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Bad marriage can cost a lot more than tickets to see each other. I wouldn't want to marry somebody I've never met in person.

First I want to thank this community! The advice, the pool of knowledge available here and just the feeling of belonging that most members project is such a source of comfort during this crazy process. I don't know if Jaycel and I would have maintained our sanity if we didn't have our fellow travelers to lean on. So thank you all so very much! 8 Months and 2 weeks from application received to card in hand. (And exactly 4 years from the day we started talking ) No RFEs and EAD in 51 days. Pretty happy with that timeline! Now we get a break from USCIS for the next 21 months Our full timeline in case it's helpful to anyone else: I-129F Receipt Date: 09/18/2023 I-129F RFE: 05/20/2024 I-129F RFE Response Received: 06/01/2024 I-129F Approved: 06/04/2024 I-129F Sent to DOS: 06/11/2024 DOS Case # Assigned: 07/01/2024 K1-FTP: 07/16/2024 Embassy Interview: 08/13/2024 (Approved) Visa in Hand: 08/20/2024 Entered the US: 08/30/2024 Married: 10/25/2024 AOS Receipt Date: 11/18/2024 Biometrics: 12/26/2024 EAD Approved: 01/08/2025 Interview Scheduled: 06/16/2025 Interview Attended: 07/23/2025 I-485 Approved: 06/16/2025 Green Card Received: 08/01/2025

Sounds like you are getting your wake-up call now. This site is here to help people do it themselves, but you came here only after starting without doing the homework part. You are going to have some hard decisions to make, and must get your head around accepting a path and timing you don't like. The sooner you drop the "I'm not going to...." from your mind, the sooner you can move ahead productively.

You need a lawyer for this, this is out of DIY realm.

I think this is a great plan. Americans can pretty much stroll in anywhere: that is our superpower and we should use it more often. I'm honestly disappointed I haven't used it more.

Wow! Literally right after posting I checked my email and was asked for passport and all documents! 🥳 Not getting too excited yet as still have some waiting and stuff to do but great feeling to finally get an update almost 16 months later!

Thank you all of you, and also thanks to those that DM'd me. Really, thank you all so much, as you possibly kept me from pirouetting off the Brooklyn Bridge which is how I felt on Friday evening when I opened the mailbox... I'm truly, totally and utterly exhausted and sick of this, I'm sick of USCIS, I'm sick of having certain parts of life effectively on hold and in perpetual limbo... However.... So........ No. Way. It is the principal of it. So buckle up buttercups, this is gonna get messy....

I replied but I guess I was ignored. You are not the first to blend families and far from the last. WHat you are wanting is just prolonging the inevitable. They will not adjust until all are in the same house and no longer feel like a vacation. That can be months to years. From a mother of 6

Folks I strongly recommend that everyone with a pending VAWA application carry a copy of their USCIS receipt notice and a copy of their I-94. Having these documents on hand ensures that if stopped by ICE, you can present official documentation from Immigration to verify your status. I have always advised my clients that they could travel abroad with advance parole. However, last week, I emailed all of them, advising against traveling abroad with advance parole for the time being. While VAWA petitioners do not trigger the 3/10-year ban, there is currently uncertainty about how CBP will handle cases involving VAWA petitioners who were previously without status and left the country, then attempt to reenter. Legally speaking, it should not pose an issue, but due to these uncertainties, I recommended they refrain from traveling abroad for now.

He needs to contact the consulate and ask if he can reschedule. However, I think you have more serious issues to consider. Good luck.

So we have a good update to share! We had our medical / RCMP / passport request from MTL. The request actually came through our Senator, who we asked to reach out on our behalf last week. We're elated since I think we are finally in the end game now. This reinforces a suspicion I had, which is the consulate sits on your clearance from the state department for a while until it is convenient for them to process your case. I wanted to make sure we didn't ask for senatorial help until our case was 'ripe' enough to get action by Montreal. The factors & recent timeline of events that led us to reach out were: - I emailed on April 30th and did not get a response, even though they updated our case in late May. - Many people around my vintage on the tracker were getting processed between late May and now. - I had another update on July 9th, but no additional follow up for a couple of weeks. - I had a hunch that either the May or July update was them receiving the clearance, but they had other priorities. - After waiting from July 9th for an organic update and document request, and it not coming, we felt we could now ask congress to inquire to help expedite things. - We used the Senator's webform for assistance on July 25th. - They confirmed they reached out to the consulate on July 29th. - We had an update on CEAC on July 30th. - Today (July 31st) we received an email from the senator with the documentation request, also explaining how the CO reviewed our file on July 30th. Given the very fast response after the senatorial outreach, I think it is safe to say they helped expedite things. I do, however, believe if we had asked for help months ago (before state department clearance), they would have received push back, making more difficult for them to reach out and expedite things when it is actually possible. All of this is anecdotal, but I'm sharing the details hoping that maybe it could help people decide when it is appropriate to seek outside assistance. Oh, and one more thing. since I was asked for RCMP check again, it is safe to say that they are probably only valid for 1 year.

Why did you not have a plan for providing health insurance for your wife? It is your responsibility, as the petitioner.

Getting married before ever meeting in person, then applying for the spousal visa immediately after that first and only meeting, is a blueprint for how to get a spousal visa denied. During the visa interview, the consular officer must be convinced that the marriage is a valid marriage and not one just for immigration purposes. With just one meeting — that occurred after the marriage — that will be very difficult. Waivers for the two-year meeting requirement for a fiancée visa are extremely rare for a reason. People can be far different in person than they appear online. Having two young children that make travel planning more complicated is not a reason for a waiver. Waivers for the “consummation” meeting after the wedding are non-existent. There is no provision for this meeting to be waived. Even if there were, it would not be approved in a case where it means the couple would have never met at all before the immigrant visa was issued. You will need to figure out how to meet — perhaps in a third country so you don’t have to travel as far and he doesn’t need a US visa. Even without it being a requirement, I would urge anyone (especially with young children involved) to meet before marrying anyone and bringing them into a household

Like everyone else here is saying. Meet do not get married at this first visit. Make the visit as long as you can. Spend as much time as possible with her friends and family too. Then go home and start planning and saving for another trip. With High fraud countries getting married the first trip together is a sure fire way to be denied. Especially if it is a short visit.

Hi Everyone - after my updated medical results and passport were delivered to the embassy on July 31st, I have gotten my passport back with the visa in it! My interview was back in April 2023.

4th is a holiday so the 5th

Your posts are coming across as very aggressive to people who are just trying to help. All I said is that flights were leaving in 2020 so the pandemic wouldn't be a valid reason for overstaying that long. There's nothing you can do but wait and see what happens. What document was requested on the 221g?

Turns out my prediction was correct. CEAC says Issued now!

Alright folks, final update as promised! Officially crossed over today, July 17th on an IR1 (airport crossing). No secondary required, was amazed that I only had to stay at the counter for all of maybe 5 mins until I got a "congratulations, welcome to the US" response from the border agent. - Jan 30, 2024 interview with 221g DS 5535 refusal. - Filed WOM June 5, 2024, defendants served June 21, 2024 - Passport requested back July 2 - flew to Montreal to hand deliver passport on the 5th. I had a back and forth email exchange with them the 3rd letting them know I was coming in person on the 5th. - Showed up first thing at 730am and came back to retrieve passport at noon same day. Do I think my WOM played a factor? Yes, and I don't regret spending the money one bit. I wish the best of luck to everyone!

The previous people I've seen on here who have married prisoners and then filed the Spouse visa application have done so because their partner was going to be in prison for a long time - years -and they wanted to be there in the US to be able to visit on a regular basis. In your case, as he's getting out in a year, I'd give you the same advice I'd give anyone who has begun a relationship with someone online and from another country - give yourselves a lot of time to get to know each other in different circumstances. First face to face - and then in your case face to face outside of the prison environment - meet his family, meet his friends, see if your goals and futures are compatible, see if your living habits and needs are compatible. THEN... make the big life-changing decisions about marriage. Work out what his prison record means for his travel options, will he ever be able to go to Switzerland with you? If you have children with him in the USA then you will have to commit to living there until they are adults if he can't leave the country. This is what I'd advise to anyone in a relationship where there has been little in person experience of each other.

She's not here on a visa anymore. She has her GC and will be able to remove conditions on her own. What I want to know is when did this warrant come to light? What crime is it said she committed? If this is a crime that happened before she received her visa, she can lose everything if it was approved on a lie. Please say you found this out by official sources and not from so and so that so and so knows kind of thing? It would not be the first time someone back home tries to destroy someone's life.

There have been a many threads over the years. These are my thoughts and what I've read on here over the years. First your fiance was supposed to be sure before he uprooted and moved you to the US. He even made a statement of just that. It is always possible that when together full time that reality sets in and that is fine and dandy but you don't get to toy with someone life like that. You get honest with them and end the relationship and let them go home. You've been here a month and he already has changed his mind. Sure he says he doesn't want to break up but not ready to marry. It's not a try before yo buy visa he knew this full well. He's already telling you that he doesn't think he can make-up his mind in 50 days. Well too bad buddy he had nearly 2 years to make-up his mind and now all of a sudden he doesn't know. I call baloney he knew full well long before you came and was too chicken to tell you. You asked about getting married in 6 months. Does he expect you to stay in the US without any type of status and hoping he will marry you one day? While you are waiting for him you put yourself at risk for losing ESTA, getting a ban and even deportation. These are all real possibilities that can happen to you, not him but you. He has no worries at all, he doesn't even have to support you and can even toss you out to the road with no repercussions. The risk for you is too great, pack up and go home long before your 90 days are up. If you have to convince him it is not worth it. If you decide not to give up on this relationship, go home and really really work on your relationship with him. He is the one who needs to step up not you. Let him prove to you he is ready, but make sure he isn't doing it because you are pushing him. As for others stories like this, you can find many on here. The USC changes his mind, something is not ready, too much work, and many other excuses. Sometimes they do get married like day 95 then no big deal life moves forward, but the majority of those couples, the USC doesn't start off saying they don't want to get married. Something out of their control or an emergency. Now this is truly the worst of the worse that I have seen on here. USC convinces the foreign fiance to stay, while draining the fiance's savings dry, boots fiance to the road after, fiance now has a ban for overstaying. the abuse starts (no i'm not saying this is going to happen to you) without marriage the fiance also has no case for VAWA so they stay until they can't take it anymore or stays illegal always worried. If they leave they have incurred a ban. plays house making babies but never marry, kicks the other parent out, ugly custody battle begins, most are not lucky enough to leave with their child(ren) and then can't get back to the US to visit. Thanks to overstaying the 90 days. At the whims of the USC to talk,video chat with their child(ren). I'm also going to guess you have your own doubts about him moving forward to marry or you would not have been on here asking others their thoughts. Please follow your gut, it never lies. I also want to add you cannot come back later on with ESTA or a visitor visa to get married once you leave with the intent to adjust it doesn't work like that. He will have to start all over again with the spousal visa,

Sounds like you dodged a bullet. Take time to heal and move on. You acknowledge this man hurt you. This marriage would not have ended well.

Wasn't there a thread couple days ago about a USC woman who brought a Pakistani husband in and he took off after getting his 10-yr green card. I'd read that before deciding to proceed with this guy. Plenty of red flags already flying - refused visas, wants to get married fast...

I have changed my mind, go for it.

It seems like he doesn’t want to. Does this not raise a red flag with you? And don’t you mean: “I can’t think of anyone who would purposely want to miss their interview to go to the person they are about to get married to”? If his desire to come to the US would be bigger than his desire to get married to you, that wouldn’t be good. Him purposely missing his interview shows that he is not ready to get married to you yet.

You’re focusing on the wrong thing. You need to spend much more time together in person rather than focusing on which wedding route to go. You can also marry via Utah Zoom marriage either when you’re both together in person or visit after the ceremony to consummate the marriage. But your primary focus should be spending much more time together otherwise just marrying isn’t going to resolve the denial.

Hey so great news got my passport back on Thursday and crossed over and got it confirmed over the weekend!

You had 4 yrs to discuss all things needed to blend your two families. If she arrives at the border with a different address then you and they ask about why you all will be living seperate. You can bet your last dollar that she will be on the next flight out. If they catch any whiff of something off they will turn your fiance right back. The visa as mentioned is to get married and adjust asap. They give you 90 days because sometimes it can be difficult to get a JP or someplace to get married. It is not a try before you buy visa. Kids will do better adjusting when they aren't living in a temporary place and then put into the next place and wondering what is next. I moved here with 4 kids ages 8-16 I can tell you for sure if we lived in a temp home first then moved to my then fiance's home it would still be just as much of a learning curve for all involved. It takes months, possibly years to adjust. 90 days will not cut it. Have you talked about expectations? Discipline? Bedtimes? From experience you discipline your kids and only your kids, do not step on the other parent's toes. The other parent handles their own kids. THis does not mean each other kids can be disrespectful at all. YOu two really need to come up with parenting plans. This can be easy or hard depending how you both handle things and the kids involved. If any have any type of learning, special needs, behaviour, disabilities and the other parent is not used to it that alone can cause issues. The way one handles a child who is not like the others can vary and many times if the other person has zero experience with things like that they will not understand. Check this forum too we have many posts like this about kids.

After such a long journey the day is here. My wife passed her citizenship exam and we are awaiting the naturalization ceremony. I am so excited for her !

You got a green card that you weren’t eligible for, and then citizenship that you weren’t eligible for either. As @nastra30 said, it will be a long drawn out process before your citizenship is revoked and you’re deported. Your call, but if it was me I would just return to my home country rather than facing the stress and expense of all of that, and to reunite with my children much sooner too.

Way too many red flags and you know this or you would not be posting. This is how I am seeing it. She came in and applied for asylum. She is well aware that she has a slim chance of being successful of it being granted. She married you, stalled as long as she could to keep stringing you along to stay out of the home (not really being married because her church said so). I would bet money she has someone coaching her. She has outright told you she is in it for the GC. She's not doing this for the kids and church. Tells you to go find someone else because she is in love with her (probably husband and child's father) in her home country. Once she gets that green card she is going to bounce and then bring him over. Please pull the AOS now and talk to a lawyer.

This is not the intention of K-1 visa. The idea is that you know for sure you're marrying the person before sponsoring them for visa. People are not toys you can return to store within 90 day period. They're leaving their home, family, friends, jobs, everything they have to rely on you for some time until they can settle in new and totally different place which is USA. It would be totally irresponsible and immoral to break somebody's life like this by betraying them in their most vulnerable moment. Now, to the question... Prenup does not waive your I-864 obligations to US government.

You are coming across as quite entitled. Legal immigration involves planning and waiting. Most of us here have had to do loads of planning and waiting in our journeys. No one else is more special than the next person.

After almost 16 months in AP, I finally received the email to submit passport and medical report. the long wait is over, I pray all of you guys receive it sooner than later to be reunited with your family.

Just to be clear, there's lots of good help here, but we are here to help with homework assignments and with understanding the homework after you do it. We are not here to help you avoid the homework by spoon feeding you. Without the homework, you don't know what you don't know, so don't know what to ask.

Hi everyone! Quick update! ! We received our passport with visa stamp today Documents Sent: July 8 CEAC says Issued: July 17 Thanks and hoping other VJ members in this long journey hear the good news soon!

Hi folks. Wanted to share the good news that we got the long awaited email to send the consulate my passport and complete a medical and police certificate. I also have to update my DS-260 form. I had sent an email to them requesting an update on April 30th. Never received a response to that email, only an Update on May 23rd, followed up with updates on May 28th, June 6th, June 11th and June 12th. And then the email on June 14th. Lucky for us it progressed pretty quickly. it’s a tough road and I honestly feel so sorry for everyone on here being in this dreadful situation. It’s been over 15 months since my interview and probably the toughest 15 months in my life being apart from my wife. The only thing I can say is that your time will come guys. It’s a waiting game no matter whether you file a WOM or choose not to it’s still months upon months waiting for answers but just know that it’s coming to you. It’s just a matter of time!! If any one has any questions feel free to dm me!! Stay strong everyone!!

Within 2 months of marriage you filed for divorce…thus knew the adjustment was sham. Days or a month later you start new relationship ( skip to 3 months after filing divorce)..and while still married and first spouse ‘s adjustment is still pending, you leave the States and marry in Syria. Bigamy. Your current marriage is bigamous , and deemed a criminal act in most US States . ..so a bit more than simply “not valid “for US immigration. That first green card was not yours to give away, you were complicit in the sham and an immigration benefit was obtained by fraud. Does it matter that this time …it’s the real thing? Not really, if they find /allege fraud. … K-1 is a waste of time. ..and you will have a very long road ahead even w I-130.

Back home and all done. I'm a US citizen now! 🥳 Full account of my experience below. Tldr: I waited an hour for my interview, then an hour and a half for my same-day oath ceremony. Interview went well but the officer asked me multiple questions about my marriage, even though I applied under the 5-year rule, and looked at evidence of bona fide relationship when I offered. Oath ceremony took 5 min and was anti-climactic. My appointment this morning was at 7:35am. Between being nervous about the interview and my pollen allergies being horrible this year, I barely slept. When I woke up at 6 I was glad I had prepared my folder with all documents the night before because my brain wasn't functioning! The field office is a 20 min walk from my building, and I arrived around 7:05 to a long line of people. Intake was chaotic to say the least. Some people had interviews as early as 7:15 but were stuck in the line. Eventually the security guard had all the people with interview times before 8am go to another entrance around the corner... and then we waited in line again. Once inside it wasn't clear where to go, but I eventually found the check-in area. They took my picture and fingerprints and sent me to a waiting room on another floor. There I waited a whole hour, until being called at 8:35. I believe I was the last one remaining of the group of people with early appointments. The officer who interviewed me was a pleasant and personable young man. I apologized for my raspy voice and we started chatting about allergies. It was all very casual and friendly. We started with the civics test, here are the questions I was asked: name one American Indian tribe; what is the name of the Vice President of the US; we elect US representatives for how long; if both the Vice President and President are unable to serve, who becomes president; what stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful; what is the capital of the US. Then we went through the reading and writing test and joked about the stylus on the tablet being so awkward. He informed me that I had passed the tests and he was now moving on to the application itself. Here besides questions about my recent travel history and employment status, he asked a good number of questions about my husband and our marriage. I didn't expect that because I applied under the 5-year rule, and I went through the ROC process 10 years ago. I'm still happily married to my USC husband so I had no issue answering, but that was a bit of a surprise for me. For example he asked if we owned property together, if we had ever lived apart, if both our names were on our car title, if we were on the same health insurance, etc... I had brought a copy of my lease agreement so I offered to show him that it's in both our names, and he did look. I also offered to look up my health insurance information on my phone but he said it wasn't necessary. I didn't think about it at the time but I could also have mentioned that all our tax transcripts, which I had with me, show that we filed jointly. Eventually he moved to the yes/no questions from the N-400 form. To the question "have you ever been a member of an organization or club?" I said no except if you count gym membership, and he said that since I said it he had to write it down. He then made me verify my information on the tablet, asked me if I agreed with the statements in the oath of allegiance, and congratulated me for being approved. He asked if I wanted to take the oath the same day and I said yes. I was sent to another floor where I had to check-in and give my green card - fun fact, my 10-year green card had just expired yesterday. I was given an envelope containing a letter from President Biden, a guide about what to do after the ceremony (passport, SS, etc), and a voter registration form, together with a little flag. I was directed to a waiting area and told my oath ceremony would be at 10:30am. It was just after 9, and the coffee shop within the building was closed so I just sat there and waited. Everyone was silent until a giant juicy cockroach fell from the ceiling and started trotting around the seating area. Eventually we were called by name and given our naturalization certificates. Interestingly it has my picture from my ROC biometrics 10 years ago, and not the picture they took of me when I checked in today. We were shown a video with President Biden congratulating us, then we had to repeat the Oath of Allegiance after the supervisor who was officiating the ceremony. Everyone in the entire room did it at the same time and because she spoke fast, we definitely missed some words. It was all over in 5 minutes. I did feel a little emotional when the video with the President welcoming us as new citizens started, but otherwise it felt like a formality and lacked the decorum I expected. Visitors and guests were not allowed. In the end we were able to take pictures in front of the flag, and people were all taking pictures for each other.

Well boys and girls. My I-485 was finally approved today.

Hi Everyone, My long wait is finally over. My CEAC case finally changed to Issued today! Now I await my passport. It has been a very long road since the interview (Nov 22, 2022! Yes, 2022!). And I also had to wait a year for the interview itself! Given that we sent all requested documents and passport in for which were received on March 22, this stretch felt the longest. We asked our Senator for assistance. She did follow up with Montreal yesterday I believe. Whether this is just coincidence my case would have been approved today regardless, I do not know. I will give her the credit though. I checked first this morning and the date change so I know something was possibly going on, but still refused. Then checked early this afternoon and it read Issued. Thank you to this group for your continued support. You were a life line during this. None of you should be here! It will be my mission going forward to advocate for change! I wish you all nothing but the very best and hope your Issued day will finally come, sooner than later! Stay strong and fight! If I can do this so can you.

Hi everyone, Some good news on my end: I got an email from the consulate today requesting my passport and a new medical. Thanks to everyone that reached out with their support and I hope my approval is encouragement to others that are still waiting! Hopefully this is a sign that things are moving again.

Your travel history is connected to your passports. It will not matter if you get a new passport, they are all linked. Get a new passport if you are allowed as many countries will not renew a passport that has more than 6 months validity to it. Please stop discussing ways to hide your travel history. Any further discussion on this needs to stop. It is clear intent to commit fraud which is a TOS Violation. -Condone or instruct, either directly or indirectly, others on how to commit fraudulent or illegal immigration activities in any way, shape, manner or method. Any further posts on this topic will result in Admin action Ontarkie Lead Moderator

- What do you mean by buying time? - Once again, what was the reason for denial? Alleged fraud? Something else? - Why is the travel important right now, why not focus on immigration status you're losing? Tell us more and we can help. Tell us less and we can't help, because vague descriptions don't allow us to establish a fact pattern.

Hi Everyone, Long read ahead; scroll to bottom for summary (bold). I’ve been a longtime lurker of this forum since shortly after my interview (in Nov 2022, yes 2022 not 2023). I did not want to post in this group throughout my visa journey as I did not want to get further obsessed by the whole process, which I cannot change; so for my mental health I decided I would check this forum from time to time but only post when I was near the end of the process so others could get insight from my timeline. Nov 2, 2022: IR1 interview at MTL consulate. The interview was very short; barely 2 minutes and I felt like the CO already knew he wasn’t going to approve me (I’ll never know if it’s because of a flag on my name or something else; but I just knew the minute the interview started and comparing it to others’ interviews I could over-hear going on before me). It’s interesting to note that along with me, a few other visible minorities were refused that day citing admin processing, while Caucasian applicants were approved with a rather jolly interview. Just my experience. The CO said he couldn’t approve me today and more supplemental questions would be sent. He said I could have my passport back and I wouldn’t need to come back MTL for another interview but they’ll let me know next steps Nov 2, 2022: a couple of hours after my interview, I was emailed the DS-5355 and asked to return it (it was all a list of questions within the body of the email). Nov 6, 2022: returned the completed DS-5355 From Nov 6, 2022 to August 2023 there was maybe 1 to 2 case updates but we did not email the consulate during that time at all. We had spoke to a few lawyers who had told us to wait at least 4-6 months before thinking of filing a WOM. And to be honest, life got busy with work and travels that we planned to spend time together in different countries. We just kindof carried on with life as best we could, without letting this visa issue hold us back in multiple ways. Long distance is a challenge but I think you have to know that if you’re getting married to a person in another country; it’s kindof what you signed up for in the short-medium term, I guess. I’m not saying we didn’t stress about this visa and worried about it and delaying our full life together; but my husband was very good at keeping perspective and focusing on the positives – that we only had a 1 hour plane ride separating us; that we both had remote jobs so we could see eachother whenever we wanted; and we were at least both healthy as that would be an added stressor if one of us was not healthy and couldn’t be together. I think its important to focus on the things you do have yourself and together, during this whole stressful process. August 30, 2023: As it had been quite a while and past 6 months from my interview, I decided to email the consulate asking for an update on my case. I emailed the MTL email address. We also talked to Christopher from PIC about filing a WOM and he explained everything to us and we said we would think about it and get back to him in a week or so. September 6, 2023: Right as we were getting ready to tell Chris from PIC law firm about going forward with WOM, we got a reply from the consulate asking to do a second medical and to send my passport. I knew this meant good news, but I didn’t get my hopes up. Nov 15, 2023: as I had travel commitments I had already made earlier in the year, I could only complete my passport and send the second medical on Nov 15, 2023 Nov 23, 2023: passport received (signature upon delivery) and Medical exam results uploaded to consulate. Nov 29 to Jan 6, 2024: no case updates (the last case update was Nov 29th assuming for the passport and medical). Jan 6, and every 2 weeks after: we emailed the consulate asking if there is any update since receiving the passport and medical and we would get generic responses mentioned many times above. The responses would come every 2 weeks or so; sometimes never. The case update would change every time we received a response I can’t remember the exact date but there was a day in January when the CEAC status check website was down. I randomly decided to check the NVC website on the same day and logged in to see that my DS-260 had been unlocked. I googled this and read that only the consulate can unlock the DS-260. We weren’t sure if we should update anything so we contacted the lawyer who was helping us in terms of answering questions – this is PIC, Christopher. He is AMAZING and would answer our questions promptly even though we did not officially hire him for a WOM. Christopher told us that we should not touch anything as consulate has opened it and they will let us know for what. I mentioned my passport was new as the previous one expired so Christopher thought that was why they opened it; to update passport number. Feb 2, 2024: case update (not sure why) Feb 5, 2024: email from MTL asking to update my DS-260 and send the confirmation page back to them. I updated my DS-260 with my latest travel history and my job change. I noticed they had already updated my passport number. Feb 8, 2024: I got an email with MTL reply from MTL consulate saying “thank you”. Which was VERY surprising as I’m sure they do not send friendly emails of that nature – don’t care to. So I thought that was odd. A couple of hours later, I checked my status on CEAC and “ISSUED”. I’m happy for it finally go from “REFUSED” since Nov 2, 2022 to finally being issued but I won’t be 100% happy until my passport with visa is in hand. All in all, it took me about 10 months from interview to be asked for my passport + second medical, and then an additional 3.5 months from sending passport for status to change to “ISSUED”. That is a total of 13.5 months from the interview. It was a longgggggggg haul. It will work out for each and every one of you on this forum (barring any crazy criminal or immigration violations in your history, im assuming). It really does challenge your mental toughness, your perseverance, your faith in basically everything, your relationship and your health in many ways. But you have to believe it will work out for you. It’s easier said than done but that’s all you can do in this situation. Start sending emails to the MTL consulate once you’ve passed the 4 to 6 month mark. Don’t be too pushy as I was afraid of them being put off and just not doing anything; just ask for a case update in the nicest way possible. Focus on other things during this time and make the wait worthwhile; don’t live your life in constant worry and at a standstill. Now I hope I actually get my passport/visa without too much of a delay or any other issues propping up. Thanks for reading. I'm sure many typos as I did not proof-read.

Having colitis does not prevent someone from traveling, let alone not meeting someone for over 10 years. There are medications that treat colitis very successfully. It's a fact. My son has colitis and there has never been a time in his 26 years of life that colitis ever prevented him from traveling, and we travel VERY often (at least 3 or 4 times a year), including internationally. We just traveled to Europe this summer for an entire month and we just came back from Bermuda less than a week ago, he had zero issues that taking his meds couldn't handle. Not only does he travel all of the time, he's an athlete who's played soccer since childhood, including high school and college, he skis, hikes, rock climbs, runs marathons, races cars, scuba dives and has his pilot's license, I could go on and on and on. All while living with colitis. Is he on a special diet to control his colitis? Absolutely. Does having colitis sometimes interfere with things? Sure, but never enough to put his life on hold for any extended amount of time, let alone for an entire decade. You are looking for excuses and grasping at straws. Even IF it was a disease that prevents travel (it doesn't), why on Earth would you ever expect to get approved after having not seen your fiancé for an entire decade? No lawyer is ever going to get around that fact. Any lawyer from Catholic Charities is free of charge and most likely knows little, if anything about immigration. Any immigration attorney would have told you straight up that you had no chance.

If you left the US before the I-131 was approved, your Adjustment of Status I-485 has already been abandoned. That is one of the major drawbacks of Adjustment of Status. In addition, you can't legally enter the US as a visitor with the intent to submit another I-485. Even if you managed to get inside the US, your current I-485 would be denied during an interview. You can withdraw the current I-485 and start the spousal visa process which will take around 18-24 months. That I-130 would have to be moved to NVC via an I-824. That, in itself, could cause a delay. Did you ask for emergency travel I-131?

That’s unfortunate. Cut your losses and move on….there’s nothing that can be done now. For others reading, this is a lesson in why it is SO important to spend as much time as possible together before marrying. Two visits in 5 years of marriage is not enough time to know someone!

I'm sharing my DCF (Direct Consular Filing) experience in hope that it comes in handy for others, and to help simplify this often less-discussed path for obtaining permanent residence for a foreign spouse in the US. I know how tough and stressful this journey can be, and I'm super grateful that we were able to pull this off so quickly. About Us: I’m a US citizen, and my Romanian spouse and I were in Romania when we made the decision to initiate the DCF process under exceptional circumstances. Despite having accepted a job offer in the US, a job offer letter was not listed among the required documents for this process, as you will see in the document checklist below. Our Timeline: August 7th, 2023: Sent an email to US embassy in Bucharest explaining our situation and requesting DCF. We initially sent the email to the incorrect address (posted on their website) but eventually called them to get the correct email address. So make sure you have the right one. Here’s a draft of my email in case it helps someone else get an idea of what to write: “Dear Consular Officer, I hope this email finds you well. My name is [name], an American citizen currently residing in Romania with my spouse. I wish to return to the United States and have my spouse accompany me. I am reaching out to explain our situation and kindly request the opportunity to file our Direct Consular Filing (DCF) documents at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest. To provide some context, I initially arrived here because [fill out your reason] on a temporary [type of visa] visa in [year]. Throughout my time here, my relationship with my now spouse blossomed, and we have been together since [year]. We decided to take the next step in our journey and officially married on [date]. I am excited to share that I have received a fantastic job offer from a well-known U.S. company, with a start date scheduled for [date]. Given the time-sensitive nature of this opportunity, I kindly request your assistance in arranging an appointment at the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest to submit our completed documents. We are flexible and available at your convenience, having prepared all the necessary forms and collected the required documents for the application, including forms I-130 and I-130A. I appreciate your attention to this matter and sincerely hope for a positive response. We eagerly await your reply. Kind regards, [name] [phone number]” August 8th, 2023: Received a response from the embassy, approving our DCF request. We were instructed to appear at the embassy on August 14th to present the following documents: Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative, completed and signed by me. Form I-130A, Supplemental Information for a Spouse Beneficiary Two photos for each of us. My U.S. passport. Spouse's passport. Spouse’s birth certificate. Our marriage certificate. Proof of the termination of any prior marriages (if applicable). Evidence of our relationship; For evidence, I put together a photo album with around 40 pictures that pretty much told our story from the beginning to now. They seemed to really appreciate it. We also included joint bank account statements, proof of our shared public health insurance, and evidence that we're living at the same address. The $535.00 fee, payable in cash or by credit card at the Consular Section (in U.S. or Romanian currency). August 14th, 2023: Made it to the interview at the embassy. The staff were very kind and helpful. The consular officer reviewed our documents, let us know that everything’s looking good, and informed us that we'd receive an official email soon with instructions to complete DS-260 online and the next steps. August 18th, 2023: Received the official email, it included instructions and provided my spouse's case number, which was necessary to complete the DS-260 form. It also explained the process for the medical examination. We were required to follow these steps before scheduling the final interview: Complete the DS-260 form. Undergo the required medical examination. Prepare the following documents to bring to the final interview: Spouse’s valid passport. Spouse’s two photos. Spouse’s original birth certificate. The original marriage certificate. Proof of termination of prior marriages (if applicable). Police certificates from spouse’s country of nationality and any other countries where they had lived for more than one year. A medical examination. Affidavit of support (Form I-864 or Form I-864EZ) filled out and signed by me; I did not work at the time, so we used my spouse's foreign income for financial support, which was going to continue in the States. Many wonder if this is doable, and it absolutely is, as long as the spouse's income is set to continue in the States and exceeds three times the 125% poverty guidelines. (Check out USCIS’s Instructions for Affidavit of Support for more information). Copy of my most recent Federal Income Tax Return; I didn't have recent tax returns since I hadn't filed for the most recent year. So, I wrote an affidavit letter explaining my situation, and they were perfectly fine with it. A fee of $325.00 payable only at the consular cashier on the day of the visa appointment, in cash or by card (in U.S. or Romanian currency). September 7th, 2023: We sent an email to the embassy, confirming that we had all the necessary documents ready (obtaining my spouse's police certificates took longer than anticipated due to technical issues). The embassy then emailed us back with the date and time for the final interview, which was scheduled for September 18th. September 18th, 2023: We showed up at the embassy, the security personnel were quite rude this time around, which I didn't appreciate. But on the bright side, the rest of the staff at the embassy were helpful and friendly. They checked our documents, took my spouse's fingerprints, and provided us with the awesome news that we were fully approved. They kept spouse's passport and offered us clear instructions on arranging passport delivery. Regarding the Affidavit of support: I’d like to mention that although they initially expected the financial support for the I-864 to come from US sponsor(s), they were perfectly fine with me sponsoring my spouse using our household income from spouse’s work that was going to continue in the states. September 18th, 2023: We completed the passport delivery process online as soon as we got home. As a side note, although it wasn't explicitly mentioned to us before, it's advisable to complete the online passport delivery process in advance of the final interview. (though I don’t believe it mattered after all, we still received the passport back pretty quickly). September 20th, 2023: We received spouse's passport containing the visa in the mail, along with a sealed packet that is meant to be presented to an immigration officer upon our arrival in the US, unopened. That's it! I hope this post can serve as a reference point for others considering this process. I also wanted to point out that as I was doing my research, I've noticed some folks on immigration forums making the DCF process sound like a real challenge. While I understand that different people have different circumstances and experiences, I’m also here to tell you that it's not all that scary, and you can definitely do it! Especially if your case is as straightforward as ours. Everything went super smoothly for us, and for that I’m forever grateful. I wish this option wasn't limited to people with exceptional circumstances. It truly pains me to think that some couples and families have to be apart or wait for years to get this process wrapped up. It's just not fair. Total time from the initial email to passport delivery: Approx. 42 days.