FulanoDeTal

Hi Dumpsta121,

Yes, we're definitely a same-sex couple! I don't want to hijack this thread with specifics about Brazil, but feel free to send me a message and we can discuss further. Thanks.

Hi, and welcome aboard...

There are quite a few same-sex couples who have joined recently, and if you haven't already done so, there's a discussion thread called "Bi-National Same Sex Couples: Show Up!" where a lot of people have introduced themselves. Many same-sex couples seem to be going the fiance visa route, although there are a number of married couples as well. It's really interesting to see the variety of countries already represented.

As far as the age difference goes, don't worry about it. Love is love, and when you're crazy about each other it's pretty obvious and the rest of the world can just deal with it.

Good luck with your process and keep us posted!

Hi butterflycharmer8,

Welcome to "bi-national same-sex couples immigation world." It's nice finally to be able to stand in line with everyone else when even a few months ago that was impossible. Anyway, I was struck by the fact that our timeline is almost exactly the same. Our NOA-1 date was July 10, and we were transferred to TSC on August 9 as well. Who knows, maybe our petitions are in the same pile sitting on someone's desk? Good luck with your petition, and keep us posted. It will be interesting to compare the process as between Peru and Brazil.

Buena suerte!

Oi Michelle,

Obrigado pela informacao, e interassante. Nos estamos pidindo um K-1 Fiance Visa tambem e na fase NOA1 tambem. Eventualmente vamos estar tratando com o consulado no Rio. Este site e muito util e a comunidade e legal, mas infelizmente acho que nao tem muitos integrantes norte americanos que falam portugues...rsrsrs. Entao bem-vindo ao site e boa sorte com o seu processo. Deixanos saber as noticias sobre o seu processo, porque cada historia tem valor pelos otros integrantes.

Obrigado de novo!

Hi Michael,

I remember seeing a video of your engagement on the DOMA Project site. It was great and very inspirational in the days leading up the end of DOMA. I'm glad to see that you have filed the paperwork and begun the immigration process. I think it's going to be "hurry up and wait" for the time being, but compared to the deplorable situation that we were in just a year ago that's OK by me. I'm looking forward to learning about the progress of bi-national same-sex couples around the world as they work their way through the U.S. immigration process.

So...Keep Calm and Carry On.

Best regards,

Peter

Mailed I-129F and associated documents on Friday, August 2nd. Our journey begins. We are a same sex couple. My fiancee is from the Philippines and I live in Massachusetts. We have been a couple for 2 1/2 years and I have been to the Philippines 3 times for 3 weeks each time to visit my fiancee. I am a new member to this site.

I'd be interested in the experiences of othe same sex couples as time unfolds.

Thanks and good luck to all.

Hey Gents,

Congratulations, it's nice to see that other same-sex couples are beginning this process as well. We filed our I129F petition in early July, with an NOA1 date of July 10. Looks like we have many months of waiting ahead, but it's great finally to have a place in the line!

I suggest that you spend some time reviewing the Philippines portal on this site. In addition to all of the paperwork on the U.S. side, the Philippines apparently has an emigrant processing program that will be a requirement for your fiance, culminating in a "sticker" in his passport so he can leave the country. While this is routine for opposite-sex couples, my understanding is that the Philippines is not "gay-marriage friendly." Because you will be trailblazers in this process, you should probably be prepared for the emigration side of the equation as well, as a same-sex fiance officially emigrating to the U.S. will certainly be something new in that country.

Good luck with everything and keep us posted.

So with the recent DOMA rulings, I believe I can now petition my long term bf back in the Philippines. I'm very excited with this, and I've been trying to process all our documents ASAP. I've never petitioned anyone before, and I have couple of questions that you guys may hopefully help me with.

1. Can my bf rent a PO box in the phils. and use it for sending our documents (it's because his parents does not approve our relationship and has long been trying to stop us) And can that (both using a PO box, and his parents being against us (bf is 23 y/o) affect our approval in anyway? As an alternative, can I use my family's address back home instead as his mailing address?

2. For the past 3 years, I have been visiting him back home yearly, but all my tickets, passes, even hotels, are all under my name....and not his ( we do have photos together, though). Would that suffice as proof of our relationship?

Thank you guys for your help.

Sincerely,

Jonathan

Hi Jonathan,

There are a number of same-sex couples that have joined in recent weeks, so we'll be in this together and learning as we go. From what I've read, here are my thoughts on your questions:

1. While older posts suggest that in the past a foreign post office box was acceptable for mailing purposes to the foreign fiance, more recent posts say that a physical street address is now required for mailing in an attempt to cut down on fraud. It appears that there would be no problem using your family's physical street address for this purpose in connection with the I-129F petition itself, but keep in mind that the U.S. Embassy will later be using that address for mail to your fiance. You will need to use your fiance's actual physical address for the G-325A Biographic Information form that you will send in for your fiance along with the I-129F petition.

2. As far as proof of physically meeting goes, I'm in a similar situation as my fiance lives in Brazil. I sent a complete copy of my U.S. passport showing my Brazilian visas and many trips to Brazil, along with several dated photos of the two of us together. If I had thought about it I probably would have included my fiance's passport showing our trips together outside of Brazil as well, but if we're asked for more evidence we can produce that. I think if you can connect the "primary evidence" (your passport stamps, boarding passes, etc.) with some credible secondary evidence of the two of you together (such as dated photographs) you should be OK.

3. I also suggest that you read the information available in the Philippines portal on this site, as it will give you a great deal of country-specific information that will be important for your visa process.

Good luck!

Nope couldn't find the info i was looking for there.

I'm most interested in finding out if they schedule the interview date and whether you can extend/reschedule the date.

Hi, if you click the Brazilian flag under your picture and then go to "Rio de Janeiro Consulate Information" under "Quick Links" there's a very comprehensive description of the procedures in Rio. It looks like the Rio consulate will assign your interview date in a letter that will be sent to your fiancee. I assume that you'd then have to negotiate with the consulate about rescheduling.

From the "Embassy Reviews" of the Rio consulate it sounds like they can be a little difficult to communicate with, although apparently email inquiries in Portuguese seem to get answered more promptly.

As far as the medical exam goes, the preferred doctor in Rio seems to be the one with an office across from the consulate (I think the name is Dr. Duarte). From the embassy reviews it seems that you can often schedule an exam with him close to your interview date. If your paperwork is otherwise in order, you may not need an extension if your fiancee can schedule the exam around the interview date.

Good luck with the next stage of the process!

You all have been very helpful! I have a couple more questions. First, as the petitioner, what evidence (if any) should I provide of our preparations to marry other than the letter of intent? Second, I just finished grad school and will begin working next week and expect to make above the 125% of the poverty guideline by the year. Once I meet that threshold do I also need to show my assets? I ask because I have been accruing a savings to buy a much needed car but I don't watch to jeopardize the sponsorship. As always, thank you for your insight.

For what it's worth, in addition to our mutual letters of intent, I included a letter from my church's minister confirming that we plan to marry within 90 days of my fiance's entry into the United States, but only because the letter was easy to obtain. From everything I've seen, however, the correctly worded fiance letters of intent should be sufficient.

As far as the car goes, since you're new to the job market I would hold off the purchase if possible and keep your money liquid. After you pass the I-134 test, you will still have to submit an I-864 Affidavit of Support for your husband's Adjustment of Status after you've married in the U.S. The I-864 form only allows you to include an automobile as an asset if you have a second working automobile that is not included. So, unless you're planning on having two working automobiles going forward, to be safe I would not put the money into a car until you're through the Adjustment of Status.

Felicidades! Our NOA1 date was July 10, and now we'll start playing the waiting game too. But if you're at all accustomed to dealing with the Mexican bureaucracy, you should be able to handle USCIS. Good luck and keep everyone posted on your progress.

Bakodj, you do not submit the I-134 information with the I-129F petition. The I-134 information should be in the package submitted by your fiance on the day of his interview in Rio de Janeiro. By the way, all of the K1 fiance visa applications in Brazil are handled by the consulate in Rio de Janeiro, so your fiance will have his interview in Rio and not Recife. The Vermont Service Center (where my petition is being processed) claims a 5-month processing time. Once your package is shipped to Rio, it looks like another two months or so before the interview is scheduled, although if he's approved at the interview your fiance will get the visa via express mail in a few days. So, I'm figuring that unless there is some snag, a ballpark estimate for Brazil is about 7-8 months from I-129F filing to visa issuance. Good luck with your petition, and we'll see how this goes!

Kanja,

For purposes of the K-1 fiance visa, whether or not the beneficiary's home country permits same-sex marriage is irrelevant. The petitioner and the beneficiary must demonstrate that they intend to marry within 90 days of the beneficiary's entry into the United States in one of the U.S. states that permits same-sex marriage or the District of Columbia. Therefore, if you plan to reside in a U.S. state that does not permit same-sex marriage, your I129F petition should be very clear that you plan to have the marriage performed in a U.S. state that does permit same sex marriage. You don't have to worry, however, about whether your home country permits same-sex marriage.

Hello there, we sent our 129-F petition on July 3, 2013 and received an NOA1 letter dated July 10, 2013. We'll be dealing with the consulate in Rio de Janeiro down the road as well. There should be no difference in the way that same-sex and opposite-sex petitions are handled. Similarly, one would expect that all embassies and consulates will be instructed to follow the same procedures for same-sex couples as they currently use for opposite-sex couples.

There's a lot of information in the "embassy reviews" section of this site concerning the Rio de Janeiro consulate, which is really helpful to get a feel for the interview process in Brazil. We think that eventually there will be quite a few same-sex couples interviewing in Rio de Janeiro, and Rio is a fairly "gay-friendly" place, so hopefully the process will go smoothly. We'll be interested in hearing about other same-sex couples going through the fiance visa process in Brazil.

_{Hello everyone, I'm from Washington, DC and my fiance is from Goiania, Brazil. We met in August 2010 and waited patiently for the end of DOMA so that we could finally begin the immigration process like any other bi-national couple. Happily, we mailed our I-129F petition on July 3, 2013, and received an NOA1 dated July 10, 2013. The petition is now in process at the Vermont Service Center. If all goes well, we will be dealing down the road with the U.S. consulate in Rio de Janeiro, and the consulate-specific information on this site has been invaluable in understading the process and what to expect. We'd love to hear form other same-sex couples who are going through the fiance visa process in Brazil, as one would think that there would be a number of such applications over the next few months. Thanks to everyone for the excellent information that has been compiled on this site.}