Darren&Laura

yeah i understand that it would be cheaper. so when i file for aos and ead together it will cost only 1010 right?

im on k1 visa

Yes, that's correct. $1010 covers everything, including Advanced Parole in case you need to leave the country temporarily before your AOS, (via sending in a completed I-131 at the same time as the I-485 and I-765 package.) Check out the guide here for everything you need to do http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...mp;page=k1k3aos

Oooh, I just logged on here to update my signature timeline as the check was cashed recently while my wife went outside to pick up the mail. Yay, in the mail today was my NOA's for both my I-485 and my I-765!!

I can sympathize too, it's tough getting adjusted and trying to build a life from scratch again after spending you life prior to the move moving forward in life and then starting from the bottom again. My situation is a little easier I guess as I have twin babies to look after and they take most of my time as my wife works. As we needed her health insurance she couldn't give up work, not that she wanted to anyway as she's in a senior position and earns a good wage she possibly couldn't match in the future if she left, (our twins were preemies and the hospital bills were $110,000 for their birth and aftercare, without her insurance that would have been a nightmare.) I sold my house and business in the UK, I came here with enough money to live on for a few years so decided that I'd look after the babies and be Mr. Mum while I went through the AOS, etc. and I love it. Still, it concerns me that I'm not meeting new friends and that most of the friends I have here are basically Laura's friends rather than both of us originally. As I live in Wyoming, it's tough to meet new people as there's few people here to meet and very little going on! There was more people in my city in the UK than there is in the entire State here and Wyoming is twice the size of England! (If any fellow Wyomingites are reading, please drop me a line to say hi!) That said, I love Wyoming, it's a great place to raise my kids and is a beautiful place.

I can't advise at all on the employment situation as I've no experience at all of that, although I'm pretty terrified of trying to work for someone again after running my own companies for so long in the UK, I don't think I would take well to being put in a box and told what to do. However with regard to fitting in and meeting people, I'd advise you to subscribe to your local newspaper and look out for local meetings and groups that interest you and go along. I'm sure you'd meet some nice people at some local events and get a quickly increased sense of belonging and community and possibly some good friends.

Sorry, please ignore my above post, I see from the guides that K3 holders MUST have the EAD first, and that they are processed in a totally different way to the K1 I'm familiar with. Sorry again for wasting time. Check the guide here: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...om&page=ssn

We are about to file our AOS but I was wondering if it's faster to get the EAD if you file it before filing the AOS? The speeed is more important than the money as we need to get a social security card and they won't give that without an EAD.

I have heard of some people getting a social security card without an EAD...anyone know about that. OUr SSA would not budge.

I doubt your spouse would be able to get a SSN if she is out of status. However, I see your spouse entered in June, so the I-94 is still valid for a couple of months so you shouldn't have any problems getting the SSN. I entered the USA on a K1 and applied for my SSN a couple of weeks after and this was granted because my I-94 was still valid for over 2 months, plus the K1 gave me employment authorization for the duration of my I-94, (3 months).

There used to be a PDF file of an internal memo to localized SSA offices on here somewhere detailing that people in our situation are free to work for the 90 day duration after entering on a K1/K3 visa but I can't locate it at the moment. Originally I was sent away when I went to my local SS office, but returned the same time armed with the memo and then the officer actually admitted the error and processed me.

i should have repass the test aswell but i just had to re-do the writing test (wich i did on the spot without even reading the book).

Thing who saved me is that i already had an old SSN + DL from 10 yrs ago so i just had to do the DL renewal.. convenient, really.

as for the TB skin test, i am still confused about that one.

Typical... I filed the I-129F just after the price hike last year, and now I file my AOS just after a new requirement which costs money... I'll wait and see what happens as I already sent in the AOS forms and payment. With regard to the TB test, I might not have an issue as it was obligatory to get a TB vaccination at school in the UK and I had the TB vaccination when I was about 10, I think that's on my vaccination supplement I sent with the AOS so I might still yet get lucky and not get an RFE.

darren, what kind of medical did u have to go through in the US ?

Hi, I haven't had any sort of medical done here in the US. I had my K1 medical only a few months ago in London, and have sent my vaccination supplements with the AOS in. I'm half expecting to get an RFE because I didn't see a civil surgeon and get the I-693 completed, but as many people on VJ didn't do this either and got approved I thought I'd try my luck too to save lugging my babies halfway across the state to the nearest civil surgeon, (I can't believe Cheyenne the state capital doesn't have one according to the USCIS site!)

Absolutely fantastic for you!! Your strength of character and refusal to back down and accept things did you proud. Well done and congratulations to you both!! I hope you both have a long happy life together.

Just got back from the post office in Cheyenne... my AOS is on it's way to the lockbox today. No more paperwork to worry about for a while - Yay!

A thread had already be opened for July filers

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;#entry1912386

See you there !

So sorry, I did check the first 6-7 pages and didn't see a thread so assumed there wasn't one. Ooops... if there's any Mods around that can merge this thread with the other that would be nice. ... otherwise please ignore this one everybody.

Well, despite my best intentions I am not able to file my AOS until tomorrow. I was hoping to get it sent a few weeks ago before I went out of status, but it took me longer than expected to get everything together, (serves me right for not preparing any the AOS requirements until after the marriage!). Anyway, it will be sent tomorrow, it's all ready, (although haven't sealed the package yet as will no doubt check through it a few times prior to sending tomorrow!).

I haven't been able to obtain the I693 Medical Examination of Aliens Seeking Adjustment of Status, so have just included the vaccination supplement and everything else I was given at the medical in London in the hope it will go through anyway. If not, I'll get an RFE and will obtain it then. There's no civil surgeon anywhere near where I live and as I'm often home alone with my twin babies I haven't been able to schedule anything as yet. I didn't want to delay actually getting the ball rolling as I am now out of status, so am sending as is. I've seen plenty of people on VJ actually get approved without the I693 so fingers crossed that I will be, but an RFE won't be the end of the world.

Anyway, let's all keep in touch now we've got this far through the process!

Congratulations to everyone on getting married!!

I'm legit!!!

I just got back from my interview....[croppped]

Thanks for this. We live in Cheyenne, Wyoming, so my local office will be Denver too and this is really helpful in allaying any nervousness for me. I've no idea yet when my interview will be scheduled for, but I think I'll bookmark this post so I can get a rested nights sleep the night before mine!

Agreed... after the mortgage and deed has been recorded, your wife can add you to the title through a quit claim deed. You can either get an attorney to assist you with this, but it is a relatively easy document and you could draft it yourself with a little research.

Unfortunately as you will probably see from my long post we would be up for fraud if my wife took the cheaper interest rate option through WCDA and then tried to add me to the property title through a quit claim deed in this case. Sorry i didn't have all the facts when I posted for help but I've spent all day today trying to get the lowdown on what our options are and how things work over here. Everything is totally different to the UK and I feel so dumb sometimes. I considered myself pretty streetwise in the UK, and now feel utterly stupid not knowing how things work here. I never even heard of the WCDA before so this didn't strike me as significant when referenced on the multitude of forms. Thanks so much for trying to help though, it's really appreciated.

I've just run through all the figures again and noticed that our lender has massively overestimated on the taxes applicable, plus screwed up a couple of other figures, so the difference between us taking the mortgage out together and the lenders original figures is only $40 per month, granted it's still much higher if the lender had correct figures on his quote to us, but from a psychological point of view we were already mentally prepared to pay similar. So, I may consider paying the extra and being on the title from the start, after all we'd save a cost per month on Laura having to have life insurance then, (probably around $25 per month saved0, and I would be off the mark in building a credit history too. I dunno... at least now I'm stuck until Monday so have a few days to weigh up the pros and cons of which way to proceed.

Right, just got back after a grueling day running about all over the place trying to get this sorted. At least now I now my options.

Firstly, I went to the SS office and got them to print and sign a letter stating that my SSN was processed and correct. The SS office did say it often can take over 6 months for financial institutions, etc. to have access to my SSN as the system was very slow in propagating around every it could be needed. I then went to the bank and handed this letter in to the guy who's been dealing with our mortgage application. I couldn't wait while he reapplying and processed everything as I had to get the car in to the garage to get the balancing sorted as my wife hit a kerb the other day and I wanted to get it sorted out before any excess wear on the tires occurred.

A couple of hours later I went back to the bank who had already drawn up documents now INCLUDING me on the mortgage application. At this point I was totally happy..... however - the original mortgage was drawn up under a scheme which gave a lower interest rate to people that had never owned land before, (http://www.wyomingcda.com/), as my wife has owned a house but it was on her parents land she qualified. HOWEVER, I DO NOT, as I owned a house in the UK within their 3 three year disqualification from the scheme time period. <Sigh>

Thus we have two options:

1. My wife can be the sole mortgage applicant and sole holder of the title to our new home, (it is not possible for me to be added at a later date while the mortgage is still active under the lower interest rate scheme.) We could possibly refinance in several years time under a different company or scheme at the standard going interest rate, (which would cost several thousand in refinancing costs, etc. as we'd have to pay all the fees, surveys and certifications again), and have me added then, or if we decided to move in several years once my permanent residency is sorted then we could apply together no problems.

2. We can apply together now on a standard mortgage at an exchange rate of 6.625% rather than the 6.00% she is applicable to under the above scheme by applying on her own, meaning our monthly payments would be around $120 higher.

Either way isn't ideal, but at least I know my options now. I'll decide over the weekend now whether it will be worth it to pay the extra each month for the peace of mind in having a claim to the property in any bad case scenario, (Laura's death, etc. Sounds really crappy having to think about such cases, but I have to plan ahead for our daughters.) Of course, as someone suggested above, we will both make wills soon, ensuring in either case we will keep our home in event on the death of the other, (we're both in our 30's, it seems strange and morbid having to plan for these eventualities.) I already have Laura named on my life insurance, but Laura is also going to take out a policy naming me soon too.

I can honestly say I never even comprehended that such a situation would be so complicated, but at least now we know the directions we can move forward in. I just hope with all the delays that our dream house doesn't sell in the meantime as we've been househunting every day off we've had together for weeks and totally fell in love with this place as a home to raise our baby girls.

Just as an aside - if we were to take a 30 year mortgage at a fixed rate of 6.625%, how does this compare to previous years? I have no experience of US interest rates, so don't know whether this is a reasonable deal over such a period. I don't want to take on such a long commitment if the interest rates are unnaturally high at the moment and likely to spend most of the 30 years below the fixed rate! any advice is appreciated!

Anyway, I hope my experience can prove of at least some use to people in a similar predicament in the future on VJ.

If the SSN is too new, other institution might not have it (well....I think DMV did not have mine after 6 months but we are talking about DMV here... ). I remember also that a background check for a job cannot be completed because SSN was too new.

Anyway, we were told to go to SSA office to get manual verification which means get a print out stating my name + SSN - signed by the person who was there at the counter that day. Problem solved for us.

As for name on deed, everybody already gave you good input. Good luck!

I called the 1-800 number for the national SS dept a few minutes ago and was told this too before I saw this post. I'm off down to the local office now with all my ID. Thanks to everyone who replied.

Fingers crossed this solves the problem.

I've just spoken to the guy at the bank again and it seems the only reason I can't be listed on the loan and thus the title is because the couldn't find a record of my social security details from my number. I applied for an SSN about two weeks after arriving permanently in march and received my card in early April. However, it would seem that something related to the SSN has not been activated despite me receiving it.

I'm shortly going to go to the Social Security office here in Cheyenne and see if they can shed some light. If it turns out something is amiss then I may be able to be listed on the loan after all and the problem would be solved.

I seem to recall reading peoples posts in the past on here having problems with their social security number, I've just done a search but can't find anything appropriate to my issue. Can anyone shed any light on what the problem could be with my SSN - obviously at the moment I'm awaiting my conditional permanent residency, so am officially out of status I guess, but the same SSN stays with me for life doesn't it so a record of me should still exist surely?

Any help will be greatly appreciated. I'm off to grab a shower now and then get the babies ready to leave so will check back on here before I go.

We've been told by both an attorney and the bank sorting the mortgage that it is impossible for me and Laura to be listed on the title of the property until I have residency - which could take a long time. Only the people on the loan can take title - which seems totally dumb to me. Maybe Wyoming does things differently to states with more sense.

Ridiculous.

It really isn't as dire as it seems . If your wife predeceases you her estate is where her house would go. I would assume you are the person that would be named. The hard part is to either pay off or get new money so you wouldn't have to liquidate the property. How long are you going to have to wait to be in status. Is it possible to put off the house for a little ? I am sure it is exciting moving up but it might be better money wise to delay a few months.

I've no idea how long I'll be out of status for - the wait according to VJ could be well over a year until I get conditional permanent status, plus I don't intend on returning to work in the short to medium term anyway as I want to stay home and look after the babies, (I have savings that I can live off for a few years, but not enough to buy a house for cash although I can allocate about 50k for the deposit). The house we've found is perfect so we really want to push ahead, plus the place all four of us are living in at the moment is far too small for us. I also don't want to wait any longer as it's a buyers market at the moment and it may not be in the future.

Hi all,

Because myself and Laura had twins last year while my K1 was still processing we need to get a bigger place now that our babies are on the verge of getting mobile. we had a meeting with our bank that Laura has banked with for many years, 9she added me to the account after we got married), and got approved for a mortgage. However, because I am currently out of status awaiting my green card which could take ages the bank had to remove me from the mortgage application to get approval, so the mortgage is approved purely on Laura's income.

We've now found a hosue and have put in an offer but the realtor, (part of our extended family here) has called me today stating that without me be named on the title of the house I would have no claim to it should something happen to Laura. Obviously I'm concerned about this as I will be paying over 20% of the house value as a down payment out of my own savings and should something horrible happen to Laura I wouldn't want us, and especially the kids to be homeless.

Does anyone know of a way that I can be named on the property title without being named on the mortgage?

Thanks,

Darren.

im no lawyer or real esate agent, but i would think a quick claim deed might be able to get you name on the house

thanks - I'll mention this to our attorney tomorrow when he's back in the office.

Hi all,

Because myself and Laura had twins last year while my K1 was still processing we need to get a bigger place now that our babies are on the verge of getting mobile. we had a meeting with our bank that Laura has banked with for many years, 9she added me to the account after we got married), and got approved for a mortgage. However, because I am currently out of status awaiting my green card which could take ages the bank had to remove me from the mortgage application to get approval, so the mortgage is approved purely on Laura's income.

We've now found a hosue and have put in an offer but the realtor, (part of our extended family here) has called me today stating that without me be named on the title of the house I would have no claim to it should something happen to Laura. Obviously I'm concerned about this as I will be paying over 20% of the house value as a down payment out of my own savings and should something horrible happen to Laura I wouldn't want us, and especially the kids to be homeless.

Does anyone know of a way that I can be named on the property title without being named on the mortgage?

Thanks,

Darren.

Being even more pedantic, the word "application" only has two P's not three

I'm also a June filer, my K1 ran out on sunday, so I'm filing a little late for AOS, I hope this isn't a problem. We were married on June 4th, but only returned from honeymoon recently and so have been trying to get all the information together since we got back.

Darren.

Thank you so much everyone for such detailed help!

Sorry if I'm being really stupid - but does this mean now that I have to have another full medical again here in the USA, despite the fact I only had one four months ago in London?

Thanks again for any assistance, it's really appreciated.

Thanks for the information - I guess the guide on VJ needs updating then!

Count me in too please - we got married on 4th June, and I'm currently sorting everything out now to send off asap for my adjustment of status.