js030802

So you would have rather lived for 2 years out of status and illegally in the US just to not file for ROC? Interesting....

The new medical you would need might cost near the fee of ROC too. Not sure I see why you think it is so much better to wait.

i don't think not filing AOS right after marriage makes the person's stay here illegally. there is no provision in the law that states that one has to file AOS right after marriage. as long as the marriage takes place within 90 days of arrival. i have read a blog here in this website that she waited for 2 years before filing for AOS and that she got interviewed and got approved and was given ten years GC because the marriage has been more than years on the day of the interview. it's not the usual process but it is still legal. i may be wrong but one's marriage within 90 days to the USC petitioner protects the person from being an illegal alien. as i've mentioned above the only down side i can see in this scenario is regarding work situation. and oh by the way let me mention that the person is also risking the possibility of getting out of the US without any re-entry documents.

the only draw back with this path is that you would have not worked for 2 years while waiting to file your adjustment status. correct me if i'm wrong but i believe one cannot acquire an EAD without the adjustment of status application. it all depends on your situation, if your spouse is able to support you for 2 years without you working then by all means one can wait after 2 years to bypass the removal of conditions application. it is also a matter of financial stability and if you support other people. i see you're from the philippines, and i'm from the philippines too and we know our culture of supporting our family back in the philippines. i'm not judging anybody but for me paying $590 is less than the income i would have if i started working as soon as i'm legally allowed. so again it all depends on your situation. there is definitely nothing wrong with waiting for 2 years before filing AOS.

leave it in the hotel.

sorry that you are in this predicament. my understanding with regards to this case is that once the embassy returns file to USCIS is that USCIS will just allow your file/approval to expire without reviewing it. you can always exhaust everything that you can do like proactively calling USCIS and inquire about your next move but no guarantees. i have read in this website before that most often than not once USCIS receives your file back from the embassy is that they will not review your file and just let it expire. unfortunate but i think it's true. i suggest postponing your marriage plan for february since 3 months may not be enough to get issued a visa if and when USCIS reviews your file, reaffirm the approval and send it back to the embassy. my other suggestion is to refile the k-1 application and this time provide everything that they need. with that good luck and hoping for a positive result the next go round.

as in most airports, i believe, a USC can fall in line with their non-USC partner/family/relative and be processed the same. if a USC is travelling alone then he/she will have to fall in line for USC/Green card holder. my then fiance and I, we entered through Seattle airport and i had to go in line with him to the non-USC line and be processed together. he was then sent to secondary inspection to open his packet and stamp his passport. the whole process took about 10-15 minutes. the only question he was asked was...what's the name of your fiance whom you will get married to. he was also told that he has 90 days to marry. as long as everything is in place then it will just be a walk in the park. good luck!

in my case, the approval date was 8-3, they mailed the card 8-16. almost 2 weeks after approval. card received 8-19.

philippines has one of the highest rates of denial for B1/B2 visa applications in the world just because immigration rates from the philippines is very high. there is no single recipe for success in obtaining tourist visa from the philippines. he can always try to apply again coz it is not illegal to do so but you might just be wasting money. i agree with penguin with regards to meeting up with him. if i may ask, why is not possible for you to fly to meet him up instead of him coming to the US?

as long as you get married before ur authorized stay of 90 days then you should be fine. i suggest though file ur AOS as soon as possible after marriage coz it will take some time depending on where you live but on average AOS takes about 5-7 months on average but it could take more than that. by virtue of ur marriage before 90 days, it shields you from going into unlawful status so to speak. ur visa is already considered void after you used it on ur POE whether it's validity is until december. what matters now is you get married before ur 90 days is up.

your GC is your proof of permanent residency in the US. if you lose your GC by revocation or abandonment by staying outside the US for more than a year without reentry permit, there is a way to reinstate your permanent residency status and it called the returning resident visa which you have to get at the embassy. in order to do so you must show evidence of continued unbroken ties to the US and that the trip was extended due to events beyond your control. the burden of proof is on you.

she is already a permanent resident.

no it does not. my suggestion to you is get your US citizenship first then you can stay as long as you want outside the US with no issues coming back in the US. or may be asked a few questions but remember this, and i think it's been mentioned time and time again in this website, the only persons guaranteed entry into the US are US citizens. the rest are subject to admissibility criteria that immigration officers abide to.

i totally agree with aleful. you can't use your GC like a tourist visa. at some point they will take away your GC at the port of entry and I have seen that in one of my travels.

hello there! for you to be able to apply for continuous residency to count towards naturalization, you should not be out of the US for more than 6 months at a time. if you live outside the US for more than 6 months but less than one year, you can come back with just your green card to present at the port of entry but your time for continuous residency towards naturalization will have to restart. you cant use your original entry into the US to count towards naturalization. as an example, if you enter the US on january 1, 2014 and take vacations every now and then to australia no more than 6 months every time then you would be eligible to apply for naturalization 3 months before january 1, 2017. but if at one of your vacations you stayed more than 6 months like what you said you've been in australia for almost 6 months now and you decide to come back say august 1, 2015 then your january 1, 2014 will become null and void and your time will reset to august 1, 2015, so your new date of eligibility for naturalization will 3 months before august 1, 2018 and no longer 3 months before january 1, 2017. so it is very important not to stay outside the US for more than 6 months if you have plans of naturalizing.

once you have the letter from NVC stating the case has been forwarded the US Embassy in Manila showing the beneficiarie's CASE NUMBER and BENEFICIARIE'S NAME then you can request for Singapore COC either by mail or in person but I suggest do it in person coz she needs to have her fingerprint taken and will be processed in 2 weeks. if she opted for mail-in request, it will most likely take a while. not to mention the mailing time from the Philppines to Singapore, processing time for them to issue the COC, mailing time from Singapore to Manila then the time for the US embassy to sort the mail they receive. the best option is to go in person to have the fingerprint taken in Singapore. come back when it's time to pick up the COC and have the COC on hand during the interview.

hello there. i believe she will need a police clearance from singapore police since she lived there for one year. i believe the requirement for police clearance from other countries is that one have lived, whether working or not, for more than 6 months. since she lived there for about a year then she is required to procure a SINGAPORE CERTIFICATE OF CLEARANCE (COC).

Why would they need to "reacquire" their Philippine citizenship if they're natural born citizens of the Philippines?

I might be misinterpreting this but I'm not sure:

http://www.philippineconsulatela.org/consular%20services/conserv-dual.htm

What is Republic Act No. 9225?

Republic Act No. 9225 otherwise known as the Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act of 2003 declares that natural-born citizens of the Philippines who become citizens of another country shall be deemed not to have lost their Philippine citizenship

continue reading the entire provisions of the law R.A. 9225. Below is an excerpt of the FAQ regarding this law.

What is Republic Act No. 9225?

Republic Act No. 9225 otherwise known as the Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act of 2003 declares that natural-born citizens of the Philippines who become citizens of another country shall be deemed not to have lost their Philippine citizenship.

Who are qualified to apply under the Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act of 2003?

Only natural-born citizens of the Philippines who have lost their Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country may retain/reacquire their Philippine citizenship under this Act.

RA 9225 does not apply to dual citizens, i.e., those who have both Philippine as well as foreign citizenship not acquired through naturalization.

“..Natural –born citizens of the Philippines who have lost their Philippine citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country are hereby deemed to have re-acquired Philippine citizenship upon taking the oath of allegiance to the Republic.” (Section 3, RA 9225)

Balikbayans who present US passport only will have one year of stay in the Philippines. That is if you only present your US passport. But if you present both, after reacquiring your Philippine citizenship, then you can stay in the Philippines for as long as you want.

I was wondering... Do they expedite it only for the fiancé(e)s who were living in the affected area???

i don't think so. coz my fiance is from bulacan which is located in luzon and the affected areas from last year's typhoon is in the visayas area. but then again i'm not sure if my case was expedited. all i know is that it was approved in 2 months and i was prepared for 5 months.

so do you think chances she could get deported back to her country

not necessarily. but the CBP officers will definitely take a second look at your wife's request for admission at the port of entry. having a visa on hand does not mean outright entry into the US. the only persons guaranteed entry into the US are US citizens. even green card holders does not have outright entry into the US. there is always the INADMISSIBILITY criteria that CBP officers look into when non-US citizens request admission at the port of entry.

another point also is that granting a visa does not mean outright admission into the US. a visa will only guarantee to fly to a port of entry in the US but granting admission is solely under the discretion of the CBP officers. a visa only gives you the privilege to seek admission to a port of entry.

If the visa is granted for her to come in, why will the Custom Border Patrol interfere when she lands?

CBP will be able to pull up the information that she is under petition that's why she will be subjected to more scrutiny from CBP officers. coz they might think that she will not go back to her home country and will just adjust status here. i guess that's what they call circumventing the immigration process. i'm not totally sure of the term but if she has a pending petition that's definitely a red flag though not necessarily an outright ineligibility for admission as tourist.

for I-129F petition, the I-134 form is needed at the interview. USCIS will not ask you for that form, it's the embassy that will ask you that. u need to send the I-134 to your fiancé prior to the interview. and depending on the embassy, a co-sponsor may be honored or not if your income does not meet above poverty line. the I-864 form is needed on the Adjustment of Status phase after you get married. so for now you only need the I-134 form which is a 2-page form that you can download at the USCIS website.

looks like she is done with her CFO seminar back on 11/4. did she attend the GCP seminar as well?

GCP stands for, by the way, Guidance and Counseling Program. this seminar is designed for filipino spouses/fiances with American husbands/fiances for them to inform them of their rights when they get to the US. the seminar also provides what to expect to adjust in the US., etc.

she needs to attend the GCP seminar given by the CFO agency. she can find all the information on cfo.gov.ph. she needs to make an appointment to attend the seminar. there is a link at the website for which seminar she needs to attend. she needs to click the spouse/fiance link to get to the right information. she does not need to click on the emigrant link coz that's for other immigrants to the US not petitioned by their spouses/fiances. after she attends the GCP seminar, she will be issued a certificate which she needs to keep coz she will present that certificate to the immigration officer in NAIA along with the CFO sticker. all these information i mentioned are found in the website.