A Complete Guide to F2 Visa Application Process in Nepal

Experience from a fellow F2 visa holder

What is F2 Visa?

F2 visa is a non-immigrant temporary permit given to immediate family members (spouse and children under the age of 21) of the F1 student visa holders. Its primary purpose is to give an opportunity to dependent family members to live with the F1-visa holder while the F1-visa holder is pursuing his/her education in the United States.

Photo by Nicole Geri on Unsplash

Some of the circumstances when F2 visa is essential

1. A spouse is going to pursue education in the US for a long period of time (for example Ph.D., which might take around 5 years), leaving partner behind in Nepal
2. Spouse gets the educational opportunity in the US right after marriage
3. Loneliness affecting the emotional and mental health of the partners when they are apart

What can they do while in the US?

Spouses/children on F2 visas cannot do paid jobs nor pursue full-time higher education (undergraduate and beyond) in the US. But they can pursue full-time elementary and secondary education.

Validity

As F2 visas are dependent visas, their validity is dependent on sponsors’ visas. F2 visas are valid as long as corresponding F1 visas are valid. If the visa of the F1-visa holder is expired, then the corresponding F2 visa of the F2 visa holder is automatically expired.

Process for getting an F2 visa

To get the F2 visa interview, the applicants have to go through a different process. There is a lot of confusion about the F2 visa application process. So, the applicants go to cyber institutes or consultancies for help. The cyber institutes and consultancies charge some money for assisting in the process. However, the process is simple, and the applicants can do it themselves. This article serves as a guide to the F2 visa application process. I have outlined the processes below:

1. Getting F2 I20 from an educational institution: F1 visa holders can request their university to issue I20 for their dependents. The university requires proof of funding for supporting the dependents throughout their stay in the United States. So, the sponsor (F1 visa holder) should submit the proof of funding (mostly in the form of a bank balance certificate) to the university. Then, the university adds the details of the dependents in the sponsor’s (F1 visa holder) SEVIS account and sends the I20 form, which includes the living expenses of the dependent(s) too.
2. DS-160 form: After receiving the F2 I20, the DS-160 form should be filled up. DS-160 requires details like SEVIS-ID, school number, etc., so it should be filled after F2 I20 has been received from the university. Please note that information must be authentic in the DS-160 form.
3. CGI Federal account: The next step is to create a CGI Federal account and fill up the information, including the code/number obtained from the DS-160 form. Once you encounter payment page, print the payment PDF and take it to Nepal Investment Bank Limited. The payment can be done only through Nepal Investment Bank Limited (NIBL).
4. Payment: After going to any NIBL branch to pay the visa application fee, show them your passport and payment document. They would give you a form to fill out and ask you to pay the visa application fee. They would also give you a payment slip after the payment. The payment slip is needed to show while attending the visa interview.
5. Schedule a visa interview: The payment would be reflected in the CGI Federal account after a few hours. Then, the visa interview can be scheduled through the portal. Please save/print the visa interview confirmation letter.
6. Interview: Go to the US Embassy in Maharajgunj, Kathmandu to give an interview at the scheduled time and date by carrying all the documents.

Documents for F2 visa interview

Documentation is an essential component to getting the F2 visa. Following are the documents required for an F2 visa interview:

• Valid passport of dependent(s) (F2)
• Passport copy of sponsor (F1)
• Marriage/engagement photographs
• SEVIS form of F-1 visa holder
• F-2 dependent I-20 form
• Visa application fee payment receipt
• DS-160 confirmation letter
• Marriage certificate (both original and notarized)
• Copy of the F-1 student’s I-20
• Proof of funding (bank balance certificate, assistantship letter, etc)
• Copy of F1 visa of sponsor
• Any supporting documents if needed.

How does the embassy evaluate you?

1. Marriage genuineness: The whole purpose of an F2 visa is facilitating the dependents to accompany the F1 visa holder during the course of the F1 visa holder’s study. There might be people doing fake marriages and claiming fake children having an intention of living in the US permanently (and illegally too). To prevent such instances, US Embassy looks at the marriage genuineness closely. Marriage genuineness means the authenticity of the marriage. It is left to the F2 visa applicants to prove that the marriage is not fake. They can convince the VO with the help of marriage pictures, marriage certificates, pictures of husband and wife (and children too) visiting different places, etc. Pictures like marriage group pictures, marriage ceremonies pictures, etc. can convince the VO too. The VO might also ask about the type of marriage and how the marriage went. The answer you give should be authentic and convincing enough to the VO. Another question frequently asked is the marriage date and dating history (if exists). Answering them confidently and preparing for such types of questions will help during the interview.
2. Source of funding: Source of funding plays an important role in getting a visa. The sponsor should have enough funds to sponsor the dependents during the stay. As the dependents can’t work during their time of stay, they should be dependent on the sponsor for their living and other expenses. So, VO looks for the source of funding for F2 dependents too. Sources of funding can be personal funds or part-time employment given by the university to the F1 visa holder. The part-time employment can be graduate assistantships too. Most of the fully-funded graduate programs find it easy to get F2 visas for their dependents because of this reason.
   The F2 visa holder should show documentation of funding like bank balance certificate letter or assistantship offer letter, which was given by the university. In case your sponsors are studying there without any scholarship or any funding provided by the university, they have to pay the university tuition fee by themselves and also support the dependents. In such a case, they have to convince the VO about their financial strength. Coming from an economically poor country like Nepal, it is difficult to bear all the costs for most of the people, and VO thinks, by allowing dependents there, there may arise financial difficulty for living. And, dependents might work illegally too. So, showing the source of funding is extremely important, and we should try to show the source of income that covers all the expenses.
3. Plan to return back to Nepal: F1 and F2 visas are non-immigrant temporary permits. Being on a non-immigrant visa, we must return back to the country. But, most people don’t return to their country after studying, which creates the doubt whether you and your spouse are planning to return to your country or not. So, it is your job to convince the VO that you and your spouse would return back to the home country. The VO might ask your as well as your spouse’s plans after graduation.

Tips for interview

To get the visa interview approved, the following suggestions or tips might be helpful.

1. Have ALL the documentation ready.
2. Be coherent in your answers and have as much clarity as possible in them.
3. Practice a lot and give mock interviews. I gave around 40 mock interviews.
4. Do not lie. Lying might create psychological tension in applicants.
5. DS-160 content and your answers MUST match.
6. Have confident body language and maintain good eye contact. Also, some amount of smiling might help.
7. Understand the purpose of VISA, its limitations, and how you can make it worth the time spent even with the limitations.
8. Know as much as possible about your spouse.

My interview experience

Today, I had my F2 visa interview. I am sharing my interview as I can’t find much information about F2 visas online. I gave my interview in Kathmandu, Nepal. My husband had got a visa from New Delhi, India a few weeks back.

My husband’s classes start from dd/mm/yyyy.

Me: Good morning, ma’am.

VO: Good morning. Give me your I20, marriage certificate, and marriage album.

Passed the documents to VO.

Me: Here, they are, ma’am.

VO: So, you are applying for an F2 visa.

Me: Yes, ma’am.

VO: When and where was your husband’s VISA issued?

Me: My husband’s VISA was issued from New Delhi, India on dd/mm/yyyy.

VO interrupted.

VO: Which university is he studying?

Me: Currently, he is here in Nepal waiting for me outside the gate. His flight is on dd/mm/yyyy, and he will be studying in XXX from dd/mm/yyyy.

VO: So, he is here?

Me: Yes, ma’am. (VO interrupted again.)

VO: Who is funding him?

Me: The University of XXX is funding him as he got a graduate research assistant-ship, covering his living expenses and waiving his tuition fees.

VO: Who is funding you?

Me: My husband is funding me. He has savings of XXX USD while he was working in XXX.

VO: Where did he work previously?

Me: He worked at XXX in the position of XXX for three years.

VO (with exclamation): Oh, XXX position!

VO: What is his plan after graduation?

Me: He will return back to Nepal and reapply for the organization he previously worked for.

VO is happy with my plan and gives a cute smile.

VO: I am putting your passport here. Please take this green slip and I20, marriage certificate, and marriage album.

Me (confused): So, you are approving my visa, right?

VO: Yes, I am approving your visa.

Me: Thank you, ma’am (with a smiling face).

Resources

1. There is a WhatsApp group for F2 visa applicants that might be helpful while applying for an F2 visa. I created this group because I did not find enough resources to prepare for the interview nor I could ask anyone the confusions I had about the F2 visa. There are both F2 visa holders and F2 visa applicants in this group. Dozens of Nepalis from this group have already received F2 visas and shared their application as well as interview experiences in the group. Here is the link to a WhatsApp group:
   WhatsApp Group
2. Another site I encountered that was very helpful for preparation was immihelp. This site has lots of F2 visa experiences. We can read others' experiences and do mock interviews. I did more than 40 mock interviews from this site.

All the best on your F2 visa application and upcoming F2 visa interview. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to comment below or reach out in the WhatsApp group shared above.