Hollyday

At what stage of the process does the applicant present or submit their police certificate? I would like to know when the certificate needs to be in my possession?

It's one of the documents you submit to the NVC in the second stage of the process (after USCIS approves the petition and hands the case over to them).

where to get the bar coded sheet ? is it the one that nvc will send as email as a confirmation ? because when my husband paid the aos fee he didnt get a bar coded sheet

He kind of did receive it even if not in form of e-mail (can't remember now if emailing is involved). Log in into the Payments Portal. You will see the "Print Document Cover Sheet" button under AOS payment. Then there's also a button which gives you instructions what to do next. Here's the page it opens when you click it. Also here's a list of stuff that is listed as a guideline from them as supporting documentation.

One more thing about translation: you can do it yourself too, it doesn't have to be a certified interpreter.

She can visit but it's more feasible if she has a B1/B2 visa before you apply for IR1/CR1 because after you have applied for this the chances of having a tourist visa approved are fairly slim (obvious immigration intent already having been declared to the authorities).

Hello everyone, i am so confused about something and i need some good explanations please. I am on my NVC process for my immigrant visa (i130). Will i be able to work if i get to the states with the immigrant visa? How many years visa will it be? And how long does it take for me to have the green card once i get to the states? I am a bit confused.

I need some comprehensive responses please.

Thank you.

1. You will be able to work, yes. You'd need to get an SSN for that if you don't have one but generally yes, this type of visa makes you a legal permanent resident so you can work

2, The visa is valid for entering for approx. 6 months (it's issued after the interview but the 6 months are counted from the date of medical exam). When it's endorsed upon first entry it acts as a temporary green card for one year

3. Actual green card is sent to your mailing address in the US after you enter the country, time of delivery can be up to several months, for me it took approx. 2 months

Check out the VJ Wiki article on that type of visa, it may answer some of your questions.

Anyone from kuwait applied k1 visa?

Quick timeline search shows 21 records of K-1 from Kuwait.

I think the root of misunderstanding here is in the definition: the US looks for an official marriage paper (marriage certificate, probably known as contract in Germany, i wouldn't know). I don't think they'd really care a lot about the reception afterwards per se. But there needs to be a confirmation of an official marriage procedure conducted by local authorities. Many people don't even have a wedding reception / party. I had a tiny little one with just 9 guests.

Of course pics from reception would be considered evidence but it's not the main evidence, it's only additional one. Joint bank accounts, joint lease, medical insurance etc. have much more weight as they show comingling of finances.

But yes, she would need to prove US domicile since she lives abroad now, as the posters above have said.

Great. Thanks Hollyday! I figured he misunderstood something they were saying to him. I guess the only thing that confused me was when he said they told him it was a "new rule". I will double check his papers when he gets here.

No prob! Also, for me they put a reminder piece of paper into my passport when i was passing point of entry for the first time (this June). There it also mentions 90 days before 2nd anniversary of entering.

But also keep in mind what Hypnos said about entrance - 6 months from medical (the date till which visa is valid is printed on the visa itself, so it's easy to check).

Hey VJers! So my husband had his interview about two weeks ago and he already picked up his package with his visa etc. While we were talking and making sure he had everything he mentioned that his CR-1 visa is only valid for a year. So I started to correct him thinking maybe he misunderstood something or was reading something wrong. He said no he was told in his interview that there are "new rules" and that his visa is only valid for one year. Has anyone heard about this?? I mean, i guess its a good thing because we can adjust his status after one year instead of two to remove conditions on his greencard. I told him i would look at everything when he gets here this week but i wanted to check here first to see if anyone had heard this before.

Thanks!

I think maybe there's a misunderstanding: the immigrant visa, once endorsed at the point of entry, acts as a temporary green card for a year from date of entry. After the arrival the immigrant receives the actual green card in mail and in case the marriage's been less than 2 years old on the date of entry it's a conditional gc for 2 years: quoting from the USCIS site: "You and your spouse must apply together to remove the conditions on your residence by filing Form I-751. You should apply during the 90 days before your second anniversary as a conditional resident." (Proof link)

Oh so does the aos not grant her the visa? Ultimately that's what we are after so one day she can become a citizen.

I always thought AoS finished in a green card, which is the step towards citizenship in the end.

Just so this post isn't a complete waste of space - here's a link to the USCIS AoS guide thingy.

There might be a fee for withdrawal in an ATM of a foreign bank though (if the card is issued by an American bank).

Basically, there used to be no problem with transferring funds from abroad to Russian accounts but here's a hint: it should come in amounts that would not attract much attention (less than 5k USD). The beneficiary would still have to confirm it's not a business-associated transfer. Is the account in MIL's name? If yes, then it can come from either of the spouses abroad. If it was in the fiancee's name with a PoA for the mother, then if your fiancee wanted to transfer funds from her account in the US she could get into trouble with the Russian government - you have to report accounts opened abroad to the authorities in Russia after opening them.

Also, it has to be an account in USD for her to be able to receive money into it. She can withdraw money in foreign currencies from a rouble account as long as the ATM is loaded with the foreign currency - but to receive foreign transfers the account itself must be in USD.

Just my $0.02 (after working for a Russian bank).

Thanks for sharing! Do you know when your status flipped to optimized?

No, unfortunately i've no idea, i wasn't expecting it so soon.

Thanks for sharing Hollyday where was you POE?

It was in Seattle.

Just for the statistics sake:

Fee was paid before entering the US,

PoE - 08 June'14

GC received in mail - 09 Aug'14.

The consequences of not doing it can be a fine or some work you have to do but then you have a criminal record in Russia. I'm considering doing this for myself because there's no official definition of 'permanently residing abroad'. Even though i don't have a permanent registration in Russia anymore.

I was seeking options in case the situation escalated. If ties with Russia are severed, or even greatly reduced, then they (Russians seeking visas) are stuck there...that was my point. Given that situation, I would be looking for ways to get her out of the country. She would be considered an asylum seeker (aka refugee) at that point. War is not the only cause of this.

One does not have to be at war to seek asylum or become a refugee. You only have to fear persecution due to political beliefs, religion, race, nationality or social category. Refugees come in many different flavors.

Don't you have to prove the threat to yourself personally? Just being a person seeking an American visa wouldn't suffice i think. I know of situations when people provoked policemen at demonstrations so they could have video and photo proof of them being attacked by the authorities personally for their beliefs, etc.

I'm aware of 'many different flavours', no worries.

And btw abot Ukrainian refugees in Moscow - there was a very scandalous post in the Russian blogosphere from a lady who moved to Saransk i think (small city in Russia) from Donetsk and was complaining about conditions there. It wasn't a newly registered account or anything so it wasn't a fake just for the sake of black PR.

Uh oh. Here we go. This is almost certainly a prelude to a move into Ukraine by Russia by calling it a "peace keeping mission".

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/russia-calls-emergency-un-security-182320732.html

I wonder if Tanya flees to another country and asks for asylum or refugee status, if I would still be able to get her here? Perhaps going to a US embassy in Turkey for instance?

This has the potential to get real ugly in a hurry.

What grounds would she have to be considered a refugee? Russia is not at war at the moment, there's no immediate life threatening situation. At least i'm here at the moment and not feeling it.

Congrats!

Congrats!

Fiance wants to change her last name to mine but discovered that for a multitude of administrative issues, as in dealing with the government and passport, changng the name to my last name after the marriage would not be wise. She has a retirement pension for which to draw from as well as a flat for which she will sell. Also, changing her name to mine will potentially mess up her passport(s) for Russia.

1. There is no requirement for her to change her name once she is married to me in the States?

2. Dual Citizenship: In order for her to draw the pension will she need to keep her citizenship in Russia?

Anyone with experierence with dealing with these type issues would be appreaciated. Thanks.

there is no requirement to change name after marriage. It can be done at any moment in time anyway.

I don't think they'd give pension to someone who's not a citizen, but it's just my $0.02.

That must feel soooooo good!

Yeppp

And also to you!!! Time for you to go home!!

Thanks! I actually feel like i am. I've been living in a rental here for the last couple of years and it didn't feel like home.

Wow! That was quick. Congratulations. Now time to get on that plane...

That's what i think, too. Lol. Thanks!

And I am here!! Finally!!!

Case complete today!!

Congrats!

Congrts Hollyday!

Just now I checked ceac web sit and it says "Administrative processing". Now I'm kinda little worried. CO congratulated saying 'you can join husband now'. But it is under AP now.

I know visa no retrogressed in June. Will there be any impact on that? Have they already assigned visa number before the interview?

Dwheels/experts, Please advice.

Thx! Actually mine said "Administrative processing" on the day of interview too. I think they're packing up the Sealed Envelope and issuing it. Next day it already showed "Issued".

Put on Irene Cara's "What a Feeling" and go to town...

Heheh

Congratulations!!

Thanks!