mbunband

My wife and step-daughter have had their CR1's approved and have already started living with me in the U.S. We just recently received their Permanent Residence Green Cards and only my wife has received her SSN, not my step-daughter. You'd think that since they entered upon the same time, they would receive it at the same time as well? This was the case for their Green Cards since they both arrived in the mail at the same time. I was wondering if anyone has any insight or ran into this problem? Maybe I'm just over thinking it. I do intend to call the SSA Office during duty hours as well as wait another day or so before I make my way to the local office.

If you're using a computer with a keyboard, look for the "Print Scrn" Button which should be located above the number and F keys if you're utilizing a standard keyboard. Once you have done that, open up paint and just click the Paste option and it should transfer over. You can also Paste on to Microsoft Word as well and adjust the image square to the size of your liking so the messages are still readable. From there Save As whatever file type you'd like and print. 

Also, if you utilize a Facebook Messenger App, you can open the app and screenshot as you would with your telegram or WhatsApp.

Hope this helps.

Per my experience with Tokyo U.S. Embassy, I filed a CR-2 for my step-daughter but since my wife has full custody, they never stated such a thing during their interviews.

Is custody shared? Are they divorced? As other posters stated, they may want to know if the biological father is okay with the child migrating.

Hello,

I will try to answer your questions to the best of my ability.

Part 4, Item 14: This question is pertaining to you, so if you are not in the service, just check "no"

Item Number 14. Military Service. Select “Yes” if you are the petitioning sponsor and on active duty in the U.S. Army,

Marines, Navy, Air Force, or Coast Guard, other than for training. If you provide evidence that you are currently on active

duty in the U.S. Armed Forces or U.S. Coast Guard and you are petitioning for your spouse and/or minor child, you will

need to demonstrate income at only 100 percent of the poverty level for your household size, instead of at 125 percent

of the poverty level. (See Form I-864P, Federal Poverty Guidelines, for information on the poverty levels.) Select “No”

if you are not on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces or U.S. Coast Guard. This provision does not apply to joint and

substitute sponsors.

Part 5, Item 1-8:

So just to clarify, the total number should be "2", correct? I was confused at this part as well for my petition, but for Item 1, I put "1" and left Item 3 at "0" since your husband (beneficiary) is the person you are sponsoring on the affidavit.

Part 7:

Part 7. Use of Assets to Supplement Income (Optional)

Only complete Part 7. if you need to use the value of assets to meet the income requirements. If your Current Annual

Household Income (indicated on Part 6., Item Number 15.) is equal to or more than needed to meet the income

requirement as shown by the current Federal Poverty Guidelines (Form I-864P) for your household size (indicated on

Part 5., Item Number 8.), you do not need to complete this Part. If your total household income does not meet the

requirement, you may submit evidence of the value of your assets, the sponsored immigrant’s assets, and/or assets of a

household member that can be used, if necessary, for the support of the intending immigrant(s). The value of assets of all

of these persons may be combined in order to meet the necessary requirement.

Only assets that can be converted into cash within one year and without considerable hardship or financial loss to the

owner may be included. The owner of the asset must include a description of the asset, proof of ownership, and the basis

for the owner’s claim of its net cash value.

You may include the net value of your home as an asset. The net value of the home is the appraised value of the home,

minus the sum of any and all loans secured by a mortgage, trust deed, or other lien on the home. If you wish to include

the net value of your home, then you must include documentation demonstrating that you own it, a recent appraisal by a

licensed appraiser, and evidence of the amount of any and all loans secured by a mortgage, trust deed, or other lien on the

home. You may not include the net value of an automobile unless you show that you have more than one automobile, and

at least one automobile is not included as an asset.

Since you mentioned you have a joint sponsor, you may need to provide their assets. But since you only have a bank account, you should be okay. I didn't encounter this issue, so don't quote me on it as I am not quite familiar with joint sponsors.

Also, you should be okay with one page. As long as everything is neat and legible as you had mentioned.

Hopefully this helps. Some of the information I just pulled from the instructions, which I am sure you have already looked over as well.

If you can access the attached photo, it is there and this is what I sent in conjunction with the Document Cover Sheet obtained from the .gov site.

Okay, I am clear about W2's now, for safe side I will attach them. One last thing, do they need genuine tax papers or photocopies instead. Once again bunch of thanks and I appreciate your help.

No problem. My situation was a little different since I had to adjust one of my returns and amend them. You should be good to go though. Best of luck with your case!

I know I mentioned that you'd only need to provide W2s only if you submitted federal tax returns in your AOS package instead of tax transcripts, but I've read here and there that it's needed. I would say to be safe, just get the W2s and send in conjunction. Unless someone says differently here on VJ. I guess it was a little easier for me to obtain mine instead of paying $50 since I'm in the military, so if paying is not an issue, I'd do so.

Perhaps your husband can call NVC and see what is an alternative in regards to the birth certificate if he can explain your situation? I can't say there is an alternative and somehow you may need to get one. I know sometimes USCIS or NVC can only provide so much information since they always state to seek legal representation and whatnot. But it doesn't hurt to ask and see what they might say. And I agree, it is a very tedious process.

Ah I see. I believe in the paragraph above the checklist it states "to place this sheet on top". As for the Document Cover Sheet, that is received when the IV fee is paid and would be generated at the receipt page. Or as everyone has been staring you can utilize the checklist which contains the barcode instead of waiting on paying the IV fee. I hope I'm not confusing you.

I can tell you from my experience with my case is that I did not send any photos with my package. The only photos that were in there were the copies of my spouse and stepdaughter's passport photo page.

Thank you so much for explaining all this.

Also, I keep forgetting to be more elaborate about originals. Obviously, documents requiring a wet signature will be the originals that need to be sent in regardless, like the I-864. I'm petitioning for my wife and stepdaughter in Japan, so I sent the original Japanese and English translation with notarizations documents of our marriage certificate and some other official documents to USCIS. Hopefully you don't or didn't make the mistake that I did lol. As I'm sure you're aware of as well, I would make another copy of your package in the event that anything may get lost in the process. Can never be to sure!

And you're welcome. Best of luck with the rest of your case!

Hello everyone! I'm in the middle of assembling my I-130 package for CR-1 Visa, choosing the best evidence, etc. but I have a few questions that I may just be overthinking but would like some clarification...

(I am a U.S. citizen in the states petitioning for wife living in Japan)

1.) According to the guide, under the "IMPORTANT" header it says: "All Forms that you submit must be originals with original signatures. Supporting Evidence that you submit may be photocopies."

Am I safe in assuming that I will send in original forms I-130, G-325a (plus photos required) etc., and "supporting evidence" will let me scan/print my birth certificate, as well as the evidence of a bonafide marriage I will be sending in? Just for the sake of keeping the package neat and orderly.

2.) If I choose to obtain affidavits of bona fides from family/friends, does it matter if its from my family or my spouses side? I know it's a weak form of evidence to begin with, but if it's my side I won't have to bother with translation and it will be easier to get notarized if necessary.

3.) Unrelated to the package, but my wife has 6 months after our marriage date to choose whether or not she will take my last name. For simplicity she was thinking of taking my name, but it may make her life a hassle while she's still living in Japan and we were wondering if it could become a hassle with the visa process if her name changed half-way through? The priority is living together ASAP so maybe we should wait on it?

I apologize if these kind of questions have been repeated before.. But I appreciate any advice you have to offer.

Thanks.

1. Yes, that's correct. I am petitioning for my wife and daughter who are from Japan as well. I made the mistake of sending in my originals of everything since I was under the impression that USCIS would send it to the NVC (this didn't happen). My case was still recently approved at the NVC and told my wife to obtain originals again just to be safe even though the NVC stated I could provide a letter stating where the original documents were to the CO.

2. I believe that will suffice. Doesn't hurt if you can provide any pictures, travel itineraries if you or her visited each other, letters, etc. We had professional photos done, so I sent those in along with pictures with dates written on the back, boarding passes to correspond with travel, and letters we had written to each other. Also, for the cover letter, sub sections under the bonafide marriage explaining what each piece of evidence would help.

3. I understand where you are coming from with this since my wife kept her last name as well. As everyone else has been stating, it'd be best for your wife to keep it as is since changing it mid-process would probably affect it in some way.

Hopefully this helps. Best of luck!

Thank you for your help. When you say the NVC stated everything was good to go, do they confirm that or did you call them?

Apologies, I should have been more specific. By chance, I went on the NVC site to view my case (did this frequently) and under the AOS Fee portion which initially says "PAID" changed to "N/A" and after doing some browsing on VisaJourney, members stated that it usually means a case is complete. I called the NVC to ask them about it and once I gave the customer service rep my info, the rep stated that my case had been completed and was being prepared to be sent to the consulate in Tokyo.

*EDIT*

As I mentioned though, I was under the impression that USCIS would send all my originals to NVC, but they did not since that is what the customer service rep told me. I was a bit stressed out since I read that getting the originals back can be a hassle. I called them back to verify if they did receive originals or not and they told me that I can provide a typed up letter for my spouse to bring to the interview stating where the originals are. The rep told me that this occurs often so that's why a simple letter can be typed up. I told my wife to still obtain another copy of the originals just to be safe once we get news of the interview date.

From my experience since my case just got recently approved, I sent the Document Cover Sheet on top along with the AOS Checklist w/barcode under as well just to be safe. I've read a lot about people sending two packages, one for AOS and one for IV, but I honestly followed the checklist that was included in the Welcome Letter, sent one package, and the NVC stated everything was good to go. I asked just to ensure I didn't need to send anything else, but they just told me I needed to obtain originals since I had sent them initially with the original petition with USCIS (which I found out isn't necessarily required) and to ensure my spouse has her passport photos with her.

Hello,

I just recently completed my case at the NVC so I am pretty familiar with what needs to be sent from my experience and understanding. NVC will typically just need last 3 years of Tax Return Transcripts which can be obtained via the site that was given by steve770. You can also create an account on the IRS site and obtain your Tax Transcripts digitally if you are pressed for time. If you intend on sending Federal Tax Returns, then you will need W2s from those years to be sent in with them as well.

As for exact documents, you or petitioner will need to follow the "Welcome Letter" which you should have received via email. That letter has a checklist that you need to follow and send in each document pertaining to your case. For example, Cover Letter, I-864, Tax transcripts, marriage certificates, etc. My package was almost identical to that which you send to USCIS but varies slightly with the financial supporting documents. I followed that checklist for the AOS and they did't request any further for the IV as it is pretty much corresponds with each other.

As the beneficiary, you do not need to sign any documents. Your spouse will need to provide a signature for the I-864 for the AOS Package. I am the petitioner for my wife and did everything on my own without requiring any of her signatures. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask and I can help out as much as possible.

Have you read this? (And your wife can read it in Japanese)

http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivpolice.html#japan

Thank you. For some reason when I was trying to view it through mobile format, it wasn't properly loading. I do appreciate your response.

In the process of obtaining all documents for NVC. I'm just curious about my spouse retrieving the certificate in Japan from the police. I've read different things on the forums, but what document does she exactly need to present to the Japanese police? Also, if NVC needs a photocopy of it, how would I get a copy if it's sealed? If they send it directly to NVC and its in Japanese, how would it be translated? It'd be greatly appreciated if I can get some answers. I've just read a lot of things on the forums and just want a solid answer so there's no errors for processing through the NVC.

Hello,

I've submitted for IR-1/CR-1 as well and just recently heard back from USCIS as of 29 Jan 2016. I sent my documents in and received my NOA1 on or around 18 Sep 2015. Unfortunately, the notification I received was in regards to an RFE, but I was expecting to hear from them in the near future if that weren't the case. I guess it means they did review my case even though it was projected to be seen in late Feb. Also, I know it varies from different service centers and I've heard that CA processes faster than others. Anyways, the wait for me could have been anywhere from 4-5 months through the Nebraska Service Center (that's just in my situation). Hopefully this is helpful in some way.

Hello,

This is my first post since I've submitted my CR-1 package to USCIS to petition for my spouse and stepchild (Japan). Wasn't quite sure if I should have posted here or in the "Stupid RFE" thread as I am searching for some help. Anyways, after months of waiting, I have received an RFE in regards to submitting proof of my wife's legal termination of marriage to her first ex-husband (Wife has been married twice). The document that Japan provides in regards to Divorce Decrees, etc. are titled as "Koseki Tohon (Certificate of Family Registry)". On this document it states her marriage and divorce of second husband, but not first. USCIS didn't have any issues with that since it is obviously listed and translated into English. After consulting with my wife, she states that her City Office could not provide her a backdated one with her first ex-husband's marriage/divorce date. My wife was able to obtain her first ex-husbands "Koseki Tohon" with the applicable information as to when they were married and divorced. So, I guess my question is, although it is not my wife's document, will the first ex-husbands document suffice as it essentially provides the same information? She will obviously translate/notarize the document and send to me once completed. I am just curious if USCIS would kick this back, but it just seems like they need an official date since it wasn't first listed in my wife's document. Hopefully this makes sense in some way. Any information or supporting answers will definitely help! Please and thank you.

Respectfully,

Max B.