EatBulaga

The purpose is to visit us. We can provide a letter of sponsorship if that will help. But we were wondering how much do most Philippines B2s have in their bank accounts for the US consulate to approve with strong ties to home country?

My wife's Mom is trying to start the B2 tourist visa application. She has property in the Philippines and receives her husband's monthly pension. About how much should she have in the bank account?

We sent off for the ROM, 2022-07, and received back the Philippines LA consulate filings and PSA copies, 2023-02. 🤷‍♂️

In case the N-400 is applied under the 3-year rule (for example, Jan 10, 2026, but I-751 48-month validity to Apr 10, 2029), but USCIS delayed the processing with the interview after April 11, 2028, does the case automatically become a 5-year rule N-400 petition? Does the N-400 NOA1 (for example, Jan 10, 2026) override the validity of the I-751 48-month NOA1 (valid till Apr 10, 2029)? For example, if I-751/N-400 is delayed beyond Apr 10, 2029, the N-400 NOA1 is the overriding proof for legal status? With the processing of cases slowing or delayed, these questions may not be as hypothetical in the near future?

@saied I would think having an attorney in case is better than not? At least she can request to the CBP to speak to an attorney if needed. The Trump travel ban list doesn't really have any specific restrictions at this time. But that does not mean, it may not in the near future I know of a US citizen recently travel to South Sudan (Orange list) and back with no issue, and a green card holder travel to Pakistan (Orange list) and back with no issue. They were able to book the flights with no restrictions and clear CBP at US entry.

Iran is on the red list of US travel ban countries, whatever that means. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/14/us/politics/trump-travel-ban.html Given the current political climate, I would do a few of things before she travels to prepare for her US entry: 1. Get her Global Entry. Yes, green card holders are eligible for Global Entry. https://ttp.dhs.gov/ Pay the 120. Getting the interview is the biggest challenge. Consider Global Entry as a US entry pre-check or pre-scrutinization in hopes of lessening any hassles at the CBP entry. You can read our experience getting Global Entry at https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/799684-global-entry-with-conditional-green-card/ 2. Get an immigration attorney handy in case you need to call them if she does get pulled into secondary inspection, even with Global Entry. 3. Make sure she has all the right documentation for US entry, like the green card, marriage certificate, immigration attorney's number, passport, REAL ID, etc. As @Crazy Cat said, lots of cases with no issues. But you can do the 3 things if you want to pay a little more for peace of mind, given the current political climate.

This may or may not be related to your situation, but if you can turn your 50K revenue business into a high-value investment in the US, then you can be considered for the EB-5 https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/permanent-workers/eb-5-immigrant-investor-program Also, I knew a guy once with another pathway (EB or L1?) who had an overseas business and opened a US office. As an executive of his own company, he got the L1 https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary-workers/l-1a-intracompany-transferee-executive-or-manager

You have to backfile your annual tax returns for 2021-2024, to find out how much you owe. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/us-citizens-and-residents-abroad-filing-requirements Most people fall under the foreign income exclusion limit so they don't owe anything. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-earned-income-exclusion Also if you have foreign bank accounts that hold over 10K US total equivalent at anytime during the year, then you also need to file the FBAR. https://www.fincen.gov/report-foreign-bank-and-financial-accounts The consequences for not filing the FBAR if your total balance is above 10K are that your foreign accounts can be frozen by the US government. If your foreign incomes were below the exclusion limit, then I'd go ahead and backfile DIY. If your foreign incomes were above the exclusion limit or if you have exceptional circumstances, then I'd get a professional ASAP to backfile to see how much you owe and pay before the penalties get overwhelming.

What is the exact message with the numbers redacted?

https://www.npr.org/2025/05/12/nx-s1-5395067/first-group-afrikaner-refugees-arrive Not to sound political, but apparently USCIS does have the resources to speed up processing if required. Meanwhile, regulars like us continue to wait. Any thoughts or reactions?

If i was you, I would join both April and May threads. The more posts you read of others, the more you know what to expect. I had spent months reading VJ posts before I joined VJ and had the confidence to file our own visa process.

Yes. When the consulate receives the case, the CEACStatTracker changes to "Ready".

The charts are the data of wait times for each step in the K1 process. https://www.visajourney.com/times/k1-fiance-visa-historical/ If you don't know the K1 process steps, read thru the VJ guides steps. The interview is the last step. K1 step by step https://www.visajourney.com/guides/k1-fiance-visa/ K1 flowchart https://www.visajourney.com/guides/k1-fiance-visa-flowchart/ K1 tips https://www.visajourney.com/guides/k1-fiance-visa-tips/ If you read thru my Warsaw example, you would have reached the link for the data of days between the NVC step to the consulate interview https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/794226-nvc-past-case-approval-timeline-no-welcome-letter/?tab=comments#comment-10780534 Poland seems to be currently at 112 days based on data from 2 cases. https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/stats.php These should be plenty of links for you to start your prudent planning.

Here are some stats to get you started. https://www.visajourney.com/times/k1-fiance-visa-historical/ This is an old Warsaw estimate for approximate wait time. https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/794226-nvc-past-case-approval-timeline-no-welcome-letter/?tab=comments#comment-10780534 The current data may be different. Our K1 wait time estimates and how I calculated using VJ data was recorded here (follow the links). https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/758635-march-2021-k1-i-129f-filers/page/156/?tab=comments#comment-10665858 My estimate for our case was fairly close to our actual approval date. VJ has a lot of data for you to dig around and put together wait time estimate. You just need to do your due diligence for prudent planning.

By "guess the wrong one", do you mean what if the consulate does not accept your case? Then, you jump the hoops to the consulate in Poland. There is no guarantee any consulate will accept, or not have a long wait time. The only time that I saw any consulate not openly accept cases was during Covid due to consulate closure. But do your due diligence research to find the best option.

You make the request in the I-129F. For the latest I-129F form version, Consular Processing Information is Part 2, Item 62.a and 62.b. https://www.uscis.gov/i-129f As @Crazy Cat and @TBoneTX said, the consulate has to have the staff for the K1 interview and the consulate has to accept your case. Of the five US consulates in China, I think only Guangzhou does K1 interview. If the consulate does not accept your case, then you may have to wait for the DOS case number during NVC to request a transfer. I would do some research for which countries Belarus citizens can easily travel to with US consulates that are processing K1 interviews if Poland becomes an obstacle.

For K1, you can choose the consulate for the interview. Not sure about CR1. We did the K1 interview choosing Taiwan consulate instead of the Philippines.

Belarus citizens may find it challenging to travel to Poland, but they can travel to China easily because of the visa free agreement. Have you considered US consulates in China? Are you looking for K1 or CR1?

Non-issue with the new passport from Country B. But you might or might not have issue with CBP reviewing you travel history. Given the current political climate, just in case, I'd be prepared to answer questions with proper documentation at US entry.

If you have a SSN already, your number does not change. You can request a new Social Security Card, just give the SS office your number. Once you have the card, go get a state ID.

@Morgan Tooke Do you have a Social Security Number or card? https://www.visajourney.com/guides/social-security-number/ The lesson for all K1-to-AOS is to get a SSN as soon as possible on entry to the US with the I-94. Most everything sprouts from there: driver license/state ID, bank account, utility bills, tax filings, etc.

Asking for a friend, any Russians or Ukrainians tried traveling to China for their interviews?

@Crazy Cat So is expired green card with 48 month extension letter still LPR? In this political climate, would that fall under "unsure of their registration status"? @J.M. under who must register, any alien whether previously registered or not?

I recommend studying Khan Academy Personal Finance and Financial Literary courses to understand the US money culture. Also, there are plenty of professional certifications or licenses you can work on like real estate license, driver license, food handler certification, etc.

https://www.uscis.gov/alienregistration So we filed I-751 and have the 48 month extension and soon to be expired green card. I'm thinking it doesn't hurt to go ahead and file the G-325R. Last thing I want is for us to get denied not having done the ARR. Have anyone else with pending petitions (I-485, I-751, etc.) also done the G-325R? Or anyone else think ARR is not necessary for pending petitions?