MrsRana

This post is for anyone that is preparing to file any kind of visa petition really... but especially for I-30 for the CR-1 Visa. 

Please be sure to check your spouses passport and make sure that their name is on two different lines as per United States standard. If it is on one line, then you must request a new passport that reflects the appropriate entry:

ex) Correct entry----> Given: John    Surname (Family Name): Smith

Incorrect---> Given:________________ Surname: John Smith

Incorrect---> Given: John Smith  Surname:____________

**Please! Split the name and put the appropriate Given name and Surname in their respectful lines. It is a big deal actually! Mostly a big deal when you arrive in the USA and have to get your documents such as Social Security and Driver's License. 

This will save you trouble in the long run. My spouse and I did not know about this, naturally, and filed all of our paperwork correctly with Given/Surname separated...however, my spouse's passport had full name on one line. The CR-1 visa was issued to my spouse after completion of the Interview at the US Consulate in India, and the name of my spouse now says Given: FNU Surname: John Smith

Now my spouse is delayed to come to America, even though the visa is ok for travelling, because a new passport must be issued with "name bifurcation" as requested. They will split the name into Given and Surname... But the headache doesn't end there! After arriving to the US, the green card will reflect the name FNU John Smith and we will then have to file more paperwork to correct the name on the green card to reflect the name split in his new passport. This can take weeks to months from what I am reading... and spouse will not be able to get his Social Security until the green card is amended and reissued. Then we have to apply for SS and this can take 2-6 weeks depending on the area... then after SS is obtained we are in the clear for Driver's License.

Please! Update your passports BEFORE filing the petition with USCIS in America.  Ladies, if you want to take your husband's name then by all means please do-but know that this snafoo applies to you as well. If you don't want any more complications after "case complete" and interview goes well and you are granted a visa-then definitely check that your passport reflects Given and Surname separately or else this minor detail may cost you more time waiting for immigration in order to update your passport and then change all your documents when you arrive in America.

I have also read that if you do not correct your passport in your country and decide to immigrate to America, which you totally can because the CR-1 visa is a valid travel document, but then when you arrive in the USA you will face more trouble correcting this and employees do not like to deal with this kind of thing. 

So if you decide to come to the USA without getting the name bifurcation in your passport then you have to still do this only from American soil and it is much more time consuming and costlier. This is not economic and there are even more complications involved. Basically you will have to go before a judge and request a name change (even though you are just splitting your name on your passport into Given and Surname, and I understand that you will have to make a notice in the newspaper at home and abroad that announces your name change for one month without objections. 

Hopefully this helps anyone in the starting stages who hasn't yet filed their petition and noticed that their name is not split up in their passport. Get that fixed asap!

Hello, anyone approved at the New Delhi embassy?? Hubby has his interview March 17th! Just wondering what kind of questions they were asking for the CR-1 visa types? We have been married for over one year now so we should be able to pass this interview... nonetheless, still nervous like it's exam time or something!! Please share your experience so we can be better prepared for our interview.. Thanks!

5 minutes ago, Ahmed & Amy said:

I'm really happy for you. What a wonderful Valentines day indeed. Scan date is the date they received your documents.

Thank you so so much! Ok so our priority date from USCIS is March 7. 2016 and our scan date for NVC original submission was some time in August.. then we received an RFE for AOS correction in Sept/Oct and that first review was complete in November, and then we received a second RFE shortly after that in Nov. for a different Police Clearance Certificate and the scan date for those documents was December 6, 2016. That second review was just cleared officially on Feb. 10, 2017 and we are case complete! 

Hope you got yours or are getting it soon!

And yes, Happy Happppppyyyy Valentine's!!! 

4 hours ago, Ahmed & Amy said:

Congratulations  When was your scan date?

I called NVC on Valentine's day to check in regarding our open RFE review... they said case complete! I do not know what our scan date is but today 2/16/17 (two days post Valentine's) we have received an email stating that our interview will be March 17, 2017!

Woooop woooooop!!! 

2 minutes ago, agripa said:

Glad to hear it MrsRana! Good on your for being proactive!

Thank you very much Agripa!!!

19 hours ago, aditi2016 said:

I'm filing with Mumbai. We only received one RFE and they processed our case successfully. They only requested us to bring to interview 2015 W2's. Did you have a lawyer apply for your case? I've read some people are put on supervisory review due to certain information missing. I would suggest seeking help of your Texas Senator or Texas congress if NVC has passed the document required processing time. They will be able to possibly make NVC feel pressured to complete case sooner. Along with sending an email to NVC informing them of this delay and problems they are causing. 

 

Hope this Helps.

 

I'm still waiting to get interview date. As my case was complete on December 28, 2016, and they didn't schedule me an interview for February. Feeling bit disappointed. 

Hello just an update I filled out the forms online for Senator Cornyn and Senator Cruz of Texas to help with our case. Today I called NVC and requested to speak with a supervisor for the third time (once on the 17th of Jan and I never got thru and I did a call back request and they never called me back and again on the 19th the same thing happened).  So today I spoke with Emmett and he tried to transfer me for only about a minute and he gave up and said he couldn't get through so I persisted that he call back to the supervisor all day until I get through. This seemed to spark a different attitude from him and he said he was going to try again.  He got back to me and said that he did one better than a supervisor and contacted the Unit Manager so her name is Supervisor Sue and he said it will be faster than supervisor review and she will review our RFE within the week. I reaffirmed that my senators will be in touch about my case and I will call back every single day through the rest of this week and ask what the status is from supervisor review.... when push comes to shove I will show them attitude that they have shown both me and my husband from the start of this all.   Finally it looks like our case is moving forward after about four months in review!!!!!

thanks for all your help.. if anyone else is stuck at NVC just remember that you do have a voice and if your review is past 6 weeks you can be more vocal about getting things taken care of. If the  operator is being rude you can demand a supervisor to speak with and let them know that you were kind and calm when you first called and that the operator had a bad attitude and tried to hurry you off the phone. 

Blessings and best wishes to all of you on this forum... maintain your patience and inner peace during these hard times apart from your family.

@aditi2016

There is still time and possibility for you to have a Feb interview! I read that they schedule the interviews between the 28th of the month through the second of the month... or generally at the very end of each month. Sometimes ppl have to reschedule due to professional or personal so if they reschedule and a slot opens up the consulate can offer to your husband!

On 1/20/2017 at 6:02 PM, aditi2016 said:

@MrsRana Hello,

 

It sounds like your having a hectic problem with NVC. Is your case then still being reviewed at NVC? I'm US citizen and my husband is Indian and our Priority date is April 1st, 2016. We were not requested two different Police Certificate clearances. This is definitely a concern. 

Hi Aditi2016,

Thanks for reaching out... we are stuck in review for 7 weeks since they received the last package with RFE documents, and I was just told that they put us in Supervisor Review which can be an additional 6-8+ weeks. A question for you- are you filing with New Delhi? My husband and I did and we didn't get the notice about the other PCC until our 2nd RFE came up. (Our first RFE was regarding more supporting tax documents for the AOS). We got a third RFE requesting that we redo our AOS due to confusion about joint sponsorship between my father and I. I sent the PCC from the Regional Passport Office along with the correct AOS paperwork on December 6, 2016... Here it is January 22, 2017. We were told it would be reviewed by January 17, but that was a holiday so after that I called NVC on the 19th and they put our case into Supervisor Review. We might hear back from NVC anywhere from January 23-March 19 or possibly longer if NVC remains backlogged. 

It is super frustrating to have three RFE's for a simple mistake with the AOS, as well as the total misunderstanding that there are actually TWO different police clearance certificates. One has to come directly from the police, another must come directly from the Regional Passport Office. 

I hope that my mistakes might help others before they get caught in RFE after RFE...

Best wishes to you 

2 hours ago, databit said:

Believe you meant to say "married filing separately."

hahahahahaha omg X)

nice catch... am i on auto pilot today or what?!

17 minutes ago, Tracy-->NY said:

he doesn't have a SSN or ITIN. 

 

Is it advisable for me to try to file the return on my own or have a professional tax payer do it.  Makes me miss how much simpler my taxes were to do back home

Hii Tracy!

I just filed with Turbo Tax.. Only two things to note, you HAVE to file "married filing single" and you can't say he lived with you even if he visited you for 5 months (that's just a vacation).

You do not fill out anything in the empty slot that is reserved for his SS or ITIN on the computer-just leave it blank even when it reroutes you back to it to correct it. It will indeed let you print the tax return with this blank.

Do NOT file electronically. Make your TurboTax payment after recording your W-2's, etc...

Make your selection for Mail filing and you will be given an address that you must "snail mail" your tax return to. You must attach copies of your W-2 to your Tax Return documents and then do NOT forget to handwrite "NRA" or "Non-Resident Alien" in the space reserved for your husband's SS/ITIN.

Do not forget to sign your Tax Return because there is no electronic signature and it will be void without your sign-off.... (think NVC)

Be aware that you lose some benefits because you can't file jointly, but hopefully you have other deductions that will help you out this year. 

All the best!

I was just wondering if any other U.S. citizen married an Indian citizen and have a March 2016 priority date for their I-130 petition?

We didn't know that Indian citizens require two separate/different Police Clearance Certificates-one direct from the Police and another through the Regional Passport Office via the Police. We initially only submitted the PCC directly from the Police in the beneficiary's sector, not knowing about the second PCC needed from the Regional Passport Office "RPO". 

We were put under two reviews for correction of our AOS and did not even get an RFE for the PCC from the Regional Passport Office in either RFE-finally we got a third RFE for the missing PCC from RPO and we are at the last day of six weeks for that third review.

I have read other posts from people who stated that NVC allowed the beneficiary to bring the final supporting documents to their interview, rather than continuously sending out RFE's. I am really frustrated because I am a US citizen and I should have more support. Why does NVC allow some beneficiary's to do this, and not others?

We have been in review three times since September and NVC is still very unhelpful when I call to ask if we really need to send any more documents. After the last 16 weeks in review with no end in sight, I called NVC to ask if they needed more than the AOS correction and the PCC from the RPO and all the operator told me was to be more patient and wait for the next letter. 

Is anyone else experiencing multiple reviews? I took advice from another forum and asked to speak with a supervisor about my case and the NVC operator deflected my inquiry and told me to try to be more understanding of their system and be more patient. I am about as patient as a spouse can be on their third review with seemingly endless RFE's and no further instruction/advice/information from National Visa Center. 

I am thankful to members who have a similar experience who can share their experience/frustrations....  

Hi I sent my USCIS petition in Feb 2016 and got my priority date March 7, 2016. We have been through three reviews since September and this one is currently about to close so hopefully we are good to go finally!! I will let you know what we hear back from NVC because they told us up to 6 weeks for this review so that will be complete on Tuesday January 17. (ughh 4 more days!!) 

Maybe we will get case complete and they will send our I-130 package to the New Delhi consulate in India and schedule our interview between Feb-April this year. Hope so! 

I found out the average processing time for Nebraska service center is about 304 days so we will be well over that due to our continuous reviews. might be 364 days or more for us to be together in the US. Thank god I was able to visit for the summer, but I know not everyone is so lucky.....

Bless you and yours!

Oh that is right, for anyone helping that is not a household member they must file I-864. My father is my household member as we are joint family, so I filed I-864 and he filed I-864a as a household member. Good luck

I just redid my AOS because originally my father was sponsoring my husband solely so he filed I-864 and we submitted all of his tax documents together with that in Sept. 2016. We didn't understand then that because I am the petitioner for the beneficiary I am still his sponsor (even though I technically can not be his legal financial sponsor based on income requirements). We are in our third review and I am waiting to hear back as to whether or not NVC accepted our correction which I submitted I-864 as the petitioner sponsor and my father submitted I-864A as the financial sponsor. 

I think that your mother-in-law's sister will need to fill out I-864 and you will need to fill out I-864a and you have to make sure they link together with the appropriate financial numbers and everything to show that you are joint sponsors. Read the fine print and make sure you go over each and every line together. 

Best of luck and don't hesitate to pay attorney fees for one hour visit so that an immigration attorney can better guide you through the appropriate actions to take regarding the AOS.

I am a new member and I am concerned about the process. It seems to be taking so long and my husband and I should have been case complete in September but NVC requested more documents. We did not understand that the Police Clearance Certificate from the REgional Passport Office was in addition to the Police Clearance Certificate from the Police Station so we are in out third review still waiting on that. Also, there was a mixup with our AOS and they confused me with my other joint sponsor and one agent told us that we can just bring the amended papers I-864 and I-864A to the interview while another agent told us that we have to resubmit. 

Review #1: Send Additional Tax information for AOS (3 weeks review)

Review #2: Send Amended AOS(6 weeks review)

Review #3: Send Police Clearance Certificate from the Regional Passport Office (NVC received Dec. 6 so Jan. 17 will be 6 weeks complete on review#3)

My question to the VJourney members is this: Do we have to wait 6 weeks or more for each piece of the submission? I submitted the updated/accurate AOS paperwork and the PCC from the RPO together in the same package with one barcoded cover sheet. Does that mean they will review it together or separately, one after the other?  Also, we are closing in on our 6th week of our third review with no word and every time either of us calls NVC we get a lot of attitude and disgruntled operators responding to our genuine questions of concern. Is there anyone else we can talk to to make complaints about the lack of care and customer service at NVC? We are not a fraud case, yet they treat us as such... and that is very heartbreaking for two newlweds living thousands of miles apart in different cultures with different customs trying to make it all work out. I joined this forum the other day because I need to hear from a positive group of like-minded individuals who have been through what we have and who are still not case complete.

Thank you!