Petition for Stepchild - I never actually met her

[Harmon-y 32]

I am petitioning for my stepdaughter who lives in El Salvador. I have my I-130 sent in and things are going well. But I noticed for almost all of the petitions you have to have met the person (Husband/Wife has to have consummated the marriage, adoption must include meeting in person, I-129F requires meeting). But, my stepdaughter and I have never met in person. Is this required? I know the obvious answer is, well just go meet her and save yourself the hassle. But, my husband is opposed to my traveling to El Salvador as it is a dangerous country. On a side note, it also would not look good for me to vacation there as he has an asylum case and people who want to kill him there. If I have to meet her I believe it would require me going to a neighboring country and having her meet me there. Of course this would also be a lengthy and costly process.

So, the final question is it is required that I meet my stepdaughter for her visa to be approved?

[Harmon-y 32]

Anybody out there...? Or is this just too weird...

[apple21 953]

How old is the child?

[Harmon-y 32]

Thank you for responding! She is 13 years old - we got married when she was 11.

[velrich 50]

It is not a requirement that you have met her but it would be beneficial to do so.

You should still try to get to know her and she know you via phone calls, letters, post cards, Skype etc. They may ask the child questions about you at the interview.

Go join them here http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/363683-stand-alone-i-130-for-stepchildren/page-81

Edited November 11, 2013 by velrich

[Harmon-y 32]

Thank you!!

[NArocks 13]

Thank you!!

If I may also ask a few questions

1. Who will go with the child to the interview at the Embassy?

2. Does the mother of the child agree with the child coming to the US?

3. How long have you been married to your Husband? I ask since if it is under 2 years you have to remove conditions on top of all this other stuff

also if the other parent does not agree then the child can not come.

For us once we got to the NVC stage we were asked for a notorized letter from the boys Mom ( Was an RFE ) stating the boys were allowed to immigrate to the US.

I know a lot has changed in recent years as I brought my Step Kids in 2008. But you will also need to look into the exit requirements of the country to make sure this is in order when it is time for her to come.

Get to know as stated via Skype, calls letters in anyway possible to make her transition here also better as she will already know you. I happened to take a trip to Colombia a few months before the boys interview and got to know them, not that it helped much in the end But hey I did my best.....

Also Colombia has requirements that until the child is 18 if they attempt to leave the country with one or no parent they need a special Form filled out.

I truly hope it works out for the best

[Harmon-y 32]

Hi NArocks!

1. The child will be going with her natural mother to the embassy. I read that my husband will need to send a paper explaining he is unable to accompany her as well as I believe El Salvador likes to have both parents with minors

2. The mother agrees - she sent us a notarized letter we were able to submit with the I-130

3. Under 2 years when I submitted. We will be 2 years the end of May So we will have to remove conditions

I have started calling her weekly to chat for 10 min or so. We haven't been able to get skype to work on the computer we sent her

It looks like El Salvador will require both parents to write up saying that she is okay to leave the country. I will ask her mother if there are any actual forms that we will need my husband to fill out and send. Also, I am worried about her flying out of El Salvador alone and having her POE without any support...

What kind of questions were asked in the interview for your stepchild if you don't mind my asking? When I talk to her I want to talk like her friend, not like I am prepping her for an interview (we are family after all!) But I am nervous that the kind of questions they might ask her wont come up in normal conversation.

Any/All help is appreciated!!!

[NArocks 13]

My Dear harmony - they Did not speak to either on of the Kids at the interview lol. Their dad was there and he was asked the questions. We were missing a copy of a tax return ( Do not know how I sent triplicate of them all lol ) and he had to go out and make copies.

We were able to go to the Colombian embassy and get the letter needed when the boys traveled back on their own. I am hoping the best for your journey and new Step Parent relationship . It is sometimes difficult when the child comes from a different background/culture than yours. This was the case for me, was not the best time the first few years. But I will never change the experience the immigration process and given to me.

Much Luck

Edited December 29, 2013 by NArocks

[VICTORIOUS876 0]

Hi NArocks!

1. The child will be going with her natural mother to the embassy. I read that my husband will need to send a paper explaining he is unable to accompany her as well as I believe El Salvador likes to have both parents with minors

2. The mother agrees - she sent us a notarized letter we were able to submit with the I-130

3. Under 2 years when I submitted. We will be 2 years the end of May So we will have to remove conditions

I have started calling her weekly to chat for 10 min or so. We haven't been able to get skype to work on the computer we sent her

It looks like El Salvador will require both parents to write up saying that she is okay to leave the country. I will ask her mother if there are any actual forms that we will need my husband to fill out and send. Also, I am worried about her flying out of El Salvador alone and having her POE without any support...

What kind of questions were asked in the interview for your stepchild if you don't mind my asking? When I talk to her I want to talk like her friend, not like I am prepping her for an interview (we are family after all!) But I am nervous that the kind of questions they might ask her wont come up in normal conversation.

Any/All help is appreciated!!!

Hi, they'll ask her simple questions like : Have u ever met ur step-mom ? Are you excited to go there ? What do u want to do when u go there ? Have u ever traveled before ?

[Harmon-y 32]

Thank you both VICTORIOUS876 and NARocks - I think we are moving in the right direction then with our immigration journey. I really appreciate your time to help me on the path! I will keep updating once I get my NOA2 (in what... 6 more months? )

[NArocks 13]

Thank you both VICTORIOUS876 and NARocks - I think we are moving in the right direction then with our immigration journey. I really appreciate your time to help me on the path! I will keep updating once I get my NOA2 (in what... 6 more months? )

Well we were through the process pretty quickly in 2007 so it could be less than 6 months. Start getting all docs together and ready to go once you get to NVC as that speeds the process up alot. And now since so much in on line it helps even more. Hopefully she will get here around the end of the school year and the summer to get ready for her new school etc. I place the boys in school the last 2 months just to help them adjust and start picking up more English.

My thoughts are with you on this Journey

My time line has a lot of info and also my story has many dates etc we were delayed due to holidays in December if not they would have been here in January of 08 instead of march.

[kendelle 103]

On 11/5/2013 at 1:20 PM, Harmon-y said:

I am petitioning for my stepdaughter who lives in El Salvador. I have my I-130 sent in and things are going well. But I noticed for almost all of the petitions you have to have met the person (Husband/Wife has to have consummated the marriage, adoption must include meeting in person, I-129F requires meeting). But, my stepdaughter and I have never met in person. Is this required? I know the obvious answer is, well just go meet her and save yourself the hassle. But, my husband is opposed to my traveling to El Salvador as it is a dangerous country. On a side note, it also would not look good for me to vacation there as he has an asylum case and people who want to kill him there. If I have to meet her I believe it would require me going to a neighboring country and having her meet me there. Of course this would also be a lengthy and costly process.

So, the final question is it is required that I meet my stepdaughter for her visa to be approved?

Hi i am in the same boat, never met my step children. my question is , have you ever met your step daughter before she got approved?  What type of documents have you submitted as proof and what type of questions did they ask your stepchild during the interview?

[Harmon-y 32]

Hey! Just to give you hope, my stepdaughter has been here over four years now and is working toward citizenship so it is possible! I never met her before she came. All I did was prove my husband is her father (birth certificate and affidavit from the mother of their relationship as they were never married) and prove my husband and I are married (license, cohabitation, pics, etc). They approved I130 first time. In the interview, they asked her who was petitioning for her and what she would do here. She was asked more about her dad than me. She was asked questions that lead me to believe they wanted to make sure she was safe here and not going to be a house servant- like will you go to school? Will you have your own room? Good luck!! Let me know if you have any more questions!