visaveteran

Happy Veterans Day to our RUB vets...and welcome home!

I know we have some vets on the forum like Slim and others, myself included. Thank you for your service to America.

Just before my wife arrived in the US, I had new carpet put down, so I was fine with the no shoes policy given how much I paid for the carpet. It was protecting my investment.

The one thing about my wife and the "no shoes" edict is she did not get those goofy slippers I saw in Russia. The ones you must wear after arriving home at the doorway. We just go with socks or barefoot which technically seems to violate the Russian shoe policy. And she's never really gotten angry with me if I briefly walk with shoes on. I guess I didn't marry a Russian "hard case."

To know someone's character and nature, I think, ideally, we use our life experiences, gut feelings, developed instincts, body language and intuition to judge things, including people. What someone says, in whatever language, can be pure BS, so what do we gain by hearing them in "English?" Perhaps only a false comfort.

Ultimately, the key to success, IMO and speaking as an older man, is continuing great sex, good health, and enough money to live well. Almost everything else is secondary. My wife of three years spoke almost no English when we met but she learned enough to deal with me. It was nice not to "talk everything to death" but rely on other forms of connection..and to be OK with moments of silence. Silence with a woman! Think of that when your wife's yakking your head off!

We filed an I-130 for my wife's son. His NOA1 Notice Date is July 28, 2010. He is 20 and was 16 when we married, so he qualifies for a dependent visa petition. His application went to the California Service Center but was recently transferred to the Texas Service Center. Here is the USCIS message regarding this transfer:

On November 2, 2010, we transferred this case I130 IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR RELATIVE, FIANCE(E), OR ORPHAN to our TEXAS SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow any instructions provided on the notice. We will notify you by mail when a decision is made. If you move while this case is pending, please use our Change of Address online tool to update your case with your new address or call our customer service center at 1-800-375-5283. During this step, USCIS initiates the background checks of the applicant/petitioner and identifies issues that may need to be addressed either during an interview or by asking the applicant/petitioner to submit additional information or documentation. USCIS reviews the applicant's/petitioner's criminal history, determines if there are national security concerns that need to be addressed, and reviews the application/petition for fraud indicators.

My question...why the transfer to the TSC? Is this a problem or just routine? Will it delay processing? Any info or thoughts on this matter is appreciated.

Sorry...posted to the wrong forum.

We filed an I-130 for my wife's son. His NOA1 Notice Date is July 28, 2010. He is 20 and was 16 when we married, so he qualifies for a dependent visa petition. His application went to the California Service Center but was recently transferred to the Texas Service Center. Here is the USCIS message regarding this transfer:

On November 2, 2010, we transferred this case I130 IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR RELATIVE, FIANCE(E), OR ORPHAN to our TEXAS SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow any instructions provided on the notice. We will notify you by mail when a decision is made. If you move while this case is pending, please use our Change of Address online tool to update your case with your new address or call our customer service center at 1-800-375-5283. During this step, USCIS initiates the background checks of the applicant/petitioner and identifies issues that may need to be addressed either during an interview or by asking the applicant/petitioner to submit additional information or documentation. USCIS reviews the applicant's/petitioner's criminal history, determines if there are national security concerns that need to be addressed, and reviews the application/petition for fraud indicators.

My question...why the transfer to the TSC? Is this a problem or just routine? Will it delay processing? Any info or thoughts on this matter is appreciated.

Some questions are just not RUB oriented. Looks like this will be one of those rare times when I'll do better going to the main forums for answers.

Should be good news. Usually it means it will just be approved and a green card sent. However some have still gotten an RFE or an interview, though an interview is usually not required for a child's adjustment.

Gary, my wife's son will need to have an interview in Moscow before he get's his immigrant visa. This is not an adjustment of status. Could you elaborate on your comments, maybe I missed your point?

Check this thread out: http://www.visajourn...service-center/

It's very likely good news that your petition got transferred.

I hope so. Thanks.

We filed an I-130 for my wife's son. His NOA1 Notice Date is July 28, 2010. He is 20 and was 16 when we married, so he qualifies for a dependent visa petition. His application went to the California Service Center but was recently transferred to the Texas Service Center. Here is the USCIS message regarding this transfer:

On November 2, 2010, we transferred this case I130 IMMIGRANT PETITION FOR RELATIVE, FIANCE(E), OR ORPHAN to our TEXAS SERVICE CENTER location for processing and sent you a notice explaining this action. Please follow any instructions provided on the notice. We will notify you by mail when a decision is made. If you move while this case is pending, please use our Change of Address online tool to update your case with your new address or call our customer service center at 1-800-375-5283. During this step, USCIS initiates the background checks of the applicant/petitioner and identifies issues that may need to be addressed either during an interview or by asking the applicant/petitioner to submit additional information or documentation. USCIS reviews the applicant's/petitioner's criminal history, determines if there are national security concerns that need to be addressed, and reviews the application/petition for fraud indicators.

My question...why the transfer to the TSC? Is this a problem or just routine? Will it delay processing? Any info or thoughts on this matter is appreciated.

My memory is those original documents you send to the NVS are returned in that mysterious sealed envelope, marked DO NOT OPEN, that arrives with the visa via DHL The one you surrender at POE.

We got everything back but I was nervous .

My wife is learning to drive now also. She found a Russian speaking driving instructor on a local Russian networking site. He charges $30 per hour using his car and gas. She usually goes out for two hours each lesson. One nice thing is he let's her drive to places she will need to drive to when she get's her license and starts to run errands. It seems to really help to be instructed in her language.

Her progress is good and now I let her drive our car for short trips. She could get her license now but I think I'll have her go out with the instructor a few more times. It will be difficult when the time comes for her to drive our car alone. We're not talking about a POS clunker...so I will be a nervous wreck for awhile.

I think I started the "ATM" conversation when I asked for a better idea than using Western Union to send my wife's son (in Russia) some money every month. We're talking about $300 usually. The ATM card was suggested to me which sounded like a great idea. Then some issues arose.

I will have to get my wife's son a physical ATM card and furnish it to him. This, it seems, requires that he have an account or be added to my account. I don't think he can open an account unless he is in the USA...so that leaves adding him to my account...and I'm not sure that is acceptable to my credit union. Even if it is, I wonder about questions raised if my credit union starts seeing monthly transactions from Russia?

The basic idea of an ATM card for my wife's son sounds good, but I'm concerned about this causing more headaches than help. And, there is also the issues of how to limit his use of the card. What's to stop him from using it to withdraw $2000 if he wants?

I'm not the best with financial stuff so maybe I missed something? Please elaborate a bit more on how I can get my wife's son an ATM card and not: A. Have him clean my account out? B. Have my credit union flag a lot of Russian transactions?

hello everyone...it has been forever since I was here. I successfully brought my fiance over from Ukraine, along with her daughter, in october 2008 and we married in November 2008. We are living quite happily togther. However, that is not the topic of this thread. Ny wife's neice in Ukraine put her profile online during our last visit to Ukraine in may 2010. She met and began correspondence with a man (whom I do not trust)and he just returned home from Ukraine today. (actually still in the air). They became engaged while he was there. Now, the situation. The niece is 21 and never married. She left her "man" of 5 years early this year and moved back home. That man is the biological father of her unborn child. She is due any day now with a baby boy. yesterday, before my neice's fiance` left, they went to the hospital and he signed the birth certificate of the yet unborn baby as the father. He is not the biological father and I firmly believe it is illegal to sign the birth certificate as such and this could cause them great issues during the visa application time. I know his intent was to show his dedication to the baby and his fiance`, but I think he should have waited until the child was in the USA and then adopt the boy. Will this maneuever they performed cause my niece any trouble? My wife argued that he did not sign saying he was the biological father, only "the father". I told her that is one and the same on the legal documents like that as there are not two lines, one for biolgical and one for desired-fathers. I am going to suggest that they remake the birth certificate without his name since the baby has not yet been born.

am I being paranoid? I care about her--not the fiance`--and do not want her to be branded as being a fraud, inadvertently faking that her son was fathered by an American citizen.

thanks everyone!

Chris

How can there be a birth certificate before the baby is born?

Yes, don't mail the pin with the card.

But... I forgot to mention! Send it registered mail!

I tried sending it regular class first, and it came back to me. Guess you can't send plastic cards with magnetic strips. So, I resent it registered, sandwiched between a few photos. That's also how I sent it to my Interpreter friend, and how I last sent the latest card to Iryna's mother (the original card expired after 3 years). The cards made it fine all 3 times.

That is important information. Thanks again.

I'm pretty sure most, if not all ATM cards have to be activated to begin with anyway, so until it's first used WITH a PIN or you call the 1-800 number it's inactive anyway. So you won't be risking anything in the mail.

Again, that's just my experience with ATM cards.

Now that you mention it, I do seem to remember calling to activate my card.

Thanks to you and Slim for the skinny on activating ATMs.

I setup a new account at my Credit Union, and sent her an ATM card in the mail.

There is no ATM charge in Ukraine. And when she withdrew money, I got that days bank conversion rate exactly.

Virtually a no-cost solution. Plus, I was able to transfer funds from my account to hers (both at the Credit Union) over the web for free.

Her Mother now has the card, as I still fund her apartment in Sumy so we can use it when we visit every summer.

Keeping the apartment costs me a whopping $50 per month at most.

Nice solution. I'll have to try that through my credit union. Mailing the ATM card will make me nervous even with password protection.

Thanks for the idea!

It was honestly worth it...I don't regret a thing! We had 2 videographers and 2 photographers so she gets to relive the day for the rest of time (and she does frequently). It was sort of like her send-off party from all her friends/family as well since she had lived in the same city her whole life...I only had my family there as I didn't figure any of my friends would be willing to jump through all the hoops to get there. But it was really great...great entertainment, tons of horilka, and more customs/rituals than I could shake a stick at! All in all, still probably cheaper than it would have been here in the states but much more interesting/memorable.

We married in Russia as well (as indicated by my CR-1 profile.) We went the low rent Russian route: The Palace of Marriage bureaucratic style which cost me some fees and bribes...probably cost $300-$400. Can't remember exact amount. No family or friends...my wife's decision. Very Soviet Union like I guess. I did like the offbeat aspect of getting married in Russia.

Cost wise, there was also my airfare and I rented a flat for one month. My wife's son and mom were living at her flat, so no choice. So, I probably dropped $3000 total to get married and stay in Russia for awhile. Again, it's been awhile so not sure of exact amounts. It was very good to stay with her for a month after the marriage to bond as a married couple...and to fully enjoy the "just married" passion.

Funny, I married my first wife in front of the Territorial Judge of the US Virgin Islands. A quick basically bureaucratic ceremony too...only in English. But what a honeymoon! Walk out of the court house and go straight to the beach. I guess I'm just not a church marrying guy.

But I respect your choice to create a memorable wedding for your wife and both families. And, yes, the same wedding in the US would been far more...and less interesting IMO.

Risk would be minimized by accompanying her to Moscow next time. "I'll just meet you there. I want to make sure everything goes right this time and I'd like to be there with you so you don't have to go through it alone. I'm sorry I wasn't there last time."

Play the whole, "it was my fault" game and see if she buys it. If she tries to wriggle out... well, there's the answer. I'm all for letting these women be big girls and handle it themselves. But, I'm also all about them taking an active part in this VJ process and getting sh!t done on their end. If they want to come here, they need to do their part.

That's a great idea. I'd start talking about that idea right now and see how she reacts. Any reluctance would suggest she's not for real. Any support for the offer suggests she's sincere.

Just did a bank to bank wire transfer. I sent a smaller amount first to make sure there were no hitches.

Got it. Was it costly to bank wire? I send my wife's son some money monthly and I'm tired of paying Western Union those high handling fees. Any suggestions for better options?

I'm the other end of the spectrum. I sent like 10-15k at one point. I trusted my fiancee a lot...that said I was sweating a little bit until she called me after receiving it and told me everything was good. Definite WHEW! moment! hahaha

Fifteen thousand dollars...that's a lot of mobile phone and internet cafe minutes!

I'm wondering how you got her that much money? What method of transfer?

The term "scam artist" is a hard definition of someone intentionally out to rip-off someone through tricks and cons and lies. Sometimes it's more subtle and "gray" than that.

The OP's situation could also be a subtle, gray area deal too. A nice exotic vacation trip away from Russia. Maybe a few gifts. Good food and drink. And $1500 cash. Not too bad overall. And maybe there was no deliberate intention to scam anybody. It was just a day by day thing. Perhaps at some point the woman decided to bail on the interview and pocket the cash. Maybe a decision made in a instant.

Or...as I more strongly think...she might have had good intentions but got cold feet. This necessitated an excuse which explains the shaky story about vaccination records and text messages and going home without confirming the interview was not going to happen. She simply postponed the difficult job of telling Chris the interview didn't happen.

Chris has a choice IMO. Press her to show she actually went to Moscow...a plane ticket stub, hotel receipt, some paperwork from the clinic...any type of hard evidence. Or, as Slim suggests, give her a second chance but proceed with great caution. The big down side of this choice is the risk of wasting more time and money...especially if you have to start the K-1 all over.

This is one of those tough ones to call. It should be interesting to see how it plays out. For Chris's sake, I hope my gut feelings are wrong.

Yes, I have my diploma issued by Russian institute I need to use it here in the United States. Will you tell me what kind of government organization you sent your wife's diploma?

You probably need a certified English translation and then have it notarized in Russia. You can find translators and notaries easily.

Like most other things, "made in the USA" = more expensive. It also means better quality too, but that's neither here nor there with an AK-47.

My father owned a British Enfield...among other weapons. He was a hunter, so after awhile he took it to a gunshop and had it sporterized as a hunting rifle, complete with a new stock and scope. He bagged a deer with it.

I think he bought it a Sears or Montgomery Wards back when surplus guns were abundant and dirt cheap...and available all over the place. I wish I had picked up a few M-1s back then...very cheap. I did buy an old German Mauser...it was as long as I am tall. I lucked out and found a beautiful stainless steel bayonet for it later on. The bayonet alone was like a sword. With it attached you could really "reach out and touch someone." I was just a teenager when I got it. Wish I'd have kept it as a collection piece.

She DID NOT go to the interview. Not sure why just yet, but she didn't.

I don't understand why she would be scamming me. As with your significant others I do not know the whole situation. I don't know what the scam is here. It's not like I am dumb enough to send her $10,000. I know you all are not trying to pass judgment, and just looking out for my best interest, and ultimately my heart. I just don't think this is possible. Maybe she had cold feet, but at the same time I would have went to the interview too with or without any papers.

Where is this other person who was scammed like this? Is there a post for him/her? I just want to see if there are any similarities here.

There is an oddness about this problem of missing the interview. The greatest oddity is that the med clinics always want to push giving vaccines to make more money (even if not required). It's hard to believe they'd pass up an opportunity and simply tell her completely false information. Plus, I think the clinics don't want to screw up too many times and have the embassy pull their license. Clearly, she did not need vaccination records to go to the interview.

I am not going to judge anyone's means of communicating with their loved one but communication by texting during something as important and long awaited as the interview seems like a very passive and ineffective means...especially within the context of managing a crisis. I don't know her English skills but if she can text in English she should be able to speak on the phone...but maybe not. Only you know. And waiting 5 days for her to return home wasted a lot of value time...even though the outcome would still be the same; however, you could have begun remedial actions sooner. Now you're really in hurry up crisis mode.

I don't see a scam here as there seems to be no money to gain...unless she begins now to use this crisis in some way to get you to send money. But I doubt that to be the case. Waiting a year and a half to pull off a scam does not sound realistic. She could, however, have gotten cold feet. She would not be the first woman to do so. Or...she simply grossly misunderstood the people at the clinic. But, again, I don't really see how that happens unless she was really nervous or a very bad listener. I mean, they were speaking Russian. I suppose it's remotely possible someone at the clinic was looking for a bribe and tried to scare her...but, again, that's not too likely as they'd be risking their job.

As for what to do now, I'd give some thought to calling your senator and asking for help from his immigration staff person. You can blame the med clinic as the source of the problem. There should be clear instructions from the clinic about interview requirements. Using your senator is not a guarantee of any real help...it depends a lot on which senator and how good his/her staff is. But if they do sincerely try to help, it might help to shorten the wait time for a new interview and/or get the embassy to try and be helpful and understand this was about a misunderstanding fostered by the clinic and not just a "no show."

I disagree. They've been pretty friendly with tourist visas lately. Give it a shot. Worst they can do is say no.

I recommend having him "in school" when he applies. Have him come here for holiday visit and then "back to school." Also show he has a nice place to stay and good program of study that he MUST return to. Documents such as these are easy to "find" in FSU. Find them, and he has a pretty good shot at getting the tourist visa.

Slim, I'm wondering where you got the idea that tourist visas are easier to get for young FSU men? I know your data is some of the most reliable but I have not seen any positive signs. We tried getting my wife's son over here last spring (he was 20 yrs old) and all we did was waste money both for the visa app and sending him to the Embassy and back. Plus, of course, the two plus days train ride each way and disappointment should also be factored in. The interview was maybe 30 seconds. Denied. FYI, he had a job and is a co-owner of my wife's flat, and did his tour in the Russian Army.

We have since filed a I-130 which he qualifies for.