35

I am a French citizen.

2003 -> 2012 : I have lived and worked in US under lawful visas.
2012 -> 2019 : I overstayed in US.

2008 : I got married in US with a green card holder non-US citizen.
2015 : I had a kid with my green card holder non-US citizen wife. My kid is a US citizen.
2016 : My wife became a US Citizen.
2016 : I applied for green card as a US citizen husband (and father)
2017 : My wife broke up with me. She does not support my green card application anymore.
2018 : I am divorced.
2019 : I came back to France without my son.

I am now barred for ten years. Is there anyway I can get back to US just for a few days to see my son?

Thank you for any help or lead you could give me.

phoog
  • 143,317
  • 20
  • 298
  • 485

3 Answers3

90

It is extremely unlikely that you will be able to visit the US

When under a ban like this the only technical way to make a visit is to apply for a Waiver of Ineligibility. However these are granted only in very exceptional circumstances. In your case, with seven years of overstay, you are unlikely to be granted a waiver ever, and "visiting my son" is not an exceptional circumstance.

Your best bet for visiting your son is to pay for him to visit you in France.

DJClayworth
  • 69,953
  • 10
  • 177
  • 248
17

My wife has a 10 year bar and we tried to apply for a Waiver of Ineligibility twice. Short answer, don't waste your time and your money.

The US immigration will deny you no matter what the circumstances. We were told by the US embassy in Switzerland that they have an inside rule: no waiver during the first 7 years of a 10 year bar.

And because they will deny you under INA 214(b), you will also be excluded from the visa waiver program in the future.

HermitCrab
  • 409
  • 3
  • 5
4

The process to get a nonimmigrant waiver for someone from a Visa Waiver Program country is to apply for a nonimmigrant visa (e.g. B2 visitor visa). If you are denied the visa due solely to the ban, and not due to immigrant intent, and if the visa officer recommends you for a waiver, then they will let you know about the steps to apply for the waiver. See 9 FAM 305.4-3.

In your case, given your history of having lived in the US for 16 years, including several years of overstay and also having applied for a green card, you are almost certainly going to be denied the visa under INA 214(b) for failure to overcome the presumption of immigrant intent, in addition to being denied for the ban. There is no waiver for immigrant intent, so you would not even get to the stage where you would be considered for a waiver for the ban.

There is also humanitarian parole, but I really do not think your situation would qualify as an urgent humanitarian reason.

user102008
  • 23,629
  • 2
  • 49
  • 93