a middle aged man. The guy in front of me had got his visa rejected. The officer signaled to me that it was my turn. I approached the counter and wished the officer good morning with a smile.

Officer: Please hand over your passport.
Me: I handed over my passport to him with the BEP letter inside. He looked at the BEP letter and kept it aside.
Officer: What is the purpose of your visit?
Me: Meetings and trainings
Officer: What is the duration of your visit?
Me: 4 weeks.
Officer: 4 weeks is too long for meetings and trainings.
Me: I explained to him that I would have to go over many case studies which would take a major chunk of time. I was beginning to get quite nervous by now since he appeared kind of unconvinced.
Officer: I am still not convinced that you need 4 weeks. He then looks at his system. He looks back at me and gives me a symphatetic smile. I flash the best smile I got. He looks up his system again and finally after what seemed like an eternity says the golden words "I will approve your visa sir". Thats's it. No documents asked. He was telling something about sending the notification via mail but I guess I had gone deaf by that time. I told the thank you's and fled out of the building punching th air all along.
I collected my passport today. It's stamped with a 10 year visa.

Few pointers:
--Be CONFIDENT and look SMART. I have never liked ties but I made an effort to wear it for the interview and I must say it kind of makes you look well groomed and adds to your confidence.
--Keep your answers crisp and simple.
--Prepare a tentative week-wise schedule of your activities in the States. Though he may not ask you for it, it's better to have a schedule ready as it helps you in answering the questions better.
--Never ever mention the duration of you stay to be longer then 4 weeks unless you have strong reasons and are sure to convince the officer. Stick to 3 weeks or less. You can always extend it later during your stay.
--Never give any document to the officer unless asked to.
--Be courteous and smile while answering questions.
--Always maintian eye contact with the officer
--Its ok to be nervous but don't make it too obvious.
--Be present minded. The guy in front had done a stupid act while standing in the queue. Though he apologised to the officer later, I do think it had a small role in his visa getting rejected.
--Lastly don't get dejected if your visa gets rejected. There's always a next time.

Thanks and best of luck.
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B1 visa - my experience
Pls find below my experience for getting B1 Visa

I had my OFC earlier @ Chennai - cenatoph Road - 8.30 A.M. - Got over very quickly. Simple process , they will take your photo and fingerprints. You can carry mobile phone , but needs to be switched off.
Documents Required
Passport
DS-160 confirmation page
Appointment confirmation page

8th Mar 2013 - Appointment Time 8.30 A.M. - Joined the Que @ 7.15, they r sending in batch wise , first batch - 7.30 , next 8 and then 8.30 ...
You can carry mobile phones , but there is a seperate counter for keeping the mobile in the locker, better to avoid
mobile since it will consume your time.

Step1 - Security Check

Step2.1 - Verification Counter - In the passport front side they will stick your token number, where you need to watch the big TV for the allocation of the respective counter against your token number.

Step2.2 - In the same lobby , they will do the finger print in another counter

Step 3 - Walked inside to reach the interview location. Looking in the big TV screen for the allocation of the counter

VO asked only few questions

Which company?
How long you are going to stay?
What is the purpose of the visit?

Then,he said your visa is approved. VO kept the passport with him.

Enquired with the support staff people there, for the document delivery. If we want to courier the passport to our address, we need to fill a seperated form and pay extra Rs.300 or so for the delivery. Else we can collect it from the pick up location in 2 business days.


Good Luck
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How to get your B1.. Please take time to read my experience
One thing which I would like to emphasize is.. If I can get B1, anybody can get it!.

College dropped, only high school, joined this organisation just 5 months before, I have 8 months gap between the current and previous employer. Hope all this is enough for the rejection.

Filled my DS and after confirming I realised that I forgot to mention all my employer details, so created a new DS with all same information but added one more employer.

My biometric was at 28th Feb 10 am Chennai. Took my bike as I started from home only by 8.50am and reached OFC by 9.50. Many were standing in the big queue, but I just walked to the gate and told the security 10am interview, he allowed me in.

Please don't take all your documents, just your ds160, appointment confirmation, payment receipt, valid passport, 2 US visa photographs (They will not ask for your photographs, it is only if the camera doesnt works).

No hurry even if you are late they will allow you in, but if you come late you will get tensed and you will look terrible and your Visa photo will not look good LOL... Use the restroom to refresh and wash your face.

Security check, they will stick the barcode in your passport, token will be issued and when your turn comes they will take your finger prints, photographs and scan your passport and ds160.

Visa Interview on 4th March 7.30 am. (I always think that 4 is an unlucky number and I will never do any important things on this date).

Left home by 6am, as there is no proper parking facility, I parked my Car in my friends place which is very close to the Embassy and handed over the keys also to my friend. Kept my Mobile and Wallet in the car itself.

Many says don't carry all the documents, but I will say carry sufficient supporting documents as it will give you the confidence that you can justify any questions.

Many says don't wear a tie or suit, but I purchased a white shirt 12 hours before the Interview and went with a tie, which eventually gave a professional look and I was looking stunning lol.

Reached the embassy by 7am sharp and the queue started to move, got into a conversation with a person who was standing next to me as I have to kill time and we had some informative chat. 7.50 they sticked the token number on my passport. After the security check you will have to go to the left hand side. It was exactly like A/C waiting hall with LCD TV and counters.

Wait this is not the actual Interview, my token number was called, An Indian guy who asked me to show my passport, Visa Invitation, DS confirmation and he asked where is the hard copy of the Visa Invite, I said it is still on the way, he gave me a sarcastic look and asked me to go the next counter, An American lady who scanned my passport and ds160 and returned it back and said go the next building.

Here comes the actual Interview, A big row of too many counters, Almost all the counters were busy. I had no fear and I was not at all nervous, I am sure my dressing gave me a good confidence and my documents and I was well prepared.

Almost every one was granted a visa and especially a counter close to me was approving almost all the visas but asking too many questions (2 minutes atleast). I was praying that I should go that counter but I was called at a different counter and I was so eager to see the face of my VO :P. Luckily, he was a cool chap early 30's or may be late 20's no idea.

I waited as he was busy with his system, he said come forward sir.

V.O: Can you hear me? (He just switched on the mike, so he wanted to check)

Me: Yes, sir. Am I audible?

VO: Yes, How are you doing?

Me: Doing great, how you doing?

VO: Where are you going?

Me: SF

VO: Why?

Me: To attend a conference.

VO: What conference?

ME: Explained in 20 words exactly and I stopped as VO was busy typing something, I am sure he didn't googled.

VO: He come on continue

Me: Then told him it is the best chance for me to grow my network

VO: Who all comes to that conference

Me: Told him what type of companies come (not more than 10 words again)

VO: Which Company you said?

Me: Told my company name

VO: So what you guys do?

Me: Mobile applications

VO: Mobile applications? Interesting. (VO started typing again something very fast, and I was just looking at him with a lil smiling face, please dont turn your head, just look at your VO's face.)

VO: And what are you?

Me: I am into sales, business development.

VO: How long you are staying?

Me: 6 days

VO: Alright sir, (He raised his hand which had my passport, he showed the passport to me and said the golden words, I am approving your visa sir.

Me: Thank you. (I wanted to ask how many years, but then realised not to stand even for a second, What if the VO mind changes and call me back lol, so left the building immediately.)

Picked my passport today (i.e the 2nd day and I was so happy to see 10 years m entries)

Note: Don't ask for 6 weeks, 8 weeks, ask for 1 or 2 week, anyways they gonna offer you a year or 10 year visa.

Please be very slow when you fill your DS 160.

I almost read all the experiences in immihelp, which actually gave me the various scenarios and during all this process it was not at all new for me, as immihelp experience gave me a clear idea how things works.

Be serious, as this Interview might change your life and don't worry if it fails as you will get something better. I had too many failures in my life and this was my only success.

Good luck guys, feel free to ask questions, I would love to help you all..
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