Hello everyone. I have been a lurker on this site for a few months now. I'm not really much of a chatter but I overheard something really disturbing a few hours ago at work, so i have to vent a little. One of my co-workers (that i really dont know very well) was telling another co-worker that one of his friends invited him to this party where he said there will be a bunch of women with J visas looking for American citizens to marry so they can come here and live permanently ...If I'm not mistaken, he called it an "immigration party."... This just pissed me the heck off!!! Though I'm not really that surprised....

holy hannah - I hope all they come home with are STD's.

Hello fellow lurker, i hardly write anything here either, but you brought up something that has bugged me for a long time, I work in a hotel in Orlando, a very well known hotel, we have many J1's , they are from all over, Argentina, Romania, Peru, and the biggest influx that is there now is from the Phillpines

I can't tell you how many times that these people have come to me and friends of mine and are looking for husbands and wives, its incredible, I can't begin to tell you how many people have married american citizens already too, and quickly got the girl pregnant,

one such case I thought of the guy as quiet and nice before I knew what trick he had up his sleeve, I knew him from the time he got to the hotel, he had a fiance back in his country, all of sudden he is married to an american and now she is pregnant

Not only this, I here from the Mexicans who are working at the hotel, telling how they crossed the dessert and some point and were picked up by an american labor company

I am all for people coming to this country, hell my grandparents were brought over to Ellis Island way back in the day, the late 1800's and early 1900's, I understand people want a better life, but we suffer because we are doing the legal thing.

I have a lot of venting to do, this is just the beginning, I have waited for four years now to be with my husband, because our original case which was an I129 F was approved but later it expired while it was in the hands of immigration, and then I was unable to travel to see him because of airfares being so high

So here we wait together, for a long long time,

Good Luck to everyone,
Kathleen

LAnthony,
Hello there, when I read your posting, something popped into my head, for your sake while your in this process of getting your loved one here, STAY AWAY from any co-worker and the person you heard about this party from, you do not want to ruin your chances with the immigration process.
Dont even ask how the party went, cause you yourself will be checked out, they do check employment, and if you have a case worker visit you at work and ask some other employees about your job and character, also your marriage, and you know what goes on at this party, you could hurt yourself in your process. Guilt by association.
Im not saying your intentions are not real with bringing your loved one here, just protect yourself. You dont need a jerk messing up your process.
I wish you the best in your journey. I only wrote this posting for your protection and mean well.

and the anoying thing is, they will probably be approved a lot faster than me!

you might want to write a letter to your senator or to USCIS because we are all made to suffer and might even have our petitions denied because of such things

i would make sure some form of Immigration would be told of things like this and where, they might just want to POP in undercover and help a little

i have hear of those things too and it irritates me to no end i have not seen perviz in well over a year and we are stuck in i dont know what waiting for just permission to apply......those people come anyway they can and end up with what we work so hard for and cost us a lot because our country is trying to keep illegals or what ever from getting visas? really fries me yeah someone pushed my buttons today i dont loss it much on this forum but that is just craziness.......we do it the legal way and get nothing but crap from our government........i just want to start the rest of my life with the one i love i have already wait three years because he wanted me to be older and finished with college now again i have to wait because csc cant seem to make a decision? and those kinds of people come in here and just take what we are working for legally?
where is the justice in that?????

the justice comes when we speak, if we sit and do nothing it continues on same way

welllllllll lol i did speak even got a little piece in the editorial of our local news paper.........has not done a lot of good that i can see lol

Thats what pissed me off...who knows how long it will take for my husband to get here? we just started the process.

Im sorry to hear of what you've been put through....I pray for a speedy approval for you and your husband

Ad we all wonder why this process takes so long and why we have to jump through hoops to prove that our relationships are legitimate..........

Hello Paris Heart,
No need to worry about me. Like I said, i dont know that person really well, and i dont see him very often. He was not even talking to me. I just held my tongue and walked away. I'm not worried at all about proving myself...it just upsets me that people are doing this sort of thing and getting away with it while I'm sitting here waiting....and waiting....and waiting.
All the best...

Some people think it's strange that I met my wife on the internet when she was in China looking to meet a western husband.

Personally, I think there's absolutely nothing wrong with such a party. Now if a couple enters into a fraudulent relationship for an immigration benefit, shame on them but I expect many a bona fide relationship has begun at such a party. Why assume it's all about sham relationships. J1 visa holders are people too.

The way you met your fiance(e) or spouse has nothing to do with how genuine the relationship, and frankly, I'm getting tired of relationship snobbery/bigotry being displayed on VJ by some of its members.

Let's have some "sensitivity" here. The next time I read about "Heck, some people meet on the internet and make the decision to marry in advance of meeting in person." I swear I'm going to come unglued. My wife and I are two of those people and I know plenty more happy marriages that followed the same path. Get over yourselves already!

what i disagree with is the fact that most of them come on another type of visa and are looking to marry usa person so that they can legally become usa citizen.......if u meet someone and fall in love with them it does not matter how u meet..........i met perviz on Internet site and did so intentionally .......it is the reasoning behind the "looking for usa husband or wife that gets me"..........i do not know where ur from i mean what state but here on the west coast i get so irritated at the people from Mexico legals and non legals that are just looking for citizenship and it happens a lot here...........im most cases after that guy has his green card he takes off and im not being a bigot i myself am Latin........

No one is talking about u....get over yourself already!

You're being a snob about how people meet. My wife wasn't here on another visa type wanting to stay but she was certainly looking for an American husband. Please separate how people meet and why from whether their relationship is bona fide or not. The party isn't the problem. Fraudulent and bona fide relationships come out of all methods of meeting, not just the one's any given individual is open to for themselves.

These J1 visa holders came here legally. They would like to stay by way of finding a USC spouse. There is nothing at all dishonorable in this desire or in having a party to facilitate such possibilities. There's no need to then assume that the relationships born there will be less bona fide than your own. Only actual fraudulent actions are fraudulent and those can come from any method of meeting.

You have a right to be pissed off and to express it. So do I and so I am.

My opinion is that you need to look at each case individually. Some people are not looking for an easy way to the US. People just have their preferences. Different people are attracted to different types, asian, latin etc. Just because they are looking for that type doesn't mean they are looking for an easy way to the US.

Me and my wife met by chance when I was working in Buenos Aires. I was not looking for anyone, but I do have a preference for Latin woman. And she has a preference for men from anywhere besides Argentina. She just does not like the men from Argentina. Her opinion, in general, they do not treat women very good. But she is not looking for a way to the US. In fact we have talked about, years down the road, when I retire, to move back to Buenos Aires.

So I think you need to look at each case individually. Just because someone is looking for someone from a particular part of the world does not mean they are trying to do something wrong, sometimes it is just their preference.

There's nothing wrong with looking for an easy way to the US, as long as it's legal and if relationship based, the relationship is bona fide.

If a person is going to be "pissed off" about a party, they might as well be "pissed off" about international dating websites too. The purpose is the same, to facilitate meeting and a potential future relationship.

Like you said earlier, I have a right to be pissed off...so let me be pissed off. No one said anything about international dating websites. And you have no idea how i met my husband...so you need to quit calling me a snob. Like i said before, I have lurked on this site for a few months now and the majority of the posts i've read that were written by you could be called "snobbish" As a matter of fact, as i was writing my original post, I thought that if anyone would have anything rude to say it would be you. You have a right to express your opinion but dont call me a snob or anything else because u dont know me or anything about me. So please memorize my name now and make sure that in the future you dont say anything to me because I really dont want to hear it and you will not get a response. I'm done.
Good day...

Ok, he does not know anything about you or your situation. But in the same respect, you do not know anything about the people at the party or their situation. They may not be looking for an illegal way to the US, The could just have a preference for the particular type of person. So you are also jumping to conclusions. So there is really nothing to be pissed about, unless they said that they were just looking for a way to stay in the US and did not care if they loved the person or not.

Well you are clearly not alone. We are one of them too and met each other on an online forum. Culturally and religiously it wasn't possible for me and my husband to 'meet' and get to know each other more physcially before deciding to get married. We had decided we wanted to be together way before we had met and yes that kind of love is still out there. Of course when we actually met it was a nice surprise but it was only because the families wanted to meet officially and in two days we got married. People who are desperate to get to the US and use marriage to a USC as their tool should be held accountable by some way but its hard to put your hand on something real. Some marriages work out and some don't. Besides, whoever is abusing the system will have to pay for it. I understand the frustration here but if I guess no one who is actually taking money for this will ever declare it. No use burning all those nerves over it.

Imagine.....
If all the people out there applying for visas for the wrong reason. If they were taken out of the equation immagine how fast our visas might be processes......

They would be faster but the method of meeting does not equate to applying for the wrong reason.

I do not disagree with you on that Amanda but up till now there hasn't been a device designed to pin point people's intention. We all need to calm down here. pushbrk no need to get offensive. All my other fellows, all we can do is pray for a swift and happy journey.

We can do a whole lot more than pray including learning the process and preparing.

I am offended. Whether I'm being offensive is a matter of opinion.

I'm perplexed by your story.

Your friend is to attend a party where there are women with J visas, correct?

But the women want to come here a live permanently? Is that correct?

If the first fact is correct, seems to me the women are already here. So they don't need to 'come' here. If they meet a USC man at this party and marry him, they are legally allowed to file for Adjustment of Status and if the case is approved they can live here permanently.

It may not be everybody's cup of tea, but the path is perfectly legal.

*edited to add that some J visa holders have a 2 year home residency requirement that might foil plans of staying in America*

Well that's a matter of how much faith one has in prayers. I do sense that you are trying to imply that people who are taking part in this discussion, for or against your opinion are ignorant and know nothing about the immigration process. I'd suggest that if one cannot be helpful in bringing peace to a situation, should not take part in it at all. You expressed your feelings pushbrk and no one has a beef with you. Being rude and accusing is not part of the deal here nor calling names. I also believe that your wife is with you now...good for you guys. 99% of people taking part in this discussion are ALONE, waiting frustratingly to be united with their loved one.

Prayers won't file a petition correctly. I'm not demonstrating any lack of faith in prayers at all. I'm saying prayer is not ALL we can do.

I've not implied anything about the what any poster in this thread knows about the visa process.

A thread expressing anger about a party doesn't help anybody through the visa process.

I suppose it sucks for your sense of entitlement and bitterness that this path is entirely legal. As long as the relationship is bona fide, it does not matter if the woman was looking for an American spouse or not.

I suggest you worry about yourself and not the legal path that others take, or you'll always be angry at the system. You are not any more entitled to have your spouse with you than they are - they are just lucky that they got into the country before meeting their's and are doing nothing illegal. Don't let your bitterness cloud your vision.

I didn't need prayers to complete my journey...
I just made sure I informed myself on everey possible aspect.

People on a J-1 are here legally, if they want to meet their possible future spouse at a party, so be it.
So what you want is a ban on parties for people that are not permanent residents but LEGALLY residing in the USA? You want them to stay at home and sit behind the window and be lonely? People need to socialize...

I have to admit that when I first heard the story I immediately imagined marriage fraud scams, having read stories on visa scams. However, if they're holding a party to meet American men who they would plan to spend the rest of their lives with then I have to agree that it's perfectly legitimate. We all make the mistake of jumping to conclusions sometimes. What we don't want is USCIS to jump to conclusions with our own petitions.

Very well said.

Call me an egoist, but I do not really give a toss. Whether they get caught or not, it is not my business. Of course it ticks me off big thing that there are so many marriage scams, especially from a few countries, that slow down the whole process for everyone... If I was the legislator, I'd single them out for extra checks, but not at the expense of everyone else. This dual-speed system is basically what is already in place with Visa-Waiver and visitors' visa regulations, isn't it?
Why some countries do not get offered Visa Waiver rights? Because they are perceived as "high risk"...

All I care is that us, normal international couples, do not get disadvantaged and get lower priority than K-1 applicants... That REALLY ticks me off!

What constitutes a "normal international couple" and why do K1 couples not qualify as normal international couples?

I didn't say that K-1 cannot be normal couples. I just said that it annoys me that they are approved before already married couples, and that is a totally different issue from marriage fraud.

As to "normal international couple", I used the term with reference to marriage frauds/mail-order brides/wanna get married to get a green card kind of couples, basically people that get married just to get US residence/citizenship, people that get married without ever meeting, people that have known each other for 2 weeks online before getting married and filing a petition. In my opinion, that is NOT a normal international couple, and although it could happen and be totally fine, legit, absolutely loved-based and disinterested, statistically, that would probably be an exception.
Normally such relationships would raise doubts about the bona fide nature of marriage, and therefore should be treated differently from other, just because they require further checks. I think part of the focus of the job of the adjudicator is to establish that this bona fide relationship exists, and therefore separating in the adjudication process different modalities of relationships/marriages, countries with high rates of fraud, etc. (even if this could run various risks of endangering the equality of the process), could be a way of optimizing time and resources, putting more controls where more controls are needed from a statistical point of view. Eventually this would up the process for all legit applicants and would.

I am sure that adjudicators already have risk analysis models and algorithms, but if we have to go by the time they adjudicate and listening to some of the stories of people on these forums, there still seems to be lots of ground to cover to make them more reliable, functional and especially speedy and just for all.

This is similar to policing and legislating: we are all equal in front of the law, but it does not mean that you would want to use limited resources in the same way, irrespective of the goals we want to achieve and the statistical observations or realities underlying them.

I hope I made my point clearer. Thanks for a chance to clarify a comment that might have been wrenched out of its meaning otherwise.

I'm assuming that you know why K-1 petitions are processed faster than spousal visas and that they are two completely different processes?

I'm afraid you haven't advanced your case. You made a long list of what isn't normal without saying what is. Your relationship bigotry is showing. Nobody wants fraudulent relationships to clog up the system but you seem to want to treat cases differently based on how the couple met and courted. This is relationship bigotry and has no place here.

If you think people who court on the internet a few weeks and marry on the first visit should be treated differently than those who meet and court more traditionally, I'm afraid I'm going to have my five foot nothin Chinese wife take you out to the woodshed for a session of whoopash.

Oh, you met on the internet, back of the line with you, indeed.

[quote name='charisma1' date='Jun 7 2008, 08:51 PM' post='1908497']


I am sure that adjudicators already have risk analysis models and algorithms, but if we have to go by the time they adjudicate and listening to some of the stories of people on these forums, there still seems to be lots of ground to cover to make them more reliable, functional and especially speedy and just for all.



All these algorithms, analysis, models.... It's more like this: your I-130 petition spends three months or so between Chicago and the service center, back an forth, then you have 2 totally different received dates that nobody explains, then it collects dust for 6 months or so at the vermont service center (VSC), and then someone, eventually, maybe, double checks your paperwork and runs names in a computer query. But only if you can get it expedited or your senator/congressman cares. For the rest of us it's rather like praying to those mean, butt-ugly gods from back in the day. We are long way from even getting to medieval. And yes, their excuse for the delays, for the rest of the 21st century is and will be exactly the change that was supposed to improve the service: the now (in)famous fee increase . I'm surprised that people still try to do this the 'right' way when it's actually horribly wrong keeping families apart for so long. Those parties and folks getting hooked up is just a scape goat here....let's blame another fellow slave to please our USCIS overlords. Whatever happened to freedom and basic things like living with your spouse?

Your points are well taken but the freedom you mention never existed, so nothing happened to it. We've always had immigration laws.

I meant freedom for those folks to go to the parties and meet whoever they want. Freedom to choose someone from another country without waiting an entire year to be united as well. I think we could all live with 3 months wait and go thru the processing etc., but what's happening at VSC is just not right or humane....I guess it's true that in the end we get used to anything..It's not like anybody outside of our small community cares either.

I'm pretty upset with VSC at the moment either but let's not conjure up freedoms that don't exist. Call it what it is. A "want'.

Immigration Party? Avon Party? Boston Tea Party? WHO CARES? you cannot judge ANYONE or their MOTIVES unless U know for sure why they do the things they do and that you have walked a few miles in their shoes!. I am an american citizen and I met my beautiful wife online by chance, and I also got married on my first visit to her country... So, if ur pissed off its probably because u where not invited to that party!.

Bottomline? Being a judgemental bas+ard towards any one person is the most inappropriate thing. Everyone has different plans and perspectives in life!. Why not be happy for people who are looking for a better life just live everyone else here!. Your Rule: MIND UR OWN BUSINESS!!!!!

By the way, IM THINKING ON HOSTING AN IMMIGRATION PARTY OVER AT MY PLACE!

Exactly.

i also met my wife online and was on my way to her in couple month and was married and now i am so very happy i did.but if i would of known about immigration parties it would of saved me airfare from having to fly. but thats sounds like a wonderful idea with having a party my self.
like pushbrk said it dont matter how you meet it is how you pursue after, if you agree to marry to defraud then you need go to jail and be deported. as for the women getting preggy to just to beable to stay it happens if you dont protect your self and then there is no one to blame.

There are no algorithms or any other mathematical bar that must be crossed to prove relationship bonafides. K1, K3 or CR1.

A couple already married can be in just as fraudulent of a relationship as a couple intending to marry. So let the rumor be dispelled that having already taken your vows somehow entitles you to a better process.

If you wanted a faster process you should have filed first then married later. That's the bottom line and bellyaching about the choice you made is pointless.

As long as the K1 exists in its present form, it will be a faster visa than an immigrant spousal visa simply because there are fewer steps to the visa itself. Personally I'm sick and tired to death of the separated married thinking they are 'better' than the 'engageds' simply because they are already married. I've seen loads plenty of already married couples on this forum where the foreign born spouse was clearly into the marriage for fraud. The simple fact a couple is already married doesn't give their case a pre-emptive green light. That kind of logic is flawed.

Very well said RJ, and I totally agree with you on this one.

Well, it does not make or break my day to advance my case with you or not. Call me a relationship bigot because my point perhaps doesn't fit with your way of meeting your wife or idealistic model of marriage fraud detection.

However that is what I think and I appreciate your acknowledging it without telling me what is ok here and what it isn't: free to tell me what is ok or not for you. Not sure if where you belong there is such thing as "free speech" and freedom of opinion. Where I hail from, that is basics. I know China is not really big on respecting dissenting opinion, but hey, thank goodness we are still petitioning to a free country!

I wasn't hoping to convince you, just to make sure that my point is understood.

Yes, I absolutely think that different histories of courtship/marriage should be treated differently at an INQUIRY/CHECK level, because that in my opinion would be the only way to make the process more efficient and effective.

I would say it's definitely taken into consideration at the consulate level, depending on which consulate you're going through.