JohnIrish

Thanks so much for the info!   Thats a great link arken..... just what I was looking for. 

We are trying to get my wife's sister from Thailand  a visa to the US.  We submitted I-130 and were notified that it was received on December 27, 2013.

Just wondering how many more years this process will take?   This seems to be a black hole ..... send in the I-130 and wait forever.   I assume it depends on how many applied each year...perhaps even where they are coming from?

What is your best guess on when they will actually start processing her case?  What year are they working on now?

I have done a search but am confused on how to get a good estimate of even the year.   Is there a link to somewhere to check for processing times?  

Thanks!

My wife’s niece was just denied a US student visa. She is 18 years old from Thailand and was accepted into a US college for the summer to study English. The immigration person only gave the reason is that she did not have any property!  ???  She is a student in Thailand studying  architect engineering and English would really help her.  I would support her schooling and she would stay with us. After the summer, she would return back to Thailand at her college.   

What can we do?  What advice can anyone give?

i believe she can interview again?  What can we do or say to help her chances when we try again?    

Thanks

I am in the process of filling out the I-751...

However, we have friends that were married almost at the same time. In fact, my wife met her at when she was getting the fiancée interview in Thailand. They have just turned in the paperwork to get her first green card and this is after waiting 2 years. During the interview process for this first green card, she was told that she would get the 10 year card and not the 2 year card! I understand they have already been here for 2 years but it seems strange they can jump ahead in the process.

I was just curious if this is a common practice. We have to fill out the extra forms.. and pay the additional $590. Our friends are skipping this step since they were too slow!

Perhaps it is wrong to do the right thing?

I find this discussion quite fascinating! I was asked my opinion on the following ---- My friend married a women who overstayed her tourist visa. She was actually married to someone from her country and divorced him while in the US. This couple was wondering if they should apply for the AOS and start the process since they were aware of her getting married while she was here on an overstayed tourist visa.

From reading all the comments here and from reading the facts on the Government Website, I was under the impression that they should have her go back to her home country and file for a K-3 visa. That is what I suggested.

They did not want to be apart and contacted an attorney who simply filed the AOS paperwork. They did the interview (without the attorney present) and were successful. The only "tough" question asked was how she was able to get a divorce if she was still in the US. She told them that her family filled the paperwork.

My thoughts... unfortunately, this is America and the Immigration Laws are all screwed up. I still think the correct process would be to file from the home country. My friends did the opposite and were very successful. So, your guess is as good as mine!

Wow.. you guys are really nice! Please... helpful advice only.

First... I am trying to help them do the RIGHT thing now.. not break the laws! So, please dont state the obvious!

Ricker --- didnt you read my post.. a Tourist Visa is issued and is good for 10 Years.. The I-94 had the 6 Months entry stamp!

I understand she broke the law and did not follow the rules... all I am interested in now is the best course of action to attempt to put things right. I dont agree that it was visa fraud in that she did not plan to divorce her husband ... But she could have re-married just to say in the US. That could be Visa Fraud but I have no way to know that. But.. assuming the best and that they do love each other, what should they do?

It sounds like staying here and trying the AOS is the best?

My thai wife met a friend with a Visa Issue.... I told them I would help post a question here to put them on the proper path. I have not see this question asked before.

She was married to a Thai that worked for an airline. Because of that, she was able to obtain a tourist visa. She came to the US using the tourist visa in Dec of 2006... the I-94 said it was good until June 2007 (6 months). She overstayed the visa and is still in the US. She divorced her husband while still in the US.. and has just married a US citizen. Her Tourist Visa was Issued in 2005 and is supposed to be good until 2015.

It is confusing to me since she was able to get a drivers license. She cannot get a social security number to legally work.

What is their best course of action?

Should she return to Thailand and start the K3 process? If she left and went back to thailand to start the K3 Process.. would they cancel her Tourist Visa because she overstayed or because of the K3?

Should she stay here and start the AOS process?

Remember, she was married prior to obtaining the tourist visa so she did not come to the US to get married. She did overstay while here and married later. Because she overstayed, she is concerned they will cancel her Tourist Visa if she returned to Thailand. She is also concerned that she could be deported would not be able to return to the US for 10 Years.

What would you recommend?

thanks

As far as the fiancee free time after she arrives... yes.. that is a very good question.

I have many different home projects... I want to upgrade my kitchen and bathrooms. I made sure she had an International Drivers license so she can drive here. I hope to keep her busy looking at stores... painting... etc. I know she will want to do some home design anyway.

My friend is a teacher and she suggested that my fiancee do some volunteering at her school. She is great with kids so that would be a good thing for her to get out and meet other people.

I am also planning to have her teach me Thai.. so I will have her use my Thai books and make up lesson plans. Her English is good but perhaps an English language class would help her. There are also adult classes on art and other items (like cooking) that she may want to take for fun.

I do want to keep her busy so she will not become bored. I will wait and see what interests her.

My fiancee passed the interview and is scheduled to arrive in the USA on Aug 17th. Finally! We started this process on Jan 4th.

She had to wait 2 days after the interview to pick up her visa.... I usually thought it was just one day. We took a chance and booked the flight to the US about 2 weeks after the interview. This gives her a chance to get things organized before she leaves and we did not have to worry about the tickets. She went to a Thai travel agency... they reserved her ticket but she did not have to pay for it until after the interview. It's good to know you can reserve the ticket ahead of time!

Also, the Embassy Website still lists the interviews as of June 11th!! almost 2 months OLD. Why do they even have a posting of the interview dates if they dont update it? You tax dollars at work.

Oh Well... now I have to start reading the AOS process!

Interview questions were .... How did you meet. How many times has he been to Thailand. What did you do together in Thailand (Fiancee made a picture album to show him). When will you get married.

Thanks for the help on this web site... for those reading this.. it is very possible to do it yourself without an attorney. It is a confusing process but the forms are actually pretty easy to fill out. I did most of the paperwork for the fiancee.. she emailed me all her information and I put it on the forms. Then I express mailed them back to her. There is such a HUGE delay by the government that you can have the info prepared out well ahead of time. She is pretty good at English but was not comfortable filling out the forms.

Good luck to those still waiting.. It is possible!

It is nice to see we are all so "friendly" here. I am enjoying the different posts!

I just had to make a comment about Thai people who are only after a buck..

In Thailand ---------- NEVER TRUST A BANGKOK TAXI DRIVER !

In the USA -----------NEVER TRUST A CAR SALESMAN !

The funny thing is that my Fiancee used to sell cars in Thailand! If she wants to sell cars in the USA, That would be very interesting. ( ha ha ha)

Our Interview is July 29th... I am disappointed that as of today, the Bangkok Embassy still shows June 11th as the last update for the interview schedule. This is very frustrating when you are waiting to find out an interview date. We found out when the Embassy sent a letter to my fiancee with the interview date. All my emails asking that question were just "bounced" back with no response.

We did book a flight in the hopes that everything will be successful.

This website has been very helpful on a very confusing bureaucratic process.

How long did it take from the return of Packet 3 to the interview date?

My fiancee returned packet 3 early June... still no word on an interview date.

The website still says June 11 and has not been updated. When will they update the website? I tried to email the embassy twice but just get the automated response. I am paying their salary with MY tax dollars and I cannot even get a response!

How did you find out about the interview?

I am not using a lawyer... Using this web site is great. The advice here is from people that have been through the process.

First.. fill out the paperwork to apply... See the guides and even the example forms. The forms and info are actually pretty simple. Then you will have 4 MONTHS to wait for the next step. They have a backlog and do not even look at the application until about that time! Very frustrating!

A lawyer would not speed up this process and there are many reports here that they could even slow it down. If you filled out a form incorrectly or do not supply all the info.. they will ask for more info anyway.

In those 4 months you can start filling out the next forms and understand what to do next.

The advantage you have is that both of you speak English as a first language!

Yes it is confusing but I think it can be done on your own.

How often is the Interview Schedule updated? The current date is June 11, 2008 for the PDF.

When do you think they will post the next update?

I tried to email the embassy to see if we had an interview scheduled and I just got the automated response back. Should I send another email to ask or just wait?

It would be nice to know about the date to plan for plane tickets, etc!

OOPS... I will check but I do not think the Fiancee sent the information EMS.

I will email the Embassy on Monday.

Thanks!

Hi

My Fiancee just sent back packet 3 ..... I now read people are sending it EMS ... What does that mean? I assume it has a verify that they received the packet. OOPS.. we did not do that.

What is EMS? Is the best procedure to email the Embassy to find if they received packet 3 and when the interview is scheduled? When should I do that? (Yes.. we are anxious!)

My Fiance just received Packet 3. She tells me that they did not send any medical forms.

She still needs:

Medical

Police Report

Single Certificate.

I see the forms on the web site but even the checklist does not mention the medical at all !

What is your suggestion on how to proceed from here?

Does she go to Bangkok right away for medical?

Does she send in Packet 3 to Embassy now?

Hi

I am helping my Thai Fiance' ... so far we have received NOA2 and are waiting to see when BBK gets the info to send out packet 3.

What can we do to speed up the process at this point? I do have several questions:

This is what I have done so far..

Filled out DS-230 for her

Collected proof of ongoing relationship

Letter from employer

I-134 affidavit of support and Letter from bank

Copy of my passport (just front page?)

Letter to confirm intent to marry

Copy of NOA2

I was going to express mail everything to her this week.

It looks like she still needs

Medical

Police Record

Her Birth Certificate

Photo's (two of them)

Am I missing anything?

Can I print out the medical form.. send it to her and let her get the medical now? She would have to travel to Bangkok since she lives in Ubonratchatani. Would she also get a police report in Bangkok or Ubon? Does she also need proof that she is single?

Is there anything else I am missing to help speed up this process?

thanks for the help!

John

My case is out of the California Center..

I look at the web site and for a K1 Visa it says Sept 9 2007. What does that mean? Does that mean they are only working on K1 Visa applications submitted on Sept 9th. Or.. does it mean they are granting Visa's for people that submitted applications on Sept 9th?

In either case.... that is 7 MONTHS ago!!!!!!!!!!!!! What is going on there?

In my Case.. They received the K1 on JAN 4 2008 ... and gave me a notice on Jan 7 2008. I have not heard from them since.

Can someone "Guess" for me what my time line would be?

Thanks!

I have just started the K1 process..

Just curious...

If she does get the visa and is allowed to come to the USA... can she drive a car? This would be while she is on her 90 day K1 visa. She lives in Thailand now and has a car. She has talked about an International Drivers License but I cannot find anything about that. I heard it was a United Nations type of thing.

I live in Washington State if that is any help. I would call the local drivers license office but I wonder if they would even know how to answer such a question. I will probably try the local drivers office but thought someone may have had this issue before. I would add her to my car insurance since that is a requirement.

thanks

I use a company called VoiceStick ....... With their service, I can use my normal cell phone.. I call my number in the US and the VoiceStick service recognizes my cell number. I then punch in her Cell number in Thailand (or have it programed into my phone) and I am connected. I can call her on my way to work or on my way home from work (because of the time difference). It is actually very easy.. I just use one button on my cell phone and I am connected.

Rates are much better than Skype. I often wonder why everyone is using Skype since their rates are so high.

I think the rate for VoiceStick is around 1.5 Cents a minute... and an additional 1 cent a minute to connect though my cell phone. If you use your computer it is only the 1.5 cent a minute rate. I really like the ease of just using my own cell phone. I cannot find any other VOIP company that has that feature. There is no monthly fee.. I just sign up for about $25 and it will last me over 6 months.

Hi.. I could use a little help...

I have started filling out the forms for a K-1 Fiance Visa... However, the following is not clear to me...

Do I need Two (2) completed G-325A forms... One about Me and Signed by me... and one about my finance and signed by her?

If that is the case then I need to Email her the form to check and sign.. and she then must Postal Mail the form back to me to put with the rest of the information. Is that correct? I guess she could send me a passport Photo at the same time.

Do I understand that correctly?

Thanks for you help.