I-130 filing in Tokyo, Japan

[potatoboss 0]

Hi, my husband (Japanese national) and I (USC) filed the I-130 for him in Tokyo, Japan yesterday (May 13). I just wanted to give details on what the process was like since I had a million questions going in, and still do actually.

The US Embassy in Japan website is actually very useful for preparing all the documents, and provides a checklist here:

http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivpetition.html

OK, well our appointment was at 2pm yesterday, and on the reservation instructions it is made explicit that if you are late you will be denied entrance, and in addition to that you must print out your reservation details and bring it to you.

The reality: of course, we arrive early, around 1:15, but we are then told by the guard (who is Japanese) that the offices are still closed and we cannot enter until 2pm. My husband explains (in Japanese) that our appointment is at 2pm, and that we cannot be late. The guard says he understands, and that he cannot let us in. So we decide to go to a cafe across the street and kill some time. We get back to the embassy around 1:45, and find that there are several people sitting outside on the sidewalk waiting to get in. Finally some "official-looking guy" comes out and tells us that we can enter, so we dust off and proceed to go through security.

We are then ushered through the Embassy grounds (still outside the building), and are told to wait by some doors. In front of the doors are some umbrella stands and a sign for NIV applicants on how to arrange their documents. We wait for about 10 minutes, and then some embassy staff pop out and instruct us how to stand in line. After a couple minutes a guard opens the doors and we can finally go inside.

A woman at the desk asks for my name and checks her list. I never have to show the print-out of my reservation. She hands me a number, a sheet telling me how I should order the documents, and tells me that I can arrange my documents inside. As soon as we enter the room, however, our number is called and we have to go straight to the window! This completely throws me off. I fumble through my files and folders as the lady behind the glass asks me for this and that. However we manage to submit all our documents. She then instructs me to go pay the filing fee at the cashier and then bring the receipts to her. Ostensibly it is possible to pay with credit card, but their machine was broken and I ended up paying in Japanese yen. I return the two receipts to the woman and then she tells us to wait for our number to be called.

After about 5 minutes (!!), our number pops up and we proceed to the window where we are interviewed by an embassy official. She very nicely and clearly explains the whole process to us, and then asks me some questions. Although my husband and I have been together for 5 years, we have only been married a month, so her questions were about our relationship. I don't know if this interview is common for married couples who have been together longer. Basically, I just explained how we met and how we decided to get married, and what our plans are in the US. She asked my husband how many times he has been in the US and complimented him on his English (which is much better than my Japanese ) While she is interviewing us she is typing things on the computer, probably making notes on our answers. It seems that she liked to hear answers with definite dates, e.g. "We met in October 2004, and started dating one month later in November 2004."

Finally, she tells us that everything looks good and hands us a paper explaining what we should expect and a FAQ. I ask here some questions about the I-864, and while she cleared up some points for me I wish I had asked her more questions! And, that was that. We left the building around 3pm, so the process was less than an hour!

Notes:

I-864: According the the Embassy website, the I-864 is OPTIONAL when you are filing the I-130. However, they did not seem to treat it as optional as they asked for it by default. Though I did have my complete I-864 and tax returns, they did not accept it because my mother is a joint-sponsor, and while I had her I-864 and her tax returns, I did NOT have a copy of her passport, so they did not accept ANY I-864 documents. It seems that all I-864-related documents must be complete in full for EVERY sponsor, or they will not accept any of them. Luckily, it is not actually required for the I-130, and they told my husband to bring them at the next interview.

Proof of Relationship: Since we have been married less than two years, we had to bring "proof of relationship." The embassy website has "recommended" items, but on the form they provided at the embassy it explicitly asks for 1) a statement explaining details of the relationship, and 2) photographs over time. I prepared a 1-page history of our relationship, which I signed, and about 20-30 photos of us taken over the five years we'd been together. I also prepared a copy/translation of our lease since we live together, but they didn't even look at it. The embassy official seemed pretty satisfied with the statement and photographs.

OK, so that's it! My heart was racing the entire time just because I was so thrown off by the timing. On the paper the Embassy official handed us it explained that if we had any additional questions, we could go to another window to ask them. But it was too late, we were on the train by the time I realized this. I really wish we had stayed and I could ask more questions about the I-864 because now I am really confused! Anyway, they told us we should hear back in a month.

Sorry for such a long post, but I hope this might help someone else out there!

[redglasses 1]

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Hope you will hear from them soon.

[txladykat 1]

They actually said the I-864 is not required? We were told by Denmark embassy that it IS required, and we filed I-130

[potatoboss 0]

They actually said the I-864 is not required? We were told by Denmark embassy that it IS required, and we filed I-130

The US Embassy-Japan website says that the I-864 is optional at the time of filing the I-130, but they do recommend that you bring it. It is required at the actual visa interview.

[txladykat 1]

They actually said the I-864 is not required? We were told by Denmark embassy that it IS required, and we filed I-130

The US Embassy-Japan website says that the I-864 is optional at the time of filing the I-130, but they do recommend that you bring it. It is required at the actual visa interview.

Ok, this makes more sense, from your post it seems as if you are stating its not necessary at all when filing the I-130. As to when you file it, yes at the time of interview is the appropriate time, as the visa petition has to be approved first. Denmark embassy won't even accept them until the time of interview.