Ian H.

We're just going to wait until August to apply, all of this paperwork really has us fed up. We're just going to focus our energy on taking care of the RFE for the ROC. Thanks for the replies.

I just reread my original post lol. It sounded as if we haven't been living together for 4 years lolol. I meant that although we've been married for 4 years, we haven't been physically living together for the full time. We married in March 2012, I came back like in June and filed the petition. I didn't travel again until June the following year for the interview and left in July. She officially moved here in August 2013. So obviously after she immigrated we have been physically together since neither of us has traveled. My question was referring to that 1 year while waiting for the petition and visa.

The only time we lived apart was the time we were waiting for her petition to be approved and her visa issued. Obviously they can't expect for us to physically be together during that time if I had obligations here such as my job. If that were the case then they would require people to live together until the immigrant visa is issued. I was reading into the exception under the law and the wording implies that reasons beyond our control may be accepted. As someone who studies law, I would not mind taking them to court for not making such a key provision clear if her application were denied because of that. It's not appropriate at all of them not to count the time that the petition and visa are pending.

Hello everyone,

It's been so long since I logged in here I even forgot how to start a topic lol. I have been browsing all over google, the forums, reading the policy manuals, and anything else I could find regarding the topic, but the answers seem ambiguous.

My spouse is going to apply for citizenship based on the 3 year rule, we still have a pending ROC and we received an RFE about a month ago. I know that she can apply after being an LPR for 3 years-90 days. We have been married for 4 years so we have that requirement down as well. The only thing that keeps throwing me off is the "living in a marital union" part.

Even though we've been married for 4 years, we haven't been physically living together for 4 years. What I want to know is, do they count the time that we didn't live together because she was waiting for her immigrant visa? It just doesn't make sense because it seems that the only exceptions they make is for military spouses and people employed abroad. However their definition of marital union is ambiguous because you can be physically apart and still be married for all intents and purposes.

Anyhow, we want to submit the application this week and pray that it's complete before the elections, but I'm not holding my breath lol. We're also sending in the RFE evidence for the ROC this week too. I figured it doesn't make sense to send two copies of everything since they just pull the file for the ROC when giving the citizenship interview.

If anyone has heard of similar cases and how it went I would appreciate the input. We may end up submitting the application regardless. I've spent more money on parking tickets anyway lol.

No. That is needed when the case is at the NVC. Only send what is needed with the I-130 package per the instructions. Also please follow the guides here on the website to learn how to prepare your I-130 package.

Yes and once the embassy receives the docs he may be in AP for some time while they go over everything so don't panic if his CEAC status doesn't update to ISSUED overnight. Hopefully, it should only be anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks. My spouse was in AP for close to a month with no arrest records so I just wanted to reassure you that being in AP for a few weeks is normal sometimes.

Is it possible that she had DACA already and you didn't know? If she came here as a child and met all the other requirements she probably does have AP. I don't think that she would risk not being allowed reentry just because. They must have some sort of assurance that she will be let back inside the country so it's perfectly possible that she is protected under the DACA.

They are able to get a GC, it's just much harder. If the person was in deportation or removal proceedings then they have to prove with clear and convincing evidence that the marriage is legit. Of course I don't know what they consider clear and convincing. In this case however, I don't think the OP's friend's wife was in proceedings, she was just undocumented. Or was she actually in proceedings?

I didn't think an undocumented person who was already facing deportation could marry a USC and get a green card that way. Is that possible now or wouldn't that just lead to many sham marriages solely for green cards?

I think the reason they may not be worried is because she probably plans to cross the border again. I'm not sure, but I have heard that sometimes illegal immigrants leave to visit family members and such and come back. That's probably it. She would still be entering the country illegally though, so if she gets caught, she would be deported.

Plenty of people meet online especially now a days. My cousin and his wife met online back when myspace was still popular lol and that wasn't a topic of discussion during their interview.

What may be of concern to CO's is if you met online and a month later decide to get married. Not that this happens or that it raises a concern every time, but just an example of how online relationship may be perceived.

Otherwise if you met online and your relationship has progressed enough in addition to having met in person it shouldn't be of much concern. They care more about the relationship itself rather than how or where you met since that is only one aspect of your relationship.

She found her boarding passes too so she can use them as additional proof. Hopefully the CO won't give her a hard time and give her the opportunity to prove that she left rather than outright deny her like they tend to do.

Well that makes much more sense. How are they going to stop anyone from sightseeing on their way to another airport though? lol.

That's fine if it can be proven with the passport, I just hope she's not given issues when she actually applies for the visa though since they like to outright deny you without giving you the chance to present your case.

In the DS160, I would assume that you can put the exact dates of travel that way if they try to verify the dates electronically and they don't match up, they can see the stamps on the passport and realize that the mistake is on their end.

It's not about any red flags. It's about immigrant intent. I do agree that it is arbitrary most of the time, however they still have to take into account the ties that you have outside of the US. My aunt could have easily been denied because she has a son and a brother in the US, but she wasn't because the CO felt that her ties outside of the US were stronger.

Like I said in my post, financial ties are only one part of the equation. Anyone can have property or money in the bank, that doesn't mean squat. Property can be sold and money in the bank can be transferred or withdrawn. A job can be abandoned just the same.

In my aunt's case her job was taken into account because she is a few years away from retirement, 60 years old, and she is unlikely to put that at risk to stay here illegally in the eyes of the CO. Again, if the CO would have felt that the ties were insufficient or that the ties in the US were stronger, then she would have been denied.

If he were in a bad mood, he could have denied everyone that day as well and no one would bat an eye. She was denied twice already, she is divorced, those are also negative factors and she could have been denied based on that as well.

Although the process is arbitrary and unfair, there are certain situations that make you look more unfavorable, plain and simple. As for your friend, are you 100% certain of what she put on her application? I doubt that she put that she had a sister who is here illegally on the DS160. And in the unlikely event that she did, she probably has other ties that were more favorable. Again, financial ties aren't the big picture. And who was talking about grandma having another child???

Both times she entered, she didn't step outside of the airport. I don't think you can go outside anyway on a C1 visa, unless your a crew member otherwise you may be violating your status. The C1 visa is strictly for transiting through the US, such as a layover. From what I read it cannot be used to visit friends and relatives or other purposes that would require a B visa. That's why I find it odd that they give 29 days of authorized stay.

In any case, she didn't even stay half a day, only long enough for her next flight. One trip was DR-US-ITALY, the second was ITALY-US-DR and of course she left the same day both times since she took her flights.

The issue is that her first layover doesn't look like it was recorded at all because it doesn't show up in her travel history (it goes back 5 years by the way) and the second trip shows up as an arrival, but no departure.

I'm pretty confident that she shouldn't experience any issues because she does have her passport stamps that prove she left the country as well as other evidence she can provide if requested. The issue is having this corrected. I will see if we can do an FOIA request and we will also contact the embassy in Naples to see what she can do since she doesn't have the paper I-94 and isn't at all sure if she was given one.

The fault here is on the CBPO because they should inform travelers not to lose the I-94 as well as that they have to return it upon exit especially if they see that they have never been in the US previously. I swear this system is so frustrating.

BTW I also think I read that if you left through a commercial air carrier that the departure can be independently verified even if you didn't hand in the I-94? Is that true, because if they can verify on their end that she was on the plane plus her passport stamps, then she should be good.

Make sure that he gets multiple copies, at least 4 or 5. He will need them down the road to adjust status, to remove conditions, and to apply for citizenship. So it's best to get them now and get that over with since it would be more expensive to get them down the line if he has to travel back to get them.

I assume they were talking about the disposition documents.

How far apart are her denials? Have her circumstances changed from the last time she applied? They look at all aspects of your life, not only the financial ones.

If her only daughter is in the US with her only grandchildren, that would be the biggest negative factor. Does she have other children and grandchildren outside the US? A spouse?

My aunt was approved after 2 denials in the DR, although she was denied about 40 years ago. She has a child here in the US and a brother, but she has another daughter in Italy and grandchildren outside the US as well, plus all of her other brothers and sisters.

They take into account all of these things in order to determine the likelihood of immigrant intent. Another important thing is that the DS160 is filled out properly. They often times deny people for making mistakes on the form or for not filling out certain parts properly.

Great thread. Great posts all around. Enjoyed all the comments.

Confirms much of what I've always suspected.

My 70yo, retired, multiple property owning, sufficiently funded, MIL will most likely never have the opportunity to visit her daughter and three grandchildren in the US. Two denials already, a third and final attempt early 2015.

Wish she were from a VWP country...or lived in Canada.

Ok. So I confirmed with her again and there are certainly a couple of inconsistencies. She doesn't remember being given a paper I-94. Also, why are we able to access her I-94 online if she were given a paper version?

In any case, her electronic I-94 record only shows one arrival, JULY 16, 2011 incorrectly classified as P1. Her passport stamp says C1 and was admitted for 29 days until AUG 14, 2011.

She used her C1 visa to enter the US twice. The first time was on JUN 25, 2011 when she flew from the DR to PHILLY and she has an entry stamp into ROME for the next day. However this arrival and departure does not show up on her I-94 travel history.

The second time she arrived in the US on JULY 16, 2011 (this is the only one that shows up electronically) and she has a DR entry stamp for the next day. She left the DR in August and went back to Italy directly from there.

So all in all she has used her C1 visa twice. Her I-94 travel history only shows the second trip (only the arrival), not the first. She has her passport stamped to prove that she left the US because she has the entry stamps for the DR and for Rome.

She doesn't have the paper I-94 and doesn't remember being given one. So how can she correct this record from within Italy? She wants to apply for a B2 visa for her and her daughter and is now worried that this will cause an issue. Would the CO accept her passport stamps as proof that she never overstayed? Thanks.

Besides, I wouldn't worry too much. Either the embassy will provide further instructions on this new process to those who will be subject to it, or they will tell you what to do on ustraveldocs.

The NOA2 is from USCIS, not the NVC. The NOA2 is the approval letter for your case. After that it is forwarded to the NVC and assigned a case number, then it is forwarded to the embassy since you are doing the K1 process. It usually takes about a month after the approval date to reach the embassy.

We have to wait for the letter from NVC..would that be NOA2 or is another one coming?

Aaaahh..I've been studying all the WRONG process!

The VAC shouldn't have anything to do with the medical. That's only for your fingerprints and photograph. The medical exam is needed for the actual interview only and it's sent directly to the embassy. You need to get the medical done at least a full week before the embassy interview date.

Considering that they let you stay for 6 months with a visa on a single trip, I don't think 3 short trips of 3 weeks each will cause an issue. It all depends on the CBPO that you get if they want to bother you about it, but if you do that for the whole year though that's another story. And yes since you are coming to visit a USC gf you want to be prepared with documentation that shows you have to return home, otherwise they will think that you have immigrant intent and deny you entry.

Congratulations!!

That's the thing I don't think she has the paper I-94, but I will ask again. I assumed since it was online that they didn't give her a paper version lol. If she has it ok, but will they also be able to correct it? I assume that all she has to do is submit a copy of the visa and the stamp showing the correct class.

By the way I was just thinking at what point would they ask to return the I-94, isn't it when you're checking in? Because if so, then that would explain why she didn't return it because when you are boarding a layover flight, there is no checking in again from what I remember, you just board the next plane.

By the way, one thing I'm not sure of is if for IV cases, does the fee still have to be paid to the NVC? Or does it have to be paid through Banco Popular or the consular section? I would assume that it still has to be paid to the NVC.

Guys it's actually a better system now because you have more control of what's going on. They are basically following the same process with the IV visas that they are following for nonimmigrant visas.

My aunt applied for a B2 visa and we had to do most of those steps, like going to the VAC, paying the fee at the Banco Popular, and scheduling the interviews ourselves.

You are perfectly capable of doing things from the US since it's on the internet, hence the world wide web. I did everything for my aunt from filling out the DS160 to making the appointments and tracking her case all while talking on the phone. The ustraveldocs page is in English and Spanish so that doesn't matter. Plus the DS160 has to be written in English, so whenever it asks for info it has to be written in English to avoid any delays. Same thing with the DS260.

Remember that even though you can assist in filling the form, they need to be aware of what it contains. It's important to answer everything completely and truthfully. They will need to do some things on their end though like printing out the confirmation pages and paying the fees though.

Also you can track the status of the passport after your CEAC status says ISSUED at mbe.com.do, click on "entrega de visas" and input your passport number. Additionally you can check the status in ustraveldocs, but for some reason I think it's updated first on the Mailboxes Etc website.

By the way, the visa stamp has the right class of C1, it's only the I-94 that has the incorrect info. She also has her passport stamped that she entered the DR that same day.