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Regardless if the child is coming or not, you should list him in your I-129F. Don't forget to include the child's birth certificate and 2x2 ID.

Thank you for your reply, I think this is good advice, and thanks for the reminder on the BC and IDs.

child's BC and 2x2 photos are not required with submission of the 129F. important thing is to remember to list the child.

here's link to Manila Embassy website with info about K-2

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3204.html

I read that page , it gives some general info about children and k2. But I can't seem to find anything about K2 in the Guides. I get referred to the I-130. Now I'm confused hehe..

Here's what that page instructed:

"Children (unmarried and below 21 years of age) of a K1 applicant may derive immigration benefits from the same I-129 petition and are issued “K2” visas. Children identified in the approved I-129F petition are called “derivatives”. Derivatives may apply at the same time as the principal applicant parent or may apply later but must be issued K2 visas within one year from the date the K1 visa was issued to the principal applicant parent. Derivatives who are following to join the principal applicant parent must apply for their K2 visas in a timely manner to allow visa issuance within the required period."

How do we apply for a K2 visa when the mothers K1 is approved? Is that the I-130 or some other form? Is that done in Manilla, or here in the US ?

I read somewhere that children have to have their Father's written concent to leave the contry, but I can't find that reference. In this case, the Father is not to be found. What document needs to be filled out stating that fact, and when and where does it need to be filed?

I can sympathize with the decision you and your fiance will be making concerning her child. My wife's situation was similar to that of your fiance. she also was a single mom. after her father died, my wife took on the responsibility of being the bread winner of the household. her mom would look after her daughter while she was at work.

we also considered having our daughter come here at later date, but in the end decided to have our daughter come at the same time. the most important reason for our decision was for us to be together as a family.

everyone's circumstances are different. I wish you well in deciding what is best for your family.

as an example of petitioning a child over age 21. my wife had a co worker who was over 21 when his parents petitioned him back in 1996. his petition has just recently been approved, over a 10 year wait.

best of luck with everything

Roy

Your wife's situation is very similar, thanks for sharing Roy. As for your co-workers petition for their son, 10 years! I had no idea it could take that long. My Fiance was thinking of letting him finish school there, and then have him come over. I guess the thing to do is bring him over here first, and then decide if he wants to be here or there to finish school. If he wants to finish there, then what would we need to do to ensure he could come back if and when he wants to without having to wait 10 years?

Regardless if the child is coming or not, you should list him in your I-129F. Don't forget to include the child's birth certificate and 2x2 ID.

Thank you for your reply, I think this is good advice, and thanks for the reminder on the BC and IDs.

child's BC and 2x2 photos are not required with submission of the 129F. important thing is to remember to list the child.

here's link to Manila Embassy website with info about K-2

http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwh3204.html

Thank you for the link and info.

Sorry, no offense, but I ended up in your thread by accident and thought it was worth mentioning that all children of the beneficiary are to be listed on the I-129F whether they are coming to the U.S. or not.

Some things to consider should the child not be listed....

1. What will happen to the child should the Grandmother pass away?

2. What will be the consequences if he is not listed and then, at a later date, his mother would like him here? There is every possibility that there will be consequences and setbacks if the child was never listed on the original petition.

Best of wishes on your visa journey.

Thanks for the reply to clarify the requirement to list the child on the forms. Your questions that you posted here are some of the same questions that I am having, so that is why I started all of this.

We are in that stage of learning where we have some assumptions about how things might work, but we are not sure. So we are trying to find out how they really work and what problems there are that we don't know about yet but would like to avoid.

Thank you, I appreciate the input!

Remind your fiancee, that if kid reaches the age of 21 and change his mind..it will be harder for you guys to bring him to US. Try to inform your fiancee to see how things will work out for the son's future.

I wouldnt blame your fiancee if she considers her mother with regards to this changes. Filipinos has been known of honoring "extended-family" thing. With the close family ties we had, sometimes we intend to forget some limitations of treating family issues - Whom to priority & when to put boundaries.

Im sorry to say this..but in the Phils you can see 4 families living in one roof.

WHat im trying to say is that..your fiancee has already been having a very good opportunity to have her "OWN" family..to have you & her son as her family..but STILL her mom is on the priority list.

Please dont get me wrong..im not asking your fiancee, not to think of her mother. What I mean is that, try to focus on the future family first..then when everything is settled..its time to think of the other family member like her mom.

HOpe your fiance, discuss the circumstances to her mom & to her son..so she can hear their opinions first before making decisions. Specially the son's opinion. HE may be young to make decision but if he felt that his opinion is worth to hear, then he will realize how important he is to his mom though they're not that close.

If in case your fiance insist to leave her son to her mom, when she will take care of her own child?

If not now..when?

hope this enlighten you..

regards,

alexandra

Thank you for sharing your situation and your thought process surrounding your decisions. You made some good points for us to think about and discuss.

I want to be clear about this though, my Fiancé' has always taken care of her son and will continue to do so. One of the things that initially impressed me about her is what she has done as a single mother to take care of her son with no support from the boys father. Her mom has looked after him while she has worked in the city working to earn a living for them all. She has taken care of them and helped put a neice through school at the same time. Im sorry if I gave the impression that she has abandoned her son to her mother to raise. That’s not what has happened there. Its not that she wants to leave her son with her mom to take care of him when she goes, its that she wants her son to be there for her mom.

The point I am trying to understand is about him turning 21. What happens then, why is it harder to bring him to the US after he is 21? I don't understand that part of the immigration laws and will have to do some research there.

Regardless if the child is coming or not, you should list him in your I-129F. Don't forget to include the child's birth certificate and 2x2 ID.

Thank you for your reply, I think this is good advice, and thanks for the reminder on the BC and IDs.

Honestly, I can not understand your fiancee's way of thinking too. It's not typically Filipino. Let me see...she's going to the US to complete her family, right? It seems like her "family" does not include her child. Anyway, to her/his own.

Although I appreciate you sharing your opinion, I think your being too judgmental and a little sarcastic with this part of your response. My fiancé and her son love each other very much, and he is definitely a part of her family. If I have given the impression that she is less then a loving Filipina mother in anyway, it is because I have done a poor job of communicating the situation, and for that I am sorry. I know she loves her son and her mom very much, and is trying to think of what's best for all of us concerned with the information we have available.

This is why I am asking the question here. To find out what we might not be thinking about, that we should be thinking about, because we don't know the process very well yet.

I would definitely include him on the petition.

Things change and if he gets his status adjusted here he can go back.

Why take a chance with the proposed immigration changes involving children

over 21 ?

In the mean time someone else can take care of the grandmother.

Don't do anything you may regret by not including him on the petition.

He has a year to follow.

Thank you for your reply! Based on this and the other responses I think it does make sense to list him on the petitions.

This is why I asked the question in the first place. Since we are not familiar with this whole imigration process, I wanted to get this out there to see what things we might not be thinking of so we can make a full correct decision about this.

I am not aware of the proposed changes for children over 21 so I don't understand your point. What are these proposed changes are for children over 21, where can we read about them to determine how will it affect us?

Also, where does it state he has 1 year to follow? I would like to see that instruction, that would be helpful for timing/planning purposes.

oops, I-F129 is supposed to be I-129F. Strange, for some reason I can't edit my initial posts, only the replys to it?

Hi All,

Sorry for the long post, please bear with me. I was thinking this might go on the K-1 forum, but I think its more of a regional/cultural issue/questions that people in the Phils could relate to, so I thought I should put the question here instead and get some advice here from all of you experienced people

My Fiance' has a 14 year old son. Since she was a single mom, her son stayed with her mom in the Provence while she worked in Manila for all these years and she supported and visited them when she could. As a result, Grandma and Son are very close.

I want my Fiance' to come live with me in the US for at least the next 5 years so she can get her citizenship and the benefits of doing so, and I will be in good enough financial shape to retire. Then once her immigration status is taken care of, we can discuss moving back to the Phils as I am open to do, if she wants to at that time.

When I asked my Fiance' about also bringing her son to the US, my fiance said her son would be staying in the Phils with Grandma to take care of her! I was very surprised at this, but she gave the following reasons: 1. Grandma and Son are so close that Grandma and son would be so lonely being apart. 2. Fiance wants Son to be there to take care of Grandma because she is old and does not have anyone there to watch out for her directly as the son could do. There are other siblings who could help, but she wants her son there watching out for her. 3. Schooling for him will be less expensive in the Phils and it will be less disruptive for him to just stay there until he is out of school.

I can see the logic in what she is saying, but it is a little difficult for me to understand the personal cultural dynamics going on since I am not used to this kind of thinking. I would have thought that mom would want her son with her, but I can see she is trying to do the best thing for all concerned especially her mom. I can support both my Fiance and her son here, so that's not an issue. If she thinks her son is better off staying with her mom, then I guess I will go along with that since I feel she knows what is best at this point regarding these concerns.

But this leads me to the question of what to do with the I-F129. I was reading how hard and how long it takes to petition additional family members. I am wondering if that also applies to children? If so, should I go ahead and list him on the I-F129 just in case things change? Should I try to get him here to the US to make sure immigration here will be taken care of for the future if he wants to come here, and then send him back to the Phils to be with Grandma? I am kind of at a loss of how to think of this and would appreciate any guidance some of you more experienced people can provide.

TIA,

Mac

Hello and welcome to VJ! You had a wonderful trip full of great time. Congratulations ....Good luck with your fiance visa and I hope you will get to be soon with your fiance/future wife.

Why you want to hire an attorney when you have VJ? Unless you have some complications I do not see why you can not do it by yourself

Hi MaydayDas, thanks for the welcome!

I guess I wanted to have an attorney do it because I don't mind paying to have it done by an attorney with the assumption that it would be done faster and more accurately then I could do it myself. Maybe that's a bad assumption?

hmmm, I don't see a way to edit my initial post. Can we not do that, or am I missing some something?

Thanks,

Michael

Hello Everyone!

I've recently returned from a great trip to the Philippines where I finally got to meet my fiance' and her family in person after months of time online with her. I met her in Manila, spent a few days there, took her and her mom and sister to see her 93 year old grandmother and other family in Bohol. We spent a few days at the Bohol Beach Club and saw the sights (Chocolate hills, Tarsier monkeys, huge python snake with a ghay cross dressing handler lol...) We then went to Boracay and had a great couple days on the beach there at Fridays resort. We went Jetskiing and she took the Discover Diving course. It was great, she's such a love and so adventurous, willing to try anything fun! Then we went back to Manila ( I call it Mall-nila) and visited the malls for some shopping and watched some movies. It was 10 days of bliss. We had a great time! It was waaaaaaay to short, but I had to get back to work *sigh*.

Now I'm back home ramping up to start the K-1 process.

I live in San Jose, California. I wonder if anyone could recommend a good Immigration Attorney in this area that is familiar with processing K-1's where the fiancé is from the Philippines?

Looking forward to getting back together with her asap!

See you around! TIA!

Mac