US Immigration from Netherlands

Hi everyone,

I am a Dutch national and spouse of a US citizen and we both live in the Netherlands since July 2021. My partner is actively applying to jobs in the US. We would like to move to the US and apply for a CR1 visa for me, we want to submit our I-130 and get the process started. However, we don't know whether it is best to file the I-130 directly with USCIS and wait about 1,5 years or wait until my partner actually has a job offer and then file as DCF. If we do it the regular way and file through USCIS it is not much use for my partner to continue applying for US-based jobs since we would have to be apart for too long; we are also trying to start a family in this time-frame. In that case it would just be best to wait for 1,5 years until my CR1 visa is approved. My wife has a good career and I think her chances are pretty high to land a job in the short term, it would also be best for her career if she got a job in the US. However, the US consulate in Amsterdam doesn't seem to process DCF requests: they are unresponsive by email due to severe understaffing, they have no phone number, on their website they only mention sending the I-130 to the US lockbox for US nationals resident in the Netherlands, and on the internet I could find no one who has done DCF through the consulate in Amsterdam. However, the US consulate in Frankfurt seems to be handling many DCF requests, and I also read the following on their website: "Individuals who were previously assisted by the USCIS Frankfurt Field Office (which includes individuals residing in Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein) must follow these filing instructions." I was wondering if there are people here who are not resident in Germany but were assisted by the Frankfurt consulate with their DCF request? We really are in a dilemma right now whether to do regular USCIS filing and just wait; or take a chance, my wife applying for US jobs, and then see whether we can file for DCF in Frankfurt instead.

Hi everyone!

We have applied for a K1 visa and our file has been approved and is at the embassy in Amsterdam. We have received an email asking us to provide additional information (passport details, complete DS 160 form). We did that and then didn't hear back. Then I called the embassy and asked what the next step is. She told me that I have to register on the website us visa-info.com. I did that and paid the costs for the visa and scheduled a date. My question is: should I have waited for an official letter from the embassy with instructions or should they schedule a date for me? Or can I leave it this way? My medical exam is also scheduled. I found the information for the right clinic on the website of the embassy. Hopefully you guys can help me... Thank you!!

One thing I noticed is that most of the immigration lawyer websites use form I-485 rather than consular filing when filing for a green card. I'm an LPR myself and have plans to file I-130 for my (foreign) spouse, but am debating how I could get her in the US so we'd have to spend less time apart (even if not allowed to work). It says that the requirements for using I-485 are that you entered the US legally, but I think entering using an ESTA might look very sketchy and might get us denied. What would be the correct visa to enter the US that form I-485 is designed for? That is the part that confuses me.

Hi, quick question about the DS-160 form. My name on my birth certificate is Nikki. My nickname since I was a kid is Nicole. I never use my nickname on documents only my social media and email. Also everybody calls me by that name. Should I put it on the given name option section? Because I did put it somewhere in the I-129 form. But if I have to bring a police clearance form for that name, or of they do a background check, they won t find anything. Please help me out!