islanderfever

Wife’s visa was APPROVED! There were about 10 appointments today in Tokyo. She said she had I nice experience at the embassy and an easygoing interview. I’ll update later on her whole process when she gets back from Tokyo. 

On 8/1/2020 at 11:38 PM, TaKane said:

I'm glad that I found out this Japan Filers group. All the comments and experiences sharing are very helpful.

 

We got DQ'ed: mid May

Interview letter received: mid July

Interview at Tokyo embassy: mid Aug 

 

Any pointers or suggestions on 1) interview questions and 2) document to bring (was told the embassy would send document list couple days prior to interview) would be appreciated.

 

Hi  @TaKane, I suggest checking out the Japan embassy reviews here on VJ. Some users talk about the interview experience and questions that were asked.

https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.php?cnty=Japan&cty=&dfilter=5&topic=

My wife has her interview in mid August as well. Good luck!

Just received an Interview Appointment email from NVC. Interview is scheduled for my wife at the Tokyo Embassy in August. Wife was DQ’d in mid May. Normal case, no expedite.

I also ran into the same problem as you. After a week of trying to read the message it magically worked.  The message just says “DOCUMENTARILY QUALIFIED”, well that’s what we have in ours. At the same time that we got the message on CEAC, we (petitioner & beneficiary) also received an email from NVC with the subject line: Notice regarding your Immigrant Visa Case becoming Documentarily Qualified

Of course, when I try to check the message on CEAC today it won’t load.  

4 hours ago, Paul & Mary said:

FYI - Found another trick to try today if you are having problems with the phone number verification that is done after the credit card / reference items validation.   They filed MFS for 2019. Couple had a family plan with the carrier and the same last name.  IRS didn't accept her(the immigrant) phone number but did accept his.  We got her transcripts downloaded after they tried for a month!

This works. I filed for 2019 with my US address. Registered an IRS account and verified using my sister’s phone number (same last name as mine). A downside to this is they send the login code to my sister when I log in to get transcripts.

Spouse checked "No"

Explain:  WILL GET REQUIRED VACCINATIONS AT IMMIGRANT VISA MEDICAL EXAM. 

I also live abroad with my wife, filed taxes from overseas, and have a US address on file. When registering for an IRS account I was able to use a US phone number that is registered to my sister (same last name). I tried registering an account using my parents’ numbers, both of which produced errors, and I got locked out at the same time. 

So, if you have family/someone that you trust back in the states, I think this could be an option.

The downside to it is that if I login (to get transcripts) it will send a code to my sister’s phone, which she then messages to me. Personally, not much of an inconvenience. 

37 minutes ago, Fidel said:

She requested by mail.. Likewise she couldn't get it online due to name  discrepancy so she requested by mail.. Now she couldn't get irs on phone because they are short staffed right now so I wonder how you could get them on phone..... You mean currently irs is not sending transcript  yet mail right now 

I called in mid March, before they started getting really busy. Additionally, I called a different number because I’m an overseas taxpayer / international caller. 

 

10 minutes ago, OrihimeandIchigo said:

I requested mine last year one time by mail  4506-T (while living abroad) and it took 7 months to get mine. Its crazy. 

 

Also is this for real? You can't get Transcripts by mail? Like is the only option via online? Because the online version doesn't work for me at all.

I just went on the site, 

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript

There is message on the top saying available only online. 

It is crazy how long it takes to get mail abroad sometimes. I amended 2016 and 2017 tax years last October, sent it in, and I finally got a notification about it in the mail last week. Which is why I was surprised that I received the transcript request (made by phone) in two weeks.

May I ask how did your wife request the transcript? By mail / phone call?

I couldn’t get transcripts online because my address on file is in a foreign country. Basically, I can’t create an account on the website.  I mailed Form 4506 to request transcripts by mail at the end of January. By mid March I had yet to receive the transcripts. So, I gave the IRS a call, spoke to an agent and requested another transcript. I received my transcript in the mail 2 weeks later. Speaking to an agent on the phone worked for me. The request I made by mail is still somewhere out there.

On a sidenote: The IRS updated its site, saying Tax Transcripts are only available online. They stopped processing transcript requests by mail until further notice.

47 minutes ago, AMS13 said:

I always try to be as accurate as possible as not give false hopes. I also think your I-130 case is the one ending in 16, right? .

Congratulations! 

You are accurate  😉. Keep up the good work! You've been very helpful to all of us 👍

Good morning! Our I-130 application was just approved today.

PD: 1/31/2019
CA: 2/27/2020

I noticed that our I-129F that we sent in early October still shows as case received. Maybe it will take some time for that status to change.

Using the case tracker app, I was following case numbers within a range of about 2000 cases to ours. The info that @AMS13 has been posting looks accurate, thank you for that sir. In the past few weeks I saw cases being approved, albeit slowly. So I knew it would be a matter of time that our January case would get approved. Good luck to those still waiting, your results will come soon.

From our experience filling out wife’s DS-160 for a B2 visa in Japan consulate. (I’ll use the example name Nguyen Thi Thu Trang)

Submitted DS-160 

Surname: Nguyen

Given Name: Trang Thi Thu

When the visa was issued. 

Surname: Nguyen

Given Name: Thi Thu Trang

I’m pretty sure that the US consulate will go with the name on the VN passport. Which is why I believe USTravelDocs asks you to enter it that way. So you should be okay with what you entered.

Additionally, below is how we filled out our I-130

Family Name: Nguyen

Given Name: Trang

Middle Name: Thi Thu

58 minutes ago, xtxcxnx said:

Thanks for all your help guys.

 

@islanderfever are you getting your documents translated? If so, is it ok to do it yourself, or does it have to be notarized by a professional translator?

Searching the forums here shows that many people translate documents themselves. In my case, I did all translations by myself and had a colleague fluent in Japanese & English check over it. 

https://www.visajourney.com/guides/uscis-document-translation/

My wife and I are also foreigners living in Japan, in the IR-1/CR-1 process. 

We included the juminhyo as our evidence of bonafide marriage. Made an English translation of it as well. We also included some evidence that @t-tenmentioned above.

 

4 hours ago, cculbertson81 said:

Some guides out there recommend getting your immunizations in advance at a local clinic before going to the exam at an approved clinic in order to potentially save some money. DO NOT DO THIS. Your average clinic in Japan does not have a license to carry the exact immunizations required by the US, specifically MMR. We made this mistake and it caused us no small amount of stress to get another appointment scheduled to get the right immunizations as well as waiting the requisite amount of time after the previous administrations. It's not worth the ~2000 JPY we may have saved otherwise.

Is it okay to take the antibody/titer test at a local hospital where we live? My wife, being from Vietnam, doesn't have any vaccination records, but she does recall getting some vaccines  when she was younger. Another thing I'm wondering is if she would need some vaccinations, would she need to make multiple visits to the approved physicians in Tokyo. From where we live in Japan, flying is often the cheapest way to get to Tokyo, but it can get pricey.

Same as above, my name is written as Last Name, Given Name (same as my passport). Not Vietnamese. The order on the certificate itself states Họ, chữ đệm, tên chồng (Surname, Middle, First). I didn't actually notice until recently. We already used it to move to Japan, get a B2 tourist visa back in 2017, and now in IR1process. So I'm guessing it's okay.

USC husband filing for my wife. Got our NOA1 in the mail today, surprisingly haven't received any notification of acceptance by email even though I sent a G-1145.

Wife is from Vietnam, and we're currently living in Japan. We should've applied earlier, but we have been enjoying our time here in Japan, but now we feel as it's time. So time will tell how long and where we go on this journey. 

Sent: Jan 28

Priority Date: Jan 31
Service Center: Nebraska
 

Hello, I have some questions about form I-130. Hope to get some help!

Additional Information About You (Petitioner)

37. My citizenship was acquired through (Select only one box)

Birth in the United States

Naturalization 

Parents

My parents were born in the Philippines, immigrated to the US, became US citizens. I was born in the US, over a decade after they became US citizens. I selected Parents, but Birth in the United States seems like it could be another choice. Which is correct?

Address History

Current Address (also Mailing Address): Japan, August 2016 - Present

Vietnam, March 2014 - May 2016

<< There’s a 7 month gap here. Traveled throughout Asia for a few months, also went back home for a bit. I was in Vietnam from December 2013, but moved around different accommodations. It wasn’t until March 2014 that I actually had a work permit and a stable residence. >>

South Korea, September 2012 - August 2013

Question: My South Korea Address is past the “provide address for the last five years”, so I’m not including that in the Address History, or should I. However, there’s still that almost a half year gap before my Vietnam Address. Is that gap ok?

Part 4. Information About Beneficiary

If the beneficiary's native written language does not use Roman letters, type or print his or her name and foreign address in their native written language. 

I typed my wife’s name in Vietnamese (Vietnamese alphabet with accent marks), and I typed our foreign address in Japanese (kanji). Is that the correct thing to do? In other parts of the I-130 our foreign address in Japan is written in English.