oh hello everyone just popping by to say my AOS has been approved andis on its way...cheerio

WHOOO HOOOOO CONGRATS SUGARBOB...

it is a lovely thing not havin to do anything for the government for 2 years..enjoy mate..

hope everyone else is going smoothly..

take care
kath

hi everyone!!
i got in last night - .... so still jet lagged....

immigration was fast about 10 minutes.. and the guy asked me some questions..... what ifs - go figure... anyways ..... i'm here now yay!!!

Yay Sharyna! I'm glad that you are finally with your man!

thanks!!

it was a long journey but i'm here now!!!
......

I just found this Aussie thread... HOW COOL...
YAY for you Sharyna HOW exciting to be there, and to be with your man....... I AM thrilled for you ... keep us posted on your wedding, it's only in a few weeks now isn't it??
Oh my I wish I was able to be with Steve right now... THIS process just is so horrible... I know it seems like on my time line that we haven't been in for the long haul like some of you, we have - and now that we are placed in this enforced separation due to the process and the distance, it really just is so draining - although I am not telling y'all anything that you don't already know My darling Steve is flying over to Australia for 2 weeks over Xmas, arriving here on a couple of days beforehand, in time for my birthday as well, and I CANNOT wait CANNOT CANNOT wait... I am going to need a whole box of tissues at the Adelaide airport when I meet him there, I think I will be a blubbering mess..

This will be his first trip to Australia, and finally he will be meeting my children, two of whom are moving over with me when our visa is approved .... and they are already totally "busting" at the chops - first about meeting the man that they talk to regularly and who will be their Step-Dad - "hate" that word "step" though LOL.. ... and secondly about the fact that when we move over there they will be gaining not only him as a Dad, but also a younger brother and sister, and a bunch of other family members...

They are of course, like me, quite nervous as well as excited .... but the most frustrating thing for them, again like me, is the "waiting, waiting, waiting"... one thing for us adults to comprehend the "system" but it is just so difficult for children to have to be involved in that waiting game too ... if you know what I mean.

And not just for my kids either, Steve's kiddos are also just in that same "hold" pattern, waiting for when the "rest of their family" will be arriving... Oh add to it the extra turmoil, that my house sold - LOL... thought it would take a month or two, but it only took 24 hours.... that is good/bad... I managed to delay the settlement to late January "with the hopes" that we would be through this process by then, however it REALLY doesn't look like it.... Add to that, the fact that Steve and I put a deposit down on a house in Cleveland while I was over there the other month, and CONVINCED "with difficulty" the current owners to delay our "closing" till late February, "again" hoping that the process would be over, and we would be there.... again DOESN'T really look like it... and HOW on earth can we extend them out any further...
So at this rate... My kids and I will be out of our house - end of January, and will have some huge expenses for mth. to mth. rental accommodation. Steve will be out of his house when it sells and have the same thing...
Sorry... I am ranting a bit...
Anyway that is about it for today...
oh and I forgot to take out my one "gamble" for the year on the Melbourne Cup.. so might have to make a quick trip to the TAB... don't know who is running though, so I am gonna just say "Number 23"... don't know what color it is or even what horse it is LOL... so we will have to just wait and see

have a GREAT day everyone
Tracy

Welcome to the Land Downunder Tracy!

It's always good to see a new face. We all know what you've been going through and we have all been through that time ourselves. It is still amazing and a dream to think that my Loke is home here in Colorado with me after our long wait.

I know it's hard, but once you get through it, you will never forget the fight and the battle accross the sea.

Sharyna, Hey! You are here YAY! Congrats! I hope that you get over that jet lag soon *hugs*

Kath! Happy Late Birthday!!!!!

Sugarbob!!!! WHEW HEW! I am glad to see that your AOS is approved! I wish mine would take that turn *pokes AOS*


Kelli, Hope youa re doing well and keeping your chin up


Good luck to all newcomers, old comers, people who come to just hang out and uhh.. the rest of the group lol

thanks, I was actually pretty impressed with the timeliness of it all (cept my ead never showed up but meh) considering everybody was expecting delays and all that due to the influx of applications to beat the rate rise...my processing time even included an rfe, and I never bothered with that whole tb skin test thingy...


I'm sure yours will be right around the corner

to clarify, (since I can't edit for some reason) the rfe was for tax stuff that (accidentally) wasn't originally provided...w2's..1099's...3.14159265358979's and the like, not for the tb thing. For anyone else about to apply for aos, that extra skin test is unnecessary, although nobody seems to be talking about it anymore so it's probably already established...just a lil fyi

thanks Rings!! so glad to be here!!

Welcome, TracyOz! Nice to meet you.

Hi everyone!

I haven't been around for ages, I've been crazy busy, I'm sure you can ALL relate.

So what's the update? I've had my AOS approved, my Permanent Resident Card came in the mail yesterday so now I guess it's over for the next two years. Yay!

I got transferred to CSC and didn't end up having an interview. I was expecting a RFE because I didn't bother with the TB skin test thing that we were all so concerned about way back. I was also expecting a RFE because I didn't bother with going to a civil surgeon to get that immunisation thing transcribed. I just sent in a photocopy of Doctor Waks immunisation worksheet from my Sydney medical. hahaha I skated out of that one so well. I remember Kath saying she did that or similar and yours went through too. Anyway, mine did so no civil surgeon for me.

The NOA date was October 24, 2007 for the AOS.

I was really surprised that it all happened so soon. I've been here less than 4 months afterall and I was expecting it to take a lot longer.

Anyway, that's my news, back to living in the US with my darling hubby!

Wow welcome to the US Sharyna!

Congrats to you too Sugarbob! *high five*

A big wave also to Kath, Katz, Kelli, Rings, Vy, Niph and all the gang who know me.

hi ya jezz
waving back at ya mate

congrats on the greencard good to hear that it didnt take long for you...

welcome to the u.s. cant remember if i said that already..hope all is going well and your loving being here...dont forget to post the pics of the wedding for us mate..

hi ya rings
hows things going with you two..hope all is going splendidly for ya's...and thanks for the belated birthday wishes ..had a lovely day..worked at the hosp and made a pav for them and they devoured it...so i gave them the recipe ...

hope everyone else is going swimmingly and the ones that are over here aint too homesick...this is the time of year that it affects you most ... (well it did with me)...

sorry tracyN ... dont think i did your welcome to the thread mate..within these pages gone by there is heaps of info that you might be interested in .. and i do hope its not too much longer for you...

no big news here getting colder but am copeing quite well .. havent had any snow as yet...its late lol...would love it to snow on xmas day that would be magical i reckon..but can hear my hubs complaining saying its nasty stuff lol
take care
kath

Hi Jezz! OMG I am so happy for you! I hope that everything from here on goes just as smoothly for you as it has gone! It is so cool to see some good luck going for you! YAY on the AOS approval! Eeeeep!

KATH *hugs* I hope you are doing well! I am so glad to see your icon again! It makes me smile heaps! I also hate the snow because I am so used to it here in Colorado, but Loke is really excited about it. We already got our first snow here and we made a snowman. I attached a photos for everyone lol.

Hope everything is going well Sharyna!!!!!

Welcome all new members!!!!





As for us, today Loke finally got his EAD after such a long wait. Apparently the USCIS mailed it off to the wrong address which is odd since we got the other documents here at the same place. We even got our biometrics appointment sent to the same address so I think the mistake was on their part. I am really excited to see something though because when we had called about it, they said it would still be 45 more days before they would let us know

The card was mailed October 9th and today is November 9th, so we lost a month of time over it, but I am just glad that it is finally here.

Anyway... Good luck has seemed to come our way because we got it today. Loke finally got a car and he is mobile which scares the hell out of me lol, but I guess the foreigners should be allowed to drive too

Anyway I hope everyone is doing well! We are always thinking of our Aussie/Ameirican friends!

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Quick question: They don't like backpacks being taken into the consulate, but I can't seem to find anything about expandable folders, and reading the reviews, it only mentions 'paperwork'.

It sounds nitpicky, but the last thing I want to do is get to the consulate and waste time dragging my paperwork out of my neatly organised folder, then hoping that I take enough paperwork up with me. As is, I've found a mistake (one in my DS-230 part 1 that looks like I spent a year+3 months in USA, and not just 3 months x.X put a 5 where it should have been a 4 x.X), so I'm taking my boarding passes and whatnot for ALL of my trips.

So... are folders doable? Or is it paper only?

and I was doing so well

Hiiiii everyone! Just wanted to see how everyone is doing! Great to see much progress on everyones case! Eric & I finally moved yAy!! So been busy with unpacking and all the things that come with a new home.

Take care all

I'm loving it here! I've had my moments of homesickness but for the most part I'm adjusting really well and I'm just so happy that I'm here. I'm loving my husband to pieces and he's just amazing, and he's loving me to pieces too. Yup, I'm doing splendidly. I love my life here in America and going through the whole process and sticking it out with all the hard times of being in a long distance relationship... well... being here at the end of the journey (till lifting of conditions) it's all worthwhile... multiplied 100 times.

Oh and the wedding pictures are on page 210... July 27 2007 incase your page numbers are different to mine.

I love the snow person Rings! They've put the snow peg things that measure the level of the snow in... I'm getting nervous about the cold white stuff.

Jezz, glad to hear that you're adjusting so well in the US!

Hi Jezz, Kath, Rings, Loke, Sharyna, Elle, Niphredil, S-bob, Katz, TracyOz and everyone else I may have left out.

Glad to hear you are all doing well! Congrats on EADs, no RFEs on skipped TB-skin-tests, Aussies getting cars and driving in the US, new homeowners, new transplants. Good to see this place still alive and kicking!

I've got one more week in Oz before I escort the wife back with me! We still have to pack the suitcases LOL. She has been tossing junk out just to streamline the place before we leave (we're keeping the home since her mom is still going to stay here).

Nipredil, expanding folders will be fine. They also don't mind those nice shopping bags. We had a lot of extra documents in a fancy shmancy shopping bag. One of the other folks seemed to have a nice huge expanding folder. No issues bringing those through. Just nothing that seems to enclose completely like a backpack.

Ahh phew thanks. I just had images of walking around Sydney with a crapload of paperwork, and losing everything to a gust of wind, or handing them in with footprints all over them and just generally looking, well, shabby :\

Stressed? Worried? ME? naaahhh My problem would be easied more if I lived in a town that at least had a doctor! Let alone a supermarket. Yay for Country Australia

I start my 'epic' journey tomorrow morning, 1 last day to pack and worry Thank again everyone

Hello everyone. I hope all is well! This weekend my husband got his permanent residence card in the mail! Yeah for us!

Congrats Moonie!

Niphredil, I was pointing out to my wife during the interview about how not putting it in a folder or something can lead to drops. Well 2 minutes after that this lady walks up to a counter after being called and leaves a nice little paper trail.

Oh, GOOD LUCK! Things will go well. You've done your homework and then some! I look forward to the news! Please let us know right away!

Oh, does anyone know the procedure to get your name off the electoral ballot? My wife called some NSW office and the person she spoke too sounded like a voice prompt. Totally clueless. It was so annoying.

Thanks!

Oh nevermmind. Aussie Angel posted a link! Thanks AA!

FAQ and info for overseas folks...

Good luck to you for the day after tomorrow Niphredil..

Looking forward to hearing about your expereince with the consulate.. you remind me of myself.. worried about every little detail! ;-) At least I'm not the only one!!

Did you email to cosulate in the end about taking the additional i-864? What did they say? Seems so silly having to submit that stuff again.. although my interview won't happen till the new year now so maybe they'll want an updated i-864?!

But I know when the day fianlly comes i will have to say "just take a loooong, deep breath.. and everything will be juuust fine".

And it will be. ;-)

Good luck!

We didn't ask them about the Affidavit of Support exactly, but I did ask them about Joint Sponsorship, and they said that they have the JS paperwork, so if they have that, and whilst I hate this word, I ASSUME that they would then have the AOS from him.

If not, I do have a copy with an original signiture on it As is, I won't be needing JS anymore as he now makes more money, and I have a letter from his workplace that states so

From my understanding, with the AOS, I can't remember if its the signiture or the paystubs that have to be within 6 months. For me, the AOS is 2 days within the deadline *phew* and worse comes to worse, the letter is only a month old

Thanks for the additional info :-). By the way, I keep hearing everyone talking about pay stubs. Are they required for the interview? My hubby is military, so along with our transcripts, we sent a letter with the AOS confirming that he is currently employed by the militray. Do you think in his case the pay stubs would be required? Or were they just an additional measure if you thought it would help your case?

hey everyone!!
its been hectic since i got here - its been one week yeah!!

just a question that popped into my head... - from today till i get married is there anything i need to do visa wise? apart from apply for my SSN in a week (have to allow 2 weeks to ensure they have the paperwork i gave immigration in san francisco port of entry)....

i'll check back later!!
and congrats to all that all is going well too!!

I... really have no idea o.O I would have guessed Military comes under a seperate header then civilian. I was never actually sent paystubs, but he had to send some in for his AOS. I have copies of them, but only because he sent me everything, and I'm paranoid.

If he didn't HAVE to send them in, and they still proceeded, I would assume it wasn't needed. If you can get some though, and take them with you to the interview, and it'll help your nerves, then I'd get some. If they don't ask for them, great, but if they do, you're prepared.

hi ya sharyna
nope nowt to do until you complete ya forms for AOS mate...if you get all your forms organised and put aside it wont be such a headache for ya when its time for you to do it....

not long for you niph...good luck for your interview..im sure it will all go well for you...

whoooo hoooo moonie
congrats to your hubby...the aussie's are getting approved quite quickly good to see...

hope everyone is going well and preparing for the winter here lol...thanksgiving next...where the hell has this year gone huh

take care
kath

hey kath !! ..... good to see you.....

yay!! i get to sleep all that i didnt sleep lol.......

Hey!

Does anyone know if packet 3 contains instructions on obtaining a police certificate? Or do they just send you to the link on the state.gov website?

We are almost at the stage of our case being completed at the NVC. I want to go and get the certificate (just to get organised), but I'm not sure if you have to take instructions sent by the embassy along to the Police station? Do I have to wait?

Can anyone help?

Thanks

Hey!

Does anyone know if packet 3 contains instructions on obtaining a police certificate? Or do they just send you to the link on the state.gov website?

We are almost at the stage of our case being completed at the NVC. I want to go and get the certificate (just to get organised), but I'm not sure if you have to take instructions sent by the embassy along to the Police station? Do I have to wait?

Can anyone help?

Thanks

hi hawaii
below i have put a link that takes you to a webpage that tells you all the states that you get police certficates from
depending on which state your in about the police stations...if you read some of the posts in here about police certificates might help too mate..and yes in packet 3 they send the same kinda info for ya

POLICE CERTFICATES IN AUSTRALIA

also for the medical info is in the embassey information...you can also download the forms off the Thailand embassey they are the same as the australians need..heaps of info in that embasey info mate take a look...

hope this is a bit of help to ya...

take care
kath

Hey, Thanks for the info Kath.. as always! Will check these out..

I have returneth... WITH VISA!

I can't help but feel really disappointed though. I suppose I got to such a heightened sense of anxiety and borderline OCD that finally getting to the consulate, and coming face to face with what I would class as the most boring and dull place that I have ever witnessed, that I crashed.

Granted, I don't go out of my way to find boring and dull rooms, but dear god, that was just... depressing. I was so high strung out I didn't even think to take in the view, even though I was there for 2.5 hours.

Even now, I still can't seem to settle down. I guess it's due to the lack of my passport, which was my only form of photo ID till I got an 18+ card *which I HAD to get to get my passport x.X*, and no physical visa.

They didn't even ask me any questions! Just took my fingerprints, asked me if everything in the ds-230part 2 was true (no raising my right hand or anything), signed it, then asked if I had trouble getting an appointment for my medical. Whats that got to do with the price of cheese in France? I dunno, maybe it was some sort of weird immigration lingo question to test to see if I was fair dinkum or something *shrugs*

I'm glad its mostly over now though...

Fantasitc Niphredil!

I have logged in a few times today as I have been waiting to hear your brilliant news :-))

Can't believe you didn't get any questiosn though! I am already tied in a knot about it all.. and have a stack of evidence up to the ceiling!

So happy for you.. so did you get the visa in your hand on the same day? And when are you leaving for the States?

Well get ready for the next phase of your life girl.. you can finally be with your other half.

Take care..

Lexi





Fantasitc Niphredil!

I have logged in a few times today as I have been waiting to hear your brilliant news :-))

Can't believe you didn't get any questiosn though! I am already tied in a knot about it all.. and have a stack of evidence up to the ceiling!

So happy for you.. so did you get the visa in your hand on the same day? And when are you leaving for the States?

Well get ready for the next phase of your life girl.. you can finally be with your other half.

Take care..

Lexi

congrats niphredil!!!

my new news is that yesterday we got our marriage license.... our wedding is next month on the 15th december... ooh yay!!

Good for you Shryna! Very exicitng.. where are you located? What will the weather be like in December?

I got married in Melbourne in the middle of Winter. My (Hawaiian) husband was frozen.. ;-) Don't know why we didn't have a beach ceremony in Hawaii..LOL. But it was beautiful all the same.

Congratulations and best of luck!

The one thing I was worried about they never asked about, so I didn't upset the waters. The only hiccup I had, was that when I was called up for the second time, they said it looked good, except they needed the Joint Sponsorships evidence of US Citizenship, which I had.

I gave them a letter from my husban'd workplace earlier, showing he now makes more and thus doesn't need JS, but I guess since they had the paperwork, they just decided to just go ahead with it *Which, again, grr, NVC didn't want it, but now you guys do?*

Oh well, overall, a decent experience. I guess all I can say is just make sure you have your paperwork in order, take any and all proof that you can find, and CHIIIILLLL. That last bit needs to be taken more seriously imo

US consulate PS: Please make the ticket vending machine more, oh I dunno, NOTICABLE. SO many people walked right past it *including moi ^^;*. I mean, yes, a sign saying "PLEASE TAKE A TICKET" at eye level should be enough, but painting it bright neon pink and purple glittery stars will do wonders too

california - ...... the weather is starting to get colder.....
but thankfully its indoors and ceremony and reception is all in the same place!! "phew"

CONGRATS NIPHREDIL!

It is kinda anticlimactic isn't it? We were gearing ourselves up for some mental battle and it felt like the DMV (or RTA I guess). I almost wanted them to ask more questions and look at the 10lbs of paperwork and evidence we brought in LOL. In any case it's done and I am happy! Once we get through POE at LAX I'll be even more relaxed. It seems like there is ALWAYS something to worry about LOL.

Hi to everyone else! Keep chugging. Like Kath said, time is certainly flying!

whooo hooo congrats to ya NIPHREDIL!

great news ...i agree with the ticket machine in there..we followed like sheep to where others were getting theirs...should be as you first go through the door...

am glad it went well for you ... we all keep sayin its no big deal kinda a let down when ya get to the window to the amount of time you spend with the interviewer compared to how long the damm date takes overall lol
enjoy the rest of the time in oz..cherish every moment with family and friends and get everyones email address and phone numbers...i bought some phone cards in oz for the family before i left for them to use cos its cheaper to phone here than us to phone there....

getting colder here no snow as yet...work is going well im off registers and am doing christmas department...

take care
kath

We found a nifty Telstra offer. Basically, you pay $10 to be a part of it, and if you only make $10 worth of calls, thats all you pay. The thing is, it's 0.02 cents a minute! An hour costs $1.20! Thats if you use the 0011(whatever) number, not the 0018 one.

Don't know if they use Telstra, but if they do, get them to call and ask them about it. My phone bill went from 10 calls at $80+ *I talk too much * to 35+ calls and $15 (including the initial $10). It's kind of funny to see the bill, as every call is listed and most are 0.00, 0.00, 0.00 cost

Don't really want to promote Telstra (privatization wasn't a good thing to us x.X), but this is a pretty good deal. We also use Telecard. I can call America, cell phone to cell phone, for the same price as landline, as it gets routed through the home *australian* phone number.

ok,..dont know if anyone really cares,..but I finally got around to changing my name in my passport today, and getting new ones issued for my girls. Went in and got me Aussie friendliness, at the Australian consulate in Frankfurt. It was so good to hear someone else speaking like the girls and I do, some eone else that understands the little bit of Aussieness that slips into day to day speak,..im sure you know what I mean, not slang per se, but just the way we phrase things sometimes, make people look at us strange, and it was so nice to not have that weird look,...even if it was just for 30 minutes.

Anyways, just wanted to share. I had a nice day

Sharyna


Wow your in Barstow im in California City about an hour from you i think yah another Aussie close by

angela



Jodee

Congrats on geting you passport done. When are you heading back this way?

angela

hiya angela
how u doing...when do you do your removal of conditions...

hi jodee
good onya for changing ya names in the passports...and i know exactly how ya feel about talking to other aussies mate...although heaps of customers and co workers say oh i love your accent...i talk my usual way and they dont understand what im going on about...met an old lady who had been here 62 years and she still had the aussie accent was lovely to talk to her..lol held up a line for it too hehehehe...

we just got a different way of expressing ourselves..

hey niph .. when you heading over the big pond...
well im going back to watch the ohio state and michigan game .. were ahead at the moment...slow start..

take care
kath

Kath: Heading over on the 8th of December right when Winter is nearing it's peak. Then again, it IS in Arkansas, where it barely snows *just gets frickin cold x.X* hehe.

hi ya niph

ohh way cool.. you having a christmas dinner with the family before you leave...
ohh bring ya coats with ya..i found they are so thin up here for adults..i arrived in summer and didnt have room for my winter coats .. hubs bought me coats and i had to put extra thick lining in the sleeves cos that was the only part that i felt the cold...time will fly fast for ya...and you will be here in no time at all..bet ya all excited too..
dont forget any aussie goodies you like from oz pack them in your big suitcases....ohh one thing i cant find over here is a decent potato peeler..they are all so bulky not like the cheap thin ones im use to lol...

take care
kath

hey Angela,..hmm,..wont be back at christmas, sometime in the new year maybe, still waiting on hubby to get back from iraq, and thats not til mid january. we honestly dont know where we will end up, but do know our next posting is stateside somewhere,..but will definately let you know when we hit cal city next.

yeah kath,..we definately do have a way with words, and no one "gets us". it was nice to hear another aussie.

oh wow,..sharyna,....when i first moved to cali,..i was at ft irwin,..only 30 miles from barstow,...i love quiznos there, and the panda express in the train carriage, right near mcdonalds,..oh and walmart,.....

Jodee

Wow, your poor hubby! We chose a clifftop Hawaiian wedding over an Adelaide frozen one in July!

I just did an absentee vote at the Honolulu consulate. It was quick, easy and painless