lacolinab13

You don't have to file if you make under $4000 per year I think, so for US$ 500 you definitely don't need to. They only ask for tax returns in the past three years at any stage anyway, so doubt it will come up.

You're welcome! Not that many Peruvian-American couples on here that I've seen

For time periods where you were just out of the country, temporarily visiting your fiance on vacation, then I would consider your US address still your place of residence during that time. A good rule of thumb for the US government is that temporarily would be six months max, anything beyond that and you would be considered to be a resident of that country, regardless of your work or visa status.

If you were working somewhere, had moved somewhere, had signed a lease somewhere - I would consider those a place of residence.

As you know, working without a valid working visa in Peru is not "not totally legal", it's completely illegal. However, I don't think USCIS cares at all about what kind of legal or illegal work you did in a foreign country. (For example, when married couples file DCF in Peru, I know that they don't care if the USC is on a tourist visa or resident visa). Anyway, regardless of the consequences, you have to be honest or you will be setting yourself up for more trouble down the line. If you were living and working there full time, you were a resident, not a tourist, whether legal or not. You should certainly put that as one of your addresses and declare it in your employment history - and if you did not file US taxes on that income, then you should file back taxes now. (Normally, you would not have to pay income on any tax under around 100,000 USD, claiming the foreign earned income exception, but since you obviously didn't pay any tax on that money in Peru, you might have to. Knowing what English teachers make in Peru, I doubt you have that much to declare though, and your tax bill shouldn't be too high).

I wouldn't worry about your mothers' addresses coming up on Google - lots of USCs living abroad get mail at a relative or friend's house.

What a joker. That is so funny how he played you. Obviously he knows the buttons already, get ready for a wonderful life.

I know the need of being in complete control over this process. Well the need and actually being are two different items. I heard it said being in control in anything in life is only an allusion for the insane. You're hubby to be is the sane one, we are the insane

Remember to document, or video document this story. it is part of the new family tales to tell generations from now when some distant grand --- child is drawing up the family tree.

It's good to have his laid-back, positive attitude to balance out my type-A anxiety ... if he were like me, we would work ourselves up into a frenzy.

He is the documenter and I know he'll have his GoPro rolling from the second he lands here. I've already banned him from bringing it to the wedding as I told him I'd like to be looking at his face, not just the camera. You're going to have quite a tale to tell yourself - and some major documenting to start in a few months!

Wow!!! Congratulations

Any story to tell about the interview day?

Thank you! His passport is currently in transit and should arrive in his town tomorrow.

Interview day ... well, having micro-managed the whole process, it was hard to let go and let my fiance take care of all of the certificates, medical etc in Peru without being there to "supervise". I wanted to call him the night before the interview, but he went to bed before I could call, so I didn't get to frantically go over all the documents with him once more and make sure he had everything. I'm sure he did that on purpose :D

That meant that I was very anxious the next day, and was nervously waiting to hear from him for several hours, and when he finally called this is how the conversation went

Me: "SO??"

Him: Well I got up this morning and had eggs, and then I took the bus to the embassy - people say you can't take the bus, but you know what, I figured it out. I had to change several times but it was so much cheaper than a taxi

Me: But WHAT HAPPENED?

Him: So then I arrived at the embassy and waited in line. There were so many people there, I couldn't believe it ...

Me: AND?

Him: So then I finally got in, and I went up to this window, and gave these papers ...

:D etc etc etc while I was getting increasingly frantic ... Of course I knew he was only joking with me because we had been approved, but I still just REALLY needed to hear it!

Honestly, the best part has been seeing how excited he is for us to be starting our life in the US after several years in Peru, and having him tell me that he can't wait for me to be his wife. He played it pretty cool during the visa process as he was worried the visa wouldn't go through and was afraid of disappointment, but now he's over the moon. Just counting down the days until he comes (77 more to go)!

Congrats on your Aisha's pregnancy and glad to hear everything is going so well.

Good to hear. We've been mulling it over and are going to go the K-1 route.

Concerns at this point:

1. Domicile? I have a US driver's license, US credit cards I've been using, a FICO score of 810+, no debt, I have a bank account I've been using, plus my investment account I've been using. All using my parent's address while I've been overseas. I'll have an employment letter. I can show all my US tax returns where I've been paying taxes on investment income. When I get back I'll get an apt until I figure out the housing market. Surely people meet overseas and then decide to move to the US together. Technically I might have the apt by the time she has her interview but the goal is for her to minimize her time in Colombia and get back to the US to find/move into an apt together.
2. My impression of the whole process is that they do not want to grant visas to people who have infectious diseases, serious criminal records, will be using the welfare system, or are committing fraud. So with respect to the domicile requirement I get the impression the only thing they're going to be concerned with is that she doesn't need HUD assistance.
3. The Bogota embassy has good reviews. Reading them it sounds like it can take 15 days from the approval of the visa until receipt. Plus up to a week for medical tests although most did it in a day or two. Does that sound about right? What that leads me to believe is that she'll have to fly home for a month after the trip to make sure everything is in order or we buy one way tickets and play it by ear depending on whether she needs 5 days or a month. What would be nice though is if the paperwork is sent back to the embassy if we can schedule the medical tests and interview a month ahead of time so that those happen immediately and we minimize the time spent apart. I suppose I'll have to ask them if they do that. Then it's just a matter of how fast they can get the visa in her passport after approval.
4. Did they contact you while you were away for additional paperwork? When it comes to getting some random piece of paper and the translations that's impossible if not in Bogota. Her family can receive the mail but in Colombia they will only give official paperwork to the person in question. No third parties. So our thinking is to compile a list of everything they can conceivably ask for and have it ready. Thoughts? Is there a good list of everything they might ask for?
5. Then once she gets the visa there's a few more things to file: I 485 after the wedding (within 90 days), I 765 at the same time so she can work, and I 751 within 90 days of the 2 year anniversery to remove the conditional status on the permanent residency.
6. Did you file I 765 for permission to work? How long did it take?
7. Am I missing anything? From my point of view there's nothing odd about my petition. I've lived overseas on investment income since I made a good living in the US. Surely people who don't have jobs get married too. Besides I will have a good job lined up. I could have my father sponsor me/us but that seems ridiculous considering my assets and how low the income requirement is.
8. Do I need to go to the interview? Everything I've read implies no, but some do go.

1. As I said, I do not think this is an issue. When I sent the I-129F package I had been living abroad for three years. I did move back to the US right before my fiance's interview, but this wasn't reflected in any of the paperwork we presented at the interview, and no one ever asked about domicile. I strongly believe this only applies to spousal visa.

2. See 1 again. K1 visas are not generally hard to get from Colombia, so as long as you present a complete application and are attentive to detail during the process, you should have no problem. It's super important to follow instructions precisely and submit exactly what they want.

3. You need to check in the South American forum - Colombia is one of the more common and actively talked about countries on there so it should be very easy to get answers. How it works in many countries is that once the embassy receives the case, the beneficiary can start gathering the required documents, and schedule the medical and interview for whenever is convenient for them. It's very possible to move quickly with proper planning, but you need to look in the Colombia forum as this stuff is very country specific.

4. The only contacts you will get before the interview are:

- the NOA1, mailed to the US petitioner's address - no response/action needed

- an RFE, if applicable, mailed to the US petitioner's address. *This is a "Request for Evidence", if something is missing from your original petition packet that is needed to adjudicate the petition. A great way to avoid this is to be super meticulous as you put your petition together. If your family can receive mail for you, they can open the RFE letter for you, let you know what evidence they need, you can compile the evidence and mail or email (depending on whether original signatures are needed) it to the US for your family to mail to USCIS. Requires the cheerful and selfless collaboration of someone in the US. We did not get an RFE.

- the NOA2, mailed to the US petitioner's address - no response/action needed

- Notification by mail to the US petitioner from either NVC or the US Embassy in the beneficiary's country that the case has been received - not everyone gets these - no action needed

So there's really no issue about additional paperwork while you are gone, except for dealing with any RFEs. Best way to deal with that is to just get it right the first time!

5. Yes

6. I'm not at that stage yet!

7. Sounds like you will be fine, but the embassy makes the final decision.

8. Check with others who have processed through the Bogota embassy. This is also very country-specific.

I just did a similar thing with my fiancé. I filed the I-129F right before we left for a long trip in November. The case was ready for interview at the embassy by the end of January, and we simply scheduled the medical and interview for May when my fiancé returned home. We were able to track the case from a distance and schedule the medical and interview from a distance as well, so that everything happened quickly as soon as he got home. I think it would be quite easy to file now, and then schedule the medical and interview for January. She could travel to the US as soon as the visa is issued; no one can say how fast it will be issued for her, but you can check what's standard for Colombia on the country forum.

I may be wrong, but I do not believe the intent to establish domicile applies to K-1 visas - it is an "immigrant intent" visa and not an immigrant visa, and you only need to state that plan to marry in the US within 90 days. I petitioned after living outside of the US for three years and never had to submit any proof of domicile, neither did several of my friends in the same situation. I believe the intent to reestablish domicile is only relevant to CR/IR.

I also think "Self" best describes your situation here. My fiancé put self and all turned out well. To be honest, I think that question is more oriented towards those applying to tourist visas than the K1 crowd, so either way I wouldn't worry too much about it.

There's still some of us out there. No visa yet. My fiance has his interview in London June 17th. He will be moving here to Seattle in August. I just spent 10 days in England and he was here in February. So we have had some time together. I think there are still a few more waiting for visas.

That's a long wait ... but you're almost there!

You must be one of the last. Posts are getting few and far between but here's a big FELICIDADES to you both on such a long wait and getting a successful outcome. You both have some time to refresh, regroup, and focus on wedding stuff before the second part of your immigration journey: Adjustment of Status. Congrats again.

Thanks a lot! Congrats to you too on the greencard ... I can only dream of his getting approved that quickly once he's in the US!

The wait was entirely our own doing and we were together the whole time until 2 weeks ago, so I have nothing to complain about. I'm going to get together all the AOS documents, minus the marriage certificate of course, before he arrives so that we can send the AOS docs ASAP after the wedding.

My fiance had his interview yesterday and he was approved!

I think I'm one of the last to get the visa - our case was ready for interview on Jan 26th, but we were traveling together outside of his country for several months, so we scheduled the interview for after he got back.

We are getting married on August 20th in Sedona, Arizona, an outdoor wedding on the red rocks. I just bought my fiance's ticket to fly here on August 10th. Didn't wait to have the visa in hand as recommended, but since the ticket is for almost three months from now I feel pretty confident we'll be ok.

Congratulations to everyone on here who has finished the process. Love hearing all the lovely wedding stories. I can't wait to have my fiance here.

If you got the vaccine in 2014 then it shouldn't be expired - it is valid for at least ten years. Did you mean 2004? Do you have an international vaccination booklet/card? What does it say?

Ah, I see now what you are referring to! Thanks.

I hadn't looked at the I-134 form since a few months ago when my father and I looked it over since he will be a joint sponsor. (At the time, I didn't know I had to fill one out too - I am just moving back to the US so my income is currently zero). Got it now.

Sounds like you are sending more than enough proof.

Birth certificate is a requirement. Follow the links I gave Jaime to learn more.

I think I might be confused as to what stage we are talking about the birth certificate being a requirement. I thought this had to do with the K-1 process. I looked at the last links you posted but am still confused - is this in conjunction with the I-864 during AOS? I'm still not seeing where the birth certificate is a requirement.

I don't know much about the DR embassy, but I assume others must be a similar situation re: travel to the DR when pregnant in light of the Zika epidemic. Have you tried posting this in your regional forum?

Sir Greenbaum now I am pulling out my paperbag again. I had not read this instruction about proving you are a US citizen if born outside the USA.

I was never issued a FS-240 form.

I provided all my birth documents I had as part of the I-134 which I front loaded. Now I read what you sent, and I see this instruction about the FS-240.

I was born in a US Army hospital (my mom was a US Army Captain, and my dad a US Army Sgt) outside of Paris (that should tell you I'm old). The consulate issued the birth certificate (FS-545), the French issued 2 other documents that I can't read (in French).

In 1999 I got a job that required me to show my social security card, which I had lost. I went to the SS office and they laughed, because I was in their system as a 'non-citizen'. They said it was not a big issue, just show them my birth certificate which I had with me (always prepared). They corrected it. But now I am wondering. Since I don't have a FS-240 will that be a issue?

I was also born outside of the US - actually, also in Paris!

But I thought that for the K-1 visa process, submitting a copy of your entire US passport (if valid for more than 5 years) was enough - and negated a need for birth certificate + CRBA. Interested to the answer to this too.

Before my fiancé and I decided to move to the US, I moved to his country (Peru) and applied for residency there. The process there is very fast compared to the US (took me about two months from start to finish) and much cheaper, but it was so frustrating because of the general lack of organization and information. No info online for some steps, or only out-of-date info. No phone number to call and find out what I needed to provide for certain steps. Immigration would ask me for a paper from the work ministry, the work ministry would say they no longer provided those, I'd go to immigration and they would insist they needed it. When I went to the office one person would tell me one thing, and the next day a colleague would contradict that. I'd ask for a list of documents to bring, would bring the full list they had given me, only to be told I needed another document and "oh, you don't have it? Then we can't do anything." I had to travel twice to the capital, a 20 hour bus ride (or short flight, but expensive given that I couldn't work), etc etc ...

This process is long and stressful and requires plenty of documention, but personally I at least feel that it's clear what we need to do. You can find most of the required information on official websites, and if not, there is almost always someone to call or email who will eventually answer. I feel that the process is much more fair and standardized - not perfect, of course.

I'll definitely be glad when I no longer have to interact with immigration offices!

My understanding is that the meeting requirement MUST be within the 2 years before you file, and that yes, it's now too late for you to fulfill that requirement and you will have to file a new petition. A friend of mine made this mistake (she filed more than two years after their last meeting) and had to re-file.

Fire your lawyer!

I would recommend reading all of the information available on the CDC website, and speaking to an informed travel doctor and getting his recommendation. The bottom line is that 1) we still don't know much about the virus and how it causes birth defects, but what we've seen is cause for concern - though they have tentatively mentioned the first trimester as the riskiest time 2) the CDC recommends against non-essential travel to the region for pregnant women.

Only you can decide if you want to take the risk and whether the trip is "essential" (the vaca obviously isn't, but perhaps being there for the interview is). If you do go for the interview, you can use lots of precautions in terms of bug spray, permethrin-sprayed clothes etc etc ...

The vaccine rumor is completely unsubstantiated and I urge you to listen to experts, not conspiracy theories.

So is it a must that we call the NVC for the assigned number? What happens if we don't call them? Will the consulate in sweden contact my fiance once they receive our case? Kind of confused on what to do next.

I got my NOA2 on Dec 29 and wasn't going to bother calling the NVC, because we are not in a hurry to schedule the interview. Normally, you are supposed to get a letter from the NVC stating that they have sent your case to the embassy. As of today, nothing has come in the mail, so I called the NVC a few hours ago. My case was sent to the embassy on Jan 19th and has been ready for interview since the 26th. So calling will certainly speed things up if you don't need to wait on a packet 3 before scheduling the interview. It depends on how your local embassy works, I think (but someone correct me if I'm wrong).

Hi everyone, I have been lurking in this thread but not posting . My fiancé is from Peru.

I just moved a cat from South America to the US. My research turned up that there were no federal requirements for cat vaccinations, it all depends on the state where the cat is going. However, I chose to err on the side of caution and get a certificate of vaccination, including rabies, and a health certificate (required by the airline). The airline asked to see these, but no one at customs in the US did - they just looked at the cat and waved me through.

Definitely call the airline to find out how they take pets (in cabin or in cargo) and what sort of health certificate they require. Many airlines allow cats in the cabin, but you have to book and pay for them ahead of time. Make sure you get a carrier that is the right dimension if the cat will go under the seat. I highly recommend a hard-sided carrier. My cat absolutely freaked out and basically tore through the soft-sided carrier, and I had to desperately try to contain him during the flight. It was incredibly stressful.

My terrible local vet gave me a sedative that was almost a mild anesthetic - sort of conked the cat out, but did nothing to alleviate his extreme anxiety and panic. He was howling the whole time, tearing at himself and the carrier. I think some of the benzos (kittie valium) work much better at calming down the cats. My cat recovered quickly once he arrived though and is enjoying his new life in the US!