US Immigration from Japan

Hello, this may be long and complicated so bear with me.

We are at the NVC stage and I got a second RFE for my wife's birth certificate. And we're in a pickle. We live in Tokyo and plan on going to the embassy there.

But the NVC is giving us the run around. We followed the scan directions on the website.

"Part of this document is missing or is difficult to read. Please replace this with a scan that shows the complete text of the document. Please ensure all sides of every page are scanned and visible."

Her birth certificate was translated to Japanese, but she self translated to English and signed our own affidavit with her info.

Is this a scan problem? Do we need a bigger scanner? Or does it need a "certified translation" page on the white book (birth certificate).

Trying to get another one is very difficult because she changed her citizen to Japanese.

Another big problem we have is our son has severe mental illness and we need treatment in the US and seperating him away from my wife would worsen his condition. We are considering on sending a expedited request to the NVC and bring all the documents to the embassy and show and explain the situation there. All our documents, including the AOS and Civil documents are all accepted but the birth certificate.

What shall we do? I feel this can turn into a problem down the road. Anyone have advice on what we should do?

Hey guys!

Is anyone part of the 1600 skipped applicants from June - July? So from my research, it s not the first time USCIS has skipped cases. I ve heard that it was a technical issue this time around. So given the fact the that they haven t worked on this case range. It would mean the time to hear back is probably 3-6 months..

The California processing center has an average 8.5 wait time. So once that time passes make sure to send the USCIS an inquiry. It probably won t do much but it s something.. Here are additional steps you can take once you ve sent in an inquiry:

Additional Steps:

1. Contact USCIS

Call 1-800-375-5283, and request a Tier 2 officer.

Submit an Outside Normal Processing Time Inquiry if your case is delayed.

2. Expedite Your Case (If Eligible)

USCIS allows expedite requests for:

- Severe financial loss

- Humanitarian reasons

- USCIS errors

-Call USCIS or use Ask Emma to submit an inquiry request.

3. Request Congressional Help

Your Congressional Representative can escalate delayed cases.

Find yours: House | Senate

4. File a DHS Ombudsman ComplaintIf USCIS remains unresponsive, submit a Case Assistance Request (response within ~45 days).

6. Consult an Immigration Attorney

If all else fails, a lawyer can file a Mandamus lawsuit to force action.

If we all come together as a community and send inquiries and escalate. Hopefully we can push them to take action! Let s do this! Stay strong!

Hi Everyone,

I am sure this question has been asked many times before, but I wasn't able to find a thread for it, so I apologize in advance.

I'm currently living and working in the United States.

My fianc currently lives in Japan.

We have been dating for about 6 months, and we have met in person several times, but we are not yet married.

My fianc will be visiting me in the United States on a tourist visa some time in March or April and staying for about 3 months.

We want to apply for the CR1 Visa as soon as possible.

I want to know how and when we should get married so that the process goes as smoothly as possible.

For example, should we get married when she visits me on the tourist visa? She will be returning to her home country after about 3 months regardless.

In this case, would it be possible to begin the CR1 Visa application while she is still in the United States on a tourist visa? Or should we wait until she is back home in Japan before filing.

Alternatively, should we have a virtual marriage while she is still in Japan, so that I can apply for the CR1 Visa before she visits me on a tourist visa?

Finally, it would be possible for me to visit her in Japan to get married there before applying for the CR1, although that would be the most difficult and expensive option.

I appreciate any advice on the subject.

Thank you,

Eric

PS: We are open to applying for the K1 Visa as well, but I heard that they take about the same amount of time to process, so the CR1 Visa seems to be more advantageous (cheaper overall, can being working immediately, etc).

Hello everyone!

My wife (Japanese citizen) and myself (U.S. citizen) just received our email confirmation from NVC last night that her IR1 visa interview at the embassy in Tokyo has been scheduled! The interview is scheduled in 2 months (mid-April) and we are starting the process now for the additional pre-interview requirements.

My main question is about health insurance. My understanding is that the consular officer will ask for either proof of enrolled insurance (either purchase in advance or be enrolled on a spouse's employer insurance) or be able to show proof you will be enrolling in insurance right away once arriving in the U.S. It seems having insurance lined up prior to the interview is the safest option. Is that accurate?

Unfortunately, since I, the sponsor, am also currently living in Japan with my wife, I do not have existing medical insurance in the U.S. from an employer that my wife can be enrolled in prior to the interview. So, I think it may be better to try to line up insurance for her before we go to the interview. I've been digging around and have found some articles (one example below), but I'm not sure if this website can be trusted.

Does anyone have any feedback about our situation and/or any trusted recommendations we can look at in terms of arranging health insurance in advance?

Article
https://www.***removed***.com/immigrant-visa-medical-insurance/

Insbuy "Health Insurance For Non US Citizens To The USA"

https://www.***removed***.com/new-immigrant-insurance/

Thanks so much!

My wife and I are trying to understand how to navigate the visa process and are struggling.

Context

I started a job in the US this month and have already moved back to the U.S. ( I was not aware that moving for a job made us eligible for Direct Consular Filing and now it is too late).

My wife (Japanese) and 2 children (Dual Citizens) are living in Japan.

Married a little over 4 years (married in Japan, no U.S. marriage certificate)

Question 1

My wife's mother is divorced and remarried (now separated but legally still married to the second spouse). The Japanese family registry lists both her birth father and her mother's new husband. New husband appears to be listed as an adoptive father and both my wife and her mother took the new husband's family name.

- Which father's information gets entered on I-130a Page 2 Part 1 - Information About Parent 2?

Question 2

Page 6, Part 7 requests an item number for adding additional information.

- Should I enter Page 2 Part 1 Item Number 17.a for the information and then type all of the second father's information in the space below?

Question 3

Typing into the pdf in Adobe prohibits a hyphen in the address line. Using chrome to type into the the pdf allows a hyphen.

- Will we run into problems by using chrome to bypass the block in the original document?

- Should we instead write the address in full in Part 7?