sancruz

Just an update, she's here! My stepdaughter arrived on Friday and no I didn't pay the visa fee first. She did give me a letter they gave her saying it has to be paid tho.

yay! so happy she is here and you finally have your family together. Its such a relief to be through the process!

My boys are home!!!!!!

Yay! so happy for yall! It has been a long wait but it's finally over! Enjoy your family! Congrats

I was dropping by to see how everyone is doing. I've been reading through and it seems everyone is moving right along. It brings back so many anxious feelings for me. I always hated when people were finally done and disappeared. (although I know everyone is busy and wants to go back to a normal life once this is over) but this was totally my outlet while I was going through the process so if anyone has any questions that I might can answer please let me know. Good luck to everyone!

Just an update our 3 yr old has adjusted so well. Better than I could have ever expected. She has learned so much English it amazes me. She speaks mostly to me in English and what she says in Spanish I figure out She still talks to her mom in Honduras about twice a week and she speaks to her half English/ half Spanish. My husband has to get on the phone and translate sometimes. Anyway she is our little blessing and we are so happy to have her home with us.

Her interview will be in Barbados. Im not sure how long they take to schedule. I just hope its soon. It will be pretty pricey for us too, because although her mother was supposed to handle that part, I think its best we just go ahead and do everything ourselves. My hubby, our toddler, and myself may just make a lil family vacay out of it and go to the interview. Only thing with that, is that she would have to fly over herself to meet us there. I feel kinda bad that she would be taking her first flight ever, and will be alone, but it would just cost too much for us to go there first then all fly to barbados. She's 13 and its only an hour away, so it shouldn't be that bad. I just will have to make sure she has all her documents and everything necessary for the interview. I would hate to come so far to have her mom or someone else eff everything up.

lucy4, you definitely should go to the interview if at all possible. We were originally going to let our bio mom take our step daughter too but I was worried too about things getting messed up. I was also told that they could deny the visa if the petitioner doesn't come to the interview (I think it just doesn't look good) I understand about the money issue too. This is not an easy process to go through on the emotions or the bank account. I've never gone through and counted up the total $$$ spent on fees travel etc.... I don't think I want to know!

As far as interviews go. I think they start scheduling interviews at the first of each month for the next available month. I had read they only schedule the first two weeks of the month but that is not true. They schedule until they are told the month is full so just keep checking with them.

hey ladies!!!!!!!!!!!!

i JUST got an RFE for my I864 that i turned in at least 2 mnths ago LOL.. its crazy.. i messed up on the family count portion because i am immigrating 2 stepsons at the same time but didnt understand that the children should not be listed on the other's form..

so im sending the form back today..they said they DO NO need the supporting evidence im like REALLY? that seemed like something they could have looked over but whatever..

Glad you guys are on your way.. praying for NO slip ups..and looks like we all will be ready at same time..

i was trying to slow ours down as well. BUT with the DNA testing possiblity.. i think its best for us to go ahead and get going now..

wow lucy4, yall have interviews in barbados?? aww that is a pain, but glad she is old enough to get there on her own..she will be fine!

Sorry about the RFE. At least you know they are working on it finally. Hopefully everything will move along now. Good Luck for a speedy finish!

Ok, so now Im moving on to preparing the IV package. I know most of you have been through this and I was just skimming through the thread for info on what I need. Heres what I came up with so far...

Beneficiary

Original Birth Cert

copy of birth cert

2 passport pics

copy of passport bio page

Petitioner

copy of birth cert

copy of marriage cert

I also have a notarized letter from her mother giving her permission to immigrate. Should I include the original or will a copy suffice? I only have one, so Id prefer save it for the embassy stage.

Do I need to include anything else?

We did not send the letter at all. We waited and they asked for it during our interview. Everything else looks good. Movin right along You will be done before you know it!

I am going to scream if these people dont allow me to log on and pay this damn fee today!

You sound just like me when i was waiting...i was like a crazy person checking it every hour everyday. If it is still letting you log on but no invoice appears then they haven't finished entering everything. When you log on and get an error message that means they are invoicing and you should be able to see it by the end of that day or the next to be able to pay. Seeing the error message is a GOOD thing. It means they are working on it. For me it was around 3 p.m. when both invoices appeared. Be sure to check back everyday after you pay it until you get the receipt showing payment went through. When i paid i got a confirmation but kept waiting for it to give me a receipt and for them to take it from my account. After several days It finally said payment rejected. I knew the funds where there and i knew it had never even showed pending in my account. When I called NVC they said they couldnt see where i ever tried to pay it so i had to try again and then wait another couple of days for payment to finally go through. I know it's so frustrating when you have everything ready but you are having to wait on THEM!! UGH! It will happen though just keep checking Good Luck!

Quick update on us. We finally got my stepdaughter's greencard. It took about 4 weeks after USCIS shows they mailed it. Everything is going great. I've learned more spanish in the last month than i did in the 3 years my husband and i have been together. She is also picking up on English really fast. She is only 3 so it will be a lot easier for her than me! She is adjusting really well. My husband and I also have a 18 month old so they are having a blast together. They love each other so much and it's so cute watching them play together. I have my hands full to say the least.

For those who are still on this journey, good luck to all of you. I know how frustrating it can be to wait, wait, wait but it's so worth it in the end. My husband and I still sit at the now loud dinner table and just laugh at all the chatter. Two months ago we were only dreaming about this day and now it's here and we wouldn't change any part of what we've gone through. We are so blessed that everything worked out and that we found visa journey. We would have been lost without the knowledge and support of those who have and are going through this same process to bring loved ones home. Now for the real journey......LIFE

Boys' DNA tests are on April 15!!!

:dance: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance:

Congrats on your approval....sorry you are having to wait on DNA tests. Hopefully it will go by fast!

How old is your step-daughter? is she under over or under 18?

Yes, she is 3. I called the USCIS and they said we should have already received her greencard although the post office still says they have no record of the tracking number past the last scan on the 18th. The USCIS sent in a service request and said I should hear something within 15 days......still waiting.

I got this same notice too. We received my step daughters social security card less than two weeks after she arrived in the US. We were surprised since we hadn't even gone to apply for it yet. We got a notice saying the fee was paid then we got another notice. When I went online to check status it said that her "new card" had been mailed on the 15th and expected delivery was the 18th. We assumed this would be her green card. We still haven't received anything and when I check with the post office using the tracking number they are no help at all. Then today I get this same notice saying fee in suspense??

I finally got NOA2 guys! Well I dont have it yet, but the I130's been approved today. I am beyond belief! I had resolved that it would take a whole year. I guess Im off to the NVC process now.

Congrats...good luck with NVC. Hopefully you will move through quickly. Do you already have everything in order and ready to send?

We didn't have anything translated and they never ask for it. I sent in copies to NVC and they didn't ask for anything to be translated either.

We got to Honduras on Tuesday. We had our interview this morning and it was approved!!!! We are over the moon. We were told to come back today to pick up her visa. As soon as we have it in hand we will be changing our flights and buying her ticket. Hoping to be back home by tomorrow night!!

Tips for the interview: This forum has been priceless to me. I have lived on this site for the last 7 months. When we went to the interview I had all of my papers in a 1" flexible binder. I had all papers in clear page protectors labeled on the outside with the information that was included in each one. When they called us back she had looked through everything already and asked both my husband and I several questions. We didn't have pictures of my husband and stepdaughter together but what we did have was pictures from all of our internet calls with her. I just took pics of the screen everytime. Our daughter is only 3 and you could see how she has changed over time and gotten bigger. Also my husband had longer hair in some and shorter in others. We worried that they would still want pictures showing them physically together. She didn't. She told me we were so smart to take those pictures. She said everyone says they Skype but we don't really know if they do. She also said that we were very organized and she appreciated it. She didn't even ask for copies of receipts for money we've sent even though we had 3 yrs worth or phone records showing the phone calls back and forth. The only other thing she asked was if we had a authorization letter from the mom saying we could take the baby with us to the United States and asked if it was notarized which it was. She took it and said basically your visa has been approved. Congratulations you have a beautiful family. We were told we could go back this afternoon and pick up the visa. SO Happy!! Thank you to everyone who has provided advice on this site it was a God send for us.

Getting so excited and nervous. Our interview is a week from today!!

My visa was issued today! Thank you for all your support.

Yay! Congrats. I know the waiting must have been stressful but it's finally over!

Thanks for the response. Glad NVC caught that as it will make things much easier for you.

Sancruz congrats on the interview date! I am with you on the moment being bittersweet. My husband and I are nothing but excited but I feel for their mother as I know this wasn't an easy decision (years in the making) and it isn't going to be an easy transition.

We had a hiccup at the airport with some Philippine gov't requirements. They didn't want to let us board the plane with the consent form I had - they wanted the official one from a specific agency in the Philippines (DSWD). We had already fulfilled an exit orientation requirement for the Phil. gov't (CFO) and they had told us what we had would be fine. I had to get elevated to a few different people within the airline. I was insistent that the consent should work and if in doubt their mother was right outside security and they could talk to her themselves. They finally took me past security to speak with immigration who also wanted me to have the DSWD clearance but luckily the gate agent had gotten my stepdaughter and gone to get her mother in the drop off area to bring her back to immigration (who then had to sit in immigration holding her 3 month old for quite some time while everything got sorted out). The immigration guy still didn't want to let us through and was calling his boss on the phone. I kept saying isn't the point of the DSWD clearance to show we have permission and here is their mother giving permission. Anyway we eventually got through and their mother hung around until the plane took off just to make sure we didn't have any other problems. The reason I bring it up is she had to be really committed to go through all that business at the airport and it was still incredibly hard when it came time to say goodbye. Luckily over the years I feel we've built trust and respect for each other and she knows I'm going to do my best along with their father to provide a loving and supportive home for the kids. Still I could tell she was trying to be strong for the kids but I can't even imagine the feeling.

Welcome KatandFreddy! Thanks for joining our thread. Good luck on the process! We're there any questions you still needed to be answered? I think quite a few of them got answered.

Hi FaSa2008, how was your interview?

SerenityNow - thanks for making a wiki page! That info was long overdue! Hopefully we can all add and update it as we move along in the process.

I have to agree with you that it seems unlikely that you will have to wait for the greencard to apply for the passport. The stamp on the visa upon entry should prove the children were admitted on immigrant visas. We are going this week to apply (w/o greencards) so I will let you know how it goes.

*To anyone in a similar situation permission is needed from both parents of a minor (under 16) wanting to obtain a U.S. passport - unless the applying parent has sole legal custody and can prove it. If one parent does not have sole legal custody then the non immigrating parent needs to sign and notarize the consent form (DS3053) that will allow the minor to obtain a US passport. The consent form is only good for 3 months after it is signed so plan accordingly.

Just an update on us. The kids are finally here and we've been doing pretty well. We've spent our time going to lots of museums, seeing relatives, trying to balance new foods with familiar foods. Everywhere we go everyone wants to give them chocolate or ice cream or some kind of sweet - the kids are loving it. They will be starting school soon but for now we're just trying to enjoy the time together and get adjusted. They do think it's crazy cold here. I think they had no idea weather could ever be this cold. I have to say once we got on that first plane all the immigration hassles (even the stuff at the airport) just left my mind. Now that we've crossed the 'finish line' I've sort of forgotten the race. I feel like the real adventure begins now.

Good luck to everyone!

beejay, oh my goodness. I'm glad everything worked out at the airport and thank goodness the mom was able to be there. I hope we dont run into something like that. We also have a notarized letter from our biological mom. Like someone else mentioned the flights out of there are afternoon so we will make sure we are there early just in case they have any issues.

Im so glad this process is over for you and I hope the kids are adjusting well. Hopefully in a few short weeks I will be across that finish line also. We have 24 days unti our interview and the closer it gets the less sleep i seem to get. So anxious, nervous, excited, etc...

Well there is the fun new "Immigrant Fee" that is required as of Feb 1 - $165, paid after the interview...

Do we pay that there or we can pay this after we get back home?

Have a question as our interview date approaches. For anyone who has already had their interview... Are there any other fees that have to be paid at the embassy at the time of the interview. I keep reading consulate reviews and everyone keeps mentioning about having to pay fees. I thought all of our fees were paid? Thanks in advance.

Just an update. Our interview is scheduled for Feb. 21. My stepdaughters mom made the appointment for medical exam for Feb. 12th. When she asked how much it would be they told her 6,925 lempiras which is about $350. I told my husband that was probably if she had to have all of her immunizations but as far as we know she is current on everything. When he called back yesterday to ask this question he was told there was no appointment. He confirmed the date with our daughters mom and called back. Again the lady told him there was no appointment because they were going to be closed the whole month of February and would open again in March. He called bio mom back and so she called and spoke with the lady who told her the same thing. She told the lady she was given a confirmation number for the appointment and so the lady asked for the number. When she looked it up she said oh yes, that is an appointment number but we had to cancel that appointment because we are going to be closed. Ugh!! I just wonder if they were planning to call and let us know or if we would have just showed up and told no appointment. Anyway, there were two other doctors listed on the embassy website so we called both of the others. We were told they couldnt make the appointment until the first of next month and said to call back then. I guess just another frustrating part of this process. Hopefully, we will get an appointment and get this taken care of. We were told by the other clinics 7,000 lempiras which is about $400 whether or not she had any immunizations or not.

We have our plane tickets bought and our hotel reserved.....28 days and we will be in Honduras. I can see the finish line Good Luck to everyone else!

What next step answer me that everything is on HOLD until something happens how can you plan a life if you don't know if there is going to be a life to plan!

I wasnt referring to the life you will have once your loved one is here. When i said plan i meant plan for the next step in your process. There are a lot of documents that you need to get together and proof that you will eventually need for your interview. Those are the things that help pass the time and keep your mind busy while you wait. I think we all understand your frustration. I just think that blaming anyone for it is useless. It is a process and it takes time. I wish you luck in your journey. From my experience(and i am not through with this process we have an interview date scheduled next month) the best thing to do is to research, read, ask questions, and just be prepared so that when your time comes you will feel confident going into your interview and your long wait for your love one will be worth all of the work and effort you put into it. Good Luck to you and everyone!

I agree with everyone else, your time is best spent getting ready for the next step of this process. The wait times are always just an estimate. Sometimes it says they are processing in 5 months and it only takes 30 days and then other times it says 5 month and it takes much longer. Truth is there is a lot about this process that we can't control but while you are waiting you could be getting all of the things done that you CAN control. I spent 3 months at NVC because I didnt have everything ready when they asked for it. I could have had case completed in a month if I had been ready. As far as what you are told on the phone they have a script that they read and it is ALWAYS worst case scenerio. Just keep calling and checking and staying on top of your case......and be prepared to wait. It is what it is.

Nice post. Whether you agree with Obama and his immigration policies or not, it's not going to change anything in the OPs case. First line of the serenity prayer:

"God, grant me the sereneity to accept the things I can not change"

*Disclaimer, I'm not religious at all, but that's a pretty good line to live your life by.*

Look...we can agree on something!

Regardless, the parents willingly broke the law. If my father stole to feed his children, or give them a better life, should he not have to receive punishment merely because it would affect me? Should I be given some special treatment? Who is wanting to punish the children? I'm not saying lock them up. Let them go back to their country of origin and apply for a visa legally like everyone else. If that causes major problems in their life, don't look at the U.S. govt. to bail you out. Look at your parents who got you into this mess.

And my father did not commit a crime. I was using that as an example, hence the /sarcasm. Parents do bad things all the time that affect their children. It's called LIFE.

i guess we can agree to disagree. I never said the parents shouldnt have consequences for their actions but i dont think it's right to take a person who has lived basically their entire life into adult hood in the United States and deport them to a country they most likely dont ever remember being in and surrounded by no one they know. Again, we can just agree to disagree, everyone is entitled to their opinion.

My dad stuck up a bank and went to jail when I was 15. I know he broke the law. It was no fault of mine, but we lost our house and everything because of his actions. How come Obama isn't helping me? Where's my special treatment?

/sarcasm

Really??? Well, I guess the difference is his parents brought him here (yes illegally) with the hopes of a better future for their family, not to commit crimes. His parents never put other peoples lives in danger or held anyone up hoping for a handout. They came here to WORK and support their family not live on a free ride. I'm not saying that people who cross the border illegally deserve "special treatment" but to punish their children who had no choice is not right they should be given a chance. As far as your case if your father committed a crime and your family payed the price i'm sorry for your loss but even through your loss you werent threatened with being sent to a foreign country where you had no one and it didnt stop you from being able to go to school or live out your dreams.