WTF? Are you serious??!!!!

[Angela Murray 4]

It started with my husbands interview which was at the embassy in London on October 11th. Everything went well and the man conducting the interview said that everything looked good however there was a signature missing on the i864-a form (co-sponsors affidavit of support). He gave him the number of the embassy courier and told him to get that signed form back to him asap and include his passport. The courier picked up the amended i864-a and his passport on the 16th. We were given a tracking number and told it would take around 7-10 working days.

It is now November 7th and we've heard nothing. We've been calling USCIS in the UK and have been consistently been told that the status is 'pending'. We've been stalking the tracking number given to us by the embassy courier but to nothing other than an update confirming that the embassy received it on the 18th. Today I decided to call this number: (202)-663-1225 in the USA from travel.state.gov and got a whole other story--I was told that they've received the signature but are awaiting our joint sponsors (my mothers) 'proof of status' as in proof that she is an American citizen. #######?!

So our case has been sitting in a pile somewhere requiring evidence however neither of us have even been notified! 1: my mother was born in Brooklyn, NY. 2: At no point during the interview did the man ask for proof of our co-sponsors status however he did look at 3 years worth of tax documents and kept the most current for their records along with a letter from my mothers employer at a hospital where she's a certified CNA (apparently this does not constitute proof of status). 3: How can we be expected to act on an RFE we were never even issued? Furthermore have no instructions on how to amend! What documents are required? Where do we send them? It's a damn good thing we're impatient as hell and decided to chase things up another avenue.

When we followed up what we've learned with the embassy in the UK they still had the same lack of information and suggested the only way would be for us to be given a CIU number and an e-mail address for the USCIS.

We immediately called our immigration lawyer who was baffled by the whole thing. She told us to scan in high def copies of my mothers passport and birth certificate and email them to her tonight so that she could send them to the embassy in the morning. In addition I need to expedite via FEDEX the originals to her office. She seems to feel that my husband was rushed through his interview which has now resulted in this massive delay. It's been nearly a month since his interview and we still don't have our answer.

What is going on at the embassy in London? Are things really this disorganized? Has anyone else gone through anything similar or have any insight on the matter? We're losing our minds at this point. Any help would be appreciated.

(sorry about the cross post--Not sure if this would be more an embassy specif related thread or not)

[bigdog 376]

Seems like you are more on top of this than your paid attorney?

[Angela Murray 4]

Seems like you are more on top of this than your paid attorney?

That's what we keep hearing on both sides of the pond. When I spoke to the visa helpline in the UK they recited her contact information and said that since she filed on our behalf she would have gotten the RFE via email. She swears she hasn't received anything. I can't say whether she did or didn't but I'm definitely not at the stage of pointing fingers. I just want my husband here already.

[reese1 68]

Your attorney should have known and informed you that your co-sponsor needed to show proof they are a USC or LPR via birth certificate or passport bio page, as it asks for this information to be filled with the I-864. The problem with having to submit paper work after the interview is that, who knows when they will update the file and get the process back rolling once it has been put on hold. Not sure why the co-sponsor would have received an RFE as it is not their case. I seems this should have been caught by the NVC unless they thought the embassy would request the missing information during the interview. Either way, it's unfortunate but you are going to have to stay on top of everyone to make sure the missing information gets to the right place. I wish you the best and they get it together soon.

[Adnan&Liane 8]

I'm sorry to hear about what you are going through - my husband interviewed in London and we have been in 'Administrative Processing' for the last year. I've done everything from writing to senators, calling the Department of State, & contacting the Embassy multiple times. I recently wrote to the White House and received a response saying that they are awaiting submission of travel documents & his passport. I don't know what this means yet. My understanding was that we were pending due to Name/Background checks...I am going to try to post a thread about it sometime later today when I have more time. I also need to call the embassy and try to figure out what this means. But if I found out we waited a year after our interview and we never got any requests for this information (after repeatedly calling and asking if there was anything wrong/or missing in our case) - then I will be EXTREMELY upset... I've also heard of someone's petition that expired and denied because they didn't submit information in time that was never requested of them. I will post my thread later, but I wanted to share my experience w/you - will try to share more when I have time and figure out what's going on. All I can say is I'm sorry you have to deal w/that and glad you are on top of it making sure it gets resolved asap!

[Angela Murray 4]

Your attorney should have known and informed you that your co-sponsor needed to show proof they are a USC or LPR via birth certificate or passport bio page, as it asks for this information to be filled with the I-864. The problem with having to submit paper work after the interview is that, who knows when they will update the file and get the process back rolling once it has been put on hold. Not sure why the co-sponsor would have received an RFE as it is not their case. I seems this should have been caught by the NVC unless they thought the embassy would request the missing information during the interview. Either way, it's unfortunate but you are going to have to stay on top of everyone to make sure the missing information gets to the right place. I wish you the best and they get it together soon.

Hey Reese, thanks for your response. We filed DCF so the NVC wasn't involved in this case...Which from what I hear can really complicate matters (more than they already are). It was all filed in London. I guess keeping on top of things is all I can really do at this point

[Angela Murray 4]

I'm sorry to hear about what you are going through - my husband interviewed in London and we have been in 'Administrative Processing' for the last year. I've done everything from writing to senators, calling the Department of State, & contacting the Embassy multiple times. I recently wrote to the White House and received a response saying that they are awaiting submission of travel documents & his passport. I don't know what this means yet. My understanding was that we were pending due to Name/Background checks...I am going to try to post a thread about it sometime later today when I have more time. I also need to call the embassy and try to figure out what this means. But if I found out we waited a year after our interview and we never got any requests for this information (after repeatedly calling and asking if there was anything wrong/or missing in our case) - then I will be EXTREMELY upset... I've also heard of someone's petition that expired and denied because they didn't submit information in time that was never requested of them. I will post my thread later, but I wanted to share my experience w/you - will try to share more when I have time and figure out what's going on. All I can say is I'm sorry you have to deal w/that and glad you are on top of it making sure it gets resolved asap!

I'm so sorry to hear that. Did you do DCF?

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

We immediately called our immigration lawyer who was baffled by the whole thing. She told us to scan in high def copies of my mothers passport and birth certificate and email them to her tonight so that she could send them to the embassy in the morning. In addition I need to expedite via FEDEX the originals to her office. She seems to feel that my husband was rushed through his interview which has now resulted in this massive delay. It's been nearly a month since his interview and we still don't have our answer.

What is going on at the embassy in London? Are things really this disorganized? Has anyone else gone through anything similar or have any insight on the matter? We're losing our minds at this point. Any help would be appreciated.

(sorry about the cross post--Not sure if this would be more an embassy specif related thread or not)

Your lawyer is worthless for not knowing the basic rules of an I-864....specifically being signed and all joint sponsors must show they are a citizen or LPR in the US. Your blame on the embassy needs to be placed on the lawyer who prepared or reviewed your forms. Had they been done correctly you would already have your visa.

You said you called USCIS London? They aren't the interview people. USCIS has an office in London, but they don't do interviews and issue visas.. The embassy and interview people are part of the Dept of State, which is the number you called in the US. If you mean you called the embassy helpline, they have no access to your case details and are rarely able to help with details.

London will not require your mothers actual passport or birth certificate. It would go waaaay faster for you to make a good scan of her passport biographic page, email it to fiancé, he prints a good color copy and gets it to the embassy himself. He can do that by having the courier pick it up or just mailing to the IV Unit address.

Immigrant Visa Unit

5 Upper Grosvenor Street

London W1A 2JB

He should include his full name, LND case number and a note that the document was requested at his interview date of _____ to accompany the I-864 of his joint sponsor Mrs. Mary Smith. Also note that his passport has already been submitted to the IV Unit on [date]. Even if you don't think they requested it, just say that as a simple way to get across the point that he has indeed interviewed, the date, and that it is the last piece of evidence.

Question: Was he given a paper at his interview listing what was missing or why he could not be approved at that time? Ask him to read it and see what was listed. Or scan it for you to read the details. Is it possible he missed something?

[Darnell 8,478]

this 'proof of citizenzip' is part of the I-864 instructions.

Your lawyer missed it, and now you suffer some..

Good Luck on getting the next round of documentation into London IV - I pray it goes faster for you, this time.

[Angela Murray 4]

Your lawyer is worthless for not knowing the basic rules of an I-864....specifically being signed and all joint sponsors must show they are a citizen or LPR in the US. Your blame on the embassy needs to be placed on the lawyer who prepared or reviewed your forms. Had they been done correctly you would already have your visa.

You said you called USCIS London? They aren't the interview people. USCIS has an office in London, but they don't do interviews and issue visas.. The embassy and interview people are part of the Dept of State, which is the number you called in the US. If you mean you called the embassy helpline, they have no access to your case details and are rarely able to help with details.

London will not require your mothers actual passport or birth certificate. It would go waaaay faster for you to make a good scan of her passport biographic page, email it to fiancé, he prints a good color copy and gets it to the embassy himself. He can do that by having the courier pick it up or just mailing to the IV Unit address.

Immigrant Visa Unit

5 Upper Grosvenor Street

London W1A 2JB

He should include his full name, LND case number and a note that the document was requested at his interview date of _____ to accompany the I-864 of his joint sponsor Mrs. Mary Smith. Also note that his passport has already been submitted to the IV Unit on [date]. Even if you don't think they requested it, just say that as a simple way to get across the point that he has indeed interviewed, the date, and that it is the last piece of evidence.

Question: Was he given a paper at his interview listing what was missing or why he could not be approved at that time? Ask him to read it and see what was listed. Or scan it for you to read the details. Is it possible he missed something?

Thanks for the response. He was given a blue slip with the box 'other' ticked stating that what was require was both parties to sign I-864A.

Believe me we are frustrated beyond belief with the lawyer. We've given her a lot of money to cause us a lot of pain. We've been forced to push all that aside to focus on just getting these issues amended as fast as humanly possible and get my husband his visa.

Thanks so much for the additional info. I'm actually scanning in her passport and birth certificate tonight for him to print off in the morning. Should I send it via the embassy's courier or to normal mail to the IV unit address? Thank you so much for your help.

[Angela Murray 4]

this 'proof of citizenzip' is part of the I-864 instructions.

Your lawyer missed it, and now you suffer some..

Good Luck on getting the next round of documentation into London IV - I pray it goes faster for you, this time.

We can add that to the list of things she's missed.

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

Thanks for the response. He was given a blue slip with the box 'other' ticked stating that what was require was both parties to sign I-864A.

Believe me we are frustrated beyond belief with the lawyer. We've given her a lot of money to cause us a lot of pain. We've been forced to push all that aside to focus on just getting these issues amended as fast as humanly possible and get my husband his visa.

Thanks so much for the additional info. I'm actually scanning in her passport and birth certificate tonight for him to print off in the morning. Should I send it via the embassy's courier or to normal mail to the IV unit address? Thank you so much for your help.

I think the courier to the embassy would go straight to the proper people because that's kind of an exclusive delivery service and is only used to send passports or further documentation after an interview. The mailing address gets all the visa appplications and it could get lost amongst the masses of mail. Since the courier normally charges for a "round trip" so to speak he needs to discuss with them that he's already paid for the visa/passport delivery back and this is just an additional document that won't be returning to him. They should give him a "one way" rate if he explains it adequately.

So have you learned what is needed for a joint sponsor so you are sure there's not something else. I'm kinda wondering the scenario since you mention I-864A and not I-864. Want to go over what was provided?

Does your husband have any income?

Does he live with his joint sponsor?

Is the joint sponsor his mother or father? Did he/she fill out an I-864?

Who is the person who did an I-864A?

Edited November 7, 2012 by Nich-Nick

[Angela Murray 4]

I think the courier to the embassy would go straight to the proper people because that's kind of an exclusive delivery service and is only used to send passports or further documentation after an interview. The mailing address gets all the visa appplications and it could get lost amongst the masses of mail. Since the courier normally charges for a "round trip" so to speak he needs to discuss with them that he's already paid for the visa/passport delivery back and this is just an additional document that won't be returning to him. They should give him a "one way" rate if he explains it adequately.

So have you learned what is needed for a joint sponsor so you are sure there's not something else. I'm kinda wondering the scenario since you mention I-864A and not I-864. Want to go over what was provided?

Does your husband have any income?

Does he live with his joint sponsor?

Is the joint sponsor his mother or father? Did he/she fill out an I-864?

Who is the person who did an I-864A?

Thank you so much! He's watching this thread from the UK as well. Sadly I don't feel I've learned all I need to. We need all the help we can get at this point. Going over it would be great.

My husband was employed but put in his 2 weeks notice following the interview. Preemptive but we certainly didn't anticipate this.

The joint sponsor is my mother and I live with her.

My mother filled out the I-864A--I am the sponsor and my mother the joint sponsor. I'm self employed and have surpassed the poverty line ($29K for this year) but since I didn't file my taxes yet for this year the guy doing the interview said he couldn't include it. They could only count my $10K from last year which is when my business had just started. They added that $10K to my mothers $33K.

[Nich-Nick 3,353]

Thank you so much! He's watching this thread from the UK as well. Sadly I don't feel I've learned all I need to. We need all the help we can get at this point. Going over it would be great.

My husband was employed but put in his 2 weeks notice following the interview. Preemptive but we certainly didn't anticipate this.

The joint sponsor is my mother and I live with her.

My mother filled out the I-864A--I am the sponsor and my mother the joint sponsor. I'm self employed and have surpassed the poverty line ($29K for this year) but since I didn't file my taxes yet for this year the guy doing the interview said he couldn't include it. They could only count my $10K from last year which is when my business had just started. They added that $10K to my mothers $33K.

Sorry, I didn't mean husband employed but rather you the sponsor.

So you show $10k on 2011 taxes and because it's self employment, there's not a way to show current income like an employer letter or pay stubs. So all they have to go by is the 10K.

There's a couple of ways that are correct. If you would print an I-864 and follow along, it would make more sense.

FIRST WAY--

You the sponsor/wife

• I-864
  
• 2011 tax return
  

On #21g you add 1 to your household size (Mom) in order to count Mom's money.

On #24b you list Mom and her income.

On #24c you total you+Mom $$

On #24d you put a check mark

Joint sponsor Mom

• I-864A (that's like a permission slip for you to use her income)
  
• 2011 tax return
  
• Another proof of her income is always good
  
• Proof of her US citizenship (birth certificate or passport)
  

In addition to that, you must prove:

• You and Mom reside at the same address, ie household members (photocopies of both driver licenses is good proof)
  
• You and Mom are related as stated in the instructions (photocopy of your birth certificate would show her name as mother)
  

A BETTER WAY if Mom makes enough on her own to cover her household size plus 1 (immigrant). If you aren't a listed dependent on income tax, then you don't have to be counted in household size.

You the sponsor/wife

• I-864
  
• 2011 tax return
  

Joint sponsor Mom

• I-864 (note--no A on that)
  
• 2011 tax return
  
• Another proof of her income is always good
  
• Proof of her US citizenship (birth certificate or passport)
  

The second way is easier because no residence to prove or kinship. And I'm wondering if you included the extra bits on #21 and #24 on your form for the first way to be accurate. The only reason anybody needs to do the first way is if you didn't make enough and Mom didn't either. It's a way family members can pool their money into one pot to get over the threshhold.

And I can't believe I've just spent all that time explaining something your paid attorney should have known and done for you.

Buy me a Starbucks please, next time you're in town

Edited November 8, 2012 by Nich-Nick

[Holly2234 66]

Wow i am really at a loss for words on this.. You filed the day before me! What a completely useless lawyer to not even know this stuff off the top of her head never mind fail to research it and get it wrong.

Nich-Nicks second option was the one i was describing via PM. I assumed you would not be on her tax return as a dependant since you have only just got back to the US yourself. There was a mistake on my husbands parents tax return. They listed him as a dependant when he wasnt even there! It wasnt an issue at the interview and they have yet to hear from the IRS about it.

Also there is no need to FedEx your moms original documents. They only need to be photocopies. Did she ever refund your last FedEx expenses?!

I hope you get some good news soon.