Adventine

I saw the same thing at ATL a few months ago. Facial recognition scans at the gate right before boarding the flight leaving the US. I thought to myself, this is a low key kind of exit immigration system.

How about putting "Freelance/On-Call [Job Title]" and approximate dates?

Thanks to everyone who jumped in to defend me. I believe I've been confused with someone else in this thread. Just another day working for the VJ Customer Service dept 😆

Is it going to be her first time on a plane/travelling abroad? If yes, I can understand how it would be overwhelming, especially if she isn't that computer literate. Add to that, she's moving overseas, which is stressful for anyone. CBP is used to dealing with all kinds of passengers, from complete newbies who don't speak English, all the way to the jaded million milers. They aren't going to give her a hard time unless they find something suspicious about her behavior. I suppose it would help if she watched some YouTube videos about flying to the US so that she has an idea of what to expect. There likely won't be any footage of actual CBP interviews but she could read articles online about what it's like. Just don't watch stuff like Border Patrol 😉

@Mochiyeah OK, since you're interviewing at the US Embassy in Japan and not the Philippines, according to this page, you just need your Japanese divorce decree: https://jp.usembassy.gov/visas/immigrant-visas/k-checklist/ You should be fine.

***Moved to the Philippines regional forum for country-specific answers*** Were you married in Japan to a Japanese citizen? And will your K1 interview take place in Japan or the Philippines?

Seconding Wise. I'm part of a few expat groups on social media and they frequently recommend this service. I've used it myself for a few years and never had issues.

Even more important than the money, the scammer stole your personal information. If you haven't already, you need to change the login info of everything you remember sending to the scammer: email, bank info, etc. If you included your SSN, you need to freeze your credit because the scammer has everything they need to impersonate you and take out loans in your name.

I deep cleaned the suitcases and searched all the pockets, but hey, whatever works for you!

I've actually had great success with my local Buy Nothing group on Facebook. I've gotten free suitcases, small appliances, even furniture. The items are usually in good condition - people just wanted to declutter. Just search for "Buy Nothing [your city]" and something should come up.

@haljbr no, you can log in with a personal device at home and your usual LinkedIn account.

My husband and I are proactive. We always use the "Let's look broke" defense. We always show up at the airport wearing old clothes and we never have expensive pasalubong in our beat up suitcases. Works like a charm. We've never been hassled.

Sigh. They're back to their pre-COVID tactics. What a shame.

American Express issues credit card statements that clearly show the breakdown of transactions between the original CC holder and the authorized user(s). So both spouses names CAN show up on the statements. Citibank statements, on the other hand, will not. My spouse and I have credit cards from both issuers and we're including all the statements in our ROC filing.

It's very sad, I remember reading an article about passport renewal issues in some countries in crisis like Venezuela, Lebanon and Syria. Passport renewals can cost hundreds of dollars or not be available at all because the government doesn't have the budget for it. But apparently Venezuela has extended the validity of expired passports and this is recognized by the US Dept of State, at least according to this source. I couldn't find an official Dept of State announcement about it, though: ABA Banking Journal: Venezuela Passport Expiration Date Extended for Five Years. https://www.aba.com/news-research/news-articles/venezuela-cip

@abaa congratulations! Your fiancee should get her passport back with the visa soon. Out of curiosity, what documents did you end up sending to prove your income streams?

***Moved to subforum "Effects of Major Family Changes on Immigration Benefits" where similar topics are discussed*** @Daphne K they can try for VAWA with a pro bono immigration attorney. @NormanKer take a look at this USCIS information: https://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/abused-spouses-children-and-parents and the related VisaJourney threads on the VAWA process. Good luck and keep yourself safe.

That's right. Meantime, spend some time on the site, read about other people's experiences, look at processing times so you can set realistic expectations about the process. Good luck!

@khahlh93 you got some great advice from @Sarge2155. Get your own court records. You don't need a lawyer for that.

The lawyer gave you some bad advice. It's the CR1 spousal visa that gives her the right to work in the US as soon as the passport is stamped. I'd fire the lawyer and invest the time in learning how to DIY. The forum has a great guide for the spousal visa process.

How is it a black mark against the field office director? Do they have some sort of formal KPI for adjudicating I-485 applications in a certain timeframe?

In Manila, waiting at the gate for my flight back to the States: An older, heavyset American man seated near me starts a video call with who looks to be his Filipina wife. He doesn't have headphones on, and he's yelling, so everyone in 50 foot radius can hear the entire conversation. American: What the f-- is this?? (waves a stack of Philippine pesos at his screen) I didn't need this at all. Useless! Woman: What's wrong, what's the matter? American: I didn't need these [waves the pesos] at all. What a waste of money! (proceeds to open his wallet to show to the screen). Look! Look! It's empty! Argument proceeds like this in circles for a few minutes. Finally, a short Filipino man gets up from his seat, goes over to the American, and starts yelling too: Filipino: Would you shut the f-- up! American: [stunned silence] Everyone at the gate: [stunned silence] Filipino: Just shut the f-- up, man! Everyone can hear you! You're too loud [body language looks like he's about to hit the guy] American: [still in stunned silence] Filipino: [walks back to his seat] American: [proceeds to keep talking to the woman on the video call, but in a much smaller voice] The best part of this story? At the Atlanta POE, I ended up in line with one of the people who had the exact same itinerary as me (PH-US) and who had also witnessed the entire scene in Manila. He told me the two guys ended up seated beside each other on our 12 hour flight back to the States 🤣

I agree, that happens quite a bit. We've also seen a few cases on this site where the USC honestly didn't know about their partner's biological children, and filled out the forms thinking they were saying the truth.

Others will chime in with answers to your other questions , but for #2 and #10, your Philippine birth certificate will be in English already. And yes, if your biological father is listed, you need to identify him on the forms. As you mentioned you want to get the documents together with minimal involvement from your mother, you can order your birth certificate here and have it shipped directly to the States: https://www.psaserbilis.com.ph/#! Good luck with filing your package. What an awful situation your mom and stepdad put you in.

***Moved to the Philippines regional forum for country-specific answers*** Some posters will hopefully chime in with their personal experience, but for more data-driven answers, VJ has timeline statistics you can look at: https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/stats.php?cfl=