Orientation please!

[Bella&Jostin 0]

Hello everyone! So excited to finally join. I've been reading for a while but wanted to wait until I was closer to file my petition to join. I have a few questions and would appreciate it immensely if you would help me answer them! I am petitioning my boyfriend (soon to be fiancé) with a K-1 visa sometime before the end of summer. Before I start the process though, I would like to know the following:

1. I am turning 19 in September, my fiancé is turning 23 the same month.I know, I am young but I don't want to wait until we are older to uproot his life over here. Plus we've waited long enough since we had to wait until I was at least 18 to get married. My question is the following, will my age affect a decision during the process?

2. Considering my age you can tell that I don't make enough to be his sponsor on my own. I do have a job, but do not make above the poverty line. My parents both make more than enough each on their own to be sponsors, and since they live in the same household, all of our incomes are combined correct? My parents have more than happily agreed to be sponsors. My question is the following, will the fact the the primary sponsor will most likely be my father affect a decision during the process?

3. I have noticed that RFEs slow down the process time by months. I am wondering exactly why do people receive RFEs? Are they more common in petitions done on ones own? Am I more likely to receive an RFE if I do everything myself? Is it recommended that I contract an immigration lawyer or is that an unnecessary waste? As you can probably tell, I am ahead for my age and quite mature. I have no doubt that I can complete the whole process on my own but I just want to be sure RFEs aren't something that can be avoided by hiring someone to do paperwork or if those things just happen. Please help on this one, it is one of my main worries.

4. I have spent every summer since I was 8 years old in the Dominican Republic and have passports for proof. I have known my fiancé for my whole life but obviously have not been romantically involved until much more recently. Is this something I should explain in the petition where it asks about when we met or should I start our story from when we began to be romantically involved?

I will appreciate the help so much since the embassy office in the Dominican Republic is one of the toughest I hear. If you have any other advice at all PLEASE feel free to express. Thank you all so much! Excited to hear from all of you!

[Ryan H 3,834]

1. No

2. You will be the primary sponsor, even if you don't meet the threshold on your own. One of your parents will be a co-sponsor (joint sponsor during the AOS process).

3. Following the directions on the form will reduce the likelihood of an RFE. Hiring a lawyer or service will not make a difference.

4. IMO, such a letter is best when the story starts from the very begining. In your case, that would be how you met. This is something you will spell out in what is commonly referred to as a relationship letter that you would include separately along with your evidence.

[Bella&Jostin 0]

1. No

2. You will be the primary sponsor, even if you don't meet the threshold on your own. One of your parents will be a co-sponsor (joint sponsor during the AOS process).

3. Following the directions on the form will reduce the likelihood of an RFE. Hiring a lawyer or service will not make a difference.

4. IMO, such a letter is best when the story starts from the very begining. In your case, that would be how you met. This is something you will spell out in what is commonly referred to as a relationship letter that you would include separately along with your evidence.

Thank you so much! Very much appreciated.

[TBoneTX 46,379]

In addition to the excellent advice from Ryan: go atop any VJ page, click "Embassy Info" and "Reviews: Embassy," and read everything that's there about Santo Domingo. Furthermore, go to the appropriate regional subforum (down the Forums list) -- Caribbean -- and read everything available about the Dominican Republic.

In every instance, pay strongest attention to the WORST stories. By preparing in this way now, you can "front-load" your I-129F petition with material that the embassy should see ahead of the eventual visa interview. Good luck, si man.