Johnny & Yumi

Hi everyone,

I have two I-134 question related to the K-1 visa.

The first question pertains to item #7 on the form in regards to income. Does a letter of employment suffice for what the US Embassy at Tokyo wants or it's also a good idea to include the bank statements?

The second question pertains to item #11 which has:

The recommendation that I have seen on the forums say to just leave both check boxes blank and write:

N/A (K1 visa process for permanent residence)

I've seen some other posts disagree with that and at this point I'm honestly not really sure since it's a bit vague. Does anyone remember what they filled in? Thank you.

honbako-san,

For the I-134, I didn't check the boxes, and I put down "N/A (K1 visa process for permanent residence) for #11. No problems.

A letter of employment is good, but also take your bank statements (what accounts you have, how much, etc...)". They want to see that you have money to take care of yourself and your SO. I even took my pay stubs for the past 3 months, and tax account transcripts for the past 3 years with me just in case. It's better to have a too much than too few...

Hey guys...Hisashiburi...

Johnny & Yumi - got a question... Is that true that she will lose her pension if she become a US citizen??? Do you know for sure. Have heard it both ways and we may have to make a decision soon too so would like to know for sure. My aunt who became a US citizen and is also from Japan told my wife that she could still collect her Japanese pension if she becomes a US citizen. But I've seen it here and some other places where people said they would lose the pension if they became a US citizen.

If anyone else knows for sure, would really appreciate it.

Just wondering because I've been offered a job in Japan and if it works out, we may be there from 3 - 5 years so if she still just has a GC, things may get all messed up. Will be working for the Gov't and I heard that there was some sort of expedited citizenship for that, so we're just exploring all our options.

Thanks for any info,

vny

Hey vny,

I asked Yumi again about that and she said that she didn't know for sure that one would lose their pension if they became a US citizen. I tried looking it up online and found a few sites that said that it is possible to become an U.S. citizen without losing their pension. However, I guess the Japan Government would have the final say on this.

That's cool that you had a job offer to work in Japan! But yeah, since she's a GC holder and they expect you to live in the U.S. for more than half the year, this could get a little tricky. But I would guess there could be exception in your case. Good Luck!

Yumi loves the U.S. and wants to stay here, but she is not interested in naturalization either. If she were to become an American citizen, she would lose her pension.

Now, if we have kids, I guess they have to choose between American or Japanese Citizenship by their 20th birthday, right? It would be interesting to see what choice they make.

Hey Everyone,

Yumi and I had the AOS interview and she was approved! Now we can relax until we have to file for the I-751.

Good luck to everyone else! Ganbare!

ahhhh

we have to get the police record now with NOA2. i hope they accept it the FIRST time he tries. their hours are terrible!! only weekday afternoons!

maybe he should try get his medical check early then??

i am also worried that at the interview he cannot understand their english and will make a mistake!!! >.<

Don't worry too much about the interview. I went with Yumi to her interview, and when she couldn't understand the question in English, the interviewer asked it again in Japanese. Also, you can attend the interview with your SO as well.

Oh, I didn't see your second question. I can't remember exactly where the case # is, but I think it is on the NOA 2. Someone else will have to verify this. Gomen!

Yep, you can go. I did and so did many others at the Tokyo Embassy. Just bring your ID (passport) and you should have no problems. You have to leave cell phones, cameras, iPod, etc...with the guards though.

I think going with your SO to the interview is a good idea. I think it can be very scary and nerve-wracking for some people to do it alone. Good Luck!

This is too late in your case, but here's a suggestion for anyone else who is planning to move while they have stuff pending: File a Change of Address with the U.S. Postal Service so they can forward any of your mail sent to the old address to the new address.

Hopefully you will get your card in less than 45 days.

Congrats to Chris and Kirara for passing the interview!

Good Luck to Mike and Sachie, and to Netsatwork for their upcoming interviews!

Yumi and I just completed her AOS stuff and mailed it yesterday. Although if we had done it a few weeks earlier, we could've avoided the 20 minute wait at the post office. We hope that everyone else is doing well, and wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Hate crime, but I do wonder...

Woman In McCain Attack Hoax Sentenced

I'd prefer Japan, but out of that list, I would want to retire to New Zealand and watch the All Blacks. However, a friend of mine researched about moving to New Zealand and they have some pretty strict guidlines about foreigners in.

I found these 3 interesting articles from Rocky Mountain Oil.

http://rockymountainoil.com/

In the third article, appears that Shell has already tested ways to extract the oil.

I was looking for short-term health insurance for my fiancee when she comes in October. Thanks for all the links, I will check them out. I also found this one as well:

http://www.nriol.net/immigrant-health-insurance/

Anyone have experience with this? Any recommendations?

Thanks!

It's not just the Obamacare people getting out of hand. This is ALL getting out of hand.

That's not what your article said.

That was my opinion. As a civil society, I believe we should not result to these kind of actions.

The public outbursts have been tense, even raucous at times, but rarely violent.

Punching someone for their views is wrong but biting off a finger is far worse. I've seen fights before but not dismemberments.

I can argue with you that losing a finger is less worse than being punched in the face. I have heard of people getting seriously injured, or even dying of just one punch to the face or head. Regardless, both of them are assault, and that is wrong.

It's not just the Obamacare people getting out of hand. This is ALL getting out of hand.

The Miami Herald

MIAMI — A low-key rally for a health-care overhaul took an unexpected turn Wednesday when a passer-by punched a 65-year-old man in the face after a heated exchange.

Luis Perrero was one of about 40 supporters of a health-care overhaul waving signs outside a Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce meeting headlined by Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., when a man in a green pickup stopped and began arguing with the crowd.

The roadside exchange, which began with questions about the costs of a government-run health-care plan, quickly turned into a volley of Spanish and English curse words and insults, witnesses said.

When Perrero uttered an offensive Spanish expletive, Raul Anasagasti, who was driving the pickup, punched him in the face, knocking him to the ground. Police arrested and charged Anasagasti.

"I'm amazed at the way this has become such a politicized issue," Perrero said as he sat on the ground holding his jaw. "It shows that people who are against the public option will resort to anything — including battery on a senior citizen — to prevent health-care reform."

The health-care debate across the country has generated frequent streetside protests and contentious town-hall meetings aimed at influencing members of Congress during their August break. The public outbursts have been tense, even raucous at times, but rarely violent.

"Conflict and argument and controversy and clash is what you've been hearing about," Nelson said. "And that's just a minor part of building this elusive consensus.'

Anasagasti, the owner of an air-conditioning company in South Dade, Fla., was arrested and charged with battery on a person 65 or older. The 56-year-old contractor claimed self-defense.

"He raised his arm at me," he said. "That's when I hit him. I have to defend myself."

Yeah, TV Japan is expensive, but I love it. There was an AZN Television cable channel a few years back that used to show japanese programs and Fuji Network News, but I guess it folded or something.

Hey Everyone! It has been awhile, but it looks like a lot of good things have been happening!

Akiko and Bronson, Congratulations!

vny, Congrats to you as well for your anniversary!

Lauraandfrogger, I am glad that things are finally moving along for you! When Yumi got her shots, she said her arm was sore and felt 'blah' for a day or two after that. I was worried about her because of that, but after reading that story, it could have been worse. But for certain vaccinations that could have reactions, they make people stay for awhile to see if they have a reaction. I hope that the personnel at the hospital were prepared for that and the woman is ok now.

As for cheap tickets, I use Northwest Airlines. I did a search for round trip tickets from Narita to San Francisco International (NRT-SFO) in November, and they were under $650. Of course, the price will depend on what time of year you actually book, so this could change. But, I wouldn't worry about the airlines finding out that you are using a round trip ticket for one-way use.

1. The people at the counter and before boarding aren't visa experts. They are just checking boarding passes and/or photo ID.

2. Most airlines have to deal with nearly tens of thousands of passengers a day. Hundreds of those passengers have to cancel flights due to emergencies, business, or other change in plans. It would be a waste of money to track down every cancellation to verify their intent.

3. Airline usually overbook flights so as to make up for those who might have to cancel.

Unless you call them up and tell them EXACTLY what you are doing, I don't think they will be the wiser.

Hello everyone! I just returned from Japan this morning after spending nearly two wonderful weeks with Yumi. Congratulations to everyone who got their visas on the 22nd! Our interview went well, but we also got those strange "Where will you live, and what do you plan to do there?" questions. That was it. Now, we just have to plan moving her things to Seattle.

A question to Akiko and Klester: You guys are planning your entries pretty soon, right? Yumi won't be coming until late September/early October. What shipping companies are you using to move your things?

Thanks again to everyone for your help and support!

lauraandfrogger, glad to hear that you got your NOA2! Hopefully the rest will go smoothly for you.

Congratulations vny!!

And thanks again to vny and lauraandfrogger for your advice. Yeah, the double-sided issue was silly, so I won't worry about that anymore. The Letters from my boss and my banks should be enough evidence of meeting the 125% requirement, but I just wanted to have some back-up evidence, just in case.

Lauraandfrogger, I would definitely call your congressmen/senator offices tomorrow to get a hold of someone about your situation. They should be able to get USCIS moving to see what is going on with your application. I hope you get some good news before June is out.

What is the proper dress code for the interview?

Thanks!

Wedding dress!!! Oh and tux for your fiance since he will be there with you!

lol good one.

Your interview is soon! Good luck!

Yup, her interview is on Mon 6/8, but will actually be Sun here so will find out soon. Been having hard time sleeping lately with worry, but everything should go fine. It is just all this waiting that has been killing me.

I will ask her what she wears, but I really don't think it makes that much of a difference as long as your relationship is real. That is what they really want to know. And since Bronson will be there, I don't think you should have a problem. Best wishes to you and klester and Johnny & Yumi, who also have their interviews on the 22nd. I guess you all can meet there and have a few drinks after. Have one for me too. かんぱい!!!

vny

Thanks vny! Your wife will have her interview very soon, good luck to her!

Deryck and Miho, welcome! I hope your process goes quickly and smoothly. If you have any problems or questions, this is the place to ask. Everyone has been very helpful and friendly. Good Luck!

Ok, I have a few stupid questions regarding the I-134 and evidence of financial support:

1. Does it really matter if the I-134 is printed double-sided? I am guessing not, but you never know...

2. I have a letter from my employer, as well as bank statements. I am far from the poverty line, but I decided to get tax transcripts from the IRS just in case. However, they sent me Tax Account Transcripts, not Tax Return Transcripts. Can you use either, or do they only want the Tax Return Transcripts?

Thanks again to everyone for your help. Good Luck!

Well, I woke up to some good news! As I said in my previous post, the embassy said they hadn't received our DS-230 and couldn't schedule our interview. So on Monday, I had Chiaki mail the DS230 and the attachments to the embassy, and was planning to try next Monday (giving them some buffer time) to re-schedule the interview for July.

But, yesterday, two days after sending the DS-230 to Tokyo, Chiaki got an e-mail basically saying "Thanks for your DS-230 and attachments, we have gone ahead and scheduled your interview for June 22nd". So they had some knowledge of the goings-on with our case and followed up by giving us our original scheduled day! Hurray!

Now I just have to hurry and send Chiaki all the forms she needs from my side!

That's awesome, Good Luck!! I'm glad to hear that things are looking good for everyone!

I too am getting all the stuff together she needs from me for the interview. I'm getting my bank statement today, and another is arriving in the mail soon, then I'll be finished. I'm planning to send the documents to her by mail, even though I will be going to interview, just in case. With my luck, I'll probably be quarantined at Narita for having Pig Flu, or something.

Hey guys! Well, we got our reply yesterday!

..except, they replied "We cannot schedule your interview for June 22nd because we have not received your DS-230 yet."

Chiaki forgot to write our TKY# on the fax cover sheet, so I guess that sent it straight to the garbage can!

Oh well, she is going to send it by mail this week, and then re-schedule our interview next week (probably for the 2nd week of July or so).

I'm glad we all got our cases somewhat resolved though!

Best of luck to those that are interviewing on the 22nd. I wish we were!

That is too bad, but at least you know what the problem was. Thanks for all your help, and best of luck to you guys as well!

Hey Japan Filers! I was wondering if I could get your input.

My fiancee and I applied for a K1 and everything has been going well. Since I was planning on coming to Tokyo in June, I was hoping to attend the interview with her. She applied for her interview time on the Embassy's website on May 8th. She then made her EasyPay on the 12th. She had no response since then, so she applied again on the 18th. She is getting a little worried about it, but I read on the site that it could take up to 14 working days to get a response. My question is to you all is, how long has it taken you to get a response from the Embassy about the interview date? Thanks!

Hey when Yumi made her easypay, what did she pay it with, yen or dollars?

Thanks Akiko! Best of luck to you as well! Oh, and to answer your question, she paid in Yen. She sent me a copy of the receipt.

Hey Everyone, good news!

I called the embassy number around 1 PM Japan time, gave them the problem and Yumi's contact info, and said that the embassy will contact her within 3 days. This morning, Yumi sent an email saying that she got a reply from the embassy and we are good for June 22nd! I am glad this was quickly resolved but, after the interview, I will definitely be asking for those pieces of paper saying, "please comment on our service!"

Akiko, glad to hear that you got your date! Now we just have to look forward to that long wait before our interviews.

Klester, I hope you guys get a response soon. It would be great for all of us to get our visas on the 22nd.

Hey guys,

In my message from Johnny and Yumi, they let me know that when Yumi faxed in her Packet 3 (DS-230), she got an e-mail response saying that it was received. Did other K-1 filers get this? I was under the impression that we didn't get any response normally after faxing it in (I think I came to that conclusion by reading past posts in this forum). Did the rest of you K-1 filers get any kind of response to your DS230 fax?

Also, just so you guys know, I called the paid line today. I inquired about whether or not they got our DS230, and if they got our interview submission. They said they will e-mail back to me within 3 days, so I will let you guys know what they say.

Thanks for the support

Hey again klester,

Thanks for the info, I am going to give them a call here soon as well. If they get a couple of calls, they may think that something is up. By the way, Yumi sent her D230 in late March and received her D230 receival notification on April 1st. Did your fiancee send her's recently?