dentsflogged

3 hours ago, Robin19 said:

Yeah, like out of many possible reasons I also think that the CO might have taken my engagement pictures as wedding pictures. I emailed and faxed them a formal letter after the interview requesting them to give me reason but they replied back to my email within 2 days telling me that I need to contact USCIS as they are sending the petition back to them. It was a very fast action, I thought they would take a couple of months to send my petition back to USCIS.

I'm mid-way through page 3 and I'm surprised no one has mentioned your comments regarding the incorrect answers given at interview as a possible reason for all of this, too - if your partner was asked your age TWICE and she got it wrong TWICE that's a huge red flag in my eyes.  If you just had a birthday I can imagine saying "he's 29, oh wait no he just turned 30 last week" being acceptable but if the CO has your details in front of them and can see you're 35 (as an example) and she's said "he's 33" then later when asked again says "he's 37" that's a big problem. Same as not knowing who you work for.  Incomplete answers would be fine ("He works for Mockingbird" rather than "Mockingbird Industries") but giving a totally different company or job role or whatever is an issue.
 

IMO you'll have a better chance if you go to India, marry, and spend a large amount of time together. Several months at least. Really get to know each other properly.  Personally, if I were in your shoes, I'd expect that the interview for her spousal visa to be extra-thorough based on the CO notes from this one, so she'll probably be asked more questions and more in-depth ones with a higher threshold for "correctness" given that she got so many fundamental things wrong with this one, they'll be on the lookout for signs of fraud and a marriage of convenience to get her a green card vs. for love and to be together.

Not from the UK (Australia) but I did the "big city to small town" thing and.... look, honestly - it SUCKS.  It seems wonderful when you're visiting, and even for the first few weeks/months.

But small towns are insular. People have known each other for years (sometimes their whole lives) and it's hard to break into that to make friends. If you're in an area which "closes down" during winter (like we are) then it's even harder because there's no events going on where you might meet people.   Food options are incredibly limited (I used to be able to get literally ANY type of food I could want within a half hour drive of my old apartment, now I'm stuck with one (ok) Mexican place, one (terrible) Chinese place, about 7 different pizza places, 5 fast food chains and generic "bar" food of wings/burgers/pizza etc. Not exactly my idea of great options. 

For me, I'd love it if my husband made more of an effort to say "hey, lets go to the city this weekend" (he LOATHES cities, which is one of the reasons we live here, rather than Australia where quality of life is so much better on average, at least IMO) or was more willing to go out on our joint days off so I had a hope in hell of making new friends (I recently started working and get along pretty well with some colleagues, but it's not the same as organically making friends going from having a big group of friends I have a lot in common with in Australia to having a few people I can have a drink & a decent conversation with a few days a week is a HUGE adjustment and honestly after 9 months I'm starting to feel very isolated, lonely and depressed by it)

So - talk to him. Ask what he needs.  Does he need/will he benefit from a "city" weekend every now and then to get his fix?  Look at options to get food he's used to and enjoys.  Talk to his friends/family and see if any of them are willing to put together care packages of stuff from home he likes (my best friend sends me my favourite chips - since Chicken flavoured chips don't seem to exist here - and body wash from home every few months)  Try to help him find friends by doing research about stuff he's interested in before he arrives that he can start going to so he can start making new friends. If he likes British TV maybe subscribe to that on your cable package or get BBC on Amazon Prime (is that still an option? I don't know). If he had to sell/donate any things he really liked before moving see if you can surprise him with them (I couldn't keep all my DVDs so husband surprised me by upgrading my Lord of the Rings to the Extended Edition Blu Rays for Christmas) so he's got some familiar stuff that's got new memories attached to it.

18 hours ago, Colorred said:

This is wonderful, sure is moving a lot faster now. I hope I’m next! My PD 8/31/18!  Good luck to you 

This gives me hope but also scares me a little. PD is January 2019 but we are planning on being out of the US for December and part of Jan for a late honeymoon

10 hours ago, missileman said:

I think it could be used to show you both at the same address......I don't see any other significance.......just my opinion.

It's one extra "we've committed to things together" piece of evidence. Pets need training, they cost money (not just to adopt but to insure - unless you want a huge unexpected bill) and for a lot of folks who don't want to or can't have kids are the furry equivalent of children (yes, I know they're not comparable, but many people feel that they are).  I think it's just one more thing that can show you're committed as a "family unit" even if you're just a unit of 2 adults and a cat/dog

20 hours ago, AtlanticOceanLove said:

Perhaps I'm confused! Yikes! Thankfully I asked. It's the one part of the petition I'm not 100% clear. Do I need to write a one page letter of our relationship? On the form I had enough space to write when we met and the trips I've taken to visit my Fiancé, but I've seen everywhere people writing a one pager of the trips taken together?

No, you don't.

The only letters that should be included would be a cover letter and a short, 2 line declaration of intent to marry from you & your SO.

The "proof of meeting" = "how we initially met and our entire relationship to this point" needs to die because it is incorrect and adds so much stress to a not-at-all stressful petition. That question is literally asking to describe, briefly, how you meet the "must have seen each other in person within the last 2 years" requirement of the K-1 visa. A single line "John Smith and Jane Jones travelled to Scotland, UK together from 1/10/19 - 10/10/19 - see attached for supporting documents" and then include copies of boarding passes, passport stamps, photos, hotel reciepts etc, to prove both parties were in the same place at the same time. 

11 minutes ago, KBCN said:

Hi all,

 

We just received our RFE in the mail and it is requesting proof of termination of a previous marriage for my fiancé (the beneficiary)... but he's never been previously married. I'm posting to see if anyone else has more recently dealt with this and, if so, any advice to the following (as many of the topics I found regarding were fairly old on Visa Journey):

 

1. My fiancé was able to confirm an appointment to go to the county office and potentially receive a certificate indicating he has never had a previous marriage. 

2. We plan to provide an additional written statement as well (looking for advice to the copy/if anyone recommends including anything else to this):

• "I, [my fiancé’s name], do hereby state that I have never been previously married. I have been and continue to be legally able to marry the person of my choosing. Additionally, I would like to reiterate and state that I am legally able and willing to marry [my name/petitioner], and intend to do so within 90 days of my arrival into the US using the K-1 visa."

3. Both of the above would have to be copies of the documents that he faxes over to me - is there any potential issues with submitting the copy versus the original of these two documents? (Worried that it'll take forever for him to put them in the mail to me and actually get them, etc.)

4. Is there anything else that we should do/provide to fulfill the RFE request? It's just so bizarre they are asking for this and indicate a record of a previous marriage - and hard to just "prove" that you have never been married versus submitting proof of a terminated one.

• I still plan on calling USCIS to try and get a hold of someone and see what else we can do.

5. I've seen mixed reviews on submitting "more proof of the ongoing relationship" (photos, travel documents, etc.) along with what the RFE request is - any advice on if we should include more ongoing evidence? A part of me is just stick to what they are asking (and had they wanted more proof of the relationship, they would have asked), the other side is I've seen people include ongoing proof and stating it's a benefit so I'm a little torn to include this. 

 

I know that we sort of have a plan here so I'm really looking for any additional advice or recommendations to some or all of the above. This process is certainly timely and I would kick myself if something goes wrong because I didn't just double check with people that have been through this and/or a similar situation. 

 

Thank you all so much for any advice and help on this!!! 

I've seen a few threads on VJ where people admit to claiming they were married on previous visa applications to "give them a better chance of approval" - is it possible your SO did this? If so it's going to be harder to overcome than a simple mistake on USCIS' end. 

It costs nothing if filed with your AOS, and given the ever increasing times for GC approval, it would be silly NOT to do it. You never know when you may want or need to make a trip home

5 hours ago, missileman said:

Yep.....the fact that the subject even came up is significant, imo.

Honestly the way I read this made me think that the OPs wife was in secondary - I don't think primary POE officers often call around to verify stories, do they? I've never heard of it or had it.  I'm seeing it as they had suspicions of OPs wife already and sent her to secondary. She was then either silly enough to openly admit to lying at that interview during the AOS interview, or a poor grasp of English was used to trip her into making a statement that they're using against her (is admitting to lying at POE considered material misrepresentation?).   Either way it looks fishy.  There's 5 weeks between entry and AOS file.  OP claims she "got pregnant after 3 weeks" which means they found out she was pregnant, married and got all the relevant paperwork together for AOS within 2 weeks?   Nah, sorry, that's got my BS meter on red alert. I'm sure that USCIS thought the same. 

21 minutes ago, TandClaudia said:

@dentsflogged I saw that news article.  I believe it was Delta Airlines, who will probably get sued. 

 

I saw someone in the Orlando airport in the month of May preparing to board a flight with a Bull Mastiff "support animal."

 

Thanks for the heads up regarding the pet transport companies.

Yes, Delta. I believe I saw something a few days later saying in light of that, American Airlines will be “investigating our onboard pet policy” or something similar. 

I personally think the whole support animal thing is BS. I understand they can be a comfort. Someone else’s comfort should not negate my allergies, fears or the potential for my face to be chewed off by an ill trained unrestrained animal. 

Recent “issues” on flights (someone was attacked and left disfigured by an improperly restrained dog in cabin) means you will very likely end up flying the dog in the cargo hold as I’ve seen plenty of articles recently with airlines saying they will be heavily restricting the type, number and breed of animals allowed in cabin. 

If that’s the case I’d highly recommend flying yourself with carryon only as it will reduce the time the animal spends waiting without familiar faces. 

I imported my cat a few months ago and honestly for me it was so much less stressful to pay a specialised pet transport company than to worry about doing it myself. There’s paperwork required to be sighted on import and if it’s not filled in 100% correctly then the pet is either refused entry and sent back or will sit in quarantine (at your cost, and it’s expensive) for however long it takes to get the paperwork done right. 

Re the driving: yes it’s common practice to have to do the tests. I did in WI, it’s all pretty common sense standard, I didn’t bother to study at all and still passed with no mistakes.

Also you don’t “need” a licence when it’s time for AOS, or even your current state having issued you ID, so long as you have an ID issued by a recognisable state; such as your passport or UK drivers licence (if unexpired). Plenty of people don’t or can’t drive, it would be ludicrous to have a state issued drivers license as a requirement during AOS. 

As for changing your name, in 99% of cases all you need to do that is your marriage certificate. I wouldn’t touch your passport until it’s time to renew unless you like spending money on things you don’t have to. 

For bank account etc again it doesn’t need to be a “state issued” ID just a valid picture ID. I opened my current bank account while I was here over a year ago on a tourist visa with my passport and nothing else. Some banks require a SSN but not all or even most. 

I also don’t have a degree but I just got a job as a bartender which is pretty low pay but darn good tips since I’m “oh that sweet Australian girl behind the bar” to the locals. 4 shifts a week brings in $400 between pay and tips which considering my husband makes enough to keep us comfortable is fine. Next year I’m going to go to to college to get a trade degree to be more employable but for the time being I’m happy with flexible hours and to make enough to pay our mortgage down even faster (currently only 5 years away from owning our home completely if we continue at this rate!)

The short answer is: it’s probably not enforceable if you were to break up and she gets a semi-competent lawyer for multiple reasons. 

The long answer is: probably not worth the paper it’s written on for these reasons: 

Firstly: it could be said she was forced to sign under duress-ie: sign this or we won’t get married and you’re not staying in the US (if K1) or “sign this or I’m leaving and you’re not coming with me” (if CR1). Even if it’s her choice, it’s still considered duress if there’s a big “or else” attached due to a significant imbalance of power. Which of course there is, especially if she’s significantly younger and had been dragged to the other side of the world by someone. 

Secondly; she needs to have the papers presented to her in her native language, with enough time to find a lawyer who represents and is paid for by her (no affiliation with you) and is also familiar with the laws in the state you live in (or will live in) to review it and advise her. 

Thirdly: most pre-nups are written by lawyers for clients who are trying to ensure that they “win” in breakups and a lot of the time are actually contrary to state law in regards of division of assets or custody. She cannot sign away her legal rights as far as the state is concerned and if that’s the intent of how it’s written it can and will be ignored if it ever goes to a divorce court. 

If youre concerned about your current assets, far better to just tie it up in a trust or some other legal loophole than hope a prenup works. Also consider that post marriage, any assets are marital assets and in most states the automatic assumption is 50/50 regardless of “whose money” it is.  

18 hours ago, Cryssiekins said:

I’m by far no expert in Aus residency/citizenship but I recall from a friend who moved there, that it was a very strict process.  It took her 10 years to finally be eligible for citizenship in Aus.

 

OP definitely should seek a consult with an attorney familiar with US and Aus immigration to advise on the best course of action to accomplish the plan, or if it’s even feasible and what potential consequences may arise.  

Even as an Aussie I'm not an expert. 

I have a USC friend that has been married to her (Australian citizen) husband for I think 9 years now - they stayed in the US long enough for him to gain his US citizenship and then moved to Australia.  She arrived in August 2014 and is only now eligible to apply for citizenship.  Apparently the wait times are around 18-24 months to be processed, so she'll have been married to a citizen for ~12 years and a resident of the country for close to 7 years before she's a citizen.  Much like the USA - it's a very slow, very (far moreso than the USA) expensive process. 

3 hours ago, Just Observing said:

USA immigration will definitely not be sympathetic to your cause. Don’t forget USA merely tolerates dual citizenship, it doesn’t expressly approve of it and they’re definitely not going to be inclined to help you attain permanent residence elsewhere contrary to their own rules.

 

To answer your question, yes you can go and wait in Australia, just be ready to deal with whatever adverse consequences that come with it. Like I pointed out, removing conditions via divorce waiver already comes with heightened scrutiny and its own can of worms.

This isn't just dual citizenship, either. OP is clearly a citizen of a third country and seems to be playing the game to be a LPR in both USA and Australia, which seems to defy the point of being a LPR - you're a permanent resident of ONE country at a time, not 2. 

3 hours ago, Bill & Katya said:

Now I have another question, if couples in this situation get divorced, how is custody determined?

It will depend entirely on how the birth process was conducted.

If the birth mother was entirely a surrogate and the birth certificate lists both married men as the parents, then the matter of custody is between only the two married/divorcing men. 

If the birth mother retains the status of birth mother and the birth father lives with his husband and child in a family-like relationship, then depending on the laws of the state that they reside in, in the event of divorce all three parties have the right to claim custody. 

At the end of the day, family courts will always fall on the side of what's "best for the child" though, and if the child is old enough should divorce occur, their own thoughts/feelings/desires will always lend heavy weight to the decision. 

14 minutes ago, anoras87 said:

Thanks for replying. I believe my company has health insurance but i need to confirm whether my dependents are included or if i have the option to add them. Should we bring the documents (proof like company has insurance) on the day of the interview or during the medical?

really appreciate your response

Regarding the insurance - If you can add your partner, I'd also ask for documents that show how much your deductible is and your co-pays, etc - anything you can get that will show the financial situation. Include things like how much (if any) your insurance pays towards prescription medication, see if you can find out the cost of his prescriptions in the US and such. Include it all, along with a budget that shows how you can afford to address these costs without your partner becoming a public charge - and especially without stretching yourselves financially so that even if it's not a medical public charge concern, they may wonder if it will be housing or food. 

I know that my husbands insurance has got a high deductible that as a couple we will NEVER meet unless something drastic happens (I think it's joint $8k and so far for the full year we have spent less than $500 on medical expenses) but in all honestly with your husband's illness it's not unlikely that he'll run into some very expensive issues. The best way to make sure that you can't be denied on the public charge issue is to give them as much information as possible to show how you've planned for it and are aware of the costs so you won't be caught off guard by them.

I wish the "how we met" thing would die.  You literally don't have to include that at any point - you have to provide proof and a short description proving how you meet the "physically in the same place at the same time in the last 2 years" requirement, not submit a 10 page document akin to "How I Met Your Mother" describing how you met/your whole relationship story.    At interview, you may be asked "how'd you meet?" (those I know who've been through interview already basically went with "we play the same online game and met on a facebook group for that" or "at the pub when we were in the same city" or whatever and that was that). 

I can understand for "tough" embassies wanting to front-load but from all accounts, proof of ongoing relationship via intermingled finances/visiting etc between submitting the petition and interview holds far more weight than manufactured "how we met"/"love story" documents before you get to that point.

1 hour ago, Mistermanga said:

just pay attention when you will have the interview for AOS. to apply for an I-485 starting from and ESTA (that is only the fast version of a B1/B2 Visa) is possible but only if you are able to proof that your first intention when you entered in US was to come back to your country. if, for any reasons, the IO will understand that you moved in US with the intention to STAY and Apply as Permanent Resident,  your case will be classified as FRAUD. as consequence, you could have a life ban and your petitioner could have consequences too.

 

i believe that you marriage is absolutely a bona fide marriage , so be ready to bring with you all the proof about your intention to travel back at the end of your 90 days. 

last but not lease, to hire a lawyer it's a decision that is up to you.  In my case, we hired the lawyer. the result has been NO RFE (so, no delays) and the right advices to prepare the interview in the less stressful way. 

 

good luck

 

That is incredibly incorrect and there's several easily conducted searches, including links to court cases, to prove it.

Did you read the letter? It tells you what you need to do. 

1 minute ago, missileman said:

The W-4 is used by your employer only.........just to determine how much in taxes to withhold......It is not an official tax filing status...it is a withholding status.......If you leave it blank, the employer will probably withhold maximum taxes (as if you were single with no exemptions).   In theory, you would receive a higher income tax refund after filing taxes next year.......so it's really up to you.  Do you want to keep more of your money during the year?

Ok, so that makes it seem less scary.... I kinda like the idea of just getting a higher income tax refund - I used to do that in Australia by claiming I had a student debt (so they take more in tax to "pay it back") but since I didn't, I'd get a mega refund every year that would just go straight into my retirement fund (for a while the government would do a % match of any lump sums you pay into your own retirement as a way to encourage them, they don't do that anymore) or savings. 

How's this possible?

I got my combo card tuesday, and got a job offer yesterday - perfect timing! 

So I'm sitting here, filling out all the paperwork and I am stuck on the W-4 and what to put or not put. Husband claims to just leave everything blank except my name, SSN etc - and that at worst I'll just overpay in tax and get it refunded next year - but I'm so frustrated and stumped that I could fill out all the immigration paperwork without a blink but tax stuff is just so different that trying to wade through all the extra instructions just isn't working. 

Anyone have any advice? Do I just go with what hubby says and not bother with exemptions? Am I even eligible to claim exemptions anyhow - not a student, don't have kids, etc etc, so I don't think any would really apply.

1 hour ago, Zu11 said:

I have a ton of proof of 9 years together but the lawyer told us to get 3 witness letters. We asked family and friends, some of them have not seen us after marriage but we have talked a lot on Facetime etc. Would that be pointless?

Not pointless but far more weight will be given to proof of an ongoing life together, such as mentioned above - proof of shared abode, proof of ongoing mingled finances - bank accounts, insurance, joint property ownership and so on.   

Or do you mean just generic letters from friends who know you that you haven't seen personally as a couple since the wedding? 

Either way - witness letters are secondary (at BEST) evidence.  They're meant to be a legally binding statement, but TBH most people wouldn't flinch at writing a letter saying "yes, they're a genuine couple, very in love blah blah blah" if asked by a friend who may or may not know the truth. I did exactly that for friends of mine (which IS a requirement for an Australian partner visa) only to find out that they were both miserable and on the verge of breaking up even as they were gathering evidence for her visa. No people ever truly know another couple, therefore "hard" evidence is better than subjective stuff like people saying "oh, they're a nice couple"

16 hours ago, Zu11 said:

Do friends and family who write witness letters to attest to our marriage have to see us after marriage, or is it fine if we have not seen each other in awhile?

If you are applying for adjustment of status, then it means both parties are in the USA.

If both parties are in the US, you'll be hard pressed to present proof of being in a genuine relationship if you haven't seen each other "in a while"

So end result - they won't hold much, if any, weight. What holds weight is proof of being physically together, sharing a life/home/finances, unless you've got excellent, independently verifiable (ie: not relying on testimony from friends or family), documented reasons for not being physically together during the time between marrying and filing/interview.