Ben and Hazel

Hi VJ People,

My new bride had to undergo testing for Tuberculosis back in Manila, at the time they refused to reveal the results to her at both the medical and the interview. Much later after her arrival in the states and after we had married we received a letter from our local health department revealing those results to us, it said she had been diagnosed with Class B Tuberculosis and that we needed to contact them for further testing. Can anyone tell us how this will affect the AOS/EAD stage of this process? and what we can expect from this?

Thanks,

Ben and Hazel

Sharing my opinion...

I know that it sounds scarry to both of you especially to your wife. I wonder why she was not given the advice to undergo medication first before she was approved to come here in America. But here she is in the U.S.. The U.S. Department of Health is given the task to make a follow up examination for immigrant who have been diagnosed of such health problem. You have to find a public health clinic (there should be a telephone number that is included in the letter that was sent to you). She will have to be checked and will undergo a series of sputum test and then an X-ray if possible and then if I am right, because she had not undergone medication in the Philippines, she will be put under medication for at least 3 months.

I am not sure how will this affect your filing of the AOS. I hope somebody can share with you regarding this concern.

I believe the results of the follow up examination and the clearance from the public health clinic should be submitted together with your AOS documents application, aside from the fact that the DS-3025 from St. Lukes with regards to her medical should be transcribe by a civil surgeon.

Rest assured everything will be fine, just do what has to be done.

GOD bless you.

Hi BobGie,

Thanks for the reply, I guess the reason she was not held up in the Philippines for treatment was because Class B TB is not active and can't really harm anyone, however, we were told it has to be treated or it could eventually become a problem so we've scheduled an appointment for next week and we plan on following all their instructions the best we can. Thanks again for all the good info we can really use it.

Thanks,

Ben and hazel

Hi VJ People,

My new bride had to undergo testing for Tuberculosis back in Manila, at the time they refused to reveal the results to her at both the medical and the interview. Much later after her arrival in the states and after we had married we received a letter from our local health department revealing those results to us, it said she had been diagnosed with Class B Tuberculosis and that we needed to contact them for further testing. Can anyone tell us how this will affect the AOS/EAD stage of this process? and what we can expect from this?

Thanks,

Ben and Hazel

HELLO THERE. FIRST THING AND FOREMOST I WILL ANSWER FIRST YOUR WORRIES..... HAVING A CLASS B TUBERCULOSIS WON'T AFFECT AOS. I ASSUMED YOUR WIFE IS UNDER "CLASS B INACTIVE TB" WHICH MEANS HAVE A SCAR FROM PAST TB, AND IT CANNOT HARM TO ANYONE, BUT OF COURSE SHE STILL NEEDS TO COMPLETE THE TREATMENT AS ADVISE BY YOUR LOCAL HEALTH CLINIC.

I AM A CLASS B2 TB (INACTIVE), AND I AM ADMISSIBLE TO TRAVEL TO U.S.....UPON ARRIVAL IN U.S , I RECIEVED A LETTER FROM MY LOCAL HEALTH CLINIC TO REPORT TO THEM OR ELSE THEY WILL REPORT YOU TO AUTHORITY IF YOU WON'T COOPERATE. I'VE DONE SEVERAL TEST WHICH CAME OUT NEGATIVE EXCEPT MY SKIN TEST TURNS OUT POSITIVE. SO I TOOK MEDS REGULARLY FOR 6MOS. ONLY (DEPENDS TO DOC' INSTRUCTION BASED ON RESULT)....AND I ALREADY FINISHED MY TREATMENT...AND HANDED ME A LAMINATED CARD THAT I FINISHED ALL THE TREATMENT. THE CARD IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR FUTURE REFERENCES LIKE APPLYING FOR JOB IN-CASE YOUR RESULT STILL POSITIVE IN SKIN TEST (W/C WILL CAME OUT + ALL THE TIME ACCDG. TO THE DOC')...JUST KEPT THE CARD INCASE FOR QUESTIONS IN NEAR FUTURE...

JUST REPLY TO THE LETTER FROM YOUR LOCAL HEALTH CLINIC, DO THE TEST LIKE SKIN TEST, X-RAY..IF POSITIVE THEN PROCEED TO SPUTUM..THEY WILL ADVISE YOU ANYWAY....YOU CAN GO ON THE TEST/TREATMENT EVEN WHILE PROCESSING YOUR AOS....

TRUST ME IT WON'T AFFECT THE AOS AT ALL...GOODLUCK TO YOU!

Hi Shakira08,

Wow, your Email was very comforting to both my wife and me. She's already taken a TB skin test for another condition she has and the results were negative.

My wife called and scheduled an appointment for next week and they've asked her to bring the lab results with her when she comes in, they said it's possible that she won't even need to retake the skin test.

My wife wanted me to ask you a question, in case she does have to undergo treatment, what is the routine? will she have to report to the clinic everyday or can she take take the medicine at home? this is an issue with us because the clinic is in another city and she is not able to drive yet, plus I have to work during the day and it would be difficult for us to to get her there on a daily basis.

Thanks again for your reply, it means a lot coming from someone who's been there before.

Thanks,

Ben and Hazel

Hi VJ People,

My new bride had to undergo testing for Tuberculosis back in Manila, at the time they refused to reveal the results to her at both the medical and the interview. Much later after her arrival in the states and after we had married we received a letter from our local health department revealing those results to us, it said she had been diagnosed with Class B Tuberculosis and that we needed to contact them for further testing. Can anyone tell us how this will affect the AOS/EAD stage of this process? and what we can expect from this?

Thanks,

Ben and Hazel

Hi VJ people,

If you get an RFE for medical evidence how much time do they give you to get it back in to them? and what happens if you need more time? any help is more than appreciated.

Thanks,

Ben and Hazel

i think you should have done it yourself.

Yes, you are absolutely right, that is advice that I am taking now.

Thanks,

Ben

Ben, not to worry... we are all here to help each other. You should get a copy of your petition but they one you sent to uscis will also be sent to the Embassy once you are approved here in the States. Your copy of the petition is really just for reference so you/your fiance knows what was included. You should receive all original documents you sent as well which should be sent to your fiance when it's time for interview.

The regional forums have a Phillippines thread with loads of helpful members that can help you through the Embassy stage as it's a little different in the PI.

best of luck

they're right ben we're all here to help each other god bless you and your fiancee!

nanz

Hi Nanz,

I gave my fianc'e the news in our chat last night, that I had dropped our attorney, it was really all I could do to get her to cheer her up, but eventually I was able to get a few laughs out of her towards the end,

I have received alot of great advice on what to do next but your case is so similar to ours in that you dropped your attorney also. I was wondering if you would be able to verify a list of items that we will need. I am going down on Tuesday to pick up our paper work from the attorney, I know He still has my original birth certificate, divorce decree, passport and proof of having met in the last two years; In addition to picking those items up I was told that I will need from him, copies of the I-129f and the G325A, copies of both RFE's and a copy of NOA1, does this look like a complete list of everything that we will need?

Also, I was wondering what action we could take if something vital to our case is missing? we are very grateful for any advice you could give.

Thanks,

Ben

Hello Ben,

yes Ben sounds good! go there and get all the documents, your passport, divorce decree, proof of you and your fiancee having met, copies of the i-129f, your G325A, yes copies of your RFE's and NOA1, yes that's all you need, all the documents that you submitted to them,they should give it back to you good luck Ben god bless you and your fiancee!

Nanz

Hey Thanks Nanz,

If you look hard enough you can always find the good that results from the Evil, like saving all this time, trouble, money and getting to meet all these cool VJ members. Sometimes we can't see the good until we look back, Only then can we see what came from it, GOD is so good to us.

Thanks,

Ben

Glad to see you got rid of that rat lawyer. What a sham. I think you will be ok on your own, if you read the guides and follow the advice of those that have gone before you. But if you feel you need an atty pm me and I'll give you the name of mine. Good luck.

Yes, between the VJ guides, the sample forms and awesome advice from people like you, the other VJ members and the good LORD we will get through this.

Thanks,

Ben

Ben, not to worry... we are all here to help each other. You should get a copy of your petition but they one you sent to uscis will also be sent to the Embassy once you are approved here in the States. Your copy of the petition is really just for reference so you/your fiance knows what was included. You should receive all original documents you sent as well which should be sent to your fiance when it's time for interview.

The regional forums have a Phillippines thread with loads of helpful members that can help you through the Embassy stage as it's a little different in the PI.

best of luck

they're right ben we're all here to help each other god bless you and your fiancee!

nanz

Hi Nanz,

I gave my fianc'e the news in our chat last night, that I had dropped our attorney, it was really all I could do to get her to cheer her up, but eventually I was able to get a few laughs out of her towards the end,

I have received alot of great advice on what to do next but your case is so similar to ours in that you dropped your attorney also. I was wondering if you would be able to verify a list of items that we will need. I am going down on Tuesday to pick up our paper work from the attorney, I know He still has my original birth certificate, divorce decree, passport and proof of having met in the last two years; In addition to picking those items up I was told that I will need from him, copies of the I-129f and the G325A, copies of both RFE's and a copy of NOA1, does this look like a complete list of everything that we will need?

Also, I was wondering what action we could take if something vital to our case is missing? we are very grateful for any advice you could give.

Thanks,

Ben

Ben, not to worry... we are all here to help each other. You should get a copy of your petition but they one you sent to uscis will also be sent to the Embassy once you are approved here in the States. Your copy of the petition is really just for reference so you/your fiance knows what was included. You should receive all original documents you sent as well which should be sent to your fiance when it's time for interview.

The regional forums have a Phillippines thread with loads of helpful members that can help you through the Embassy stage as it's a little different in the PI.

best of luck

Wow, Thanks KimandRuss for those encouraging words, I am going to forward your comments on to my fianc'e tonight in our chat , we really worry alot. we are growing so close over the wait that the thought of not being together would kill me, I can't even imagine it.

Thanks,

Ben

hello ben, phil also hired a lawyer but unfortunately phil and i did all the paperwork (with the help of this site vj) when we got our noa2, phil paid for 'premium' service which they (lawyer) said the best service because they will help you throughout the process, and we're so upset because if we didn't inform them about our noa2 they wouldn't know and they wouldn't even contact you... and now i'm done with my medical last week and guess what?? we receieved e-mail from them (lawyer) (today) saying "you can have your interview schedule blah blah blah..." too late!

just ask questions here, vj is really a great help! god bless you! good luck!

nanz

Wow, you guys are in a situation very similar to ours, I was planning on pulling away from our attorney after she was safely here, because I wanted to be prepared for any trouble that could arise at the interview and I'm worried about doing more harm than good, Have you already pulled away from your attorney?

Thanks,

Ben

hi ben, actually i asked phil to pull away from our attorney or just ask for a 'money-back' phil paid for premium service but all he (lawyer) did was just a basic service, but phil decided to just forget about the issue what important--- we got approved! i forgot to tell you, the lawyer also made some mistakes regarding my middle name, thank god there's vj (i learned alot from here) so i called usem and asked them to change my middle name and they did! phil e-mailed and informed him (lawyer) about my middle name changed and the lawyer told him "oh nanz beat me there" what the heck!

ben you can ask your vj family here good luck and god bless you!

nanz

Hi Nanz,

I guess the thing that most troubles me is, if I pull away at this point will the attorney give me all the documents that are needed to continue the process on my own? for instance, copies of my petition. Also, how do I notify the USCIS that I am no longer being represented by an attorney? Do I need to fill out a special form or anything? What a GOD send this site to turning out to be

Thanks again,

Ben

oh yes ben you can ask them to return all your documents or else file complain against them, but yes they will send it back to you just inform them, you have the right ben, you are paying for their service! i know that when you get approved uscis send copy of notice of approval for you and your attorney, good luck and god bless you!

nanz

Hi Nanz,

I have taken yours and the advice of everyone else and dissmissed my attorney, I go down on Tuesday to pick up my documents, do you know what documents I will need to get from them? I am assuming that I will need a copy of my petition I only hope and pray that they had made one. I really need to start studying now, thanks for all the encouragement, this is a very tense time for us now.

Thanks,

Ben

hello ben, phil also hired a lawyer but unfortunately phil and i did all the paperwork (with the help of this site vj) when we got our noa2, phil paid for 'premium' service which they (lawyer) said the best service because they will help you throughout the process, and we're so upset because if we didn't inform them about our noa2 they wouldn't know and they wouldn't even contact you... and now i'm done with my medical last week and guess what?? we receieved e-mail from them (lawyer) (today) saying "you can have your interview schedule blah blah blah..." too late!

just ask questions here, vj is really a great help! god bless you! good luck!

nanz

Wow, you guys are in a situation very similar to ours, I was planning on pulling away from our attorney after she was safely here, because I wanted to be prepared for any trouble that could arise at the interview and I'm worried about doing more harm than good, Have you already pulled away from your attorney?

Thanks,

Ben

hi ben, actually i asked phil to pull away from our attorney or just ask for a 'money-back' phil paid for premium service but all he (lawyer) did was just a basic service, but phil decided to just forget about the issue what important--- we got approved! i forgot to tell you, the lawyer also made some mistakes regarding my middle name, thank god there's vj (i learned alot from here) so i called usem and asked them to change my middle name and they did! phil e-mailed and informed him (lawyer) about my middle name changed and the lawyer told him "oh nanz beat me there" what the heck!

ben you can ask your vj family here good luck and god bless you!

nanz

Hi Nanz,

I guess the thing that most troubles me is, if I pull away at this point will the attorney give me all the documents that are needed to continue the process on my own? for instance, copies of my petition. Also, how do I notify the USCIS that I am no longer being represented by an attorney? Do I need to fill out a special form or anything? What a GOD send this site to turning out to be

Thanks again,

Ben

hello ben, phil also hired a lawyer but unfortunately phil and i did all the paperwork (with the help of this site vj) when we got our noa2, phil paid for 'premium' service which they (lawyer) said the best service because they will help you throughout the process, and we're so upset because if we didn't inform them about our noa2 they wouldn't know and they wouldn't even contact you... and now i'm done with my medical last week and guess what?? we receieved e-mail from them (lawyer) (today) saying "you can have your interview schedule blah blah blah..." too late!

just ask questions here, vj is really a great help! god bless you! good luck!

nanz

Wow, you guys are in a situation very similar to ours, I was planning on pulling away from our attorney after she was safely here, because I wanted to be prepared for any trouble that could arise at the interview and I'm worried about doing more harm than good, Have you already pulled away from your attorney?

Thanks,

Ben

I am a criminal law attorney. I find it depressing that so many of my colleagues do not approach a case with any work ethic. I studied immigration law a while back with thoughts of doing it, but, decided not to because as others have said here, most cases can easily be done by yourself and the guides here. If you do your case just be careful to check your work for any mistakes. The bottom line is, is that your case is going be much more important to you than many attorneys (unfortunately).

Criminal lawyers are the best and different from the others. I learned a lot from them for my own profession in terms of ethics and believe on the other hand that each profession has it's weakness. Ben, i wish you hear what he says.

Yes, I am going to listen to this good advice and pick a good time to pull away, I'm thinking maybe after she is safely here with me.

Thanks,

Ben

I am a criminal law attorney. I find it depressing that so many of my colleagues do not approach a case with any work ethic. I studied immigration law a while back with thoughts of doing it, but, decided not to because as others have said here, most cases can easily be done by yourself and the guides here. If you do your case just be careful to check your work for any mistakes. The bottom line is, is that your case is going be much more important to you than many attorneys (unfortunately).

Yes, I completely agree with what you are saying here, I am just how cooperative they will be if I ask them for all my documentation, I was thinking that a good time to pull away would be when she is home with me, I'm still a little afraid to creating more harm than good by doing so.

Thanks,

Ben

Hi Ben, you wrote you don't want to 'bother your attorney' when he is bothering or jeopardizing your case? hm!!!....i don't understand what visa you are talking about, is it the k-1 visa or another type?...anyway, i write to you because i still can not stand the dammage those attys can do...and i'm not against attorneys, the competent ones...i don't know where you are located but i know an atty who is the human rights type in NY if you are interested let me know...As for now, i would write to your current one something harsh like: if you are not giving me back my documents with the reimbursement, i'll repport you at the barr. I have heard a similar case and it worked...how much did you already paid him? best of lucks and without sharks please...lol....

Wow, thanks for the advice, I am applying for a K-1 visa, I really should have mentioned that, sorry, I don't think I will need the help of a human rights attorney though, but I really appreciate the offer, I really don't suspect anything other than human error, so I really want to give them the benefit of the doubt, and I am planning on doing as much of this as possible on my own, I have to agree though, that I would have had better luck on my own and with the help of a site like this, it really makes it an easy process.

Thanks,

Ben

As it is said: 99% of all attorneys give the rest a bad name.

Ha Ha, I'm certain that I was just a victim of inexperience nothing really malicious.

Thanks,

Ben

Speaking as a paralegal here (no, I am not an immigration paralegal) - There are good paralegals out there and bad ones. Without going into a long debate, there are a lot of people who get hired as paralegals without any education or training, and very few states that regulate who can or cannot be a paralegal. When you hire a law firm, nine times out of ten the paralegal is doing the bulk of the work. However, ultimately, you hired the firm to handle your case, and the attorneys are responsible for the work of the paralegal - it's not supposed to go out without their review, and they are liable for any screw up that the paralegal makes. From my experience, I can tell you that 90% of the time the paralegal will know more than the attorney about what is happening - But, there are always those few who don't =

If you aren't satisfied with the quality of the work or the information you are getting, write, call, fax until you get the attorney on the phone. Don't settle for what you are told - if you aren't happy about it, go to the person that you retained to represent you. If you don't get the right answers there, attorneys are regulated by the bar association in each state, and each state has complaint procedures in place, as was already mentioned here.

Yes, I most definately have to agree with you on the points you've made, That is very helpful information, it gives me a better understanding as to what goes on, I want to give them the benefit of the doubt, and just chalk it up to their inexperience or just a simple mistake, I don't think it profits them to make mistakes, so I don't think it was anything other than error.

Thanks so much,

Ben

Let us know how it goes Ben.

Attorneys no doubt make big money from Immigration, and will tell you they have a 100% approval rate, only because being denied at the USCIS part of the journey is incredibly rare.

I hope you get it sorted, It is an expensive process and an attorney taking money for things you are capable of doing yourselves wont help.

Good luck!

If you decide to stick with this attorney, you can expect to pay $6,000 or more in attorneys' fees (plus government fees) before she gets a green card....get your papers back from the paralegal and proceed on your own. That's pretty much everyone's reaction here.

Wow, that is good information to know, I am in the process of trying to find the right time to take the case over myself, I'm wanting to wait until she's here with me before I do anything risky.

Thanks,

Ben

The great thing about visaJourney.com is they also give you example forms.

Ben, out of curiosity did you recieve your case number so that you could track your case online?

Yes, we have a case number, that is an handy resource thanks and yes, I have seen the example forms, I think I'm just trying to find the courage and the right time to take it over.

Thanks,

Ben

Hello Vj people,

I'm new at this but here goes, We hired an attorney who put a para legal on our case,

I was asked to fill out the I-129f and both, my fiance myself had to fill out the G-325A

She then had us send in a fee for the I-129f and the G-325A combined, total $655, after fourteen days our petition was then returned to us requesting a check for $455, after a wait of 161 days, we received an RFE, requesting that we send in the stamped visa, which apparently had not been submitted.

it is next to impossible to get ahold of the paralegal and we have been waiting since Jan. 10, 2008, should we get a new attorney? and if so at what stage in the process can this be safely done at?

I am afraid to bother my own attorney with any questions, so I am very grateful that their is a forum of like minded people who are willing to take the time to help each other.

Ben

Hi Ben!

Just out of curiousity, what is the the name of the law firm that you hired...we did hired attorney also and we want to know if we will encounter this kind of problems.

Thank you...

Hi,

I don't feel comfortable revealing the name, and I would just like to give the the benefit of the doubt, that maybe they didn't know anybetter, also I'm sure that all attorneys aren't incompetant either, but I want to go along with the popular advice here, in that everything you need to know can be found right here on this site.

Thanks,

Ben

Let us know how it goes Ben.

Attorneys no doubt make big money from Immigration, and will tell you they have a 100% approval rate, only because being denied at the USCIS part of the journey is incredibly rare.

I hope you get it sorted, It is an expensive process and an attorney taking money for things you are capable of doing yourselves wont help.

Good luck!

Wow, thanks for your opinion, your comments have really lifted my spirits and when I forward them to my fianc'e I know they will help her too

Thanks,

Ben

It's real simple, ask the attorney for copies of everything they have filed. If they refuse to provide it to you file a complaint with the bar. It is your case you are entitled to a copy of everything and since you signed it stating it is true you really should have a copy.

As to the remainder of the case, you will have to fill out the Packet 3 when the consulate receives your case and mails it to you. None of the paperwork is difficult, just takes time.

As to hurting your case, REALLY what more damage could they do?

Wow, thanks for you help, that sounds like really wise advice, I will really have to think about it and get up the courage to do something about it, Thanks again.

Ben

As stated above, you really don't need an attorney if your case is pretty straight forward. Your's certainly isn't doing you any favors. I would actually cancel his services and ask for at least a partial refund after all you have gone through just to get to this point.

By stamped visa do you mean proof of having met in the last two years? Stamped passport? If your attorney's office forgot even that not only would I cease service but I would file a complaint with the BAR.

After you receive your NOA2 your petition will be sent to the NVC in NH and then off to the Consulate. We have loads of members here from the Phillippines who i'm quite sure would be happy to help explain the process there to you.

Sorry about your lawyer. That's very sad to me. But you've found a wonderful resource here at VJ. Read through all the guides and faq's (tabs at the top) and ask any questions you might have. There is also a regional forum dedicated to Phillipines!

good luck!

Yes, it is for proof of having met in the last two years, I feel like we are kind of stuck with them because they have all my documents and what ever else has to be sent on, I don't think I can safely cancel their services without damaging our case until after she has arrived.

Thanks

Ben

Hello Vj people,

I'm new at this but here goes, We hired an attorney who put a para legal on our case,

I was asked to fill out the I-129f and both, my fiance myself had to fill out the G-325A

She then had us send in a fee for the I-129f and the G-325A combined, total $655, after fourteen days our petition was then returned to us requesting a check for $455, after a wait of 161 days, we received an RFE, requesting that we send in the stamped visa, which apparently had not been submitted.

it is next to impossible to get ahold of the paralegal and we have been waiting since Jan. 10, 2008, should we get a new attorney? and if so at what stage in the process can this be safely done at?

I am afraid to bother my own attorney with any questions, so I am very grateful that their is a forum of like minded people who are willing to take the time to help each other.

Ben

hmmm my problem is not enough coffee yet maybe thats why im confused u sent $655 the fee for filing is $455 so that means they charged u two hundred dollars for sending it........but in in truth they charged u the $655 for their fee because they did not give a check for $455 out of the fees that u sent them?

also what visa do they want u to send in..............

Oh sorry, I am assuming that the extra $200 is for the biometrics G-325A, but I am unaware of anyone else having to do this, I was wondering if this was something they used to do in the past? This is for the K-1 fianc'e visa

Hello Vj people,

I'm new at this but here goes, We hired an attorney who put a para legal on our case,

I was asked to fill out the I-129f and both, my fiance myself had to fill out the G-325A

She then had us send in a fee for the I-129f and the G-325A combined, total $655, after fourteen days our petition was then returned to us requesting a check for $455, after a wait of 161 days, we received an RFE, requesting that we send in the stamped visa, which apparently had not been submitted.

it is next to impossible to get ahold of the paralegal and we have been waiting since Jan. 10, 2008, should we get a new attorney? and if so at what stage in the process can this be safely done at?

I am afraid to bother my own attorney with any questions, so I am very grateful that their is a forum of like minded people who are willing to take the time to help each other.

Ben