How do Adjudicators Determine How to Process a Case

[InLove4ever 0]

I filed my I-129F form on April 14, 2010 US Postal Service-overnight. The application was received the next day on April 15, 2010. The check was cashed on April 19th and I receive an NOA1 on April 21, 2010. Now I'm just waiting for instructions from the USCIS office regarding what needs to happen next, as they did not provide any on the first NOA1 notice.

I've been reading the various Forums on VisaJourney.com to get an idea of the types of K-1 Visa cases that are pending approval, and I have yet to read one case that is like another. It seems as if each case has its own special circumstances, which makes it difficult for me to make an educated guess about how my case will be processed.

Having said that, here are my questions. My fiancé (Morocco) and I (US Citizen) have not yet physically meet in person. We met on the Internet. So I made a passionate request to the USCIS office to have the requirement to physically meet within two years of filing the I-129F form waived due to financial hardship. I provided what I thought was pretty good evidence to support my claim of financial hardship, but I'm very anxious as to whether or not the adjudicator will feel that my claim of financial hardship is acceptable.

The other thing is I feel as if my fiancé and I have an advantage in this process, because my fiancé already has a valid alien number and ss number. It turns out that my fiancé was in the US for six years attending a college in MA. He completed his studies and received his degrees and returned to Morocco well before his Visa expired. I’m hoping that the fact that he had already lived in the US and doesn’t need to apply for an alien number or ss number will make the process easier for the adjudicator to approve because he already has a history of being in the US.

Please share your opinions regarding my thoughts on this process. I’d really appreciate whatever information you have to share regardless of whether it’s in our favor or not because “knowledge is power.”

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

LoveOverSeas

Also could someone please provide the full names for these acronyms. Thanks

POE -

AOS -

VSC –

Note: I apologize if you've seen this posting as a reply to another ongoing post. I just thought it might be better to start this discusssion as a new topic.

------------------------------

04/14/2010 - Sent I-129F sent to CSC Laguna Niguel-Express Mail Overnight

04/15/2010 - Received by CSC Laguna Niguel

04/19/2010 - Check cashed

04/16/2010 – Date listed on NOA1 **

04/21/2010 - NOA1 Hardcopy arrived in mail

- NOA2 approval mailed by CSC (per USCIS.org)

- Touched (Text message stating case updated

- NOA2 Hardcopy Received

- Packet Arrived at NVC (obtained case #)

- Packet Left NVC to ?

- Package arrived in Morocco

- Package arrived at?

- Received NVC letter (package forwarded to Embassy)

- Medical done (Vaccinations)

==Tentative Dates (if shown) ==

?? - Interview

?? - Visa pick-up date

?? - POE Los Angeles, CA USA

?? - Wedding

[belinda63 3,039]

Good luck and I hope it works out but it is VERY RARE for approval of a fiance petition without meeting in the last two years. You can read story after story of people who were medically disabled and were denied. Keep us updated.

[Audy_Rob 26]

The probability of obtaining the Waiver is very low for the meeting within two years prior to submitting the I-129F petition. You did not spell out your argument and you do not need to. It has been extremely difficult to fight that requirement.

The A# and SS are immaterial. If anything that alone will be a major problem because it shows one way or another, he has the means to get to the USA or other country where you two could meet in person.

I know of two cases that have been successfully won in which the female was in Iraq.

AOS - Adjustment of Status

Affidavit of Support

POE - Port of Entry (usually into the USA)

VSC - Vermont Service Center where I-129F petitions and many other types of petitions are processed for the "Eastern" half of the country.

CSC - California Service Center.

[az110965 252]

Greetings and welcome to VJ.

One of the things I love about this forum is that you'll get accurate information from people who will take the time to help you. This information is from people who have "been there, done that" and in my opinion is the best free advice you'll ever receive. You may not always like the answers to your questons, but you'll get honest good advice from people with no ulterior motives...

That being said, I want to tell you that your odds of having your waiver of NOT having met within the last years approved is nill. The one thing you see as a positive attribute to your waiver will actually harm you in the long run - the fact that your "fiancee" has been here in the USA before. The adjudicator will view the fact that your fiancee having been in the USA before as irrevalent and will basically conclude that if your fiancee was able to afford travel to the USA before for educatonal purposes, then he could therotically afford to return again to meet you in person or vice versa.

Waivers for hardship have an almost -0- chance of approval, even hardship waivers where the petitioner is disabled and can not physically tolerate the travel to meet his fiancee. You'll not find much in the way of sympathy from an adjudicator just because you present a "financial hardship", matter of fact I've never heard of a waiver being granted for this reason.

I'm not trying to dash your hopes, but just telling you honestly that your waiver stands no chance of success. Adjudicators at USCIS are not sympathetic to the financial or emotional plight of the petitioner or beneficiary, they just review the I-129F to ensure complete filing and the eligibility of the parties to file.

My advice would be to either borrow the necessary funds to meet in person and be able to prove it or wait until you're able to financially capable of such a huge undertaking. This is not an inexpensive process and you'll find that there are many costs (financial as well as emotionional) along the way.

I wish you the best of luck but you should prepare for the inevitible denial that will be coming from USCIS. I'm sorry.

Alan

[Bobby+Umit 161]

I filed my I-129F form on April 14, 2010 US Postal Service-overnight. The application was received the next day on April 15, 2010. The check was cashed on April 19th and I receive an NOA1 on April 21, 2010. Now I'm just waiting for instructions from the USCIS office regarding what needs to happen next, as they did not provide any on the first NOA1 notice.

They usually do not - once they approve it - you will get the NOA 2.

I've been reading the various Forums on VisaJourney.com to get an idea of the types of K-1 Visa cases that are pending approval, and I have yet to read one case that is like another. It seems as if each case has its own special circumstances, which makes it difficult for me to make an educated guess about how my case will be processed.

Just go with the standard timing as posted on the USCIS site.

Having said that, here are my questions. My fiancé (Morocco) and I (US Citizen) have not yet physically meet in person. We met on the Internet. So I made a passionate request to the USCIS office to have the requirement to physically meet within two years of filing the I-129F form waived due to financial hardship. I provided what I thought was pretty good evidence to support my claim of financial hardship, but I'm very anxious as to whether or not the adjudicator will feel that my claim of financial hardship is acceptable.

Your petition will most likely be disapproved. Financial issues are not considered good enough for meeting in person. Looking through all the denials on the USCIS site, I only saw a few that were approved without the meeting requirement met, and they were "life or death" situations. If you can't pay to meet the person, then you probably not going to be able to meet the financial support needed later. Also - what is preventing your benificiary from meeting you? That will be stated in the denial.

The other thing is I feel as if my fiancé and I have an advantage in this process, because my fiancé already has a valid alien number and ss number. It turns out that my fiancé was in the US for six years attending a college in MA. He completed his studies and received his degrees and returned to Morocco well before his Visa expired. I'm hoping that the fact that he had already lived in the US and doesn't need to apply for an alien number or ss number will make the process easier for the adjudicator to approve because he already has a history of being in the US.

This is a good thing, since this means he went through the visa process, but I do not believe this will help you in this case. The lack of meeting will cause you issues. USCIS has no choice, the rules for the K-1 are clear, and you do not meet them.

Please share your opinions regarding my thoughts on this process. I'd really appreciate whatever information you have to share regardless of whether it's in our favor or not because "knowledge is power."

I am sorry to say, you probably are going to get denied - and your petition fee will be wasted (no refunds). Read here for denials - you will see what you are facing.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

LoveOverSeas

Also could someone please provide the full names for these acronyms. Thanks

POE - Port of Entry (First landing in the US)

AOS - Adjustment of Status or Affidavit of Support

VSC – Vermont Service Center

Note: I apologize if you've seen this posting as a reply to another ongoing post. I just thought it might be better to start this discusssion as a new topic.

------------------------------

04/14/2010 - Sent I-129F sent to CSC Laguna Niguel-Express Mail Overnight

04/15/2010 - Received by CSC Laguna Niguel

04/19/2010 - Check cashed

04/16/2010 – Date listed on NOA1 **

04/21/2010 - NOA1 Hardcopy arrived in mail

- NOA2 approval mailed by CSC (per USCIS.org)

- Touched (Text message stating case updated

- NOA2 Hardcopy Received

- Packet Arrived at NVC (obtained case #)

- Packet Left NVC to ?

- Package arrived in Morocco

- Package arrived at?

- Received NVC letter (package forwarded to Embassy)

- Medical done (Vaccinations)

==Tentative Dates (if shown) ==

?? - Interview

?? - Visa pick-up date

?? - POE Los Angeles, CA USA

?? - Wedding

[Bobby+Umit 161]

Dug up a post I made about this subject -

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/248439-here-are-some-sample-cases-of-denial-and-approval-for-k-1s/

One example where it was granted (not to meet in person) and one where it wasn't.

As you can see, they do not get "personal" when they go over the petitions, they just bounce them against the rules in place, if it passes, they send it down the chain, (to NVC) and then on the embassy.

If you don't make the rules, they have no choice but to deny, you will have a chance to appeal - but from most of the appeals I have read through, they usually stick to the "technical" reading of the rules and go from there.

Like I said in that post, unless you exhaust all ways to meet in person in the 2 year period prior to submitting the petition, they will deny it, unless you have very strong reasoning to change their mind.

Some questions that would come to mind:

1. Why can't the beneficiary meet you in the US?

2. Why can't you meet in Mexico or Canada or any other country?

Sorry to sound so negative - but you are facing a hard process.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I filed my I-129F form on April 14, 2010 US Postal Service-overnight. The application was received the next day on April 15, 2010. The check was cashed on April 19th and I receive an NOA1 on April 21, 2010. Now I'm just waiting for instructions from the USCIS office regarding what needs to happen next, as they did not provide any on the first NOA1 notice.

I've been reading the various Forums on VisaJourney.com to get an idea of the types of K-1 Visa cases that are pending approval, and I have yet to read one case that is like another. It seems as if each case has its own special circumstances, which makes it difficult for me to make an educated guess about how my case will be processed.

Having said that, here are my questions. My fiancé (Morocco) and I (US Citizen) have not yet physically meet in person. We met on the Internet. So I made a passionate request to the USCIS office to have the requirement to physically meet within two years of filing the I-129F form waived due to financial hardship. I provided what I thought was pretty good evidence to support my claim of financial hardship, but I'm very anxious as to whether or not the adjudicator will feel that my claim of financial hardship is acceptable.

The other thing is I feel as if my fiancé and I have an advantage in this process, because my fiancé already has a valid alien number and ss number. It turns out that my fiancé was in the US for six years attending a college in MA. He completed his studies and received his degrees and returned to Morocco well before his Visa expired. I’m hoping that the fact that he had already lived in the US and doesn’t need to apply for an alien number or ss number will make the process easier for the adjudicator to approve because he already has a history of being in the US.

Please share your opinions regarding my thoughts on this process. I’d really appreciate whatever information you have to share regardless of whether it’s in our favor or not because “knowledge is power.”

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

LoveOverSeas

Also could someone please provide the full names for these acronyms. Thanks

POE -

AOS -

VSC –

Note: I apologize if you've seen this posting as a reply to another ongoing post. I just thought it might be better to start this discusssion as a new topic.

------------------------------

04/14/2010 - Sent I-129F sent to CSC Laguna Niguel-Express Mail Overnight

04/15/2010 - Received by CSC Laguna Niguel

04/19/2010 - Check cashed

04/16/2010 – Date listed on NOA1 **

04/21/2010 - NOA1 Hardcopy arrived in mail

- NOA2 approval mailed by CSC (per USCIS.org)

- Touched (Text message stating case updated

- NOA2 Hardcopy Received

- Packet Arrived at NVC (obtained case #)

- Packet Left NVC to ?

- Package arrived in Morocco

- Package arrived at?

- Received NVC letter (package forwarded to Embassy)

- Medical done (Vaccinations)

==Tentative Dates (if shown) ==

?? - Interview

?? - Visa pick-up date

?? - POE Los Angeles, CA USA

?? - Wedding

The requirement to meet in person will not be waived. The petition will be denied and you wasted $455. Follow the instructions and you will be approved the next time.

You have 2 options. They will send you an RFE in some months, maybe 2-3 months. They will give you some time to respond and ask for proof that you met in person BEFORE you filed the petition. You have no such proof and you will respond with another impassioned plea which will be denied, but not until some more months have passed and then you get to start over. After going to Morroco and meeting your fiance. keep in mind Morroco is a very difficult consulate to deal with and keep very good records of your relationship. Frequent the MENA sub-forum to get tips on what to expect and what to do to better your chances for visa approval when you get to Casa Blanca

Option 2 is to send USCIS a certifi3ed letter tomorrow, referring to your case number on the NOA1 and withdraw this petition. Then go to Morroco and meet with your fiance. Then come back and file again. It will save you many months. I would wish you luck with this petition, but it wouldn't help and would be a dis-service to you. You made an error and it cost you $455, plus postage, not the end of the world. Fix it and try again.

Follow the instructions carefully. Read carefully and interpret literally.

[az110965 252]

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

Having been through one of the roughest consulates I think that even if you got some overly nice person to let the petition slide because you hadn't met in 2 years you would later on fail for lack of a bonafide relationship by mena standards. Better to suffer the k1 being denied quickly than to pay medical and visa and then be denied. Meeting on the internet is definitely not enough to know you have found your life partner. You really need to find some way to meet. What about a quick trip to Europe.

[pushbrk 12,975]

I filed my I-129F form on April 14, 2010 US Postal Service-overnight. The application was received the next day on April 15, 2010. The check was cashed on April 19th and I receive an NOA1 on April 21, 2010. Now I'm just waiting for instructions from the USCIS office regarding what needs to happen next, as they did not provide any on the first NOA1 notice.

I've been reading the various Forums on VisaJourney.com to get an idea of the types of K-1 Visa cases that are pending approval, and I have yet to read one case that is like another. It seems as if each case has its own special circumstances, which makes it difficult for me to make an educated guess about how my case will be processed.

Having said that, here are my questions. My fiancé (Morocco) and I (US Citizen) have not yet physically meet in person. We met on the Internet. So I made a passionate request to the USCIS office to have the requirement to physically meet within two years of filing the I-129F form waived due to financial hardship. I provided what I thought was pretty good evidence to support my claim of financial hardship, but I'm very anxious as to whether or not the adjudicator will feel that my claim of financial hardship is acceptable.

The other thing is I feel as if my fiancé and I have an advantage in this process, because my fiancé already has a valid alien number and ss number. It turns out that my fiancé was in the US for six years attending a college in MA. He completed his studies and received his degrees and returned to Morocco well before his Visa expired. I’m hoping that the fact that he had already lived in the US and doesn’t need to apply for an alien number or ss number will make the process easier for the adjudicator to approve because he already has a history of being in the US.

Please share your opinions regarding my thoughts on this process. I’d really appreciate whatever information you have to share regardless of whether it’s in our favor or not because “knowledge is power.”

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

LoveOverSeas

Also could someone please provide the full names for these acronyms. Thanks

POE -

AOS -

VSC –

Note: I apologize if you've seen this posting as a reply to another ongoing post. I just thought it might be better to start this discusssion as a new topic.

------------------------------

04/14/2010 - Sent I-129F sent to CSC Laguna Niguel-Express Mail Overnight

04/15/2010 - Received by CSC Laguna Niguel

04/19/2010 - Check cashed

04/16/2010 – Date listed on NOA1 **

04/21/2010 - NOA1 Hardcopy arrived in mail

- NOA2 approval mailed by CSC (per USCIS.org)

- Touched (Text message stating case updated

- NOA2 Hardcopy Received

- Packet Arrived at NVC (obtained case #)

- Packet Left NVC to ?

- Package arrived in Morocco

- Package arrived at?

- Received NVC letter (package forwarded to Embassy)

- Medical done (Vaccinations)

==Tentative Dates (if shown) ==

?? - Interview

?? - Visa pick-up date

?? - POE Los Angeles, CA USA

?? - Wedding

I would expect your case to be processed just like everybody else, according to long standing adjudication procedures. The difference will be in the result. While most petition are approved and forwarded to NVC and on to Consulate or Embassies abroad, yours will end in an NOA2 that says "Denied" instead of "Approved". Financial hardship is not one of the circumstances that justifies waiving the meeting requirement and there's nothing you'll see anywhere to lead a reasonable person to think it would be. Of course, you can try again when you get your finances in order and meet in person.

[SweetHome_Alabama 5]

I agree with everyone here. You need to keep excellent records of your relationship and they ask him questions when your wife visited you in Morocco and how long she stayed and what you did when she was here, etc....also you as the petitioner need to know that once it reaches the second stage of the process which is NVC...you sign an Affidavit of support form which is a contract between you and the government saying you are financially able to support this man for basically 10 years! You support him until he has earned 40 working credits which averages 10 years and if he has worked all these years to earn 40. If you are not able to show you are stable enough to meet this man or he can't pay for you to come to him, they will not approve you. You have to make 125% the poverty guideline the government sets each year. You have to show you can support him entirely so he does not fall upon the government for assistance. The government can sue you for paying them back too if he was to ever have to do this. You haven't met this man in person to know his true self and character. You need to meet his family and possibly friends to make sure he is who he says he is. So many women are falling into the Moroccan scams for quick visa and other country scams by not protecting themselves. At least meet this man especially if he is way younger than you... the consulate is turning down couples who have made several trips and they turn down people too on disability. Sometimes cases are hard to prove to the consulate to accept as genuine. Go read the reviews and obtain knowlege here on VJ. I am afraid, you have wasted your money too by starting the process too soon. Keep in mind too, even though USCIS homeland security may approve you, an operator told me they were separate from the NVC and US Consulate and they don't look at the same things in a relationship so nothing is a guarantee. I have been there twice and I am still worried after reading all the discrimination coming from Morocco's US Embassy. It appears sometimes its whatever mood they are in that day....Good luck to you whatever you decide.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I agree with everyone here. You need to keep excellent records of your relationship and they ask him questions when your wife visited you in Morocco and how long she stayed and what you did when she was here, etc....also you as the petitioner need to know that once it reaches the second stage of the process which is NVC...you sign an Affidavit of support form which is a contract between you and the government saying you are financially able to support this man for basically 10 years! You support him until he has earned 40 working credits which averages 10 years and if he has worked all these years to earn 40. If you are not able to show you are stable enough to meet this man or he can't pay for you to come to him, they will not approve you. You have to make 125% the poverty guideline the government sets each year. You have to show you can support him entirely so he does not fall upon the government for assistance. The government can sue you for paying them back too if he was to ever have to do this. You haven't met this man in person to know his true self and character. You need to meet his family and possibly friends to make sure he is who he says he is. So many women are falling into the Moroccan scams for quick visa and other country scams by not protecting themselves. At least meet this man especially if he is way younger than you... the consulate is turning down couples who have made several trips and they turn down people too on disability. Sometimes cases are hard to prove to the consulate to accept as genuine. Go read the reviews and obtain knowlege here on VJ. I am afraid, you have wasted your money too by starting the process too soon. Keep in mind too, even though USCIS homeland security may approve you, an operator told me they were separate from the NVC and US Consulate and they don't look at the same things in a relationship so nothing is a guarantee. I have been there twice and I am still worried after reading all the discrimination coming from Morocco's US Embassy. It appears sometimes its whatever mood they are in that day....Good luck to you whatever you decide.

Good advice except with the K-1 you submit TWO affidavits, one for the interview and one for the AOS (green card) after he arrives and they are married (the one you sent to NVC) Same procedure, just a different order of events.

The reason a claim of "hardship" will not get you past the requirement to meet is that you have to demostrate TWICE that you can suuport your fiance. If you cannot afford a plane ticket you will not be able to support your fiance. waivers of meeting in person are nearly impossible to get approved and the process will cost you more and take langer than just going there.

Withdraw the petition, go to Morroco and try again

[InLove4ever 0]

Dug up a post I made about this subject -

----------------------

Thank you for sharing. I really appreciate having this info. I guess my question at this point is that if my petition is denied, will I be allowed to try to meet my fiance within two years from the date of my filing without having to file another I129F all over again.

And if not, how soon can I reapply once I have meet this particular requirement.

Thanks again for sharing.

LoveOverSeas

[InLove4ever 0]

This is all great information/advice you have shared with me today. Again, thank you for your time, and I will keep you posted on the outcome of my case.

Sincerely,

LoveOverSeas

[Audy_Rob 26]

Thank you for sharing. I really appreciate having this info. I guess my question at this point is that if my petition is denied, will I be allowed to try to meet my fiance within two years from the date of my filing without having to file another I129F all over again.

And if not, how soon can I reapply once I have meet this particular requirement.

Thanks again for sharing.

LoveOverSeas

Hi LOS, The petition will be denied. No, you must have met your fiance in person in the two years PRIOR to filing the petition, not the two years since (or after) filing your I-129F. You will need to fila a completely new I-129F without prejiduce. You can reapply immediately after the denial, if the conditions have been met. You both must be eligible to marry and you must have met in the two years prior to filing.

If the second filing of the I-129F occurs within (inside) two years of each other, then you are subject to the IMBRA rules and regulations for filing two I-129F forms within two years. This requires an informal waiver that you can easily write and I believe has always been granted. That is the easy part.

Good luck and check back here when you are ready.