Gretch

Yes, some people who get married in December ARE doing it to game the system. That's just a fact. People who get married at the end of the year get all kinds of jokes about "just in time for the tax break, huh?" And people who get married in January get told "You should have done it in December for the tax break!" New parents of December and January babies get the same kind of reaction.

If both spouses have social security numbers, they can CHOOSE to file jointly or separately. It's well within their right to file jointly and get the benefit.

If one spouse doesn't, the only option is to file "married filing separately". But that doesn't mean they're being cheated out of something rightfully theirs. That's just how the system works.

If you send tax transcripts, you don't need to send W2s. I did send one W2 to show proof of income for the year I was working abroad, because that didn't show up on my taxes (the salary was exempt).

When it says "proof of relationship"--which I think is what you're referring to, not "proof of marriage"--my understanding is, that's proof of relationship for people who are using a joint sponsor. It's not about further bona fide relationship evidence. But you can send more of that too ("sideload").

Be sure to use the directions from NVC in combination with the wiki. Some of these things are clearer there.

I know it's law, that's why I said "it's legal". Many people get married in December so they can have the "married filing jointly" tax benefits of the whole year, which is gaming. Of course plenty of people get married in December because that's when they want to get married, and they still get the benefits. But the OP is not somehow getting cheated out of something rightfully deserved because they have to file "married filing separately" even though they got married in December. (I'm not saying the OP got married in December on purpose for tax benefits, either.)

use the document cover sheet for the outside of both packages. A personal cover letter can be used, you don't need the barcode cover sheets from the AOS and the IV to send the package.

Of course you need to send the barcode cover sheet; the directions are specific about that.

Hey all Sept. filers!

I am mailing the AOS and !V packages next week. Quick question about the actual package.

Did you all follow this step from the wiki "I suggest putting each package in a separate manila envelope (and clearly mark it and write "AOS" or "IV" on each one), then putting both manila envelopes inside one shipping envelope."

NVC website says "you must submit all of your forms, financial evidence, and photocopies of your original civil documents in ONE package to the NVC."

I'm just curious as to what others have done and if it matters?

Thanks!

Do what it says on the NVC website. They need to update the wiki; Saylin is aware. There are a couple of other differences you may have noticed--photos are no longer required at this stage, and there is just one cover sheet/checkoff page for both the AOS and IV packages.

Amazing that an accountant and lawyer could be so misinformed. Now, the accountant was correct that he couldn't file taxes for YOU without a social security number, but surely he didn't say your husband also didn't need to file taxes? How could anyone who has lived in the US any length of time think they could just skip filing taxes?

You were only married in December anyway; while technically people married in December can file as "married filing jointly" for the full year, that's gaming the system anyway. Legal, but gaming. You aren't "losing money to this process", the money was never there to begin with.

I'm sorry you and your husband got such bad advice.

The DS-260, I mean; there is no I-260.

Yes, that one is OK--as I understand it's the IV payment that needs to clear so you can access the I-260. The AOS payment clearing doesn't change or add anything. You use the cover sheets they emailed you already.

Hi everyone. Is it true that Mexican petioners don't need the police certificate? My lawyer haven't sent it because she said I don't need it. Does someone know something about it? We got a checklist after 8 weeks waiting. And NVC only ask for my divorce marriage that they said it wasn't included on the documents. But they didn't say anything about the police certificate. Can they make a second checklist? I'm very nervous about it. My husband says that NVC should tell us that it was missing too. What do you think? Thank you!! I'm very frustrated about all this and I know you are the only people that understand.

First scan date: jun 17

Second scan date: August 16

Do you mean Mexican petitioners (the American spouse) or beneficiaries (the Mexican spouse)? If you're really asking about the petitioners, none of us need to send a police certificate.

If you're asking about the beneficiary/applicant, I don't know anything about the Mexico process, but according to this page it does appear to me the certificate is available and would be required: https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/fees/reciprocity-by-country/MX.html (go down to "police/court/prison" on the left tab)

I think there's a Mexico-specific forum in the regional section where you can find people with experience in that country. There are some countries that don't need police certificates at this stage, like Pakistan and the Netherlands, because of variation in procedures in those countries.

I just got off phone with NVC--the person who answered first said "Oh... well, if you don't think you ever filed for that waiver, don't worry about it, it was probably sent by mistake. Please call us if you get a letter like that again."

It was hard to keep my cool! "It says they're putting my case on hold until they get a notice about a waiver, and I'm just supposed to wait?" "Well, if you never sent that form, you don't have anything to worry about." "But how will I know if they're working on my case at all?" "[big sigh] Well... let me look at this... [silence] And you're SURE your husband never filed for a waiver?" "100%." "Well, just to make you feel better, I'm going to ask my supervisor to take a look at this." Gee, thanks.

Fingers crossed!

I just got a checklist saying that we applied for a waiver of unlawful presence and that has to be decided before they can process our case... my husband is laughing at the idea that he's already in the US! I really hope this can be cleared up with a phone call! The checklist says the NVC got notice of the supposed waiver application from USCIS--if the mistake is actually at USCIS, and NVC really did receive notice of a waiver application for my husband, this could be a MESS.

I don't know if I'm going to be able to sleep until the NVC opens!

It seems like these basic "we sent this to the wrong person" errors happen WAY more often than is reasonable. I understand that there's a lot of paper and a lot of numbers moving around here but...

I can't believe a tax professional told you that you don't need to file taxes in the US! You may end up with a late filing fee. Get this taken care of ASAP! I think for immigration purposes you may only need to file the 2015 taxes; none of this will be relevant for AOS anyway, since your foreign income doesn't count for anything to immigration and your parents are going to be the joint sponsors. But they will require proof that you filed taxes in 2015 (or 2016, I guess, if you're not getting married until next year--in which case you'd avoid the late filing fee).

The IRS is a different situation entirely and you could be in big trouble for not filing taxes the last several years. I agree that it sounds like you wouldn't qualify for paying Illinois state tax, but the federal definitely must be filed.

(By the way--I know this post is almost 2 months old, but it is not at ALL unusual that someone might lose their job if they say they're taking time off to visit their spouse! I don't know how things are in Canada, but welcome to the US! The majority of people I know would lose their jobs for such a thing. If you don't have vacation time--and at my job, they can deny your request to use your vacation time and say you'll have to try to schedule again later--you can't just go, unpaid. People lose their jobs after missing a day of work to take a sick child to the doctor!)

My husband's CR-1 is at the NVC, scan date August 3. I just got a checklist saying: "The National Visa Center received notice that you applied for a Provisional Waiver of Inadmissibility by filing form I-601A with the USCIS." It says my case will be reviewed after they receive a decision on the waiver.

What the heck? I had to look up what that even is; it looks like it's for people who have previously been deported! My husband certainly never has and we certainly never filed any such form!

Hey guys, so I am going to see my husband Saturday and I informed my lawyer and she emailed me this;

If you already have your plans to travel as your attorneys I have to explain all possibilities.

Possibility number 1: you may get denied entrance into the US. Because you have already filed a petition. This is called double intent, you are entering as a tourist but you are married to a US citizen and in the process to become a resident. The government does not like that.

Ive noticed lots of beneficiaries on this forum traveling to the U.S. How can I prevent getting turned back?

I think most of the beneficiaries who visit are from visa waiver program countries. My husband and I had planned for him to apply for a tourist visa, but ultimately decided it was probably a waste of time and money. Luckily, I was able to get time away from work to make a short visit last month.

If you have a visa or waiver, I think that's the hardest part done. Carry some evidence with you in hardcopy in your carry-on luggage: a printout of your travel itinerary showing your return, a copy of your work schedule or something like that, if you work, showing when they expect you back; and be ready to tell them the specifics of what you're going to do on the trip (any special places you're going to visit, a family party you're going to attend, etc--anything to show your purpose is specific and you aren't ready to immigrate).

Hello September 2016,

Checking in.

Scan Date: 08/05/2016

CC for IR-2: 08/30/2016

RFE for IR-1: 08/30/2016 for outdated I-864

RFE for IR-1 mailed to NVC today

Hoping that this is our month. I pray that they wont take long with our RFE since our daughter's case is complete already. Good luck everyone.

Ohh, sorry about the checklist! In what way was the I-864 outdated? Was it the wrong form or was there something not current about your information?

At least you heard about it quickly, not after six weeks!

Scan date 08/03 here. I feel like once we at least know the interview date, the time will feel more bearable.

I don't think it should be a problem because he hasn't returned to Nigeria. When did he last live there? Remember that it takes the same amount of time to review a checklist item as to review the original application, so I don't think there's anything you can do but wait.

Anyone know why some people get scan date emails and others don't (from what I understand)? I have documents received as August 3, but haven't heard anything from NVC. I don't want to deal with calling them because I don't think it will improve anything... just curious.

I'm a little behind because we had to wait longer than expected to receive police clearances... but I'm going to visit my husband on Sunday! SO excited! And that should make the process of NVC waiting fly by, even though it's just a ten day visit.

This is so old, but just on the off chance you'll ever see it... maybe your email alerts are still set...

You Angel!

Granted, we haven't gotten Case Complete yet, but getting the Extrait du Casier Judiciaire was the was the easiest part of the whole process! I was kind of surprised that the information on what was required for Rwanda was so specific, and now I know who to thank.

On the other hand, I'm jealous that your husband was able to get a birth certificate in only six weeks. My husband's took several months and a couple of trips to Cyangugu.

In a topic about photographs, there was discussion about updating the NVC process wiki to note that the NVC is no longer requesting passport photos for the beneficiary. I mailed my AOS/IV package yesterday and noted a couple of other things that seem to be outdated. I thought I would list what I saw and see if others might have other suggestions for update. (Hope this topic is acceptable; I know someone will let me know and remove it if it isn't!)

Strong caveat: the comments I'm making here, and those of any other members who might follow, haven't been vetted by anyone and might be totally wrong. Don't take any of these as advice.

--NVC is providing an initial checklist to show what they want you to send and what order to put it in. (Screenshot attached.)

--I had copied the sample cover letters on the wiki, making adjustments for my own situation. The checklist order did not match the order of the documents in the cover letter. Follow the checklist, rather than the cover letters.

--NVC now appears to be asking people to send in the two packages together, which is what the wiki suggests anyway; it seems like they do not want the two packages to be sent separately. The AOS letter and the IV letter come with identical checklists that have both packages listed. My take on this was that rather than, as suggested, putting the packages in separate envelopes and mailing them together in a larger envelope, I sorted them into the order listed and used binder clips to separate them--though that was probably not necessary--and did not send in a separate checklist page for the IV package. Just the one on top for both AOS and IV.

(I sent in the cover letters and passport photos anyway. And I had a few documents of evidence of bona fide marriage that I wanted to sideload; I put these in at the end, after the IV documents.)

I sent passport photos in because I had them, but I'm also going to tell my husband to bring some with him to the interview. But what about this?:

Ok cool. I think I would just carry the US passport sized photographs to the interview then. Wondering which checkbox should I mark against the "Photographs" on the NVC Welcome Letter checkclist. Unavailable or Not Applicable.

I don't see "Photographs" on my checklist. Is it possible you have an older version?

It's my understanding that "unavailable" is for documents the beneficiary is unable to obtain at all, such as police certificates in some countries or birth certificates in certain situations. Not for things you just don't happen to have.

Nope, if she didn't change her name on the marriage certificate, that doesn't do any good--well, it depends on which state you're in. Some marriage certificates don't ask about a name change. So if a Greek certificate doesn't address name change, and you live in a state that does have it on the certificate, you're probably stuck and would have to go through the court process.

But you ask how you can legally start using your husband's name without going through the court. That's what doing it legally means. There isn't any other way. Marriage certificate if possible, if not, court.

On the other hand, there's nothing whatever stopping you from using your husband's name socially. You'll be Ms. Athens on your driver's license, bank accounts, passport, at the doctor, etc; but everyone in your life--neighbors, church, your children's school--will only know you as Mrs. Michigan.

Oh, Shelinny... he has already been dishonest with you from the first moment, when he met you using a fake profile. The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. Yes, there are real relationships coming out of every country including Ghana, but this one has ALL the red flags. As others have said, including the one who started this thread, it is extremely rare for a man from sub-Saharan Africa not to want children. I lived there for a year and never once met such a man. I was uniformly greeted with something like pity because I don't have children yet, from both men and women, and was urged to do so. While the cultures are not the same in every country and ethnic group, that seems to be a constant. The purpose of marriage is to have children; in fact the purpose of LIFE is to have children, and provide for them. I'm not kidding, there are even many Catholic priests who have semi-secret families.

It's one thing if a man already has some children and says he doesn't want more from his new wife, but I would even greet that with suspicion.

If a man was known to be infertile, he might have trouble finding a wife in his own community and THAT man might be interested in a bona fide marriage with a woman who couldn't have children either. (It would be rare to know this unless the man had had some kind of severe accident or disease that caused obvious damage.) That's a rare exception I can think of.

People sometimes ask me if my husband had wanted to come to the US before we met. I tell them, I would consider it a red flag if he'd told me he never wanted to and was only willing to move to be with me. I think the majority of the younger generation has at least considered it, and in my experience, think they would want to immigrate to the US--at least on some level. It's also a lot of pressure to put on a relationship, for one person to change continents and cultures and leave their entire family behind for the sake of one person. I'm happy that my husband is also looking forward to career and educational opportunities here, in addition to continuing our life together and starting our family.

I wish you the best of luck in life but hope that you will seriously rethink this. The process is so expensive and that's just the fees you pay at various steps--nothing compared to the difficulties that can come up if someone comes to the US for fraudulent purposes.

Yes, same here in Rwanda. I got the certificate from the US embassy and then took it to the local Ministry of Foreign Affairs to get an official stamp. Word of warning, the problem I ran into is that the local office where we were married wouldn't accept my birth certificate unless it was also approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; they wouldn't approve it unless it was authenticated at the embassy; and the embassy doesn't authenticate birth certificates because they are state-issued and not federal! Lots of time, trips back and forth, and tears later, I had the embassy write a letter explaining that they don't "do" birth certificates and the local marriage office finally accepted our paperwork. Hopefully you won't run into the same problems, but be ready to explain.

Just to clarify - I just bought a ticket today mind you:

I, the US Citizen, will be sending out my wife's I-130 packet at the start of next week. I plan to go visit her in August; will I have a hard time going to visit once we start the process? Is there anything I should take with me? or is it more so my wife that will have to have the proof that she is going back to the UK if she decides to come visit me here in the US?

I just want to make sure because I do want to fly over and get turned away and vice versa.

Thanks!

If I'm understanding this correctly, you're visiting the UK and you want to know if you'll have any trouble with British immigration because your wife is applying to immigrate to the US? Of course not. I mean, they'll ask you what you're planning to do in the UK, but that has nothing to do with the American immigration process. They won't know whether you're in the process or not.