Incredibly disappointing interview

[Brad_C 2]

4 hours ago, Boiler said:

Just thinking did the Lawyer do a deep dive into her Immigration past?

He asked about her immagration past and we explained everything to him.  My fiancée even asked her ex husband if he might have filed some kind of document after her time here and he said no. 

[Boiler 43,631]

They were on a extended holiday?

[Scandi 3,977]

Divorce decree and a signed affidavit of support is needed at the interview stage, no matter if you sent it previously. I'm surprised your fiance didn't bring that. We sent a certified copy of the divorce decree with our initial petition and also had to bring a new certified copy to the interview at the embassy, it's the normal and not just something the CO asked for "out of spite" or anything like that. Certified/original is not needed for the actual petition (hence why they were fine with just your PDF), but is needed for the interview. 

Edited September 1, 2023 by Scandi

[Brad_C 2]

1 hour ago, Scandi said:

Divorce decree and a signed affidavit of support is needed at the interview stage, no matter if you sent it previously. I'm surprised your fiance didn't bring that. We sent a certified copy of the divorce decree with our initial petition and also had to bring a new certified copy to the interview at the embassy, it's the normal and not just something the CO asked for "out of spite" or anything like that. Certified/original is not needed for the actual petition (hence why they were fine with just your PDF), but is needed for the interview. 

 

The lawyer absolutely should have known this and never mentioned any of it.  He just told us to follow the email from the Embassy.  

[Boiler 43,631]

2 minutes ago, Brad_C said:

 

The lawyer absolutely should have known this and never mentioned any of it.  He just told us to follow the email from the Embassy.  

My concern is you are focussing on the easy fixes and there may be something more painful.

[Cathi 5,618]

If you want the visa, give them exactly what they want and if I were you, I'd do it myself. No need to pay a lawyer, especially since he/she gave you wrong info to begin with.

[Jason and May 69]

8 hours ago, Brad_C said:

We she doesn't have original papers of my divorce.  I have pdf files.  THey didn't mention original papers in the list they gave her.  I had to go the court house to get originals which the lawyer sent when we started the process.  The lawyer will have to mail the I134 also if that's the case.   I guess I better do it because it really seems like they're just trying to drag out the process.  

What they mean by "original" is what for us amounts to a certified true copy. For example, I have the "original" copy of my divorce decree from 2012, signed by my attorney, my ex-wife's attorney, and the judge. But what the consular officer requires--or the Department of State, anyway--is a copy from the clerk's office, with a seal or watermark, and a wet signature (original signature) from the county clerk, certifying the divorce decree is a true original from the clerk of court's office. 

 

This is because anyone can type up a convincing fake and sign all over the place and claim it's an original. Only the seal or watermark and wet signature from the clerk certifies it as a true original. 

 

It's a little leg work and can be a bit costly.... One of the VJ members had to fly over to another state to get his.... But that's what they are looking for when they say original copy. 

I hope this little bit helps you out. 

 

Good luck with this! It can be frustrating and feel like a kick in the teeth when you are hoping for the best outcome from the interview.  

[Scandi 3,977]

19 hours ago, Brad_C said:

 

The lawyer absolutely should have known this and never mentioned any of it.  He just told us to follow the email from the Embassy.  

Correct, that's why it's better to take FREE advice from VJ than pay an attorney who doesn't know how how immigration works. The email from the embassy is in most cases generic, ie everyone gets the same letter despite having completely different circumstances. Such an email may therefore not go into detail in each person's case but only list the standard documents needed for everyone - for instance many people don't have any divorces in the past and therefore no divorce decrees, many don't have any criminal backgrounds and therefore won't have to show court documents related to their crimes etc. So most emails won't mention it because it's not something generic that everyone has to bring.