Preparing the K-1 Petition

[aklovely 0]

I'm basically sabotaging myself because I keep getting stuck on nit-picky stuff. Please be patient with me. I've read the step-by-step guide several times, but maybe I still missed it. I've searched the forums the best I could, but maybe I'm not typing the right stuff in the search box. I've delayed posting on the forum long enough, so I'll stop being shy and ask my possibly dumb questions and hope I don't get told to search harder.

I'm gathering my evidence: photos, skype sessions, etc. What I need to know is...should I put my name and the current date on each sheet of paper? And is it ok to type a brief explanation of whatever is on each page (or maybe just for things that need to be explained)? Photos should be easy enough, so I'm not worried about those. As for cards, letters, gift receipts, should I photocopy those and put them in their own folder (though I wouldn't know what to classify said folder when labelling it)? Or are cards and letters not meant to be sent with the petition?

It's incredible how much time I've wasted on possibly unimportant details. Any advice is greatly appreciated, since I'm utterly and unreasonably at a standstill. I should've been done with this weeks ago, in all honesty.

Disclaimer: I'm probably going to have more petty questions as I get closer to completing my K-1 petition packet, but I swear I'll try to find out for myself before I ask.

Thanks in advance! And also, hi.

[Boiler 43,430]

Which consulate?

[TanguyAndJuliet 8]

I did, and I still do, question if maybe I put a "N/A" where I should have left a blank, or if there was some minute detail that I messed up. Don't beat yourself up over being thorough- follow the directions to the best of your ability. Worst case scenario is an RFE.

Cards and letters are good for proof of ongoing relationship, but that is not of the utmost importance at this stage- that might be better for the interview. USCIS wants to see proof of having met within the last two years. Photos are good, but they are "secondary" evidence. Give them primary evidence- things that irrefutably prove you have met, such as passport stamps showing entry into each other's countries or receipts in their town (photocopies are fine, but make sure you have original documents in case they ask to see them).

Your table of contents will be sufficient to explain what is in your packet. They know what they are looking at and what is missing. If you'd like, you can put post it notes on documents explaining what they are. Post its should be pretty easy for the person reviewing your case to remove. I did this with basically everything in my packet, just to make myself feel better haha.

[aklovely 0]

The US consulate in Melbourne, Australia....hopefully that's what you were asking about.

[usmsbow 795]

I'm basically sabotaging myself because I keep getting stuck on nit-picky stuff. Please be patient with me. I've read the step-by-step guide several times, but maybe I still missed it. I've searched the forums the best I could, but maybe I'm not typing the right stuff in the search box. I've delayed posting on the forum long enough, so I'll stop being shy and ask my possibly dumb questions and hope I don't get told to search harder.

I'm gathering my evidence: photos, skype sessions, etc. What I need to know is...should I put my name and the current date on each sheet of paper? And is it ok to type a brief explanation of whatever is on each page (or maybe just for things that need to be explained)? Photos should be easy enough, so I'm not worried about those. As for cards, letters, gift receipts, should I photocopy those and put them in their own folder (though I wouldn't know what to classify said folder when labelling it)? Or are cards and letters not meant to be sent with the petition?

It's incredible how much time I've wasted on possibly unimportant details. Any advice is greatly appreciated, since I'm utterly and unreasonably at a standstill. I should've been done with this weeks ago, in all honesty.

Disclaimer: I'm probably going to have more petty questions as I get closer to completing my K-1 petition packet, but I swear I'll try to find out for myself before I ask.

Thanks in advance! And also, hi.

Well none of that will hurt your petition. I don't think it's all necessary either. As someone else noted, as long as you have proof you've met within the last 2 years, that is sufficient evidence for USCIS. The rest of it is good to bring to the interview.

I submitted one photo of us, passport stamps, and airline boarding passes proving I had been to Indonesia recently. That's it. No RFE. Fiancee brought a lot of photos and a couple other items to the interview. Was approved.

Edited March 19, 2015 by usmsbow

[aklovely 0]

We've only met once, but I was lucky enough to have an entire year with him. Unfortunately, I don't have tons of evidence that we were together. But hopefully the small bits I do have are strong enough. I have gift receipts for things I bought for him in his town. I'll use that. Umm...I have only one stamp in my passport -- my arrival. We only took one trip to Melbourne together, but I have receipts for the aquarium there. I guess a bank statement showing purchases made while I was there? Doesn't really prove I was with him, so maybe not...

[TanguyAndJuliet 8]

I sent in bank statements showing purchases made in my fiance's town. While it doesn't prove you were with him, pairing it with pictures and other secondary evidence makes your case stronger

[cdneh 3,112]

I sent bank statements too, it showed ATM withdrawals and ticket purchases and the like.

Not to worry, I think we all do the "paralysis by analysis" thing at one stage or another. I think it comes with the territory Welcome to VJ !

[yuna628 9,528]

I'm basically sabotaging myself because I keep getting stuck on nit-picky stuff. Please be patient with me. I've read the step-by-step guide several times, but maybe I still missed it. I've searched the forums the best I could, but maybe I'm not typing the right stuff in the search box. I've delayed posting on the forum long enough, so I'll stop being shy and ask my possibly dumb questions and hope I don't get told to search harder.

I'm gathering my evidence: photos, skype sessions, etc. What I need to know is...should I put my name and the current date on each sheet of paper? And is it ok to type a brief explanation of whatever is on each page (or maybe just for things that need to be explained)? Photos should be easy enough, so I'm not worried about those. As for cards, letters, gift receipts, should I photocopy those and put them in their own folder (though I wouldn't know what to classify said folder when labelling it)? Or are cards and letters not meant to be sent with the petition?

It's incredible how much time I've wasted on possibly unimportant details. Any advice is greatly appreciated, since I'm utterly and unreasonably at a standstill. I should've been done with this weeks ago, in all honesty.

Disclaimer: I'm probably going to have more petty questions as I get closer to completing my K-1 petition packet, but I swear I'll try to find out for myself before I ask.

Thanks in advance! And also, hi.

The cards/letters and receipts we sent were photocopies and do not need to be put in a folder. In fact it is recommended to not have anything put in any sort of a folder. We organized everything, and made sure to state what everything was on the cover letter. Everything was paper clipped. The best thing to send for evidence is passport stamps and boarding passes. Do you have photographs that coincide with the receipts of places you visited? That would be helpful, especially if you label the back of the photographs saying where and when.

[aklovely 0]

I know it's late, but thanks so much for all the replies! I'm sitting at my desk, about to put it all together finally...but the only nagging question I have now is...I took screenshots of my FB page, but I cropped them so it'd all fit better on paper. On some, I scratched over swear words from other friends in Paint. Is that a no-no? Last thing I want is for my screenshots to be worthless because I edited them...

[usmsbow 795]

I know it's late, but thanks so much for all the replies! I'm sitting at my desk, about to put it all together finally...but the only nagging question I have now is...I took screenshots of my FB page, but I cropped them so it'd all fit better on paper. On some, I scratched over swear words from other friends in Paint. Is that a no-no? Last thing I want is for my screenshots to be worthless because I edited them...

Screen shots of what on FB? If they're of conversations with your fiance, I don't know why it would be an issue. If they are screen shots of photos of you two together, why not just download the photos? You could then crop them, then paste a few of them on a word document, and print them that way.

[aklovely 0]

Thanks for your reply!

Actually, neither. Maybe it sounds silly, but my guy never uses his FB account. So there were no conversations between us there. However, I posted stuff on my wall during my year with him, and our mutual friends commented, all based around events that happened while we were together. I don't know how useful it'll be for my case, but I thought I'd supply any little tid-bit that somewhat proves that we were together at some point during the last two years. I guess even if they don't accept the FB pages for whatever reason, the other evidence I have should suffice. *trying to be brave*

[av8or1 246]

Thanks for your reply!

Actually, neither. Maybe it sounds silly, but my guy never uses his FB account. So there were no conversations between us there. However, I posted stuff on my wall during my year with him, and our mutual friends commented, all based around events that happened while we were together. I don't know how useful it'll be for my case, but I thought I'd supply any little tid-bit that somewhat proves that we were together at some point during the last two years. I guess even if they don't accept the FB pages for whatever reason, the other evidence I have should suffice. *trying to be brave*

aklovely, well to speak openly, you're overthinking this just a bit. From what I read regarding the evidence you have amassed already, the FB conversation wouldn't even be necessary. Submit it if you want, but it'll be overkill. FWIW. The gory details matter more during the interview, as others have mentioned. But even that depends on the embassy/consulate in question. To learn more about the embassy in Australia, I'd suggest that you view the regional subforums where folk discuss that stuff. But that too will come later, during the interview phase.

As Yuna mentioned, don't include folders and such, and don't staple anything together. And yes, print, sign and date every single sheet of supplemental information, ergo anything that is not a USCIS form needs that treatment. I also wrote what each and every extra sheet of paper was in reference to, citing the item number on the USCIS form, and using that same wording as the title for each and every sheet of paper. That way, they could know at a glance what each piece of paper was for, even before examining the actual content. But anyway.

Follow the guidelines, be certain that your content is ordered according to your cover letter, don't forget to have everything signed and dated (USCIS forms included) and don't forget your payment. Apart from that you should be fine.

And of course, don't forget to copy EVERYTHING! Make 2 or 3 copies of everything, including the front and back of your pictures.

Good luck, let us know how it goes.

Edited March 29, 2015 by av8or1

[FHL 0]

I'm basically sabotaging myself because I keep getting stuck on nit-picky stuff. Please be patient with me. I've read the step-by-step guide several times, but maybe I still missed it. I've searched the forums the best I could, but maybe I'm not typing the right stuff in the search box. I've delayed posting on the forum long enough, so I'll stop being shy and ask my possibly dumb questions and hope I don't get told to search harder.

I'm gathering my evidence: photos, skype sessions, etc. What I need to know is...should I put my name and the current date on each sheet of paper? And is it ok to type a brief explanation of whatever is on each page (or maybe just for things that need to be explained)? Photos should be easy enough, so I'm not worried about those. As for cards, letters, gift receipts, should I photocopy those and put them in their own folder (though I wouldn't know what to classify said folder when labelling it)? Or are cards and letters not meant to be sent with the petition?

It's incredible how much time I've wasted on possibly unimportant details. Any advice is greatly appreciated, since I'm utterly and unreasonably at a standstill. I should've been done with this weeks ago, in all honesty.

Disclaimer: I'm probably going to have more petty questions as I get closer to completing my K-1 petition packet, but I swear I'll try to find out for myself before I ask.

Thanks in advance! And also, hi.

Hi aklovely,

We started off the same way. My gf and I are still not sure of what to expect from USCIS. It makes more sense after you print everything out, label things, highlight things, put them in order, etc. Like everyone said make sure to sign and date every additional sheet and write at the top to which form and question you are refering to. I also added on the top right side "page 1/1" or 1/2, etc. you get the idea. I did it in case one of the sheets gets misplaced or something.

I also created cover sheets for her birth certificate, our proof of meeting in the past 2 years, etc. I included a short statement like "attached you will find...as proof of..." signed and dated too.

For evidence, since I was a student at the same university, we had to download all our bank statements and find purchases that showed we were at the same store on the same day. We didn't make any trips together until a year later, so that was the tricky part for us. The other evidence are email confirmations of our trips and bank statements proving we were in each others hometowns and pics.

If you have an A number, include it next to your name on all the sheets you are signing and dating.

We haven't sent our packet yet, but that's how we plan on doing it. I hope this is of some help. Here's the post I made a couple of days ago that helped me put the packet together: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/541965-getting-ready-to-send-in-i-129f-your-input-please/

Good luck and let us know how it goes.

Felix

[Zedayn 485]

Thanks for your reply!

Actually, neither. Maybe it sounds silly, but my guy never uses his FB account. So there were no conversations between us there. However, I posted stuff on my wall during my year with him, and our mutual friends commented, all based around events that happened while we were together. I don't know how useful it'll be for my case, but I thought I'd supply any little tid-bit that somewhat proves that we were together at some point during the last two years. I guess even if they don't accept the FB pages for whatever reason, the other evidence I have should suffice. *trying to be brave*

Don't even need your FB stuff. In all honesty your probably don't need much of any relationship proof given the consulate you are going through. A few pages of chat logs and some pictures would suffice.

I submitted about 20 pages of chat logs for my petition, as well as about 10 pictures. At the interview they only asked to see pictures.

Don't stress yourself too much over this. Get your packet finished, send it in and get the process started!