Thai Rath

hi all, a little help, my husband and i went to the consulate in l.a. a few weeks ago and renewed his passport. which arrived in the post yesterday however the old passport was not with it. my concern is that the old one contains the previous b1/b2 visas he had as well as his k-1 and our family vacation to china information including that visa. is there anyway we can get the old one back?

Not sure - think you'll need to contact the embassy. My husband didn't need his old passport for anything (not for ROC nor will he need it when he applies for citizenship in the coming months), so we never had a need to ask for it back.

Sorry, this post isn't helpful, though I would be very interested to hear if you are able to get it back.

When my husband came on his K1, my health insurance (through work) was able to cover him from the day he stepped off the plane. Our office offered benefits to unmarried couples (same sex and heterosexual), so he was covered from day one. Not sure what state you're living in (see that you're going through Vermont), but we're in Massachusetts and it's not uncommon her for employers to offer this benefit. You may want to consider asking HR about this.

How many photos were you planning on sending?

We didn't send in any photos for ROC and were approved and I think that is pretty common around these parts based on what people post on VJ. Just a thought if you're trying to save money - you could forgo the photos and send in more documentation that could be b&w copies.

Your marriage certificate acts as a name change document, so all you need to do is bring your marriage certificate to the SS office and at that point you will be able to legally change your name (and it costs nothing). You do NOT need to change your name at the time you filed your marriage license, nor do you have to go through the courts, order a name change kit, or anything like that - just go to Social Security with the certificate.

Wish I could help with some of your other questions - good luck!

just for the record, i was living in china when i met my wife, and continued to live there several years thereafter. the last thing i wanted to find in china was a wife, but when you see one worth keeping, you keep her, no matter where she is from.

it sounds like you have a really great relationship with your husband, but you sure do have a lot of bitterness toward other guys...

This is the exact same situation I was in when I met my husband (except I was in Thailand instead of China, of course!): not expecting to find a husband when I was living in Thailand, but ended up staying there for a few years after meeting him.

More generally (and not directed at you, justashooter), I've definitely seen it a lot and it've aggravating: people who make assumptions about Western men with Asian women, not to mention all of the incorrect assumptions about Western women with Asian women...

It's really beat, though, to hear men slag Western women; thankfully, I haven't seen too much of it on VJ and usually it's the combo of men and women who "stick up" for us!

Yes, the role of the western woman has changed. Many Western women, especially younger Western women, have lost not just their sense of femininity, but even their desire to be feminine. With this the man's role has become blurred and many Western men have become confused about just what their role is. Many feel that they are still expected to play the traditional role, but not reap the benefits that could be previously have been expected. The pendulum has swung too far and Western men, in ever greater numbers, are saying enough is enough and turning their back on Western women too seek love elsewhere.

No, we haven't lost our sense of feminitity; we just refuse to allow only one definition of "feminity." The problem is that you (and others like you) only allow room for one definition: yours.

You may want to consider checking in with your benefits administrator about when exactly her coverage will begin. With a lot of plans, coverage begins the day you are married. Even if it takes a month for you to get insurance cards, etc. confirming that she's covered, she may technically already be covered in case of an emergency or something unexpected. Hopefully that is the case with your insurance.

Saying that these immigrants hold "jobs that many Americans wouldn't want to fill at any price" is just how businesses justify circumventing immigration and employment laws -- with no basis in fact.

OMG, toothpaste for dinner? I LOVE that comic!!!! Excellent choice of graphic in your last post, susita - love that natalie dee, too!!

Regardless of how I feel about what's been said, it never ceases to amaze me when folks come to this forum, say something they know is provocative (and based solely on what 99% of us are posting about: our experiences, which are limited in the grand scheme of things), and then act all indignant when people get upset about it. Like you didn't know that was going to happen! Just take responsibility for what you say, that's all.

Come on, toma1. Surely you didn't think you could make your original statement and not upset folks...I mean really!

no i think it was the AOS that was expedited.

Yep, you are right, it was for AOS. While removing conditions though, my husband had received orders again, but this time for Afghanistan. They told us we could have things expedited again, but then his orders got canceled. So I know they can do it in ROC cases as well.

Got it. You mentioned an expedited "visa" in an earlier post in this thread so I wasn't sure if you meant "green card."

You should definitely get an Infopass appointment. When we went, we saw the supervising adjudicator, explained the situation, and she got things moving really fast. Call the military helpline and see what they say. Either way though, make an Infopass appointment. We were told that in cases like this, they will expedite.

I went and got my Infopass AFTER we submitted our paperwork because it was afterwards that we found out about the whole Iraq thing. We filed in April and then found out about Iraq at the beginning of June. Our Infopass appointment was June 12. I had my Visa by July 19th.

Wait, was your ROC expedited or something else? You say you had your visa by July 19th, but that doesn't match your timeline for your ROC.

Would a moderator please merge this thread with the other one the OP started? People gave him a lot of useful info there that is starting to be duplicated here...

...

SpouseofCondResid, I'm a little confused as to what you are asking, but you mentioned that your husband's 2-year GC expires on April 4, 2011. If that is the case, you would not need to file to remove conditions until 90 days before April 4, 2011.

USCIS does not care about your 2-year wedding anniversary; they care about the date that the conditional permanent resident card (i.e., 2-year GC) was issued.

We did.

Yes? No? You've told us nothing about yourself...

[nevermind]

It is definitely illegal for an employer to ask if you have valid work authorization and what your current immigration status is. All you need to simply say if asked (don't go out of your way to point it out - aka don't put it in a cover letter or resume) "I am legally allowed to work in the US."

I had the same problem when I came to Canada. It is also illegal here to ask.

That's not entirely correct; it is legal to ask a job applicant "Are you authorized to work in the U.S.?" You are correct, though, that it's not legal to inquire about someone's immigration status.

I work in human resources with a lot of applicants applying from abroad, so we have made sure that we are asking the correct questions.

Just to add... the EAD stamp that is received at the POE allows the visa holder to work but expires the very same day the I-94 expires. Continuation to work after the expiration of I-94 without adjusting status/EAD application is considered illegal. Have your husband quit or put his job on hold (if that's possible) and get your AOS/EAD paperwork sorted out. By the way, he needs a new medical exam too if his K-1 medical is more than a year old.

All the best. Cheers.

No, this is no longer the case; the stamp you receive at your POE is not a work authorization.

Not every place of employment has a Human Resources Dept., so I would say that means that it does not have to be signed by HR. I'm guessing the letterhead would hold more weight...

There is no way to determine if the letterhead was supplied by the company or simply created by the employee on a word processor. In other words, the signature at the bottom and the relevance of the person signing the document is most important, as this ties the document to an actual person of authority at the company.

Of course it's important who signs it; my point was that it's OK if it's not HR that signs it.

Not every place of employment has a Human Resources Dept., so I would say that means that it does not have to be signed by HR. I'm guessing the letterhead would hold more weight...

Change of address should be done with the NVC, not the embassy. Call or e-mail the NVC. I would call, so that it's done immediately and then send an e-mail as a confirmation (it will take a week or two to get a response).

My fiance (now husband) moved when he was at the NVC and called NVC to let them know AND also emailed the embassy. We didn't want to leave it to chance that NVC would change the address on his paperwork before forwarding it on to the embassy...