Doanh M.

That is pretty simple! Thanks all!

hi thanks for your reply. can you please however elaborate.

His children are young, one is 2 and other is 4. We are aware that this process will take about 12 years + before they possibly can make their way here. So they probably won't be 18 before then.

Why wouldn't his current spouse not qualify then unless they are divorced then if that's what you meant?

I am just doing my diligent now so fill out the forms correctly. I just don't know how to include his family on the I-130 form as it's not very clear.

IF anyone can help that would be much appreciated!

Best

Hi all,

I am filling out the I-130 to petition my brother to come to the US. My brother is married with two kids and I would like to bring them over as well.

It's unclear to me where on the I-130 do I list out their names and information.

Please advise me! Your help is appreciated!

Best!

Hi, thank you for your response. Do you know about my brother's case? Do I have to file for him and his wife separately too?

Thanks!

Hi all,

I am a US citizen and I would like to file a petition to bring my parents, brother and his family to the United States.

I have a few questions before I start the process, and I am hoping someone can help me.

Do I have to file for my mother and father separately and pay the fee separately?

Also the same with my brother and his family, he has a wife and 2 sons. I read that for his children, they can be his "derivative" and I don't have to file for his children separately but as for his wife, do I need to file separately? If so she doesn't fall in the category as my sibling. How long does it take before my brother can possibly step his foot on US soil?

Many thanks ahead!

hi there,

If I were you and your bf, I suggest not to apply for the fiance visa yet.

Give it more time to get to know each other, talk on the phone, chat online more.

This way you have more records of communication. And I would try to keep a log of phone calls, yahoo messenger, skype...

It's good that took pictures when you travel during the 2 weeks. But those are not enough. He probably should come back to Vietnam at least 2 more times to spend more time with you to get to know you. It's only 5 months that you know each other online and only 2 weeks in Vietnam. You definitely NEED an engagement party and take a lot of pictures.

If you don't do what I suggested, I am certain you will have difficulty with obtaining the visa which will only bring MORE DELAY. Spend more time getting to know each other. He's the one you are marrying for life so there's no need to hurry to come over the US. Trust me, it's not heaven as one would imagine. Do spend more time reading this forum. And have you bf read this site too as he will be the one doing the paperwork, unless you plan to hire someone.

Take your time and everything will fall into place. Hurry and you will fail.

Best!

hi everyone, happy new year

i have alot of questions please help me and sorry my english is not too good

my boyfriend and i meet online in august 2012, and he came to visit me in december for 2 weeks, we went to a few places in vietnam, and took some pictures. my questions are can he apply for fiance visa after the first visit? do we need to have an engaement party? i know to vietnamese people engagement party is very important but is it important for the fiance visa? what is to do list for k-1 visa

thank you and have a nice day!!

Hi there,

I highly recommend that you take more than one trip to Vietnam and take a lot of photo of you and her spending time and travel together. If you don't, the story is not there and you will have a difficult time at the interview.

Also it gives you a chance to really know her.

I actually had both the engagement party and the wedding party on different trips. My engagement party and ceremony was pretty much the same. A little different because at the engagement ceremony, only the engagement ring was given to the girl. At the wedding ceremony my mom, her mom gave her jewelries and everyone gave us gifts and money. That's the major difference.

Like other had said here, they don't send a spy to follow your every step. So have as many wedding parties as you want but don't show them the pictures which contradicts with K1 fiance visa.

Best to you!

Thank you for the great website and all the information. I have gotten a decent understanding of the different processes out there but sometimes, the more I read, the more I get confused. Hopefully some of you will answer my question or tell me "this is what I'd do if I were you."

I am engaged to a girl in Vietnam and have proof of this. Unfortunately, due to my job, my ability to visit Vietnam is limited. I can only go back in January of 2013.

My plan is to have the wedding ceremony in Vietnam in January, but start the K-1 process now.

Question: Will the wedding ceremony in the morning, and the party in the evening, disqualify me from the K-1 process if they somehow find out?

Question: Is the morning "Le Vu Quy" ceremony the same as an "engagement" ceremony that so many people mention here? My fiance said that my parents and hers will talk, and then we are married....but it seems like there might be some miscommunication here.

Question: Assuming the morning ceremony is an engagement ceremony, can we do that, and skip the party at night?

I basically can only come to Vietnam in January, then again 3 months later. If I put off marrying her in Vietnam in January until she can return, God knows when we will have the ceremony and it will be a real let down for her family.

Question: What is CR1? What is CR1 vs K-3?

Some people here were saying CR1 is a good idea, go for it. Almost like CR1 is better than K-3 or K-1 but I don't really know what the deal is.

My hope is that we can have the wedding in January with just the ceremony. Then, a couple of months later get the fiance visa and have her come over here. I have heard horror stories about the US embassy getting all antsy because someone had a wedding ceremony even though there is no legal backing to it....I am just not sure if Vietnam is like that.

I cannot wait to hear your responses so I can formulate a plan and start pushing some papers through.

she doesn't have a green card yet.

I brought my wife here by a K1 visa as an fiancee a year ago and we got a 6 months old child. My wife does not have a green card yet. Too much is going on and we can't live together. I want to divorce and force her to go back to Vietnam and the kid will stay with me. I don't know if it's possible to do that.

I dont know the situation too well. But given what i read here is that your wife was 3 months pregnant before she arrived the United States.

She then came over. You're supposed to file for AOS for her but you didn't, even with the kid coming.

Unless your wife totally used you to come over the US and totally disregard her 6 months old child, then I will pity you.

But rather I feel very bad for your wife's situation. It's a marriage and you're supposed to work it out. I doubted that there was any infidelity on her part as she was pregnant half the time she's here.

I'd like to see her get a lawyer for help and gain custody of her child.

Some people are so irresponsible that it's heart breaking for others.

Good luck guys!

My take in this is that WHY NOT DO IT.

People can pretty much get anything notarized. So why not back them with evidences and what's better to prove your residence than where you went to school. Granted that some folks in here are older so this is not applicable to them.

For me when I did my 10 years residency, beside the notarized letter, i had included all of my W2s for the past 10 years and include a copy of my college diploma.

Do everything and anything to improve your chances is my take. Is it that much of a trouble?

hey no problem,

here is what i had...

_______________________________

Name Signature

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

______________

State of

____

County of

On this 1st day of July 2011, before me, a Notary Public for said County and State, personally appeared ______________________, known or identified to me, to be the person whose name is subscribed to the within instrument, and acknowledged to me that he executed the same.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my official seal the day and year in this certificate first above written.

Notary Public for the State of Masschusetts

_____________________________

Notary Signature

(SEAL)

__________________________________

Name

__________________________________

Residing at

__________________________________

Commission Expires

hey,

yeah i did it in an essay format. I found these questions from a previous post and kinda made it my goal to answer all these questions. It thougth it was easier to just write a timeline in chronoloocial order from when we've met to engagement but covering these fields of questions. Also pictures made what i write more interesting and believable so i add them within the timeline.

Hope this helps and good luck!

* Petitioner: In a sworn notarized statement, please provide a detailed chronology (timeline) of your relationship.

(Người bảo lãnh viết bản trình có công chứng tuyên thệ trong đó vui long cung cấp chi tiết về quá trình quan hệ của quí vị)

* Please explain clearly when and how you first met, how you were introduced.

Giải thích rõ ràng khi nào và làm thế nào ông/bà có thể gặp mặt nhau lần đầu tiên? Nếu có người giới thiệu thì ai là người giới thiệu?

* When you began corresponding with each other?

Khi nào thì ông/bà bắt đầu liên hệ, thư từ qua lại với nhau?

* When you felt your relationship became serious?

Khi nào thì ông/bà cảm nhận mối quan hệ là nghiêm túc?

* Date and circumstances of marriage proposal (location, time, place, situation, setting, etc..).

Khi nào thì ông/bà cầu hôn với nhau (cho biết ngày giờ, địa diểm, hoàn cảnh cầu hôn)?

* Did I propose in person or by phone?

Ông/bà cầu hôn trực tiếp hay trên điện thoại?

* Where was she when I proposed (give exact location)?

Vơ/chồng của ông/bà đang ở đâu khi ông/bà cầu hôn (cho biết chính xác địa điểm?

* Did she accept immediately or ask for time to think about it?

Ông/bà ấy chấp nhận ngay lời cầu hôn của ông/bà hay yêu cầu có thời gian suy nghĩ?

* If I did not officially propose, when did we first discuss marriage?

Nếu ông/bà không chính thức cầu hôn thì khi nào thì đề cập đến chuyện hôn nhân?

* How many trips did I make to Vietnam to visit my spouse?

Ông/bà đã về Việt Nam để thăm vợ/chồng ông bà mấy lần rồi?

* How many times have I seen her in total?

Đã gặp vợ/chồng ông/bà tổng cộng bao nhiêu lần?

* How long did you stay each visit?

Mỗi lần về như thế ông/bà ở trong bao lâu?

* Please give as many details as possible

Ông/bà có chi tiết nào khác cần để trình bày về mối quan hệ của quí vị không để cho rằng mối quan hệ của ông/bà là thật không?

hey

Below is what i had for my proof of 10 years residency. Like i said in my previous post, my timeline, apart from this proof of 10 years residency, was very detailed with pictures. If you want your fiance/wife over here quickly, you gotta do it right this time, as i think this is pretty much your last chance. Tisk tisk for not doing it right the first time when you're a member of this forum.

Your name

Address

U.S. Consulate General.

Immigrant Visa Section

4 Le Duan St., District 01,

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

June, 30th, 2011

I, ________, a citizen of the United States hereby state that I’ve been a residence of the state of_____ at the addresses provided below for the past 10 years.

1)Address 1

2)Address 2

This proof of residency letter is supported by the following documents

1) 2001 W2

2) 2002 W2

3) 2005 W2

4) 2006 W2

5) 2007 W2

6) 2008 W2

7) 2009 W2

8) 2010 W2

9) College Degree – Bachelor of Science 2002-2006

10) College Degree – Master of Science 2006-2007

thanks guys!

My wife biometrics appt is coming up on Feb. 28th. Interview or not, i am hoping to not having to worry about these immigration processes soon.

probably should stop the name calling.....

Hey Nathen,

Did you get this notice of accelerated processing in CA after the biometrics or before.

Thanks

Doanh

hi all,

I did the same as jac using turbo tax and made up a pin for my wife. All in all, I got the biggest refund ever and the money is already in the bank.

We got married in november 2011 and I just filed tax jointly with my wife and i got around 3.5x what i got last year when i filed as single.

Hi all,

I just wanted to know if most of everyone here whose spouse got their Green Card, whether an interview was required or do they just send you a Green Card in the mail after the Biometics appointment, given enough evidences was sent.

Thanks

hey,

My timeline was like an essay, with pictures, and graphs (minutes we spent on the phone monthly) describing how we met, how we kept the relationships going, pictures of us traveling together, what i liked about her and why we've committed, what's our future going to be like. Now, this is going beyond what's needed but during the interview they basically only looked at the timeline and asked questions (3-4) and the interview lasted 2 minutes without her even taking oath (they forgot). And yes i did get the timeline notarized.

Good luck!

I have given this some thought before and I don't know if that is a good choice to make since inflation rate in Vietnam is at least 9% to 17%. Basically the DONG is losing its value as I am writing this. You can get a nice monthly "gains" from the Vn bank at going rate about ~9%. However, if you put in $100 dollars now, you will get back much less than $100 when you want to withdraw your money. The exchange rate for $100 dollars is 14 million Dong 5 years ago, now is $100 = 21 milllion Dong. PLus it is a pain to transfer money out and in the States. Others, please correct me if I am wrong, my numbers are all ballpark.

don't know how hard the cr-1 process is...but for k-1 you don't need a dich vu. i did most of the paperworks myself in the USA. all my fiance had to do was go get the police certificate and official birth certs with the seal (and she lives 2 hrs away from any major city). the immigration places in the usa wanted to charge me 1k, the vietnam after i received packet 3 wanted to charge $300. if you're even semi-competent and can use google you're set, if you're already here on VJ then you don't need it.

don't know what all this "best possible answers to questions" is, i thought being truthful is the best? from my experience 2 kinds of people go the dich vu route...1 they don't have time to diy or clueless, 2 it's to have the best shot at getting through.

hate the seedy dich vu right across the street from the CO...they have these co`waiting as you park harassing and trying to stir up fear telling people they NEED to go there before the interview to let them double check your papers etc...i basically told them to F off

Of course all "best possible answers to questions" were truthful. However, it is good to prepare ahead as sometimes people get nervous and the truth might appear to be lies. It was also a boost of confidence to the fiancee. $150 dollars was definitely worth it -this coming from the fiancee'. And yes you are right, it is the best shot at getting through. We did get pink at the first interview, with 2-3 questions asked and the CO even forgot to ask my fiancee to do the oath.

The key is here is preparation and I might have overdone it but we didn't have to through the rollercoaster emotions and pain of getting blue.

Sometimes people with too much confidence find it out the hard way.

There was no Dich Vu on my end as I did all the paperwork myself. We did though hired Dich Vu to arrange all the paperwork and double check everything, also helped her with interview questions in Saigon. It was only $150 dollars and it was really worth it because the lawyer went over all the interview questions with my fiancee (3 times on different days). He helped my fiancee to find the best possible answers to questions. To yes it is beneficial to have Dich Vu prepping my fiancee.

I agree with quann and Hotvitlon too.

1) I wouldn't trust a hospital in small rural villages.

2) There is absolutely NO benefit to sleeping with coal placing under the bed. The only benefit I see is that it might keep the woman warm as she might be in a fragile state after giving birth. However sleeping with coal is actually very dangerous to both your wife and child. Burning coal actually emits CO2 and MERCURY + whatever else in which your wife will breath in.

The breathed-in-mercury will then be presence in milk that will then be consumed by the child.

I know that houses in Vietnam are more ventilated than houses in the US but all in all is still risky.

I wouldn't reschedule now until 2 weeks before your interview as I think 2 weeks is a good amount of time for a women to recover after given birth given enough nutrition and rest.

Best of luck and congratulations!

Congrats guys!

About the airplane tix, i think it's pretty ridiculous how one way ticket can cost more than a round trip.

I was able to book flights from HongKong to Chicago, Chicago to Boston using United mileage points. But to go from HCM to Hongkong, it is $540 one way. However if you buy round trip it is $440.

I was able to book a flight with Continental after i transfer mileage points from United to Continental.

I was thinking though, if we buy a round trip ticket, keeping the other one way for open travel. That might benefit us because round trip and one way cost the same.