- Feb 17, 2009
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Marc Gessford is our official “Visa Lawyer” for the festival. He is completely behind-the-scenes and yet vital to the festival happening.
Marc joined the team in 2008 (previously, Glenn handled the process). His work usually begins in January or early February. What exactly does he do?
* Contact each of the bands (usually a band member but occasionally a manager), as the US Government requires personal info for each of the members: full name, residence address, birth date, copies of passport information pages, etc.
* Research, compile, and print the "media" documentation for each band that's required by the US Government: CD reviews, live reviews, interviews, etc. This is a very time consuming, tedious process!!
* Prepare the required government petition, the I-129 Petition. This is a detailed multi-page document that also takes quite a while to complete. For bands where members are citizens of different countries, I have to do multiple petitions for each country.
* Prepare a separate document that identifies each band member and what they do in the band as well as a complete discography for the band.
* Create a letter to the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) detailing the history of the band and ProgPower USA.
* Make 3 copies of ALL paperwork - One copy to the AFM, an original and one copy to the USCIS, and Marc keeps a copy in case something happens and needs to resend (which has happened on multiple occassions and completely halts the process!)
* Submit all documentation to the (AFM) with a check for their "approval." (To bring a foreign band into the US, you have to get the AFM's approval to do so before the government will even consider it).
* Once the AFM approval is received by mail, I then add copies of it to the other materials, prepare a new letter to the government and send the original and one copy of everything to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS)--with a another check. Then the waiting starts, and we sweat bullets while we wait!
Assuming the USCIS approves the band, they mail an approval to Glenn who then mails the original approval to the band. The band then needs to setup an interview at their appropriate embassy. This entails that they first complete an online form and submit the original approval letter from the USCIS.
Marc exchanges hundreds of emails annually and spends approx 8 hours per band. The process is disjointed and a band is not completed in one, two or three sittings. It is a process that takes several months. Each band's packet - the petition, media, passport copies, etc. is at least 100 pages and with bigger and/or older bands (where there is a lot of available media) it can be in excess of 200 pages. Then, Marc keeps one original and 3 copies of everything.
All of the bands have been grateful and appreciative of the work I do. Given the complexity and numerous hoops that have to be jumped through in applying for the visas, some of the bands are annoyed or outright angered with the process. I have never had anyone angry with me personally.
In Europe, bands can travel from country to country with their passports only and they do not understand why it is so difficult to get into the US to play. I do get a lot of "venting" every once in a while.
Most frustrating part of your job?
Birth dates!
On the required forms, I must indicate each band member's DOB in month/day/year format; however, most bands give me dates in the European day/month/year format (despite my highlighting how to submit them). And sometimes, different members of the same band give me dates in different formats. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, you cannot discern what format you've got based on the numbers, e.g., is 3/12/1979 March 12 or December 3? Also, most non-Americans do not have a clear delineation of what a middlename is, a requirement on the paperwork. If submitted incorrectly, it results in a denial and the whole process must be started over.
But the biggest frustration for me is the US government. The process for obtaining visas is something of a mystery, and there is no one at the USCIS who can or will provide you any real assistance if you have a question. I do not know why the process is so complex and/or why there is so much "red tape."
As with much of our government, the decisions appear to be somewhat arbitrary and carried out by unknown persons who you cannot question as to why they do what they do. There have been situations where the government asks for additional information re: a certain band or even denies a band. We are not told why that denial happens and the issues on one band are often inconsistent with what was done on other bands where the same materials were submitted.
It seems clear that different agents are judging different petitions and each agent's requirements and/or understandings is different from his fellow agents'. There often appears to be no rhyme or reason to certain decisions. Because of this, I have refined my process over the years to the point where I give the government anything and everything they could possibly ask for up front--copies of passports, copies of prior visas, as much media as I can find, etc. I even send them media on ProgPower USA so they can see the quality and longevity of the fest.
Best part of your job?
In the end, despite all the work, stress, and getting the visas for the bands, it is rewarding and not anything I would ever want to stop. Getting to know the band members and getting them into the US (many for the first time) and to PPUSA is great. As opposed to any other PPUSA crew member (that I can think of), my work is done before the fest and I can just enjoy the fest.
THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK AND DEDICATION!
Marc has officially opened up shop for all bands that need assistance navigating the hellish maze of documentation required to play in the U.S. He has taken care of the ProgPower USA visas for the past few years with outstanding results. If you are a band or management looking for a professional attorney with a personal touch, Marc is your guy. Save yourself time, headaches, and MONEY by going to:
www.playamericavisas.com
Mention you heard about him via ProgPower USA and get things rolling.
Marc joined the team in 2008 (previously, Glenn handled the process). His work usually begins in January or early February. What exactly does he do?
* Contact each of the bands (usually a band member but occasionally a manager), as the US Government requires personal info for each of the members: full name, residence address, birth date, copies of passport information pages, etc.
* Research, compile, and print the "media" documentation for each band that's required by the US Government: CD reviews, live reviews, interviews, etc. This is a very time consuming, tedious process!!
* Prepare the required government petition, the I-129 Petition. This is a detailed multi-page document that also takes quite a while to complete. For bands where members are citizens of different countries, I have to do multiple petitions for each country.
* Prepare a separate document that identifies each band member and what they do in the band as well as a complete discography for the band.
* Create a letter to the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) detailing the history of the band and ProgPower USA.
* Make 3 copies of ALL paperwork - One copy to the AFM, an original and one copy to the USCIS, and Marc keeps a copy in case something happens and needs to resend (which has happened on multiple occassions and completely halts the process!)
* Submit all documentation to the (AFM) with a check for their "approval." (To bring a foreign band into the US, you have to get the AFM's approval to do so before the government will even consider it).
* Once the AFM approval is received by mail, I then add copies of it to the other materials, prepare a new letter to the government and send the original and one copy of everything to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS)--with a another check. Then the waiting starts, and we sweat bullets while we wait!
Assuming the USCIS approves the band, they mail an approval to Glenn who then mails the original approval to the band. The band then needs to setup an interview at their appropriate embassy. This entails that they first complete an online form and submit the original approval letter from the USCIS.
Marc exchanges hundreds of emails annually and spends approx 8 hours per band. The process is disjointed and a band is not completed in one, two or three sittings. It is a process that takes several months. Each band's packet - the petition, media, passport copies, etc. is at least 100 pages and with bigger and/or older bands (where there is a lot of available media) it can be in excess of 200 pages. Then, Marc keeps one original and 3 copies of everything.
All of the bands have been grateful and appreciative of the work I do. Given the complexity and numerous hoops that have to be jumped through in applying for the visas, some of the bands are annoyed or outright angered with the process. I have never had anyone angry with me personally.
In Europe, bands can travel from country to country with their passports only and they do not understand why it is so difficult to get into the US to play. I do get a lot of "venting" every once in a while.
Most frustrating part of your job?
Birth dates!
On the required forms, I must indicate each band member's DOB in month/day/year format; however, most bands give me dates in the European day/month/year format (despite my highlighting how to submit them). And sometimes, different members of the same band give me dates in different formats. Unfortunately, in a lot of cases, you cannot discern what format you've got based on the numbers, e.g., is 3/12/1979 March 12 or December 3? Also, most non-Americans do not have a clear delineation of what a middlename is, a requirement on the paperwork. If submitted incorrectly, it results in a denial and the whole process must be started over.
But the biggest frustration for me is the US government. The process for obtaining visas is something of a mystery, and there is no one at the USCIS who can or will provide you any real assistance if you have a question. I do not know why the process is so complex and/or why there is so much "red tape."
As with much of our government, the decisions appear to be somewhat arbitrary and carried out by unknown persons who you cannot question as to why they do what they do. There have been situations where the government asks for additional information re: a certain band or even denies a band. We are not told why that denial happens and the issues on one band are often inconsistent with what was done on other bands where the same materials were submitted.
It seems clear that different agents are judging different petitions and each agent's requirements and/or understandings is different from his fellow agents'. There often appears to be no rhyme or reason to certain decisions. Because of this, I have refined my process over the years to the point where I give the government anything and everything they could possibly ask for up front--copies of passports, copies of prior visas, as much media as I can find, etc. I even send them media on ProgPower USA so they can see the quality and longevity of the fest.
Best part of your job?
In the end, despite all the work, stress, and getting the visas for the bands, it is rewarding and not anything I would ever want to stop. Getting to know the band members and getting them into the US (many for the first time) and to PPUSA is great. As opposed to any other PPUSA crew member (that I can think of), my work is done before the fest and I can just enjoy the fest.
THANK YOU FOR ALL OF YOUR HARD WORK AND DEDICATION!
Marc has officially opened up shop for all bands that need assistance navigating the hellish maze of documentation required to play in the U.S. He has taken care of the ProgPower USA visas for the past few years with outstanding results. If you are a band or management looking for a professional attorney with a personal touch, Marc is your guy. Save yourself time, headaches, and MONEY by going to:
www.playamericavisas.com
Mention you heard about him via ProgPower USA and get things rolling.
