US Immigration from Philippines

Hi all,

I just have a question I thought I'd see if someone might have had experience with and can answer.

My wife and I are in the process of her CR1 visa. She is from the Philippines and is residing there currently, while we await her visa.

She was an overseas filipino worker, and she lived and worked in several countries over the years. So, we have started the process of gathering her PCCs so we are prepared when she ultimately gets to her interview.

The one PCC we've run into some issues with is Qatar. We checked with the Qatar embassy in Manila, and we received from them instructions on how to apply for her PCC from Qatar. Qatar, however, requires as part of the application process a sundry fingerprint card. When my wife went to the Manila DFA to obtain her fingerprint card, she was told by staff she has to get an "endorsement letter" from the US Embassy in order to get her fingerprint card. OR wait for her "NVC" because her "visa hasn't been approved yet."

The NVC thing doesn't make sense to me. I believe what they meant was she has her NOA 1--and she took that with her to the DFA--but her case is still processing and has not yet been transferred to the National Visa Center...?

I've googled the endorsement letter issue. I've tried to reach the Philippine embassy in Chicago to ask about it and was unable to get an answer.

If you've had any experience with this, could you please share with me how she should go about obtaining the endorsement letter from the US embassy or what the Manila DFA staff meant by her "NVC?"

Thanks, all.

Warmly,

Jason

My question is very simple. My wife s I-130 was approved on 05/16/22 and forwarded to the NVC. I sent the NVC the required forms and payment on 06/10/22. On 08/18/22 the NVC asked me for additional Tax Information on 08/20/22. The question is how long of a delay should I expect from NVC because of the Tax Question?

Please see below for some interesting developments in my case regarding my stepchildren s I-130 s.

I filed my wife s I-130 on 06/30/21, which was approved on 05/16/22. I submitted the DS-260 and I-864 on 06/10/22 to NVC. I then realized I had screwed up by not filing separate I-130 s for my 2 stepchildren so I did that on 06/30/22 exactly one year after I filed my wife s. On 08/10/22 I asked my US Senator for help if possible to speed up the children s approval sine my wife s was already at NVC. I filled out their paperwork and then waited. Meanwhile, the stepchildren s I-830 s went to Nebraska processing site and transferred to Vermont. On 08/18/22 NVC asked me for additional tax return info which I sent them on 08/20/22.

Yesterday I noticed that the children s I-130 had a new message of Under Active Review dated 09/13/22. Previously it stated Under active review dated 06/30/22. Later in the day (I m 12 hours ahead of the NVC in NH) it was posted Approved. Now remember I had just filed their I-130 s on 06/30/22. So in 2 months, 18 days I received my stepchildren s Approval for their I-130 s. My Senators Team contacted the USCIS on my behalf and acknowledged that while I was responsible for the one year delay in the filing for our children s I-130 s and it was certainly not the fault of the USCIS could they help in advancing the approval process for the children. We pointed out that my wife s I-130 was approved without any questions and my income covered the 4 of us. Additionally the children are 6 & 8 yrs old and there are no issues with their I-130 s. I m sharing this bc this forum has helped me since I first suspected I screwed up. So I can say, at least in my circumstances, the Congressional help works.

Now I just need for the NVC to look at them ASAP.

My question is in the event that I get my Interview schedule for my AOS, can I bring my K2 (no interview schedule yet) so she can get interviewed the same day as I am?

Thanks.

Ok, so I'm aware that my wife's kids can gain citizenship once she is naturalized (hopefully soon!). Does anyone know the process of getting the passport for the 2 minor kids and what, if anything, is required from their birth father? My wife has the Solo Parent ID and Affidavit, but there is no indication of sole custody in the annulment. Will we have to involve the birth father in order to sign off on getting them passports?

Will this be an issue or possibly delay approval? I m worried it might because I owe taxes for 2019, which I disclosed on my N400. I am on a payment plan and uploaded the documentation with my application. I filed for an extension on my 1040 in April and made my estimated payments for 2021. I wasn t expecting my interview until next year so I figured as long as I filed my return by the October extension date, I d be fine. I wanted to take more time because I wanted to itemize my deductions to lower my tax liability instead of taking the standard deduction like I usually do. My interview got scheduled way faster than anticipated so I got to work with a CPA and filed my return a week after learning of my interview date. The IRS still hasn t processed it. The IRS website says 9 out of 10 1040s are processed in 3 weeks, but I know this time of year gets busy again for them with the 1120 Business return extension due date being due in a couple days. I feel like USCIS might look at my application with more scrutiny. Like, oh this chick is behind on her 2019 tax payments AND she didn t file her 2021 under the normal due date and her return hasn t been processed yet.