Please help clear up I-129F confusion?

[Teacake 76]

I’m Australian and my fiancé (US petitioner) and I are working on our K1 packet together. I’ve read through the I-129F multiple times, yet there are so many things confusing me that my head hurts. Any help clarifying these things would be so gratefully appreciated!

 

① The form “expires” at the end of this month, which is when we are trying to have our packet sent in at the latest. Is this going to be a problem for us? My fiancé thinks we should wait until September for a new form to be released, but I’m wary of changes being made regarding RFEs in the near future and want to get this done as soon as possible.

 

② We’re filling out the I-129F using Adobe Acrobat Pro on the computer because the USCIS website recommends doing it with Adobe, but it won’t let me put my Australian state in the “state” section of my address. I start typing and it automatically wants to choose US states, even if I type “Australia” in the country field. How can I bypass this?

 

③ What do you put in fields irrelevant to you? I’ve seen the word “none” being used, and I’ve heard of people leaving the fields blank. Which is the best way to go?

 

④ In both the petitioner and the beneficiary’s mailing address sections, do their names go in the “In Care of Name” field? What does this mean exactly? I’ve seen sample forms where this field was left blank. In what situation would one need to fill this in then, and with whose name? Someone other than the petitioner or beneficiary (if they have a carer or something)?

 

⑤ For US states and foreign countries the petitioner has lived in since 18, if they’ve only lived in one state, what should you put in the “Residence 2” field? Is it okay to leave it blank?

 

⑥ With Adobe, no numbers can be used in the beneficiary’s employment history section, but my recent workplace has a number “2” in its name. Do I stylise it “two”, or would this be problematic? How should I get around this?

 

⑦ Speaking of employment, I’m currently unemployed and have been since finishing my work at the aforementioned workplace. It was a summer job I took on over Christmas after having completed my studies at university in November 2017. My graduation ceremony took place in May 2018. I have seen people use “student” as their occupation, so do I mention my studies in my employment history within the last 5 years? As I’m currently unemployed, I should mention this first in my employment history, correct?

 

⑧ My fiancé has a 5-digit zip code that he always uses as his mailing address, but officially, there is a hyphen with an additional 4 digits afterwards (mainly used by services like Amazon when his address is automated). Adobe won’t let me put a hyphen in the zip code field. Do I just use the 5-digit one, or have all 9 numbers together with no hyphen?

 

⑨ Because so many of these issues seem to deal with Adobe itself, I wonder how many people very carefully handwrite their forms, in block letters for example? If this is not recommended by USCIS, I’m hesitant to do so of course. Just frustrated with Adobe.

 

Sorry for the long winded post. I feel really stressed about the ambiguities and have tried searching all around for the answers to my questions with little luck. Again, any help would be dearly appreciated.

 

Edited August 12, 2018 by Bunny1

[mc962 55]

You can fill in stuff with pen if the computer won't do it. Adobe wouldn't take dashes and commas in certain fields for me, for example. It definitely didn't know what to do with a Japanese address. 😂

I did as much as possible with the computer, and filled in stuff that the computer wouldn't do with pen.

For fields that didn't apply to me, I put N/A in most of them. That makes it pretty clear that it doesn't apply to you.

I'd like to say, that they would be fine with the form that was valid when they issue your NOA1, but I agree, that's a little close to the cutoff. I'd probably call them to ask what they would prefer.

I left the "In Care of Name" field blank it seems, they were fine with it. I think it applies in certain situations, but I can't remember them. Possibly if someone is their guardian, or in charge of the residence, or something like that.

I just did the 5 digit code, they were fine with it. It's probably more so they can find the address, which in most cases the 5 digit does the job.

You would probably want to mention the employment history in order. I think what I did was mention something like "In addition to all this other history, I was student from year1-year2." I think this helps more with giving context to why there are gaps in the employment history, which a student is a sensible reason. 

Edited August 12, 2018 by mc962

[britishandusa 446]

15 minutes ago, Bunny1 said:

I’m Australian and my fiancé (US petitioner) and I are working on our K1 packet together. I’ve read through the I-129F multiple times, yet there are so many things confusing me that my head hurts. Any help clarifying these things would be so gratefully appreciated!

 

① The form “expires” at the end of this month, which is when we are trying to have our packet sent in at the latest. Is this going to be a problem for us? My fiancé thinks we should wait until September for a new form to be released, but I’m wary of changes being made regarding RFEs in the near future and want to get this done as soon as possible. Make sure the form isn't expired when you send it in so either send it in now or wait until the new one comes out.

 

② We’re filling out the I-129F using Adobe Acrobat Pro on the computer because the USCIS website recommends doing it with Adobe, but it won’t let me put my Australian state in the “state” section of my address. I start typing and it automatically wants to choose US states, even if I type “Australia” in the country field. How can I bypass this? Australia is not a state, it is a country so you put it in country.

 

③ What do you put in fields irrelevant to you? I’ve seen the word “none” being used, and I’ve heard of people leaving the fields blank. Which is the best way to go? Put N/A

 

④ In both the petitioner and the beneficiary’s mailing address sections, do their names go in the “In Care of Name” field? What does this mean exactly? I’ve seen sample forms where this field was left blank. In what situation would one need to fill this in then, and with whose name? Someone other than the petitioner or beneficiary (if they have a carer or something)? It's just asking who is this mailing to. You can either put the name of the person receiving the mail or leave it blank.

 

⑤ For US states and foreign countries the petitioner has lived in since 18, if they’ve only lived in one state, what should you put in the “Residence 2” field? Is it okay to leave it blank? Leave it blank.

 

⑥ With Adobe, no numbers can be used in the beneficiary’s employment history section, but my recent workplace has a number “2” in its name. Do I stylise it “two”, or would this be problematic? How should I get around this? You can put Two

 

⑦ Speaking of employment, I’m currently unemployed and have been since finishing my work at the aforementioned workplace. It was a summer job I took on over Christmas after having completed my studies at university in November 2017. My graduation ceremony took place in May 2018. I have seen people use “student” as their occupation, so do I mention my studies in my employment history within the last 5 years? As I’m currently unemployed, I should mention this first in my employment history, correct? You can put student

 

⑧ My fiancé has a 5-digit zip code that he always uses as his mailing address, but officially, there is a hyphen with an additional 4 digits afterwards (mainly used by services like Amazon when his address is automated). Adobe won’t let me put a hyphen in the zip code field. Do I just use the 5-digit one, or have all 9 numbers together with no hyphen? 5 digit

 

⑨ Because so many of these issues seem to deal with Adobe itself, I wonder how many people very carefully handwrite their forms, in block letters for example? If this is not recommended by USCIS, I’m hesitant to do so of course. Just frustrated with Adobe. As long as it is in black ink

 

Sorry for the long winded post. I feel really stressed about the ambiguities and have tried searching all around for the answers to my questions with little luck. Again, any help would be dearly appreciated.

 

You can also use this sample form to reference: http://www.visajourney.com/examples/Form-I-129F.pdf

[KULtoATL 1,551]

24 minutes ago, Bunny1 said:

I’m Australian and my fiancé (US petitioner) and I are working on our K1 packet together. I’ve read through the I-129F multiple times, yet there are so many things confusing me that my head hurts. Any help clarifying these things would be so gratefully appreciated!

 

① The form “expires” at the end of this month, which is when we are trying to have our packet sent in at the latest. Is this going to be a problem for us? My fiancé thinks we should wait until September for a new form to be released, but I’m wary of changes being made regarding RFEs in the near future and want to get this done as soon as possible.

Expiration date DOES NOT concern the applicants because it is for their internal use. You need to pay attention to the EDITION DATE that is still being accepted at the point of your filing. Check under "Edition Date" on this page: https://www.uscis.gov/i-129f

 

② We’re filling out the I-129F using Adobe Acrobat Pro on the computer because the USCIS website recommends doing it with Adobe, but it won’t let me put my Australian state in the “state” section of my address. I start typing and it automatically wants to choose US states, even if I type “Australia” in the country field. How can I bypass this?

You won't be able to bypass the "smart form". All you can do is insert a piece of typed word document with the following details: Petitioner name, beneficiary name, beneficiary A-number if there is an existing one, section and item number with the relevant information (e.g. Part 2, Item 3e: Queensland). Then petitioner sign and date that sheet of paper since he/she is the one filing the I-129F petition not the Australian beneficiary.

 

③ What do you put in fields irrelevant to you? I’ve seen the word “none” being used, and I’ve heard of people leaving the fields blank. Which is the best way to go?

Read the current I-129F instruction sheet. I believe they currently want people to use None, N/A and the likes. 

 

④ In both the petitioner and the beneficiary’s mailing address sections, do their names go in the “In Care of Name” field? What does this mean exactly? I’ve seen sample forms where this field was left blank. In what situation would one need to fill this in then, and with whose name? Someone other than the petitioner or beneficiary (if they have a carer or something)?

It is not necessary to use that line if that is indeed your address and you're not just getting your mail directed to someone else's place that you don't currently live in or is a known occupant that all your mails are sent there. And even if you enter yours or his/her name in the care of line, it will not ruin anything.

 

⑤ For US states and foreign countries the petitioner has lived in since 18, if they’ve only lived in one state, what should you put in the “Residence 2” field? Is it okay to leave it blank?

You can simply put "None" or "N/A" in the street address column and then leave the rest blank.

 

⑥ With Adobe, no numbers can be used in the beneficiary’s employment history section, but my recent workplace has a number “2” in its name. Do I stylise it “two”, or would this be problematic? How should I get around this?

You can spell out the word or use two I to indicate number 2 in roman numeral.

 

⑦ Speaking of employment, I’m currently unemployed and have been since finishing my work at the aforementioned workplace. It was a summer job I took on over Christmas after having completed my studies at university in November 2017. My graduation ceremony took place in May 2018. I have seen people use “student” as their occupation, so do I mention my studies in my employment history within the last 5 years? As I’m currently unemployed, I should mention this first in my employment history, correct?

Student is NOT an occupation. You are not paid to study. Also, if you are unemployed, again, that is also not an occupation. Only state jobs you have worked and corresponding duration. That will suffice.

 

⑧ My fiancé has a 5-digit zip code that he always uses as his mailing address, but officially, there is a hyphen with an additional 4 digits afterwards (mainly used by services like Amazon when his address is automated). Adobe won’t let me put a hyphen in the zip code field. Do I just use the 5-digit one, or have all 9 numbers together with no hyphen?

Just the 5 numbers.

 

⑨ Because so many of these issues seem to deal with Adobe itself, I wonder how many people very carefully handwrite their forms, in block letters for example? If this is not recommended by USCIS, I’m hesitant to do so of course. Just frustrated with Adobe.

Do your best and improvise where you can, for example, how you write number 2 when regular numbers are not allowed. In certain USCIS forms I cannot use the/ sign for N/A so I either put NA or spelled out Not Applicable. USCIS scans the forms they receive in general. Easier if you just input as much details as you possibly can via Adobe instead. Also, I don't recommend to hand write anything unless one's handwriting is need and perfectly legible for strangers to read and make sense of it. 

 

Sorry for the long winded post. I feel really stressed about the ambiguities and have tried searching all around for the answers to my questions with little luck. Again, any help would be dearly appreciated.

 

 

[phtx 1]

Helo! I've been working on the same form, and I've just been working off the example on this website:

 

http://www.visajourney.com/content/examples/

 

I know just what you mean about the annoying little confusing things. Following the example page-by-page helped me with most of them. 

[Teacake 76]

Thank you all very much for your enormous help!

[KULtoATL 1,551]

1 hour ago, KULtoATL said:

 

PS: I just realized I typed need instead of neat when referring to handwriting. That is embarrassing 😅

[NatashaNg 0]

Sorry to jump onto this thread, all your replies to Teacake were so helpful to me too! Thanks!

 

Just to add, if my fiance (US petitioner) has lived in South Africa for a University Study Abroad Program for 6 months (so he was 18+ yrs old), should we include it under the section "US States and Countries where Petitioner has resided in since 18 yrs old"?

 

Thanks in advance!

[payxibka 10,044]

18 minutes ago, NatashaNg said:

Sorry to jump onto this thread, all your replies to Teacake were so helpful to me too! Thanks!

 

Just to add, if my fiance (US petitioner) has lived in South Africa for a University Study Abroad Program for 6 months (so he was 18+ yrs old), should we include it under the section "US States and Countries where Petitioner has resided in since 18 yrs old"?

 

Thanks in advance!

Your the first to jump on this thread for more than 2 years.

 

Yes, SA should be included

[NatashaNg 0]

1 minute ago, payxibka said:

Your the first to jump on this thread for more than 2 years.

 

Yes, SA should be included

Hahaha, as it says under my username, I am a "Newbie". THANKS AGAIN  

[TBoneTX 43,489]

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