minnietheminx

For any country that you have lived in for more than 6 months, you need a police certificate from that country also, so yes, you will need to obtain one from the US. I lived in Canada for a year so I had to get one to cover the time that I spent there.

As for the £10 fee if youre not in the UK, then Im guessing you'll have to do what I did for my Canadian police check....I went to the bank and they made out a certified cheque for the specific amount I needed in Canadian dollars. This of course cost a small fee, but it ensured that I wasnt sending cash over to cover the amount.

Your fiance should first check with her bank to see what the exchange rate is with them. There will be a charge for every withdrawal made from an overseas ATM, plus a small fee for the money being converted (usually about £1 for each one). She should then compare this rate to local 'bureau de change' to see what is the better deal. The added advantage of just withdrawing money while youre in the US is that you are just taking out what you need when you need it, whereas if you get the whole $1000 changed before the visit, then you will get stung with the reverse exchange rate should your fiance bring any money back with them (not the case with me, as I would just spend my left over money on shoes

I always found travelex to offer the most competitive bureau de change rate.

My sweetheart and I have known each other for eight years - she is American, I am Dutch. We met during my 4-year studies in the States. A little over a year ago, we fell in love with each other (again). In December of 2007 we got engaged. We are sending the petition this week and have the wedding planned for the 17th of October.

The BIG question now is the following: WILL WE HAVE ENOUGH TIME? We need to set a date because my family lives both in Holland and Australia and her family lives in both Florida and Puerto Rico. Can somebody tell me it's going to be ok - we should have more than enough time? 249 days left!

You *should* have enough time. Going by other people's timelines then there is a possibility that you will make that date. However, as this is immigration, there is no clear cut answer and certainly NO guarantees. There are people who filed in May, June and July who are still awaiting their NOA2s, therefore their process is going to be above and beyond the 249 days window that you have. Its all case specific therefore it will be impossible to say whether or not you will make that date until you actually have the physical visa in your hand. No one will be able to tell you for definite whether or not this will be possible, thus this is the reason why people are advised not to make any definite plans until they have their visa.

As long as you are 'in status' in the US, there is no need to file for a K1. You can just marry and then go through AOS by filing the I-130 in the US. From what I have read in your post, you entered the US for the sole purpose of studying.....as it happens you have fallen in love and want to marry, therefore it is perfectly ok to marry in the US (without filing for a visa for the right to do so) and adjust status as you did not enter the country with the intent to stay. If your visa runs out and should you return home, then yes, you need to file for K-1......but if you are not planning on leaving then there is no need.

Hey. Im in the same position as you as I did 'work canada' also though just one month out from you (sept 04 -sept 05). Luckily, I had to get my police certificate a while ago for my job so Ive had it in my hands for ages. But it didnt take long to arrive at all, something like 6 weeks I think (it actually arrived back quicker than my UK crb check )

I got the one which required the fingerprints (my job needed it), but if the name check one will do, then Id just go for that.

My petition didnt even get touched once whilst it was in the hands of VSC. The only time the status changed from notice of receipt was when I got approved, so you have nothing to worry about.

Hi. Ignore my question.

Just been speaking to someone who told me that I shouldnt send the documents. So all is now clear.

Sorry if Im sounding a little dumb, but Ive just got myself into a little tizz about what I need to send to the Embassy in London.

Anyway, at the top of the the letter it says that I am to NOT send any documents to them, however (and this is where Im getting confused), it is listed that I need to send them the DS 156k form and that form requires that documents such as birth certificate, proof of engagement and financial support (Im guessing thats the I-134 right?). Surely thats a contradiction in terms. DO NOT send any documents, but a form that needs to be sent to them asap REQUIRES that these documents are attached?????

Yay! Congrats to EVERYONE who's been approved. So glad CSC is finally getting its bee-hind into gear.

Yep. You CAN visit during the process. I too was in the States when we filed the paperwork in September, and I have just got back from a visit over christmas. If you are planning on visiting, you just need to make sure you have plenty of proof on you showing that you intend to return to Canada after your visit.

I was literally armed up to the eyeballs with evidence when I visited last month (letter from employer, rent/lease agreement, my car payment contract etc). However I didnt get asked for anything- the immigration officer at POE just asked me when my last visit was, grunted something, then let me through. Still, it was better that I had everything on me, as you just have to be prepared 'just in case'.

Our petition didnt even get touched once, so you have nothing to worry about.

We didnt use any form of binding. We just made sure that everything was in order and then folded a piece of paper in half and slotted our petition between that. Our way of thinking was that USCIS are going to take it to pieces anyway, so having everything loose would make it easier for them.

For our photos and cheque...what we did was glue/tape an envelope to a piece of paper....printed on the piece of paper AND the envelope what it was going to contain, and then put our photos/cheque in the appropriate envelope.

Im currently getting my degrees translated by WES......but I definitely agree with checking out the recommended companies that the dept of education for you state specifies.....if you get a translation from a company that is not listed on their website, you could find yourself having to get them translated again which of course means more time and money.

Yep. No one gives a hoot about your luggage. You're fine.

ok thanks,im so worried before coz i heard that in the news,even pirated cd u cannot bring,they said if they caught u,they going to cancel your visa or deport u.

I've heard the same thing regarding copies of CDs/DVDs. Ive been searching through google for the link to where I got this information, but I cant find. It was an official report about how US customs were clamping down on illegally produced CDs/DVDs..... if they were found on the possession of an immigrant/visa holder then they would be deported and banned from the USA. Im sure you'll be fine with your luggage etc, but definitely dont be bringing any copies of CDs etc just to play it on the safe side.

I was in the exact same situation. Every official document I had was in my step fathers last name (I wasnt adopted either), except my birth certificate. I cant remember where I read it, but Im pretty sure I read that if your name was different than that on your birth certificate then you must send a copy of your birth certificate with your petition along with any documents supporting your name change.

What I sent was:

A copy of my birth certificate

A copy of my deed poll documenting my name change

A copy of my step father's and mother's marriage certificate (to justify my name change)

A letter explaining why I have changed my name.

I got approved no problem by including this information.

Good luck

Thanks for all the congratulations guys. Good luck to everyone who's waiting for their approvals

Another approval here

i think like 5000 but has to ahve some kinda form to fill out

Anyone entering the States can bring in $10,000 without declaring it. If it is over this amount, then your fiance must declare it (fill out some kind of forms at customs) and pay some sort of tax duty depending on total amount.

"its just a shame the dollars going down against the pound oh well."

No kidding. Before xmas the £ to $ rate was 2.12. Now its 1.97 Just as mustang-sally says, Im going to be watching the exchange rate like a hawk.

$1.97? We can only get $1.93 with Interchange...

Yep, $1.97 on xe and its still that today. After shopping around I found that xe.com generally had the best exchange rates going. I was jumping around when it hit $2.12 but foolishly didnt transfer my money. Now its dropped to $1.97 Ive potentially lost $1500

"its just a shame the dollars going down against the pound oh well."

No kidding. Before xmas the £ to $ rate was 2.12. Now its 1.97 Just as mustang-sally says, Im going to be watching the exchange rate like a hawk.

"as far as i understand if i marry him, we should b fine"

Unfortunately not. Simply marrying your fiance will not make it all fine.

If you had married your fiance whilst you were in the States and then stayed in the States whilst you went through AOS, then generally your overstay would have been forgiven and you would have most likely successfully adjusted status. However, that is not the case now as you have left the States (and banned for 10 years), so just marrying your fiance will not make everything OK. You need to file a waiver as has been suggested, however theres no guarantee that this will be approved (a higher chance that it will be declined than approved) before you file for K1. You have nothing to lose by filing for it though so you might as well go for it.....if you just go ahead and file for K1 then the petition will be declined due to your ban so theres no point in worrying about what you will put on your G-325A at the moment as you are not in any position to file right now.

If the waiver is unsuccessful, is there anyway your fiance could come and live with you in your home country whilst you wait out your ban?

As has already been suggested, you need to speak with an experienced immigration lawyer before you do anything.

Did you enter the US using the Visa Waiver Program? If you have overstayed any visa for more than 360 days then you are banned from entering the US for 10 years.

I'd also strongly advise against travel insurance. I've had to claim medical expenses from a travel insurance agent after a hospital visit during one of my trips. In order for the insurance to release any money, I had to wait until I had returned home from the States as 'travel' insurance requires proof that you have returned back to the country of origin. My medical bills did not get paid for until I could send them a copy of my used return ticket and boarding card stubs to prove that I was indeed home and therefore an actual tourist. Without this proof then I would have had to pay the bills myself......therefore using travel insurance on a K1 just wouldnt work.

Do you mean you want to reactivate a fresh VWP so that you can stay in the US longer than 3 months?