Hi, I'm Sarah and thought it may be good to start a thread specifically for Military Spouses.
I didn't see one anywhere else on the site, and thought it may be a good way to start some form of support network which incorporates our different set of stresses, to those whose partners have normal jobs.

I met my US Army Husband online when he was in Iraq originally back in 2005, and when he returned we've lived with him being a Reservist, but he goes Active again in a few weeks.
With the current climate of things, it's a little worrying .... I pray there's no deployment, again.

At the moment, I'm separated from him, in England, while we go through the I-130 process which we started in January 2008.

I'm sure there are a few Spouses (and for Fiances for that matter) on here which are in difficult situations regarding their partners involved in the Military, while they too are on their own personal visa journey's, and are finding it harder than normal as they are not attached to or able to access their 'Family Readiness Group' as yet, till they reach the US.
Hence, attempting to start a form of one for us here.

Not sure if this was a good idea, but I didn't think it could do any harm.
Good luck to us all, and I hope we all have a speedy reunion with our Beloved One who is part of the defense structure of the country we will soon be calling 'Home'.

Sarah x

p.s. The link here is for the Military specific immigration hotline (with real people to talk to), which may be of use to some of you http://www.military.com/military-report/im...ESRC=miltrep.nl

hi there im my husband are also in the military he's active on duty..we receive our NOA1 on july 22 we are still waiting for the NOA2..i thought our case will be faster since they work in the gov't but it seems not..

hi sarah its nice to meet other military spouses here!!!

im ruby, im still here in the phils,

i met my hubby online too in 2005 when he was still in iraq,,

and now he is deployed again for 15 months... we have been married for almost 2 years now and have a 15 month old son..
we havent filed but soon we will.. lol hopefully..

me i have access to my FRG, i received newsletters from them, i even added
then to myspace. LOL...

take care.. PM me if u need anything..

Hi, I agree with you, I thought there would be some form of special treatment too, especially with the current climate of things for a lot of us. These are scary times, and sometimes being a Military spouse can be the hardest job on the planet.
It's not like he's safely working in an office

It seems the immigration process is the only thing they drag their heels on ..... has he tried speaking to his Chain of Command??

Also, has your Husband called the Military Immigration helpline? It's a helpline specifically for us, and they will put him through to a proper Immigration Officer. They can be really helpful, and will pull up your case while speaking to him.
The link is on my first post.

Waiting for NOA2 since July seems a very long time, and you're well over any 180 days .... I would suggest your Husband going to his Senator and asking for help. USCIS has 48 hours to reply to one of those requests, stating what is going on.

There does seem to be a few nightmare stories on here ..... let me know how it goes.

Goodluck xx

Hi Ruby,

That's great you have access to your FRG .... mine know about me, but I didn't realise they could deal with you before you arrive in the US. Thanks for that, I will contact them.

2005 seems like it was a busy year for US Military personnel in Iraq and online meetings

Deployed again ??? that sucks!!
I'm blown away by the 15 month deployments now .... they just seem to be getting longer
I think the Air Force and Navy are only on 6-8 ..... the British only get 6 months too.

Maybe you could look at filing while he's deployed and it could all be done and dusted before he gets back, so you can meet him off the plane ???
Not even sure if it's possible with deployment .... but you never know.

One thing about online meetings .... and Military life .... at least we're used to long distance relationships, and know how to manouvre them

My thoughts are with you xx

yeah deployment sucks!!!!
4 months down, 11 to go.... im not alone though., i have two other spouses that i talk to our husband are in the same division, so all of them are deployed right now...!!
we were still gathering other requirements, hopefully by april we can submit our I-130..

military wife is the toughest job of all!!!!!!!!! but im holding on...

11 months left ..... it's soooo long!

I'm pleased you have support around you ... same unit is great!

It's disturbing when you look around this site, it's full of people concerned about whether or not they can go and see their Husbands while they're awaiting the paperwork game (I've also looked into it too) ..... at least they have the option .... or should I say, they can at least take the risk .... whereas in your situation, it's not one that can even be thought about .... my heart goes out to you.

Still, the positive thing is, you could hopefully be processed for his return

By the way ..... love the Army Wife logo you have on your signature section ..... hope you don't mind if I use the same one??

X

I PMed you!!!

Just found this on the US Army website .....

'Our military Families also sacrifice for America. They endure sleepless nights and the daily struggle of providing for children while a loved one is serving far from home. We have a responsibility to provide for them. So I ask you to join me in expanding their access to child care, creating new hiring preferences for military spouses across the federal government, and allowing our troops to transfer their unused education benefits to their spouses or children. Our military Families serve our nation, they inspire our nation, and tonight our nation honors them.'

Excerpt from President George W. Bush’s 2008 State of the Union Address, Jan. 28.

That's really nice ..... maybe someone should let President Bush know that there's a lot of us stuck in the immigration process ..... and we'd be more supportive if we were Stateside

..... now, there's a project ..... hmmmm

X

Hi ladies!

I'm also an army wife. My husband is deployed to iraq and he's been gone for 6 and a half months. we have 5 and a half to 8 and a half left (depending on if he gets extended) and I am so excited to see him at his homecoming!

I am getting ready to send off my I-130 packet in the next 2 weeks! It would be great if we could keep in tough with each other. I would agree that being a military spouse is a very tough job but I'm go through it 1000 times more if it meant I could be with him always

I hope to get some replies from you girls. I love meeting other military wives!

Helloooo,
Lovely to hear from you. I really hope he doesn't get extended, a year is hideous enough .... it's not like he's working safely in an office.
My husband was out there twice and we met on his last deployment .... thankyou internet .... I'm now doubly thankful for the internet, as it's what bonds us together once again over the miles ..... I'm lucky that he is safely tucked up in Georgia at the moment ..... as deployment separation is sooo much worse ..... my heart goes out to you

I-130 in 2 weeks, so you'll be a March/April filer.

It's great to have another military spouse on here, we really do have a different set of experiences to the others on this site ..... which reminds me, have you managed to get your spouse ID card ? .... I got mine the other day, quite simple as soon as you find a base (any basy) which has American military personnel on it. I was blown away by the benefits of it ..... not only can you shop there for cheap American groceries (on your own) .... but you get to use the domestic US postal system ..... which also means you can send free stuff to your deployed Husband ...... medical and dental stuff ...... and what I really like, it's something worth 'flashing' at the door of the Consulate when you go for your interview, as the doors are manned by military

I definately agree, that I too would go through it 1000 times more if I could be with my military husband, always. It's a hard life, but it's a good life.

Do you know which part of the US you're going to be in when you get there ? ..... I'm Atlanta, Georgia bound

p.s. if a moderator is reading this, can you chase up my request for a military specific forum to be added please?

Hi again! Before I say anything let me just correct something...

I meant to say let's keep in TOUCH not in tough....lol. See what happens when you are sleepy?

O.k...it's great to meet you Sarah! My name is Camille and my hubby's name is James.

I don't have my ID card as yet but the next time I visit the states I will be getting one, since I don't think I can get it out here in Jamaica. He asked me to get married when he was on his R & R and we didn't have time to do a lot of stuff that we wish we had done before. I am wondering if I should print out all of our Skype, Yahoo, Myspace emails/IM's etc...because it's TONS of stuff...lol

A lot of it isn't fit for strangers eyes either hahahaha

It would be great if we had a little military spouse thread going on, and double great if there was a way to get them to expidite it because you are a military spouse.

Who knows...maybe they'll come up with something that will get us moved through faster. It's so hard being separated by this long distance relationship, the whole 12-15 months deployment and then having to be apart even after that for God knows how long.

We hate it, but what can you do you know?

Hubby is based at Fort Drum in NY so depending on when I get this Visa I will be going there or with him to his new duty station he is PSCing to a few months after he gets back.

I'm very excited to get this ball rolling but I am waiting for one more piece of my packet and then I can send it off.

I'll definately be in the April filers group.


I have a big question though and I don't know if you girls can help me. Since hubby is deployed and he turned his cell phone off before leaving and he obviously doesn't have one in Iraq, I've been baffled as to what I should write for his contact number on all the forms....we only communicate via email and IM because he has no phone where he is.

What do you think I should do in this case?

hello girls!!

hi camille! welcome here.. LOL

my hubby too is in iraq.. we still have a long way to go..

about your questions.. maybe you can write the phone number of his parent's in the states...

we havent file also but hopefully soon.

take care..


ruby**

Hi Camille,
Wonderful to hear from you ..... yes, Ruby's idea is great. You could put down his parent's number. From what I gather, they tend not to ring you up .... it looks like just a tick box item.

Expedites for military ..... trust me, I'm looking at every loophole possible .... so far, it's only deployment .... actually, I've had an idea !!! Both you and Ruby have deployed husbands ..... so far, I can't find anything which states you can't apply for an expedite after your husband is deployed ..... .... so, both of you guys can get a copy of your husband's deployment orders .... plonk that in with the I-130 application .... and in big red letters on a cover page, state 'Military Expedite Required .... Deployment Orders Enclosed' ...... you never know, they might just do it!!!!

It's worth a good try, cos the normal way is just silly ..... I'm sitting here waiting for a possible 6 months before approval before going to NVC, and my husband has put his life on the line for his country twice already.
If I was you, I wouldn't hesitate trying it .... the worst they can do is say no, and put you back in with everyone else.

For the I-130, I just sent a handful of emails (not all as there were over 550 at that stage, letters, cards and God knows what else) .... a couple from the early weeks, a couple from in between and a couple of recent ones. It showed the development of the relationship without bogging them down with a packet which is huge ... therefore not taking as long for an adjudicator to approve it once he's read it.
To be honest, I didn't send a lot of relationship proof, apart from the marriage certificate, emails and photos. The cover letter said everything.

I'm now on his life insurance, rental agreement, and he's on mine. The tax form has been updated to married ..... if you have any questions about US tax and how to file without a SSN#, just let me know.
I have so much more to take to the consulate, but know it shouldn't be too necessary being a US Military dependant .... I'm hoping to have Kip with me at interview too .... fingers crossed.

Hope this helps,
Sarah x

Hi everyone,..I have been on this forum since 2004, and am also a military spouse.
A month after we got married in California in Feb 2004, we got stationed in Germany, and I have been there ever since.
2 weeks after we got to Germany , my hubby deployed for 12mths, so that was April 2004 to April 2005.
He then deployed again In November 06, and got back January 08,..yes 15 mths!! We were meant to leave here in march 07, but got extended becasue of the units deployment, so spent a year longer than necessary. So he has been deployed for 27mths out of 48 mths here. Plus 5 months of military schooling,..so he was away for 32 of 48 mths.
KipandSarahJayne,..just so you know,...the mailing to a deployed spouse, is only free when overseas on a military base.
When you get to the states, and if your hubby deploys, you pay for your parcels to be sent, no freebies there...it sucks!!
I think you'll find about 20 military spouses on here, quiet a few from Germany.
I went the k1 route, then AOS and Lifting of conditions, with the last two completed from Germany.
I have also just completed i-130's for my kids, which joined me directly in Germany. We are headed stateside in April.

Cheers,...

Jodee

Hello All,
As Sarah and I have been discussing the Visa situation for spouses and the headache of USCIS, she has made the point that MAYBE USCIS intends to help all Deployed Soldiers and their Families regardless of where they are in the deployment timeline. I'm posting this because I "know the lingo" and would like to help as my wonderful wife does so earnestly on this website. From my time on Active Duty I remember the Commanders being an important part in the citizenship process, but it is also the responsibility of the REAR DETACHMENT and FAMILY READINESS GROUP to help spouses with any and all issues. Needless to say, immigration and foreign spouses is a large responsibility, but the US gov't has a duty to help you as your Soldier fights honorably for the Nation. My heart bleeds for all going through this process and delay, and how much harder it must be with lack of contact, fears, and questions. Please understand that your REAR DETACHMENT Chain of Command might not have all the answers and probably won't know exactly what to do at first; however, if they are worth a bean they will care to find out and HOPEFULLY develop a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to help spouses in our situation best in the future. I finish this by simply saying CONTACT your FRG sponsor routinely, your REAR DETACHMENT COMMANDER regularly, and pray, as I do, constantly for our Soldiers in harms way.

Sincerely,
Kip

Hi again Sarah!

I don't think that idea will work about his parents number because we are both very much out of that stage and he hasn't lived with either of his parents for over 11 years! LOL


I should probably call and ask them what to do in a case like this. Thank you for the suggestions though.


We have a quite a lot to send in but I will just do the basics and carry a binder with all of the rest of the stuff when I go on the interview.

I am going to write a sheet along with my cover letter detailing our situation and hopefully the persons processing it will be kind.


Hi Jodee! Nice to meet you too...it's great that we have a little Military Spouse group going here. Hope to keep in touch with you all.

Dear everyone,

I am also a military spouse. My husband served 8 years full time US army and was deployed already in Iraq, Aghanistan, etc. But before we got married he already chose to get out from the US army and chose to be with me and make family with me ,
and now he is in part time National Guard aside from his full time civilian work.

I just want to say hello to you all, and want myself to track this topic..

And, yeah i thought they process quicker military cases.. But seems not..

Thank you guys.. By the way, is anyone here from Kansas or Nebraska?

I'm in Jamaica right now but Hubby is PCSing to Kansas next summer so if you are there at that time maybe we can hang out sometime

HELLO EVERYONE!!

I have talk to an ARMY wife shes from the PHILS. like me. she said her CR1 visa application took only 5 months to process, her husband used that expedited process and shes now in the states ...
so let's all be positive here!!!


good day to all..

Thanks for that Ruby .... so in other words, it has worked before .... that means, it can work again!!!
So .... if there is deployment in your immigration mix, make sure you send a copy of the orders to USCIS for your expedite, regardless of whether your partner has already left or not ...... goodluck to everyone.

I am going to try this thanks. I don't know why I didn't think of it a long time ago!

Another military wife

Met my husband while he was deployed in my home country - for 3,5 years! Got married in October '06, got the visa in January '07 but we moved to US once his deployment was up. I came a month after him because of work contract. Still 'fighting' with USCIS over my GC - and have the COngressman's office involved too - my husband tried the military hotline but they couldn't do anything for him.

Hello Ladies,

So nice to see this thread on the forum and to meet all of you. I am Nadia, also a Military Spouse (US Marine Corps). My husband is on active duty, has done one tour in Iraq with another one looming (January/February 2009). We got married in July last year and filed our paper work in August (almost immediately) as we knew the possibility of deployment is always a reality. We also met online, by the way :-)
We just received our approvals for both I130 and I129F last week so things are looking up a bit and we are optimistic that the process will be complete in the next 3 - 4 months. I don't kow which one of us is more anxious.......... LOL. If I have to consider life with my husband and the possibility of deployment compared to life without him............ ABSOLUTELY NO CONTEST. I am proud of what he does and who he is. Semper Fi !!!

Although not a military spouse, I am former military so I thought I might chime in here. Your spouse's unit's phone number IS his contact number. If you have to get in touch with him, you can call his first sergeant. Don't do this unless it is pretty close to emergency but, the "shirt" as he is known can and will get stuff done. Check out what spouse's groups are around you. The military "family" is not as tight a group as it once was but I hope you all will make the effort to lend support to all those affected by the current situation.
Dive in as much as you can and learn the ropes of being a military spouse. You can be a very positive element in your spouse's career--don't forget that.

Yes, I read you got your approvals the other day ..... congratulations once again, it was about time!! ..... I'm so excited for you, but sorry to hear of another deployment looming. I understand Army and Marines have basically the same amount of time now out there (around the 15 month mark ..... yuk!) ..... fingers crossed something will change by then.
But for now, you're out of USCIS (Thank God!) and onto the next stage of the process. Once you get your NVC number, get your Husband to try calling them (NVC - Department of State) and see if you can be put through for a faster interview time (concurrent while your package is at NVC) .... we were advised to do this by the US Military immigration helpline, as once the process starts to head towards the consulate, we can actually get preferential treatment over civillians .... apparently. Or get him to call your Consulate direct with the NVC number, and see if he can swing it that way as the consulates sometimes have a military department which can do this sort of thing.

Let us know how you get on with this, because if it works, this could be a big help for those who live in countries with huge interview times.

Congratulations again, and I pray the next stage is super fast!!
X

HELLO,

thank you for sharing that information, i will surey tell my SO about it!!!

have a nice day everyone!!

hi sarah,

yes it has worked before and i hope it will work again fo r us!
she said that a congressman helped them too..


good luck everyone!

Everyone,

I'm currently in the US Army. I was able execute a Military Expedite for my wife because my unit is on alert for possible deployment overseas. I've already served 15 months in Iraq and soon will return for a second tour.

Please have your Husbands call USCIS on their 1-800 number and talk to an Agent, let them know that you want to file a Military expedite on your petition. They will submit a request and within a few days they will send an email, wanting information faxed to them.

If your Soldier is deployed this will also work. The email will tell you what you need.

The Military Expedite will only be regarding the USCIS portion of the process.

After I submitted my request they approved my I-130, within a week (7 days), please do it!!!! As a soldier, it's stressful to think about my wife being faraway while I'm training and doing all the pre-deployment stuff. I'm sure your soldiers are also stressed.

Regards,
SGT Leyva

Hello SGT Levya,

My husband is a SPC and is currently deployed to northern Iraq.

Today I called the military hotline for the USCIS to ask a question about the I-130 and I inquired about the process of expediting a petition and the agent told me that the only way that could happen was if my husband was ABOUT TO BE deployed.

I am thinking that what you are saying is true, and perhaps they would do it if my husband were to call them directly.

I don't know if he would be able to because of the time differences and also his hours, but I am going to run it by him and see what he thinks. I guess it doesn't hurt to try!

Thank you for the information.

And you are right....my husband is very stressed out. He just wants to get back from (his first deployment) in one piece so that we can be together as soon as he gets back from his tour which will be any time between September and November.... I miss him so much

What you guys do and have to go through is unbelievable...

Hello All,

I'm not a military wife but I have close close ties to being somewhat in this situation for many years. So I know all the lingo you all talk and honestly I miss my military connections sometime. Just wanted to chime in and say I think this is an AWESOME thread and I wish you all speedy journeys. Prayers and thanks to all the soliders.

Have your soldier send an email to the service center handling your case, that might work also.
After I requested the military expedite, USCIS CRIS sent me an email requesting I fax information to them.

Info needed:
Copy of Military ID
Copy of Orders or Letter from Commander explaining Deployment or Unit Alert

Also, I didn't use the Military Hotline, I just called the 1-800 number on my NOA1. I talked to an agent and they ask me for my case number, phone number, email address and they put in the request. The next day they sent me an email asking for the info to be faxed to them, ATTN Officer Harris.

A week later my case was approved.

hi there,

WOW that is so amazing!!
MY husband is deployed in iraq and we havent filed yet,

did u call the 1-800 number before or after you have submitted the I-130?

thanks..

Marlita: Thank you so much! That means so much. This life is not easy and the frequent and prolonged separations that naturally occur in a military relationship are difficult to deal with much less on top of it having a Long Distance Relationship before hand AND dealing with the immigration process....

It's a lot to stomach.



SGT Levya: Thank you so much for this information, I have forwarded it to my husband. One week to approve an I-130 is spectacular! I hope we get that lucky. He says he will speak to his commander on friday and get started on a letter. He will email them and see what happens. I have the same question as Ruby_Jade, did you request the expidite AFTER you sent in the I-130? I assume yes since you said you got the number off of the NOA1. Thanks again and God bless you!


Ruby_Jade: This looks very promising for us and other military spouses. I will definately keep everyone abreast of what happens and if it works.

Let us all know how you get on with the expedite .... fingers crossed you'll manage to find someone at USCIS who actually knows what they're talking about !! Deployment is deployment ..... whether he leaves in 5 days or has been there 5 months!! ..... I'm praying for you Jamericanlove ..... and hope you have an approval within a couple of weeks

I called after submitting the I-130. Thing is I sat around for 3 month before I found out about military expidite.

Here is the email I received after calling:


U.S. Department of Homeland Security
California Service Center
P.O. Box 30111
Laguna Niguel, CA 92607-0111

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Emailed to XXXXXXLEYVA@US.ARMY.MIL

Dear M. Leyva:

On 01/15/2008 you, or the designated representative shown below, contacted us about your case. Some of the key information given to us at that time was the following:

Caller indicated they are:
-- Applicant or Petitioner

Attorney Name:
-- Information not available

Case type:
-- I130

Filing date:
-- XX/XX/XXXX

Receipt #:
-- WAC-XX-XX-XXXXX

Beneficiary (if you filed for someone else):
-- Information not available

Your USCIS Account Number (A-number):
-- Information not available

Type of service requested:
-- Expedite


The status of this service request is:

USCIS has received your Military Expedite request. In order to process, we need a copy of any one of the following: your Military Identification Card, deployment orders or a copy of a letter from your commanding officer detailing your deployment. Please Fax to 949-389-3441, Attn: Officer Harris.

If you have any further questions, please call the National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283.

Please remember: By law, every person who is not a U.S. citizen and who is over the age of 14 must also notify the Department of Homeland Security within 10 days from when they move (persons in "A" or "G" nonimmigrant status are exempt fr