What the US considers "having met"

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Hi and thanks for the quick reply...

Both of our sons (4 years and 18 months of age)passports were issued from consulates in Europe (Florence & Barcelona), where we applied in person for them. I do not understand your comment, because both my fiance and I had to be present at the US consulates at the same time to apply for or sons passports (which in turn was also at the same time as the application for their US citizenship).

I have not been in Italy for the last 2 years, except for travel for work, and I have been living in Barcelona, where I worked until recently. She had stayed in Italy for the birth of our second son and joined me in mid-march of 2009.

I sent along all pages of their US passports as part of the package as I did not have a copy of their CRBA with me, and I sent a certified translated copy of the birth records which shows us as parents.

Does this help?

A consulate can issue a CRBA without the US citizen parent being present, as long as the required documents and evidence are submitted. You being present makes your affidavit of paternity unquestionable, but it isn't essential that you be present. There are many members of VJ who have gotten CRBA's for their foreign born children without having to return to the country where the children were born, or go to the consulate.

I don't think there's any doubt you've been together with your fiancee, and that you've got kids together. What I'm trying to figure out is if you have documents that prove you have been together within the past two years without any ambiguity. The kid's passports don't prove this. In fact, their passports won't be needed at any point in the visa process because the kids are US citizens - they don't need a visa to come to the US.

What would probably do it is a copy of the entry/exit stamps into Spain from your passport and your fiancee's passport, proving you were both in Spain at the same time within the past two years. Add a photo of you two together in Spain (with the kids would be a nice touch) and you should be golden.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I work for a multinational that has a call center in the Philippines that supports North America. My fiance and I technically met once in the past two years when I went to her call center and saw her and said hello/goodbye. We grew closer over the internet after this "meeting". Is this enough to satisfy the following requirement for a fiancee visa?

You met each other, in person, at least once within 2 years of filing your petition. There are two exceptions that require a waiver:

1. If the requirement to meet would violate strict and long-established customs of your or your fiancé(e)’s foreign culture or social practice.

2. If you prove that the requirement to meet would result in extreme hardship to you.

This is enough IF you have proof. You would need to prove you were...

1. There

2. Met her

A photo of both of you together would be great. Along with documentation that you were there, such as boarding passes, passport stamps, etc.

Forget the exceptions, they are almost never granted and would be far more difficult, time consuming and expensive than simply going there again.

You MUSt have this evidence BEFORE you send the petition. If you send what you have (whatever it is) and it is not enough, anything else you send in response to an RFE must be from before the petition was sent. You cannnot file the petition now and go to visit her next month and use that if you get an RFE.

So having dozens witnesses who can say that I was in the same call center at the same time isn't enough?

Maybe not. And if it isn't, you are out of luck and start all over. No witnesses are needed if you have evidence of meeting.

[bigbob 0]

OK,

I made sure to use my US Passport when exiting Spain a month ago, and it has an exit stamp, and several fotos of us together in Spain at our house there. 2 of the 4 fotos have our boys in the picture, and I labeled the pictures with the month and country they were taken. But short of what I have described here and before, I did not submit any evidence such as airline tickets, etc. Do you think this is enough?

My fiance does not have stamps of entry into Spain in her Italian passport, there are no borders in Europe. I did not send a copy of her passport as it was not on the list of requirements.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Sure, I was just hoping to get her here quick. I'll probably just try to get married there if I go back. Thanks for the reply

Just decide and do what you need to do. One thing you need to do is stop trying to get around the requirements. There are lots more requirements and you will have to comply with those also.

Going there and getting married will not speed up the process. CR-1 visas take longer to process. Even the fiancee visa will not "get her here quick". The process takes way to long to be considered "quick" by any stretch.

Decide what you will do. K-1 or CR-1? Read the guides and instructions, follow the steps. Trying to do something you are not prepared for will not make anything go faster and could make it take much longer.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

OK,

I made sure to use my US Passport when exiting Spain a month ago, and it has an exit stamp, and several fotos of us together in Spain at our house there. 2 of the 4 fotos have our boys in the picture, and I labeled the pictures with the month and country they were taken. But short of what I have described here and before, I did not submit any evidence such as airline tickets, etc. Do you think this is enough?

My fiance does not have stamps of entry into Spain in her Italian passport, there are no borders in Europe. I did not send a copy of her passport as it was not on the list of requirements.

Should be enough. I sent ONE photo of us together, my passport stamps and plane boarding passes. I met my Ukrainian wife in CZ Republic by chance while there on business. I sent nothing proving she was there, except our photo together. No RFE. Plane boarding tickets are secondary to passport stamps. You could swim to Spain for all they care. HOW you get there does not matter. You were there, you met. You showed proof.

[bigbob 0]

thanks man, this whole process has had me on edge for months.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Well you have met the requirement for meeting, but now you need show PROOF of that meeting. There are primary and secondary examples of evidence of meeting. Not limited to boarding passes, visa stamps,photos of the two of you together, lodging receipts, chat logs,phone records,emails and so on. Gather all documentation and file the K1 the just of it is, roll the dice. If USCIS requires more evidence of meeting they ( USCIS) will RFE the petition and request more proof.

As far as getting her here quick. It's not going to happen with K1 or K3. These are not fast visas, ours (K1) took 6 months form the date of filing. K3 can take 12 months. Not trying to bumm you out but be prepaired to wait a while. This is not a sprint it is a marathon when it comes to immigration.

Good luck

Chat logs, phone bills and emails are specifically NOT evidence of meeting. They ARE evidence of NOT meeting in person. They are not needed and do not make up for missing evidence. You NEED to show you "met in person", not that you talked on the phone.

That stuff is for the interview later.

[pushbrk 12,106]

Chat logs, phone bills and emails are specifically NOT evidence of meeting. They ARE evidence of NOT meeting in person. They are not needed and do not make up for missing evidence. You NEED to show you "met in person", not that you talked on the phone.

That stuff is for the interview later.

Passport stamps are sufficient evidence of meeting in person. He can file the petition now and get it approved but again, I advise spending some documented time together before the interview. There's a whole lot of issue mixing in this thread. You don't need photos together as evidence of meeting. Those are for evidence of a bona fide relationship. Treat these as separate issues. Evidence of meeting MUST be included with the petition. Evidence of bona fides CAN wait until the interview and CAN be from a trip or trips that occur AFTER the petition is filed.

Marrying in the Philippines takes at least two weeks, (not including the honeymoon) so plan accordingly if that's the route you plan to take.

[Mikey J. 0]

Passport stamps are sufficient evidence of meeting in person. He can file the petition now and get it approved but again, I advise spending some documented time together before the interview. There's a whole lot of issue mixing in this thread. You don't need photos together as evidence of meeting. Those are for evidence of a bona fide relationship. Treat these as separate issues. Evidence of meeting MUST be included with the petition. Evidence of bona fides CAN wait until the interview and CAN be from a trip or trips that occur AFTER the petition is filed.

Marrying in the Philippines takes at least two weeks, (not including the honeymoon) so plan accordingly if that's the route you plan to take.

I maybe new here but here's what I have to say. You NEED PICTURES to show that you have seen each other personally at the same time it can prove that you have an on-going relationship. Other documents like phone bills, chat messages, these are to prove of your existing relationship and it is genuine. Also, I would rather pay a considerable sum to do my paper works than to do it on my own and would regret it after it is denied. I seeked assistance and they got my visa for my fiance in considerable time of 8 months. No hassle from us because all paperworks were done by them. http://bit.ly/cmnHiZ

[Penguin_ie 5,985]

Bigbob- you should be fine. I am sure you have plenty of evidence of being together (joint bills to same address etc as well as the photos). In addition, you are going through the US embassy in Spain, and Western Europe is far easier to get approved in than the Philipines.

[Joseph C 0]

Thanks for all of the replies, guys. I talked it over with her, and she agrees the most realistic thing to do would be to go get married there and then apply for a visa here. I told her it can take 6-12 months. It looks like I have some homework to do, so far CR-1 looks like the best way to go.

[Lorenzoid 12]

If you're serious about going through the likely multi-year, not inexpensive process of applying for a K-1 visa, bringing her to the US, getting married, attending to all the things that married couples have to do as they merge their lives, applying for Adjustment of Status so she can get her Green Card, etc., it seems to me that a trip for you to the Philippines would not be your greatest hurdle. Why not just take a trip there and see her again? Yes, it costs a lot of money and takes some time. But compared with the thousands you are about to spend if you go through with all of this, and the time it takes to do all of this, one trip to see her is nothing.

Of course, if you prefer to marry her there in the Philippines and then go the CR-1 route, that's certainly another option. Nothing will be quick, though. It all takes a lot of patience, expense, and dedication.

[Deputy Purple 1,294]

Thanks for all of the replies, guys. I talked it over with her, and she agrees the most realistic thing to do would be to go get married there and then apply for a visa here. I told her it can take 6-12 months. It looks like I have some homework to do, so far CR-1 looks like the best way to go.

Our CR-1 & CR-2 only took 7 months in the Philippines last year. Compile everything you can before you go.

Once there:

Here is a link to the US Embassy

You'll need the Affidavit in Lieu of Legal Capacity to Marry. If you're divorced bring a certified copy of the final divorce decree (the actual order signed by the judge).

There is a 10 day waiting period for a civil wedding so you probably want to go to the USEM the day after you land, book it back to her hometown and get the application for marriage license filled-out and use the waiting period to meet her family & plan the wedding.

After the marriage ceremony use a few bucks to expedite getting a "Certified True Copy" of your Marriage Contract even before it is registered with the NSO. This will work for filing the I-130 Petition. If you've already compiled the rest of the I-130 Package then this will complete it and you can either send it from the Philippines or as soon as you return home.

Edited August 9, 2010 by Bob 4 Anna

[DukeOfYork 28]

Can the two conversations/topics be split? Italy/Philippines?