Hey I just thought that this might help for everyone that is filing for ones in Japan. You can see mine in the photos under In america. The one that I said looks like a clothing Ad. Right now we are at the package 3 stage. Interview soon we hope. So if you need help on K-1 or such, or have suggestion for me for past this step lets help each other.

So hard to find a Nihon here, my wife Kim was studying and living in Shizuoka for 8 years, she calls herself Betonamu Nihon sometimes... not sure if I do that right!!! I heard JP isn't tough with K-1. So P3 should be arriving any day now... Good luck with your journey!

Love,

chuck-kun and kim-san

I'm reviving this thread!~
Where are the rest of the Japan filers??

I'm here!! I have my first appointment for filing the I-130 on next monday, the 30th, which is, most unfortunately, the first day that the new charges kick in!! Ouch!! Anyone have any helpful info for this first step? I have everything together, just a few final questions left on some of the forms, but nothing big. I've basically just gone through the checklist that the embassy provided and have all that together. Any suggestions??

We're filing for a K1 visa. And we haven't yet gotten to the embassy part of the process yet, so I can't speak from personal experience- but everything I've heard about the Japanese embassy has been really relieving. I've heard that the interviewers are friendly and the interview itself is pretty quick and painless. If you have everything in order I wouldn't be too worried about having to deal with the embassy officials :]

im glad that i found you here. im planning to apply for k-1 fiance(e) visa for my fiancee from nagoya japan. right now my fiancee is here with me in hawaii but her i-94 expired next month so i have no choice but to send her home. however, before she goes back i would like to apply for k-1 fiancee visa and i know its possible but if you dont mind would you guide me step by step???

thanks

Hello fellow Nihon filers. Yoroshiku!

We just started the big waiting process, so there's nothing really to report on our progress, and won't for a couple more months. I'm going out there to visit in the middle of September though, and that should help to break up the waiting a bit. Then when I get back, I'm starting construction and adding another room to my house since my family is going to be growing soon, and that will keep me busy while we continue to wait.

Oh, and flavorgreentea, I found this page to be extremely helpful in guiding us through the process of filing our I-129F.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...mp;page=k1guide

Ja, mata kondo na!

Hello all nihon filers!!
I am brand new to this site (just joined yesterday... have been reading stuff for the past 24 hours or so. hah).. anyway, just wanted to say hi to everyone. My girlfriend Tomoko and I are actually still in the pre-stages of the process: deciding which route to take...
She was here in Hawaii (flavorgreetea, what part of hawaii you from?!?) for the past 2 years on student visa and we were going out pretty much from the time she got here... then she was going to have to go back soon, but I proposed and she said yes! She is actually back in japan right now, and we are trying to decide if (1)we should do K-1 visa, (2)I should go there and get married, then come back and start K-3 visa, or (3)she should come here on tourist visa and we marry, then she go back and i start K-3 visa... I was thinking that it might be best to do K-1 visa because it looked like the waiting time would be the shortest, but i just noticed that the Japan part of the waiting time for IR-1/CR-1 is actually really short (right now it says 77days average, as opposed to 176-300 for most other countries).... anyway, still trying to figure it out... I asked on a different thread already and got some good responses/explanations, but any one have Japan-specific advice as to which one might be the best way???

never knew anyone here from hawaii... by the way dphyled im from oahu honolulu.

i did all the research and i talked to people who pretty much already experience the process of petition. i gathered all the info and i came out with k-1 fiancee visa, i think this will be the best for my case. today i went to the post office in waikiki and i send the i-129F, i'm hoping there's no problem with all my documents. at this moment there's no backing up now and to my case only time will tell...

this journey of ours looks bluer than blue but the only way to break through is to go to to nihon and spend some time with our love ones. my case however, is different than some of the others but sooner later we will be all together ()v....

right now my fiancee is getting ready for our dinner and next time i will report for our progress but it seems like there's nothing yet to tell because i just send the I-129f today...

see ya

It is nice to see a few folks with Japanese fiances on here. My fiance, Sayaka, found a great support group much like this one on the social networking site Mixi.

Just a question to throw out there: how were the reactions from your Japanese fiance's parents when they found out their son/daughter would be marrying a Gaijin??

Sayaka's family was fine with me being an American, but are still worried that I am a University student (although i work full time) and they are sad Sayaka will be leaving Japan to live in America.

[color="#9932CC"][/color]Anyone had an interview? Do you know what we will be asked at the emabassy? I am kind of scared. My boyfriend and I have met each other during highschool. We took the same math class, but we became a real couple when I started college. He did not propose. We just started talking about marriage after we had been together over 4 years. I am really worried about questions. Maybe I am just worried for no reasons.

My fiance's family was very accepting of me- although they didn't take it seriously at first that he would marry a foreigner. Maybe they thought it was a phase? Our issue now is the cultural difference. Him being a Japanese man and the 'chosen one' to take care of his parents, etc. when they get old. They really don't want him to come to the USA. Thankfully that although they don't want him to come- they don't object to our marriage. They just don't want us to live in the USA.

He also uses Mixi for some information- but we both use this account for Visajourney



Calm down, I'll be posting our experience with the interview when it happens- but from everything I've heard, the Japanese embassy is very easy. Just be truthful and have all the paperwork you need and it should all be a breeze.

There are only few Japan Filers here at VJ. I will post my experience and will let you know what were the questions.

KayArt

I noticed you're filing for K1. There might be different questions on the interview because I filed for CR1 but at least the idea of how the interview goes.

KayArt

My fiancee's parents were very accepting. It helps when you're both in your early 30's and each already have a child. Well, it helps with the parent's acceptance, but having children is a whole other can-o-worms. She's the eldest of two daughters, so she will also be head of household when the time comes since her younger sister recently married a first son. Of course, her family and friends are going to miss her, but they are happy for her. Modern technology will help to keep everyone in touch after the move to the States.

I also use Mixi, but man... it's rough to get around on that site. The only kanji I know is 1 through 5, and I haven't even memorized my hiragana and katakana yet. But I manage to fumble my way through it. Currently, my language skill is terrible. Jouzu ja nai!

By the way, my visit was awesome. Stayed at a ryokan with a private onsen in the room, drove on the other side of the road, experienced all kinds of foods and sights, and fell in love with the Toto Washlet and navigation. I might go back out there for Thanksgiving.

Ja

It is great to hear everyone is getting along well!!! Sayaka and I are getting really excited to be together after doing the long distance thing for so long. I sent her flowers for her birthday last week and when I called her when she got home from work she was in tears. She said it was the best birthday present ever!!! I felt like a halfway decent fiance at the point. She said she didn't expect to get anything on her birthday since she got her birthday box a week earlier. .... I really hate spending birthdays and holidays apart.

I am trying to keep practicing Japanese. I normally go to a study session about once a week for it, but I have so much going on with school since this is my last year, and I'm really trying to land a good job or internship. I took two years in University, but the writing component fades really fast when you don't use it. Oh well, Sayaka's major was Japanese language education so I will have a pro for a wife in a few months.

Ganbatte everybody!

Good news everybody!!! We received our NAO2 notice yesterday (9/24) and then we got touched again today!!!!

Congratulations man! Omedetou gozaimasu!

Thanks man!!! I'm hoping they get this to the embassy soon. I'm excited to finally be together with my girl!

FANTASTIC!!!!!

It's great news to hear. I am glad that people are finally getting approved.

The process seems to go faster for Japanese filers. I certainly hope so.

omedetou gozaimasu!!!!!

I'm just really happy. Thanks for the congrats!! This is just the first hurdle of many, but it seems like the biggest one before we can actually be together again.

After a long battle with CSC to MAIL our petition after our NOA2- everything has been wonderful. I'm happy to report that thus far- the Japanese embassy is VERY fast at responding and seems to actually know how to do their job! Our petition was received at Tokyo on Sep. 25 and we received our interview date today!

The forms that they sent for the interview request doesn't have a space for a preferred date. So Yuibi wrote in the margin that he wanted his interview on Oct 15, if possible. And wow! They responded immediately saying his appointment is Oct. 15 at 8:30am! I am VERY impressed with the Japanese embassy. After such a long time I know that I'll be seeing my fiance in three weeks!

Congratulations! It is so nice to hear that the Japanese embassy has their act together. After hearing your excellent news I am pretty certain Sayaka will be coming home with me after new years!!!

I'm on Oahu too!

Can someone share what info the Japanese consolate asks for? How much needs to be mailed and how much is brought to the interview? Also, what is this 'police report' I see people talking about. What report would you have if you have no criminal history??

Mahalo!

Has your fiance received anything from the embassy yet? It should include instructions for what she needs.

She just got the package today!

I cant seem to find a good explanation, so Ill ask: If my I-134 isn't good enough, what would happen? I know I could get a co-sponser and play it safe, but I want to know what I would be risking if I didn't get a co-sponser.

Ethan808: Getting a co-sponsor is the only way to go in my opinion even if you make enough unless you are making at least twice the minimum requirement for your household a year. Think of it this way- would you rather have a co-sponsor and it turns out it wasn't really necessary, or not have a co-sponsor and the embassy denies your petition because they don't believe you make enough?

In other news- our interview is TOMORROW! Oct 15th at 8:30am. Wish us luck! We'll be posting on this thread to let you all know our experience with the Tokyo Embassy!

Hello. I'm just checking in with the Japan filers. I haven't had much happen with our case so far. But since I filed I found this forum and so now I am sort of expecting an RFE because of some errors in the biographic information and also I gave virtually no evidence of having been together for the past 2 years. I just sent some pictures. My explanation of how we met was one sentence. I was stationed at Yokota for the past two years and now I'm in Arkansas, but I gave no proof of that either. So I guess I'll see how it goes. We're planning to get married in June 08.

Hi, guys. I just had an interview today and my visa has been approved! For those curious about the interview, I posted my experience on my page. I wish all of you good luck!

~Yuibi

Yuibi, specifically, what documents did they ask you to bring to the interview? Thanks

Aaron

Hi all,

I am an August filer from Japan and just wanted to say hi to all. Now we are just waiting for noa2.

Aaron, I think your fiance should know what she supposed to bring for the interview. The package she has received should include the check list. Also, the Embassy of the US in Japan website might help :
http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-niv-kchecklist.html (English)
http://japan.usembassy.gov/j/visa/tvisaj-niv-kchecklist.html (Japanese)

Good luck!

thanks for the reply 55_buckeyes!

Man.. i wish we were back in the day when you could have everything handled by the Embassy in Japan. A few of my other buddies did it this way, and they all tell me how easy and pain free it was!

Hi everyone! How are you doing? It has been 85th day since my fiance sent I-129F. Ahhh, I cannot stand it anymore. It is super crazy to wait this long and I have to wait more now. I really hope that I can marry my fiance in March. Anyone has any updates?

Hello Japanese filers!

I just wanted to let everyone know that there is action being taken at the California USCIS. My filing date for our I-130 was June 11th.
We had our first “Touch” on Wednesday night (Oct 17th) at about 7:30 PM and were approved by 11:30 PM the same night. It looks like they are working overtime to get things moving.
My wife and I are now starting our journey at the NVC. It took over 4 months for us at the USCIS California office and I believe that is about the average length. I am hoping that it will only take about 3 months for NVC.
I know that it is hard to wait because I was checking the USCIS website at least 10-20 times a day because I was impatient; I know it will happen for you!

I wish everyone luck and I hope that the USCIS moves fast for you!

NVC bound…..

You might be in for a wait for your petition to get sent to NVC. My fiance and I were approved the 25th and I still haven't gotten word that our case was sent to NVC. Congrats on the approval though. One step closer to being back together!

Are you waiting on written confirmation or did you call the NVC to ask?

Just called NVC today and they got us into the system yesterday. From others on the forum and myself I would estimate it is about a month between NO2 at CSC to NVC... although it seems like they are pretty quick to get the petitions to the embassies.

Konnichiwa Aaron and all Japanese filers,

I am just curious but what is RFE trick? How much it would speed up the process? I have seen many people mention RFE trick here, and was always wondering...

I hope your fiancee will get the visa soon!

Hello Japanese filers!

I just wanted to let everyone know that the NVC received our documents on Monday the 29th. It only took them about two weeks to get them.

I was surprised because I thought it would take longer.

Hope the rest of the process is this fast!

Hello fellow Japanese filers!

I am still filling out paperwork as my fiancee gathers a few more documents and I've run into a question. How did you enter Japanese addresses into your G-325A and I-129F forms? My fiancee is from Tokyo and I am having a hard time fitting the Japanese addresses into the forms. Did you just add a sheet with this information?

Thank you and good luck everyone!!

-Tim

Hello Tim!

I am afraid that I use the full version of Adobe so I was able to adjust the field sizes.
I have heard of others putting this information on a separate sheet of paper. They clearly indicated which section/item the information pertained to.

Good luck!

I was lucky that my fiance's address was small enough to fit easily. Although her father took her mother's last name when they got married so that created a bit of confusion.

RFE trick won't speed up the process at all. The only thing it will do is allow you to talk to someone at the Service center where your petition was sent. Most likely, they will just tell you that your case hasn't been assigned. It seems that once the cases hit a desk, they move pretty fast. I would recommend being patient and watching when other filers around you get approved, that should give you a better idea when your time is coming!

Good luck!

ヤタ!!!
Sayaka just got packet 3 from the embassy!!!

Wow! Congratulations! That's awesome!

Ah, so it's okay to adjust the form to fit more information? I was wondering about that! I have a full version of adobe, but I've never actually used it. I think it might be easier to just add extra sheets of paper in this case, though with the G-325A it is kind of annoying because it will be create so many extra pages!

The problem I keep running into is with my fiancee's work addresses. The building alone will have a name about forty characters long! Worse yet, Tokyo addresses include sub areas and I don't know how to break them up to follow the pattern forms request. There's no state/province, though Tokyo is listed in a way that is like a state or a province.. gah!

I think what I will do is follow the advice of USCIS customer service and write the full address out as I would on mail and put that on an additional sheet. I guess since each of these sheets corresponds to a separate page of the G-325A I would be best off naming them uniquely and then I believe she should sign every one of those pages. I wonder how thoroughly they scrutinize this information!

It feels like they are just looking for any excuse to slow down a petition!

My life would be so much easier if my fiancee had a scanner and a printer!

And I don't even want to look ahead to translations of documents. It's stressful enough just focusing on this moment.

Thank god I am going back to see her for New Years, or I'd be going nuts over this stuff.

Hi Tim,

No need to write apartment, building or mansion's name cuz it really occupies space.
Example: 140-000 Tokyo, Minato -ku, Akasaka 2chome 7banchi 10, Lion's Mansion Akasaka Rm. 1001
Just write: 140-000 Tokyo, Minato-ku, Akasaka 2-7-10 1001

Hope this help..Goodluck.
KayArt


Ah, so it's okay to adjust the form to fit more information? I was wondering about that! I have a full version of adobe, but I've never actually used it. I think it might be easier to just add extra sheets of paper in this case, though with the G-325A it is kind of annoying because it will be create so many extra pages!

The problem I keep running into is with my fiancee's work addresses. The building alone will have a name about forty characters long! Worse yet, Tokyo addresses include sub areas and I don't know how to break them up to follow the pattern forms request. There's no state/province, though Tokyo is listed in a way that is like a state or a province.. gah!

I think what I will do is follow the advice of USCIS customer service and write the full address out as I would on mail and put that on an additional sheet. I guess since each of these sheets corresponds to a separate page of the G-325A I would be best off naming them uniquely and then I believe she should sign every one of those pages. I wonder how thoroughly they scrutinize this information!

It feels like they are just looking for any excuse to slow down a petition!

My life would be so much easier if my fiancee had a scanner and a printer!

And I don't even want to look ahead to translations of documents. It's stressful enough just focusing on this moment.

Thank god I am going back to see her for New Years, or I'd be going nuts over this stuff.
[/quote]

OMEDETOU!!!Banzai!Banzai!

Hello Everyone!

Giving everyone an update. Yuibi arrived safely two weeks ago with Visa in hand! We couldn't be happier to finally be reunited after such a long time!

But a word of caution to everyone with your point of entry- as that this happened to us and we are now facing more problems because of immigration. When you enter the USA make SURE that the immigration officer gives you your I-94 back. They did not give ours back at Houston. You need this to get a SSN and apply for Adjustment of Status.

So now another battle begins for us