yip5696

On 8/24/2017 at 2:24 PM, JupiterTam said:

Two further questions for Yip:

1. I see you got your passport back 2 days after your successful interview, and you flew to the US two days later. Did you actually wait until you received the passport and paperwork and only then booked your flights? 

2. we are also using assets to support the I-864.  just wondering, were they keen to see originals of all the evidence of assets ? like original bank statements and original property deeds?

 

thanks all

 

1. I waited to receive the passport before booking flights. A simple mis-delivery by express post would have meant that the delivery would have shifted from Friday to Monday, so did not want to risk booking a flight. I was tracking the platinum express post and it was still showing as not received by Australia Post on Thursday night, so I thought Australia Post would get it on Friday and then deliver it on Monday. Suddenly online-tracking on Friday changed to indicate that the delivery will be on Friday. Not sure if it got received and delivered the same day or Australia Post did not record it had received it.

2. Had printout of online statements from bank, copies of house title and other properties. I was not asked for the originals, but I did have them with me.

I entered US via LAX on 2017-08-05 and received my actual greencard via postal mail on 2017-08-22. CBP said it could take up to 6 months, but it was quick to arrive.

Good luck with the interview and future adventures.

Yip

On 8/17/2017 at 0:33 AM, michaelbmw377 said:

Hi all,

 

Just hoping to get some advice on my immigration status...

 

I am Australian (living in Australia with my wife) who is a U.S Citizen. We sent off my Form I-130 on February 20th 2017, it was received by USCIS on March 14th 2017 and has been sitting in status "Case was received" since then... Any ideas on how long I should expect to wait for an update, we are hoping to move back to the U.S soon!

 

M

Have a look at my timeline and other similar timelines to estimate how long each step takes http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=246494

I-30 Approval 7 months

Case to be received by NVC 1 month

NVC documents being approved 1-2 months

Interview scheduling 1 month

You might get lucky and finish the process under 10 months or it might take longer, so "soon" is a slippery concept with immigration.

You can get a B1/B2 Tourist Visa which allows you to stay up to 6 months in the US as a tourist. You can help your wife move and setup house, but you will be just visiting as a tourist. You will have to come back to Australia for the medical exam and visa interview at the consulate.

The CBP Officer at the border has the final say if you can be admitted to the US and how long you can stay, so you should have some evidence that you are visiting as a tourist in case it is needed. A lot of Australians come to the US for long vacations, so it is not unusual. It would also be not unusual to be coming to scope out different areas to live, visiting friends etc while your immigration application is in process.

Good luck

Yip

How long do you plan to live in the US? You can get a multiple-entry B1/B2 visa valid for 5 years that will let you stay up-to 6 months at a time as a tourist. I'd suggest visiting for a few months to determine whether you can and do like to live in the US before starting the process.

One of the obstacles to dual-citizenship will be that the USC (the US citizen, your husband) will have to show that 1) he has sufficient income to support all of you and 2) he has established domicile in the US.

I am not sure how the disabilities will impact the immigration process either, but the minimum time from application to getting a permanent-resident visa is around 10 months from Australia. There is just lots of steps and paperwork.

Long term care for dementia patients is expensive (~$60,000 USD/year). She should qualify for Medicaid and you might be able to find a facility that will take care of her. Have a look at https://www.caring.com/questions/what-are-the-options-when-i-cant-afford-care-for-my-parent and explore options for her beyond your husband taking care of her.

US healthcare is expensive. I don't think it will be possible for your husband to take care of you, 3 children, his mum with dementia and earn enough money at the same time.

Good luck,

Yip

2 hours ago, JupiterTam said:

Hey Frustrated, 

 

How did you go ?  We were case complete May 25 and still no interview date.  every day that passes makes us more bewildered.  the NVC operators keep telling us it's a normal wait time not to worry, but....

Looking at Frustated74's timeline, Case Complete on 2017-05-05, interview on 2017-06-06 (32 days) http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=258005

Our timeline, Case Complete on on 2017-07-03, interview on 2017-08-01 (29 days) http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=246494

Since your case was complete on 2017-05-22, you are getting a longer than usual delay in getting your appointment date. Unusual and annoying, but does not necessarily mean anything either.

Since NVC insists that this is normal, I suggest you email the Sydney Consulate via support-australia@ustraveldocs.com to inquire indicating that other Australians usually get their interview date in 1 month and it has been 3 months for you. You can also collect all the necessary documents (originals and a copy) as indicated on the Document Cover Sheet https://au.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/family-based-immigration/the-interview/ while waiting to get ready for the interview. You can even get your medical exam done (valid for one year) even though the general advice is to wait. Sometimes you need to be doing something rather than just waiting.

You can read my review of Sydney consulate and the reasons of the four people whose visa was delayed at http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=246494

Good luck,

Yip

https://au.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/family-based-immigration/ has a preinterview checklist. One of the documents listed is the 'Australian Citizenship Certificate'. Somehow I don't remember this being submitted to NVC or for I-130, instead I submitted copies of my AU passport.

Were you asked for this certificate at the interview?

Gee, with so many forms one starts being paranoid about missing something right before the interview!

Yip

You will need to have your medical exam and your interview in France. You can visit the US on a B1/B2 visa while waiting for the interview date, but make sure you do not overstay your visa. You can fill the "Online Choice of Address and Agent" form via https://ceac.state.gov/ceac/ to make sure all correspondence comes to the US address.

https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/immigrate/immigrant-process/interview/prepare/medical-exam-faqs.html

I got the $42 National Police Check without fingerprints. The application was processed in 1 day. I got the letter to my Australian address in 1 week. NVC has accepted the police clearance, so all good.

On the electronic form I chose

Purpose Type: Commonwealth Employment / Purpose

Purpose of Check: 35 - Overseas Employment Visa - for supply to a country other than Australia

If you go to https://travel.state.gov/content/visas/en/fees/reciprocity-by-country/AS.html and click on "Police, Court, Prison Records" on the left hand side of the screen, you will get the official instructions for NVC which says

"Australian Federal Police certificates based on fingerprints are preferred, but a certificate not based on fingerprints is acceptable if it shows all aliases ever used. "

Good luck

How much time do you need between the medical interview and the interview at the Sydney consulate?

I am currently overseas, but will travel back to Sydney for the interview. Would like to mimise the time away from family.

Thanks

Yip

Oh, the Australian Federal Police (AFP) processed the police clearance in 1 day. It will still take some time for postal mail to arrive, but they were fast. Not sure if having a clearance from NSW polics, having an internet-unique name or having only 2 addresses in Australia helped or not, but I will gladly take the 1 day turnaround.

Turns out the "Greek" instructions were the result of some bad font. Copy-and-paste into Word document was able to convert it into Latin characters and then could read it as usual.

I got my Australian police clearance from NSW State police, but it turns out that NVC needs it from the Federal police, the AFP. This will mean a 2-3 week delay which is unfortunate.

The funny part is that something must have gone wrong when NVC was putting together the RFE letter and the part asking for polic clearance is in Greek rather than English, or maybe it is just in Greek font!

it is included below for your amusement. If somebody can confirm it says what I think it says I'd appreciate it.

Thanks

I wish I wish I was an upload, but I am still grateful to be email rather than postal.

Will call NVC to make sure they are processing my email submission next week, and if they say say something like 'Why didn't you upload it?' I'll give an update on this thread.

Thanks for trying to help. Sometimes NVC letters and instructions are confusing especially as they switch systems.

Y

Dee, any suggestions on how to upload documents? The web page does not give me a section for uploading them. I wish it did, would be so much faster!

Y

Nope, unfortunately no sections to submit via CEAC. We are still grateful that we can do it via email which is 10x better than mail.

I was excited and hopeful that I would be able to use the CEAC to submit documents since I got my case number in May, but the NVC letter says:

Completed DS-260 online, but now looks like have to send the support documents via email

Aaaah, email processing is so much longer than uploads... Oh, well.....

Yip

On 4/13/2017 at 10:41 PM, Inabars said:

Thank you once again for all your invaluable advice. You all have been amazing! 

 

At this point, I'm trying to maintain my sanity by concentrating on each day as it comes. I'm due in December and we were I thinking that I could travel to the US in July for a month or so but I'm worried about dealing with the BCP officers especially after my last interaction with them, I bet this time I'll go into premature labour! I was taken aside and questioned for 3 hours before being permitted entry so I bet the system would have some sort of flag on me now. (p.s./fyi: I have never overstayed my ESTA). 

 

Is there any indication if I-130s are taking longer under the new administration?  I'm preparing myself for 12-14 month wait, though I have noticed some very, very lucky couples have gone through the entire process and had visas in hand within 6-8 months. 

Sydney consulate advised us that we should get a tourist visa B1/B2 rather than ESTA when entering the US once we had filed our I-130. I have entered twice on B1/B2. The first time, I briefly explained why I got the B1/B2. The second time, BCP officer did not ask for it. The advantage of B1/B2 is you can stay up to 6 months as a tourist.

Yip

As an Australian with a job offer, I can get an E3 visa https://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-workers/e-3-certain-specialty-occupation-professionals-australia relatively quickly.

Are there any concerns on getting an E3 visa and moving to the US while still waiting for the IR1 to come through?

Thanks....

Our I-130 was approved on 2016-09-29 and NVC case number was assigned on 2017-05-17. At this point we expect it wall take 3-6 months before the interview in Sydney and visa approval.

I have been offered a position in a US university starting in September which I would like to take. My wife has already moved to the US and I am currently visiting on a tourist visa while waiting for the immigrant visa to be issued.

Is there any way for me to get employment authorization, so I can take the job starting in September. It would be a shame to lose out on this position...

Thanks

Yip

The Case Status web page at https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do changed today, so there is progress!

"On May 9, 2017, we sent your case, Receipt Number LINxxxx, to the Department of State for visa processing. Please visit our website for general information on Consular Processing. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address."

Our I-130 petition was approved 2017-04-07 and the case sent to NVC. Haven't heard from NVC, so called them today (2017-05-08) and they said that it is not in their system yet. They said it can take 6-8 weeks. Called USCIS, they said the case has been transferred.

Is it common for NVC to take 6-8 weeks to create a case number after the petition approval? Once there is a case number, we can make payments, NVS can send out more forms and things can hopefully progress.

Thanks,

Y