Chester and Monica CONGRATS on your approval.

This is awesome news. Hope to hear your experience but now just enjoy.

Well I just wanted to see if anyone can tell me what I'm missing. Here is a list of what Yuly has currently

Passaport
Registro de nacimiento (2 copies)
Paseo Judicial
Certificado Migratorio (has been ordered)

I want to bring the I-134 and the proof of our relationship with me when I go to the interview.

Some of things on the packet 3 list she won't need...

First time married no divorce decree needed
No crimes committed any need for criminal background check.
Not catholic no fe de bautismo registered.
Never been in the military no military record needed.

Is there something that I'm missing or I should get now and out of the way?

Thanks,


Rafael

Congratulations to all the recent approvals!!!!!!!

We've been without internet service for the best part of the past month, so I've had trouble keeping up with happenings here.

A question for any of you in the AOS process (I'll ask at the Colombia AOS forum also): We sent in our AOS paperwork at the end of July - just under the wire for the rate increase. But, we have not received any confirmation, and the check has not yet been cashed. I did receive notification from the post office that the packet had been received, but nothing from USCIS. Anyone else having this experience???? A month seems like a long time to sit on the check, but then again I know they got a crush of applications at the deadline.

Ok, I'm a worrier.... but this IS important - to us, at least. ;-)

Parkpapa,

You were MIA for a while, good to see you back.

I'm in the same boat as you waiting for AOS. They received our package on the 2nd of August, and nada, no cashed check, no NOA1, no biometrics appointment. Looking at similar timelines, a lot of people that sent the application a few days befor the 30th of July are in the same boat. I'm going to give it another week or so before I start worrying.

Rafael,



This may still be an issue that needs to be taken care of. I would check with Andrea and Buck, I believe both of them had the same situation. You will probably need to take some other documents that proves that your fiance is not catholic.

You still have plenty of items left out, but i'm assuming that you will take care of them once your petition is approved.

Chester,

Quick question. Please verify that the Dr at the medical exam did NOT ask, nor put the DS156 in the sealed envelope. This is believed to be a new non-procedure.

Question for everyone. We are here at the Ministerio de Exterios Relaciones.

I was told that we need the spanish registro civil apostilled. Which needs to be stamped by the 'notaria superindente'. Then it can be apostilled. Then the translators in the same building, say they need the spanish version apostilled first, then translated, then the english version apostilled again.

This makes no sense. All I need is a translated document.

Our documents do not have the 'superindente notaria seal' just normal notarized seals from the registro in buga. I can see that if I need the documents in spain or other latin countries then it does make sense. But what I can't understand is that the translators will not finish the document unless they're translating something apostilled.

This translation thing is becoming more of a

First notarized copy
Second superendinte de notario en bogota
Third apostille the spanish version
Fourth translate
Fifth apostille the trasnlation.

This is going to cost around 75 mil pesos. Which is about the same dang 30 bucks in the US. I don't need the spanish versions anyway.

Any advice? Or are we doing unneccesary work?

Chester,

They are just trying to juice you. DONT DO IT!!!

Forgive my typing. I'm using my blackberry to answer the forums.

No, doctor office did not ask for ds156. We DID bring them. But the doctors office did not ask for them.

What’s up Lucho, No go on the Fantasy football I seen.

Yeah on this FE DE BAUTISMO document we had a replacement. We had a letter of membership given by her pastor of her church that states the day she was baptized and membership. This should work, right? I received a letter from my pastor as well, just in case.

What more do you think I should dig up?

Rafael

Also,

Who the heck does the translator think he/she is?? How are they so sure that USCIS needs it apostilled? Ask them if they even know what the heck they are talking about, and if they know what the purpose of the translation is for. I'm pretty sure that they never have dealt with the AOS process since AOS is done in USA.

Dont let them thieves take you. I dont want to get political....but it seems that they always try to trick you into getting something that you dont need.

[quote name='Mononoke28'



Yes!!!!! That is awesome, especially because that's where my husband will have his medical at. Now how old are her original vaccination cards, I wonder?

Thank you so much Chester!!!

And once again congratulations.

Diana
[/quote]

Her vaccination on varicela was about a week old. TD mujeres and MMR were from ages ago, from the hospital.

Rafael,

I would take that letter, but first have it authenticated. I still would get with Andrea on this one, since she's been thru this situation.

I see that you receieved your NOA1, 3 months ago. You could have your fiance start getting the required vaccinations taken care of now.

VJ fantasy football idea didnt take off like I hoped it would.

Thank you Chester.

I'm on the phone with my husband right now and he's saying that you DO NOT need anything apostilled. They're not the authority and cannot tell you that you need anything apostilled, they're trying to get money out of you. They did the same thing to him and he put his foot down and told him "Necesito que me traduzca este registro civil." then they'll say "esto necesita estar apostillado" and then you say "no, la embajada no necesita esto apostillado, yo sólo necesito la traducción y punto". That's all, you gotta be firm because they're seeing you're a "gringo" and they equate that to $$$.

Again, they're not the legal authority, they're just translators, don't give in!!!!

Diana

Well said Lucho. Here I am arguing with monica about the same thing. I don't need the dang documents stamped a bazillion time. I just want a translation from someone in colombia for cheap. Believe me the line here is about 150 person long. We've been waiting to get one document apostilled , not related to the visa process. I tagged along since the translators are in the building


For marriage and AOS we just need a translated document in english BY WHOMEVER, correct?

Whomever is correct!!!!

The translator only needs to include a statement saying that he is fluent in both languages and the translation is true.


As a matter of fact, Diana did our translation

Also, I believe it was maviwaro or parkpapa that got the translation done at some taco joint. Rest assured bro.

I was going to say that, if you feel comfortable sending me her registro civil I can do it for you for FREE.

Lucho sent me his wife's as an attachment and I just plugged away.

I just get so mad that they want you to apostille stuff when the US is not requiring them to be. Are they US officials? Nooooo. They're just a whole bunch of LADRONES!

Diana

Thanks diana.

Yes, that's what I did and but I had to just first listen to my other half before I raised hell in my broken spanish. I spoke to them in english and they seem to be knowleadgeable enough. Yes I do agree that's why she's calling me ' no seas terco'. But I know I will prevail :smile:

It appears that there has been a reversion to the old policy. Up until about a year ago, the DS-156 was NOT provided to the doctor. Both copies were tobe taken by the beneficiary to the embassy. Then a change was made. My wife was told my the doctor's office to bring one of the DS-156s with her...and it was placed in the sealed envelope (guessing it had to do with verifying identity). Now it appears things have gone back to the way they were last year. Seems like there has been a lot of activity over the past year as it relates to the two doctors. Interesting.

A lot of the recent changes were done in late June/early July. We were told that a new official had taken charge at the embassy (not the consul). This is the reason why so many changes were made, and more likely to come.

Lucho,

Authenticated would be the same as notarized??? There so many terms Authenticated, Apostilled, Notarized, I just get a little mixed up with the terminology..

Okay so get the the vaccinations in order...Vacirla , Td, MMR. Chester any updates on the vaccinations needed or is still the same. I ask you becasue you are the last one the go through BGT.

yeah I was thinking of 90 days since NOA1 ...how much longer????

Yeah it seems not many football fans on VJ.

The definitions I would use are as follows:
Authenticated = A person with the required knowledge (in this case, knowledge of both languages) is making a statement and signing that the information is correct as presented. This person is not required to have some special license, such as a Notary Public.
Apostilled = This is a term referring to an "officially" certified copy of a document, such as a divorce decree or birth certificate, that will be recognized internationally. In the United States, for example, if you get a copy of your birth certificate to provide to Colombia authorities, it must be "apostilled" by your state's Secretary of State office. They handle this sort of stuff all the time.
Notarized = This refers to a document that is viewed and certified by a Notary Public - usually to witness a signature. Notaries in the US have considerably less power or authority than those in Colombia, where they seem to serve more in the role of a Justice of the Peace or paralegal.

So, short answer to your question - no, a document does not have to be notarized to be authenticated. I translated the birth records for Lorena's sons and a young waitress working at a local Mexican restaurant read the documents over and signed them stating they were accurate translations. My divorce decree, however, was apostilled at the Missouri Secretary of State's office, while some documents were notarized by a lady at my bank.

I know it can be confusing, but it becomes clearer as you go through the process. Just hang in there.
Charles

I saw a few approvals last week for people who filed at CSC at the end of April, so that's 4 months or so.

Diana

Guacamole con eso papá??

Yeah, it was Charlie...

I actually did ours... on Excel the format and placement is pretty much the same. Included is a statement certifying everything. This is as easy as it can be.

In case Diana or anyone out there wants to send me via email their version I'd be happy to take a look at it (no personal info necessary).

[/quote]
The definitions I would use are as follows:
Authenticated = A person with the required knowledge (in this case, knowledge of both languages) is making a statement and signing that the information is correct as presented. This person is not required to have some special license, such as a Notary Public.
Apostilled = This is a term referring to an "officially" certified copy of a document, such as a divorce decree or birth certificate, that will be recognized internationally. In the United States, for example, if you get a copy of your birth certificate to provide to Colombia authorities, it must be "apostilled" by your state's Secretary of State office. They handle this sort of stuff all the time.
Notarized = This refers to a document that is viewed and certified by a Notary Public - usually to witness a signature. Notaries in the US have considerably less power or authority than those in Colombia, where they seem to serve more in the role of a Justice of the Peace or paralegal.

So, short answer to your question - no, a document does not have to be notarized to be authenticated. I translated the birth records for Lorena's sons and a young waitress working at a local Mexican restaurant read the documents over and signed them stating they were accurate translations. My divorce decree, however, was apostilled at the Missouri Secretary of State's office, while some documents were notarized by a lady at my bank.

I know it can be confusing, but it becomes clearer as you go through the process. Just hang in there.
Charles
[/quote]

Charles,

Thank you very much for the run down. Yeah I hope it gets clear soon it has been a rough journey, but definitely this club makes a whole world of difference.

Rafael

Rafael,

The only document that you need notarized here in the states is the I134.

The only documents that you need to be autenticada in Colombia are the Registro Civil, and all the evidence that you will be taking in place of the Partida de Bautismo.

Thanks Lucho..You da man.

Hey gang,

What are the vacunas that Yuly will need? I'm going to email her now about it.

Thanks

Td
MMR
Varicela

Those are the 3 vaccinations needed for ages 18 thru 64....(not positive if its 64 or 65). FYI, some of the vaccines need to be given in multiple doses, several weeks apart.

Thanks Lucho.

I going to ask her get that taken care of.

Rafael

Lucho,

I saw you put Td, Varicella, MMR.

but what about these others don't have to be done?

Mumps, measles, rubella, polio, tetanus and diphtheria toxoids, pertussis,
influenzae type B (HIB), Hepatitis B, Varicella, pneumococcal, and influenza.

and any word on any policies about vacunas ..I remeber you metion way back that you saw a change...

just making sure.

thanks

rafael

Rafa... use the search function in this forum... the questions have been answered about half a dozen times. Thanks buddy. You guys will be OK.

I wish Chester would hurry and get sober enough to give the details of the interview!!!

I agree with Buck. Where the hell is Chester's report?

I have a question. How many copies of the Baptism certificate will we need in the long run? Obviously we need one copy for the embassy. Will we need more later? One for AOS? The US church? St Peter?

What we have here with us is the DS-3025 that the doctor gave us. According to the assistant at the doctor's office, it's also included in the sealed envelope.

First of all, thanks to EVERYONE!
Lucho, Willie, Buck, Mike y Adriana, parkpapa, byron, diana -I'm sure I'm forgotting more, but WE are thankful for everyone's help.


Arrived in Cali the night of September 1.
First thing on Septemember 2, Sunday was go to the basilica in Guadalajara to ask Senor de Los Milagros for help.
Got on the bus from Buga to Bogota and boy WAS I SORE the entire 9 hour trip. We are staying at the same apartment that Lucho stayed, which is a VERY NICE location relative to the US Embassy.

September 3 - Went to the bank across the street to pay for the visa. They did not accept our printed copies from the US. The forms were complete, nothing was blank and nothing was wrong. The printed copies from the US embassy website were in English. The lady would not take them and gave the only reason that the barcode is only for the US embassy. Monica had to fill the forms right there at the bank. While doing so she made a mistake on my home address, this caused us to do another round of forms. This time I watched her intently. Finally, 220 mil pesos later we were done. A sticker is placed on the passport and they stamped the DS-156 with some numbers.

September 4 - LAB and Medical
That LAB is FAR! It took all 10 mil pesos to get there in the morning. We got there at around 6:50 AM and there was a line about 15 person long. The person on the front door asked for the embassy appointment letter, a photo and passport. I was not allowed inside, so I went around the corner for the panaderia. I hade some great pan de bono and cafe con leche. She was done around 9:00 AM. The reason it took that long was because the person ahead of her was going berzerk when they were about to draw blood from her. Note: No DS-156 was taken from us.

2:30 PM Appointment with the male doctor. Same procedure, I was not allowed up the waiting area. We did bring the DS-156 but the doctor did not ask for them. The assistant asked for the appointment letter, passport and the photo. The vaccination cards showing TD, MMR and Varicela were accepted by the doctor. Everything went well and we were done in about 1 1/2 hour. I was hanging out at the Kokorico next door having a Coke.

September 5 - Rest day and mental preparations begin. We were going through the sample interview questions and making sure we jive with the answers. We compiled all the necessary paperwork in the order of Packet 4. FYI - The Packet 4 that you download does NOT have the same "order of documents" that the embassy sends the beneficiary. Don't worry, the folder in the embassy will show the correct order. We arranged the evidence of relationship with tabs, highlighted pertinent information, placed some stickies to attract attention on a specific section.....

September 6 - Thursday

Got up around 4:00 AM. We walked to the embassy around 5:15 with all our paperwork. There was a line of about 10 person long when we got there. This line is against the fence, along the main road sidewalk. This is NOT the line with 1,2,3. While we were there a person came by and "advised" that photocopies of the passport page, front and pabck were needed. Monica started to worry and I told her not to listen to anybody that is not from inside the embassy without any identification. Monica was so cold that she now wears my jacket as well, to be honest I never got cold. Only at 6:00 AM that they allow you to walk past through the entry way and to the main entrance of the embassy. We separated from the pack and went to line 3. As the day went on, people started joining whatever short line there was. Around 6:45 AM, announcements were made and the people shifted around, we stood our ground, first on line 3. I find it disgusting that elderly folks with younger companions, walk up the front of the line and expect people to budge... that's another story altogether.

She was asked for what type of visa, for the appointment letter, and the DS-156. I was asked for my US passport. Green stickers were given to us and the line started to enter at 7:00 AM. We went straight to area 40. You can't miss it, the numbers are huge and there's no way to get lost. As with the experience of everyone else, a lady came by to explain the purpose of the folders and to follow the correct order.

Around 7:30 AM, Monica's name was called by the assistants and asked to go to window 30. I guess this is the lady everyone has mentioned, no smile, no salutations, frowning face. I was always about two steps behind Monica. This is where they will review the contents of the folder, look up your case from their database and verify that you are ready. What was weird here was she was asked to sign the DS-156 at this window, which all along I thought the consular officer was the one to ask this. She was asked a few questions about our relationship, where did we meet, how, when, what do I do, what does she do for a living.... Around 7:45 we were done.

The lady also asked for MY birth certificate which surprised me. I did not bring one with me, but she found the one on my 'original I-129F packet'. She returned the whole packet to me with various print outs from the USCIS.

Now the LOOONG wait begins around window 2. Around 9:00 AM fingerprints were taken. One by one names were being called to get fingerprinted. Around 9:30ish, the first round of interviews, some with the other half, some alone, some mother and daughther, some father and son. There were about 5-6 K1s that I could identify because the petitioner's were present.

Some interviews were short, some were long, some lasted 30 minutes. Some walked away smiling with the "claim slip". Some walked away with tears.... This is where Monica lost it, she saw a couple crying and she just lost it. Took a while to calm her down and set her straight again.

Interview after interview, I started to get worried past 11:00 AM. Since all the experiences I read here in VJ had their interviews done before 10:00 AM.

Finally, 1:00 PM her name was called, Window 3, a male consular office. Salutations were exchanged and she was asked for the evidence of relationship. I was right alongside her and I pulled a last minute stunt to pull the engagement ring receipt from my wallet and slip it through the window. She was asked if I was the petitioner and she said yes, afterwards I was asked to sit down and wait.

She was asked basic questions and all went smoothly, where did me meet, how, when, when did I first visit her in Colombia, how many days, when was the second time, what did I bring her when I visited, what have I bought her, when did I propose,how she feels leaving the country, how her family feels leaving them, why she wants to marry me, why does she like me , what does she do, do I send money to her, how often do I send money....

Then the consular office asked for me. Describe how we met, where we met, when was the first time I came to Colombia, where did I stay, where there any problems when I met her family, what do I do, how many times I've been to Colombia (when I answered that is is my 7th time, he smiled and said "it's true love"). When did I proposed, where, was there a ring at that time.

This is where it got dicey - He opened the DAS Record de Migratorio and found numerous travels. He placed me on mute and I can see them inside discussing about it. One woman comes over, shaking her head, another woman comes over, smiling, he's smiling. They huddled and went on like 3 minutes passing around the document.

A woman comes over, and asks that she speaks to Monica. She was grilled for her travel in Spain, numerous travels by bus into Ecuador. The consular officer was trying her best to poke holes on Monica's anwers. Why do travel so much, where were you in 2003, what did you do in Spain, then again, then again, what did you do in Ecuador, who paid for your travel, what type of work do you do.

Then the original male consular officer comes back. He asked the same questions, again, again and again.
Then he grabs the passport, paperwork and was ready to slip them back to Monica.
"Senorita" - The only thing I need from you is a Police Certificate from Ecuador.

At this point, Monica points out that we called the embassy in Cali, Bogota, called the Police dept in Quito, even asked for someone to get a Police Cert and no one would get her an concrete information. She was waving her hands, with much confidence that we did everything we could to get the cert ( this is only after learning that 6 months stay might be cumulative). She said we have a page from the Internet (http://travel.state.gov/visa/reciprocity/Country%20Folder/E/Ecuador.htm) saying that "No police records are give to foreigners residing or have resided in Ecuador". He answer's back saying "Show me." Since I am hearing all of this, I was already walking over to hand over the paper. He looked at it, smiled and said " You came prepared, huh".

He reaches for the "claim slip", Monica gives out a yelp. He says " Felicitaciones....." you are approved.
At this point, I did not see the slip, I did not know why she yelped, I can only see her smiling.

She hang up and went straight for me and tears flowed. She handed me the claim slip and I was so glad it was over. I heard a few claps from the crowd. We were on that window for 50 minutes!!!!!

That my friends is our story.
Plan A was to go to Ecuador

continued ...

Plan A was to go Ecudador and apply in person for the cert
Plan B was to have someone there do it for us
Plan C was to use the information we got from VJ showing information from travelstate.gov

That piece of paper, changed EVERYTHING!

Feel free to ask any questions. Again our endless gratitude to the VJ community and most especially Club Colombia!

Until I have the visa at hand on Monday afternoon, I won't be completely satisfied!!!!

Pardon my language Chester, that is bullshit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is our responsibility to prove the reality of the relationship. It is the responsibility of the embassy to prove fraud. Not by trying to trick you, or anybody else by trickery or getting you to make one mistake to not give the approval. It is illeagal to deny the visa without proof of fraud. They can make your life hard. You do have the right if you feel you were not treated fairly to complain about the way you were treated. Any further promotions for the CO who investigated you can be in jeoperdy if they did not treat you fairly. The CO's are americans. I am very happy for you, but, I feel you were not treated fairly. The interview should be fairly short if you have the evidence and documents in order. The US embassy in Colombia is out of order. The document that was required for Poala has never been required before. This may be required in the future but, has not been in the past. I think this is a classic example of power corrupting people who are not accountable. Again, I am very happy for you. However I do feel that many are not being treated fairly or equally at the embassy in Bogota.
If Paola is denied on the 27th of Sept. I am going to do all I can to make sure that someone will pay. We need to be on an even playing field, we should be able to complete the required documents and evidence and expect the same results. Once more............................BULLSHIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We need to understand that the constituition of the US was created for us and those that want to come to the US. Thank God we have that!

Great to hear your story and a great out come......so wy was your wife traveling so much? Just joking with you, Congrats and God Bless you both

Buck
I agree with you a hundred percent the Embassy is out of control the way they treat people. I could not believe the way my mother in law was treated at her interview for a tourist visa. I was present at her interview and it was a joke plain and simple. She is going for another interview this month. We are more prepared and hoping that makes a difference.

Parkpapa just had my check cashed on 09/06 so I am sure yours will be cashed any day!

Congratulations Chester. You and Monica kept your cool and made it through a very tough interview.

Thank goodness you thought to bring a print out from that website. Also thank goodness that Buck shared his experience so that you could be as prepared as much as possible.

Every time I start feeling over confident I am going to read your post. That will straighten me out quick!

Thanks for letting us all know what happened and again, congratulations!

Congrats Chester!!!!! You guys went through one hell of a interview and kicked culo! I guess the CO's assume a young pretty Colombiana working/visiting another country is.......well I will just say "doing unhonorable work". I am very happy for you two and it shows how it is better to "over " prepare for the interview. See ya on the AOS side.

I hope so, Corey. Good to hear that there's some movement with these folks - finally.

Chester, I'm happy to hear that you got your approval. You guys are proof that there is no such thing as being over prepared.

The I-693a is a form that is completed by a U.S. civil surgeon. If you think about it, you can get a copy of the vaccination worksheet from the Colombian doctor (DS-3025). The DS-3025 was helpful to us in proving vaccinations for registering my daughter for school. We also used it when we filed for AOS (and, as I reported before, we never got an RFE asking for the I-693a)...I included an explanation of why the DS-3025 should be accepted as proof of vaccination. However, when it came down to it (as I wrote in my AOS summary), I didn't want the hassle of a possible argument with the field officer, so a week before our interview, I had a I-693a prepared by the civil surgeon. So, in other words, the DS-3025 allowed us to apply for AOS without having to spend the time or money up front to get the I-693a, but eventually we did get I-693a and pay for it.

Congratulations to you both.

These two items below are good reminders for those who have yet to interview:

1) The embassy in Bogota is still not using the bardcode technology for the DS-156. So, just use the regular old DS-156. I completed the Spanish version for my wife. As it turns out, the folks at the bank review the form, correct errors, and input information into the computer. So, that's probably why they don't want the English forms, because most of the probably cannot read the form.

2) While many VJers of late have had quick interviews, that is not always the case. We arrived at the embassy around 6:20 a.m., but we did not have our interview until after 11:00. Further, as noted previously, time of arrival and place in line has absolutely no correlation, from what I can tell, with your interview time.

Mike

I hope everyone keeps in mind that the embassy has a job to do and part of that job is protecting the legtimacy of the process and trying to weed out visa fraud. When the embassy sees "red flags" they have a duty to follow-up. And let's face it, K-1 visa applicants have risk associated with them, more so, IMO, than K-3 and IR-1/CR-1s. Just yesterday there was an article in my local newpaper about a local couple who were arranging false relationships for visa purposes. They were paying $1,000 to gringos and gringas to marry foreigners for purposes of getting a green card. Once the gringo or gringa married, he or she received $300 per month until the foreigner received the green card. Unbelievable, but true. No wonder our embassy asks so many questions.

I know it can be difficult to see our spouses/fiancees asked a lot of question, particularly if he or she is fragile. What we perceive as grilling I suspect the CO perceives as mere questioning based on some red flag he or she perceives. It's just part of the process.

After reading Chester's report, it was clear that there were some issues that needed to be addressed and that it was probably a stressful situation for them. However, IMO, I did not not lack of "fairness." Frankly, if I was the CO, I would have asked about the multiple trips out of the country as well. And if there were any confusion or any inconsistency in answers, I'd follow-up until I was satisfied. Ultimately, they did get the visa....and the CO did his due diligence.

Just my opinion, but sometimes I think we are a little hard on folks who for the most part, I believe, are just trying to do their job and protect the U.S. and the process.

Mike

Tony:

I think you are "spot on" with your observation. Multiple exits to certain other countries is probably a red flag. Unfortunately, prostitution is big in Colombia (most likely because of lack of economic opportunity)....and it is very common for Colombianas to visit other nearby countries to practice their "trade." I've seen or been made aware of Colombiana prostitutes in several countries, including Aruba, Costa Rica, and Panama.

So, for those of you who have wives or fiancees who have made multiple trips out of Colombia, you may need to prepare them for questioning regarding the purpose of the trips, etc. Let's face it, the average Colombian does not have the opportunity/ability to travel much outside of the country, so it's not surprising that travel could raise a red flag at the embassy.

Mike

We received the rejection notice for our AOS today along with all of the original paperwork. The rejection was because I had not submitted a check based on the new rates, even though our package was postmarked July 28. The package was received in Chicago on July 31, so they are apparently basing the rejection on the date received rather than the date postmarked. This is NOT what I remember the USCIS site saying about the dates. Anyone have any printed evidence about the details of the fee change date?

I will try to reach a live person with the USCIS on Monday. Quite frankly, I don't know how we'll pay the extra fees, if that's what we end up having to do. Lorena can't work yet and because of my job, I can't have a second job without approval. I haven't cried yet, but I'm sure thinking about it.

Chester & Monica...1st of all CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I see that the bank did not accept the ds-156 with the bar code...Mike suggested (the "old" ds-156 in spanish). I've already brought Yennifer 2 copies each of packet 3 + 4 with the newest forms in them but if the ds-156 can't be used does anyone know where the old ones can be found?

Also...what was the 220 mil pesos for?

Rafael,

Td = Tetanus and Diphtheria vaccine
MMR = Measles, Mumps and Rubella
Varicella = Chickenpox

These are the only vaccines needed in your age group.