JimmyColorado

Ate

She told me she got a receipt for her renewal application but she had to give it up to some additional Department in order to have her passport delivered to her.

It didn't sound right to me either.

Curt&Ro

Thank you.

I think now she will have to take a trip to the DFA office in person and find out what's going on.

Is it just me or is the Philippines Civil Service completely inept and very slow at times?

I'm not sure if this is the right form to ask this but :

My Filipino wife has misplaced her passport and submitted a replacement passport application at  the DFA office, Cagayan De Oro, Phillipines.

She's definitely going to need that and we have already submitted our I-30 spousal visa application.

It's been 5 months. The application was approved and she paid the extra amount to have it Courier to her home address but nothing so far.

Is there any way to call them ?

Does anyone have special numbers that isnt on the internet to check on the status of her passport application?

Or do we have to go in person to Cagayan De Oro ?

So far, that they do not answer the phone at any of the numbers. We've tried everything.

5 months seems way too long and that there's something wrong.

Thank you in advance.

Jimmy

Inday.

The reason they kept her passport in the first place was because they were about to approve the K-1 Visa as soon as we provided two more simple documents. But then our engagement ended.

I had to do the right thing and inform the US Embassy. The K-1 Visa is only for people who are engaged. I wanted to preserve the integrity of the US Visa system by telling 100% the truth all the time. And that's what we did.

Thank you

Inday

Not yet.

But just last night I made my third call to the US Embassy Manila help center.

This time she actually gave me the address of a 2GO office where the passport would be sent,  if the US Embassy does indeed decide to send it. They're going to email us with a tracking number. .....maybe. I'm skeptical.

Why the previous helpers at the helpline didn't do this. 

As you know it's extremely difficult to replace lost documents in the Philippines.

I even asked if she could pick them up at the embassy herself but she said its not possible. The embassy is literally only for people seeking visas who have appointments.

This phone call to their helpline seemed a little bit more optimistic because I was much more assertive, but we'll see how it goes. Thank you for your reply.

Jimmy in Colorado

Our K1 Visa was already approved and the US Embassy Manila kept her passport until we provided a few extra documents, at which time they would  send her the K-1 Visa attached to the passport.

We then decided to not get married and broke off our engagement.

We didn't want to defraud the government so we cancelled the entire K1 petition with a letter signed by both of us and submitted to the US Embassy Manila. They received it.

Now we cannot get her passport or documents back. We've tried calling the help center and emailing the US Embassy several times, to no avail.

Can she just walk into the u.s. embassy, Manilla and request her passport be returned to her with the accompanying documents? Because that's what we're at the point of doing because nothing else works.

So the question is can she just walk in and get her passport returned to her ?Thank you in advance for your responses.

J.

Zale

Read above. Boris provided.

EMAIL:   IVMANILAREPLIES@STATE.GOV

Immigrant Visa Unit
            Website: https://ph.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/
            Email: IVManilaReplies@state.gov<mailto:IVManilaReplies@state.gov>
            Tel: (632) 792-8988

Again. Send an email to them and attach a letter requesting to withdraw the petition with a very short reason. Both of you sign it, and attach to email. That's what worked for me although they did not give confirmation that they received it, but it did get there.

Or, call this #. They are very helpful once you get a live person. Toll free from USA. 

703 520-2235

Jim

Zale

Check above. Boris64 's information is very helpful.

I can confirm that they did receive our request to cancel the petition. Write a short letter of explanation and both of you must sign it and attach it to the email.

Try to attach it so that it opens by itself and they don't have to click a link. I don't think they like to click links.

However, I received no confirmation that they received it, but after talking to the person live at the US Embassy helpline she did confirm that it was received. The problem is they did nothing after that to return the passport and that's what we're working on now. Thank you all for your great responses. 

Jim

Follow up.

We've sent two emails and one letter to withdraw the K1 petition, in order to get her passport back.

And last week I called the u.s. Embassy helpline and talked to a live person who said they would nudge the process and expedite the return of the passport and I would hear from the US Embassy Manila in 2 days with instructions on how to retrieve it. That was 6 days ago.

I will call that same helpline again soon. It's the one they provide for you to talk to a live person, if you're patient, and they have a toll-free Stateside number.

Puskbrk

We were just in Dumaguete last month.

We did the tourist thing to Apo Island to snorkel with the sea turtles. Big mistake.

It's so restrictive, it wasnt fun. 

I bet you know Gloria. We stayed at her Airbnb house that's right on the ocean across from Apo Island. She knows a lot of people in Dumaguete. She's married to an 80 year old German guy? And she's quite the businesswoman.

The other place we really liked and we're looking at houses was Lapu-Lapu City, mactan island, Cebu City.

It had a real nice feel there and it's not brutally hot as other places.

Pushbrk

Wise words.

My wife was shamed enough at our pre-marriage interview with the government worker who goes over being married. I'm not sure what she's called. But she really highlighted the fact that my wife had an illegitimate child, but in a direct way, not condescending.

Later on in our marriage we might be moving to the Philippines. Where in your opinion is the nicest place to live for an expat?

Jim

Pushbrk

I want to thank you for your advice and I have finally convinced my wife to put his name on the i-130. She was crying and everything and said she didn't want to but I finally convinced her basically what you just said. Filipino law does seem to be a little different. They give full custody and full rights to the mother if the child is born out of wedlock, as you know.

I guess they have a problem with that over there. And you're right about truthfulness. Filipinos are extremely straightforward and unpretentious and I very seldom hear them using even sarcasm LOL. It's quite refreshing.

Thanks again

Jim

Yes Lily.

You are correct. Thank you

Boiler

Do you also feel that it's okay to put the father's name on the i-130 even though it says "unknown" on the birth certificate? My wife really hates this guy because he abandoned them. She doesn't want his name on anything but they're asking for it on the i-130

Jim

Pushbrk

Well this opened a can of worms with the wife. I've been messaging her all night saying I want to put her baby's daddy's name on the application while the birth certificate says "Unknown" where the father's name should be.

She got very emotional because she was abandoned by this guy and does not want to use his name on anything.

She's concerned that there will be a problem if she lists his name on there I-130 application but it does not correspond to the birth certificate because it says: Father : Unknown.

How do you feel about putting "abandoned" on the I-130 form where it asks for her child's father's name. That way it's not lying and could be further elaborated on if the interviewer chose to do so.

Your thoughts?

Jim

You no maybe I'm naive LOL. Because I've been to the Philippines 4 times now to visit my wife for excellent family bonding, and I didn't see any prostitutes.

Or perhaps I saw them and I just didn't realize.

Pushbrk

Thank you for elaborating.

Because I never thought of that angle. Yes of course she knows the father's name, so we will proceed as you've suggested. She'll put the father's name on the I30 and the birth certificate will still indicate illegitimate child and then she can explain at the interview which I will be attending with her.

JR

Thank you PortoRUSA, and Pushbrk.

Your answers are very helpful.

Pushbrk , yes. Feel free to elaborate.

It kind of feels like putting the father's name on the i-130 might be what causes problems, but I'm not sure.

He is not on the birth certificate,  but would USCIS ever ask for a parental rights waiver be signed by the father, because his name is on the i-130 form?

But if he's  not on the i-130 or the birth certificate theres no way USCIS could ask for further documentation. What do you think?

We will give it a shot. Thank you

Ok thanks. I just assumed an email would not get the job done. Would you recommend  a handwritten letter?

Jorge. Its in Manila at the embassy I assume. 

She lives no where near Manila, and do they even have walk-in service ?

I thought there might be a process to request it email or website where they can mail it to her residence.

My Filipino fiance, before I met my Filipino wife, went to the K1 interview at the US Embassy in Manila. It was about that time we decided to call off our engagement due to irreconcilable differences.

We did the right thing and withdrew our petition even at that late stage. However the US Embassy kept her passport. What is the easiest way to get it back for her? I would like to help her out because she's a good person and asked me if I could help.

The embassy kept it until we submitted some final documents that we had neglected but that's when we broke off our engagement.

Is there a site or an email address I  can go to with the case number and request they return it to her? I'm surprised they didn't do this automatically after one year.

Thank you in advance:

James

My spouse and her child live in the Philippines and I am a US citizen living in USA. We have been married two years and after 4  visits it's time to bring her, and her 7 year old son Stateside



I will fill out I-130 forms for both.



1) do I have to pay double the fee $535 X 2 ?



2) Should I include form I-130A  with the initial filing package, or can that wait ?



2) Are there any other forms ( not documents, we have those) that should be included in the initial package? ....it sometimes gets confusing.



3) Her son's father is nowhere to be found and is not listed on his birth certificate. Is it okay to proceed with his birth certificate showing "father unknown" or is there additional documentation the USCIS will require ?  ( her son's natural father would be impossible to track down and there's been no contact with him his entire life)



I don't want to adopt him until he gets to the States because I understand it can be a nightmare to do it in the Philippines.



I would like to thank you for any responses and for helping me in this matter.



James S