Filipino in Thailand

[sammdt 4]

Hello guys! I'm a Filipino working here in Thailand, my fiancee, a Filipino-American filed the I-129F at California Service Center...I heard from friends that it might take a year for the processing coz the USCIS will send my papers for background check to the US Embassy-Philippines then after that, will be sent back to US Embassy here in Thailand...But there are also some people who are saying that it will just takes months...Please give me some idea about this issue...Thanks and more Power to us!

[Mogambi 96]

At some point your fiancé can request what embassy to do your interview, and he will request Bangkok. It shouldn't take THAT much more time than a normal K1 visa, maybe a bit more time. Most people start to finish on a K1 are 7 to 9 months for everything, if he just filed now to start it.

Be aware, you're going to need to get your NBI clearance from Philippines, and I'm not sure how you do that from Thailand. You might have to make a trip back to Manila to take care of some paperwork there, getting your Cenomar, and NSO copies of your Birth Certificate. Not now, but later once you have your first approval.

Also, on the I-129F form, I think it would have listed the embassy you want to do you interview at. I think he should have put in there the THAILAND embassy, in which case I don't believe your paperwork would ever have gone, or needed to go, through Manila. In that case it wouldn't slow things down at all.

I'm not certain, but that's probably how it should have been done. What embassy did he list on the I-129F, do you know?

[C-ma'am 684]

All this assuming that you are a legal resident in Thailand, correct?

If this is the case, you should have listed your Thailand residence address in your G-325A and the on the I-129-f (as Mogambi pointed out).

Did any of that happen?

[beejay 125]

If you listed your address as Thailand then your interview will be in Thailand (unless somebody makes a mistake but it will be easily corrected). Your case will not have to go to Manila first and it won't add any extra time than if you were doing the interview in Manila. You can get your NBI clearance from Thailand, no need to go back to Philippines. The process may have changed since we did it but it can be done relatively easily. Call the Philippine embassy in Thailand to ask how to do it.

If I remember correctly we got the fingerprint card from the embassy, then went to the local police station to have the fingerprints done, then sent it to a relative in Philippines with a letter stating he had permission to obtain the clearance, then he sent it back. You can send it directly to NBI but I believe that will take longer.