A Visa Questions

United States immigration law lays down several requirements for applicants to meet in order to qualify for a diplomatic A visa. To get an A-1 or A-2 visa, the applicant needs to be visiting the U.S. as a representative of their national government for the sole purpose of doing official business for their country. Government officials who plan to visit the U.S. to for non-governmental functions that could be of a commercial or recreational nature cannot apply for A visas.

Listed below are a few questions answered by immigration lawyers on A visas.

My 23-year-old daughter has an A-2 visa and will graduate in June. Would she be eligible to apply, under section 13, to stay on in the U.S. since she has been in the country since 1994?

She might be able to but due to the eligibility requirements, it may not be likely. In order to qualify, her duties here would have had to be diplomatic in nature. For more information on this, visit USCIS.gov.

If she misses any of the eligibility criteria above, in all probability she will not qualify.

I am a foreign allied military officer and hold an A-2 visa. Is there any way I can show that I am a Lawful Permanent Resident in order to get a VA mortgage loan to buy a family home?

The visa that you hold is a non-immigrant visa and a Lawful Permanent Resident is defined as a person who resides in the U.S. on an immigrant visa. However, this shouldn’t affect your prospects as a buyer since there are mortgage companies who are willing to give mortgages to individuals who hold diplomatic work visas. If you do a little research, you are sure to find one that suits your requirements.

As an A-2 visa holder, can I own a sole proprietorship (consulting) business in the U.S. if I file taxes for it, along with the income from the foreign government which is tax exempt?

Your visa will only allow you to work on the job that brought you to the country in the first place. If you start getting income from somewhere else, you would need to declare it to the IRS, and they will then let USCIS know. Unless you modify your visa, you won’t be allowed to get any other income.

As a couple with an A-2 visa, can we hire a nanny who entered the U.S. under an A-3 visa but continued to stay on in the country after her contract finished five years ago?

If the nanny does not have any status in the U.S., she won’t be able to change her old status or obtain a new one. As soon as a person is out of status in the U.S., he/she starts to accumulate unlawful presence in the U.S. and therefore becomes ineligible for any benefits.

My girlfriend came here with her parents more than ten years ago since her father was a diplomat. Her father has just moved back to his country for work and I am wondering whether she can apply for citizenship as she has been staying in the country legally all this time.

Unfortunately, based on the rules of U.S. Immigration law, an individual cannot obtain permanent resident status just because he/she has been in the country for a long time. Your girlfriend could do one of two things. She could get admitted into college and apply for an F1 student visa, or if you get married to her and you are a U.S. citizen yourself, you can file a petition for her.

Foreign officials who travel to the United States on official business cannot travel visa-free or on tourist visas under the Visa Waiver Program. They would need an A visa to enter the country. Qualified A visa applicants who travel to the United States on assignments which are less than 90 days in duration will be issued visas annotated "TDY" (temporary duty).