SPSguy

4 hours ago, PadieNerkBrapone said:

This is the best information I've received on this site thus far concerning interviews in Cambodia. A reality check at the least and actionable information at the most. Instead of telling us Cambodian Petitioners the regular information that leads to disappointment, best to let us know what's going on there and help get our heads straight so that we can "properly" prepare for the interview.

THANK you. 

I would like to add that today is 2017 and I am still married to the same girl I posted above.

We have married almost 10 years and my wife has naturalized as a US citizen.

History, authenticity, and duration works.  So do yourself a favor and let the process of immigration help validate your decision.

TBONE, I'm still here. Still married to the same wonderful girl I married almost ten years ago.

On OP's question,

"did your wife get a visa that's been stamped to the re-entry permit prior her visit there or she just went with the permit and it was enough?"

Upon enter Costa Rica immigration will ask to see your re entry permit. They will stamp an automatic 30 day visa on the re entry permit.

Hope this helps.

Go have fun in Costa Rica!

Curious why the OP posted the question when he already knew the answer. smh

No need to shake your head.. it's called a process of learning. AT the time of posting I had no answer. After some due diligence I learned a thing or two. Then more due diligence, and more things learned. One thing led to the next and led to the final answer.

BTW, We just returned from Costa Rica. Everything went painlessly well. My wife was able to re-enter the US easily and hassle free.

So there you have it folks, YES it is 100% possible to use a re entry permit as travel document to enter Costa Rica and re enter the United States.

I am rather surprised that being that you are from Costa Rica you should have known all this. Please, if you don't know the answer to a serious question as this, don't give the wrong answers. If I had listened to your response as conclusive, we would have lost opportunities. I'm not putting blames on your honest attempt to help, but a response without careful due diligence can be more damaging than a no response.

Quick update.

She's from Cambodia. Current passport can be extended up to 3 times via the embassy in Washington, DC. After three times must obtain one from Cambodia. Which seems kind of odd.

In any case, she was able to enter Costa Rica just fine. Got her visa stamped on the re entry permit without issue. Now let's wait and see if they will let her leave Costa Rica when time to return.

My guess is it's going to be just fine.

For those still curiose why Cambodia does not easily issue new passports at the Washington DC embassy here's their answer.

www.embassyofcambodia.org/faq.html

Q7. How do I get a new Cambodian passport or renew an old one?

A7. The embassy can only extend passports. A new one can only be obtained in Cambodia at the Ministry of Interior in Phnom Penh.

Unfortunately, Passports can be extended only 3 times.

Out of curiosity, where is OPs wife from that she can't get a passport without physically going to her home country?

Quick update.

She's from Cambodia. Current passport can be extended up to 3 times via the embassy in Washington, DC. After three times must obtain one from Cambodia. Which seems kind of odd.

In any case, she was able to enter Costa Rica just fine. Got her visa stamped on the re entry permit without issue. Now let's wait and see if they will let her leave Costa Rica when time to return.

My guess is it's going to be just fine.

Ok, you did all that research and you act like they will do whatever you say . I know for a fact that you can goto the Costa Rican consulate in the US and obtain a new passport. I've done it. Its no big deal. For the life of me, I can't understand why she would take the chance and go to the airport and expect to travel without a problem. When my husband got his visa, the day he was leaving Costa Rica, the security pulled him aside and harrassessed him about his paperwork. They called the US to verify everything before they let him through security. And he has a valid passport with the visa stamped in it. I'm sorry, but I would never take the chance and try to travel without a passport. She might get in Costa Rica, but I would bet money they won't let her leave.....unless she applies for a new passport there.. just because you read something on a website doesn't mean the government follows that. Good luck. I hope she decides to go get her passport before she departs. And if she's not Costa Rican, she can goto the consulate for her country and get a passport. Same thing.

Just a little background info. The IATA and visados.com are not just any ordinary website. These are the sources that power every airline in the world for travel documents. The airline was also able to verify the information and have made the notation for fast and easy check in.

Anyways, thank you for your help. I'm confident enough with the information at hand that there won't be any issue. I'm sorry your husband has had to go through some inconveniences and its understandable have caused some unfriendly memory.

I will update everyone how the trip went after we return in about two weeks.

Getting a passport for her would require traveling to her native country. It is not an option at this time.

Anyways, here's what transpired since my post.

I have called the Costa Rica Embassy in Washington, DC and they are run by a bunch of people that have no clue between a visa and greencard with unlimited entrance to USA. Even the Embassy staff "felt" that a passport is required to enter costa rica. However after some self due diligence and resarching the site that all airlines use to determine documents needed for travel internationally....IATA and subsequently www.visados.com...here are the facts.

http://visados.com/en/visa-for-Costa-Rica

A PASSPORT IS REQUIRED EXCEPT FOR THE FOLLOWING:

1. Travellers with a National ID Card that is valid on arrival and that is issued by Costa Rica to its citizens.

2. Travellers with a 'Laissez Passer' issued by the United Nations.

3. Residents of the United States of America provided they have:
3.1. An American Re-entry Permit (Form no. I-327).
3.2. An American 'Refugee Travel Document' (Form no I-571) issued to eligible foreign refugees.

4. Travellers with proof of entry permission issued by the Department of Immigration to refugees and people without nationality or citizenship.

5. Travellers with 'Kinderausweis', a German identity document issued to children aged 15 years old and younger.

I hope this information can help someone in a similar situation in the future. I had a hard time finding this information and I don't think it would have been possible to find out without doing my own homework.

I took the extra step by calling the airline company. And had I not found the above information it would have been a mess during checkin time. However, with the information above I was able to guide the airline customer service to add a special note in their computer so that the check in attendant will know that no passport is needed.

There you go folks. Always pays to do your own research.

My husband is Costa Rican. He says she needs a passport. And why not just go get a passport at your local consulate? Its very easy. why not take all the doubt away?

How is she traveling without a passport? She needs that to enter the Country and to travel internationally.

In many countries the re entry permit is used as a travel document and can be used in place of a passport.

Dear All, hope you can help out here.

My wife is a permanent resident greencard holder. She will be traveling to Costa Rica but she does not have a passport from her native country. I would like to know if Costa Rica will allow entry using a U.S. re entry permit.

Thanks for any help.

I don't believe the orginal intent was for the OP. I don't know about you but I tend to think people search for topics by keywords.

The response was intended for others in this situation. Information tend to be more relevant this way.

Would you believe this five year topic still hasn't received a clear response?

You cut and pasted the same bit of info at least 3 times tonight. Quite proud of your one piece of info aren't you. Even on thread that are 5 years old

No I am trying to help people understand this process as it's not well covered and not documented. I did a quick search on the site for cancelling affidavit of support and noticed people are still having unanswered questions. Not pride but selflessness and extra time on hand today.

Just so everyone knows what actually happens.

Upon submitting your request to cancel the I 864 and affidavit of support, you will not receive any response or confirmation from uscis.

In fact, contacting the local uscis office will not bring any confirmation. They will not even speak to you or provide any information related to the case since the petitioner for the I 485 is the immigrant and not the US citizen.

However, if you send one copy of your request to the local uscis, the national benefits center, and also to the processing office, the end result will be a denial of the AOS/greencard.

I have had to help my freind throughout this process and that's what happened.

Just a quick update for those in this process. Since submitting a formal request to cancel the I 864, no confirmation was sent to him.

In fact, the local uscis incorrectly advised the only way to cancel was to file divorce.

Well they are 100% wrong.

The end result is there will be a decision made on the greencard which took almost 9 months. The decision will be a denial based on the cancellation of the I 864.

Hope this helps.

It is possible to work overseas without abandoning your immigration status. If you or your spouse works for organizations such as UN, World vision, CARE, USAID, and a few other government recognized organizations, you will be regarded as living and being in the usa even if working overseas. Get more info from your spouse's NGO employer they will be able to help you.

You shouldn't focus too much on what the meaning of strong means in this case. Could be many.

Could be a simple opinion that she appeared to be a strong lady but CO regrets s/he must reject the visa.

Could be that she is a strong candidate for visa overstay.

Could be that CO felt s/he must reject this time but CO felt your mother is a strong candidate for next time after satisfying some requirements.

Strong could be a compliment regarding her physical appearance, simple conversation.

For Tourist visa your mother needs to respond to every question asked in such a way to give the CO the confidence that she will not and she will have no reason, circumstance, or temptation to overstay.

Recently my mother in law was approved for a tourist visa in Cambodia. I was lucky enough to be let in to the interview area but was not asked anything. She had answered some of the questions wrong. If I were the CO I probably would not have approved my mother in law's visa. However, her age helped her considerably and her reasoning to visit us and our newborn baby was compelling enough for the CO.

The I-864A is used for a qualifying household member to combine their income with the sponsor's that is filling out an I-864 to reach the 125% requirement. That form is not needed from either one of you in your situation.

Your father's I-864 with his 2011 complete tax return documents should do it for satisfying your RFE. So long as he has enough total income listed on line 22 of his 2011 1040 to cover his household size plus the foreign spouse, then you should be good to go for the financials after they receive your RFE paperwork.

To avoid having to send 1099s and other documents that can easily get lost, misunderstood, or require more RFEs, you and your father can call the IRS and request an official tax transcript for the previous 3 years. They can mail or fax to you right away.

OH one more point.

When we entered the U.S. last month my wife and I also brought my Mother in Law to visit us on a tourist visa. She lined up with us in the U.S. citizen line.

Hello Everyone,

I have not logged on VJ in over a year.

Here's an update... hopefully can be useful for others in similar situations.

Since June 2010, my wife was able to re enter the U.S. without any problem whatsoever. We had to use our re-entry permit only one time where we stayed 15 months in Cambodia. Never had secondary questioning. Never a moment of disrespect by the IOs. Since Nov. 2011 to now..August 3, 2012, my wife had re entered twice. In 11/2011 we came home for the Thanksgiving Holiday because my wife was 6 months pregnant. No issue. No problem. Our son was born in 02/2012 and we applied and received a U.S. passport for him in 10 days. He was 2 months old when we left again to Cambodia to complete our work project. We stayed in Cambodia for 2.5 months and have now re-entered the U.S. Home sweet home.

**** SPECIAL ALERT ******

During this process, we also learned that a RE-ENTRY permit can preserve up to 1 year of permanent residence. This means if a GC spouse is outside of the U.S. for 16 months, the first 12 months will not count against the 3 year residency requirement for U.S. citizenship. Currently a GC spouse must maintain at least 3 yr. residency requirement of which only 18 months must be physically present in the U.S.

Hope this helps.

Great. Keep us posted with your progress.

Even if there is no intent for fraud as described above, I'd like to add one more point regarding the Cambodian culture in relation to obtain Embassy approval.

In Cambodian culture, upon discovery that a man and woman are interested in one another, often parents on both sides will rush both parties to marry or get engaged. THIS IS FINE IF YOU ARE APPLYING FOR A VISA AND CITIZENSHIP FOR CAMBODIA. But if the objective is to obtain citizenship and visa for the United States, people that are rushed to engage or marry will not stay married for long...perhaps 1-2 years at most.

This is one of the reasons why COs are quite particular about authenticity, history, and duration. I believe most COs want to approve VISAs for everyone but they also know the statistic for divorce and potential for public charge.

Very understandable and valid.

Can you give example of each of the above ? This might help alot of people.

Authenticity:....

History:...

Duration:...

Sure.

Authenticity = real and genuine. What has the couple done together that can be considered vital in a real/genuine relationship? I am not talking about just 100 photo albums but perhaps photos of specific events that real and genuine couples do together in private and public. My wife and I for example rented two bicycles and we road around Angkor Wat. We don't have many relatives ( perhaps it's a good thing ) so we don't have relatives in every photo. It's just us two doing crazy, funny, stupid, and human things.

History = Past events that the two people have done together. My wife and I are actively involved in charity work so we include photos of some of things we do together. We took photos with young, homeless, abused, and stranger children. We also have photos with people at work. Photos of us bowling together. Photos of her living her life with me. Our photos and events are quite different from the traditional photos of people standing in line for a photo. COs don't know and cannot tell if the people standing in the photos are real or were paid to stand. History also includes a sequence of activities that connect the relationship like 1-2-3.

Duration = How long has the authenticity and history of the two people together? In 2005 I was introduced to a girl that I never know/never met by my Aunt in Cambodia. She sent some photos by email to me. I did't really like her at first. A few months later we started to talk and chat more. Later she mailed some music to me. By the end of 2006, we started to talk almost every day and my phone bills increased from $50 per month to $200. For new year 2006, I went to Cambodia to meet her with my family. I decided this was the woman I wanted to be with but we were not quite ready for marriage. So we continued to email and chatted on phone and skype throughout 2007-2008. In 2008 I married the woman of my dream.

Today, I have known my wife for 6-7 years and married 4 years.

When you look at the statistic for divorce of 1-2 years, the three factors above are important to show relationship validity.

Further to the 3 points listed, I noticed many petitioners are careless about their love one's date of birth, when they met, their phone numbers, has the petitioner ever been married? Why did s/he divorce? etc..etc..

These are important things that authentic couples with history and duration know about each other.

Authentic couples with a history and duration can respond to the COs questions without hesitation. Certain questions like who does your husband work with and what is the population of your husband's State in the U.S. are not as important. If you know great, if not, just say you don't know. I dont believe that any CO in his/her right mind will reject a spousal or fiance visa for not knowing the population of a state or the names of work colleaques.

But not knowing your husbands date of birth, phone numbers that you call everyday, date you met, what his mother's name is, and how many children he has is ground for denial.

If the beneficiary hasn't taken the time to understand and know her husband's biography, past, and personal information, chances are she is more interested in the greencard than the husband or finance.

I don't think he did. We were married in Feb 2011 barely within the 90 days limit and we didn't apply for the AOS until June 2011 but we ended up separating in July 2011. He left the country in December I think, after staying with some friends in another state.

Hello Worriedwoman,

When dealing with government document any statement or arguement is limited to the current issue. The current issue is in regards to the AOS, so I imagine your husband is inadmissible to the United States under his current status as a married man without sponsored financial support.

I am currently helping a friend to go through the same process as you experienced with your husband. Would it be possible for you to share some key points related to the revocation/cancellation of the i 864?

Where did you send the letter to?

How many places did you send to?

What was the content of the letter?

Did you receive any confirmation from USCIS all this time that they received the letter?

How are you able to file divorce if he has left the country?

I am asking these questions because my good freind has sent a letter with personal statement to the Nebraska USCIS, California USCIS, benefits center in MO, and to the local USCIS office. Yet he has not received a single confirmation from them whether they have received his letter of cancellation.

Thanks for any insight.

Please call the Vietnamese family association in your State if one is available. If one is not available search for one in google and contact them. Then do all you can to go meet them. Explain your situation and listen to what options they have for you. It may be possible for you since you entered the marriage in good faith and now your husband has clearly demonstrated willful neglect and possible abuse to you as a stranger to this country.

Dear fellows, I am a new member in this beautiful community of VJ. In fact, my fiance came for a visit for the first time and we had great time together, so when she left about a month a go, you know how it feels like anyway,I applied for a tourist visa to the USA to visit my fiancee back about twenty days ago, but unfortunately I was denied ;as a result I was devastated and so was my finacee because I thought I had a chance to get approved. Afterwards, we thought about starting fiance visa (k1) procedure and now she has already sent the package. I was wondering if the fact that me applying for a visa and got denied would affect our future K1 application in the future especially during the interview? I would appeciate your help, comments and guidance, thanks.

My wife was denied a B2 tourist visa. She had no problem getting both a k3 and IR1 spousal visa.

In 2010 I was denied citizenship because of two prior shoplifting charges (one was dismissed/expunged when I did community service and the other was a fine I paid as a city ordinance). I have had green card since 2006 and permanent green card since 2008. I moved to Iowa and, unfortunately, have had three additional charges for shoplifting (one was dismissed when I attended a college class as a first time offender – well, in this state - , and the other two were pled guilty with a fine of about $270 each). I am now concerned that when I re-enter the U.S. I will be denied re-entry.

I am in the middle of a divorce with my husband and filed a restraining order in order to get him out of the house when he would not just move out. He has custody of one of my kids and I have custody of the one that he adopted but is mine by birth. My husband did get this son made a U.S. Citizen though. My husband is not working and we own a massage therapy business which I also was able to get him restrained from. If I travel out of the country (to Mongolia) with my son will I be kept from coming back to the U.S.? Since my son, who will be traveling with me is a U.S. citizen will he also be stopped? Will my soon to be ex-husband be called to get the child since he is a U.S. Citizen if I am not allowed to enter the country?

I don't believe the USCIS will revoke your GC without advance notice. I also don't believe they will refuse you entry based on a couple of misdemeanors. If I were in your shoes however, I would look into professional counseling either through the State or private. Without passing judgement it is possible that you might have problems with shoplifting. Counseling will help on future petitions for US citizenship. ON your naturalization petition you will be asked to list all of your criminal records, AND which actions you took to rehabilitate...ie.. probation, training, counselling, etc..

America is a nation of self-help people. You are allowed to make mistakes but you need to learn from your mistakes.