Brit Abroad

Having a foreign duty station is classed as living on US soil for military dependants (if you were on their PCS orders). You should be fine, but if you need clarification, talk to the Military help line at USCIS and they can confirm it for you.

It sounds to me like you're confused and need some guidance in what comes next; in addition to being concerned about a three week separation.

Once you are married to a US citizen, you need to file to adjust your status from a J1 visa, to a spouse with a permanent resident card (aka green card). This is the only way for you to stay legal and avoid any future possibility of deportation. The forms you need are here. Print them out, read through them and start working out what paperwork you need to assemble to send in with them.

Stop worrying about time apart - this is healthy for any relationship and will make it stronger in the long run. Use this time to gather the supporting paperwork you need for your Adjustment of Status, and get your immigration record set straight. You will need to gather evidence that you are a couple and this will take some time. It offers distraction and it will keep you very busy. When you are working toward something so important, I guarantee it will make you feel better.

Your lawyer may have given you correct information about your position regarding the J1, but America does not like people being "out of status" or between status types and all it takes is one person with a grudge against you to call ICE and you could be up in front of a judge very quickly, so concentrate on getting that situation fixed as soon as you possibly can.

Best of luck to you, OP.

Wikipedia has written it up nicely for you ... here!

Have you tried pulling out the forms and going through them with your father, pointing out the points that Jim makes about medical insurance and that his wage may not be enough to support him AND a wife, and ask him how he will get round any shortfall? Is he capable of or willing to work? Is his new wife? Does she have a pension or savings that will bolster your dad's income? Can it be received in the US?

I think, in view of the fact that someone will be required to co- or joint sponsor in order to meet the financial support criteria, he AND they need to know if they are likely to be on the hook and whether they are willing to proceed.

It's all well and good to say he's entitled to be happy in his retirement, but not if it's at someone else's reluctant expense .. and at least one of his children has expressed concern. Age doesn't entitle people to show less fiscal responsibility.

Just take a copy of the NOA2 and everything else you suggested, not the entire packet.

Don't know how comfortable your fiance is with giving you a copy of his orders, but if CBP know that the person you're intending to visit is only there for a limited period on RnR and your tickets correspond with those dates, they are probably going to be a little more receptive. Maybe a letter from his folks inviting you over for his leave period?

I flew to visit my (now) husband three times while we were waiting for visa processing. I travelled with a small case and just a handbag as hand luggage. If it's obvious you're not carrying much beyond your needs and you have evidence that you propose returning, don't worry too much about being refused entry as you have good documents to prove your intent.

Good luck to you, OP.

Look at the expiry date on your green card and count back 90 days for the correct I-751 submission date.

USCIS will send you a NOA1, which extends the validity of your expired green card by a year. Once you have this, you can travel freely until the 10 year green card arrives and supercedes the NOA1 extension letter.

As a permanent resident you can apply for a re-entry permit, which will cover you for an absence of up to 2 years PROVIDED you intend to return to the US and make it your permanent home.

Read the notes on Form-I 131 linked here. There is a guidance booklet about Re-entry and Permanent Resident status here.

If you are aiming for citizenship, yes, absence of a year will increase the period of time you need to qualify by one year once you return.

Six months seems like forever in this process, but when you look back you will realise how quickly it goes, especially in the last couple of weeks. Don't set yourself up for regrets when you get here, it's so much harder than you realise. It's great to finally be with your soulmate, but the drawback is that in your excitement to get here, you overlook what you are giving up.

Wishing you an uneventful process that passes as quickly as it can.

thanks for those words and not trying to bash you but do you have regrets just asking based oon what you said

Yes, I have regrets. I lost my mother shortly before we married, and I lost my father 18 months afterwards. Life is a lot more fragile than we realise and once the people we love are gone, we can't make more memories with them. If I'd known time was so limited, I would certainly have made more of the time I had before I moved to the US, instead of being in a hurry to get here.

I am deeply sorry if you guys think i am selfish and yes it is not a month as yet but all i am trying to say is that they should have persons working on the backlogs and different persons working on the recent one therefore they would not have to go over the processing time they should meet. I know i have a long wait and i am not only thinking about me but other persons who petition is backlog and have not recieve their NOA2 as yet. Cause if you think about it when its my time to be approve i would be back log too cause they are still trying to finish the ones they had before. I am just trying to be logically.They need different persons to do that thats all i am saying.

If USCIS were the only agency involved, it would be easier to keep track of, and they would probably be a lot better at updating the status and removing all this angst and hand-wringing.

Unfortunately, they are required to interract with many other departments in order to verify that you aren't someone that America doesn't wish to admit, and that you have been truthful on your application. So, basically, it isn't just the staffing level at USCIS ... it's about the staffing level of the FBI, CIA, Interpol, IRS and various others and any backlog they happen to have, or difficulties they encounter retrieving information. That's just within the US. When they have to wait on verification from foreign agencies .. well, do I really need to spell out how that works?

Quite frankly, for the amount of activity our application files see, I'm amazed that we get off with only paying around $5k total for the whole process. How much more would you be prepared to pay in order to speed your application up? 10, 000? 20? Most of us prefer to wait rather than double, or triple, the costs involved in this already expensive process.

Your time would be better spent enjoying the company of family and friends, and scenery of a country you're going to be leaving behind, rather than panicking about how unfair it is to make you wait. Trust me, there will be a lot of things you'll miss from home once you arrive, so don't squander the time you have by worrying about how long it will be before you can give it all up. Make sure everyone has some kind of video conferencing and knows how to use it, visit everyone, go through your personal items and decide if you want gift some as mementos to your loved ones. Make memories to bring with you. It's often the little things that mean the most when you're here without them.

Six months seems like forever in this process, but when you look back you will realise how quickly it goes, especially in the last couple of weeks. Don't set yourself up for regrets when you get here, it's so much harder than you realise. It's great to finally be with your soulmate, but the drawback is that in your excitement to get here, you overlook what you are giving up.

Wishing you an uneventful process that passes as quickly as it can.

Send what is requested with the RFE sheet.

The best place to show additional trips and information is at the interview at the Embassy.

If your visa has expired, but you are still within the time period stamped on the I-94 you should apply for a replacement I-94. USCIS handle this, for a fee. If your visa has expired and your I-94 period has also expired, you run the risk of being picked up and deported if you are inspected. It's not usual to be inspected on internal flights, but if you are flying near or through border cities there is always a possibility of random inspections.

Breadmaker, without a doubt. Lots of great things in America, but bread definitely isn't on the list.

As we're not at the end of the filing period for tax year 2011, it shouldn't be a problem to present 2008/2009/2010.

Once you submit your AoS paperwork and get the confirmation NOA, the I-94 is irrelevant. Although technically you are between status types (ie fiance visa to permanent resident) this is totally normal and will present no problems at all. Make sure you keep the NOA in a safe place as it is your proof of legal status.

We did the same as Fatima and Jim. RoC approved without interview.

Most people here on VJ have relatively "simple" cases. By that I mean, no criminal convictions, no drug use, no sexual abuse charges. If you fall into that category, it's certainly much cheaper to complete and submit the paperwork by yourselves.

My recommendation is to read up on the ENTIRE process, from K1 Fiance/e visa, through Adjustment of Status and Removal of Conditions. The links are at GUIDES on the very top menu of this page. Then pop over to the USCIS.gov and print out all the forms for each process (this has the advantage that you get the latest versions, as some of the guides may not have been updated). Make some photocopies and see how you get on filling them out. If you run into problems, come and ask questions here on the forums and you're likely to get sufficient advice to complete them without paying a lawyer excessive amounts for it.

Personally, we found the most difficult part of the process was the waiting time. Provided you are thorough about accumulating the required paperwork and you take care to fill in the forms correctly, it's not a difficult process.

Best of luck to you, OP.

"VisaJourney.com does not condone immigration fraud in any way, shape or manner. VisaJourney.com recommends that if any member or user knows directly of someone involved in fraudulent or illegal activity, that they report such activity directly to the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. You can contact ICE via email at Immigration.Reply@dhs.gov or you can telephone ICE at 1-866-347-2423."

Your "friend" is breaking the law. It is obvious she is just fishing for a GC. She is no "friend" and I suggest you report her for fraud. I would inform them of her removal order, her second marriage licence and her whereabouts. They will not approve her for a GC and she will deported with a sizable ban. They CAN and MIGHT deport her while pregnant so she doesn't give birth to a USC. In the event she gives birth before she's deported they will not order the child deported and the child will likely remain with it's father.

I agree with V&T wholeheartedly. Please be careful that this doesn't come back to bite YOU on the butt. You are aware of her illegal status, and that she may be collecting a benefit to which she is not entitled. To me, that's not worth risking being classed as an accomplice and classified as a non-desirable resident in the US. Even after citizenship you can fall foul of USCIS by aiding and abetting illegals.

I think there are a lot of us who go through the process either within or shortly after the posted timescales. It's just that we don't always come on and say "Hey, I've got it" so all we see are the posts saying that something went wrong for them.

Congrats.

Provided your green card hasn't expired and you are not actually divorced there shouldn't be any problems getting back into the US.

Divorce happens. So do reconciliations. This is why USCIS allows you to file to remove conditions on the green card with sufficient evidence that it was a good faith marriage. If you have evidence, apply on your own with a letter informing them that a divorce is pending. They normally extend the validity period by NOA letter and once they have paper confirmation of the divorce decree they will issue an unconditional resident card.

USCIS are realistic, and I doubt there's any possible scenario that they haven't already seen. Make copies of all your evidence now and start building the RoC packet ready to file.

Sorry to hear your marriage didn't work out, but try and make the divorce on amicable terms as it will make the paperwork so much easier to compile.

Best of luck to you.

The only reason USCIS would revoke a 10 year green card is material misrepresentation, fraudulent marriage, being charged for a serious criminal offence or involvement in terrorist activities. All of these would require a court case before your friend could be deported.

Unless the ex-wife has evidence of any of the above regarding your friend, I'd have him tell her to do a little more reading and a lot less talking. Your friend is at liberty to visit anywhere in the world his passport/visa allows. Just make sure he knows about the requirement for a re-entry visa if he intends being out of the US for over a year.

Military Help Line: 1-877-CIS-4MIL (1-877-247-4645)

Members of the military and their families may call to receive assistance with immigration-related questions.

If your husband is Active Duty and has orders to deploy, you should ask them about an expedite.

When you leave the medical, you are normally given a DS form that lists the vaccinations you have had. When you call the Civil Surgeon you need to ask for a vaccination transcription, rather than a medical. Some, but not all, offer this for a much reduced fee. All they need to do is transfer the record of vaccinations from the medical (and sign off/detail any you have had since then .. ie boosters or not-available vaccs from your home country) onto the I-693.

Some people skip through the AOS process without getting it done, but they normally RFE for it (as you have discovered).

It's fine to open the plastic. The big, thick, dark yellow envelope is the one which contains your visa application and supporting evidence PLUS your medical notes and blood test results. It should be marked DO NOT OPEN.

Not sure what the other thin envelope is, as I didn't get one of those (but mine was 3+ years ago). Could it be a "film" from your chest X-ray at the medical?

The only other item I got in that packet (besides the passport with visa) was an A4 white sheet which was taped to the front of the big packet. When I checked in for my flight, they asked for it.

Basically, pull out the envelopes and check all sides for the DNO notice.

Congratulations, and hope your trip over is uneventful.

Three and a half years is a long, long time to fake a marriage just for a resident's card, presuming you were living together as a couple in that period.

Is it possible that she's simply happier back at home in the new relationship and thinks it will be easier to make you angry by claiming she married for the green card, rather than making you miserable by saying she doesn't love you any more? Making someone angry usually has the effect of hastening the break up, rather than clinging on to any hope and believing that counseling or giving it another try may make a difference.

Other than that, I agree with Jojolicious. Divorce her and get on with your life. "Paying her back" won't make you any happier in the long term. Find someone who does believe you're a keeper, and will spend her life making you happy.

Tell your lawyer you would like the corrected form printed out, regardless. If YOU want to take a corrected form to the interview, you are perfectly at liberty to do so. Then it becomes the choice of USCIS whether they amend the form they already have or accept your amended form into their records. If you don't take it, and they won't amend the existing form, you're stuck without options.

You are paying the lawyer, she should be dancing to your tune. Not the other way round.

Sometimes I think the long immigration process is a good test of how you are going to manage stress and relationship difficulties in your marriage.

LDRs are both easy and hard. Easy because there is no real give and take with the ability to log off or "have to go" when situations become awkward. Hard because there can never be enough contact with someone you love when they are in a distant country. Especially hard when your soul mate is from a high fraud country and your relationship is going to be scrutinised very closely.

The only advice I'd give you, without wishing to give any offence, is to use this time to be totally honest with him. Relationships are a two-way communication system. If you are unhappy, you need to be able to say "Hey, I love you and I wish you were here, but I'm struggling and I need more from you right now. Can you call me more often, or just let me know that you are thinking of me, please?". If you hold back on how you feel, he's not getting the REAL you, and isn't being offered the opportunity to do something about it. We assume so much about what our partners are thinking, that we don't actually ASK. It's easy to say that men are less communicative about their feelings than women; but maybe that's because we give them an "out" and we don't let them see how much their lack of action affects us. There is no room for emotional cowardice in a relationship.

You have a child together; this is about more than just you and him. Talk, and keep on talking, until you either know you are going to make this relationship work, come hell or high water, or you don't see it working and decide to come to an amicable end for your child's sake.

Best of luck to you, OP.

PS Sometimes it takes a little while to work out how your marital communication functions. People have different temperaments and experiences, and learn to express themselves in different ways. I'm not sure there's ever a right or wrong way, just a matter of finding the communication system that works best for both of you.