mollenne

I never got an email for any USCIS processing, and my now-husband and I did a K-1 visa through the Jerusalem consulate.

The next move to make your appointment for the interview, usually they contact the beneficiary, but I wanted to follow up, so I called the NVC and they could tell me when his packet was sent to the Jerusalem Consulate. I remember I had to call them a few times before they actually sent it because they said it was still waiting to be sent. The packet also has to go through customs going into Israel, so that can also cause some delays.

You can also email the Jerusalem Consulate, they have 2 email addresses you can follow up with: one for immigrant visas, one for nonimmigrant visas. Even though a K-1 is considered, technically, a non-immigrant visa, it is handled by their immigrant visa team, so the immigrant visa email address is the one you want to inquire with: Jerusalemivinquiries@state.gov

Also, check the Jerusalem Consulate website for more information, you may need to provide the JRS-number in the subject line, if you have it already.

I also had to email them in order to get the digital copy of "Packet 3" (the paper one finally arrived in the mail literally the day AFTER the interview).

I hope this helps!

Would you be open to working from home, or via telephone? Some kind of job that doesn't require you being in an office? Lots of communication companies need people for support or customer service. It's not always fun, but having a job that doesn't require a commute could save you a lot of $$.

Always a good idea to bring the originals with you in case anything might have been reshuffled/misplaced in the original packet you mailed them.

Hey just hang in there -- we always kept each other motivated that "nothing worth achieving is ever easy". Yes we had a lot of times where we had to laugh to keep from crying, but our relationship is so much stronger because of it. At least you can stay together as a family!

I am sure our to-do list with all of the tasks we had to do for this process was a mile long, and for a while it seemed neverending, and we had a lot to do when we got back to the US for: getting married (that was the easy part!) adjusting his status, getting his work permit, etc. (he came on a K1 visa, but I was able to be in Israel with him the last 3 months for his USCIS doctor appointment and the interview, packing up, and moving to the US) -- It sounds like once you're through this process you will be able to move and settle more quickly since you're going the IR-CR1 route once you get to the US -- but I know the process is more tedious for you at the moment since you have to provide more up front.

I am not too familiar with what needs to be provided to prove domicile. Hopefully opening a bank account will be easy since you are already a US citizen? My husband had some trouble with that before he got his green card; couldn't bank with a credit union, but Bank of America, Wells Fargo, or SunTrust seem to be a little easier to start with. Property ownership seems like an obvious one, maybe even some legal documentation, like a will?

You will always be glad that your documentation is so well-prepared for USCIS (yes they need it that way, but it's good to have it for your family too). We paid extra $$ to have his documents in Hebrew 'certified translated' (even though technically he could do them, his English is fluent), but they have been helpful to have, especially when adjusting his status and just keeping a record of everything. I imagine when we go to buy a house or something this will be useful once again. Every time I see the big box with all of our immigration document binders it reminds me of how capable we all are. You just have to take it one day at a time. You can do it!

Ken, I completely understand. To follow up on your points about a few things (I just talked to my husband about this, he speaks Hebrew and unfortunately, I do not, so he handled this more directly than I did):

- We didn't need to make an appointment to get this from the City Captain's office (he called ahead of time and asked what he needed to bring for us to get this document, you'll just need to tayudat zehyoot). We went to the one in Rehovot, this is where my husband used to live when he was still living in Israel. (To be honest with you, it was kind of sketchy, we had to wait in the hallway and the solider at the door handled the communication between my husband and the person who retrieved his new 807. We got what we needed in like 15 minutes.)

- I asked our lawyer about notarizing documents vs. a certified English translation; "notarized" is a different meaning and is a different process in Israel than in the United States. Getting something notarized by a lawyer is very costly and usually is not necessary.

If I was in your situation, knowing what I know from our experience, I would follow up with the city captain's office first, because this is document comes from the military, and you'll just need to have it translated into English and provide copies of both the next time he goes in for the interview.

Good luck, please feel free to message me if you have other questions. I'm so sorry they have given you the runaround!

When did your husband get released from the military? Mine got out in the early 2000s (like 2003-4?) and his was a very small document, almost like a booklet.

We had an Israeli lawyer do a certified translation of his documents, and she did mention that his 807 looked different than the current ones, which are more legal document-style. She advised that we visit the City Captain's office and request the 807 done in the newer style -- this was either free or cost a nominal fee, so it was worth doing. We took both versions to the Jerusalem Consulate and they really just looked at the more updated one. Both are legitimate, both can be considered originals.

If you have it, you may as well bring it. If you don't have it and it wouldn't take long to get, then try and get it.

With any of these interviews at the Consulate, it's always best to bring more documentation that the bare minimum because you might as well be as prepared as you can; you don't want to have to reschedule your interview because you're missing documents.

When my husband went to the Jerusalem Consulate for his K1 interview, he saw at least 4 or 5 K1 applicants be turned away for not having enough paperwork/documentation.

As far as documents go to bring to the US, depending on where you are applying for a job, you may want to bring paystubs from a previous employer, documents you would consider "important" -- birth certificate, etc.

It's a good idea to keep your important Israeli documents as well, such as info on social security in Israel, etc. -- I mention this from experience, as my husband brought all of these things with him when he moved to the US to be with me and he has needed a few of these documents for various reasons.

The security team at the Jerusalem consulate will expect you to have a phone with you, and you check it into a locker/cubby when you go through security. This applies to pretty much anything you are carrying with you, except your paperwork.

It helps to have a copy of everything so you can remember what you have already provided as far as pictures, evidence, and documentation goes. It also helps keep a backup in case any documentation gets lost or something like that. It's good to minimize the margin of error! Really, you have nothing to lose by making copies, so why not do it?

In our experience, it was a solid 14 days between the interview/approval and when we had the visa in hand. We did a K1 visa and this was via the Jerusalem Consulate.

We elected to pick up my fiance's passport at the local post office, rather than have it delivered to his home address, which I am sure shaved off a few days of waiting. The postal workers were very unorganized and they did not find the package right away, but we were adamant about picking it up so we made them search for it.

I believe might you also have the option to pick up the passport/visa at the consulate itself? This could also save you time/headache.

You just need this as another piece of proof that you have viable funds and would not need government assistance. I had my bank draw up a similar document summarizing my funds for the last 12 months and I was over the poverty line with my income anyway. It's good to have this documentation, and from what it sounds like, you'll be fine.

In my experience, they only emailed it to me when I proactively emailed them first. They will not email it to you until they have received your packet from the NVC, sometimes customs can delay things a bit with your packet coming from the US to Jerusalem. Just so you know, they will also have a digital version (all of your packet is scanned and sent digitally as a backup) sent to the Jerusalem Consulate.

My then-fiance (now my husband) had his interview in early November 2015, and the packet 3 PDF on the Jerusalem Consulate page here on VJ is the same one that was sent to him for us to prepare for the interview. I do not know if it has changed much (or at all), but I recommend trying to assemble the documentation, photographs, etc. as early as you can and use it as a guideline.

Funny enough, physical packet 3 (the actual paper version) arrived by Israel Post to his mailing address the day after he had his interview. Be proactive and email the consulate. We had some confusion: while technically a K-visa is classified as a non-immigrant visa, it was the immigrant visa email address for the Jerusalem consulate that we needed to reach out to (they have an email address for both types of visas).

Good luck!

Congratulations!! The hard work and dedication we fuel into our immigration journeys will pay off.

It could be beneficial to include bank statements, it certainly doesn't hurt! If you can show bank statements from the last year or two indicating you receive a regular paycheck, this could complement any pay stubs you are presenting. It also shows financial stability in that someone didn't temporarily lend you money in order to pass any kind of financial standards for the immigration process.

If you're skirting the line of the financial requirements, or if you don't have previous years' tax transcripts, this could be beneficial to include. When I was petitioning for my husband's K1 I wanted to make the application as airtight as possible, and we had no issues with showing financial support proof.

Good luck in your process!

@Georgia16 --

Yes, your list sounds right. Definitely bring the NOA/I-797C showing you have applied for AOS. I had to bring in my marriage certificate when I went to the DDS on a separate occasion to change my name, you might want to bring that too, just in case they ask for it, since it looks like you came here on a K1 visa.

Do not be surprised if they escalate your application/process to be investigated, this is what happened with my husband. It's nothing serious, it's just a further investigation to make sure you have applied for AOS. There is a division within the department of driver services that handles this. I think this happens to people who want to earn a driver's license in Georgia who do not yet have a green card.

The standard employees of the DDS are definitely not knowledgeable about the immigration processes and statuses, they literally enter data into their computer.

When the worked told us his application had been flagged for investigation, she gave me a case number and told me to call and follow up with them in 3-5 business days (ugh), but we kept on top of it. I believe they requested a scanned copy of the I-797C and his EAD for verification. Just stay on top of them to follow up.

This delayed my husband from getting his license by about 10 business days, but he took the learner's test and scheduled his practical/road test and passed it all within one month. It may be a little more challenging to schedule something now that it's summer and this is a busy time for the DDS because kids are out of school and this is when many people book their license exams.

Good luck!

When my husband and I were engaged, we assembled the petition and corresponding paperwork ourselves. However, we did hire a lawyer to translate documents from Hebrew to English. My husband speaks English fluently but we felt better having an official translation done.

We also used the same lawyer to counsel us regarding his traffic record. He had his license suspended for about 11 months nearly 10 years ago because of a DWI (though nobody was hurt or killed, a cop saw him get in the car and breathalyzed him) he had in his home country. He did not serve any jailtime, and this did not appear on his criminal record, but it counted as a moving violation on his traffic record. He has had zero incidences before or since. We paid for the lawyer to translate the court documents from Hebrew to English, and though it was a little expensive, it was worth it. He did have to indicate it on one of the forms he submitted before the K1 interview and it was asked about in the interview, but it ended up not being a big deal.

For all of the other paperwork, we handled it ourselves and have had no issues with the K1 or the AOS process.

Even if you choose to have a lawyer handle it for you, you need to make yourself very aware of the process and keep everything organized, because it will help you during the AOS process.

If you choose to hire a lawyer for any reason during the immigration process, I recommend finding one who is either from the beneficiary's home country, or shares a common language and speaks English fluently. Our lawyer was in Israel but spoke Hebrew and English fluently, and I am glad we saw her instead of a stateside lawyer; she was a lot more familiar with the Israeli government documents and the consulate in Jerusalem, which is where we had the interview.

A piece of advice that I feel really saved us time: front load your application as best as you can. Send a lot of proof of your relationship, tax transcripts for more than just one year, English translations of anything that is not already in English. Try to make the application as airtight as possible. For the things that need your fiance's signature, make sure it's the real signature and not a copy. Submit real photos and label the details of the photo on the back (who is in the picture, the location, the date, etc.).

Good luck to you and your fiance!

My now-husband did his interview for a K1 visa at the Jerusalem consulate and we were approved, it was kind of a weird scenario though. For some reason, the computer system would not let them open his file in their database, so he waited for about 5 hours (I was waiting outside and I'm the petitioner/USC; they would not let me in for the interview with him). They finally insisted he step outside to get some lunch and they took his phone number and said they would call him in a couple more hours when they reset the computer. An hour or so later we both came back to the check in window at the consulate to see if they would let him back in and they invited me inside to interview with him. Everyone there was very nice, including the security team.

The CO who interviewed my husband was very nice and very apologetic about the computer trouble. She seemed familiar with my husband's case file and she asked us a few questions about how we met and how long we've known each other and about our families. She told us we were approved and it was a very emotional moment for us and she was tearing up with us!

I think what makes the biggest difference is how organized and complete your paperwork is. We kept everything in a ringed binder with page protectors. We had original documents with a matching copy of everything. Anything in Hebrew had certified English translations. We brought more than they asked for; extra tax transcripts for more than one year, lots of pictures, messages screenshots, handwritten letters, etc. Start off the binder with the table of contents, and the printoff of your interview appointment barcode/confirmation. The officer who first interacted with my husband complemented him and said "wow you are so organized!" (We handled our AOS interview paperwork the same way and also received the same complement; it pays to be organized!).

When my husband was sitting in the waiting area before his interview, he was watching other applicants for K1 interview (they just step up to a counter with glass windows, kind of like a bank teller window) and saw several people get denied because they neglected to bring the right documents or they volunteered incriminating information that they could have omitted (one guy admitted to being expelled from high school because he was caught smoking weed at school, for example).

I am sure you will be fine, just bring all of the documents they ask for and more than you think you need. Always better to be overprepared than missing items! Good luck!

I supplied my tax transcripts from the past 3 years when I petitioned for my then-fiance's (now husband!) K1 and the CO looked at them (I did also include a letter from my employer, paystubs, and most recent W2). If you have them, bring them. You will need to supply these when you file for AOS after your fiance arrives in the US when you adjust status.

In my experience, the more solid financial evidence you provide, the better. You want your petition to be airtight!

I did post-it notes on the bottom too, then bound everything with paper clips (to keep documents of several related pages together) and connected the whole thing with two large binder clips. No problems!

Speaking from experience, and depending on what the document is, you may want to consider getting certified English translations of documents that you'll need to use within the US (for example, a birth certificate or divorce decree). It will be a lot less expensive and a lot easier (not to mention faster) to get them translated in Israel rather than the U.S.

However, something to consider: certain government-issued documents from Israel can be "ordered" in an English version. We ordered an English version of my husband's birth certificate while in Israel and I'm glad we did, because it's helped him with obtaining documents now that he's with me in the U.S.

If you're looking to get someone to do an official certified translation, I can give you the contact information of the lawyer we used. She is located in Bnei Brak and was helpful with translating some previous court documents and Form 807 for my husband. I thought her prices were reasonable.

@Roy&Chanel:

Hey you're welcome -- We went to the one in Acworth off of Old Hwy 41 (it's next to North Cobb High School). It's a newer facility and generally I've had better experiences there than any other DDS place in Georgia -- though nobody there is an immigration expert.

We brought in my husband's EAD card (Form I-766, says so on the back), his valid (non-expired) foreign passport, his social security card, and a few pieces of mail proving his address. I would also recommend bringing your receipts from the USCIS concerning AOS and EAD packets (one of them is the I-797C for the EAD, I forget the title of the other Form but it's the AOS counterpart). This proves that you're working on adjusting status and that you're here legally.

I should also share with you that I visited the same DDS office a few weeks before to change my name on my GA license and I did enquire about my husband's process. One of the greeters gave me a form for non-US citizens sharing which documents and which statuses are acceptable. I could not find the same info on the official DDS site except for maybe this: http://www.dds.ga.gov/drivers/dldata.aspx?con=1741471757&ty=dl but this doesn't have quite the same detailed information. I'll see if I can find the copy I got and upload it here... but it said on this form that a valid I-766 would be fine along with a valid foreign passport.

** UPDATE **

My husband's application was handled by the Investigations portion of the Georgia DDS (Department of Driver Services), and we had to scan and email them a few extra documents: the I-94 and the receipt he received from USCIS when they received his green card/AOS application (Form I-797C).

It took them about 10 business days to process everything (I called them after 4 business days, as instructed, and every day after that). They finally let us know he was cleared and could continue with the driver's license application process.

We went back to the DDS office earlier this week and he took the knowledge test (it's a "written" test, taken before the practical road test) and passed. He now has a permit (he can only drive when I'm in the car) and scheduled to take his road test next week.

We still do not have his green card (his AOS application is still being processed), but in this case the Work Permit (Form I-766) sufficed. You need to make sure to bring in the foreign passport (it must still be valid) and the social security card, and 2 pieces of mail that prove the address.

My fiance was majorly hassled about this when we arrived at the Atlanta POE (this is normally a very busy airport with a low harassment level -- or so we thought). It was Christmas day (December 25) so I am assuming that because it was a holiday, the newest, most junior CO was assigned to work on this major holiday.

He saw both the "PETITION expiration date" (which was Dec. 1) and the "VISA expiration date" (sometime in the spring, like April or May?) and said there is a problem with my fiance's visa. I stood up for my fiance and explained to the officer what the petition date meant (why they even put that on there, I'll NEVER understand, because it is confusing if you're not familiar with what goes into earning a K-visa). The officer said "well, I'm going to have to try and find some answers here, otherwise we have a problem with this visa".

We waited like 30 minutes when finally he cleared us. Another officer had to assist him, but it's really scary when you've come that far only to have the discretion of the CO be the only thing between you and your future in the US.

I tried to search for any pre-existing discussions about this, but I couldn't find anything. Maybe someone has also experienced this?:

On Friday I took my husband to a Georgia DMV (or DDS = Department of Driver Services) office to take his knowledge/written test (first step in the process of getting a state of Georgia driver's license). We brought all necessary documentation: EAD (Form I-766, which he received the previous week, as it had been expedited), his unexpired foreign passport, his social security card, his birth certificate, and a few pieces of mail with his name and our address.

When the DDS employee was inputting his data into the computer, she said that due to his EAD card status (C-9) his profile needs to be investigated by the main DDS office. She gave me a case number and the head office phone number and told me to call them within 3-5 business days. She could not say (because she didn't know) why his profile was "flagged", but it had to do with his C-9 status on the EAD card. She said she sees this from time to time but didn't know what it means. He is not able to proceed with earning his Georgia driver's license until his profile is no longer flagged.

My husband and I checked, and "C-9" status indicates that he is still pending Adjustment of Status. He earned his EAD because we successfully received an expedite, but the green card is still being processed/adjustment of status is still not fully approved.

Has anyone else had this experience (either in Georgia or in another state)? Everything should be in order with his paperwork (we haven't received any RFE's, etc.) but we aren't sure what to expect?

Thanks in advance!