angela920

Mom can use her maiden name on her documents and ID cards even if she's legally married. No issues there.

As long as she puts MARRIED on all the marital status questions, she'll be fine. If she puts "single", that's misrepresentation and could lead to denial and a ban.

So in her passport as long as she says Married should be ok? I am not so sure about that. Shes always stated shes Single. Oh boy.... Thanks anyway!

I would like to petition my parents here... but i am having a little bit difficulty with my mom... long story short... shes always hated my dad and refused to use his last name. Though legally they are still married. My mothers passport and all her properties are all in her maiden name... not in her legal married name.

I am pretty sure I would have a problem with this... If i ended up petitioning her. I know I have to provide my birth certificate indicating she is my mom by sharing the same name.

But she didn't want to change her passport to her legal married last name... What do i do from here? How do i proceed? Can i petition her using her maiden name? I am starting to get upset and just forget her and just go ahead petition my dad. I think its very childish of both of them.

Need your advice... Thanks.

If they are not in the U.S., DO NOT file the I-485. This is for people already in the US. See below for comments on the form.

http://www.uscis.gov/files/form/i-485instr.pdf

To start the process, fill out the I-130; the filing fee is $420. Also fill out the I-864, no fees. Once the I-130 gets approved, you then have to pay the AOS fee of $88 and the Immigrant visa fee of $404. Let me know if you have questions. Goodluck!

yey! thanks a lot! I was hinting it would be like that but I am not sure so i had to ask! Thank you for confirming it! It is not that bad then... I thought I would need to pay that $1000+ each.

It is not bad then. I can handle it!!! Thank you so much for the information. I appreciate it!

Tell your mom that she needs to use her legal name. Switching back to her old name at this point is only going to create confusion. There is no advantage in her using her maiden name; it is only going to create confusion.

yes that's what I told her... She does not listen. So I guess she stays in the Philippines then. It is not like I could get my money back if it gets denied because of that.

If she uses her maiden name... How did she become my mother? she could be my sister then... lol Parents are so difficult to deal with.

Thank you... I am looking at your timeline. I also checked the USCIS website.

Whats so confusing me is do i need to pay for that I-485form? I read that if they are not currently in the USA then the GC will be mailed to the address indicated on the application when they get here.

Oh well... this is making my head hurts! lol i guess i will just wait for RFE whatever they need me to submit.

Hello,

I am planning to petition my parents here to live with me in the USA. They are from the Philippines. I am petitioning one at a time since it can be expensive to do both.

My questions are:

1. Is $420 will be the only fee I would have to pay? (excluding the medical fee and interview fee in the Phil) Or I would need to submit the I-485 which cost over $1000 each?

2. My mother wants to use her single name (my maiden name) because she has issues with my dad and they do not get a long. They were never annulled nor divorced... so technically... and legally... they are still married. Can she use her single name? or no?

I read that I need to provide documentation regarding my parents... on how they became my parents.

Both of them do not have US Visa whatsoever.... they both live in the Philippines.

Please I'd appreciate all the kind answers. Thank you.

Melissa B.

Ohh so if its within 15 months then... they do not do the biometrics? I should not have paid the $80 then LOL!!!

Hello,

I am a little bit confused with the process. I submitted my N400 Dec 8, 2011 and I got NOA Dec 12, 2011 saying they have received my application.

12/8/11- submitted N400

12/12/11- NOA stating they received my application

01/13/12- another NOA for my interview date which will be on 02/21/2012.

I did not have any letters for my biometrics yet? Is this going to be a problem? I am applying naturalization through marriage to a US citizen.

I got my Green card (unconditional) in 2011. Is this the reason why I did not get a letter for my biometrics? I saw on my letter here it says on the bottom "USCIS has a free booklet to help you study for the naturalization test. Ask about them when you go to have your fingerprints taken at the Application Support Center.

Can I just go to the office and get the booklet? Or call the USCIS?

Thank you!

Melissa

from what I know.... American middle name is just a normal name.. like John David Smith.. could be written as John D. Smith....

in the Philippines... we have middle names... and MAIDEN names... names that we acquired from our mothers.. so if your name is Mary Jane Vargas Ramos.... you could be Mary J. Ramos here in the USA... they do not put MAIDEN names here.... based on what I know.

He is just a stroll... Don't feed him. He likes attention and now he is getting it. We all know that not all FILIPINAS are like that. Have a good day to everybody!

I agree!!!

I wish I could send money for my dog too. He's a bit high maintenance hahahaha

Better yet, I want to bring him here. LOL. However, his life is already charmed there with his 3 nannies

My dog can't work.... my parent's/brothers/relatives/cousins can!

I only send money to my dad because he is taking care of my dog (chow chow). I send $50 every month which I think is enough for my dog's food, vaccinations and shampoos. I don't want them to think that I have a lot of money and that I am willing to give it to them. I see how my husband worked so hard to get where he is at right now. He's been homeless and moved out of his parents house when he was 17. My relatives/cousins in the Philippines never been homeless so I really don't have a sympathy.

I am sorry but money is something you should work for. Hard work and patience.

Don't let them get your dog to fat.

Masarap adobo!

Ohhh Adobo is his favorite!!! I must say! He is a pinoy dog.

Hello fellow visajourney people! Been a while since I posted my last topic. I have been busy recently working and working and working! lol I must say I am lucky to have a job in this economy. It is not the best paying job but hey! job is a job! Don't give up if you haven't found one yet.

Belated Merry Christmas to everyone!

I only support my dog I left in the Philippines. Not my family, my dad, my brothers.. etc.. etc.. even though I send the money to my dad. It is not for him. It is for my dog. Because the dog is my responsibility. My dog can't work. My family can!

Fiance now husband never sent me money as I never asked for it. The only time he sent was during my medical and interview application fee, other than that none. No monthly support because i was able to support myself and my dog.

its not my card, its his card. I called them and have me removed and they did and they are gonna mail it to me. (i hope hes not lying to me) This is really frustrating me and thinking about killing myself already.

I really feel for you because that was my situation when I moved here. Came to find out that my then to be husband hadn't told me even half the picture about his debts. I knew he was bad with money but had no idea the full extent of what he owed. House had two liens on it at the time and we got a letter about 2 weeks after I arrived in the US threatening forclosure for unpaid mortgage. Turns out he owed about $70000 in various debts including credit cards, unpaid accounts, taxes - you name it - he had it. Many accounts had already gone to collections. Basically whenever he got mail he left it unopened and he didn't answer the house phone at all - knowing it would be people chasing him for money. His credit score at that time was 485.

So...here is what I did. I made him give me all his cards. I sat and opened one trash bag full of old mail to see what was really going on and dealt with it all myself - and I mean all by myself! He gets $20 allowance every alternate day and has one credit card with only $400 limit so he can't do much damage. I save coupons and look online for savings, only buy things in sales and cut out all unnecessary expenses (such as not taking the toll road to work - we live in Southern California), only having basic amenities on TV and home phone.) Fortunately he has allowed me to take complete control and now we have paid off all his old debts and his credit score is almost 700 - in less than 5 years.

His brother however, who is the same way with money, still never looks at his mail, never answers his phone and has many accounts in collections - some of which have resulted in wage garnishments which he has no control over. He is and always will be in a desperate situation looking over his shoulder all the time. 50 and nothing to show for it. Can't own a home. Can't buy a car. Nothing...

My advice: take charge. Collection agents here are aggressive. Make sure they are abiding by the Fair Credit Act about when they can call you and how many times a day they can call you and if necessary let them know you will report them for harassment. http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre18.shtm

Most of the companies I dealt with did allow me to set up some kind of payment plan - see if they will be wiling to negotiate one for you. See if you can get your husband to give you his cards either for safekeeping or so you can destroy them and see if giving him a small allowance would work - this should also make him more conscious of what he is actually spending.

I really feel for you because it's a horrible situation to deal with but it can be done. You need to be strong be prepared to dig in for the long haul. I hope our success gives you hope!

Thank you for your reply.. well there is nothing really i can do about her daughter going to a private school. Some here even told me don't blame it on the kid.. which i am not. But its a big chunk of money $1000 monthly is enough to pay all of the those 4 cards he has for a year. I really don't know whats gonna happen. We also received a lot of calls but its from the bank not yet from the collection agencies.. soon it will be.

Our rent too is expensive we pay $1660 for 2 beds and bath and our lease wont be up til July 2010 so we are stuck til next year. We have cut off everything we can and leave the stuff we need for survival.. food and clothing. I have a little spare money on my own account but i am just afraid to pay his credit cards because what if they just take money from my account without my authorization because i am the wife? I am really confused right now.

Another concern, i wanna ask... In his Bank of America credit card. He put my name on it as an extention card. This is before we got married so my name there is my old last name. Is this gonna affect my credit score too? Is this considered as unsettled lien? I wanna apply for a secured credit because I am thinking at least one of us should have a good credit in the future.

He is still the main cardholder in the bank of america credit card, im just an extension. So i dont know if its gonna affect my credit score since it was on my old last name. Thats what im really worried about.

my credit score will be affected too? even though all of his credit cards are under his name? and he has huge debts even before we got married. We are only married for 9 months.

I am not really bothered by my credit score as i never had any credit cards. So i don't have a credit score? and if its gonna be affected then i'd be in a shithole... coz no credit score plus bad credit history caused by my husband.

I dont really know how it works.

Your credit score would be affected if you piggyback on his credit card. You should apply your own credit card.

I am planning to get a secured credit card in the future because nobody would want to give me credit right now. I don't know if its a good idea but i heard its the only thing you can do to build credit score.

So far we havent been reported to collection agencies because we paid some this month. But we receive calls day and night, so if get reported to collection agencies then.. it'd be the worst part, right? -sigh-

my credit score will be affected too? even though all of his credit cards are under his name? and he has huge debts even before we got married. We are only married for 9 months.

I am not really bothered by my credit score as i never had any credit cards. So i don't have a credit score? and if its gonna be affected then i'd be in a shithole... coz no credit score plus bad credit history caused by my husband.

I dont really know how it works.

wow thank you so much for your replies... It really helps my sanity and think more clearly what to do next. My husband and I argued last night but we are ok now... still not into cuddling and talking mood.

We decided to sit down and reduce our expenses

*i removed his data plan from his celphone which is $15 per month

*removed his $2.50 yahoo messenger plan

* I reduced my netflix to one at a time for $8 a month... it used to be $40 because we get 5 at a time

* we also removed our blu ray subscription $5 per month

I am planning to also remove my gps subscription in my celphone and just buy the real gps.

(we don't have cable subscription thats why we have netflix)

Next step maybe just hang our clothes instead of using the dryer. About our rent.. well can't really do anything til our lease expire in 2010 but my husband and I will try to negotiate with them. Maybe that would help.

He'll get his bonus this October it's not a lot but it helps, and i get paid 3x this October.

But i am pretty sure he will be reported to the collection agencies. If that happens, can we still continue paying the debts? Whats gonna happen after hes being reported?

Thank you so much! I never expected a lot of good suggestions!

Thank you for all your response. I really appreciate it. My husband and I are arguing right now on how to pay the rent, the private school, utilities and food. I told him that if he doesn't change then i'll just move it and let him deal with all of it. I told him to be a better person and accept the fact that we can't afford it.

I just don't really know whats gonna happen with his credit debts. We owe chase, bank of america, citibank and american express. Even with care plan we still can't pay them all.

Well about his divorce the reason he is not paying high child support its because when they divorced they had almost the same amount of income. Also its a joint custody so they talk whatever they want to do with their child. Its all about their mutual understanding.

My husband earns decently but just not spending right thats why we are broke.

The only thing i can do i guess is to support him with his idea about the business and try not to discourage him so much -sigh-

You seem to have more money sense than your husband. I would insist that there be changes made like you and the others suggested (change school, apartment, get rid of most credit cards). It seems even before the two of you got married, he was already managing his finances very badly (depending on credit cards to pay for travel expenses to visit you = living beyond his means). The most you can really do is insist. But, what if he doesn't take you seriously and make those changes? Would he be willing to see a credit counselor? What are your options if he doesn't even want to see a credit counselor?

Expecting you to find a higher-paying job (if you could even find one at this point) to pay for his debts was not very nice of him. I have a friend who married a USC. For seven years, she had to support her husband because her husband's pay (and part of her pay) went entirely to paying off debts he had before they were married.

I am very interested in hearing other people's suggestions about this because I think this problem is not uncommon at all.

He is trying to start a business now and i hope it goes well. Its called a BPO and we are using word of mouth to promote it and have a client. My worry is this is a trial and error thing it could work and it could not work, although im trying to be optimistic. He told me his daughter going to a public school is not an option and even told me if he could get a loan just to keep her there. -sigh- If i bring this up to him right now, we'll just argue.

I love him and i just want to help him out but i don't know how to deal with him. I am not telling him that it will be forever public school for her but for this time only since we cant move because we already signed the lease and will expire on 2010.

All of my salary goes to our bill and i dont disagree with that. His' just go to her school and rent and expects me to find a better paying job... It hurts too much.

I'm so sorry about your situation - did you know that he was deep credit card debt before you even married him? I think the problem lies primarily with your husband. He had and is still living beyond his means and is not willing to make adjustments to be able to pay his debt. That is totally irresponsible, inconsiderate and uncaring. How dare he tell you to find a better paying job to pay for his debts!! I'm sorry for saying this but it's the truth, and unless your husband changes his attitude, your debts will even get bigger. I suggest you pray hard for God to change and soften your husband's heart and change his attitude so that he will see the problem, listen to reason (listen to you) and make concrete plans in getting you out of debt.

I kinda know about it and thought that everybody has debts. I just didn't know that it will turn out like this. This is so bad. He told me mainly because of his travel to the Philippines to visit me. He visited me 5 times before I got here in the USA and we went back this year for his major dental problem but it didn't get fixed.

Is it my fault that he visited me many times thats why he owes too much? I didn't force him to.. although i liked it and enjoyed the company but i didnt think that in the future right now that I and him would be in deep debt.

You seem to have more money sense than your husband. I would insist that there be changes made like you and the others suggested (change school, apartment, get rid of most credit cards). It seems even before the two of you got married, he was already managing his finances very badly (depending on credit cards to pay for travel expenses to visit you = living beyond his means). The most you can really do is insist. But, what if he doesn't take you seriously and make those changes? Would he be willing to see a credit counselor? What are your options if he doesn't even want to see a credit counselor?

Expecting you to find a higher-paying job (if you could even find one at this point) to pay for his debts was not very nice of him. I have a friend who married a USC. For seven years, she had to support her husband because her husband's pay (and part of her pay) went entirely to paying off debts he had before they were married.

I am very interested in hearing other people's suggestions about this because I think this problem is not uncommon at all.

He is trying to start a business now and i hope it goes well. Its called a BPO and we are using word of mouth to promote it and have a client. My worry is this is a trial and error thing it could work and it could not work, although im trying to be optimistic. He told me his daughter going to a public school is not an option and even told me if he could get a loan just to keep her there. -sigh- If i bring this up to him right now, we'll just argue.

I love him and i just want to help him out but i don't know how to deal with him. I am not telling him that it will be forever public school for her but for this time only since we cant move because we already signed the lease and will expire on 2010.

All of my salary goes to our bill and i dont disagree with that. His' just go to her school and rent and expects me to find a better paying job... It hurts too much.