adelaarsvaren

Doesn't sound like the namecheck is bypassed but that the approval is conditional and can and will be revoked.

OK, true....

But still good news for many!

If you've been waiting on a name check for more than six months, check this....

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/02/12/america/12checks.php

Our card arrived today !!!

We got our approval yesterday!

It was the easiest and best experience we've EVER had with USCIS. In and out in less than an hour....

10 year green card, with naturalization available in 3 years (due to the length of our marriage)!!!

Bonne chance Cecy - c'est pas foutu!

Our card production order was Nov. 6th, and it arrived today (the 15th)

K3 does not mean a Green Card!

Its actually worse than K-1, no temporary EAD, and no ability to get a SSN, despite already being married to the USC....

My wife started looking, and has had to turn down two positions because we still don't have the EAD....

So, timing is everything!

But, in answer to the original question, it is totally legal.

At least YOU ARE TOGETHER. Many couples have been waiting and waiting and wating to get that ONCE CHANCE to EVEN just get to the interview stage to get the visa itself and be togther. That it self takes years in some cases. Would you have rathered lived apart for 4 years? Count your blessings and be happy to have your spouse with you. Many people even go for years with out beeing able to see their SO because USCIS has them in AP, the distance and the $$ involved to travel is not available, then there is also the vacation day issue. If they are lucky maybe they get to see their SO for one 1 week out of the year. Looks like things are moving for you. Maybe slow but they are moving.

I'm terribly sorry for you and all you have to deal with.

I'm very happy we are together.

It doesnt' change the fact that I think the system is screwed up for ALL of us. If this was any other corporation, we would demand better service or we would go to the competitors. We don't have that choice.

What's really amazing is that in France, I only waited 5 months. In a country famous for ridiculously slow beaurocracy. Pretty amazing eh? We pride ourselves so much on our efficiency and "get 'er done" attitude here, and that is what is expected, at least in the business world....

I work hard, and treat people with respect. I'd like the same in return. Somebody should be accountable for this mess, but no one is, as the previous two posters stories have confirmed. I mad for you as well as for myself. This system is broken....

So, she finally gets here, and we file for EAD and AOS. Yesterday we get an RFE for financial information. The only thing missing is an employer letter - and this is the EXACT SAME I-485 packet which was approved for the K-3 Interview!!! It was fine for the US embassy in Paris, buy USCIS won't accept it? They have my w-2s, they have paystubs. The thing that is the absolute easiest to forge, the employer letter, has now caused her EAD to be delayed by "a minimum of 90 days from receipt" of the RFE material.

First off, there is no I-485 packet for K-3. I have read that the Consulate in Paris does have the applicant submit an I-864 but that is wrong as it should be the I-134. And yes, the consulate (a part of the Department of State) can and probably does adjudicate the I-864 to a different standard than the USCIS (a part of the Department of Homeland Security). Two different deaprtments not necessarily bound to each others procedures.

I may have made a mistake there, I'm at work. It was the packet proving I made more than 125% of federal poverty level.

Regardless, isn't it a bit stupid to ask me to prove that again, to a different standard? And even if you think that isn't Kafkaesque, how about the fact that they want me to proved she won't be a ward of the state, while at the same time denying her the right to work.

Do you really think this system is working?

First off - I do not expect preferential treatment! I certainly don't want to come off that way! I think we should ALL be a bit pissed that this situation is the way it is.

I'm upset because I feel like I've been mislead by USCIS and the embassy from the beginning.

We were married in France, lived there for 1.5 years, then moved to England for her to go to LSE. (FYI - England gave me a residency permit as a spouse of an EU citizen on the spot during my first interview. Appt. made online, took 2 hours, and they put a Visa in my passport. The first time I set foot in the UK, I was a resident with travel and work rights).

When we decided to come to the USA, the American Embasy in the UK wouldnt' let me do a DCF, as she is French. The French embassy was known to not allow DCFs for non-residents, and didn't respond to my inquiries. So I was forced to come back to the USA and file an I-130. A few days later, I finally get a response from the US embassy in Paris letting me know that I could do a DCF. I'd have to fly from Seattle to France, making sure to be there on a Friday morning, the only day they allow this. And would have to pay again to file. Being that I had just spent all my money moving back to the US, this wasn't an option, and I foolishly hoped that the I-129f I was about to file would be a quicker response.

Of course the 129F and the 130 were approved the same day, meaning that I was then stuck with the K-3. Of course, it took months to get the interview.

So, she finally gets here, and we file for EAD and AOS. Yesterday we get an RFE for financial information. The only thing missing is an employer letter - and this is the EXACT SAME I-485 packet which was approved for the K-3 Interview!!! It was fine for the US embassy in Paris, buy USCIS won't accept it? They have my w-2s, they have paystubs. The thing that is the absolute easiest to forge, the employer letter, has now caused her EAD to be delayed by "a minimum of 90 days from receipt" of the RFE material.

Un frickin believable.

They want me to prove that I have enough money that she isn't a ward of the state before they allow her to work? Where's the logic in that? And, more importantly, WE ALREADY PROVED IT TO GET THE $*$ K-3!!!!!

Arrtggghhh.....

Merci Cecy pour les mots vraies....

People, get you act together....

This is beyond ridiculous. I have been waiting, and waiting and waiting. My wife and I have been married for going on 4 years now, and it has been almost one year since we began the process of allowing her to come the USA and work to support our family. Your terrible inefficiency has put uncessary stress on our lives. Your lack of clarity has caused unecessary delays. Your lack of hard work has wasted thousands of dollars in revenue for YOU - taxes my wife could have been paying into the US treasury if you could be bothered to fix your system and get her a work permit.

We are not terrorists. We are not illegal aliens. We are the people who follow the rules and suffer for it. We are the people who praise our country to our spouses, so that they will consider living here, and then have to explain why Homeland Security with its unbelievable budget can't be clear and efficient.

You force us to harrass our congressmen and women. You force us to fill out the same forms mutliple times. You force us to prove that we don't need money before you allow our spouses to make any.

You are an embarassment to a merit-based capitalistic system of government.

I will never forgive you.

-B

As tempting as these thoughts may be, the facts of the matter are:

(1) You and your wife are living together in the U.S.A.

(2) Although your interim benefits are temporary and subject to renewals, they provide you with most of the same rights as lawful admission for permanent residence would give you.

(3) The government is just taking a cautious approach to approving a very powerful application; the longer full status is withheld, the more likely any marriage fraud or misrepresentation is likely to be uncovered.

(4) The broken immigration system is partially due to Congress's irresponsibility to fix it or to fund it. So, your Congressmen need to be continually reminded of the problems people are encountering dealing with their law.

1) True. And she is going crazy sitting at home all day on limited income, not being able to work. She has two masters degrees, speaks 3 languages, and gave up a lot to come here.

2) Benefits? What benefits? They won't issue her a social security number, so we can't get her a drivers license. She can't work. She's not elegible for any benefits or assistance should I lose my job. She's in limbo. The only thing she has is free movement (a multiple entry visa).

3) We've been married for close to four years. I could understand if the was a IMBRA marriage, or even a young marriage from a high-risk country. I'm afraid that doesn't sit with me.

4) Agreed. Good point.

People, get you act together....

This is beyond ridiculous. I have been waiting, and waiting and waiting. My wife and I have been married for going on 4 years now, and it has been almost one year since we began the process of allowing her to come the USA and work to support our family. Your terrible inefficiency has put uncessary stress on our lives. Your lack of clarity has caused unecessary delays. Your lack of hard work has wasted thousands of dollars in revenue for YOU - taxes my wife could have been paying into the US treasury if you could be bothered to fix your system and get her a work permit.

We are not terrorists. We are not illegal aliens. We are the people who follow the rules and suffer for it. We are the people who praise our country to our spouses, so that they will consider living here, and then have to explain why Homeland Security with its unbelievable budget can't be clear and efficient.

You force us to harrass our congressmen and women. You force us to fill out the same forms mutliple times. You force us to prove that we don't need money before you allow our spouses to make any.

You are an embarassment to a merit-based capitalistic system of government.

I will never forgive you.

-B

well I had my interview last month and the officer said I am on secuirty check ..and she said Ican't leave the USA before my green card I will have to apply for AP and if i didn't i will not be able to enter the country iam not sure why If i am on k3 visa and my visa is not expired yet it will expire in a year from now I am planning to go see my family in amonth from now is it really true that i need this AP thing>>???

If they took your I-94 out of your passport you will need AP to return to the US.

A K3 visa is a multi entry visa.... the above statement about the I-94 is wrong..... as long as your K3 visa is still valid then you can use it to travel and return.....

Kez

Above atatement isn't wrong!!They took my wife and daughters I-94 at the AOS interview and told us we'd have to get AP to leave and return to the US.

K3 may be multiple entry but if you don't have the I-94 you may go but you aren't getting back in!

You do not need a I-94 in your passport to enter the US if you have a multi entry visa.... You have to complete a new i-94 on your return as the old one will be removed at the check-in if it is still in your passport... having an AP you still have to complete a new I-94 on your return...

At the check-in desk if asked you just have to tell them that immigration took your I-94 and that you have a K3 visa that allows you entry to the US....

YOU DO NOT NEED AP IF YOU HAVE A VALID K3 VISA......

Call your Local International Airport and speak to a CBP officer and ask them.... I did just that 10 mins ago to Boston Logan airport... The officer said as long as you have a valid K3 you will be admitted... I also asked about the I-94 and he said that as the I-94 would be removed before you left the US if it had not been removed by USCIS at interview... as it is a arrivals and departure record... that every person other than a USC or permenant Resident has to complete a I-94 on arrival in to the USA... If you have yet to be approved for AOS because of FBI namecheck then your K3 visa is still active until its expiry date...

Kez

This has been my experience as well. My wife and I have travelled both to Mexico and Canada using her K-3 and no I-94 (which was sent in as part of the AOS package). K3 is multiple entry and it hasn't been any problem for us.

Question -

Do we need a Advance Parole (I-131) for my wife if she has a K-3? We went to an infopass appointment the day after she arrived on her K-3 to see if we could perhaps fandangle a temporary EAD (no luck). While we were there, the woman said she didn't need Advance Parole because the K-3 is a multiple entry visa, and that until it expired, we could enter and leave the country as we wished. So, we went to Mexico the next weekend for vacation, came back in with no problems. However, Bea is thinking of going to France for Christmas, and we aren't sure if she'll have the Green Card in hand yet. Plus, quite simply, I'd rather not give USCIS any more money than necessary...

Thanks

Hey,

I don't know who she had.. On the plus side, she got her Passport back today and flies out in a week and a half!!!!!!!!!!!!

FYI folks -

My wife was "temporarily denied" her visa at the interview in Paris, because when submitting the I-864 I had included a stack of paystubs and 2004 and 2005 tax returns. They wanted a letter from the employer, despite it not being a required document. I submited ORIGINAL paystubs - much harder to fake than a letter from an employer... And to top it all off, my father (who quite frankly is wealthy) had made a I-134 for her as well as a back-up, which they wouldn't even consider!

This "merde" ticks me off. They aren't specific, they say submit "supporting evidence", so I do. I make WELL over the 125%, and we do have not children, have been married almost three years, were married in France, lived there almost 2 years....

They did allow me to overnight them the documents and then approve the visa, but still, if they want something specific, they should say.

All this just pisses me off even more that our war-mongering president also thinks it is a good idea to make all the people here illegally legal in one fell swoop after all the BS those of us who are law-abiding go through to get this stuff done.

Anyhow... hopefully she'll have her passport soon.

Bea finally got her appointment!

June 13

Here's a question...

My wife has already returned package 3, and I assume based on the averages will have her interview around May 1st. I just moved. Do I need to change my address with someone? The file is already in Paris, out of the hands of USCIS and NVC...

Thoughts?

That's exciting news!!

Beatrice mailed back Packet 3 yesterday... I hope we get a quick interview as well!

Merci,

-B

Il faut etre detendu....

Breath my friend

Soon you will

Il l'a obtenu!

Merci, et, oui, maintenant, je danse!

SUPERRRRRR

Bonne Nouvelles!

Il faut etre detendu....

Breath my friend

Soon you will

Elise and I are one step closer to being together. Our I129F was (finally by VSC standards) approved and our NOA 2 is on it's way.

Us as well - package left NVC on March 6th. Based on the timelines in this thread, I'm guessing Bea will get her Packet 3 around March 20th...

J'attends avec impatience! Ma femme me manque!

I have to say that we are blessed - we met in Germany, so we started our relationship in a language that was foreign to both of us. It is very hard to argue when you really have to think before you can say something. It allows God to slip in before you say something you might regret, and you tend to do a better job of cutting to the chase and really explaining what you aren't happy with.

Also, I lived in France for a couple of years, so for my wife to be here she has less of the feeling to have given up her home for me. We don't think we will stay here forever either, we've talked of eventually settling in Geneva or Sao Paolo or somewhere after I finish my graduate degree.

I find my self more "Francophile" now that I live in the USA again. When I was in France, I pined for the deep south....

One other positive, I now speak her language and can completely communicate with her family.

Luckily, the holy spirit doesn't need language

This information may already be in some thread but I can't find it.

My husband is from Spain. On all of our other trips to the states, he simply said vacation as his reason for coming. No problem. But now that we are married and have filed K3, when passport control swipes his passport, will they automatically know he is filing K3 (i.e. intending to eventually immigrate)? He obviously will not move to the states until he is legal, but I have been told that when trying to visit your spouse in the US, it's best to talk as little as possible to the passport agent to try enter easily. Hmm this sounds shady. I mean that he would just say, "I'm here on vacation" like all the other times, which would be true, as he would leave after a few weeks.

My question is....will his passport tell the passport control agent that he is now married, to an American, and that he has a pending immigration visa, thus giving passport control reason to deny him?

Or even though we are from a visa waiver program country, should we apply for some other tourist visa in Madrid to cover all our bases?

ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Answer honestly - my wife came to visit over Christmas from France, and she had a K-3 in process. They asked what she was doing, she said visiting her husband. They said why do you not live with him, she said I'm still working in Paris and my paperwork is still in process. They let her in.

Of course, every case is different.... I'd avoid giving up any unecessary info, i.e. I'd just say vacation like you mentioned, and then give more info if asked.

Also, search the forums, you'll find lots of other advice, mostly centered around proving ties to the home country (i.e. a lease in Spain, a return ticket, something showing commitments back there that would make him certain to go back).

All that being said, they may still turn him away at the border if they feel he is at risk of staying. As far as I can tell, he is not at all breaking the law by coming, but it is ultimately up to the discretion of whichever officer takes his passport at the POE.

If you mind me asking what was the RFE for?

A divorce decree from my first wife. I sent the summons, and some other paper work which we (and our attorneys) had both signed indicating a no-contest divorce, but not the actual finished document.

I couldn't seem to filter the timelines for this query, so I thought I'd ask here....

I just got a RFE for a something fairly straightforward. I'm getting the required documentation overnighted to me and will overnight it to CSC when I get it.

My question is, does this mean I'm back at the beginning of the pile? Or does it mean that I'm almost to NOA2 status as soon as they get the document they are looking for?

Thanks,

-B