LemonGrass

We sent 4 notarized. Maybe affivadits aren't required but certainly can't hurt. I wouldn't bother sending them if they aren't notarized - they have no way of knowing that you didn't write them yourself.

If possible, a Justice of the peace wedding is quick and would give them an official US wedding. It doesn't cost much and isn't exactly the "special moment" in life but might help facilitate business matters since some people doubt the validity of marriage certs from other countries. It's unfortunate that other cultures and beliefs are sometimes not acknowliedged or respected. From your post, I realize there isn't enough time for that. For my wife to wire transfer her money to our joint bank account in Thailand, they wanted our marriage cert, and both our passports, then we had to sign the photocopies. All this even though both our names were on the bank statement as primary account holders. One bank even kept her bank book for one day until they were positive everything would clear with the Central Bank.

If possible, a Justice of the peace wedding is quick and would give them an official US wedding. It doesn't cost much and isn't exactly the "special moment" in life but might help facilitate business matters since some people doubt the validity of marriage certs from other countries. It's unfortunate that other cultures and beliefs are sometimes not acknowliedged or respected. From your post, I realize there isn't enough time for that. For my wife to wire transfer her money to our joint bank account in Thailand, they wanted our marriage cert, and both our passports, then we had to sign the photocopies. All this even though both our names were on the bank statement as primary account holders. One bank even kept her bank book for one day until they were positive everything would clear with the Central Bank.

I meant our joint account in the US

I received my I-130 approval last year practically on the last day of the year. I think they must be trying to meet year end deadlines on approval numbers.

Thanks, for the comments. She was able to renew, just abarely in time. She has to go back in 2 days and will be issued a new number or something. I don't know how important this is, the expiration date of your passport can creep up on you with all the time it takes to process and then interview.

My wife has her interview for IR1 in 1 week. Strangely, she received a packet V a few days ago(which we have already submitted everything except medical - she has already had done). She is reading everything very closely and notices that her passport will expire Aug 8, 2009. That will be more than the 6 months required (she also says her paperwork specifies 8 months, not 6 months like everywhere else I read). She can't possibly renew it that fast. The information she has on renewal is 1 month processsing and is now an e-passport, no longer just using stamps. Anyone know if this is a problem?

What country? In most countries you are able to renew a passport in less than 7 months.

Thailand

Am I misinterpreting this listed requirement?

A passport valid for travel to the United States and with a validity date at least six months beyond the applicant's intended period of stay in the United States.

My wife has her interview for IR1 in 1 week. Strangely, she received a packet V a few days ago(which we have already submitted everything except medical - she has already had done). She is reading everything very closely and notices that her passport will expire Aug 8, 2009. That will be more than the 6 months required (she also says her paperwork specifies 8 months, not 6 months like everywhere else I read). She can't possibly renew it that fast. The information she has on renewal is 1 month processsing and is now an e-passport, no longer just using stamps. Anyone know if this is a problem?

My wife was in the US on a J1 residency also. We consulted several lawyers and they basically said to wait until the 2 years is up. One said it could complicate the paperwork and if you're declined it could make the wait even longer. My wife also came without financial aid or govermental assistance. We also thought there must be a way, but decided to wait. She finished her program, married May 2006, applied for 6 mo extension to study for ABIM and left for home in Sept 2006. We filed i130 in Aug2007 and waited and waited. We used the timelines to figure out when to submit the rest of the paperwork - June 2008 and early Sept 2008. We finally have our interview in Jan 2009. I know this doesn't really answer the possibility of time waiver, but just sharing information.

I was feeling the same way for long time. wanting some answers about Nov and Dec. Our case was completed in early Oct and was expecting Nov date, then Dec date, and finally got a Jan date. So you're not alone in the waiting game. This seemed odd to me...I took the PDF file from Nov and extracted all the dates/interviews,then sorted them in Excel. They started out handling a reasonable number of appointments in the first 10 days then it dropped to like 3-5 a day. The few Dec dates were odd also. I never compared the Dec file(it's on the embassy site right now). I got on the general CR1 forum just before Thanksgiving and someone said they were giving out Jan dates, so I called and they had just scheduled it. It didn't follow the normal 2nd week of the month guideline. So I don't know what's really going on there either. just my 2 cents worth of info...

Same for me, Jan 13th. good luck to you! I was looking for something inspirational, but stopped when I found out William Hung was born on this day.

He was seen shooting out of town wearing a raincoat and a jimmy hat.

not that this is new or helpful but I called last Wednesday and found out our interview was scheduled for Jan 13th in Bangkok. My case was completed Oct 9th. So the NVC must be scheduling some appointments ahead of the regular 2nd week of the month.

Excellent idea about the passport. I plan to be there for moral support in Bangkok for her. I am planning to go as far as I can. It is my understanding that I can't go to the window or interview with her, but I think I can sit in the waiting area with her. I hear the wait can be hours. When asked how many times he has visited, she can say "counting today/this trip? or just the other visits..." to the officer.

I just called and got mine for Jan 13th. The lady said they mailed it today. hooray! Daboyz call again because I called for a BNK appointment. (My case was completed Oct 9th though, so that might make a difference)

I know of it happening, but only if they highly suspect something is wrong. If you have nothing to hide, then I wouldn't worry about it. I think you have every right to ask for id. I would guess they should have paperwork that has your case numbers/bar codes or something similar if they are the real deal. If you have a child with you, they aren't going to throw you in the back of a car and drive off. The right to enter your property and search etc, seems like a question for a lawyer.

I don't know the law but it seems to me that if you believed you were entering into a valid legally binding marriage and the person performing it falsified their right to perform it, there would be grounds for submitting either a new certficate of vows or something. Are there any public records that you are allowed to look up for your marriage? Seems like a lawyer is needed to answer this one.

tuk-tuk with shades or curtains

I read in the Bangkok Post or The Nation newspaper this past summer, while I was in Bangkok, that the government is now allowing previously married ladies the opportunity to remove the Mrs. The exact conditions and process, I don't remember.

I forgot to mention the lists were from US bangkok embassy website link. Hey, I'm from Richardson Tx also. Send me message, I'm interested who was your lawyer.

It's in the checklist for "K" visas, but not CR-1/IR-1. This was news to me also. I'm not filing "K" but I'm tempted to have my wife complete one just in case. Seems like they can be unpredictable.

Nice to know our lives are in good hands (haha)... the requirements aren't that high, only GED needed, and what excellent pay!!!! I found this recent posting for openings at NVC - Oct 28, 2008. I have not modified any of this information - straight from Careerbuilder.

Visa Processing Specialist - Case Processing Oct 28, 2008

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

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Company Overview:

Centuria Corporation has 11 years of sterling past performance, an existing GSA schedule and multiple prime contracts with several key agencies. With the VETS win GSA has acknowledged Centuria as one of the leading Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses. Centuria was formed as an Oracle boutique in 1996 and managed to grow and prosper long before SDVOSB legislation and presidential directives made our set aside status meaningful in 2004. Over the years we have added to our IT capabilities and are able to support the Federal Marketplace with Program Management, Financial, and Complex Administrative capabilities as well.

Description:

Centuria Corporation is continuing to grow on an exciting project and needs your help! Our operations at the National Visa Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire are increasing and we're hiring to fill over 25 positions. Interviews will start immediately for Visa Processing Specialists.

The National Visa Center (NVC) at Portsmouth, NH was opened in April of 1994 by the Department of State. NVC processes all approved immigrant visa petitions after they are received from Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Department of Homeland Security and retains them until the cases are ready for adjudication by a consular officer abroad. NVC receives thousands of telephone and written inquiries from applicants, petitioners, congressional offices, U.S. embassies and consulates, CIS offices and the White House. This is a high-visibility position that had a major impact on the lives of people in the visa system.

Working at NVC carries a great deal of responsibility. Each of the immigrant visa packages represents a family that is waiting to be together or someone that has chosen to legally come to the United States for a better life. The environment you will work in reflects the importance of the process: a professional environment where high quality and high performance are expected and rewarded. The program is a highly efficient production-line setting where everyone is assigned very specific roles with clear tasks to be performed. The positions in this round of hiring will predominantly be for the second (2nd) shift - Hours for these positions will be from 4pm in the afternoon until 12:30am in the morning.

For more information contact Kate Wolf by applying through this job posting - be sure to list the job number VPS-CaseProc.

Visa Processing Specialist – Case Processing

**Please note: All Visa Processing Specialists start in Case Processing.

Location: Portsmouth, NH

Start Date: ASAP

Hours: We are hiring for both 1st and 2nd shift openings, but the largest number of openings will be on 2nd shift. If you are interested in 1st shift only please feel free to apply, but understand there may be a delay in getting you started due to lack of openings on that shift.

1st shift - 7am to 3.30pm

2nd shift - 4pm to 12:30am (just after midnight)

Salary/rate: Starting hourly rates are predetermined and defined by our government customer (Dept of State) and are as follows. Rates include comprehensive benefits package.

1st shift: $12.88 per hour

2nd shift: 10% differential, so rate will be $14.17 per hour

MINIMUM EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS

High School Diploma or a GED

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

Three (3) to Five (5) years of relevant experience.

Experience in an Office/Clerical environment is desired.

MINIMUM CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS

None

MINIMUM SKILL SETS

Basic Computer Skills (Ability to type 30 WPM)

Good Interpersonal and Communication Skills

Strong English Skills

Strong attention to detail while working in a fast paced environment

Knowledge of World Geography desirable

Analytical Skills

Ability to readily adapt to changes within the work environment

Capable of working in a multi-task environment with rapidly changing priorities and have very good command of the written English Language

Demonstrate a professional work ethic

SUMMARY OF DUTIES

Reviews the completeness and accuracy of various forms and supporting documents in accordance with Department of State guidelines and procedures.

Data Entry

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Case Creation will enter data information from petitions received into IVIS as completely and accurately as possible based upon the submitted documents, creating a unique case record.

Quality Control will verify the data information entered in IVIS for each case record created is complete and accurate based upon the submitted documents, modifying information and providing Case Creation feedback as needed.

Consistently meet/exceed the performance requirement standards (productivity and quality) for the various petition (CC) and case (QC) types assigned.

For more information or to apply please respond to this job posting and be sure to reference job code VPS-CaseProc. Look forward to hearing from you soon!

Compensation:

$12.88 - $14.17 Hourly

10% shift differential for 2nd shift employees - starting hourly rate for second shift is $14.17/hr.

This goes deeper than raising children or beliefs. She is going through some kind of other issue. She's using you to vent. I make is sound simple but that's my impression. Basic reasoning tells us that there are good and bad mothers in all countries and all religions. And you can't simply tell her she needs help or counseling, that just makes things worse. I know isn't a solution but I would just say, "You seem to be going through a difficult time, I'm sorry that you feel this way.". You just can't have a reasonable conversation or disagreement with someone who is appears to be mad at the world and everybody, or even a subset of it.

I've had some good experiences and some questionable. The only lawyer I ever hired is licensed here in the US and his partner is licensed in the country my wife is from. They have family and legal connections back to country also, so they know the about little things that happen in the country and the embassy there. They have also provided me with translation services for family documents at a much cheaper price than any of the other local companies that I contacted. They have done some odd things like having 3 copies of each set of documents on different colored paper and provided me an account to FTP photos, forms, affidivits, etc. Overall they have done a great job. Because they can not push the documents through NVC or USCIS, they have been just as frustrated as myself. I believe I contacted 3 other lawyers previously and they all seemed to be arrogant and greedy. If I knew of this website beforehand, I would have kept my money and spent it on all the little misc expenses like DHL costs, multiple copies of forms, certified copies, etc. If you read and dig through all the information in these forums, you can get your answers from experienced forum users. The only time I can see really needing the lawyer is if you have some really odd circumstances.

The correct phrase is "I couldn't care less". All this bashing of each party is not beneficial to anyone. Furthermore, why is this stuff on this forum? Anyway, you two have fun.

They'll give you what you need. Unfortunately, if you know how vaccinations are really done, then you know that some are not suppose to be given together and some are suppose to be adminstered over time (like Hep shots). Doesn't really matter, like the previous poster, most show up without records, show they will give you all of the required ones. no worries.

Don't know if this is any help to anyone. My wife was here on a Visa. She had income and we married in 2006. She had to go back to her country in late 2006 by givernment agreements on her Visa type. My CPA filed us joint married for 2006, and in 2007 I filed as single. 2008 will be the same. She is working in her country and I have sent her money, but she is not considered a dependant. I don't know all the reasons but this is the way my CPA decided to file. Some of it makes sense because she wasn't working for a US company paying taxes and social secuity.