cwaf
-
Posts
284 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Partners
Immigration Wiki
Guides
Immigration Forms
Times
Gallery
Store
Blogs
Posts posted by cwaf
-
-
I'll even make the first AOS related post. I. HATE. AOS! I thought getting everything together for the original petition and then the interview was a pain in the bum...it was nothing compared to the AOS stuff. Has anyone else gotten into the process yet?
I am waiting until December to start ours--after the wedding. I guess I should review the stuff in advance, though.
It's the medical stuff that is a pain...it used to be that you didn't need to provide ANY medical paperwork as a K-1 filer if you had your DS 3025 (they should have given it to along with the medical packet, it's the form that was outside the sealed packet)...now you have to get the I-693 filled out by a civil surgeon with your immunization record (that's it). Well...finding a local one has been impossible for us! They will only fill out the I-693 if they do the entire medical...well...we're not paying another $300 for a second medical! There is a doctor in TX who will do them long distance, we're going to be sending off paperwork to the office tomorrow.
They also just added a TB skin test requirement...theoretically you now have to have the TB test first and you only need the X-ray if the skin test comes back positive. Well...K-1 people already had the X-ray, which is more conclusive than the skin test. USCIS has put out the requirement, but none of the doctors are doing it yet. I talked to several different civil surgeon's offices who all said "...huh? That's not a requirement. We won't put that on the I-693 for you." We got it done at our regular doctor and we'll just include a copy of the results with our packet.
Bleh...we're just going to file to the best of our abilities and hope it all works out fine. Dennis is going stir crazy not being allowed to work...although right now I think he's glad of it. He has a nasty cold right now.
well, I think I need to begin looking at the forms and requirements.
-
I'll even make the first AOS related post. I. HATE. AOS! I thought getting everything together for the original petition and then the interview was a pain in the bum...it was nothing compared to the AOS stuff. Has anyone else gotten into the process yet?
I am waiting until December to start ours--after the wedding. I guess I should review the stuff in advance, though.
-
hey all. I want to give my congrats to all who have arrived in the USA. I have not been in for a while and I have been busy with my new family members. We have shared many new things, from large grocery stores to Walmart and shopping malls. ("everything is so HUGE!")
I mentioned before that we are getting married in Florida 2 days before Thanksgiving, and I was able to apply for a marriage license by mail! It has been approved and has all necessary notarizations, and I just take it with me to the presider of our wedding and they do the rest.
I hope everyone can adjust quickly to their new surroundings. My Sveta has not shed any tears for home since the first week, and she calls home every day to speak to her mother and sister. She also chats online with her sister, and my soon-to-be-stepdaughter is able to chat with her friends, and even call home and talk to them on the phone from time to time. oh...the phone calls are free, too WHEW! (Thank you MAGICJACK!!)
of course, our house looks very different inside and I have to ask, from time to time, where some of my stuff is. hahaha
She always knows which box she put them in! Things are different in my life with them there, but I am very happy they are here! They both took English language placement tests this past Saturday and hopefully in December, they will begin classes. I am fortunate that the ESL program here is free, so they both can take their lessons without breaking me farther--financially. ;-) everyone have a wonderful weekend!
oh..I also second the motion ( or third, or fourth) to convert this to an AOS forum so we can continue to support each other on our next step into our journey!
-
I have heard also that once a beneficiary gets in US (K1) and applied for SSN, she or he can already work without the EAD yet only the SSN. Is this possible?
You heard wrong... by itself, SSN is NOT work authorization. A K-1 receives a SSN card with "VALID FOR WORK ONLY WITH DHS AUTHORIZATION" printed on its face....
This is true. I got the EAD stamp when I entered at JFK and found a nice job here within 2 weeks. I never told them that my EAD stamp would expire along with my I-94 after 90 days and just thought that if they don't figure it out, I'll keep working there. But companies are not stupid and they know about that stuff. So on the day my I-94 expired, they kindly asked me for an EAD renewal, which I didn't have yet. My SSN alone was not enough to keep me working. So now I'm not working while I wait for my EAD card. Fortunately the company where I worked is willing to hire me back so I was lucky.
Were you able to get a job simply by showing the EAD stamp from JFK? The agent at JFK told me I would have to go to my local office in Indianapolis (where we live) and they would have to do some processing, but I am not sure what. Both my fiance and her 17 year old daughter received the stamps when we arrived at JFK, but I am unsure if I need to make an appointment in Indy, and if so, for what?
thanks!
-
Visa approved - absolute walk in the park! Full write-up in UK section.
^5, dude! excellent...never had a doubt! -
Look ... i can tell i'm not a proud mum !
My little one going like that as an impro on stage at the Japan Expo last july in Paris :
VERY lovely! ;-) thanks for sharing.
-
Yeah, great end to a loooooooong story my firend. I really hope it all works out fine and dandy for ya.
Well, Monday is the day for me............
it will all be fine!
(yeah, sometimes I write too many details, but I figure that I am the artist and it is my job to paint the complete picture in your mind!)
-
Congrats cwaf! I'm so glad you could finally bring your girls home.
THANKS!! :-)
-
Congrats to Miss Yoko!
We made it home late Tuesday night. After many hours of traveling! The only "issue" we had at JFK at Immigration was the white immigration card. We were given one for Sveta and her daughter, and when we went to the agent window, the woman said we needed two white forms--one for Sveta and one for her daughter. We were instructed to go to the back of the room to a counter where the forms were and fill one out. Fortunately, it was not busy and we had no problem walking back to the counter. Sveta was halway through completing the white form when another agent approached us and asked if she could help. I explained what we were doing, and then she asked if "they are coming to live here permanently", and I replied "yes". She then said we did not need ANY white forms and told us to follow her. She took us straight to a 3rd agent---who was not busy--and stood there for a couple of minutes and just before she walked away, she announced loudly "you will be fine now. You do not need the white forms". Well, the old agent said otherwise! After a few minutes of looking over our paperwork, he asked where the second white form was. (he heard the woman say they were not needed!) and when I said that "she said we did not need it so we did not complete it yet", he replied "well, she was WRONG".
It only took 2 minutes to complete the second form and he continued working on our papers. He finished them and referred us back to another area where we handed the packet of information to another agent. That woman was a bit more friendly and she completed it and handed us the passport back in about 5 minutes and we were done! She had stamped the little card for the temporary work permit before I asked about it. She nicely explained that I needed to take it to my local immigration office to get the permit. We were exhausted, yet wired, when we finally made it home about 7 hours later! Being able to work from home yesterday was invaluable to us all as I was able to help acclimate the ladies to their new home. Sveta spent several hours unpacking and organizing things--and there is more to do. Apparently I do not clean as thoroughly as I should since BOTH of them--individually--said the bathroom needed cleaning.
But, all in all, things were very smooth for the first day. In the late afternoon, we went for a long walk and stopped at the grocery store--another culture shock for Sveta. When we left the grocery, it was raining and we had to walk about a half mile in the dark and rain! I told her that was not exactly how I envisioned our first walk together in the USA! 
Sorry for the 'book'....I hope it did not steal too much of your time!
-
Hello everyone! I apologize for being absent for a while, but I have been enjoying my time here in Ukraine with Sveta and her family. The interview on Monday October 6th went well, and we were able to pick up her passport from FedEx on Wednesday October 8th. The only possible problem could be that they mispelled Sveta's last name in one location in the visa. Her name was correct on her visa page, and her daughter's was correct on her page, as well. But, at the bottom of the daughter's page, they list who the parent is and they had a typo in Sveta's name there. We were concerned about it, so we took the metro system back across Kiev to the US Embassy and I asked about it there. The woman assured me it will be no problem since it is an "obvious typo" and not an "incorrect name", plus their names were correct in the other 2 main locations. We are gambling that she is correct!
We leave this evening on the overnight train to Kiev, then go straight to the airport by bus. We fly into JFK and then connect to Indianapolis 3 hours later. By time we get home, we will have been traveling for approximately 33 hours, but it will be worth it! I will provide another update in another 2 or 3 days. :-)I offer congrats to all who have made progress and wish happiness to all. I offer sympathy for Ray, though I do not know what their problem was for the interview.
ps...I am not looking forward to the AOS and the extra expense for 2 persons, but it is an investment to our future!
-
I am officially a married woman!
We had a teeny, tiny ceremony at my church on Thursday with just my mom, one of my good friends, my little brother, and my father there. Then Dennis and I took off for a mini honeymoon at a little B&B a couple hours north of here. It was wonderful and it feels so good to finally be married after all of that waiting! It was worth every minute of the wait to get to where we are now.
CONGRATS!
mine is scheduled, but not until November 25th. It will also be a small, intimate wedding on the beach at Key West. 
-
Nice work! Next up, we gotta get cwaf through on the 6th!
I hope we get through on the 2nd.
You will be fine! :-) I just have to get myself through 4 1/2 work days and then I get to fly to my sweetheart!
-
Congratulations to everyone who had good news while I was gone! Dennis and I crossed the border at Emerson/Pembina (North Dakota). We got a guy who was doing his first K1 visa, but he was really friendly and we worked through it together. I'm glad that I had VJ because he tried to give us the original packet back! I was like "I don't think we're supposed to get that back..." he went to check with a more experienced officer then came back and told us we were right and he was supposed to keep it. Took about an hour, then they let us through. We drove the 23-ish hours back to Salt Lake, across North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, then Utah. Not much to see in ND or MT except cows and fields! We got home yesterday afternoon. It's so wonderful to finally have him at home. We'll get married on Thursday and then it's on to AOS/EAD/AP.
Nice work! Next up, we gotta get cwaf through on the 6th!
Congrats to all! hey, I am working on it!
I fly to Ukraine on October 3rd, the interview is on the 6th, I have the return flights booked for October 14th, and just booked the wedding for November 25th at Key West on the beach. It will be a small, private, but hopefully romantic wedding just before sunset. -
A delightful update! Dennis and I just got back to our hotel from our interview. We were at the embassy for almost four hours..and it was worth every minute. We were called up to hand in our paperwork and the lady who took it was VERY impressed with our organization (yay VJ!), then sat back down. Then Dennis was called up for his fingerprints and we were told to sit and wait for our interview. While waiting we heard the two couples in front of us have their interviews, one had been denied for a tourist visa last year because the officers didn't believe she would come back at that time. They were finally approved after a pretty in depth interview. The other couple asked specifically when they could pick up their visa and were told that it was impossible to do them same day, because the information has to go back to Washington and they were already closed there. Both couples were called up, told to sit back down, then called up for additional interviewing
They called Dennis up (I was allowed to go with him) and spent less than five minutes with the interviewer. She asked how we'd met, what type of wedding we were planning on having, and what we each did for work. Then she said those magical five words "I'm satisfied with your relationship." She sent us over to the first window to get instructions. The lady there said that the consulate will be closed tomorrow!
Normally you can pick up your visa the next day at Vancouver...we were a bit panicking then because we have plane tickets to fly back home tomorrow night! The lady told us to sit down and she would try to print the visa right then and there for us. We sat for another hour or so and she called us up and gave us the sealed packet and returned Dennis' passport! Apparently we REALLY impressed her, since they had just told someone else it was impossible to do, but made an exception for us! Thank you all for the well wishes and the support through this process, it's taken SO long, but finally we'll be heading home together! We leave Canada on Friday and are going to drive back to Salt Lake. I hope everyone who is still waiting gets their good news soon!
CONGRATS!! I am very happy for you both!
A delightful update! Dennis and I just got back to our hotel from our interview. We were at the embassy for almost four hours..and it was worth every minute. We were called up to hand in our paperwork and the lady who took it was VERY impressed with our organization (yay VJ!), then sat back down. Then Dennis was called up for his fingerprints and we were told to sit and wait for our interview. While waiting we heard the two couples in front of us have their interviews, one had been denied for a tourist visa last year because the officers didn't believe she would come back at that time. They were finally approved after a pretty in depth interview. The other couple asked specifically when they could pick up their visa and were told that it was impossible to do them same day, because the information has to go back to Washington and they were already closed there. Both couples were called up, told to sit back down, then called up for additional interviewingThey called Dennis up (I was allowed to go with him) and spent less than five minutes with the interviewer. She asked how we'd met, what type of wedding we were planning on having, and what we each did for work. Then she said those magical five words "I'm satisfied with your relationship." She sent us over to the first window to get instructions. The lady there said that the consulate will be closed tomorrow!
Normally you can pick up your visa the next day at Vancouver...we were a bit panicking then because we have plane tickets to fly back home tomorrow night! The lady told us to sit down and she would try to print the visa right then and there for us. We sat for another hour or so and she called us up and gave us the sealed packet and returned Dennis' passport! Apparently we REALLY impressed her, since they had just told someone else it was impossible to do, but made an exception for us! Thank you all for the well wishes and the support through this process, it's taken SO long, but finally we'll be heading home together! We leave Canada on Friday and are going to drive back to Salt Lake. I hope everyone who is still waiting gets their good news soon!
Nailed on, girl!!!!!! Just a few more stragglers to get approved from the fine February batch now (talking of which, I must phone the Kiev embassy and badmouth cwaf!
)
no no no! not that!! ;-) -
now for an UPDATE!!!
Tina has received a date for her interview, October 8th!! Just got off the phone with her, she has her medical on the 25th of this month so that will be out of the way. Things are moving now.CONGRATS! Our interview is on the 6th! I am flying out on the 3rd and just booked return flights yesterday for October 14th. I was going to wait for the visas to be in our hands before getting the flight, but when I checked yesterday, the flights I needed were going quickly. I gambled and booked the flights...now the Embassy had better not delay things!
GOOD LUCK!
Congrats to both of you guys on the scheduling of the upcoming interviews! It's about time, huh! ?! I hope that things go well for the interviews and that the visas are promptly issued and in your fiancees' hands!
THANKS! :-)
-
Thanks, it's really helpful to know that this happens sometimes and it's not all going to just disappear forever lol! My biggest question is how on earth do you get through to the CSC? We have called the USCIS I don't know how many times and they say it is impossible to call the CSC....do you have a number? My fiance did call the congressman yesterday so hopefully that will get us somewhere soon too.
This whole thing just makes you want to scream doesn't it!!!!
All the best for your interview
The number I used was 1-800-375-5283. Calling today or tomorrow should will work out better. expect to be waiting for 20 minutes or so before you get someone.
now for an UPDATE!!!
Tina has received a date for her interview, October 8th!! Just got off the phone with her, she has her medical on the 25th of this month so that will be out of the way. Things are moving now.CONGRATS! Our interview is on the 6th! I am flying out on the 3rd and just booked return flights yesterday for October 14th. I was going to wait for the visas to be in our hands before getting the flight, but when I checked yesterday, the flights I needed were going quickly. I gambled and booked the flights...now the Embassy had better not delay things!
GOOD LUCK!
-
I just wanted to let everyone know that Michelle was approved for her visa on Mon. We are here in the Phils patiently waiting for a message from the courier.
CONGRATS!!!
-
Another update....DHL delivered Tania's visa at 10:50 this morning! That's 10:50 AM in Tomsk or 10:50 PM last night (my time). And, flight reservations have been made for September 24! So, after 8 months, the little piece of paper is finally in her passport and in her hands! And, even better, we now have a definite date for using that little piece of paper!!
I hope all of the other Feb filers, who haven't yet reached this point, have a smooth and quick go of it!
congrats!!!!! I am very happy for you both!!
Another update....DHL delivered Tania's visa at 10:50 this morning! That's 10:50 AM in Tomsk or 10:50 PM last night (my time). And, flight reservations have been made for September 24! So, after 8 months, the little piece of paper is finally in her passport and in her hands! And, even better, we now have a definite date for using that little piece of paper!! I hope all of the other Feb filers, who haven't yet reached this point, have a smooth and quick go of it!
Congratulations Don!!! I too received my visa this morning and Ill be flying on Sunday(Sept 14) to be with my baby...Finally!!!
CONGRATS to you!! I wish smooth sailing from here!
-
Well, another tiny step in the right direction - my packet 3 was received by the embassy today. Gettin' closer........ B)
EXCELLENT!
-
appointment for the medical on september 29
Interview date on October 2
congrats! you will be interviewing only 2 business days before us! We will be there October 6th.
do me a favor and don't say anything bad about 'cwaf' I don't need any more delays! Well the thought hadn't crossed my mind, but now you mention it, I'm gonna call the embassy in Kiev and tell them that you're a wrongun, cwaf!
HAHAHAHAHAHA
-
appointment for the medical on september 29
Interview date on October 2
congrats! you will be interviewing only 2 business days before us! We will be there October 6th.
do me a favor and don't say anything bad about 'cwaf' I don't need any more delays! hehe i sware i'll not
wish U luck!!
hahaha thanks! I wish you both much luck and happiness!
-
appointment for the medical on september 29
Interview date on October 2
congrats! you will be interviewing only 2 business days before us! We will be there October 6th.
do me a favor and don't say anything bad about 'cwaf' I don't need any more delays! -
Congrats to everyone on the progress in their visa journeys!!
Tania had her interview this morning, and her visa was approved!!!! The whole interview process took less than 5 minutes!
She should have the visa in hand within a week.Now, we can get serious about making flight reservations for her!
EXCELLENT! CONGRATS and good luck!
-
HAPPY TUESDAY everyone!! IT HAPPENED FINALLY! Sveta called the Embassy in Kiev today and we have an interview scheduled for October 6th !!! Sveta called me this morning just after I woke up to tell me, saying this news could not be typed!! Now I get to make travel arrangements, and God willing, I will be back with her and her daughter by October 12th!
I knew you'd beat me to interview!
Nice one! THANKS!!!! it was a great way to start the work week. (yesterday was a holiday for US)
Great news cwaf - delighted for you
I hope this might be a good omen for me? 46 days since approval and no packet 3
I call the Embassy every day and have emailed them with the special "I'm allowed to email" code, but no joy. I am sorry, Scarlett!!! I hope this is definitely a good sign of things to come for both of us. I give HUGS!Thanks Mate, Hugs do help
then I give MORE HUGS!
Cheers, you're a
awww..thanks!
I wish I could help get you out of Embassy Hell!! Yesterday I booked my airline ticket---1 way only--to Kiev for the interview. I did not get return tickets for us because with my experiences lately (like yours) delays seem to pop up for no reason, and I felt I would just be asking for trouble if I got them. I will get the flights once we have the visas in hand--and have checked them for errors! It will cost more for airfare this way, but at least I know I will be safe!
February filers at CSC
in K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports
Posted
Hello dear Scarlet! it is great to hear from you again, too. I know...I know...I know..you ladies wonder how we men even survive!
Sveta and I had a discussion like that last night when she told me I WILL reorganize the one room I told her she could not do! hahaha She and I walked around the room and I explained why things were where they are, and why I cannot move things as she expects me to. There is somehwat of a method to my madness in that room! She understood SOME of my reasoning. hahaha
I looked over the AOS stuff yesterday and was confused about the medical. The 'AOS guide' says that it is necessary, but the 'AOS tips' say it is not.
When someone knows for sure, please post it. :-) We are waiting for after the wedding before getting the Social Security numbers so we do not have to worry about name changes a second time.
I know her daughter will not be too happy when her mother's SSN card has MY last name, while hers still has her biological father's name. (she does NOT want his name!) However, she will have to keep it until I can legally adopt her and allow it to be changed. 
good wishes for everyone from Indy!