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PRADA SLUT posted:We filed for a K1 a month ago, and that's it so far. We plan on doing a civil. The only reason we're delaying is because we haven't lived together and want to wait a few weeks to make sure everything works between us beforehand. I don't know if you truly mean "incomeless" here, but if you do, you need to know that when your fiancee goes in for her visa interview, she will have to have an affidavit of support from you along with proof that you make enough money to support both of you (I think it's 125% of the poverty line, around $20k/year for the two of you unless you live in Alaska or Hawaii). If you don't have this now, you either need to get a job that pays enough ASAP or find someone willing to cosponsor her. This is pretty much a non-negotiable requirement - if you can't prove you have the income (or substantial assets), she's not going to get the visa. Not that $20k is really a whole lot to live off of for two people, but that's the minimum.
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Jul 9, 2015 19:27
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Kwagga posted:Fair enough. And once I kick off the consular processing phase, is that another 5 months or so? Honestly I am not sure, I don't deal with consular processing nearly as much as adjustments. It also depends on where you are applying - some consulates are much busier and have longer wait times for appointments, but I think most of the time is in the NVC. If you can get all your documents together and have it ready to go, it will help.
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Jul 9, 2015 19:35
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Ashcans posted:Honestly I am not sure, I don't deal with consular processing nearly as much as adjustments. It also depends on where you are applying - some consulates are much busier and have longer wait times for appointments, but I think most of the time is in the NVC. If you can get all your documents together and have it ready to go, it will help. Yeah that part is going to be a pain as I have to get police certificates from Singapore, Spain, Germany and France. I guess I'll start collecting those one by one while we wait.
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Jul 9, 2015 19:55
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Florida Betty posted:I don't know if you truly mean "incomeless" here, but if you do, you need to know that when your fiancee goes in for her visa interview, she will have to have an affidavit of support from you along with proof that you make enough money to support both of you (I think it's 125% of the poverty line, around $20k/year for the two of you unless you live in Alaska or Hawaii). If you don't have this now, you either need to get a job that pays enough ASAP or find someone willing to cosponsor her. This is pretty much a non-negotiable requirement - if you can't prove you have the income (or substantial assets), she's not going to get the visa. Not that $20k is really a whole lot to live off of for two people, but that's the minimum. I'm wondering about this. I'm in school full-time, I don't make that much (I have made that much in the past, but not at present). I get some money for grants / scholarships / etc but not 20k worth. I can't drop school to work full-time because my loans will go back into repayment. I was under the impression that if you had sufficient money saved you could forego the employment requirement. Is that not possible? She has a masters degree and makes plenty of money at home, so there shouldn't be any problem with her income once she can work, which would only be a few months at most.
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Jul 9, 2015 21:28
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You can use assets to fulfill the suppport requirements, but you have to show assets equal to 5 times whatever you are lacking in income. So if you are a student and you have 10k in income, and the bar is 20k, you have to show that you have 50k in assets. The assets have to be something that can be converted into cash equivalents within one year without significant loss - so you can use a house, for instance, because you could sell that to have money within a year, but you can't use some sort of vested program where cashing out costs you half the value or something. If you do not have the income or equivalent assets, you will need a cosponsor for the petition. The fact that she has a masters and is employable doesn't make a difference, because she doesn't have a job. I believe that you can also include her assets in the valuation, though.
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Jul 9, 2015 21:55
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Kwagga posted:Yeah that part is going to be a pain as I have to get police certificates from Singapore, Spain, Germany and France. I guess I'll start collecting those one by one while we wait. Keep copies of these (keep copies of everything you send) I was asked to bring them again to my interview.
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Jul 9, 2015 22:40
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CR1/IR1 petition. I believe our case has been sent to the NVC. The status says "On June 17, 2015, we sent your case, Receipt Number XXXXXX, to the Department of State for visa processing." Once received, any chance the whole process would be complete before the end of the summer or at least have a interview scheduled? I am in Canada. Wondering what the realistic expectation is for me to get approved.. I'm hoping before the snow starts to fall in the east coast as I need to drive out west I get the green light. I don't think our case should run into any issues as we've been married for about 5 years or so..
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Jul 11, 2015 16:42
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lol internet. posted:CR1/IR1 petition. Our case was received in the NVC on August 6 2014 and I entered the US at my absolute first opportunity which was the 1st of April 2015. We had one checklist (RFE) and a thankfully-short though terrifying few day delay after my interview but apart from that everything pretty much kept a "normal" timeline so.. that's.. a thing.. I doubt it'll be finished by the end of summer but ymmv etc, Ashcans might know better.
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Jul 11, 2015 17:09
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Well the check we sent in with our CR/IR1 paperwork was cashed June 17th and we have yet to receive our NOA1 via e or snail mail (yes we did fill out the form for email!). This is off to an amazing start so far 
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Jul 11, 2015 17:56
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Here is my signature timeline thingy c/ped from VisaJourney, I'm also CR1: I-130 Package received Chicago - 14 July 2014 NOA1 - 17 July 2014 NOA2 - 28 July 2014 [note: this is a super anomalous short wait at USCIS - thought to be something to do with both of us being out of the country?] Email from NVC with Case Number etc - 18 August 2014 Completed DS-261 online - 19 August 2014 Paid AOS Bill - 20 August 2014 AOS Bill shows "PAID" 22 August 2014 Sent AOS Package to Parents in Law for signing 5 September 2014 AOS Package scanned at NVC 19 September 2014 IV Bill Paid 24 September 2014 DS-260 completed online 25 September 2014 Send IV Package 26 September 2014 (from NH) IV Package Scanned 29 September 2014 CHECKLIST RECEIVED 26 November 2014 Checklist sent from NH 8 December 2014 Checklist scanned 11 December 2014 Case Complete 4 February 2015 - 192 days since NOA2. 171 days at NVC. Medical Appointment 12 February 2015 P4 Letter Received 13 February 2015 Interview 17 March 2015 - ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSING?! Missing my joint sponsor's W2 which he DOESN'T GET, HE IS SELF EMPLOYED. Sydney Consular staff are useless and moronic. Congresswoman involved. CEAC Status changed to "Ready" 24 March 2015 CEAC Status changed to "Issued" 27 March 2015 Visa in hand 31 March 2015 - mere hours before I leave for Brisbane to fly to LA. POE LAX extremely easy and pleasant - 1 April 2015 Reuinted with husband at Boston Airport - 2 April 2015
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Jul 11, 2015 18:32
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Welp.. I hope the snow in the NE isn't too bad next year... 
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Jul 11, 2015 20:36
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AzureSkye posted:Well the check we sent in with our CR/IR1 paperwork was cashed June 17th and we have yet to receive our NOA1 via e or snail mail (yes we did fill out the form for email!). This is off to an amazing start so far If your check as cashed, try to get a copy of the cashed check (if you wrote a personal check, you can do this through pretty much any bank website). USCIS prints the receipt number for the application on the back of the check when it is processed, so you can find this and use it to follow up with your case. If you haven't gotten receipts, call USCIS (with that number if you can get it) and make sure the address information is all right. If you can't pull the number you can still call and explain your concern, and they should be able to match your case with your personal information.
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Jul 11, 2015 21:14
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lol internet. posted:Welp.. I hope the snow in the NE isn't too bad next year... I hope you have a better time! But from what I understand, mine was just about a golden run so .. :| Honestly, giving up on having a timeframe in which to have this completed made things a lot easier in terms of heartache.
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Jul 12, 2015 00:13
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I am not sure if this is directly an immigration question but this seems the best place to ask initially. If everything goes to plan I should have an E1 treaty trade visa this October and I will start to be paid in the US by my current employer. I would like to start a savings plan here as I intend to live in the US for a long time, at least the next 10 years if everything goes to plan. Is it possible for me to open up a 401k investment / retirement plan on such a visa, indeed would it even be advisable to do so? Thanks.
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Jul 15, 2015 19:32
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It isn't really an immigration question, no. I do not believe that there is any way for you to open a 401K unless your employer offers it - which is a possibility. If they do not, you can still open a retirement savings account as an IRA. Is it going to be adviseable for you to do that? I don't know. It certainly makes sense for you to saving for your retirement, but you should consider what would happen if you worked in the US for a while and then had to leave - I don't actually know the answer to this myself, but it is what you should look into. For example, would you be able to maintain the account from overseas, and eventually collect it? Would you need to cash it out when you leave, and at what penalty? I think that you would be able to maintain it, but it might be a hassle. This is the sort of thing you should consider seeing an adviser about when you are in the US (find one that works for a flat fee and not on commission from selling you products). My other worked for a US company even though she was abroad, and her retirement program was administered through the US company and it has been a hassle for her to deal with now. She gets her money, but it means that it is very awkward to connect with customer service and sometimes they ask for things that do not make any sense (like a street address, which she doesn't have).
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Jul 15, 2015 19:43
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Thanks, I'll speak to a financial advisor once the paper work is sorted. Fingers crossed there are no hassles with the Visa which require me to ask the advice of this thread!!
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Jul 15, 2015 20:14
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I got an email notice today for an RFE , after an I-129F was submitted (K1). Does anyone know the approximate "delay" time this adds? The processing center has been noting "5 months". I'm not sure what the RFE is for yet, I just checked it online.
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Jul 15, 2015 20:29
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It basically puts your application on hold. It can't move forward until they get the response to the request, and you generally have something like 84 days to respond. So if you get the request and reply quickly, it may add a couple weeks to the processing - if you hold on to it for two months, that time doesn't count toward your five months at all. Also, the RFE kind of triggers additional clocks on its own - if you have an RFE and only submitted the response 30 days ago, it won't matter if you are also past the 5 months processing because they get 60 days to process after the RFE.
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Jul 15, 2015 20:55
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I would call if I were you, we waited quite a long time for the written notification and when we got it was SUPER confusing!
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Jul 15, 2015 22:42
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Are you talking about the NVC? Because I have never heard of USCIS providing RFE information over the phone. AFAIK the first two levels of service can only even see that an RFE was issued, not what it was about at all.
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Jul 16, 2015 01:12
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The $420 fee attached to I-130 has always made me feel like USCIS is playing a joke. Any idea how long it takes to process an I-751? I put this off way too long. Chunjee fucked around with this message at 05:15 on Jul 16, 2015 |
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Jul 16, 2015 04:23
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Ashcans posted:Are you talking about the NVC? Because I have never heard of USCIS providing RFE information over the phone. AFAIK the first two levels of service can only even see that an RFE was issued, not what it was about at all. Oh sorry! I went back and read the post and of course he's talking about USCIS! Sorry - ignore me!
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Jul 16, 2015 04:38
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Chunjee posted:Any idea how long it takes to process an I-751? I put this off way too long. We sent in my wife's at the beginning of last August, she got her permanent green card at the beginning of March (including one somewhat spurious RFE). According to the VisaJourney numbers, most of the August applicants who went through the California Service Center were done by the end of November/beginning of December while those who went through Vermont were done end of February/beginning of March. So 3-7 months depending on where it goes? Keep in mind, when you file the paperwork, they send you a letter extending your status for another year while they process the forms so you don't need to freak out about waiting until the last minute.
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Jul 20, 2015 02:04
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Unless you put it off so long that your CPR is now expired, that is. 
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Jul 20, 2015 14:26
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So we had the most useless call ever with USCIS. The guy my husband was speaking to claims he can only see that we filed G-1145 and has no idea what is happening with it, and that we weren't sent an NOA1 because they can't mail things to addresses outside of the United States? He was also not mentioning the NOA at all until I told my husband to bring it up. 
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Jul 20, 2015 18:32
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The first level of USCIS service is very hit or miss, unfortunately. Were you able to get a receipt number from the back of a check? Or are you operating blind on trying to follow up the case?
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Jul 20, 2015 18:41
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AzureSkye posted:So we had the most useless call ever with USCIS. The guy my husband was speaking to claims he can only see that we filed G-1145 and has no idea what is happening with it, and that we weren't sent an NOA1 because they can't mail things to addresses outside of the United States? He was also not mentioning the NOA at all until I told my husband to bring it up. That's garbage, we got both NOA1 and 2 in Australia in the mail.
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Jul 20, 2015 18:43
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Ashcans posted:The first level of USCIS service is very hit or miss, unfortunately. Were you able to get a receipt number from the back of a check? Or are you operating blind on trying to follow up the case? The check didn't have an image available so the case number is the only thing of use we managed to get from the call. e: We put in a request for them to send another NOA to his father's address in the states, which will hopefully be there in time for him to bring it up when he's here to help my husband move back. The plan was to go with them to kill some processing time in the States and spend a little less time as long distance but all I'd have is a return flight booking, and a Canadian phone bill that's getting paid for another year. Without an NOA1 at the least all I can offer at the border is a pinky swear that I'm not immigrating. AzureSkye fucked around with this message at 18:51 on Jul 20, 2015 |
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Jul 20, 2015 18:45
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Maybe I'm paranoid but that seems pretty risky to me, can you have your boss say that you're expected back at work and have it in writing or something?
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Jul 20, 2015 20:00
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I'm unemployed right now otherwise that would be on the list too. Husband is convinced we will be fine with just the case number because "They can call USCIS" and does not understand why I am so pissed at how useless a rep we got.
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Jul 20, 2015 20:04
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I got an RFE because for some reason my picture I submitted to USCIS (of myself) wasn't acceptable. I used the photo from my passport (the extra copy), but it was about 9 months old, so I assume that's why it was rejected. Provided I have the requirements (plain background, framing, etc), is there any reason I can't just take a picture of myself and print that out and submit it? Are there any special requirements USCIS wants for photos?
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Jul 21, 2015 22:00
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USCIS uses the same requirements for photos as the Department of State, which you can find here. You can take a picture yourself, but you would need to print it at a professional quality level - you can't just print it out on your laser printer and cut out the picture, you would need to use a proper photo printer (I don't know if this seems dumb to say, but I have had plenty of people try to give me something they ran off at the library or even a weird crop from some event picture and assume it would work). There is also a nonzero chance that your picture was misplaced during handling and they just need another one. 
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Jul 21, 2015 22:10
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Still waiting for NVC to receive my application.. it was sent out the 17th of June.. it's been over a month and the website has no update.. should I call them at this point or wait a bit longer?
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Jul 23, 2015 15:20
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Chunjee posted:Any idea how long it takes to process an I-751? I put this off way too long. nvm; "If you became a conditional permanent resident through marriage to a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident, and your two-year conditional permanent resident status is expiring within the next 90 days, file Form I-751" One big problem is my wife is visiting our daughter's grandparents in her home country and her greencard expires before her flight back. Do I just try to renew her card quickly or is there some other form I should be filing? Chunjee fucked around with this message at 14:00 on Jul 28, 2015 |
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Jul 28, 2015 13:56
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I751 takes quite a while. USCIS website shows that they are currently processing those filed on November 3, 2014. You may even need to interview. However, once you file you get a notice that says it extends your status for a year. You cannot renew an expiring 2 year card with an I90, you must file the 751.
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Jul 28, 2015 14:10
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The I-751 receipt automatically extends your green card for one year while the application is pending; I believe this includes for purposes of travel. However, I have never had someone travel outside the US relying on the receipt so I don't know how well it works or what to expect. It is also possible to have an I-551 stamp placed in your passport, which affirms your status and can be used to enter the US. This is usually done for people who have lost their green card and have to travel before it is renewed. You would need to make an Infopass appointment at the local USCIS application center and explain the situation to request the stamp. USCIS does not like issuing these much, so you should expect to show documentation that you require it and explain the situation.
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Jul 28, 2015 14:11
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quote:On July 28, 2015, we removed the hold on your Form I-130, Immigrant Petition for Relative, Fiance(E), or Orphan, Receipt Number _____________, that was placed because of pending litigation. Our California Service Center location is now working on your case again.  Is this because we called and asked where our NOA was? e: the hold I mean AzureSkye fucked around with this message at 15:44 on Jul 29, 2015 |
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Jul 29, 2015 15:40
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That is a really weird message and it is definitely not because you called to ask them about your notice. I would call them back and try to get through the first level of service to an officer to ask them what was/is going on with your case. It's possible there was some weird thing going on with the whole service center that affected your case, but you want to find out for sure.
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Jul 29, 2015 15:58
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I'm an American citizen looking to emigrate back to the US with my Japanese wife of over 10 years and our daughter. I'm the one working now, and will be for the foreseeable future once we get there, but at what point in my wife's VISA application process do I have to prove that I have a job in the States? If possible, I want to find something before I get there, obviously, but we figured we could stay with my parents for the first month or so until we find an apartment. We haven't filed anything yet.
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Jul 31, 2015 07:55
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You would first file an I-130 with USCIS to sponsor her (I assume your daughter has US citizenship?) Once that is approved, the case would be transferred to the NVC, and at that point you would need to file the I-864 and show your ability to support your family - this can be a current salary, but you can also do it through assets. You need to show assets worth 5x the income level required, and they must be assets you can liquidate within 1 year (so nothing locked out like a trust or a retirement fund). For a family of three the required income level is $25,112, so you need to either show that income, or assets totaling $125,560. Also you can split it, so if you show $20,000 in income and $30,000 in assets you are fine. If you cannot do this, you do have the option of having someone co-sponsor the application, like a family member, who would be agreeing to support your family if needed.
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Jul 31, 2015 14:46
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