bringing parent from belarus

[visaqna 1]

Petitioner is a U.S. citizen.

Applicant is a Belarusian citizen living in Belarus.

I-130 has been approved, so now we're filling out the DS-230. We have a few questions about the official documents which must accompany the DS-230.

First, do originals of things like a birth certificate have to be sent, or is a certified copy acceptable?

Second, we are wondering about translation of documents. Because there is no immigrant visa processing in a U.S. embassy in Belarus, we believe the interview would end up being held at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland based on this page: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1302.html#minsk although we have heard of some people having their interviews in Kiev, Ukraine. Does anyone have any personal experience with which of these embassies interviews might be held at, and is there a possibility to choose?

Our understanding is that official documents must either be translated into English OR be in the language of the country where the interview will be held. So, if the interview were in Kiev, Russian-language documents would suffice, right? If the interview were in Poland, the documents would have to be translated either to English or Polish, right?

Any guidance is appreciated.

[benuk 18]

Petitioner is a U.S. citizen.

Applicant is a Belarusian citizen living in Belarus.

I-130 has been approved, so now we're filling out the DS-230. We have a few questions about the official documents which must accompany the DS-230.

First, do originals of things like a birth certificate have to be sent, or is a certified copy acceptable?

Second, we are wondering about translation of documents. Because there is no immigrant visa processing in a U.S. embassy in Belarus, we believe the interview would end up being held at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland based on this page: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1302.html#minsk although we have heard of some people having their interviews in Kiev, Ukraine. Does anyone have any personal experience with which of these embassies interviews might be held at, and is there a possibility to choose?

Our understanding is that official documents must either be translated into English OR be in the language of the country where the interview will be held. So, if the interview were in Kiev, Russian-language documents would suffice, right? If the interview were in Poland, the documents would have to be translated either to English or Polish, right?

Any guidance is appreciated.

From my understanding all documents other than English should be always translated to english... in any Embassy in the world all employees should be english speakers!

[Enigma11561 336]

Petitioner is a U.S. citizen.

Applicant is a Belarusian citizen living in Belarus.

I-130 has been approved, so now we're filling out the DS-230. We have a few questions about the official documents which must accompany the DS-230.

First, do originals of things like a birth certificate have to be sent, or is a certified copy acceptable?

Second, we are wondering about translation of documents. Because there is no immigrant visa processing in a U.S. embassy in Belarus, we believe the interview would end up being held at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland based on this page: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1302.html#minsk although we have heard of some people having their interviews in Kiev, Ukraine. Does anyone have any personal experience with which of these embassies interviews might be held at, and is there a possibility to choose?

Our understanding is that official documents must either be translated into English OR be in the language of the country where the interview will be held. So, if the interview were in Kiev, Russian-language documents would suffice, right? If the interview were in Poland, the documents would have to be translated either to English or Polish, right?

Any guidance is appreciated.

If you read the US Embassy site in Minsk it states quite clearly that all visa interviews will be held in Warsaw. The only exception would be a person over 80yo ( I think that is the correct number). The elderly can make an appointment in Minsk, but I would confirm that. Everything needs to be Translated in to English, not Polish but only send copies not originals. Polish is only accepted for Polish citizens. But bring the originals with you to the interview.

I assume you are looking to bring over your wife's parents? And I further assume you got married at ZAGS otherwise you would have been familiar with this. The Warsaw Embassy can be a a 1-2 day trip depending upon your parents location. AND, they will need a visa from the Polish Embassy to transit to Poland. This can take up to 2 weeks so make sure that this is included in your timing. If they live in or near Minsk they can go directly to the Polish Embassy there and shorten the time. Otherwise they will need to use a local agency.

[visaqna 1]

If you read the US Embassy site in Minsk it states quite clearly that all visa interviews will be held in Warsaw. The only exception would be a person over 80yo ( I think that is the correct number). The elderly can make an appointment in Minsk, but I would confirm that. Everything needs to be Translated in to English, not Polish but only send copies not originals. Polish is only accepted for Polish citizens. But bring the originals with you to the interview.

I assume you are looking to bring over your wife's parents? And I further assume you got married at ZAGS otherwise you would have been familiar with this. The Warsaw Embassy can be a a 1-2 day trip depending upon your parents location. AND, they will need a visa from the Polish Embassy to transit to Poland. This can take up to 2 weeks so make sure that this is included in your timing. If they live in or near Minsk they can go directly to the Polish Embassy there and shorten the time. Otherwise they will need to use a local agency.

You're close to right. But, it is actually a sibling of my spouse who already has U.S. citizenship who is the petitioner. I have no idea what ZAGS is!

How confident are you about being able to send copies of documents? The DS-230 instructions state to send originals plus the translations, and I have seen some postings here about interviews in other countries where certified copies were not accepted...but then there are other pages on the internet which says that it is not recommended to send originals...so confusing.

The good news is that the applicant already does some work in Poland and travels regularly there so has a visa to at least get there for the interview.

P.S. Thank you!

Edited January 30, 2012 by visaqna

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Petitioner is a U.S. citizen.

Applicant is a Belarusian citizen living in Belarus.

I-130 has been approved, so now we're filling out the DS-230. We have a few questions about the official documents which must accompany the DS-230.

First, do originals of things like a birth certificate have to be sent, or is a certified copy acceptable?

Second, we are wondering about translation of documents. Because there is no immigrant visa processing in a U.S. embassy in Belarus, we believe the interview would end up being held at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland based on this page: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_1302.html#minsk although we have heard of some people having their interviews in Kiev, Ukraine. Does anyone have any personal experience with which of these embassies interviews might be held at, and is there a possibility to choose?

Our understanding is that official documents must either be translated into English OR be in the language of the country where the interview will be held. So, if the interview were in Kiev, Russian-language documents would suffice, right? If the interview were in Poland, the documents would have to be translated either to English or Polish, right?

Any guidance is appreciated.

Copies are OK.

Warsaw WAS doing the interviews for Belarus (and also for Ukraine before 2005) but I have heard that Kiev will be doing them because of visa travel problems with Poland now. Belarussians can travel freely to Ukraine but now need visas to go to Poland. Verify that please. Try the Russia/Ukraine/Belarus regional forum below where you may hit some more recent Belarussian applicants.

Whether translations are needed or not depends on the consulate, Kiev accepts documents in Russian, Ukrainian or English without translation.

If the interview is in Warsaw the documents would need to be translated to ENGLISH, they would only accept Polish IF the document were originally written in Polish, and then only if that consulate accepts Polish documents without translation. Moscow, for example, requires ALL documents to be translated to English.

It is highly advisable to get the documents translated anyway for many future purposes here in the US. Alla does translations from Russian and Ukrainian. PM me if she can help

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

You're close to right. But, it is actually a sibling of my spouse who already has U.S. citizenship who is the petitioner. I have no idea what ZAGS is!

How confident are you about being able to send copies of documents? The DS-230 instructions state to send originals plus the translations, and I have seen some postings here about interviews in other countries where certified copies were not accepted...but then there are other pages on the internet which says that it is not recommended to send originals...so confusing.

The good news is that the applicant already does some work in Poland and travels regularly there so has a visa to at least get there for the interview.

P.S. Thank you!

I can vouch for Enigma as a source for Belarussian immigrants!

Copies are ok for the filing. Bring the original AND a copy AND the translation to the interview. In Kiev they inspected the original, kept the copy and returned the original. We still have originals of all documents

And I defer to answer on the consulate, I had heard it was changing to Kiev but I cannot confirm that and do not even remember where I read it.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

From my understanding all documents other than English should be always translated to english... in any Embassy in the world all employees should be english speakers!

That is not the case in many consulates. Many accept documents in the country's native language OR English. Anyone you encounter at a US consulate will speak both languages, (native and English)in Kiev they speak all three Russian/Ukrainian/English. MOST, but not all, will also speak French. There will always be French speakers in any cnsulate of any country. It is the international diplomatic language.

In most consulates, the majority of people working at the consulate are natives of that country.

Edited January 30, 2012 by Gary and Alla

[Enigma11561 336]

n general, in order to be eligible to apply for an immigrant visa, a foreign citizen must be sponsored by a U.S. citizen relative(s) or by a prospective employer. Unlike most other immigrant categories, Immediate Relatives are not subject to numerical limits under immigration law. Major immigrant categories are:

Immediate Relatives

Special Immigrants

Family-sponsored

Employer-sponsored

Diversity Lottery Winners

For more information on who can file for an Immigrant Visa, types of immigrant visas and annual quota, please visit http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/immigrants_1340.html.

All immigrant visas processing for residents of Belarus is done at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland. For further information, contact Embassy Warsaw.

This is from the US Embassy website in Minsk. NON_IMMIGRANT visa CAN be issued in other consulates as well such as Kiev.