elizabeth&hisham

Mailed everything yesterday with a G-1145 on the top...all instructions followed as carefully as possible. Will update our info here when (hopefully) there's good news... Thanks, all!

That makes sense -- thanks, Starkilla09

PS, does anyone know if the Form G-1145 "Request for e-Notification" can be used with N-400 apps? (That's a new option since last time he filed paperwork...)

Thanks for the reply! Definitely helps to have a second (and third, or fourth) person's take on these details before he mails the packet.

Hey all

It has been a long, long time since we posted a question here.

As my signature shows, H and I were active members here at VJ over a decade ago when we met, applied for a K-1, and married.

Getting his Permanent Resident Card took FOREVER (okay, only 4 years...) but eventually the 10-year card was issued.

Now we're back with some questions about his Naturalization application.

1) DIVORCE

We divorced in 2012, but remained friends. We've got a copy of the divorce decree (it was simple, only 5 pages). QUESTION: since he was a Permanent Resident since 2009, do we need to include the original marriage paperwork? Or do they only need the proof of divorce? Since he's been a Permanent Resident since 2009 we're hoping, since that's 5+ years ago, that he can apply for naturalization with just the notarized divorce decree.

2) ARRESTED / CITED / DETAINED (question #23)

In June 2011, H got his first traffic ticket. It was for running a red light ("disregard traffic signal") with no accident; he just got pulled over and ticketed. Unfortunately, since it was his first time ticketed, he missed the due date for paying the fine and ended up getting his license suspended for "failure to appear" at court for the unpaid ticket. After paying the fine, his license was reinstated and everything was fine... except now, when we're confused as to whether that mark on his record would could as being "cited"...

We printed out a BMV report showing that his license is currently valid/not suspended. It shows the dates, the reason for the suspension, and the court case number. QUESTION: we plan to include the BMV print-out and a cover sheet with an explanation. Does anyone know if this situation requires "an original official statement by the arresting agency or applicant court confirming that no charges were filed" (N-400 Document Checklist, page 2)...?

We're unclear on whether the BMV print-out and explanation are enough, or whether we need an additional "original official statement". Any comments on this question would be appreciated!

3) AFFIDAVIT

As the ex, I plan to include a notarized Affidavit confirming that our marriage was entered into in good faith, and that I still wholeheartedly support his application for naturalization. That seemed like a smart thing to do... QUESTION: Has anyone done that before? Is it a good idea? Would it also help to get notarized statements from his current boss, other friends, etc? He's still basically like a member of the family, so my father wondered if a letter from another family member would help establish his good character, etc.

Thoughts.......?

Thanks for reading. It's been a long time since I posted here, so I truly appreciate it.

E

Thanks for the kind congrats, everybody.

I'll definitely post updates about how next month's interview goes. (Fingers crossed...!)

E

He arrived what I'd consider rail-thin in 2005 and hasn't put on but a pound or two. His first job was working at a Wendy's and he tried to gain via burgers and fries then, but anything he put on came back off whenever he eased up on the fast food. We've tried protein shakes, but once he's had one he doesn't have an appetite for actual food for hours, so the calories don't really add up...

Did I mention how envious I am?!

It took a couple of months for us (see signature) but that was a few years back so things may have changed.

Best wishes for quick turnaround and an easy interview experience.

E

Thanks, upstategal.

Here's a copy of the question I just posted to the thread "FAQs: Forms I-693 and DS-3025, Medical and Vaccination Supplements When Adjusting Status" over in the AOS/Green Card forum. Feedback from anyone here in the MENA group would be heartily appreciated. E

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Question.

As listed in my signature, my husband entered the US on a K-1 back in April 2005. As part of the K-1 process, he had a medical exam and vaccinations with a consulate-approved doctor in Morocco in January 05. At the POE in April 05, he handed over his envelope. He didn't get copies of whatever was inside, so we have no DS-3025 (just a receipt for the exam).

After marrying, we applied for his AOS in August 05. This was less than a year after his medical exam in Morocco.

We have finally (honestly, just now, almost four years later) gotten an interview appointment for his AOS. It's a long story (and not our fault at all).

Anyhow. I've read the USCIS 'Application Procedures: Becoming a Permanent Resident While in the US' and noticed that the Form I-693 Medical Examination Sheet is "not required if you are applying based on continuous residence since before 1972, or if you have had a medical exam based on a fiancé visa".

However, as others have noted in this thread, the I-693 instruction pages suggest that, as a K-1 holder who had his exam overseas, we'll still need to submit Parts 1, 2 and 5.

Since his vaccinations were done in Morocco, the DS-3025 was part of his POE envelope, correct? Are we still required to see a civil surgeon about I-693 Parts 2 and 5? If so, without having a copy of whatever was in the brown envelope, how can a civil surgeon fill out that info?

I'm hoping he won't need another full exam and battery of shots before our AOS interview next month...

Advice, anyone?

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Thanks so much for the kind note and advice, Jenn!

Question.

As listed in my signature, my husband entered the US on a K-1 back in April 2005. As part of the K-1 process, he had a medical exam and vaccinations with a consulate-approved doctor in Morocco in January 05. At the POE in April 05, he handed over his envelope. He didn't get copies of whatever was inside, so we have no DS-3025 (just a receipt for the exam).

After marrying, we applied for his AOS in August 05. This was less than a year after his medical exam in Morocco.

We have finally (honestly, just now, almost four years later) gotten an interview appointment for his AOS. It's a long story (and not our fault at all).

Anyhow. I've read the USCIS 'Application Procedures: Becoming a Permanent Resident While in the US' and noticed that the Form I-693 Medical Examination Sheet is "not required if you are applying based on continuous residence since before 1972, or if you have had a medical exam based on a fiancé visa".

However, as others have noted in this thread, the I-693 instruction pages suggest that, as a K-1 holder who had his exam overseas, we'll still need to submit Parts 1, 2 and 5.

Since his vaccinations were done in Morocco, the DS-3025 was part of his POE envelope, correct? Are we still required to see a civil surgeon about I-693 Parts 2 and 5? If so, without having a copy of whatever was in the brown envelope, how can a civil surgeon fill out that info?

I'm hoping he won't need another full exam and battery of shots before our AOS interview next month...

Advice, anyone?

Elizabeth

Thanks, Jackie and Nawal.

After moving to Indiana last year we contacted our helpful Senator Lugar's office, and his staff were able to ascertain only that H's case WAS still 'in the system', but was ALSO still being held up for unspecified security/background check reasons. We assumed we'd be stuck in limbo for another four years...

Then, last month, we got a notice that his fingerprints were expired and needed to be resubmitted. So we went down to Indy to do that (and FYI, we LOVED the Indianapolis office... they're so, so, SO much quicker and more organized and friendly and efficient than anywhere we ever went in New York!!) And less than a month after going down for his prints, we get this interview letter.

In 06 we got an interview appointment in New York, but it was cancelled a few weeks later. I'm just so hoping that this one'll be for real.

ETA: Staashi, his work card apps were always a nightmare. Twice they were delayed for being somehow 'attached' to the delayed AOS app. Then we'd just wait and wait, and of course the hotline folks could give no info. So that situation required intervention from senators offices both times. Truly, truly screwy. I'm just hoping this interview will mean a green card so that we never have to apply for a freaking work card ever, ever again...

Wasn't sure where to post this. The whole story's here in the MENA forum.

Hi all!

I haven't been around VJ for ages -- our case was so stalled, and for so long, that I simply stopped checking in. But I'm back today to share some of the best news we've had in ages...

H's AOS application, submitted August 2005, has FINALLY cleared whatever log jam had been holding things up! WE HAVE AN INTERVIEW APPOINTMENT in Indianapolis next month, hooraaaaay!

Time to dig out the old paperwork and get a folder in order for the appointment. At this point, the medical stuff is the only element making me nervous at all. He had his exam and shots prior to getting the K-1, and turned all of that over at the POE when he got here in March four years ago. I'm just not clear yet on whether 1) that original stuff, so old, will still be considered valid, or even if 2) it managed to keep up with his file (wherever it was) all this time...

Looking up info here currently. Anybody care to point me in a helpful direction?

Also, has anyone from Morocco had an interview recently? I'd love to hear what to expect, especially success stories...

E

Yes, it is way less expensive to get the translation done overseas...

BUT

Be aware that some state/govt offices may REQUIRE that your translation has been done by someone registered by your state.

This happened with us in New York.

We were told on two different occasions that papers translated overseas would not be accepted. So for example even though we had his birth certificate in Arabic, in French, and in English from a translator in Morocco, we still had to take those papers to a translator here in NY (and pay the big bucks) in order to have his birth certificate accepted by the NYS offices we were dealing with here.

Just a friendly FYI. The moral of the story is that it may vary from state to state, and you'll want to contact the offices in your area to see what their requirements are.

Best wishes,

E

The MENA regional forum has many past threads that may interest you.

Best wishes on your journey.

I've heard about children being granted Moroccan citizenship by Morocco automatically, if the father is Moroccan. I'm not sure if the US automatically recognizes both for kids (haven't gotten that far yet!) or if Morocco automatically recognizes citizenship of children of Moroccan women abroad.

But the question of how Morocco and the US treat the citizenship of Moroccan female spouses of USCs...? I don't recall ever seeing that discussed here. So I'm not sure, but I'd be interested to know.

E

That's not what I have heard at all. I was told that I could obtain dual citizenship when my husband and I got married, and this was from our lawyer in Morocco. Where did you read that?

I read it here, and now that I look closer it's talking about dual nationality of children born to Moroccan fathers. So I don't think that applies in our case.

This conversation was interesting to read. I missed it the first time around.

First, I'm not a convert to Islam in any official sense. And I've never felt the need to go that route, but I certainly respect everyone who has.

Meanwhile, my husband is Muslim and deeply at peace with his faith. He observes Ramadan religiously (ha) and doesn't touch pork since he grew up turned off by the texture and smell. But he doesn't go to any mosque, and we do enjoy a nice glass of wine with dinner whenever we like. (Besides during Ramadan, of course, when we don't even kiss if I've enjoyed mouthwash, let alone wine.)

His habits are probably cultural, tied to his early life in Morocco, but his character itself is essential and deep: being a good person, maintaining good relationships with others (of any belief) and caring for the world around us are his biggest concerns. Mine too.

The person who commented that there are 'lots of similarities' made me smile. I didn't think that comment was in reference to beliefs concerning Jesus' divinity. I grew up Catholic and read that remark as a reference to the general overlap in beliefs across all three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Hicham and I had lots of long talks about religious beliefs and upbringing/traditions while we first got to know each other, and we were both always pleasantly surprised to see how many stories come up in both the Bible (Both Old T and the gospels) and Quran. My childhood love of certain Bible stories and themes found close copies in his memories of favorite suras. True faith, and true submission to the divine, have something to do with the main ideas from both faiths, perhaps.

Best wishes with your decision, if you're still considering conversion. Regardless of your 'official' religious status (and ours) he and I both wish you peace.

Looking forward to lots of his homemade harira this Ramadan,

E

Yay -- hope to hear good news soon. Best to you and your wife.

E

Best wishes!

"Supman" just made me giggle.

Over the past couple of years, we've hit on a few funny ones.

In the early days, he used to blush whenever people would bid farewell by saying "have a good one." He thought that 'having a good one' sounded somewhat sexual.

Then came our showdown over Wal-Mart. I typically avoid the place, but he found it amazing. So when he asked what was wrong with Wal-Mart, I explained by offhandedly saying that some of their business practices seemed "shitty" and "shady" to me. Thus Wal-Mart became (and remains) "the Shitty Place."

Third, he seemed to think that "umm" is as weird as "yanni" sounds to me.

And, most recently (as his English continues to improve), I'm constantly amused by his use of the word "until." In my mind, "until" is always somehow linked to a negation (as in "I *didn't* go to bed until 3am" or "please *don't* water the plants until Saturday). Meanwhile, for him, until is infinitely more useful...

I came to work until 9am (him) = I *didn't* come to work until 9am (me)

Do we have any linguistics or ESL people here? Anyone who could enlighten me on how to better explain the strange intricacies of until...?

Miss this forum. If I could be online more, I'd post more. Best wishes to everyone,

E

Wow, thanks for the awesome links and advice, everybody!!!

We're able to stream 2M now, which makes him *very* happy. (And it also means I can start getting my Choumicha fix again... does anybody else have a thing for her cooking show? I love it.)

The next item on his agenda is following the soccer link and then figuring out whether we have access to anything tall and south-facing...

Many thanks,

E

Hey everybody,

I just read the recent thread about things that MENA people miss most in the States and it had me nodding and grinning!

Misses the food? Check. Sense of community spirit? Check. His Mom? Won't discuss it, but check...

And decent (partiularly European-ish) clothes? Double check!!

Our biggest question for everyone here relates to the TV issue.

We don't have a satellite dish and it isn't really an option where we're renting currently. Tonight, we started looking into websites offering $30-40 downloadable software for streaming live "online TV" via the computer...

Has anyone tried this stuff, or heard about it from anyone else who has? I tend not to trust online stuff very much, but we agreed to look into the options and ask for feedback from others first.

Some of these websites seem pretty questionable -- poorly designed ads, and you can't access a full list of channels. But others look almost reputable. And it would be worth the $40 for him to be able to watch his soccer, and maybe a few Arabic language stations. (The major ones at least, if finding a specifically Moroccan station is too much to hope for.)

Anybody heard about these programs? Particularly as respects futbol and Arabic language stuff?

Best wishes to everyone as our spouses continue adjusting,

E

Seems like people are getting good news lately... congrats (and send some of it this way please!)

E

Two more months -- no new news. Still hanging on -- hoping we'll get his AOS before the 2-year anniversary of our application for it, come August.

Hoping everyone is well,

E

Hi all,

Just an update, since it's been a few months since our last post.

We're still waiting on H's AOS interview/approval. The case was filed in August 2005, and he did went in for the Biometrics appointment that November.

In April 2006, an interview notice came (for May '06) but then a cancellation followed.

No further news to date. We've spoken with an immigration specialist at a local official's office, but the most she could tell us was that he must be stuck in some kind of FBI name check blackhole. We've requested reviews from USCIS/DHS twice since May '06, but no new info. For now, according to everything we've heard, there's nothing to do but wait.

At least we're waiting together!

I don't visit VJ very often anymore, but I'll certainly post an update when we get any news or action on his AOS case.

Best wishes to everyone else,

E

Hi all,

Just an update, since it's been a few months since our last post.

We're still waiting on H's AOS interview/approval. The case was filed in August 2005, and he did went in for the Biometrics appointment that November.

In April 2006, an interview notice came (for May '06) but then a cancellation followed.

No further news to date. We've spoken with an immigration specialist at a local official's office, but the most she could tell us was that he must be stuck in some kind of FBI name check blackhole. We've requested reviews from USCIS/DHS twice since May '06, but no new info. For now, according to everything we've heard, there's nothing to do but wait.

At least we're waiting together!

I don't visit VJ very often anymore, but I'll certainly post an update when we get any news or action on his AOS case.

Best wishes to everyone else,

E

There's a Middle East/Moroccan specialty foods shop in Seattle that sells a few items on Amazon. I think it's called Mustafa's. They've got jars of preserved lemon at about $7 each, if anyone's had a hankering for that lemony zip in your chicken tagines...