Can a person already in the United States apply for a change of status to R-1?
The general rule is yes. However, in order for such change of status to be approved, the Citizenship and Immigration Service may look at factors to determine whether the person had a “preconceived intent” when they came to the United States. Q: What is a “preconceived intent?” A: A “preconceived intent to circumvent the normal consular procedure” means that a person had the intent, when they entered the United States, to do some activity which was more appropriate to another type of visa which they should have obtained prior to coming to the United States. For example, a B-2 visitor should be coming to act as a tourist, visit relatives, sightsee, etc. If, however, they have the intent to work in the United States as a religious worker, they should have obtained an R-1 religious worker visa prior to coming to the United States. If the Immigration Service determines that a visitor had such a preconceived intent, they can deny the change of status. There is a presumption that a person, wh
