US Immigration from Cambodia

Per DHL tracking, my I-130 application arrived at USCIS Chicago office on April 19th. It is now April 30th and I still have not received any confirmation nor have my debit card been charged the $535 processing fee. What is the general time frame for this?

I know it s best for people to make their own accounts here and ask questions, which I suggested, but for now I figured I would ask here my self to get some advice.

A friend of my wife has been married about 10 years. She has been in America for 5 years and her and her husband have one child.

The husband has been psychologically abusive, controlling her and her money, and pretty much everything, etc. No physical violence as far as I know.

She applied for her 10 year green card and has the extension letter. She wants to apply for citizenship but her husband doesn t want her to. One time her husband tried to keep her ID s and she said she would call the police, so he gave them back.

I suggested she consult with an immigration attorney on the best way to move forward, and possibly she could file for VAWA, but I m not sure if she qualifies. I also said if she has any fear for safety, she should call the police and get out of their (try a shelter or a friend, etc.), but I don t want to advise that if it winds up making things worse / making him become angry and become violent, possibly.

That s about all the information I have. I suggested she make an account here to ask for herself (not sure she will), so figured I would ask if anyone has any other suggestions I can give her.

Thank you, and thanks to Visa Journey for all the questions I got answered while going through immigration with my wife

As some are aware from past posts over the years, my now wife and I have had 2 K1s denied at embassy level and are now a short time away from her IR1 interview.

One K1 was focusing on her family here with a generic 221g and the second was me being told by email from the embassy she did not show adequate intent to marry in the U.S.

Questions are basically for brevity and peace of mind, since I'm leaving in a week to go over and be there during the interview period, I know I can't go inside, but she'll have my passport.

What if any, of the previous K1 denial factors can be used as a basis of judgment on the IR1? IR1 as we have passed two years of marriage when she will enter the U.S.

They focused on her sister/aunt her in the first denial, since we are doing a spousal immediate relative Visa, this should no longer have any bearing correct? And the second was not believing intent to marry, which we overcame through a marriage in her country.

I guess I'm just asking since we've been fighting this process since 2018 as my mind always feels like we never have enough to show them our legitimacy.

401k beneficiary

Life insurance beneficiary

Joint credit card she uses

Letters from employer about adding to health insurance on her arrival

Less impact but have none the less

Notarized letters from my family stating awareness of our marriage/relationship

Proof of visits and consistent daily video communication

I'm not sure honestly what else can be done to show we are legitimate of the worst happens. But I have come to terms of knowing I will give up U.S citizenship if I have to, to be with her and start our family.

I have read dozens of posts and see that the common advice is to file Married Filing Separately if your spouse is still abroad. In my case, there is a significant tax liability difference in filing MFS and MFJ. Here's my conundrum:

• If I file MFS, I will owe a couple thousand
• If I file MFJ, we will get a refund of several thousands
• My spouse is abroad, has never been to the US, and we are currently DQ and just waiting for our interview letter

I read that if you are owed a refund, you can file your taxes up to three years after the filing deadline for the tax year. In this case, I would theoretically have until April 15, 2027 to file and get the refund. However, of course, if you owe, you must file by the regular deadline.

There is obviously a risk in waiting until he comes to the US to file the taxes, but is it a legally viable option for me? Do I have a correct understanding of the rules? I'm really hoping for our interview letter any day now, and at least if we had that I'd feel more comfortable with the decision to wait. Am I being silly, and should I just file separately and pay the thousands, even knowing I should actually be owed several thousand more?

The other thing is I'll be visiting him this summer, so an alternative option would be to file MFJ at a CAA when I see him, but it would be after April 15.

Thanks in advance!

I have gone thru the Green Card process once before. I was married to my ex about 25 years ago and we have been divorced for 16 years. Since that time... I have been married 2 times after to American citizens.

My second husband was a college sweetheart and we have 2 children together. My third husband and I were together for 3 years but only married for 1 year and mainly got married for health insurance (although we were a real couple- I just didn't want to be married but his compnay requires marriage and not just common law, which is what we were).

I recently got married again (so marriage number 4) to someone from my own cultural background. He is from Cambodia and I myself am 1st generation Cambodian-American. I met my now husband at a family friends' party when he was visiting his sister on a B1 visa this last summer. We met and married within 3 months of meeting and have now been married for 7 months and it's been great so far.

We are about to file but I am unsure if I should use a lawyer or not. My ex husband (the first one) is remarried and has kids- we are still friendly and keep in touch. I went thru the process with him but neither one of us has the paperwork still. We are both having a hard time finding our case files and even our divorce decree. There seems to be no online query that I can find on my own. I never really thought I would go thru the GC process again. I am wondering if I should hire a lawyer to do all this since it seems a bit... complicated.

Or should I file on my own and submit any information that they need moving forward?

Posted as a reccomendation from Reddit.