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My wife is South African, and I’m a U.S. and U.K. citizen. We live full-time in South Africa, where we both work and have just welcomed our first child, a baby boy who’s now two months old. He recently received his CRBA and U.S. passport at the consulate in Cape Town.
Last year, I filed an I-130 spousal petition thinking to “keep the door open” for the long term — I naively thought it was something we could just park until much later in life, when it came in handy. At the time, I honestly didn’t understand that it would interfere with travel. We have no plans to immigrate anytime soon — probably not for 15–20 years, maybe when our son is college-age. Maybe never.
This week, my wife’s B1/B2 visa was refused under 214(b). The officer barely looked at any documents, only saying the pending I-130 showed immigrant intent. We just wanted to visit my elderly parents in Massachusetts for Christmas so they could meet their new grandson.
Now we’re unsure what to do next.
Has anyone been in this situation — balancing a long-term I-130 with short-term travel needs? Would you advise withdrawing and starting over later, or keeping it active?
Last year, I filed an I-130 spousal petition thinking to “keep the door open” for the long term — I naively thought it was something we could just park until much later in life, when it came in handy. At the time, I honestly didn’t understand that it would interfere with travel. We have no plans to immigrate anytime soon — probably not for 15–20 years, maybe when our son is college-age. Maybe never.
This week, my wife’s B1/B2 visa was refused under 214(b). The officer barely looked at any documents, only saying the pending I-130 showed immigrant intent. We just wanted to visit my elderly parents in Massachusetts for Christmas so they could meet their new grandson.
Now we’re unsure what to do next.
- If we withdraw the I-130, perhaps she can reapply and show stronger non-immigrant ties. We’re planning to reapply in a few weeks, with some congressional inquiry support from my senators + representative and lots more evidence (we have flights booked and my wife, a barrister, has court dates she has to appear for, back in Cape Town early next year / very strong reasons to return). We’re hoping the consular officer takes a look at our supporting evidence this time.
- If we keep it “parked”, we worry that when it eventually reaches NVC stage, it’ll only make it harder to enter on a B1 — and she might face ongoing scrutiny or airport issues. If we got the green card eventually too, it would not be conducive for these short visits either.
Has anyone been in this situation — balancing a long-term I-130 with short-term travel needs? Would you advise withdrawing and starting over later, or keeping it active?
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