Paper Chasing

PAPER CHASING

By Hidesato Sakakibara

June 1999

We recently had a brief scare concerning my partner’s visa since the US immigration department (INS) said there were a few minor problems, but this is mainly a matter of paying some more money. I myself, having studied in the US got my papers at an early age and so am spared of any of the hassles that my beloved had to go through….but not he.

Throughout this entire process of his securing his permanent residency visa I have come to realize how harshly society at large, in this case in the US, is against same-sex couples. It is really a shame too. If M had been a woman we would have had no hassle and would now be thousands richer. But he got his visa. I am receiving the Lesbian and Gay Immigration Rights Task Force newsletter and I am shocked at how many stable, legitimate couples are wracked by these unjust immigration laws. The whole thing is shocking.

There are so many Americans in Japan and elsewhere in Asia as well as in Europe, etc. who mistakenly believe that they will somehow help their partners “get their papers.” Although this may be possible depending upon the circumstance I doubt that they have the slightest idea as to the difficulty of what they are planning to do. Americans more than other nationalities tend to believe that immigration to their country is easy. Perhaps this is due to the reasons given in The AmeriCANS! essay. Whatever the reason, this whole process should not be taken lightly. With few exceptions it is wrenchingly difficult unless the foreign partner has some high level skill that the INS at the time deems there is a shortage of labor for, such as computer programming, etc.

In fact, simply procuring a work visa (H1B) is difficult unless it is for a category that is in a “boom” cycle. And even if one gets his H1B visa, it can only be renewed for 6 years, after which you would need to leave the US for at least one year and “start over.” Worse yet, even if you get your H1B visa getting your PR status is not automatic. Often the change cannot be made. It is frustrating, even more so if the only reason you want to remain in the US is to be with your partner. Frustrating, and expensive.

In our case I was sure that while getting M his PR would take some doing, merely getting him into the US would be a breeze. However we soon found out that just requesting a student F-1 visa causes the INS to view the candidate as a potential immigrant. We needed to show tens upon thousands of dollars in his bank account, proof that he had ties to Japan, and many other documents. My holding a US passport or PR visa meant nothing. Our union was invalid, as far as they were concerned, regardless of how long we may have been together. Which means that the foreign partner in a heterosexual relationship married to his US partner for 1 month (or even less) will be granted his residency status based on that relationship whereas a foreign partner in a same-sex relationship having been with his US partner for 10 years will not be granted his. Where is the justice?

After lining up at the US embassy in Tokyo on a Thursday morning (the only day in the week the embassy allowed interviews for visas) for one hour M finally got in for his appointment to request his student visa, which he did finally receive. For us, round 1 was over. The appointment itself had to be secured 6 weeks in advance, and if M had missed his turn he would have to reschedule for another appointment, again, a month or more away. M could have simply mailed the application in, but we had heard that the chances of having it approved were greatly diminished if he were not to go and apply in person.

At the time we applied for M’s visa we were hearing stories of many others in Japan being denied their F-1 student visas. In fact, I personally knew of at least two people that were denied theirs. One guy, a 28 year old accountant, had applied to go to learn US CPA accounting practices. The embassy not only denied him his visa, but also stamped his passport so that he would not be able to travel to the US for the duration of the passport. The US government’s view was that since there were CPA courses in Japan that fellow’s real reason to go to the US was to reside permanently.

We were fortunate enough to receive guidance from friends who were also undergoing “the process” and so were able to prepare. In fact, we prepared for M’s interview six months in advance by practicing answering possible questions and by saving every yen we could to bolster his bank account.

Once in the US we were hard pressed to get him a sponsor for his PR visa. It took us two full years of searching, begging and lawyer hopping until we found one contact that would lead us to a sponsor that would oblige. Since M had professional Japanese cuisine experience (on top of his other qualifications) we had half a leg to stand on. Had he not, we would still be searching. It also cost thousands of dollars in legal fees, visa fees, and other “contact fees.” All this just to chase paper, just to get M his PR visa so that we could continue to remain together.

Had we been a hetereosexual couple we would have been spared this expense, trouble and humiliation. The indignation and desperation we felt, going from place to place, lawyer to lawyer, contact to contact, pleading for help for M, at times promising that M would be no trouble, would work hard (he worked like a slave, but that’s a different story), caused a feeling of dejection. We went hat in hand, and at one place I literally bowed down asking for help with the hope that the person would be touched. M almost cried.

This time our efforts were not in vain. That person did know and decided to reveal the name of some business person who had a restaurant that would consider the matter for us. But the information did not come cheap. No matter, we were one step closer to our goal.

That business person did, after months of negotiations, begging, pleading, etc. agree to help us. We are truly grateful to him, no matter what or how much it took. However throughout the whole process I kept thinking that if M were a woman none of this would be happening. I fumed and vowed to help get immigration rights for People Like US (PLUS, used to denote the lesbigay community in many parts of Asia) even if M got his visa. It is my way of getting revenge on the system that many say can’t be helped.

Anyway, considering that despite the time and effort we have put into this venture the INS is still badgering us, it is frightening to consider the circumstances of couples whose partners were not lucky enough to get good contacts. I read of the many couples who, in order to remain together, must have the foreign partner overstay their visas or else simply split up. Many of these couples are established families in every sense of the word, tax-paying upstanding members of their respective communities. How can any government or politician, especially those that claim they are “family oriented” be quick to snuff out these couples’ married lives?

We put so much effort into getting M his papers. It was a Herculean effort. That is the only way that I can describe it. I have put more effort (although less time) into his PR than I put into that for many of my clients in Japan to get Japanese citizenship, yet Japan is supposed to be a much more closed country with more complex immigration rules. Go figure.

Once in Tokyo I met an (white) American-Thai gay couple. They were both residing in Japan, the American as an English teacher at some language school (which, for those of you who are not familiar with the profession, lacks social prestige for anyone that doesn’t teach at the college level), and his Thai partner as a student. Both did not know Japanese and both were not terribly fond of Japan. The American was anxious to go back home (as nearly all Americans ultimately do), yet remained in Japan because, as he put it, it was easier for him to keep his partner in Japan than to get him into the US. According to him, his Thai guy was denied even a tourist visa by the US embassy on the grounds that it was likely that he would not return to Thailand. So they both were planning to move to Thailand. “Returning to America,” the American said, “would mean that our marriage was over. Why? Because of THEIR interpretations of THEIR religion? Forget it!”

This was a few years back. Last I heard they were both still in Bangkok fully settled down. They were lucky. The American partner had an almost 100% chance of getting his Thai visa. Many international lesbigay couples don’t have that luxury. So many live in third countries, or split up.

I read all these stories and feel so sorry for those that did not know how difficult it would be to immigrate to the US with their partners. If they had known they would not have fallen in love with “foreigners” in the first place. Or else they would not plan to relocate to the US.

The recent debate of same-sex marriages comes to mind. I naturally strongly support same-sex marriage rights just as I support the right not to marry. However, I think that same-sex domestic partner immigration rights should be given top priority, even above same-sex marriages. The “luxury” (or I should say “right”) of joint tax returns, lower insurance rates, etc. pales in comparison to the “luxury” of simply being together, loving together, laughing together, crying together, or to put it plainly, living together. Too many couples are being torn asunder, and it is time to make things right. This should be the first step towards fully implementing same-sex marriage laws. At the very, very least, US nationals and PRs (permanent residency holders) should have the right to sponsor their partners. This would be a small but very significant start in reversing a very big wrong that is unjustly being inflicted upon our community.

I strongly urge readers to log onto the web site of the LGIRTF (www.lgirtf.org.) and support them if you can. The Lesbian & Gay Immigration Rights Task Force is the name of the group. The stories they will tell you will move you deeply. And those of us living outside of the US and not in countries which already have seen the light, should urge our government officials (if possible without landing you in jail or worse) to recognize same-sex partner immigration rights. If you don’t know where to start, contact your local PLUS organization if indeed there is one. It doesn’t matter if you are not involved in an international relationship, the fact is, others are, and are being burned for it.

We were lucky that M got his visa, but I will never forget the two full years that we spent worried each night if M would get his visa, and what to do when his student status ran out. Should I give up my job and go back with him so that we could both start hunting for a job in recession-plagued Japan? Should he overstay his visa? What to do? Often we would huddle close together at night, worried of what the future might hold, as if a terrible disease had afflicted one of us. Another lawyer? More networking? A marriage to a female US citizen? It was a horrible feeling, a feeling which effectively kept us from fully enjoying life.

Hopefully through efforts made by all of us relocating to another country will become far easier for lesbigay couples. I don’t want anybody to have to go through the anguish that we felt. Just to chase paper.