samof69 wrote:very helpful post flames. My problem is that we are not married and so all marriage based visas don't apply to us.
So even if the CBP denies someone they can still apply for other visas (J1 etc.) and that won't cause any problem? That is good to know.
But I guess (from what I read) if you get denied once, every time you try to cross the border they will get a bit suspicious.
but you are planning to get married, (or so you've said) so marriage based CR1 visa will be an option once that's done. It may take a few years, because you're not a citizen yet, but once you're eligible for citizenship and have been sworn in, you can upgrade your petition and it'll speed up a bit. The sooner you apply for citizenship the better. If that's your plan.
And no, a one time denial of entry should not affect future visa applications. I myself was denied entry for business reasons and was later given an L1B visa, and a couple years after that, successfully received a K3 visa. The denial barely was mentioned at either of my interviews.
It does however flag your ID in the system, so any time you try to cross after a denial, you will likely be pulled into secondary and searched and be interrogated for a while. This may or may not result in another denial of entry. Depends on the reason for the first denial, and the reason for the second trip, and the mood of the interviewer. Because my denial was based on business travel, my subsequent trips for personal vacations were allowed, but I was always searched and grilled, so I always arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare.