CR-1 DCF IN CHINA, PLEASE HELP

[RobMB 0]

i have been living in beijing for two and a half years and my long time girlfriend and i just got married in hopes of moving back to the states. since i have been living here for a long time i see that DCF seems to only take 3 months for approval. i have been reading all over about what i need to prepare and have been pretty confused/overwhelmed. i would like for all information to be in one place and was hoping all the nice, experienced, attractive people on this board could give me a hand i have been on business visas and tourist visas the last couple years teaching in order to keep making money and be with my wife and i dont know if not having a work visa or tax documentaion will hinder the process. so far what i gather is that me and my wife need to fill out an I-130 form and mail it in and wait for a notiice until we get all our informaton together..is this correct? a step by step response would be VERY appreciated.

[TBoneTX 43,058]

*** Thread moved from CR-1 Process forum to Direct Consular Filing forum. ***

[Darnell 8,478]

1. file a I-130 to the US Embassy/Consulate that yer homed to [beiJing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shanyang]

2. when you receive a notice about the approval, start prepping yer I-864 and DS-230 with all supporting docs on each.

3. When you get notice from Guangzhou IV, do what they tell you for IV intake

4. go get a medical exam

5. go to the interview.

That's the cliff notes version. We have some members here that have DCF'd within the last year, I'll post some member profile links when I have a mo.

good Luck !

[Darnell 8,478]

here's our CHINA DCF members -

see

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=&op1=3&op2=d&op3=5&op4=1&op5=5,6,8,10,11,13,14,15,16,17,18,20,21,22,25,26,27,28,108,110,111,208,210,211&op6=All&op7=China&dfile=Yes&adv=

[Ryan H 3,790]

1. file a I-130 to the US Embassy/Consulate that yer homed to [beiJing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Shanyang]

The Consulates in Shanghai, Chengdu, and Shenyang will not accept an I-130.

Since the OP has indicated he lives in Beijing, the Beijing USCIS field office will be the office he visits once his documents are ready for submission.

OP, you will have to go to the field office in-person; they will not accept a file sent by mail.

Edited October 27, 2012 by Ryan H

[SVH 0]

i have been on business visas and tourist visas the last couple years teaching in order to keep making money and be with my wife and i dont know if not having a work visa or tax documentaion will hinder the process.

Being that you don't have a Residence Permit, you're technically not supposed to be working. I realize that this is a pretty common situation in China, but I personally wouldn't want to document it on an application.

[Ryan H 3,790]

Being that you don't have a Residence Permit, you're technically not supposed to be working. I realize that this is a pretty common situation in China, but I personally wouldn't want to document it on an application.

This is a good catch.

OP, tourist and business visa extensions do not count toward the 6 month requirement prior to filing a petition at an overseas USCIS field office. In order to be eligible, you must be there on a long term stay visa or have a residence permit.

Edited October 29, 2012 by Ryan H

[SVH 0]

Now that you are married, you can go to your wife's hometown and apply for 1-year duration L visas, or better yet the newer Marriage Residence Permit. It seems a lot don't know about this type of visa as it is relatively new. It is an actual Residence Permit...but still does not legally allow you to work under it.

[bradf 0]

Now that you are married, you can go to your wife's hometown and apply for 1-year duration L visas, or better yet the newer Marriage Residence Permit. It seems a lot don't know about this type of visa as it is relatively new. It is an actual Residence Permit...but still does not legally allow you to work under it.

I've been living in Shanghai for ten years, and have held a variety of visas, including several Zs. However, since getting married 3 years ago I've just been getting 6-month multiple-entry L visas. (The 1-year L visa requires a medical exam that I'm always too lazy to get, and the only Marriage Residence Permit I've heard of requires you to have been married for 5 years). When I filed my I-130 in Beijing in June, the officer glanced at my latest L visa and started to say that I didn't qualify for DCF. I explained how long I'd been in China and showed him my previous passport full of Z visas, and he changed his mind and accepted my petition.

As far as working while on an L visa, I can only relate my personal experience -- I listed my occupation as "freelance" (the truth) on the G-325 and I-864 forms, and I've filed US taxes on my freelance income. Other than the USCIS guy checking whether or not I qualified for DCF, no one asked what kind of visa I had.

[SVH 0]

I've been living in Shanghai for ten years, and have held a variety of visas, including several Zs. However, since getting married 3 years ago I've just been getting 6-month multiple-entry L visas. (The 1-year L visa requires a medical exam that I'm always too lazy to get, and the only Marriage Residence Permit I've heard of requires you to have been married for 5 years). When I filed my I-130 in Beijing in June, the officer glanced at my latest L visa and started to say that I didn't qualify for DCF. I explained how long I'd been in China and showed him my previous passport full of Z visas, and he changed his mind and accepted my petition.

As far as working while on an L visa, I can only relate my personal experience -- I listed my occupation as "freelance" (the truth) on the G-325 and I-864 forms, and I've filed US taxes on my freelance income. Other than the USCIS guy checking whether or not I qualified for DCF, no one asked what kind of visa I had.

The visa you need to get the medical exam for is the Marriage Residence Permit. You can also get 1-year L visas with the purpose of visiting family without taking the medical. Both are unlimited entry visas. The only real difference is the Residence Permit allows you to apply for credit cards, get a Chinese driver's license, etc. Neither allow you to legally work, regardless of what title you give yourself. Both times I applied for an L while changing jobs, the PSB officers repeatedly reminded me that I'm not allowed to work on the visa.

The fabled "D" visa has the 5 year requirement. I've heard they've made this much easier to get starting this year. You CAN legally work on a D visa...as it is essentially the same thing as the greencard we are applying to get for our spouses.

Edited October 31, 2012 by SVH

[bradf 0]

The visa you need to get the medical exam for is the Marriage Residence Permit. You can also get 1-year L visas with the purpose of visiting family without taking the medical. Both are unlimited entry visas. The only real difference is the Residence Permit allows you to apply for credit cards, get a Chinese driver's license, etc. Neither allow you to legally work, regardless of what title you give yourself. Both times I applied for an L while changing jobs, the PSB officers repeatedly reminded me that I'm not allowed to work on the visa.

The fabled "D" visa has the 5 year requirement. I've heard they've made this much easier to get starting this year. You CAN legally work on a D visa...as it is essentially the same thing as the greencard we are applying to get for our spouses.

The 1-year L-visa does require a medical exam. In fact, all Chinese visas and residence permits, including "D", permanent residence, etc, of one year or longer require a medical exam. It's the reason I've had six six-month "spouse" L-visas.

The OP's question was about petitioning for his wife to get a US visa. The legality of his (or my) working in China is irrelevant.

[SVH 0]

The 1-year L-visa does require a medical exam. In fact, all Chinese visas and residence permits, including "D", permanent residence, etc, of one year or longer require a medical exam. It's the reason I've had six six-month "spouse" L-visas.

The OP's question was about petitioning for his wife to get a US visa. The legality of his (or my) working in China is irrelevant.

The medical check for an annual L must be something new. I was issued one a few years ago without it.

[bradf 0]

The medical check for an annual L must be something new. I was issued one a few years ago without it.

I think it started in 2009 or 2010. Anyway, it's not the big deal we seem to be making it out to be -- less invasive than the medical check our fiances and spouses have to go through to get into the US -- I just always put off renewing my visa until the last minute, so I can never afford to wait a week for the results.

[SVH 0]

I think it started in 2009 or 2010. Anyway, it's not the big deal we seem to be making it out to be -- less invasive than the medical check our fiances and spouses have to go through to get into the US -- I just always put off renewing my visa until the last minute, so I can never afford to wait a week for the results.

I've gotten the medical results the same/next day every time I've taken the exam. It's a basic exam, as I'm sure you're aware. I honestly think the only thing they are looking for is TB or HIV or whatever. The vision exam etc is nothing but a joke here in China. Last time I took the exam, they've added a urine test. I'm guessing maybe for drug screening, but that's just a guess.

[bradf 0]

I've gotten the medical results the same/next day every time I've taken the exam. It's a basic exam, as I'm sure you're aware. I honestly think the only thing they are looking for is TB or HIV or whatever. The vision exam etc is nothing but a joke here in China. Last time I took the exam, they've added a urine test. I'm guessing maybe for drug screening, but that's just a guess.

I took the exam in 2002 and again in 2006, and it included a blood test, eye exam, EKG, abdominal ultrasound, and a chest X-ray. In my experience in Shanghai, it can take between one and three weeks to get an appointment at the clinic, and 5 days for the results ... although I assume you can expedite for a fee.