SparklePony

Also important to keep in mind that the I-130s (spousal visa petitions) are taking ages to process. How is it fair to them that the fiances get handled in a much shorter time that the spouses do?

Just hit the MultiQuote button on the posts you want to quote - a little box pops up that says: Reply to X posts - click on that and voila, they all appear quoted on the reply box.

If he lacks a pen, does he perhaps have a pin, with which he can stick himself? Signing the documents in blood might impress USCIS and the embassy.
When he goes to FedEx, he can look for a photocopy machine and take a sheet of paper from the paper drawer, or he can look in the trash can for a discarded sheet that's clean on one side. This is what we often do here in the Colonies.
Seriously, the advice given earlier has obviously been pretty good.

OK, I have read several,of your threads, and every solution someone gives you to your particular dilemma you always come back with some off the excuse as to,why you can't solve this letter of intent problem. First you said he has no access whatsoever to a printer anywhere at all in the UK, now you say doesn't even have a pen or a piece of paper. Are you for real? You can email the letter of intent and he can go to any fedex location and get access to his personal email and they can print it off for him, that was the first solution. Or he can go to ANY I mean ANY convenience store and buy a pen and a pad of paper. And now you are worried that he cannot get it out by May 1st? You do realize it's only February 18 and that gives him an entire month and a half to send a letter that will literally take him 5 minutes to scribble on a piece of paper, lines or no lines, purple, pink blue, yellow or polka dot.

Did he eat all of his crayons?

Not to be mean but seriously who in the world doesn't have access to a blank piece of paper and a pen? Why not ask one of his friends! His family! Unless he lives on a very remote location I don't think anyone on this day and age won't have access to it (I live in Guatemala and that's considered a third world country). Are you sure he is ready and willing to go through this entire process still?

Kind of weird for the lawyer to forget the letter of intent, though. What's even more weird is the apparent difficulty in obtaining pen, paper, printers and PCs in the UK o.o

But the signature was left blank?
Maybe they haven't noticed and you'll get another RFE. Or maybe they have and they'll have him sign it at the interview. Who knows.
Good job that lawyer of yours checked your paperwork.

It's like a Mr Bean sketch.
The FedEx location. Where he's sending you back the letter. It will have PRINTERS and PAPER and he can print your letter (or buy some paper and scrawl a letter - they'll even lend him a pen), sign it, and mail it back all in one trip.

A4, A5, B12, Post-It Note, Omaha, hut, hut.
Corvus, I still say that all you need do is email a PDF of the letter of intent to him, then, have him get on his skateboard and go door to door if need be, or better yet head on down to the local print shop and give them a couple of shillings to print the thing.

The OP spent an hour on VJ and hasn't returned since. Let's perhaps minimize wasting our breath until we see if he comes back.

Scsummers, Aaron wrote: “The only risk is not getting the visa and be married living in two countries.”
I’ll accept that you and your lady are truly in love, and have developed a legitimate relationship that will endure. So please put what I say into that context.
Aaron is incorrect. The real risk, which is evidenced by the flack that you’re tending to get here, is that, frankly, this has red flags written all over it. Now I realize that red flags, even an abundance of them never, ever proves anything. Red flags are a call to “pay attention.” From my point of view, even if you and she are 101% legit, those red flags are real, and from my few years here, though the “stinkeye protocol” doesn’t formally exist anyplace—in reality, at Consulates it indeed does.
You say: “Please keep personal observations and advice to the lovesick to yourself. I am only interested in what the law says about my situation. ANYTHING I learn here I will use to ask questions when I consult an attorney.”
Well, again, not being in the least cynical, I’ll say: You had best find a really knowledgeable lawyer who deals exclusively with immigration law and whose entire practice is solely American/Philippine immigration. The reason is simple—most lawyers don’t know a lot about specific Consulates—yet they need to. You can hardly find a one who will say: “good question—I really don’t know.”
As far as “law” goes, keep in mind that the “law,” is not always your concept of “law.” For instance routinely State Supreme Courts will get many hundreds of appeals and yet will only “accept” a few. The rest are relegated to Limbo—forever, never to be answered. And btw—this is all legal.
Well, like it or not, Embassy law is very, very much in the same area. Consulates are free to essentially do as they wish. Case in point: Thailand’s Consulate will never, ever allow a child out of Thailand without the express permission of both parents—even if, for instance the father of a child never married the mother, never supported her, and never had contact with the child. This flies in the face of pretty much any State law of America. The point is—with Consulates, attempts to force “the letter of the law,” will usually get you no place. Sad, but true—I’ve been there, done that. If you can spend a few hundred thousand, well—you might get someplace, if not, my suggestion is “give it up,” regardless of how unfair it seems to be—or is, Constitutional Law is not as it once was--you know that already.
Consider that Philippine Consulate’s rules are entirely different. An “unwed child,” under the age of 7 is almost always passed through a K-1 or a marriage Visa without a glance. Different Consulate—different “law.” Reality, like it or not.
Is the “stinkeye” a reality? In my humble opinion—you bet’cha. Do you have to listen, no—of course not. Do as you wish.
But back to “The only risk is not getting the visa and be married living in two countries.”
No the risk is far, far greater. The risk is that like my spouse who came here in November on a K-1, who married me and then dumped me for no reason, apparently not realizing that I could withdraw my Affidavit of Support—you too may be being set-up for something similar. I’m not saying it is so, just that it’s something to consider because in my opinion—the Consulate will consider it.
Hear me out please—in some cases everything will be legit, perhaps like yours—in others, like my case, not so—only to seen in hindsight. For instance I should have seen the light. In her family already, two older sisters had married elderly men with significant medical issues, read, “not too many years to live”. Hey, I won’t even fault that—a lovely Filipina who spends ten or 15 years making a man’s last year’s glorious, well it might make for a fair trade. Maybe my fault was that my spouse decided that I'd just live too long--who knows? I no longer think about it.
Just please realize—that even if in your case you and your lady appear and are in fact, from your point of view to be truly legit—that many here, including me, that see huge red flags. And as we do, so too will most Consulate officials. So you are warned—if you believe 100% that you are not being played, and I will assume that is the case, at least realize that your lady (perhaps for very good reasons) have already set off alarms. So like it or not, you will get the stinkeye (oops—scrutinized closely).
I’d suggest that you just think about how it appears from a distant perspective. And I sure hope that she is, as you undoubtedly are—100% legit. A few days ago I wrote out a $1000 check to a lawyer, bringing the total expended for divorce to $3700, and this is just for the divorce I'm forced into, I'm ignoring the K-1 cost including the $1070 fee that cleared on the same exact day she disappeared. And to think—I was so sure that my fiancée/wife was legit—yes, it blows my mind. But the reality is that especially in the Phils, now that H1-B’s are becoming more and more difficult to acquire (either legitimately or illegitimately) there will be, and in fact, is, at least that is what I expect, an increase in “coached” Visa shopping. “Coaching is where someone usually in the US coaches a relative in how to get here.”
A few red flags that you might want to watch for: Relatives/friends who are in the US, especially if they are illegal, or hold H1-B Visa’s without sufficient credentials, such as a healthcare worker who is not a specialized, experienced RN. And especially watch for relatives that are “hidden,” now that is a deadly flag not to be ignored—when you know many in the family, but there is one or two that you heard about—but for some reason—never get much concrete data about, as was in my case. Also look for relatives/friends who have married men not particularly desirable in America's female materialistic world. Remember red flags never condemn anyone but they are an indication to pay very close attention.
I’m a smart guy—I was duped. Looking back, I will not fault myself, it was that well done. Remember that here in America a Filipina working as a simple LNA (Licensed Nurses Assistant) will earn $41,600 gross. ($20x40x52) Without the LNA, she might earn $41,600 (without overtime) under-the-table--more than if she works legitately. Tell me, which is the best option?
I have a friend who works at a huge nickel mind in Mindanao, her title is Administrator in Charge of Documentation—she has a college degree. She grosses about $250/month. Yes in one year a Filipina who gets to America by any means will earn, at a minimum, if she is smart in one year what my friend earns in almost 14 years. In a mere two years here she can earn what a Filipina in Mindanau with a college degree can earn in a lifetime. And in the eyes of her family, she may be a hero—no thought will ever occur about what happened to that nice guy?
I’m not here to insinuate—but if you cannot see the possibility of fraud well… I’ll let you think about that. And if you believe that there is no possibility, as I did…go for it, but listen—the people here know more than most “immigrant” lawyers do. Look at it from a Consulate official who knows that this year xx thousand Visas will be issued and within so many years the American sponsor will find himself (or herself in the case of some African/Middle East cases) divorced, and the possibly taken “to the laundry.”
If nothing else, I hope this gives you some insight into how others see your case, even if that irks you.
I wish you the best of luck, especially as you have given up so much for your country already. You deserve both a wonderful relationship and one here in the States.

Red flags galore.
Came to USA to marry one chap, didn't marry for whatever reason. Meets new guy just before stay expires. You are going to need some pretty amazing relationship evidence to pull this one off. Your proof of meeting is going to be her ticket/passport stamp into the USA on her K1, at the moment.
If you think you have a hardship waiver case (highly unlikely to get an expedite for hardship sans fiancé - how did you cope in the time before you met her a few weeks ago?), have you checked out the I-134 and I-864? If you are low income you may need to find a joint sponsor.

Seriously it's been in customs for ONLY 12 hours and you want to send him a printer? You don't think a printer will need to go through customs? He doesn't have access to someplace that can print it for him, something similar to an office max or staples in the UK? I find that difficult to believe. This process is only just beginning and you are stressing yourself out far too much. During the process we didn't know VJ existed until after our case was at the NVC and we did it all on our own, we had very big red flags and we didn't have any rfe's or delays. People need to relax and not check the ceac site, call the NVC and consulates every 5 minutes. This site is a great resource for DIY information, but it also makes people freak out when read horror stories or when they see other's cases moving faster by even milliseconds. Take a deep breath you have plenty of time to respond to the RFE.

12 whole hours? Whoa...
Relax, it will get there in a day or two. People on this board are very neurotic and OCD. Like checking status every 15 minutes, or calling NVC multiple times daily, etc.
Many of you need to chill out and do something to take your mind off of immigration. All you're doing is making yourself sick inside, stress is a killer.

AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH,....... MY FIANCEE JUST CALLED ME IT IS 4 in the morning here,......
WE ARE APPROVED!!!!!! NO RFE WE GOT APPROVED ON FEBRUARY 14th, 2014!!!!
AAAAAAHHHHH OMG!!! i screamed so loud and my parents woke up hahahahahah

There's a Post Office not far from the Embassy, they are used to getting people who forgot to pay the visa fees. They also send the envelopes and know which ones are for the embassy. And in case you forgot, there's an envelope vending machine inside.
As long as you try first in French, people are very understanding with non-French speakers.
I hope you have a great time!

I may not have posted here for a long time, but I assure you I do always check back here every day hoping to see more approvals. ^^ I am really really happy you have got your approval, Sparkle, and to all those who also received an approval since the last time I posted here! Congrats! You've all been so patient and I am hoping that soon all of you have your approvals and can move onto the next stage of this process. <3

Sending you *find a job quickly* vibes. And yay for helpful friends!

I agree with just about everything that has been said. In my opinion, you have not spent enough time with him. You need to remember you're "forcing" a stepfather on your children. I have two of my own as well, and it's something that my fiance and I have talked at length about is the impact this will have on them. This is why, for us, having him come and spend two weeks with us was so important, so that they could get to know him. Two weeks is certainly not enough but I encourage them to talk to him on Skype, to ask questions, to continue building that relationship every single day. I talk a lot about him to my children and they're completely up to date on our visa journey because they need time to process that they're getting a stepdad in all this, and they need time to develop their own relationship with him.
I trust my fiance 200% with my kids and that is because we've been together for over two years now. That trust took a long time to develop. It took a lot of talks, and to this day it's something we discuss. For me, the time we spent physically together was vital.
As hard as it is, you have to think long and hard about whether or not you're still in the honeymoon phase. Everything seems perfect then, and it takes a while for the butterflies and rainbows to wear off. You have to see what your fiance is like in his bad days, how he reacts to upsetting news, how he is when he's frustrated, angry, sad, down in the dumps. True love happens no matter what the person is going through, but being with our loved ones when they're not at their best is a great way to truly know what kind of person they are. I highly doubt one week face to face gave you enough time to be with him during such a time.
Like others have said, slowing down doesn't mean calling things off. It means letting things develop longer, become stronger.
I had people tell me, friends I loved and trusted, that they did not believe things were real until he came to visit me. It's so so easy for online relationships to be a dream come true, for the person on the other side to be the perfect answer to our dreams. On the other side of the screen, things can be prefect, when they're not necessarily so in real life. Real life is where it gets puts to the test. When we "passed that test", those friends of mine became our biggest supporters. Your friends wouldn't have told you what they did if they didn't care for you and worry for you. Trust them. Trust yourself too. Trust your children and their gut reactions.

They are approving some petitions. Just not ours, yet.

Have you read the reviews for the Lagos Embassy, here on VJ?

Unfortunately guys I think we were all very very spoiled by seeing a few early approvals. We should be more realistic here and expect a 5 month wait period.. It has already been a month since my NOA1 almost so that means only 4 more at the most))
The officer was right to ignore other peoples approvals)) it is just so hard to do so when people come here and spam the board with a million dancing smileys about their NOA2 approval))))))

We will all get there eventually, just hang on tight and enjoy the day!!

Here are my two cents on red flags..
Let's separate two important things here - what a "red flag" is, and what it is not.
A red flag is a metaphor used for peculiarities in a particular case. By peculiarity I mean something that might make a USCIS adjudicator, or consular officer decide to look a little closer at the case. Since this is a K-1 thread, I'm only going to discuss marriage based cases. To understand why your case might stand out, it really pays to look at your case from an outsider's perspective, rather than seeing it from your own biased view. I do not mean to offend anyone by saying biased, but let's face it, we are all all biased towards our own case because that is the only case we are not seeing from an outsider's point of view. No matter what evidence you have, no immigration officer will ever feel what you feel. They can only see the facts as they are presented to them.
An immigration/consular officer's job is to make a subjective opinion, often in a very short amount of time, based on the facts presented before them. Marriage based cases differ from other cases in that they are not presented with firm evidence such as a birth certificate or DNA to show a family relationship. Rather, they are presented with a certain set of (somewhat relevant) facts and evidence on which to make the decision of whether a legitimate family relationship exists. These officers generally go through multiple cases on any given work day. Naturally, certain things will stand out more than others. That's the essence of what a "flag" is - something in your case stands out from the other cases in the pile.
What makes the flag red is when the peculiarity, the thing that stands out, actually makes your case either seem less probable, or, that the flag is in the form of a motive for why the person would potentially want to marry someone whom they do not love.
A red flag is not an automatic denial. No one can be denied a visa because of a red flag. A visa denial comes from a complete package of evidence and facts weighed up against one another. A red flag is not an immigration officer's bias against you or your spouse, it is not an attack so to speak against you. It is simply a fact that makes your case stand out, and in the eyes of the immigration officer, makes your case differ from the norm, thus prompting any experienced officer to take an extra look. Keep in mind also that what might be a red flag to a consular officer in Morocco, might not even be worth a second look to a consular officer in the Philippines. This is due to certain facts being common in one country, while it might be socially unacceptable in another.
Here are some common red flags:
1. A large age gap.
I see this one a lot, and there is a multitude of good reasons why immigration officers take a second look at some cases. This one also depends, as all other red flags, on the country and culture in question. A prime example: For example, a relationship where a 50 year old American male marries a 25 year old female from the Philippines. While the age difference is 25 years, most of these cases are approved, and I wouldn't even consider the age gap a red flag. However, if twisting it around and applying to another country, it makes a huge difference. A second scenario: A 50 year old American woman marries a 25 year old Moroccan man. This is absolutely a red flag, not because the consular officers are biased, but because it is simply very uncommon to see in Morocco.
2. Vast ethnic, religious or cultural differences.
Again, there is nothing illegal under US law about about interracial or inter-cultural marriage. It is socially acceptable in most places in the US, and for the most part, an interracial marriage will not be a red flag at all. However, to use an example: An American new-age hippie marries a practicing religious orthodox from a strictly religious culture. While completely legal, it raises questions as to the bona fide nature of the marriage because it is uncommon, maybe even socially unacceptable in the beneficiary's culture. So the consular officer's question will be "why is this person marrying someone who might actually get him/her disowned by their family?"
3. The beneficiary is from a high-fraud country.
This is guilt by association. Some consulates see a lot of attempted fraud. Some consulates see very little. If you are an immigration officer at a consulate where attempted fraud is a frequent occurrence, you will naturally be more suspicious.
4. The couple got engaged/married after a very short time of meeting.
It is uncommon in the US for couples to get married within weeks or even months of meeting one another. Why? Because marriage is a lifelong commitment, and two people generally aren't expected to know each other well enough to make a lifelong commitment after a very short time. In addition, it is easy for fraudsters and scammers to set up a fake marriage, but it is difficult to forge a scam to last a significant amount of time.
5. The couple have only met in person once, or on very limited occasions.
While the USCIS and State Dept are aware that online relationships are more common today than before, couples are still expected to have spent some time physically together before committing to a lifetime together. It is uncommon in the US to marry someone you have only met once, so the USCIS and State Dept views it as unlikely that an international couple would do the same. However, they are mindful that international travel can be difficult for some. The thing to keep in mind here is that you aren't trying to show then how hard it is to visit - you are trying to show that a bona fide marriage exists.
6. The beneficiary sends money to the petitioner.
I see plenty of people asking "should I show that I send my American husband/wife money?" - The answer is, only if you want the US State Dept. to believe that you are paying them for a green card. While it is normal to support your spouse here and there, this only looks good if you're helping out with shared expenses.
7. The beneficiary is in removal proceedings (for AOS cases).
A major red flag in an adjustment of status case is where the beneficiary is in removal proceedings, especially if the marriage itself happened after removal proceedings were initiated. The first thing on the USCIS' mind will be that the marriage is just a last ditch effort to stay in the country.
8. Substantial language barriers.
Very rarely will you be able to convince a USCIS or consular officer that you are in a bona fide relationship or marriage if you cannot communicate in a common language, be it English, Swahili or sign language. You are expected to be able to communicate with the person you are engaged or married to.
As I stated earlier. None of these alone are grounds for a denial, but the more individual red flags, the higher the burden of proof is. Also, these aren't "set" factors that will end your case up in some list, they are just factors that will make your case stand out from the norm. Certain factors, such as age difference, may be a huge red flag in some countries, but might not even stand out in others. To figure out of your case has any red flags, be honest and look at your case from an outsider's perspective - Is your case somehow abnormal? If you are the beneficiary, is your case abnormal in your country/culture? If you are the petitioner, would the average Joe look at your case and think "how did that happen?" Don't be biased and overly defensive about your case, because the best way to defend your marriage is to know what you're up against.