purplesneakers

hellllloooo everyone...

its been a while... i'm so glad everyone seems to be doin' great... congrats on the bub matt, i didnt even know about it til just now....

smooth sailing in baltimore... tom and i bought a beautiful house and treehouse in the city, last week i got my first social work job after having graduated, my best friend is visiting for a month in oct and 2 weeks after she leaves i'm goin' home for three weeks... cannot wait... and that would be an understatement... i'm really curious though how much i'll miss my new home once back in oz... i've heard it's quite surprising....

and now that i've babbled.. i have a question someone can hopefully answer for me... is my alien number meant to change? i ask because it has, only noticed tonight when the number on some of my paperwork doesnt match the number on my permanent resident card... it matches some of the paperwork but not all of it... i found it odd.. 'cause of all the reading i've done i cannot remember reading that it changes.... what you think? sorry if it's very obvious that it does...

thankyou to whoever can assist....

take care everyone..........

jodie.

Hey everyone.. will try and keep it short.. i hope alot that someone can help me out by answering these questions....

In the checklist provided on the AOS interview notice it says:

- "All documentation establishing your eligibility for Lawful Permanent Resident status"

My question is, what is the "all documentation" exactly??? i'm confused by the broad nature of the request. If someone could spell it out for me I'd be grateful.

Secondly:

- "Original and copy of each supporting document that you submitted with your application. Otherwise we may keep your originals for our records"

The 'application' that is referred to, is that the original AOS package we sent off or is referring to the supporting evidence (lease, joint bank account, photos etc) we are to bring with us to the interview?

I'd apprecriate any feedback, i'm a little stressed here. Thanks,

Jodie.

hey peeps...

glad to hear everyone is doin' alright on here...

i have a question i'm a bit confused i feel like i've been outta the visa swing of things for a long time...

tom and i have our aos interview later this month, and i'm wondering once granted will i be a conditional or a permanent resident? i was thinking conditional because we've only been married 6 months, but now i'm doubting myself...

what got me thinking about it was the idea of going back to school for my masters, and looking at the fee schedules, more for those that aren't us citizens or permanent residents...

also has anyone looked into doing distance learning from an aussie uni while in the US? just wondering if i can get away with hecs because i am an australian citizen despite not living there.

be good guys,

jodie.

hey everyone!

wow, looks like there's been some good news everywhere, good stuff!

i'm feeling a little stalled here, looking for work... more waiting... waiting for the phone to ring...

but got some unexpected good news yesterday, aos interview date for june, wasn't expecting that for awhile...

take care everyone... and thanks for the birthday wishes matt!

Jodie.

thanks everyone for your kind words...

I GOT MY EAD!!!! and AP!!!!

it's been a good day, I'm so excited!

I GOT MY EAD!!!!

it's been a good day, I'm so excited!

My AP is approved!

Surely my EAD can't be far behind!

Congrats Karo on your interview!

tick.. tick... you must be so excited!

there are some great suggestions here, especially phone cards, directions etc.

I think it would have been fantastic if my now husband knew how the AOS process went, however when he offered to help i rejected his offer because it was my little project and it filled in some days spent in the apartment alone, checking and then rechecking, getting it all in order.

This suggestion may sound obvious but space is important.. and i don't mean from you! I'd visited tom three times in the place we are both now living in and it didn't bother me then, but when i looked around the last time i lobbed here (to stay, for good!) I noticed I had no where to really put my stuff... it sounds stupid but my stuff just didn't have a home, and i ended up with a suitcase full of stuff just sitting there until after we were married... recently we bought as desk with lots of storage space in it and finally i feel like i have a little space carved out for my things... and me! but we're going to need something bigger than a desk when the rest of my things arrive at the end of april! 20 boxes!

I'm up for it, we're in Baltimore. Any thoughts as to when?

does anyone know how to reschedule an infopass without their confirmation number/pin?

my laptop overheated and turned itself off at the most inconvient time EVER!

the infopass pdf says there is a way to reprint the letter however I can't find how this is done. I tried calling USCIS just now however they were of no help.

Any suggestions would be good. Thanks.

does anyone know how to reschedule an infopass without their confirmation number/pin?

my laptop overheated and turned itself off at the most inconvient time EVER!

the infopass pdf says there is a way to reprint the letter however I can't find how this is done. I tried calling USCIS just now however they were of no help.

Any suggestions would be good. Thanks.

hi

I know i've seen this posted on here before but never piad attention cause it was of no relevance.. now i'm in a dither and can't find it..

what does anybody know about emergency ap's?

a family member is critically sick.. and i want to go home.. i'm currently waiting for my ap/ead/aos...

ive booked an infopass appointment... what do i need? do i requie proof of emergency? is the success rate good? i'm in baltimore...

any insight would be welcome.. thankyou

Yayyyyyyyyy Kaffy almost a done deal.

Great info re the shipping jodie Newcastle is less then 2 hours north of me and I do have things to ship. Do you know what the timeframe is from departure to arrival?

All the best for to all of us waiting.....hope we all get good news soon on the stages we are up to.

Lorelle

well it just might work for you lorelle, because my stuff actually left from sydney... it left sydney 14th march and is due to arrive in baltimore the 29th of april... so what's that? like five six weeks? not too bad, especially because i wasn't planning on getting it all before i got a job... now i think the big problem is where am i going to put all this stuff in our one bedroom apartment...? oh well, i'll have fun figuring it out!

hey everyone...

congratulations to everyone who's had some good news the past week...

I'm still waiting for ead/ap/aos here.. keeping myself busy with volunteer work though...

just thought i'd share with ya that my belongings are on their way, and my folks back in oz.. found an incredibly cheap shipping company to do it through

www.scorpioninternational.com

i had 20 Ctns @ 330.0Kgs / 1.300M3

and it came to, $760... before they found scopion the quotes were coming back at over 4 grand... i think that was for air freight though...

theyre based in newcastle nsw, so although i may not suit everyone, just goes to show it's definitely worth looking around a lot before you hand over huge amounts of money to any one company..... i thought i did while i was at home, but i missed this gem...

take care all,

jodie.

Okay, so my husband recieved Pkt 3 today and has been looking through it for a bit now. A few questions for those out there more experienced:

1. How much does this medical stuff cost?

2. Is it really as invasive as it sounds?

3. Any recommendations on which doc in Sydney?

Thanks!

1. Lots, can't remember the exact amount and after some tiring searching for my post which went into it I give up, be prepared to spend around 300... you may come out of it with change...

2. No. At least not with my experience in Sydney, the worst was having to undress and get into one of those lovely paper gowns and to drop it only for a minute. I've read in the UK women have had to have internal exams but I've read nothing like that for Sydney.

3. I went to Dr. English and I have to say go to the other bloke. He is reccommended here and while I have nothing really bad to report about Dr English my two complaints are (1) His office is further away than Dr. Millar's to the chest xray place... I believe Dr. Millar's office is in the same building as the chest xray place and (2) Dr English's receptionist insisted on not sending out my medical results and would only give them to me the day of my interview... an early interview and a delayed train made me stress a great deal, also I had no time to photocopy the sucker. Very glad I asked the receptionist to at least copy the vaccination sheet for me.

Good luck!

hey kaffykat you could always ring the clinic that does the medicals and try for an appointment.. they may ask, like they did for me in sydney and i replied that i didnt have my noa2 yet and it was no big deal... i had the medical forms already though, from 2 years before when i started the process and sydney wasn't afraid to issue the entire package when you made an enquiry...

pretty sure its the I134 you need for the interview and the I864 for AOS... again not sure but i'd imagine you'd get the same instructions from sydney that i did...

good luck with it all...

Okay now for the questions...

Would I be jumping the gun if I went and starting organising my police certificate now, or would I be best to wait til the petition has left the NVC?? I am pretty sure I read somewhere that they have a 12 month validity.

no way, infact i'd say jump on it as soon as you can, some unlucky buggers have mistakes or absenses on them, so best to get it as soon as you can... you'll have plenty of time.

I need to get a tetanus shot done, gawd knows when I had my last one so I may as do that now as they last 10 years. All the other stuff, well heck I can't even remember when I had them done, let alone by which doctor...

i think if you go to your gp they can do a blood test and tell you what you've had and what you haven't... and then give you what you need... i got a letter from my doc stating what i had and took this to the medical so the physican could tick it off on his sheet.

Is there anything else I need to be worrying about right at this point in time, or do I just sit back and enjoy the fact that my NOA2 finally came through??

well i'd sit back and take a breath anyway.. and definitely no worrying! but it depends on how much of a hurry you are to get over there... when my noa2 came i had my ds-2301 ready to go so the day my letter from the sydney consulate came all i had to do is date and sign it and i put it in the mail that day...

i also had my medical done w aaaaay before my noa2 came... so you could get that over and done with if you wanted to...

if youre bringing your daughter with you, you require child custody documentation too... so a court record or a signed affidavit from the other parent including a copy of photo idea or a death certificate...

oh oh forgot one more, very important thing.

I am also going to be doing K2 for my daughter. I know she doesn't need to do the blood tests or xrays. She is 13, what vaccinations are they likely to focus on for her?? She had all the shots when she was a baby/toddler and the ones they did at school. She is due for an MMR & tetanus when she is 15, but this is about it I think.

Does Mike need to do a separate I864 for myself and my daughter?

are you sure you don't have to do a I-134? i know sometimes people do a I-864 but im unsure myself under what circumstances you are asked to complete one instead of the other... so all i can tell you is that sydney asked me for a I-134... as for having to do two... again i'm unsure but i know that someone here could help you out with that....

Okay Okay I am an organisation freak, so shoot me..... Now you know why I found the wait so aggrivating, I couldn't do anything but needed to.

Congratulations on getting it Kaffykat!

Exchanging an Out-of-Country License for a Maryland License, Please Bring:

Proof of age, identity, Maryland residence, out-of-country license(s), and the appropriate fee for each license applied for. Please refer to sources of proof for required documentation.

* You must pass a vision test, knowledge test, and driving test.

* You will be required to disclose your Social Security Number.

* Out-of-country license must be a valid license or a license expired for less than one year. The license cannot be suspended.

* If licensed for less than 18 months, you will be issued a Maryland provisional license.

* If you’ve never been licensed in the U.S., you must complete a 3-hour drug & alcohol awareness course.

* A valid U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) physical card or Federal/MVA waiver (if applying for a commercial driver’s license) is needed.

* Out-of-country license must be accompanied by an International license or translated into English by an approved translator.

* If you are from out-of-country, and have never held a license, you must obtain a learner’s permit.

http://www.marylandmva.com/DriverServ/Apply/license.htm

thankyou so much!

i was 16 when we first started talking... 9 quick years ago...

i would have saved in australia for more than a plane ticket so i could have brought some money over with me. I'd stash it and save it for valentine's day or his birthday the week after. the thought of asking him for some money and then to drive me to the mall so i can go buy him something with it is depressing. also i should have kidnapped my sister when she was here for the wedding so i could keep her here with me always. i miss my little sis.

hey y'all

researching to go trade in my aussie for my md license here and i have a question. i researched it something like 6 months ago while in australia and remember reading about having to take and pass the test to get the license once here. i also read something about a mandatory drug and alcohol (or something like this) course, problem is now i can't find anything saying this on the mva website. can someone confirm if i was or was not dreaming? thanks,

jodie.

i just generally hate driving here... to get to the supermarket you need to get on and off 2 interstates.. now i drove a lot at home but never did get used to freeways and whatnot... merging here sucks too.. no slowing and creeping in when you can here... oh but the worst, the WORST! is the backwardness of the signs, at least in comparison to at home. for example, instead of left on red when posted, here it's right on red always unless it's posted. what the hell? but that rule changes so quickly.. as soon as i venture outta md and into dc it's completely different. i know how i'll eventually die.

Congrats to Aussie/Princess on your marriage. Now you have the joy of going through the whole adjustment of status process. It's even more painful than the K1 Visa!

I don't know if this has been asked before, excuse me if it has, but can we have a list of where all the aussies are living in the US? I just noticed that there are some in California and that got me wondering if you live anywhere near me.

I live in Belmont, San Mateo.

i'm in baltimore, md and have a huge headache from the duvet thread in the 'moving here and your new life in america' board... can any aussies in the US relieve me of my headache?

while i'm at it i want to ask has anyone come across a service to transfer money from a US bank account to an australian bank account? I have a credit card bill that needs some urgent attention.

oh and yeah, did all you transplanted aussies here about eddie mcguire and channel nine? and then like me have a bit of a chuckle?

jodie.

someone or someones has to set the record straight for me because i'm totally confused on this. my husband's and i first argument as a newlywed couple occurred in target over the bed linen confusion. and i've read the previous thread on this and it gave me a headache.

so here we go. in australia i've always had a 'doona' inside a doona cover. okay then, i was under the impression that a doona translated into a 'comforter' in the US, with the one exception that it had a pretty fabric ontop so that it did not require what i know to be a 'doona cover'. so we purchased a goose down comforter, however now goose feathers are coming out of it every time we touch it and whenever i wear my david bowie black t shirt to bed i wake up with feathers all over me. So then i'm guessing I need a cover, cause who puts up with that right? hello confusion. i put 'comforter cover' in the search engine at target and all that comes up in 'duvet covers'. this is perplexing because i walked away from target last time thinking a duvet was a thin blanket type thing, often in pretty fabrics that required no cover. somebody help me! could i buy a duvet cover and put my goose comforter in it? is there such a thing as a comforter cover? am i doomed to waking up covered in feathers unless my puppy 'accidently' chews the comforter and we are forced to start again? what are my options here?

i never in my life thought shopping for bed linen could be so stressful. i want my mum. and to those aussies that brought their doonas from home.. good thinking mates! but how on earth did you have room in your suitcases for the bad boy?

much thanks,

jodie.