Overstayed and misinformed the US consulate officer about it, am I banned for lifetime?

I overstayed my J1 visa for almost 4 months in 2008. In 2017, I applied for a visa and I told them an approximate date of my return because I couldn't remember the exact date so basically I gave them wrong information. The officer told me to apply again when I find out the correct date. I applied again 3 months ago but I couldn't get a visa. This time I didn't get any explanation from the officer. She disn’t ask any questions and she just told me that I wasn’t elligible for a visa this time. She gave me a paper saying that I was unable to convince them that I would return back to my country after the visit. I intend to present a paper in an academic congress in August and I will apply for a visa again soon. I know my chances are low. But I just need to know if I got a lifetime visa bar for misrepresentation or fraud? Thank you for your help.

Best Answer

But I just need to know if I got a lifetime visa bar for misrepresentation or fraud?

Normally if they ban you for fraud/misrepresentation, the law requires that you’re informed. In that case you would have been banned with 212(a)(6)(C)(i) Material Misrepresentation/Fraud, it would be a permanent bar which can only be removed via a waiver.

What consular officers sometimes do is they will include in your file/notes that you were less than honest. You won’t get banned outright however you’ll always get refused for subsequent nonimmigrant visas unless something miraculous happens.

The fact that they told you to apply again hints you do not have a ban.You may want to save yourself the application fee, you’re unlikely to get approved especially in these times. Overstaying has real consequences.

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How long are you banned from the US if you overstay your visa?

If you overstay by one year or more, after you depart the U.S., you will be barred from reentering the U.S. for ten years. This is because unlawful presence is one of the many U.S. grounds of inadmissibility, with built-in penalties.

Can I come back to the US if I overstayed?

Overstays & Unlawful Presence If you enter the United States with a valid visa (for example, a tourist or student visa) and overstay by less than 180 days, your visa will be considered void and you'll need to get a new visa in your home country if you want to come back to the United States.

What are the consequences of overstaying?

If you accrue unlawful presence of more than 180 continuous days but less than one year, but you leave the U.S. before any official, formal removal procedures (deportation) are instituted against you, you will be barred from reentering the United States for a period of three years.

Can you go to jail for overstaying your visa in USA?

\u201c[U]under current law, illegal entry into the United States makes an alien subject to a Federal criminal misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of 6 months in prison. However, unlawful presence itself, such as by overstaying a visa, is not a criminal offense, but only a civil ground of inadmissibility\u2026

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