amerikelinka

14 hours ago, PTA petitioner said:

Thanks for your reply 🙏🏽

When you say complete return, do u you mean the whole 67 pages of the return with turbo tax or just the 1040 form with w2?

The whole return.

11 minutes ago, PTA petitioner said:

Hi, I know its been a while.. Did NVC DQ you without the joint sponsor tax transcript?

Hi! Yes, they did. Almost immediately. But I sent them his full tax return. I uploaded it with an explanation that the IRS wouldn’t generate the transcript for another 1-2 months. Everything was fine. They didn’t even ask for the transcript at the interview.

Just now, SteveInBostonI130 said:

Doesn't Kazakhstan require mandatory military service for all men?  

 

I think that is why the consulate is requesting his military records.  They didn't anticipate him not serving.

Yes, but there’s exceptions for people with certain health conditions (asthma, in his case). I emailed the Consulate to clarify that we’re just supposed to send his military database registration since that’s all he has. Very weird inconsistency between their website and actual policy.

My husband went to his IR-1 visa interview this morning, but he was given a 221g notice to submit his military records. However, he has never served in the military. The website for our Consulate says this about military records:

If you have served in any country’s military: Military records, notarized English translation, and a photocopy.

That’s why he didn’t bring any document — because, according to their own website, he didn’t need to. He told them he hadn’t served, but they told him he needed to bring a certain document (basically draft registration) anyway.

I’m very confused as to why the Consulate’s interview checklist doesn’t match up with what they actually require at the interview.

On 10/18/2020 at 10:21 PM, Thewander said:

Thank you, that would be great! Good luck! 

Hi, again! My husband's interview was today. We got a 221(g) at the interview, but for some military records we didn't know we needed, not for anything related to my domicile. They didn't even ask about it, which makes me think submitting all those docs to the NVC portal in advance is the safest way to go. Good luck!

1 minute ago, Thewander said:

Thank you, I definitely will. I have an absentee ballot for November elections. Which part of it do I use to prove I voted?

 

I’m not sure about the specifics of your ballot, but a maybe a scan if it’s addressed to your name. I just sent them a screen shot from my state’s online voter portal that showed my registration status and registered address.

This burden of proof of domicile is what has worried me the most throughout the process.  NVC had no issues with the documents I sent in, but I’m not sure what will happen at my husband’s interview (it’s this Tuesday!). I can keep you posted, if you want, if any questions about domicile come up.

40 minutes ago, Lucky Cat said:

Hopefully, the Consulate Officer (who is the actual approving authority) agrees.  Personally, I would be prepared with more documented proof of domicile at the interview.

Yeah, the State Department doesn’t consider filing federal taxes to be sufficient. State/local taxes are *one* form of proof, but that’s on a list of many other things.

(https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-1-submit-a-petition/i-864-affidavit-faqs.html#aos22)

I live abroad, and my proof of domicile was accepted by NVC, but I included:

• A letter explaining my domicile

• A copy of my temporary visa for the country I live in

• A copy of my driver’s license 

• Bank account statements

• Voter registration

• A letter from my job stating that my overseas employment is on a temporary, contractual basis

Even if NVC approves what you’ve given them so far, the consular officer at the interview may demand further evidence, so you should be prepared to bring it.

On 9/11/2020 at 1:31 PM, amerikelinka said:

Hi, everyone! Just joining the new thread here. Our case was DQ'd on September 8. The US Consulate General in Almaty has just begun processing IR-1 visas again, but I went ahead and requested an expedite today because I'm afraid we may be stuck in Kazakhstan if we're not able to leave by November.

 

I mentioned financial hardship (my temporary work contract ends soon and whether I'm in the US supporting two households or stuck here without work, it would be very hard) and likely travel restrictions to be implemented in November/December (Kazakhstan's Minister of Health just announced that such measures could be taken again soon). I sent evidence for both points.

 

Anyway, I'll share the results once I hear back from NVC!

Wow! We got our interview date! October 20. Can’t believe it. Only a week after getting DQ.
 

I requested an expedite on September 11 (4 days ago), but I highly doubt it was even reviewed yet. Our consulate seems to just be working extra quickly on IR-1 visas right now (and Kazakhstan always has low monthly visa issuances, anyway).

Hi, everyone! Just joining the new thread here. Our case was DQ'd on September 8. The US Consulate General in Almaty has just begun processing IR-1 visas again, but I went ahead and requested an expedite today because I'm afraid we may be stuck in Kazakhstan if we're not able to leave by November.

I mentioned financial hardship (my temporary work contract ends soon and whether I'm in the US supporting two households or stuck here without work, it would be very hard) and likely travel restrictions to be implemented in November/December (Kazakhstan's Minister of Health just announced that such measures could be taken again soon). I sent evidence for both points.

Anyway, I'll share the results once I hear back from NVC!

Just now, Solyito said:

Congrats!
Similar thing happened to my wife's case. I guess they don't have as many cases as before so they have more time to spend on our cases lol

How did you know that the consulate has started rescheduling interviews that were cancelled in March/April?

Then congrats to you, too! Maybe this is karma blessing us for having had to wait 11 months at the USCIS stage. Did you have a long wait there, as well?

The U.S. Consulate Almaty frequently posts updates on their website regarding visa interviews, and I sent them an email to double-check. If we don't get an interview date on the books by November, though, I will request an expedite since we do have some financial and medical circumstances that would make it tough if he doesn't move by the end of the year.

Hi, everyone! I'm amazed — we submitted civil docs/AOS on August 26, and then we received a FE note on September 2. I uploaded the documents they asked for yesterday (Sept 7) and we just got DQ'd first thing this morning (Sept 8)! I can't believe it only took 2 weeks. Now we'll see how long our local consulate takes to schedule my husband's interview. They just started rescheduling interviews that were cancelled in March/April, but Kazakhstan doesn't have nearly as many IR-1 applicants as many countries in this forum.

I'm a bit confused about which thread I should join now — case complete to interview, right? And I should fill out the case complete to interview form?

On 9/7/2020 at 10:41 AM, pushbrk said:

The OP can upload the actual complete copy of tax return including W2 and 1099 forms once filed.  NVC will accept that, and the transcript can be taken to the interview.

On 9/7/2020 at 11:11 AM, amerikelinka said:

Thank you for clarifying! I’ll try uploading the completed return + a comment that the transcript will be ready in October, and we’ll see what happens.

@pushbrk Thank you so, so much for the advice! I submitted the full tax return yesterday with a note (as I mentioned in my comment), and we were just marked DQ! Without your help, I might have waited another 6 weeks for the IRS transcript.

26 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

This is where terminology is so important.  NVC does not really do an RFE.  That's a USCIS term.  USCIS RFE's do have deadlines to respond.

 

The OP can upload the actual complete copy of tax return including W2 and 1099 forms once filed.  NVC will accept that, and the transcript can be taken to the interview.

 

Note to all readers:  The year you're sponsoring your spouse to immigrate is not a year for you or your joint sponsor to file an extension.  This is a prime example of WHY. 🙂

Thank you for clarifying! I’ll try uploading the completed return + a comment that the transcript will be ready in October, and we’ll see what happens.

My joint sponsor, unfortunately, didn’t take the process very seriously until the last minute, when he finally realized that his late filing could seriously delay my husband’s process. 🙃 But he’s also family, so nothing we could really do but be patient while he got everything together!

7 hours ago, Lucky Cat said:

It depends on what the actual communications says......In some cases, they will not proceed...in other cases, they will schedule an interview........If you can post a copy, we can tell you.

8 hours ago, amerikelinka said:

Please upload and submit [JOINT SPONSOR]'s most recent IRS transcript 2019.

This is all the message says, except for an explanation of how to request a transcript. No other information was included.

6 hours ago, pushok said:

Your best bet is to email embassy and confirm

with them. We are not from KZ but our country requires but we didn’t have it nor they asked us during the interview.

Thanks for the reply! It’s not actually something required by the U.S. but rather a supposed requirement from the Kazakhstani government to leave the country to live abroad.

On 9/8/2017 at 3:34 PM, Ёжик said:

And I saw the topic, that we need permission from the government to leave the country.

Hi, current/former applicants from Kazakhstan! Does anyone know whether the разрешение на выезд на постоянное место жительства за границу (permission to leave the country for permanent residence elsewhere) is actually required? Was anyone able to leave the country without it? If you received the permission, what was the process like?

My husband's case is at the NVC right now, and hopefully this winter/spring we'll be able to move (I'm living with him in Almaty right now). I'd be so grateful for your answers! I'm a little worried that he might not make it out of the country if he doesn't get the permission, but I also know that laws in KZ are not always enforced very strictly.

4 minutes ago, JeanneAdil said:

your RFE has a date that this info needs to be recd and an explanation of what will happen if they do not get it by that date

(last one i saw was 87 days from date of letter)

 

NVC will not continue the process if tax documents are not recd

but your case is good in NVC for a year (i think my notice said to email monthly to keep case open)

Thanks for the reply!  There's actually no date included in the message (besides the date it was sent, of course). There's no other info besides: Please upload and submit [JOINT SPONSOR]'s most recent IRS transcript 2019.

I also just realized that the message title is "Case FE Review note," not "RFE," but I'm not sure whether they are the same thing.

My joint-sponsor filed for an extension for his 2019 tax return, and I submitted that with the AOS documents on the CEAC portal. Everything was accepted, but I got an RFE for my joint sponsor's 2019 tax transcript. I thought they might ask for it at the interview, but I wasn't expecting an RFE at this point. My joint sponsor rushed to file, and hopefully we'll have the transcript in a couple of weeks...

...but will this keep our case from getting DQ'd? (I'm waiting for them to accept a couple of re-uploaded civil documents, otherwise I'd probably know already about the DQ) Or will they move on with scheduling an interview and we'll just be expected to bring the tax transcript then? I've read mixed information in the forum. Thanks in advance for your help!

1 minute ago, Chancy said:

 

That's probably it.  This list specifies for Kazakhstan birth certificates and marriage certificates:

 

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Blue, hard cover

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/Visa-Reciprocity-and-Civil-Documents-by-Country/Kazakhstan.html

 

Yikes. Idk how I missed that! I thought I’d read up on everything, but apparently not. Thanks for the info!

1 hour ago, retheem said:

These days they are approving things fast; I submitted ours to NVC on Feb 21st and was DQ'd on March 12th, 18 days later. I have a friend who was DQ'd after 10 days of submission.

That’s really great to hear!!

8 hours ago, _C&C_ said:

False.

From https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-1-submit-a-petition/step-2-begin-nvc-processing/scanning-and-uploading-tips.html

 

 

 

5 hours ago, Lil bear said:

I understand this is what the instructions say.. there have been some other anecdotal reports the same as the OP.. once they resent with the blank pages all was good. 

So, what I ended up doing was scanning the document cover — in Kazakhstan, official documents come in hardcover booklet-type things to protect them, but they also have the national seal on the front and the title of the document. Probably stupid of me not to include it with the birth and marriage certificates. I really hope that’s what they were looking for.

On 9/1/2020 at 10:54 AM, Sammy.NZ said:

OR if we should get married and apply for a spousal visa from NZ?

If you're living in NZ with your partner, then you'll have the burden of proving you intend to re-establish domicile in the U.S. You said you're living in NZ on a residency visa, which would suggest that your domicile (principal residence) is now in NZ. If you can prove you've taken concrete steps towards re-establishing domicile in the U.S. (there's a lot of good info about this in the forums), then you have a good chance that applying from overseas and waiting with your partner for their visa will work for you. If you can't do that, it might be better to get married in NZ now and then you move back to the U.S. before applying. CR1/IR1 visas are a priority during the pandemic, while K-1 visas are not.

For reference, I'm living overseas with my partner right now, but I'm on a temporary student visa. I submitted my visa along with lots of other evidence that I never moved my domicile from the U.S. (plus we have a joint sponsor, since my non-U.S. income can't be used for the affidavit of support) and it seems to have been accepted at the NVC stage. We haven't made it to the interview yet.

13 hours ago, amerikelinka said:

Do they just want me to submit the transcript by the time the interview takes place? Or will they not move forward to scheduling an interview until I've submitted it?

Anyone have any experience with this? I submitted my joint sponsor's 2019 filing extension, and they accepted it, but they are now asking me to submit his 2019 tax transcript. Not sure if they will DQ without it and request it at the time of the interview, or if they'll refuse to DQ until they receive it.

2 minutes ago, Xyrstine said:

Is it showing up as DQ'd? I think some people advise you to still upload the papers as it will be reviewed, yet others state don't submit until asked for and just show it at the interview. Both make sense 🤷🏻‍♀️

No, not DQ’d yet because we also have to re-upload two civil documents. I guess they might not mark as DQ until they have the 2019 transcript, too, though. I’ll be able to re-upload the civil docs soon, so I guess I’ll see whether once they’re accepted we get DQ’d or if they’re waiting for the transcript, too. It’ll probably take a couple of weeks to get the transcript uploaded, unfortunately.

2 minutes ago, Xyrstine said:

I had one message to upload the financial info and civil documents as I had only submitted the DS-260 form and paid for both the fees.

This happened to us, as well, a few months ago since we completed the DS-260 first. I think it may just be a routine message when you submit part of the application but not all. But who knows?

1 minute ago, Lil bear said:

#2    yes upload blank sides / pages as well

 

Ok, thank you! I'll do that ASAP and hopefully they'll be as quick in responding as they were last time.