Moofy

Yah he's charging $2,000 for basic K-1 processing and he completely messed up (to the point of being outright incompetent). We have our own case against him, but I wouldn't be surprised if others in this forum have had dealings with him as well - was just curious if that was the case.

My personal opinion on using a lawyer for a fiancé/spousal visa is they just ripped you off, there is nothing about the process that requires a lawyer or even a visa processing company.

Lawyers have their place, but not in immigration case,

I agree 100% which is why I wanted to find out if anyone in the forums has worked with Ryan Barshop because we're taking action against him and I'm conducting due diligence to see if others had a similar experience.

But I also agree; the K-1 process is easily doable without a lawyer (unless there's unusual complexities). We know this now that we have gone through the process.

I am curious if anyone in the Philippines has experience working with Ryan Barshop based out of Manila for K-1 visas?

Thanks!

@GreenBaum - thank you! We called the number and have everything set up for her to meet them on Friday and fly out!

Understood that is an option, but I want to learn all the facts I can about the stamper at the airport, which is a LOT easier for somebody flying into Manila from one of the other islands and hauling a bunch of luggage around.

My fiancee was approved/issued and should have her Visa any day. She had to take the CFO/GCP class while the embassy had her visa so she has the paper needed to get the stamp.

So the question is this: what are the operation hours/days of the "stamper" at the Manila airport and is it reasonable to count on the stamper at the airport being available prior to departure of her flight, or is it better for her to go to the CFO office in Manila?

Is the stamper available 7 days a week? What are the hours? Are there times the stamper isn't at the airport? Any details would be greatly appreciated as she may be flying here as soon as Thursday/Friday.

Thanks!

This whole sticker thing is still quite confusing. I understand she needs to get the sticker in her passport even though she has the certificate (she already took the GCP class). My understanding is this "service" is at the manila airport, but not the Cebu airport. Is there a schedule/overview/details RE: the "stamper" at Manila somewhere?

Also, it's quite often impossible to get a hold of somebody at the CFO; if she were to fly out of Cebu, or fly out of Manila during the weekend, what are the options? She has a ton of luggage to cart around, so we want to make things as efficient as possible.

AFAIK the CFO is only open during weekdays (and often takes days off due to obscure holidays). If she were to go to the CFO in Cebu she'd need to take a taxi from the airport, haul all of her luggage there, etc. When she went to take her GCP class in Manila she had trouble getting in because the guard was a problem (even though she had everything).

Ultimately this whole CFO/GCP thing is a complete mess (and as most would admit, ridiculous). I'm just looking for the most efficient way to plan things so she can get the stamp and be done with this -- but she lives in Bohol so she can't get stamped without traveling to Cebu or Manila (and she would prefer to get the stamp the same day she flys to the US).

My fiancee was able to take the GCP class in Manila last week; she's back home now and plans on flying out of Cebu when the Visa is approved and delivered. I heard the Manila airport has some sort of "traveling stamper" that will take the GCP cert (or whatever they give) and stamp the Passport; does Cebu have the same thing, and if so, where are they located and what are their hours? Or does she have to go to the CFO building in Cebu to get her passport stamped? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank you to everyone for your feedback!

My goal was to understand the process better. I should be updating my status soon.

Actually I was just curious what rules and restrictions they were required to follow relative to an interview. Lots of speculation in this thread

At this time I don't have any additional concerns; I was just wondering what legal basis Agents had to operate within relative to my initial question.

When I see things like "They asked my Nigerian spouse if his father died because he was marrying a white woman" I can't help but to wonder why others wouldn't be asking what form of oversight and restrictions are part of this process and defining when agents "go too far".

I never assume a government agent has free reign to do whatever they want and I don't think anyone else should either. I'm quite surprised there doesn't appear to be any legal/documented restrictions on what they can and cannot do during the process...

So can anyone link me to any additional legal/rule/reference documentation (other than Section: 9 FAM 502.7-5©(4) K Visa Interview) encapsulating the limitations, restrictions or "checklist" relative to the interview process, if there are any? Somebody mentioned a "manual" the agents use. Do we have access to that?

We got her into the GCP class by sending an EMail to the main address; a lady named Iluminada made it happen.

Many thanks to her!

At this point I just want to understand the rules and laws behind the K-1 process and especially the interview - what the agent can discuss and what they cannot (if it's defined). Essentially, how far can they go to determine eligibility, etc. BTW what's a RFE/Request for Documents? Do you mean a request under FOIA, or something else?

Thanks! I looked at: https://fam.state.gov/searchapps/viewer?format=html&query=K-1&links=K,1&url=/FAM/09FAM/09FAM050207.html#M502_7_5_C_5

Section: 9 FAM 502.7-5©(4) K Visa Interview

Seems there is very little defined as to what they do other than "determine eligibility". What's interesting is it says an interview takes place only after "all of the necessary documents have been collected". Yet they ask for additional documents at the Interview.

I can't seem to find anything about exactly what they're supposed to cover at the actual interview though other than confirming the documentation and determining if the relationship is "Not Satisfactorily Bona Fide". Is there a definition/guide elsewhere I'm overlooking?

Does anyone have links to the actual laws and rules that USCIS and the Immigration Officers must follow relative to processing a K-1, I-129F and conducting an interview, etc?

Actually, Friday the 28th is a possibly; it all depends on their workload. People have had their visa ready for pickup 3 days after the interview (although very rare). The issue is the holiday on the 31st and 1st. More than likely the Visa would be ready for pickup on the 2nd.

We won't buy the ticket until she has the visa with the GCP stamp in hand. I'll keep everyone informed as to the progress.

Thank you for the response Arata; so a few questions. Can she go to the class while her visa is with Immigration waiting to be stamped? (e.g. after interview but before issuance)

Also, it sounds like she can take the class when she doesn't have her visa, but before she can board a plane, she must go back to the "office" (wherever that is - if somebody could provide a link, I'd appreciate it) and have her visa stamped once she shows proof she took the class. Correct?

What's the difference between the NAIA and CFO -- and you say "travels between all three terminals" -- what does that mean?

We paid our lawyer a premium to ensure all aspects of her getting here were handled; he's in the Philippines and has 4+ years of experience. He should have known about this, and he also dropped the ball on another aspect of the case -- but the important thing now is to ensure we do everything we can to get her in.

As I mentioned she arrives in Manila on Monday around noon and her interview is Tuesday morning. It sounds like what she needs to do is call the CFO "handling agency" (hard to tell what it is due to the limited details on the website) and see if she can get in for a 2-3pm class or something (on Monday). BTW where are these classes taught? What's the address? None of that information appears to be available on the registration website.

Thanks to everyone for your help!

Her flight arrives around noon in Manila on Monday (the day before the interview). Should she just go to the class location after she checks in to the hotel and hope she can get in?

Also, are you saying she can't take the class while the Embassy has her Visa (and is processing for pickup)? (e.g. she must have her visa?)

My understanding is the class didn't stamp the visa; instead provided a different piece of paper? Of course this is very important; if she must have her visa in order to take the class that means she can't take it while she's waiting for the embassy to prepare it for pickup...

My Fiancee's interview is Tuesday (10.25). Our lawyer royally screwed up and didn't inform us we needed to register online and ahead of time for the GCP class. It's quite possible her visa will be ready for pickup as soon as Friday (10.28) or Monday (10.31). Once the visa is ready she's heading to the airport and taking the first PAL flight to America. The earliest GCP class available was 11.03. Our lawyer seems rather detached from things (isn't communicating very well with us, etc. and avoiding saying he made a mistake) so I feel compelled to explore options to correct this issue on my own. She really needs to take the GCP ASAP and 11.03 is just too far out.

Is there any way to get her into a class in Manila prior to the 3rd by calling somebody? It would be absurd for her to have to wait an extra 3-6 days sitting in a hotel room by herself just because we didn't register for the GCP in time (which was due to our lawyer failing to inform us we had to).

Any advice would be appreciated.