There has been a lot of talk about what to do now that DCF has been discontinued (and may or may not be back).

My husband and I would like to go ahead and file our I-130 at the California Service Center (the one designated by the US Embassy in Japan as the current place to file applications for residents of Japan). However, if DCF does return soon, we could save a lot of time by filing through the Tokyo Embassy.

What if we were to abandon the prior I-130 to refile? Would this be a problem? Would be lose anything other than the processing fee?

If anyone has any experiences with this. opinions about this, or information about this type of situation, please share!

Thanks!

--Bahia

I have also had the same worries-you can read the following thread
http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=54712
a lot of people say it is possible ,what the effect would be-we will never know until we don't try.

You can also read my thread
http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=55098
If they say they will accept our application back,we are withdrawing the one at VSC,so I hope soon I'll have experience on that!

I don't think anyone can prevent you from abandoning your application-this is a question of your own choice!Besides,I don't think the people at foreign Consulates have access to the USCIS data,which means that they probably won't find out about your former experience,although I will not advise you to hide that information from them.

As soon as I have some news about that I will inform you guys!

Be careful also, Bahia, as the info on the Japan website may be wrong. The official Department of State website says to file your petition to the USCIS office that has jurisdiction over the USC spouse's home state.

If the USC spouse home state falls under California jurisdiction, well and good. But if not, you risk sending your application to the wrong center and having the center mailing it out to where they think the correct one is.

With me, the instruction was to send it to the Vermont USCIS as I am living in Europe. But my home state is California and if I follow the official DOS website, I'd have to file with Califronia and not Vermont.

I don't know the consequences of filing in the US and then withdrawing if/when DCF comes back. Not to be doom and gloom, but there is the possibility that when the US Embassy in Tokyo learns that you already have a petition pending in the US, they might advise you to just wait for that one to go through and not entertain a second one.

It is a big mess. But if you're not in a hurry, I'd suggest waiting another two weeks to see how things develop.

Good luck.

Hmm, I see your point, but I am pretty sure you are supposed to file in the place that has jurisdiction over your place of residence. Since I am a resident of Japan (not the USA), I do not file at the office that has jurisdiction of my old residence, but instead the place that has jurisdition over residents of Japan.

According to the USCIS website
"Where to File : A petitioner residing in the United States should file Form I-130 at the Service Center with jurisdiction over the petitioner's place of residence."

It seems pretty clear that if you are not a current resident of the US that you would not file at the office having jurisdiction over your old address.

Even if the address posted on the US Embassy website changes, which it may even if DCF comes back (we should really be handled by the UCSIS offices in Beijing or elsewhere in the Bangkock district), I know that California has been currently instructed to file petitions sent from certain areas overseas (I can't remember where I read that, though, sorry!).

I would file at the place that has jurisdiction over your current residence, even if you can use your old state as domicile for certain intents and purposes.

Anyone else have an opinion about this?

Of course it's a mess... and of course I am in a hurry! I am ready to go home and I want to get there as quickly as possible (I know, join the club