wissooner

Hi all,

The other day my wife received her permanent green card in the mail. With that our journey through the whole visa, green card business is now over. You may have noticed that even thought I have been lurking on this forum for 4 years now I didn't post much. This is due mostly to the fact our journey was so uneventful and without delay I didn't feel like I had any constructive advice to give to anybody other than just follow the guides and I opted out of some of the other more "philosophical" discussions.

To all those couples just getting started, I can, however, offer you this piece of advice; use the guides and have patience. I followed the guides to the letter, I didn't agonize over every little scrap of paper I could've, should've or would've sent and I never once thought I needed a lawyer. Like I mentioned, we didn't run into any snags, delays, or RFE's. So, just follow the guides and you'll do fine.

As for Elena and I, well our life together has not quite worked as planned. But we are approaching our 3rd wedding anniversary, trying to get a house built on some land I own, and are very happy together. So life is good. I can categorically say without a shadow of a doubt that marrying Elena was one of the best decisions I have every made, true 3years ago, and still true today.

I will occasionally check in on this forum. It does bring some comic relief at times, but other than this I'm pretty much gone. So, good luck to you all and god bless.

Ken

I've got two emails awaiting replies, plus I've been on hold for a half hour with Delta for what should be a simple question. My Ira is flying back to Russia to visit family on Monday. She's flying from DFW to JFK to SVO... When I drop her at DFW, should I drop her off at the Domestic gate (since she's going to New York to connect), or at the International gate (since Moscow is the ultimate destination on her ticket)?

Also, the volcanic eruptions in Iceland is screwing up air travel in the north Atlantic and Europe. Might want to check into that before you drop her off as well...

I think it depends on how much experience behind the wheel she already has. In my wife's case, she already had a Russian DL but it had been several years since she had driven a car. So upon arrival she just needed some weekend practice in a parking lot with me to 'refresh' herself with driving. She read up on the rules of the road, aced her written test, got her learner's permit, drove with me for a few months, and then passed her driving test on her 2nd try. Today she is probably a better driver than I am...

I would suggest though, that if she has no experience at all, then send to driving school rather than teach her yourself. IMHO, that would be bettter for the both of you.

for Elena and I, it was 3 months...

My wife had her interview on a Friday and received her visa by DHL on the following Wednesday. She is from Samara region...

apparently evil knows no bounds...

I suppose that there are American girls with the same characteristics but compared to the Russian girls, it's like finding a needle in a haystack!

Did you know that the same Russian girls you and everyone on her loves so much can be found right here in the US? They come with legal papers, money, know how to drive, US education, etc... Ever been to New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and Sacramento just to name a few places with populations well over 100,000 Russian speakers? You could have used the internet to connect to those girls right? Picked them out of a catalog right? Not exactly...because those girls don't need a green card, aren't looking for "stability", and not willing to sacrifice their interests.

Likewise, plenty of American girls have all those great qualities that Russian women in Russia have. But for the exact same reasons as the Russian girls living in the US, they have no interest in a green card, money, or stability, because they already have and thus will not lower their standards in terms of finding an older, fatter, and balder man....

Yeah, she can be the jealous type. But she is more an anti-internet type, so I should be Kay!

Same here. I think the fact that she's very internet-adverse may just save my life.

Wow both of you are starting to sound like the internet is not really what has built your relationship with your women. Hence my argument about what makes real relationships in the thread my wife started back in the day, i.e., in person instead of virtual.

Well Sat, if nothing else, you are predictable...

Right - all three filed concurrently. All applications in the same package send to Chicago PO box address.

I did the same thing, filed all three to Chicago at the same time. Today, I got three NOA1s in the mail.

It is not clear to me yet who schedules the interview--the embassy or the beneficiary; or when this can or should be done. The web site says "once interview at the Embassy has been scheduled, the beneficiary is provided via mail with an invitation letter and information sheet outlining the steps to be taken."

I'm pretty sure the embassy schedules the interview. I think once they receive the paperwork from NVC they send the beneficiary a packet with a list of instructions and an interview date for two months out. I think they think this is the time needed for the beneficiary to collect up her documents. Two months seems pretty much standard...

Here is one of my favs. I think one and all will recognize...

Yes, congrats & good luck with the rest of your journey....

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

consolemaster,..we missed you..

Hmmm,...well my fiancee had her interview on a Friday and received her visa by DHL on the following Wednesday...

Congrats TG, I'm glad good things are happening for you...

Turbo and fiancee has interview on 9/11; best of luck my friends

Ditto!

I was divorced in Wisconsin. It clearly stated on my divorce decree that I was not free to marry for six months after the final hearing where the divorce was finalized. If your boyfriend was divorced in Wisconsin it will state this on his decree as well. Since you have to send this decree with your I-129f as proof of divorce and you must be free to marry at the time of filing your I-129f you will have to wait out the six months. I did.

That's what's so funny about it.

Sure they did it. "We're going to America? Allright. Print up some of that funny money, and let's have some fun!" Why would they care if they defraud the American people or govt? They're on a temporary business trip and have nothing to lose, even if they did get caught.

To be "so surprised" that a "friend" of the President would do this is like being "so surprised" no WMDs were found in Iraq.

Comedy.

Actually, I think I am a little surprised. Putin is trying to get back a little of the prestige lost during the breakup of the old USSR. He wants Russia to be a 'player' again. To allow his security to go around passing counterfeit bills looks a little 'keystone copish' to me. Not the image I think Putin is going for. Of course, maybe Putin really doesn't care if his staff commits a felony while visiting another country...

Prepaid airbill - you need to pay them ahead of time.

Just wanted to find out if the payment needs to be made to the DHL for passport

delivery ahead of time while filling out the airway bill or is it that DHL gets the

money during the delivery?

Yes, just go to the small DHL office by the embassy and prepay an airbill for her passport & paperwork delivery. Depending on city cost is anywhere from 1000 to 1500 rubles. Also, if you want to pick-up your package in Moscow and not have it delivered then give the 'deliver to' address of the main DHL office in Moscow...

ok thanks.

So let me quickly understand this - pay upfront to DHL in DHL office, fill up the airway bill

and handover that filled up airway bill to embassy after the interview?

yep, that's it...and good luck

Prepaid airbill - you need to pay them ahead of time.

Just wanted to find out if the payment needs to be made to the DHL for passport

delivery ahead of time while filling out the airway bill or is it that DHL gets the

money during the delivery?

Yes, just go to the small DHL office by the embassy and prepay an airbill for her passport & paperwork delivery. Depending on city cost is anywhere from 1000 to 1500 rubles. Also, if you want to pick-up your package in Moscow and not have it delivered then give the 'deliver to' address of the main DHL office in Moscow...

Guys, be honest to yourself. Would your wife / fiancée still be with you if you were Russian, making a Russian wage, and living in Russia? For example if you met at a café. Ask them if you are not sure. That whole American thing lets the ladies overlook a lot of things. Like age, manners, lack of language, habits, culture, etc.

What did your wife say?

Thanks to all who replied. A new part of my life is starting and it is very exciting...

Elena received her visa on the 25th by DHL and she is leaving for the U.S. on Sunday the 29th. Yes, life is indeed grand!

When Elena got hers it came in 2 packages one she could open the other she could not. The first time she got the wrong passport(someone elses) and her paperwork, had to send them back and wait a few more days for the real one at our expense.

Wont go into a rant on how the embassy should have to pay for mailing the wrong stuff but I wont.

Luckily the embassy still had her passport. I can imagine being told she would have to get a new one. How would she explain that to the Russian authorities, "excuse me, I need a new passport, the U.S. gov't lost mine"...

If you wanna rant about some nice laws passed, how about the Patriot Act? Anything to say about that one?

Well my feelings on the patriot act are pretty simple, the patriot act came about because we didnt listen to our intelligence or have any forthought prior to 9/11 that someone who really doesnt like our foreign policy would attack us so instead of spying on people in other countries the wise people in the white house and congress decided it would be a whole lot easier if we gave free reign to the folks at the NSA to spy on people in this country.

Amendment #4

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

This includes intellectual property and if I remember my civics correctly I do believe we have a right to free speech. I could go on but then its just my opinion.

I've asked people who "support the patriot act" what they think about the 4th Amendment and most of them say "the what?"

Yes, I think it is very respectable - the right for privacy and things like that. But I also think it is respectable for a strong country to try to protect its strength by all means possible from anything that can endanger this strength.

It's a tough balancing act to be sure.

I don't think the budget is always that big a deal but if someone is staying around Moscow unnecessarily they are just wasting their time that they would rather be doing other things. Particulalry if your gal is there alone I would think she most often would want to get there, get done and get out.

Yeah, Elena was going to wait to pick up her visa rather than wait for it to be delivered. But instead she went back home after the interview. It saved some money and because of her Friday interview she really didn't want to stay in Moscow another 3 or 4 days...