C and J

Well, my hubby phoned the call centre to chase up our missing I130 NOA1 (NOA1 should have been sent on the 27th April, according to the last update on the USCIS site).

Apparently the person on the phone was very unhelpful and said that they could send it out at any point within the 6 months and were not under any obligation to provide it by a specific point within the 6 months (i.e the 30 days you are meant to contact them after, if not received).

Also they said that the NOA1 was 'unimportant' as it is only a sign that they had received the inital petition. When pressed about the importance of the I797 (I think it is) it was pretty much the same response. Is the I797 the same as the NOA1 or are they two completely different things? I'm not quite clear on that.

I'm just glad that we didn't hold out until we received the NOA1 to send in the I129F, who knows how long we would be waiting if we had

I have 2 questions:

1) Is anyone here still waiting for their NOA1 (specifically from the California SC - printer problems and whatnot)? According to the USCIS site, our NOA1 should have been mailed on the 04/27. We chased it a month later and were told to wait a further month. Today is the day we chase again. I'd just like to know we're not alone in this.

2) Is it unusual for an I130 with an NOA1 date of 04/27 not to have been touched by now?

I'm getting slightly worried that we have already have our I129F NOA1 and that has already been transferred from Chicago to California and is currently pending. It's going from one extreme to the other, no movement on one and lots of movement on the other.

I am from Berkshire, my husband is from Iowa

This post slightly confused me and I hope someone can clear it up for me. I see a few of you stating that a Scotland Yard issued CR is required by the embassy. Did the OP ask for the criminal record from Scotland Yard because he lived in the London area at some point?

The reason I ask is that when I was looking to request a subject access form previously (it's clean) I could only ask for the record from Thames Valley Police and, on the Met site, it states that you have to contact the police-body responsible for your area. They all check the same computer database so why is Scotland Yard only important in this case?

Im interested to know why your MIL's words are taken as gospel and acted upon. Is this something that she has implemented herself or is this a rule that everyone in the family follows. I had a relationship many years ago where my partner's mother assumed the role of manager of my life. I told her politely that advice and guidance came from my own mother and if I needed her advice or opinions I would seek them. You have to stand up for yourself and let your MIL know that your decisions come from research and joint decision making with your husband, and that you will always ask for her advice in matters where you feel you may need it. Your husband could also have a chat with his mother to put things straight.

It's difficult to explain really, without making her seem like a battleaxe. Don't get me wrong, my mum in law is wonderful, except for this blinkered way of seeing things and pushing her ways onto other people.

Josh and his brothers have just been brought up in the environment where the parents choices were always 'right' and, even when they (the children) put their foot down about things, the parents would still impose what they thought was right. My mother in law apparently makes majority of the decisions in the household, something my father in law doesn't seem to worried about.

The older brothers are gifted in the art of accepting what their mum says and then skillfully working around it. They don't openly say no to her, which probably gives her the opinion that everything she says is right and that Josh says no to things just to be awkward. Josh is the only one who does say no outright (even though majority of the time he is ignored) and his mum gets quite hurt about it sometimes and then I feel sorry for her. Josh has been annoyed on at least one occasion where she has come to me because Josh had upset her with a comment.

I suppose it is just not the way I have been raised, my mum was always so open and understanding. She always listened and didn't push her opinions on anyone, even though she too was ruler of the roost. I suppose I find it hard to understand how Josh and his brothers were bought up because I have nothing really to compare it to. It's hard for me to say no to things she suggests, as I feel I am being disrespectful by doing so, when she has been so supportive. And she has already mentioned on one occasion that she doesn't want Josh's view of her to cloud mine and I can't help but think that saying no would prove this in her eyes.

Anyway, I suppose I'll just sit back and wait for her to come to us with the information she manages to get from the attorney (even though we will not go for it).

Excuse me for finding this thread pretty humorous. The OP asks somebody to tell her the student visa is a bad idea. Well, if it is, it's because it would take to long. The OP didn't ask anybody to tell her how to deal with her Mother in-law but plenty of people have advice about that. Who's mother in-law are they.

Anyway, if you want to visit your husband for a while during the visa process, just jump on a plane and do it but go back before your leave to stay has expired or for your visa interview, whichever comes first. When you come, give a general pleasure trip answer to any question about the purpose of your visit and be prepared to show ties to home that will convince the authorities you plan to go home instead of stay.

Questions on how to go about visiting from visa waiver countries are discussed here at least once a day, so you can read all you want about it until you're sick of it.

Thanks again for all the responses. I don't mind the opinions on how to deal with my M-I-L because I'm obviously not doing something right

I actually have a trip planned to visit Josh in Sept this year, so it's not as if we will not see each other between now and the visa completion. Albeit a week of that trip will be dedicated to my brother-in-laws wedding, we will still have a week to ourselves afterwards As I explained in a previous post, any lengthy stay in the US is not possible due to saving money, so a 2 week visit here and there is all I can afford to take. I'm used to travelling to the US on the visa waiver program (this will be my 4th trip) but am anxious as it'll be the first time while having a visa in process.

I have already spoken to my employer about writing a letter to show that I am in current employment and that I've been continuously employed by the same company for almost 10 years now. Plus I will have my return ticket with me and will have my wedding invitation too (to prove main reason for visiting). I have no property (mentioned earlier) as I am currently living with my mum until this is all completed. So hopefully that will be enough to show I have ties to return home.

Thank you for the responses

Yes, hubby and I are of the same mind as far as the student visa go. Neither of us want to go for it. My hubby actually says I listen to my mother in law more than he does and that I'm far too polite i.e I'm not forceful enough when saying no to her.

Unfortunately, when she gave us the idea for the student visa, we told her no but she is going to talk to the immigration lawyer about it anyway *sigh* I'm sure a few more polite 'no's' will eventually sink in. I can just cross my fingers and hope.

I'll just smile politely when the immigration lawyer (hopefully) tells her about the length of time to get the student visa and the adjustment of status from that. I think she thinks that a student visa could get me in the States now.

My mother in law means the best but at every stage of the process she continuously pokes her nose into our business and 'suggests' things, which have to be taken as gospel and acted upon.

When my husband and I were first going to submit the forms I researched them fully and filled in all of my portions and sent them off to hubby to complete the rest. His mother did not think this was good enough and made up go to a Diocese for help.

To me this was unnecessary expense as we had to pay for the Diocese's help and she made 2 amendments which were one 'N/A' and another 'as above'. Things that I doubt our forms would have been rejected for (of course I could be wrong).

Well, now she has made a friend of someone in the medical profession, who has ties with an immigration lawyer and has come up with the bright idea of my going over to the States now, on a student visa, so I can spend time there waiting for my K3 to go through.

Please someone humour me and tell me that this is not a good idea. It would be pretty obvious to anyone authorising my student visa that I am doing that purely to be with my husband and, honestly, I can't see it ending in a good way. I have a full time job in the UK where I am saving my money as best I can for when the time arrives to actually immigrate. That way I can more than support myself between arrival and my EP being authorised.

To go over there now, as a student, will stop any further income of my own and cost money for courses etc

Anyone else have a relative like this?

I am told that my wife who lives in Romania who has a valid passport (ROmania) can just book a ticket to US and stay for no longer than 3 months. Is this true?

I'm unsure if Romania is part of the visa waiver program (you will need to check) but if they are then, yes, your wife can stay in the US visa-free for upto 3 months as a TOURIST. BUT if you have already applied for a visa (I129F or I130) make sure your wife takes supporting evidence to prove that she intends to leave the country and return to Romania when the time is up.

Evidence can be: return flight ticket, something to prove she owns property in Romania or that she still has a permanent residence there. As this does not apply to me (I currently live at home with my mum while my visa process is in motion) a letter from an employer to say she is still in permanent employment is also good.

If your wife cannot convince the official at the airport of her intention to leave the country at the end of her visit, they have the power to turn her away and not allow entry.

This is one of the things currently worrying me about my planed trip to the US in September. The thought of going through the flight and being turned away is not a nice thought, especially as my being turned away will put a large downer on my brother-in-laws wedding and I don't want to be the cause of sadness on their special day.

Thanks RocksAnne. btw, the link did not work for me. Here is the one i found by googling the subject http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/Up...stems062607.pdf

They are silent about the K-3 filers if then can use the online printout for the I-129F. I would assume based on the language in the notice and given the situation at hand that they will accept the I-129F without the original NOA1.

My husband submitted my I129F with only a copy of the money order and a 'blue form' which the Diocese told him to complete. I'm unsure what exactly was on the blue form but the receipt number on the money order should be enough to prove it has been submitted.

Btw, the problem with the links is that this message board shrinks them (replacing important letters with ...) If you change the URL name to something smaller, it won't affect quoted text

Example:-

CSC News

Thanks for the info, it's a slight weight off my shoulders to know that it's a general problem and not a problem with our NOA1 specifically.

Although, I've never known a printer problem to be dragged out for 2 months (whish is how long we've been waiting now )

According to site statistics (which are only there to guide you), you would be looking at roughly 215 days from start of process to receiving the visa on the K3 , then a further 7 or so months for adjusting your status to a lawful permanent resident once you are in the States. The I130 is shown as an average of 305 days and the K1 as 182.

When you log into your USCIS case file there is a date by each file. When that date changes that is a touch. It is basically whenever they do something or log into your case. As far as AP, we did not apply for it as we decided to wait on any trips until we had an I-551 stamp or green card in hand. It is a personal choice that is apparently getting bundled with the AOS package for the larger fee. I hope that this answers your questions.

It answers them perfectly, thank you very much I wish they would show a history on the USCIS site, not just the last action.

Hi Everyone,

I see a lot of signatures and information on the site that show files as being 'touched'. How do you know this has happened? Is the USCIS site updated to reflect this? (I have subscribed on there with both my I130 and K3). It's only 75 days since my hubby sent off the I130 so I haven't yet experienced these

I also had a question regarding the costs of the K3, I know they are going up shortly and I have seen people quoting a AOS, EP and AP as being part of the costs incurred. Now the adjustment of status and employment permit I understand, but is the advanced parole actually a necessity or is it just a cost to bare in mind in case of emergencies?

I'm another person to add to the list

I've attempted to create a signature inline with a few others I've seen here, to better keep track of changes and hopefully you can add me to the file from that info

I130 filed in April

K3 in May

I130 NOA1 - still not received Is this unusual? We chased is after 1 month and were told to wait until the end of 2 months before chasing it again

K3 NOA1 - received

Both forms are now being processed in Chicago, hope that's a good thing rather than a bad thing (but after being told they are not the fastest at even sending out receipts, I do worry).