TexanInExile

Nope that's your noa2 if it says approved. The embassy is sending your application to the nvc and they will contact you with next steps in filling out your visa (usually takes 2 weeks though mine was there the next day) after the visa is done you will get a confirmation which allows you to schedule your interview and medical

I just did dcf in dr but I know every embassy can be different with the process.

Hope it helps

So the noa1/noa2 are just for the I-130, and not the visa itself? This letter implied that only the I-130 petition was approved, and that now we'd have to do the actual visa application process (a completely separate form / agency, right?)

We submitted our I-130 to the Frankfurt Consulate on 2016-8-25 and received a letter from USCIS on 2016-10-21 titled "Approval Notice". Is this the "NOA1" or something different?

The letter says "The Consular Section will contact the beneficiary and provide instructions about applying for a visa" - how long should I expect to wait for this? Will they send us another packet?

Thanks!

What you can do is submit items you think are satisfactory and see what sticks, and have them send you an RFE for what they want further. It will delay the process a little. Based on the price for translations, I would definitely try to avoid translating the lease. I think your residency permit such suffice. By the way, if you google translations services, you can find much cheaper translation costs (less than half) of what you have quoted. Your children's birth certificate will at some point or other need to be translated for use in USA so may as well get that over with. Unfortunately, upon further research, it seems Germany wants certified and registered translations (stamps). If I were in your shoes I would just try to submit translated marriage certificate, birth certificates, and residency permit. Sorry, I don't have direct experience in Germany, just trying to help you. I do suggest you contact the embassy with some of your questions. Hopefully a VJ'er here with direct experience in Germany can answer your questions. Good Luck!

That sounds like good advice! I'm HOPING that the Consular Reports of Birth Abroad (which have both of our names on them) will suffice instead of the original birth certificates, as we already had to have those translated to get the CRBAs in the first place.

There's a reason for the checklist...it means they want it. Sorry to say but we are all in the same boat when it comes to these expenses. All documents submitted in a foreign language need to be translated.

Sure, I know they want the information and that we'll have to have documents translated. The question is, what exactly do I really need to send in?

The Frankfurt checklist says: "Evidence of a bona fide marital relationship with the beneficiary such as shared residence, finances, and familial experiences with beneficiary. (Examples: joint bank accounts, apartment leases, shared bills, health/life insurance designations, birth certificates of children born to the marriage.)"

My question exactly is, how many of those things do they really require? It just says "examples" and I was trying to hear from others' experiences what exactly they sent in before I start translating random documents and mailing them off. Has anyone JUST sent in their (translated) German marriage certificate?

Do you have a friend that is fluent in German and English that can translate documents for you?

I'm fluent in German and could translate myself, but I'm assuming they want the official translations with the stamp? We had to do that for lots of documents when we got married here and when applying for CRBAs for our children, and ended up being pretty pricey - ~75 EUR per page, which would really add up with a 20 page Mietvertrag...

Have you maintained a domicile in the USA all these years?

When necessary I have stuff mailed to my parents who still live in the US, but I don't know if that qualifies as "maintaining a domicile".

My wife (German citizen) and I (USC) recently traveled to the US, and she still has a valid ESTA. We are currently back at home in Germany (where I am a valid resident) and are about to start the DCF process - having valid ESTA shouldn't be a problem since we are actually applying from Germany, right?

I (USC) have lived in Germany for 10+ years and have been married to a German citizen for 8. We have two kids, both of which have CRBAs as well as US passports. We married in Germany.

What kinds of documents does Frankfurt really require to establish proof of residency / marriage for the I-130? The consulate's checklist includes a bunch of stuff that sounds like it would/will be awfully expensive to have officially translated.

I have a valid Aufenthaltserlaubnis, although these days it's just a little ID card (elektronisher Aufenthaltstitel). Do they really require you to have this officially translated?

Also, for proof of marriage, would the CRBAs from our children (which have both of our names, etc) be enough? We also have shared bank accounts, a rental contract, a Anmeldebescheinigung, as well as a German marriage certificate - but what all do they really need? Is it enough to have the first/last pages of a rental contract translated? Ours is like 15 pages long :-)

I'm just wondering if anyone of y'all have recent experience for which exact documents were required, thanks in advance for any info!