SarAyouBliss

This was last year and things might have changed... dont know if this helps anyone in the process...but when I got to the consult I was told we needed an appointment to get this paper because a consulate officer needs to witness/swear, sign and stamp it. I waited inside until it was evident they were not coming back from court that day...

so we needed to go back again another time to complete it.

Apparently the appointments were made on their website by the petitioner or USC that needed such a paper.

Yes, things might have changed, for us, we went to the consulate without appointment, my wife showed the security guy her American passport so he let her go inside the consulate. 1 hours later she came out with the Affidavit of eligibility for marriage stamped and sealed, we had to translate it into Arabic, that was in September 2010, so yes, things might have changed.

We had to go to Casablanca first to get the paperwork from the Consulate. If you can try to do that when you arrive. We were at the consulate at 8am and in Rabat by 10am and done in Rabat by 3pm so it is possible to get it all done in one day but I really think we were lucky and had an easy process because it took us a total of 10 days from start to finish and we did not pay any bribes for anything.

Hi! Did you go to the consulate at 8 am to get your affidavit of eligibility for marriage? We paid $50 to get it.

Thank you!! That was some very helpful information. He does not live in or close to Rabat so that is good to know that we need to plan to be there very early. This is a very daunting process and I know we are going to need patience to get through it. He is very very patient. Me - not so much - but I am trying. Thanks again!!

You're welcome, i wish you the best luck.

Hi...

Take your time, do another visit in January. We see this alot here, the couple meets for the first time, love is everywhere, second trip, they marry. Getting to know someone is key here, not rushing into marriage on your second visit. Since, you have done extensive research, then you have seen all the denials due to lack of visits, marriage soon after meeting the first time, etc. Rushing into marriage so soon after meeting the first time is not a guaranteed visa, as you have seen here.

If you travel there in January and stay three months, that's great, it's great evidence, the more visits to morocco shows a slow steady relationship.

My only advice is......take it slow, make more trips. This process is too fragile to jump the gun to soon and cause yourself more heartaches down the road.

Please take into considerations what FOREVERWAITING has just said, it's the most important ADVISE you need now, you will have to wait anyway just like everyone does, but with multiple visits to your husband you will to wait less than if you get married sooner.

Hi guys,

I know this subject has come up quite often and I have gone through and read all of the posts I could find. I think I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. But I was just wondering if anyone has any suggestions, tips, advice, encouragement... We were planning on going the K1 route but after staying there for five weeks we decided that I would come back in January and we will get married. I will stay for three months and then file for Cr1. I have spent hours researching all of this and I know getting married in Morocco is time consuming and definitely not easy. So I know you guys have answered this for many other people but I am just looking to get some ideas. Thanks for your time.

Did you check the list of the required documents you need to bring with you from the US?

Before giving the Adul the original documents, please make photocopies of each documents, because the Adul will take the originals to the family-court, and you'll never get them back.

Tell the translator to save each translation in his/her hard-disk, so you will have to pay 30 Dirhams for each saved translation when needed during the process or for the future, he/she can also transfer them to your storage device (memory card or USB flash memory).

Verify the translations for errors such dates of birth, addresses, names,etc... likewise your husband has to do with the arabic documents before leaving the desk.

Buy at least 5 stamps of 20 Dirhams and 3 of 10 Dirhams, you will need them to notarize your marriage license(s) whether at the subsidiary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rabat or at the local court where your husband lives, or at the Ministry of Justice, etc... that way, you won't waste time trying to find stamps nearby.

Tell your husband, to make at least 6 copies of his ID (Carte d'Identité) and certify them + get at least 8 of his birth certificates at least 1 month before starting the process, because a birth certificate in Morocco expires within 3 months.

If your husband not living in Rabat, you guys have to do your best to be in Rabat as early as you can at times when you will have to certify your documents at the subsidiary Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ( i mean 6:30 am minimum) because hundreds of people come from all over Morocco for that purpose, so it's best to be among the first people, otherwise you won't get other administrative matters done in the afternoon as your time will be consumed and administrative offices stop working at 3:30 pm eventhough they're supposed to work until at 4:00pm. it's best to be taking care of things from the early morning, sleep early the night before for a productive day!

Your husband needs to start the process for obtaining his Affidavit of Eligibility for Marriage (to show he is unmarried) from the prefecture of his district at least 2 weeks before starting the process of your marriage.

In Rabat, in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,beware some individuals who will very likely claim to offer help, those guys are noting but scammers,

And be patient.

I did read it and I don't see why it isn't happening right now? My dad died about 3 weeks before I moved out to Denmark. I couldn't imagine not being with the love of my life during such a difficult time. I hate it in Denmark, I really do, but if we were unable to go back to America, I'd suck it up and deal with it. If she isn't willing to be with you in Morocco, doesn't that raise some red flags to you?

I meant, is there something in particular about your case? I read some of the Casablanca embassy thread (I'm about 25 pages in) and it seemed like people who looked like they were in legitimate relationships with no red flags (around the same age, same religion, long courtship with a ton of time spent together) didn't have that much difficulty. It is unfair because I think similar cases out of the Philippines don't get treated as harshly. It is what it is though.

Honestly, I don't think it is her duty to fly to you all the time or for immigration purposes. It sucks that it is probably difficult for you to get a tourist visa for America, especially now .... but relationships really are two way streets. I don't see why it would scare you that she doesn't want to come out right away?

I don't want to be a pain about it, but at what point do you give up on immigrating to the US? If your relationship is meant to last it will do so without America. That is something you have to think about.

I'm sorry to hear you lost your father. My condolences.

In short, the consular corps here takes into consideration many many other things that the consulate in Denmark don't! unless Denmark becomes a 3rd world country with 99.99% of Arabs, no way! You've said there are couples here in Morocco with no red flags, same age, religion,tons of evidences who get their visa easily! Let me tell you that just being a Moroccan or an Arab is in itself is a problem or we can call it a red flag, the consulate here rejects so many people in their fifties and sixties who want a tourist visa to go visit their families in the US, these old people meet all the requirements/criteria, clean police records, and are good to go, but the consulate reject them for reasons we -normal people- don't see.

Remember that people don't have the same circumstances and stories, so the process for each visa is not the same, and for us, we have to wait couple of months until the next interview, if things won't work for us to get me to my wife, then we will absolutely get her to live with me, we will have to surrender.

Which doctor did you use for medical examination and how much did it cost?

thank you

I used Doctor Khadija Zirari, it costed me 1685 dirhams = around $198 that included everything ( blood-test, shots and chest x-ray) the chest- x-ray is done at another cabinet located 15 minutes (walking) from the doctor's office, it takes patience because your husband has to wait for the x-ray result which takes 2 hours, it's very preferable to be at the Dr's at 8:30am to save time as your comes from Fes, right? so he can catch the train or bus in late afternoon to go back home , well the Dr comes in at 9 am or 9:15am, then she asked me for the

copy of my ID and 3 photos (visa-styled photos) and gave me a receipt that shows what type of blood-tests applicable for me, in fact the laboratory where they do the blood-test is located above her office (upper floor), when arrived, i showed the receipt to the receptionist, she charged me 200 dirhams and asked me to have a seat and wait, i waited 15 minutes, then was called to do the blood-test, i did it, but they didn't give me the blood-test result, in fact, they send the result inside a sealed envelope to the Dr when they tests are done, so i went back down to the Dr's office, i had to wait a little bit (10 or 15 minutes) because she was serving other people, i told her that they took my blood, then she wrote to me another receipt for chest x-ray and gave me the business card of the x-ray laboratory that has a little map of the address, so as a resident of Casablanca i had no problem finding it easily unlike people who come from other cities, i took a cab to save time, when arrived, i paid 40 dirhams which is the cost of the x-ray, i had to wait 30 or 40 minutes as there were a lot of people before me, in short, it took me 1 hours to do the x-ray, but no result, they make you wait 2 hours to get the x-ray result and take it with you to the Dr's office ( i did the x-ray at 10am and came back to pick up the result at 12pm), while waiting, i did some personal errands unrelated to the medical examination! So, after giving the Dr the x-ray result she asked me to take a seat and wait, i had to wait for another hours, then she asked me for my passport, and wanted me to pay her 1645 dirhams, which i did, and had to wait again another 20 minutes then she called me to come in the examination room, she measured my height and weigh and looked deeply in my eyes , lips, overall, and asked me to lay back on the little bed , then did the vaccination shots in my right & left arms, then i asked me to go take a seat, i waited 20 or 30 minutes until she gave me the sealed envelope containing the medical examination result that i should take with me to the consulate on the day of my interview, i asked the doctor is everything ok, she said yes you're good to go.

That was exactly how my medical examination experienced went, please have your husband take extra money with him, we never know if there has been new charges or something like that, i wish you best luck and visa issued ASAP.

Thanks for the review. Did your husband have problems with the receptionist? I read a review that stated that the receptionist for Dr. Ambari overcharged them then tried to pocket the money. In addition, she scheduled their appointment on one day but gave the doctor another day. Also the other couple stated that they were running all over Casablanca to get lab and test results. Did you have the same experience of having to go to many places for test?

Running from the Dr's cabinet to the lab where they take chest x-rays , no more no less, bloodworks are done in the Dr's officer, as a resident of Casablanca, i highly recommend Dr Khadiha Zirari.

Thanks for the review. Did your husband have problems with the receptionist? I read a review that stated that the receptionist for Dr. Ambari overcharged them then tried to pocket the money. In addition, she scheduled their appointment on one day but gave the doctor another day. Also the other couple stated that they were running all over Casablanca to get lab and test results. Did you have the same experience of having to go to many places for test?

Running from the Dr's cabinet to the lab where they take chest x-rays , no more no less, bloodworks are done in the Dr's officer, as a resident of Casablanca, i highly recommend Dr Khadija Zirari.

What do you mean by she's the cheapest?

For me Dr. Khadija Zirari was the best even my arm got swollen and that's normal thing hahaha and the shots of vaccines didn't hurt me.

Have you ever watched the comedy film "Liar Liar" starring by Jim Carrey?

Filing for the K3 at most delayed your case a few weeks, and it will not have a negative effects/ cause a denial, so no need to worry.

There is no "official list of good lawyers". You can ask around here or ask friends and family who had immigration cases- and look at the Better Business Bureau, Yellow Pages etc for reviews. Keep in mind immigration is federal law so the lawyer really doesn;t need to live close to you, it can all be done over email/ phone.

You could have entered the DV lottery, it has no negative effect on the spousal visa, but it is closed now. It would also take a lot longer than next summer- if you won in this round, you'd be notified in May 2013, have an interview sometime very late in 2013 or in 2014 and be in the USA by the end of 2014. Hopefully your spousal visa will get you to the USA a lot earlier than that!

Thanks, i was led to justice.gov in order to find lists of authorized licensed and recognized lawyers/attorneys or BIA-recognized practitioners, but i failed to find the exact lists.

DV lottery, for MENA spousal visa applicants, i don't advise it.

Wow that is a lot of evidence that they wanted!

Have you considered having your wife come and live with you for a while/permanently? It sounds like they are making this process very difficult and if it were me, we'd be together rather than apart. Well, we are doing that now and if it ends up being as difficult as your case, we'll permanently live abroad in either England or Denmark (or anywhere else in the EU).

Is there something that would have made them think that your marriage is not legitimate?

Permanent stay with me in my county was the plan, (please review our story on my profile), what really scares me is her saying , she won't fly to me any sooner, we need to meet in person again hopefully that will somehow satisfy the officials whether here or there in the US, on top of just be together again in person, naturally, and escape the bureaucracies for a little while..

I would like to refer you to the Middle East and North Africa forum, so you can have an understanding why the officials are not considering our marriage and most marriages illegitimate.

Thanks for your input.

the i 129f was for a k3 visa, to get you here sooner(the k3 is obselete)not the k1 fiance visa. You really need to do your research and educate yourself. Your wife needs to be involved in this, she is the US citizen. What's done is done, there is no sense trying to figure out what happened when the original petition was filed, you need to concentrate on the NOID or NOIR. Your wife really really needs to be here to ask people for help. read this guilde and it will explain why an i129f was sent...seriously get your wife here and study the guides http://www.visajourn...content/k3guide

I'm fortunate getting your guidance, it's all krystal clear now. What led me to post this thread is, i decided to do my VJ Timeline, but i needed dates of NOA 1 & 2,etc.., then, looking at the USCIS letters we received i noticed few things that made me very curious and somehow felt that we've done mistakes, so, i posted this thread regarding that matter.

Definitely, i was the first person to want my wife join this community for so many good reasons, i wish we did that earlier earlier, but she wouldn't have had motivation anyway, she follows the poor instructions by our lawyer strictly, she can transmit information to you guys better than i do, she actually the one dealing with lawyer,USCIS,NVC, Congressman, Consulate with limited participation from my side, so she knows more details, in short, she refuses to come in here unless her lawyer tells her so, this topic made our talks unpeaceful, i can't really see her joining any website, barely can handle the webcam & voice functionalists, very very much not in the mood, the result is, no usage of the guidance i get from VJ.

the i 129f was for a k3 visa, to get you here sooner(the k3 is obselete)not the k1 fiance visa. You really need to do your research and educate yourself. Your wife needs to be involved in this, she is the US citizen. What's done is done, there is no sense trying to figure out what happened when the original petition was filed, you need to concentrate on the NOID or NOIR. Your wife really really needs to be here to ask people for help. read this guilde and it will explain why an i129f was sent...seriously get your wife here and study the guides http://www.visajourn...content/k3guide

Your lawyer filled the correct forms and no the processing of the K-3 did not delay nor change the outcome of the case. It was done to try to get you to your spouse while you waited for the immigration visa thus the green card. I know it is tough but know we all are praying that those on the visa journey have success.

I never knew of the possibility to file I-129F & I-130 at once, I can see what our lawyer tried to do, believe me, due to the unbearable separation of Me & My wife, i was almost gonna make an entry for the Diversity Visa program last week, i checked the instructions, it allows individuals who are already registered for an immigration visa to apply, a hope that if a bad scenario of long term delay of my CR-1 occurs then if lucky i can join my wife through the Diversity Visa next summer ofcourse with our co-sponsor sponsoring me, but i thought that would make no sense to the consulate (CO) and possibility to have a judgement that this guy (me) is seeking the USA not his wife, a red flag we don't need, right? lol

MIBEN, thanks again, have a good time.

Almost all the time, the K3 gets administratively closed at NVC stage. Even when that does not happen, it is no faster than the CR-1 these days (the K3 was originally created because the CR-1 used to take several years), and the CR-1 is the superior visa, as it leads to an immediate greencard (ability to travel and work) and is cheaper in the long run.

Believe me, I & My wife wished to get together in person ASAP, that was our purpose, and we emphasized it very well to our LAWYER, we weren't interested in obtaining a green-card, that would be taken care gradually while being in person, we also would not have worried about the funds to pay for a type of visa that would gather us together, rather than putting a GC priority than being in person. it was supposed to be the K-3 for us, we filed on Feb 2011, and from what i heard, the K-3 became useless until 2012, what' done is done. My last question is, is there any official source where we can find authorized, high rated immigration lawyers specifically in northern California? thank you Penguin_ie

Actually for a while the State department website stated that personnel petitioning for their spouse had to also submit the I-129f form for a K-3 visa which would allow the spouse to travel to the US while you waited for the interview and green card. Problem is they never expedite the K-3 rather they approve both at the same time then close out the K-3. It is pretty much a waste of effort and money they never get approved but this did not make any difference to the outcome of your case. The case number you want to track is the I-130.

I know that i gain nothing asking these questions, i know i'm supposed to prepare for what's coming, but i just want to discover if there was any mistake done at the level of filing the petition which was supposed to be the I-130 for the CR-1, and caused us to unnecessarily wait extra couple of months?

2 weeks ago, a couple from MENA got their K-3 visa

The I-129F is also used for the K3 spousal visa, which is outdated/ obsolete.

2 weeks ago, a couple from MENA got their K-3 visa, i don't understand what do you mean by Obsolete, would you mind clarify to me because i have a feeling that we wasted many many months waiting for the I-129F to be approved??

Here is my story from Dec 2010, it took 4 months for the diplomatic pouch to return to the states, they send it from one consulate to another overseas. I then recieved a letter March 2010 stating they had it and just wait for them to contact me if they needed something they would contact me, after another few months inquired again and was told returned k-1 are not a priority and they review when they get to it, then in Aug 2010 the senators office was told this :

Hello Brenda,

I just wanted to follow-up to tell you the latest information I received in talking with the Vermont Service Center for USCIS. They told me that when a consulate denies a fiancé visa and returns it to USCIS, it is essentially a closed case. If you want to pursue another attempt at a fiancé visa, you will need to file a brand new I-129F application.

I am so sorry about this, but thought you'd want to know.

Sincerely,

This was after waiting 9 months. I don't want anyone else to go through what I did. And there isn't a thing you can do about it. So don't believe it when they say there is a review in k-1's returned . So I sent them a certified letter stating that I wanted my application cancelled, even though I never recieved anything official stating they cancelled. I gave them all the information about our case, EAC number etc. Make sure you send a certified letter of your cancelling the first k-1 before you submit the second. This was all advice given to me by the customer service person at USCIS. I don't remember the specifics but call and ask. In my case I went to Morocco and was married, so we didn't reapply for the k-1. God help us!

This is very to the point, it's what VJ is all about.

It IS hard to anticipate... for all of us in our process. Sometimes it is better to try not to anticipate but be less emotional and more practical when it comes to our decisions. It is hard, trust me I know.

I think you might as well wait and see the final outcome of your application you have already submitted, assuming she can find a cosponsor. I believe this is your biggest obstacle both now, and in the future. Without a cosponsor you may very well need her to have three qualified working years herself regardless. She was not just borderline, her past years were way under the minimum.

It is unlikely she would just be able to pick up and move overseas without some planning on her end anyway. She has to have the funds for the plane ticket, putting everything in storage, or moving it… possibly selling it, getting personal affairs in order – bills she currently has may need to be paid off (since she most likely will have a difficult time paying them overseas), etc. Also there is the case of her and any visa/paperwork from your country for her to stay there long term. She can always start paying things off and saving for her plane ticket now, also check into your countries rules – that way you guys are doing something constructive in the meantime while you wait for the final decision of your original application. She should also work on who she knows that would be willing to cosponsor.

I am sorry but I really have no opinion on how many years she should spend over there minimum.

Hello, i have an update, i hope this reply reaches you.

We finally found a joint/co sponsor who meets the financial criteria and has been consistently working for the last 10 years, how to get our co-sponsor involved knowing that our petition has been shipped in a diplomatic pouch on October 1st , 2012. thanks in advance for your response.

All you can do is wait for your case to be sent back to USCIS normally takes at least 6 months. They will contact the petitioner and confirm if they intend to revoke or deny the petition at which time your wife has to be ready to respond to their requests. If they want to deny they will deny the petition at which time she can reapply but if they want to revoke the petition you have to act accordingly as this means you cannot reapply. Getting an attorney is up to your discretion there are people that overcame a NOIR without an attorney. It is in hindsight now that you did not have appropriate sponsorship and did not meet the RFE request for the marriage license even if you had it as you stated they never asked for it at the interview. Don't beat yourself up over that it's done focus your energy on what's to come. Try to visit each other again and continue to document your marriage as best you can. You could solicit the help of wife's congressman. Good luck,

We have an immigration lawyer, he took care of filing our petition, but, until recently, i noticed that he filed I-130 and I-129F YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT WE JUST GOT MARRIED IN MOROCCO. ~~NO ENGAGEMENT TOOK PLACE BEFORE MARRIAGE~ bottom line: we got married here in Morocco > my wife went back to the US > hired the lawyer > the lawyer did his work > USICS>NVC>INTERVIEW > 221 (G) , now, why did he file for the I-129F since this petition concerns the fiance visa?? Please review the above photos to see what i'm talking about.

Thanks MIBEN for your input, i appreciate your help, i really do.

Hello Vj,

I really need answers to the questions below, thanks!

- Visa type: CR-1 (Our marriage turned its 2years on October 11, 2012), petitioner (USCitizen) living in the US. - Interview dates & Outcome: Aug 23, 2012: 221 (g) Local Administrative review.

Sept27, 2012; 221(g) petition returned to the USCIS,reason: petitioner isineligible to sponsor the applicant (thesame answer told to the congressman'sassistant) + non-revealed issues. - Lawyer/Attorney: Immigration Lawyer (did thework from the start)

My Questions - Since the petition has returned to theUSCIS, are they going to give us a new case number to track the status at theUSCIS website (WAC########)? how long does it take for that from the date of return? - Howto get a joint-sponsor involved at this point? because someone wants to help usbe a joint-sponsor, we made sure they meet the financial criteria.

- During the USCIS stage, we received two RFE(Request for evidence) forms I-797E x2, (1st one was inJune 2011, and the 2ndone was in October 2011) I'm attaching copies of the REFs letter that wereceived from the USCIS. - I had to fill in the G-325A (biographicinformation) two times during the USCIS stage, the first was in early 2011 andthe second was on October 2011. - During the NVC stage, and after submittingthe required original documents (detailed birth certificate, marriage license,court record, etc...) the NVC sent us an email requesting a valid marriagelicense or my case will be delayed, considering that the one we submitted wasORIGINAL not a certified or notarized copy, i mean there's no more validitythan the one we submitted, so, surrendering to the NVC's request, i obtained asummary of the marriage license signed by the judge of the family-court thencertified it at the ministry offoreign affairs, then certified it at the primecourt then translated it to English, then certified it at the US consulategeneral, it took me about 1 week to do that, and on the same day i had it readyto ship, NVC notified me of my interview schedule, and stated that any originaldocuments that were requested by the NVC but were not submitted to the NVC mustbe brought to the interview, which i did but the CO never asked me for thedocument during my 2interviews, do you think i should have given it to the COin my 2interviews? Do you think the fact i didn't give it to the COparticipated in the 2 denials i had and became what i called it above one ofthe"non-revealed issues"? - Are there any official sources where we canfind contacts of authorized, recognized, licensed lawyers specialized inimmigration in northern California? PLEASEHELP US, WE FEEL LOST!

This the first letter from USCIS (Request for evidence ) June 2011

This is the second letter from USCIS (Request for evidence) October 2011

(post edited to remove second page of document at the request of the OP)

I'm back from the thread that you gave to me, i was following the steps to resolve the problem, but a link posted by Captain Ewok cannot open to me, in fact it was the link you opened back in October, and you got your problem resolved, below is the part from the series of replies where Captain Ewok posted the link:

Thanks for your help

i hope this one is large enough.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/390222-personal-messages/

I'm back from the thread that you gave to me, i was following the steps to resolve the problem, but a link posted by Captain Ewok cannot open to me, in fact it was the link you opened back in October, and you got your problem resolved, below is the part from the series of replies where Captain Ewok posted the link:

Thanks for your help

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/390222-personal-messages/

Thank You so much

Yes. That is the NOA1. That's your first notice of action that you receive on your case.

I would use the notice date for your timeline. I'm not sure it really matters, though.

Hello, sorry to bother you, i have a quick question: When a lawyer is on behalf between the petitioner & USCIS, does the USCIS mail the NOA to both the lawyer and petitioner or just to the lawyer?

During the USCIS stage, my wife received mails from the USCIS but they were only the Request for evidence I & II. is it possible that the lawyer received the NOA & NOA 2?

My purpose is to get my timeline done, but i don't have the dates, i know few dates but not all dates.

Thank you for your time.

Its actually the senators assistant who is in charge of immigration issues. I got her involved to help with finding out about our k-1 denial. This time she will follow it through until the end with the I-130. If we get another denial , I will have support to know what to do immediately. Last time I couldn't get through on the phone or email until it was too late and it was returned. Just know that they can't change or affect the consular's decision. It's just good for the consular to know the senators office has an interest in our case.

Thank you for the reply! We have the congressman's assistant, i get the feeling that she could do more than what she's doing right now, our lawyer is the same, we get no tips or guidance of the Do's & Don'ts, except what i get from VJ, it's a God's send.