PWB

On 8/19/2021 at 1:14 AM, rwilson3 said:

Thanks! I guess I have to wait more.

Just not right.  Everyone should be treated equal.  We all paid the same amount of money for this service.  

On 8/18/2021 at 4:40 PM, Commish10 said:

IRS Filing

IRS Filing can verify that you are currently single, but will not be helpful in proving that you have never been married.  CFO is over-stepping once again. 

Frustrating yes, but this is normal operating procedure.  She should have had x-ray and other documentation from SLEC to carry with her.  We went through the same procedure here in Texas and it all worked out in the end.   She was tested for TB and of course it was negative just like it was the three times she was tested in St. Lukes.  If you want to vent look towards the Bureaucrats at the CDC, the same folks who went against their own science to establish policy and restrictions for Covid.  They are responsible for the sputum mess at SLEC. 

With Social Security still on lock down coupled with poor response via telephone interviews  getting an SSN can be complicated.   Try to make appointment with Social Security, then have in hand your passport, and marriage certificate.  With this you may get a card issued in the name appearing on the passport and i-94 documentation.  There has been some recent changes to this requirement by the Biden Administration but with Social Security Offices still playing  "hidey-hidey" sometimes things don''t go well.  We got the card and  number but still trying to get a card issued under her married name.

1 hour ago, CelloLover said:

Are you self-employed? On the I-134, I'm seeing instructions to include tax information only if the applicant is self-employed.

Not self employed,  Tax information available if needed.

If you can easily disclose an annual income that well exceeds requirements than N/A the rest.  I only should showed total income and made available supporting tax documentation.  However, I was prepared to show all that they might demand.  

For what it is worth I think it would be to your benefit to get as close to the Embassy as possible while you can still travel.  We talk to family in the Philippines every day  and it does not look promising due to the Delta strain of Covid.  For what it is worth the word on the street is pending lockdown the first week of August.   Eighteen months of this mess and counting.   Sincere Best Wishes.

Active duty military can get expedited, but if you are "ex military" like you referenced than you are mistaken.  As a retired Army Officer, and additionally 100% disabled, I had to endure the same process that you are going through. Social media posting is largely a waste of time in my opinion.  Too much false information.

Best wishes to you.  The Journey is indeed harsh but as a CR-1 couple you will get a chance to bypass this nonsense us K1 couples are going through with the Adjustment of Status.

Glad to hear that.  Sputum testing at St. Lukes has had it's share of controversy.  Maybe the real question is, was the first test necessary?

18 hours ago, Mariner said:

While we spent the money and filed the lawsuit, I fear you may be right.  IF we can get her out of Manila, I would like to think that life will be better and dealing with the follow on frustration easier if together.  We have been screen sharing Skype to watch movies for over two years and gotta tell you, it's frustrating...  Running out of things to watch here.

No doubt it is better having her here with me and fighting this Governmental plague together.  So far it has taken over five months for an ID Card, SS# was issued but wrong name,  HLS did not update her entry information, on and on with this mess. 

Hang in there Joe and save your money.  If you can catch the Embassy/Consulate in a major processing mistake then you may have a little leverage but short of that they could care less about a lawsuit.  It has been our experience that getting out of Manila has only been followed by more frustration with the system.

12 hours ago, MJ&YY said:

We managed to change my wife’s name to her married name after arriving on K1 before her i94 expired. I didn’t expect it to actually happen.
 

My wife had a SSN from an earlier time in the US, prior to arriving on a K1 at the end of March. We married a couple days after her arrival and, once we had the marriage certificate, decided to see what would happen if we contacted SS office to change her name. Called the local office and got an appointment for my wife on 4/14 (we mailed AOS that same week using her married name).  The appointment went pretty fast. They scanned what they needed (ssn application, passport, I-94, marriage certificate) and said she’d hear back within 2 weeks or so. 
 

About a week later we received a letter from SS stating they were verifying her information with DHS, which could take up to 4 weeks.
 

We assumed nothing would come of it since we don’t have EAD or GC yet, but around June 15 (well past 4 weeks, haha) we received a letter from SS stating she’d receive a new card soon. The card arrived a day or two later. This all happened before her I-94 expired (this week).

 

Not sure if this is terribly helpful for most K1s since we didn’t have the initial multi-week delay applying for the SSN in maiden name.  I suspect doing this all early in her I-94 period worked in our favor.

Thank you for the response.  We followed the same procedure you did and got different results.  I believe our problem deals with COVID related times we now live in.  From all that I see we should have been able to get the card issued in her married name.  None the less we have a SS number and will pursue the name change later when and if we ever return to more normal times.  

On 6/21/2021 at 5:37 PM, Del A. said:

I got married in October 2019 and, well, I realize I'm late in filing the ROM. I'm in Michigan so I'm following instructions from the Consulate General in Chicago, IL. (http://www.chicagopcg.com/forms/rom.pdf) Page 3 is the Affidavit for Delayed Registration, and item number 4 goes: That the reason for the delay in registering the birth/marriage/death was due to __________________________________________; (Sorry, I...forgot? ✌️)

Questions...
1. Honestly with all the craziness of the past year, this process didn't even cross my mind anymore. What's a good way to fill in the blanks here?
2. I've only really looked into it because my husband and I are talking about traveling in early 2022 - which made me think of my passport, that my maiden name's still on that, and then "oh-shoot-ROM". I've read from an old post that I can just buy my plane tickets under my maiden name, then bring my marriage certificate and Green Card along; and that should be good. Will this still work?

(Side note: Did not expect that much required paperwork! One would think it shouldn't be too complicated. And they want you to provide a pre-paid return label? Cheapskates. 😆 I'm being a diva.)

The amount of paperwork is over the top and they want you to mail originals that if lost leaves you in a world of trouble.  Try to get an appointment and explain in person why you are late in filing.

SLEC and the sputum protocol was the major hurdle for us.  My wife had an x-ray before the SLEC physical and after their physical.  Her x-ray was normal.  Two times SLEC put her through the 8 week protocol.  Once in the United States she was tested and no TB.  That thin white line on x-rays that SLEC seems to find all the time has caused a lot of problems.  Best of luck.

We followed the requirement to the letter and they returned package requesting originals only. 

No problem providing original copies in person but to send them through the mail is foolish.

2 hours ago, ra0010 said:

Oh wow!!! That is stupid and dangerous!!! Can’t you make an in person appointment for the Consulate? 
My understanding is that federal agencies in the US do not necessarily interchange their information. So employees in a SS office might not fully understand the importance of some international ID Documents such as passports, and I have read tons of testimonies of people saying that their IDs were lost either at the SS or in transit by the post office. And nobody can be held accountable. 
I am a PR now, and I wanted to lift my restrictions on my previous SS card. So I read the requirements and they said that you have to mail your GC and they’d do it. I thought “I would never, EVER, mail my card because chances are that they’d lose it and then I’ll have to pay for a replacement which might take who knows how long to get to me”. So I called their toll free number to explain my situation (I also told them I have an upcoming international trip and explained the agent that I’d need it in order to be allowed back in into the US. The agent had no idea of what a permanent resident card was, so I wasted my time. I didn’t give up though. Something I learned from living here is that Congressmen and Senators are there for a reason and you are entitled to use them if you know what I mean. So the same day I contacted my Congressman and then a couple of days later they got the ball rolling and got me an in- person appointment.

 

So, I don’t mean to be repetitive, but never, EVER, mail original copies of your IDs. Especially if you are an immigrant and getting those copies would mean a hassle to you in your home country.

One of many things that continue to amaze me is the lack of knowledge both at the State Level of Government as well as the Feds.  I find my self explaining the Immigration process all the time to those very same people who are in charge of servicing our unique immigration requirements.  I have received bogus information from entry level employees of USCIS as well.  Safe to say that most people who post and use Visa Journey are every bit as knowledgeable as Government officials they are trying to work with.  Covid has only added to the equation.  I only wish that there was one source of immigration processing and not the mess you have now with the State Department, Home Land Security and USCIS duplicating requirements and making this process much more difficult than is necessary.

You are so right about mailing originals and that is exactly what SS wants us to do.  Can you believe  to register your marriage with the Philippine Consulate in Houston they would only accept originals of Birth Certificates and even the passport.  They returned our package which had notarized copies.    

1 hour ago, Chancy said:

 

Your wife already got her SS card with her maiden name?  When did she apply and when did she get the card?

 

Received SS Card in name that appeared on passport in January 2021.

1 hour ago, powerpuff said:

You’re gonna have to change the SS card anyway to get rid of the “valid for work only with DHS authorization” on it when you get the green card. This is because when she gets a green card she doesn’t need employment authorization like she does now. So I see no point of having it changed now to her married name and then changing it again to get a SS card without that wording. Also it’s not imperative to have a SS card in her married name, she can use her maiden name and show the marriage certificate as proof of name change if asked for it.

She was issued SS card in January in her maiden name, standard card no notation from DHS.  Understand that it is the number that counts and not necessarily the name.  Just want to get it done now.

Wife arrived on December 4, 2020, we married December 20, 2020.  Submitted Adjustment of Status and received  NOA  on March 22, 2021.  When she applied for Social Security Card we provided original Marriage Certificate and all current USCIS documents along with Passport and visa.  Local Social Security Office would not issue card with married name.  They would issue card only with name that appeared on passport.  Thinking they made a mistake I called National Social Security and was told that once my wife had a photo I.D. card issued by Texas DPS she could the name changed.  Found out that name changes can not be done via Email so back to local Social Security  Office and they told us that they do not do appointments for name changes, after many more calls local office has now said that until my wife receives a Permanent Resident Card  they will not allow a name change.  Is that right?   Given the waiting time for Permanent Resident Card that could mean two years to get a proper Social Security Card.

Ah yeah, the mysterious white line strikes again.