PorknBeanz

I've had this sort of thing happen to me. Some low-life knows that once you are out-of-state, or out of their area it is easy to sue you or whatever to get some extra money. They know it will cost you more than the supposed debt to travel back and fight it.

They're hoping that you'll just send the money. I'm not sure about the laws in Canada, but in the US, it's easy for anyone to claim you owe money and add that claim to your credit report. You either pay them or get denied credit wherever you apply for the next 7 years.

Is it possible that both parties talked to lawyers, drew up and signed the papers, but that the wife's lawyer never actually filed the papers because she didn't pay? If so, nothing was ever filed with the court, hence, no court date and no official record.

Divorce law is not a federal action so it's handled at the state level. Each state has different laws. For example Florida does not recognize "separation". You are either married or divorced, there's no in-between in Florida. If the original paperwork was never filed you might have to file again and your state might have a mandatory waiting period.

Granted... Love is blind, but purposely adding deaf and dumb won't make it any better.

The things he doesn't want to talk about are exactly the things you have to talk about. You just don't want to know the answers.

Restructuring your finances so you can marry a deadbeat dad sounds a bit kooky to me.

To check on your case status online you'll need your case number. You can sign up for automatic updates here:

https://egov.immigration.gov/cris/jsps/index.jsp

Phone numbers for the USCIS are here:

http://uscis.gov/graphics/services/menu.htm

I want to add to what Clmarsh said about taxes. Child support is not relevent to taxes, but if he is in any kind of tax trouble, the IRS will take the money from you when you get married. They can garnish your wages, take your property, etc.

I suggest you got to one of the background checking sites on the web and find out everything you can about this person. Knowledge is power.

I would make a distinction between normal debts and child support. If you are in debt you can claim bankruptcy. If you are behind in child support, bankruptcy won't help and you might end up spending time in the Big House.

If the child support is mandated by a court, he may be ruled in contempt. If the value is high enough there may be a warrant for him. It depends what the child's guardian has done about the debt.

The USC goes through a background check, and his court record (if any) will show up. If there is a court record, expect a long delay. If he's actually wanted for anything, expect a very long wait. He might have to finish a prison sentence.

According to the law that takes effect today 3/6/06, if you met through a marriage broker, you'll get a full printout of his past at the visa interview. You might want to tell him that if there's anything he's hiding, you won't be happy at the interview.

bwaaderant,

You might want to do a search on www.rwguide.com. It's more focused on FSU issues and I remember reading a few stories about this situation on that site.

I wish I would have known about this forum and the VSC timelines before I filed in Texas. If I would have known, I would have rented an apartment in the northeast just so I could go through the Vermont center. B)

Good luck with your future journey Shannon.

From what I've heard, the embassys always have people who speak the language of the country the embassy is in. I don't think that's a problem.

The problem is that you have to prove there is a relationship. You both must speak a common language to some degree, otherwise they will ask how can there be a relationship if you can't communicate.

I am somewhat familiar with Ukrainian law on this point and it is probably very similar to Russian law. Your fiancee will have to get a notarized letter from her ex-husband stating that he is granting permission for the child to permanently immigrate to the US. She will also need to bring copies of the ex-husband's photo page and signature from his passport. According to the embassy in Kiev, there is no special wording that needs to appear on the notarized statement. Just make sure that you have an original Russian version with full legal names and you have an official English translation for the embassy at the interview.

Write an email to the embassy in Moscow to make sure.

If he won't give permission you'll have to go to court. If he is not involved in the child's life it's generally easy for her to get custody for a few hundred dollars and it takes a few months. If he is involved, there's no telling which way it will go.

In my case, my fiancee's ex-husband had always said he would give permission, but when it came time to sign the papers, he wanted $15,000 cash.

Good luck. I hope it works out for you.

Wishing you both the Best!

Under the new law going into effect on March 6, two K1's is all they allow every 10 years. So the lady won't be able to get another Englishman, unless she gets special permission from Big Brother. Also if there is a third alien, the embassy will step in and tell #3 the details on the demise of #1 and #2.

This is a difficult situation for the three of you and I wish all of you the best.

Ivona,

Let us know (when you receive your notice) if your NOA1 is from Texas or from California.

Yes, since I don't see any provision in the law to deny, they'll probably just delay. But heck, seems like lots of people are getting delayed. I've made a commitment, so they're not going to get me to give up the fight.

Early in our relationship I told her about my past run-ins with the law, and she was surisingly OK with it. I think she's seen to many Hollywood movies and thinks all American men have an outlaw mentality.

Maybe I’ll be the first USC on this forum to go through the new IMBRA process with an arrest record. I don’t have any felonies or warrants, but maybe I should change my name from PorknBeanz to GuineaPig

So if I understand the replies correctly, the background check on the USC is used to make a judgment of whether the USC might aid and abet the beneficiary in future crimes, even if the beneficiary has no criminal background?

I’ve read many things about the beneficiary being denied a visa due to background hits, but I have seen nothing to indicate that the beneficiary can be denied a visa based solely on the USC’s background.

I am the USC on an I-129f. I understand that every name on the I-129f goes through a security check, and that the visa can be denied for certain crimes the beneficiary may have committed. What is the purpose then of the background check of the USC? Is it only to find out if they are currently in jail and/or wanted for questioning and/or a known terrorist? Seems to me most terrorists nowadays probably avoid the visa process.

I can see that after March 6, when the new law goes into effect, the USC background check is done to warn the beneficiary. But even that law doesn’t have a provision for denying a visa based on the USCs criminal history. Apparently, the USC may have committed murder, but if the beneficiary is OK with that, everything is fine. Weird law. Has anybody ever been denied a visa for crimes the USC may have committed?

And, in case you’re wondering, I’m asking this question because the police and I were well acquainted during the indiscretions of my youth. Thanks.

Technically, this isn’t a law against international marriage agencies, it is a law against a particular business model.

If you're an abusive USC and want to meet an unsuspecting alien on Match.com, Yahoo Personals, Matchmaker.com, etc. No problem. The law has loopholes just for you.

If an abusive USC gets frustrated with this new law, he (or she) is free to abuse other USCs because this law doesn't apply to those relationships. BTW, 440 US men were murdered last year by their girlfriends/wives.

I think the opening a bank account analogy is correct with a few other conditions added: If you want to open up a bank account in a certain section of town, the US government will require you to disclose everything about yourself, in a signed statement, to a place you think is a bank, because it looks like a bank in a photo. You’ll also have to tell it how many banks you’ve had accounts at in the past, and why you closed those accounts.

The bank can then decide if they want you as a potential customer. The bank is not required to tell you anything about itself, like how many customers might have lost everything at this bank, how many customers are currently making night deposits, or even if it really is a bank . It might be a collection of crooks who call you “green card mule’ behind your back . You won’t really be sure until you’ve deposited everything at this place you think is a bank.

If you really like this place you think is a bank , you can invite it to relocate to your section of town. The US government will step in again at this point and tell the bank that the move has restrictions, but after two years it can permanently relocate to your section of town with no restrictions .

After the bank relocates, and while it is waiting for the two year period to end, it may decide that there are other customers in this section of town who make bigger night deposits, and have more assets than you. At this point the bank may turn to an instruction pamphlet entitled “How to Eliminate the Two Year Waiting Period by Claiming That a Customer Abused Your Assets” The new law mandates that this instruction pamphlet be given to the bank by the US government when the bank asks to be allowed to relocate to your section of town. Finally, you slowly realize that this wasn’t a bank at all! You were fooled by a shoddy Savings & Loan!

You turn to the US government for help, but they're busy protecting other banks from potential customers.

OK, I think I’ve just about killed the bank analogy.

Most of the marriage agencies are working on a questionnaire that the USC can sign electronically. They have until March 6, which is the date the law goes into effect.

If the US client goes through a marriage agency the US client is supposed to provide (to the agency) a signed statement of:

1. Any restraining orders, arrest or convictions for mostly violent crimes; but the list also includes assault (which can be yelling at someone in a threatening manner) or an open alcohol container, and prostitution charges. Even if a judge threw out the case or you were found not guilty, you still have to report it.

2. Any previous or current marriages, the marriage and divorce dates, how it ended, and whether you've previously tried to bring an alien into the country.

3. The ages of any children you have under 18.

4. Every state you've lived in since you were 18 years old.

In addition, the marriage agency has to do a check of the sex offender database, and give all this info to any alien you want to write a letter to.

The government and the agency are under no obligation to inform the USC of the alien's background or if the alien has provided false information to you.

All of this information will be verified by the government and anything that they find out about the USC will be added to the list and presented to the alien at the visa interview. The alien will be asked if you met through an agency, which agency, and did they already supply a signed statement? Even if you don't go through an agency, a government background check report will be presented to the alien at the interview.

The law is poorly written, and is unclear whether the visa can be denied if the agency did not provide the signed disclosure statement to the alien, even if you gave one to the agency.

A couple other interesting things about this law: The marriage agency can not post photos of an alien with any children under 18. It also prohibits an agency from giving contact info on an alien to anyone who is not a US client.

http://usaimmigrationattorney.com/images/IMBRA2005.pdf

The plot thickens!

The AILA page dated 2/15/06 that showed TSC processing I-129f dated 2/15/06 has been updated again. As of 2/22/06, the new update has no dates at all, for any visas.

I signed the back of each photo, wrote the date it was taken (even though it is electronically stamped on the photo), wrote the name of each person in the photo, and location it was taken.

Probably overkill. I can't help it...I'm #######.

Generally, but not always, they update the processing times every 2 weeks. The last update was 2/8/06.

Castaway, Goldie,

When you get your NOA1 let us know if it says TSC or CSC on it. That way we'll know what's going on.

Nothing against you, but this always happens to me! I wait in line at the supermarket, a new register opens, I'm still stuck in the same old line, and people who weren't even waiting are at the front of the new line . I filed with Texas in December, it was sent to CSC, and they probably won't look at my application for another month. I should have procrastinated until mid February. It's not easy being me.

I rant, therefore I am.

I’m surprised that your NOA1 to NOA2 time is only about 2.5 months. I thought that the USCIS did all the background checking during that time and if they had an FBI hit, it would have delayed the application approval by a lot longer. It seems like others have to wait months while their background is checked.

This gives me some hope because I’m the USC of an I-129f and I have a record too, so maybe I won't have to wait too long.

Thanks Carrie,

Whatever happened to the Premium Processing Program? On one hand we shouldn't have to pay $1,000 to get a level of service that should be standard. On the other hand I, and probably a lot of other people, wouldn't mind paying $1,000 to get a 15-day turnaround.

The sad thing is that here it is 3-years later, and the TSC isn't even processing I-129f and CSC is in some kind of a slow time warp. All the money from those year 2002 Premium Processing charges must have gone directly to the VSC.