Free US immigration self-help guides, example forms, community discussion, case tracking & estimated approval dates!

Hi!

My Fianc [New Zealand] and I [USA petitioner] are beginning our Visa Journey to bring her from New Zealand to USA. We have done a lot of research and have figured out most of the process and begun gathering information and creating our K1 application but we have one potentially serious problem which it has proven difficult to get specific information about handling, namely my old drug charges from over 25 years ago when I was in high school. These drug charges are the following: 1) (1997) Possession of Controlled Substance, Marijuana under 28 grams 2) (1998)Possession of Drug Paraphernalia (Pot Pipe).

I have not yet been able to dig up the court records for these charges, but my memory is that both charges were expunged after attending 'drug school', a short 3 day out-patient drug education program. I have not been in any trouble at all since then and have had a respectable career. I can get things like letters of recommendation from scientists, engineers, law enforcement personnel and others from my personal network if this can help us.

We want to try and file our own K1 application because we are relatively poor and like to DIY when possible. We are also considering the CR1 visa application process instead if it is less likely to result in these old charges being an issue, but we want to be together as soon as possible and currently believe the K1 process will be faster. If required I will take a loan to hire an immigration lawyer.

Can anyone help us with stories of how they overcame similar petty offenses long in the past or potentially advice on finding more specific information or leads for a lawyer that would be experienced in such matters?

Thanks so much for any help, advice or leads anyone here can offer and the best of luck on your own visa journeys!

Robear & Moss

First off, much appreciation to everyone in this thread for the info on this process, their feedback, updates, experiences, & in such great detail. I am truly appreciative of it all as this has been quite a hard topic to get in depth info on .

My congrats to all who have had success pertaining this ordeal, I have read how stressful and exhausting this has been for you all. I am genuinely happy for your wins! & also wish for all those still in process to prevail as well.

I come seeking & hoping for help,

My Situation: I am a spouse of a U.S. citizen living in JA. I received my refusal letter Aug 20, 2024, stating, "In your case, the panel physician found you have a cannabis addiction. You will be enrolled for random drug tests over the course of one calendar year and then potentially repeat the medical exam". Having read the various comments I saw that many (if not all) had a ban expiration date in their refusal letter, however there isn't a specified date on mine. I did not immediately register for the random testing as I did my personal tests that were still coming up positive, so wanted to make some time pass for my system to clear up. I can't remember exactly, but I believe it was in Oct (2024) when i contacted Andrews to register.

Currently: My 1st random testing took place Jan 24, 2025 & my 2nd was June 27, 2025.

Questions:

• Because there wasn't a specified expiration date for my ban, my assumption (as per reading the comments) is that it would expire Jan 24, 2026?
• Should it be myself or my wife that emails the embassy to require updates upon the completion of the testing?
• Do I wait for the embassy/consulate to email me to verify that the 1 year testing has been completed before emailing for updates on how to proceed? Or do I start off of the assumption it is completed 1 year post the 1st random testing?
• Is there any way to know if the testing was positive or negative (may have been for my 1st, I'm unsure)

I have taken separate drug tests personally at National Council on Drug Abuse the same days when I have been called to randomly test for USCIS to have a result for myself as proof of status. (both have came back negative)

I also kept one result prior, which was done on Jan 02, 2024 that showed positive for Marijuana as proof that the entity was not biased or favorable to me in any way. (lucky to come back negative by time I got called for the random )

Sorry for the long winded post, just wanted to be precise with all the details. Thanks in advance for any replies/help received. I will update throughout the entirety of the process in hopes it will be helpful for anyone else.

Hi, My wife's sister, 64 years old, has her 10 year B2 tourist visa. She's reading all the horror stories from others that probably read them from someone else and before you know it you try to enter USA they'll throw you in a small black room and interagate you and then send you back to China!! I know chances of this are miniscule and only if you're caught telling lies or some other thing you're not supposed to be doing.

All that said, any words of support for how easy it actually is to visit family here and going through customs (Los Angeles) would be greatly appreciated. My wife wants to arrange for us to accompany her through customs just because she doesn't speak any English. My thinking is that it happens hundreds if not thousands of times each day where people dont speak English.

Are there things she should carry with her like invitation letter, itinerary etc.

Thanks sorry for the long post. Have a great day!!

Hi! For i864, as the sponsor, do I print out all 12 pages just to sign page 10?

Or, would I only have to print out page 10 to sign the form, and then after, scan page 10, and digitally (via Adobe) insert page 10 back into the entire i864 form?

Hi guys. Our case was sent to NVC in June 17 and we submitted a public inquiry and got our NVC case number in July 14 but we have been checking the status online and our case is still At NVC. Do you know why it is taking so long for them to send the case to the local embassy? Thanks.