rmaguir

We're leaving Taiwan on Wednesday, and I just want to make sure that my wife should be going through the same line as I when we arrive in Newark.

--and, yes, we've completed the whole DCF process.

My wife will have her visa interview in about a week and a half and we need to get my translation of her police certificate ("extrait de casier judiciaire") certified. I know it's a long shot, but does anyone know where I could get this done. We think it can be done at the French "consulate" here in Taipei, but we're not sure that this'll be fast enough...

So, I haven't gotten a reply from AIT yet (the last time I sent an email, they replied the same day), and I haven't had the time to go by there yet. However, I found the DS-2053, DS-3024, DS-3025, DS-3026, and the list of hospitals in Taipei at which we can do the medical exam.

Should we go ahead and get the exam out of the way, or is that unnecessary?

This is a question from another post of mine, that was on a different subject, so I've decided to give it its own subject thread.

Here's a layout of what's happened so far:

- We submitted our I-130 here in Taipei two weeks ago, but they said we had neglected to submit our Household Registration Transcript. They said we needed to send it in by mail, and I said I'd bring it in myself as soon as we had it.

- The following week, I went in with the household registration paper. Upon submitting it, I asked the clerk if I could ask her some questions, to which she replied, "Have we given you packet 3 yet?" She shuffled off and came back with a set of stapled papers. In the "packet 3" are:

* DS-2001 (in Chinese and English)

* DS-230

* "Instructions for Immigrant Visa Applicants"

* I-864

So, now, we are waiting for the police certificate from France, but I'm wondering if I can turn something in before we have both of those. What should I be doing right now? Can we turn in everything with a note saying we'll have the police certificate within the next week and a half?

Sorry it took me so long, but here's a layout of what's happened so far:

- We submitted our I-130 here in Taipei two weeks ago, but they said we had neglected to submit our Household Registration Transcript. They said we needed to send it in by mail, and I said I'd bring it in myself as soon as we had it.

- The following week, I went in with the household registration paper. Upon submitting it, I asked the clerk if I could ask her some questions, to which she replied, "Have we given you packet 3 yet?" She shuffled off and came back with a set of stapled papers. In the "packet 3" are:

* DS-2001 (in Chinese and English)

* DS-230

* "Instructions for Immigrant Visa Applicants"

* I-864

So, now, we are waiting for the police certificate from France and the I-864 from my father, and I'm wondering if I can turn something in before we have both of those. What should I be doing right now?

Has your I-130 petition been approved?

I think you should probably check with the embassy on their procedure first before you start submitting bits and pieces to them.

I don't really understand. I thought the very fact that they gave me Packet 3 meant that our I-130 was approved.

I'm really confused right now. Later (tomorrow), I'll explain in more detail exactly what we've done, the process we've gone through, and make clearer what exactly has me confused.

Have you submitted your I-130 and G325A yet? That is supposed to be the first step of the DCF process. And once that is approved then you put together your Packet 3.

The process in Australia was:

Submit I-130 and G325A (both petitioner and beneficiary).

Wait for approval - about 1 week.

Then they will send you Packet 3 - including DS230, I-864, police certificates and other documents (i.e. photocopies of passports, etc), medical exam information, DS2001.

Submit your DS230 immediately, put the rest of your Packet together and once that's complete mail it in with your DS2001.

Wait for them to review documents - about 2 weeks.

Finally they will send you Packet 4 AKA Interview notice.

Yes, I've submitted I-130 and G325A...

Ok. So I do need to get the DS 2001 docs together ASAP... it seems....I also need to get them the DS 230...

I'm confused. I've been rushing to get packet 3 back in because I thought that after turning packet 3 in, I would wait three weeks for packet 4 (medical exam info, interview date, etc.) and then one or two weeks later my wife would have the interview.

I get the impression in this thread, though, that I should get packet 4 in about three weeks from yesterday (when I turned in the last piece of info for the initial I-130 petition), regardless of when I turn packet 3 back in.

I'm kind of confused about this. Should I be rushing packet 3? Is packet 4 already in the works?

What exactly do you have? You seem to say that you don't have your notice of approval yet. What forms are you calling "packet 3" that you're working on rushing back to them?

DS-2001

DS-230

I-864

I'm confused. I've been rushing to get packet 3 back in because I thought that after turning packet 3 in, I would wait three weeks for packet 4 (medical exam info, interview date, etc.) and then one or two weeks later my wife would have the interview.

I get the impression in this thread, though, that I should get packet 4 in about three weeks from yesterday (when I turned in the last piece of info for the initial I-130 petition), regardless of when I turn packet 3 back in.

I'm kind of confused about this. Should I be rushing packet 3? Is packet 4 already in the works?

When are we supposed to do medical stuff? There's no mention of it in Packet 3. Are we going to be required to do it at some point?

It was my impression that packet 3 and the interview are the last steps before getting the visa. Where's the medical exam play in there?

Hmm... yes, I would have expected the medical information to be in the same packet with the DS-230 Part 1 and instructions on what to bring to the embassy and how to notify them that you're ready for the interview. Perhaps they're sent separately where you are? If you don't receive it within the week, I would contact the embassy.

The NOA2 (your notice of approval of the I-130) is sent separately from packet 3. Perhaps you've received the notice of approval and not the actual packet 3 yet?

What happened, actually, was that I went to give them my wife's proof of housing/residence/something or other, and they just gave me packet 3 before I could even ask (which I was going to do). So, perhaps we just haven't received the other part (NOA2) that you mentioned.

When are we supposed to do medical stuff? There's no mention of it in Packet 3. Are we going to be required to do it at some point?

It was my impression that packet 3 and the interview are the last steps before getting the visa. Where's the medical exam play in there?

Has anyone applied for a police certificate from France? How long did it take? My wife and I lived there for a couple of years and might need the police certificate for our interview....

I'm talking about the "extrait de casier judiciaire" to be exact....

Has anyone applied for a police certificate from France? How long did it take? My wife and I lived there for a couple of years and might need the police certificate for our interview....

Okay, we just got our packet 3 today in Taiwan, very fast. I told the lady that we had a plane ticket to leave Taiwan on December 17 and asked if we were being realistic about being able to leave so soon. She said it should be "no problem at all." Looking though the packet, though, I saw that it mentioned police records from any place my wife had lived for more than 12 months. I had known that this might be necessary, but I thought they would specifically ask you to bring it if they found it necessary in your case. For instance, someone mentioned that she lived in Germany for three years, and she just got her green card without ever presenting a police certificate in the DCF process.

I went back and asked the lady (a different one) if we had to present the police certificate. She said that if they need it they will ask for it.

However, all the information I can find online leads me to believe that the police cert. is a necessary part of the application. This worries me because dealing with the French government (we lived in France for a couple of years) is always time consuming, and I don't want this to set back our application.

What can we do?

If you've been a student for a protracted period of time it's normal to have a domicile the same as the parents.

My son was not allowed to DCF in Thailand because he was there on a student visa. He'd been there for two years without a return to the US at the time. As long long as you receive official mail at your parents address, have a DL, US bank accounts, etc., I don't see why you would need a lease. Just be honest with them. Include a notarized letter of your plans and intent if you are concerned. Student status is usually deemed temporary. It's the same principle as home of record is in the military. Submitting proof of having been a student also might help. Some evidence might include the student visa in your passport, transcripts or a diploma.

Good luck!

Luckily, I've been working too, so I'm allowed to file DCF.

Regardless, I intend to submit anything and everything that could be of importance during this process.

Should I go ahead and get my parents to fill out an I-864 affidavit, or do I need to wait until we get the next packet of information?

If now, should I get them to mail it to me here or to NVS?

Also, do I still need to fill one out in addition to my parents'?

Yes, you will complete an I-864. Your joint sponsor/parent will complete another I-864, and if your other parent wants their income to be included too then they will complete an I-864A.

But I see I-864, I-864A, I-864W, I-864EZ

See: http://canberra.usembassy.gov/consular/vis.../affidavit.html for an explanation of the different forms

Thanks Kaffy!

That clears up the money issue, but does it clear up the residence issue? I've seen information that leads me to believe that I can't use my parents house as my permanent residence in the US, that I need to have my own location. Do you think they'll understand that I won't know where we'll be living until I hear from the grad schools to which I'm applying?

Can you explain exactly what this means.

What we're talking about here is a I-864 affidavit, right? But I see I-864, I-864A, I-864W, I-864EZ. Which should I ask my parents to fill out? Also, do I still need to fill one out in addition to my parents'?

Ask a family member to act as a joint sponsor.

easy as that?

My wife and I filed our I-130 petition at the American Institute in Taiwan two days ago. They actually accepted it despite my not having been in Taiwan for six consecutive months (I had ample proof that I'd been here for 20 out of the last 24 months), but, the officer cooled our excitement by explaining that the next step would require me to prove that we had the ability and the intention to set up a permanent residence in the US. I knew this was a part of the process, but some of the stuff he mentioned sort of made me nervous.

He mentioned that I should take out a lease on an appartment or something like that. I explained that I was a applying to graduate school, so we didn't even know what city we'd be eventually settling in. Our plan is to go back to my home town for about six months, work, save money, then move to the city where I'll be studying. When I asked about showing my grad school apps to prove that we intended to set up residence wherever, he shrugged and said that he can't make any guarantees because this is a bureaucracy and one never knows what the officer we talk to next will say.

Moreover, he said that I'll have to prove how I'm going to pay for it, which I don't know. I'll have to wait until I get accepted to see how much aid, if any, I get, then to see the loans I'll have to get. Moreover, my wife will be looking for work in the US. I've got faith that being fluent in French, Chinese, and English, having several degrees, etc. will bode well for her job prospects, but we won't know until we get back to the US and know where we're going.

So, why don't you just stay in Taiwan until all this is figured out? Aside form the fact that the last four years have just been a lot of moving for us, and that we're just ready to get to the US and settle down, the other issues make a Catch-22 situation. We're trying to make a transition from being the poor students that we've been for the last four years in France and Taiwan to a more stable (more-profitable?) life. however, in Taiwan, we are sort of stuck in limbo here. We are here too short to get good jobs, and one of the main reasons we want to get back is to save up money in my hometown where I have the connections that could probably get us good enough temporary work and to do a job search once we know where we're going next.

So, what can I do? Can we show my wife's resume as proof that she'll probably get a pretty good job? How much will my grad school apps help?

Just wanted to fill y'all in, in case anyone has this same question.

My wife and I went to the American Institute in Taiwan (the de facto consulate here in Taiwan). I had made a package of information that comprised even the most minor proofs of my stay in Taiwan. When it was our turn, the lady who reviewed our case said that there was nothing she could do because I had simply had not been in Taiwan for six months. I was persistent though, because I knew that the lady was not an employee of the US government (she was one of the Taiwanese workers at AIT), and she was just following the rules she was given. Finally, she said, "Do you want to speak with an officer?"

I said yes, and we waited for a while until we could speak with an officer. The officer was as nice as he could be and asked me to explain our situation. Then he went away for about five minutes and came back saying that he just wanted to make sure he wasn't going over his head. He said they'd accept it. No problem.

We're, of course, very happy about this, but we've still got to get through the process....

Everyone, thank you so much for the replies. I was not getting the email updates, so I had no idea there were any posts here.

NYN, your account has given me hope that this can work!

Anyone else have experience with this sort of situation?

Hope this is the right forum for this sort of question. If it's not, sorry.

My fiance and I will be getting married this Thursday in Taiwan. We'll be starting the DCF filing of her I-130 petition/CR-1 visa ASAP. Assuming we make it back to the US, I'm wondering how we should go about finding her a job.

Here's some background on her:

- She's 30. She's worked as a teacher, a French-Chinese translator, a museum docent, a magazine journalist and editor. She's got a BA in French from a Taiwanese university as well as a Masters in Cultural Mediation from IESA in Paris. She speaks French, English, Mandarin, and Taiwanese, and she loves children (they love her). She lived in France for almost three years and spent for months with me in the US. She is also a writer and a painter. At present, she is working as a teacher and studying art therapy.

Here's our plan:

I'll be starting grad school in one of three cities (D.C., NYC, or Boston) in the Fall of 2009, so that's where we'll be. We'll need to find her a job there as soon as we know that's where we'll be.

Any advice about how to go about this? Is there a visa journey job board?

This is a side question from another thread I started a couple of weeks ago about our marriage (this Thursday).

Long story short, we want to file DCF (obviously), but the last time I entered Taiwan was about two and a half months ago. So it would appear I'm not eligible for DCF. However, I emailed the de facto American Embassy here (the American Institute in Taiwan) explaining that I'd only been here for two months, but that I'd spent twenty out of the last twenty four months in Taiwan. Their response was that they needed more information to answer my question and that all cases are reviewed by themselves on a "case by case basis."

The fact that they didn't say "no" flat out gave me the idea that, since I emphasized twice in the email that I had only been back for two months and that the time I left (with my girlfriend) was four months, it might be possible to file DCF before I hit the six month mark.

What I'm thinking of doing:

- First off, I'll explain why we went back to the US: My girlfriend and I had been together for three years and knew marriage was the next step, but she had still yet to meet most of my family and friends (because we met in France, and moved to Taiwan after a year in Paris). We stayed in the US for four months, however, because I had various preparations to make for grad school (like taking the GRE and going to talk to professors) and I was also a groomsman in my cousin's wedding in April, and I don't have the money to make two trips to the US in four months.

What I'll show: pictures from our trip, copies of my GRE scores, copies of my cousin's wedding invitation, photos from the wedding, etc.

- Then I'll show why we need to get back to the US in December, if possible.

What I'll show: I'm applying for an internship in D.C. that starts in January. I'll also show my applications for graduate school. The argument here is that, regardless of if I get the internship or not, it would be a huge hassle for us to go back to the US too soon before I start grad school.

- Third, I'll prove that we've been together for four years. I have copious forms of proof of this. (However, I do have one question, here: can I give them a CD with pictures and videos of us together in various places? I've also thought of making youtube/flickr playlists for them and providing the link so they can go to the site and see that I have thousands of photos and videos of the two of us together in all of the countries that our passports show us as being in at the same time.)

What do you think? Is there any chance they'll let us start the process earlier?

UPDATE:

I emailed AIT and explained my situation in more depth, clearly stating several times that I had only been here for two months this time, but that I could prove that I had been here for a total of 20 months of the last 24. The response said that they view all petitions on a case by case basis, which is kind of uplifting to me, because they didn't say "no." Am I wrong to think that there's still a chance that my 15 months before will be able to count for DCF?