bbqBarry

I guess it's about time I posted an update here. I'm back in San Diego now and busy with work so this will be brief.

We had our interview June 22 and picked up the CR-1 visa a few days later. Start to finish it took 102 days. At times it seemed like we were never going to get the interview letter (packet 4) and in fact we never did. It was an email inquiry that my wife sent and was answered by the embassy that told us what date the interview was.

All in all it was an interesting process. I was glad to have VJ as a resource and wish everyone that's still working on their visa the best.

Now it's time to start studying the POE data and get ready for my wife's August arrival.

Cheers!

We're in the same boat. Packet 3 was received just under 30 days ago and no word. We have not tried emailing, as I figured we'd get the same response if any. We have a tentative wedding date set for July 26th, which I had thought would be plenty of time, but am getting more concerned about it as each week passes. I keep checking the embassy's website daily looking for that updated interview schedule. As an optimist and a believer in karma, I trust that no matter what works out, it shall be for the best; although it may not be what I want or expect, it is in the highest good nonetheless. This affords a higher degree of equanimity in facing the vicissitudes of life.

I hear you. It appears that for the past month we've both been vainly refreshing the embassy webpage daily hoping for something new, and seeing only the same Apr 10 date.

I took a look at the data in that pdf dated April 10 and graphed it here. I'm thinking that we'll see the floodgates open soon and another batch of interview dates soon.

It seems that things are certainly slowed down in my fast track DCF. US Embassy in BKK confirms that they received our Pkg 3 April 7 but we've yet to receive an interview date. We've asked several times. The first time we asked we were told another 4-6 weeks. Second time we were told another 6-8 weeks. Yesterday we were told another 8-10 weeks. I'm thinking that if we ask again it will go up to 10-12 weeks!

I took the latest pdf of the last published interview schedule here: Scheduled Appointments and parsed in it Excel then sorted it by dates to get the following graph:

You can see that they took some time off over Songkran and that the daily average number of appointments was up near 15-16 in April while it has dropped to 10 near the end of May. This was published April 10 although the data goes back to April 1. I've got a strong hunch that they pile up interview packages and schedule them every 6-8 weeks and that we will see the floodgates open soon and interviews being scheduled through June and into July within the next week.

I was kinda hoping to be in TH for the interview - although there's nothing I can do to help. We have a boatload of legit proof/documentation and shouldn't have any problems. If there is a problem we'll deal with it when it happens.

BarryBBQ, would you prefer if I started my own thread, or should I just add to this one? I prefer the latter option--since we are in a similar situation (my wife was amazed that your wife had a name change issue in Samut Prakhan just like her) it seems like our info goes together, but I'll leave it up to you.

Sorry, just saw this. Yeah, I think it makes sense to keep all the BKK data together. Somebody will appreciate it someday.

Hello again.

My wife went to Bangkok today to get a copy of her birth certificate because she couldn't find the original. This is turning into a big hassle as her name changed from her birth name. Her father is in Samut Prakan today trying to get the original house paper showing her name change.

In light of all of this, I looked back at the requirements and noticed that nowhere does it say that a birth certificate was required, but in your intake package it seems like they payed a lot of attention to it.

Am I missing something? Is the birth certificate required? My wife was never married before and neither of us has any kids or previous divorces, she has a passport and a 10-year visa.

Jimmy,

In my case, my bc supported my claim to be a USC. My wife's bc supported her name change. I won't try to answer your question about whether it is "required" or not since I'm not an expert. If I were you, I'd call USCIS in BKK and ask them directly.

Cheers,

Barry

FWIW, "expedited service" for your police clearance is also available. We visited that office April 2 and were told that our app would be finished April 23 because they would be closed for the long Songkran holiday. We were offered the opportunity to make a small contribution to the local Songkran holiday fund in return for a guaranteed return by April 8.

Any idea what the expedite service entails? Looks like my latest fortunes could POSSIBLY benefit from it.

PM sent.

Thanks for this thread. My wife and I will soon go through this process.

A couple of questions:

1. Do you have any idea if you really needed a copy of your birth certificate, or was a passport sufficient?

2. Am I right to assume no appointment was necessary when you went on March 16th?

Thanks in advance, and I'll be following with interest. I'll start my own thread after we apply.

Cheers,

Jimmyd

1. I wasn't able to find a definitive list of what is absolutely required for DCF and what is merely helpful. I researched what others submitted and pulled together everything I had for my I-130. From what I can remember, the petitioner's birth certificate is used to prove that the petitioner is a USC. Short answer? I don't know.

2. Yes, no appointment was necessary to file my I-130 at USCIS.

Good luck, it will be interesting to watch your progress.

Cheers,

Barry

We went to BKK to get our police clearance April 2. I asked specifically about whether they required the NOA2 or Pkg 3 cover letter. The answer I got was arai godai (whatever). I took some photos of the posters that illustrate the new process and posted them here.

#######! YMMV, Mai pen rai.

Thanks for this information, your photos and related comments are very helpful. I'm curious about your DCF effort. Don't you have to be considered a resident of Thailand to go the DCF route? How did you manage that? I've always wondered how that works in Thailand.

PM sent.

A few questions:

1.) I read on the embassy page here at VJ that the police clearance takes about a week. Still accurate?

2.) Do you have to schedule your medical exam ahead of time, or can you just walk in? Do you have to wait days for results, or after you leave is it done? Do they give you something to give to the officer at the interview?

3.) On the embassy's website, it seems to suggest that unless you are the interviewee, you cannot even wait in the waiting area with your fiancee, but I seem to remember others saying they did in fact wait with their fiancee, but I can't remember exactly. Can someone comment on this?

4.) I have read that sometimes you need "packet 3" to show to the police to get your certificate, in addition to the NOA2, and a copy of my passport, and possibly a letter of intent from me. I cannot personally sign these yet. Is that ok? Also, why do you need to show them packet 3? Isn't packet 3 just a bunch of forms that you can download off the website anyway?

Thanks!

We went to BKK to get our police clearance April 2. I asked specifically about whether they required the NOA2 or Pkg 3 cover letter. The answer I got was arai godai (whatever). I took some photos of the posters that illustrate the new process and posted them here.

#######! YMMV, Mai pen rai.

FWIW, "expedited service" for your police clearance is also available. We visited that office April 2 and were told that our app would be finished April 23 because they would be closed for the long Songkran holiday. We were offered the opportunity to make a small contribution to the local Songkran holiday fund in return for a guaranteed return by April 8.

Just got back from BKK. We went there to get the police clearance. It wasn't difficult at all but it was slightly different than I expected because the data I found online http://pcscenter.sb.police.go.th/eservice.php is outdated (their words).

We showed up at 8:30 and were seen immediately. The form we downloaded online wasn't accepted because it wasn't current. Turns out we didn't need the 2 photographs we brought either as their new process includes them taking a digital photo of the applicant.

I had my point & shoot camera with me and asked if I could take photos of the the posters they made to illustrate their new application process. Have a look. We sent Pkg 3 back April 3 by EMS.

hello BarryBBQ I think I remember you because the same day (16 march ) We went to CIS office too.So our case appoved so close

I don't get packet 3 yet.I hope we'll get it soon.Anyway,hope you case will be done and get visa soon.

I remember you guys, you were the second ones in that office that day. I hope your app moves as quickly as mine is. Good luck!

Does anyone know if we can start the Police Clearance Certificate with our NOA2/I-171 or will they make us wait until we actually show them something from Pkg 3? We live in Chiang Mai and really don't want to waste a trip to BKK since I'm betting Pkg 3 will arrive soon.

Thanks for everyone's input. This has become a moot point now as Pkg 3 arrived today. Off to BKK tomorrow for the police check.

Super Fast.

Congratulations:)

Thanks, I'd like to think it has something to do with my good looks or my stunning ability to prepare documents but in reality it's nothing but good fortune that I qualify for "DCF"

Sawasdee krap to all. I believe that the only stupid question is the one that you don't ask, so here I go.

On March 28. NOA2 (form I-171) approval for CR-1 arrived via mail in Chiang Mai. Expecting Pkg 3 soon. It doesn't have an file number, instead it says NA. I'm thinking that without an A number we'll have a hard time getting the Police Clearance. My "DCF" story is here

Does anyone know if we can start the Police Clearance Certificate with our NOA2/I-171 or will they make us wait until we actually show them something from Pkg 3? We live in Chiang Mai and really don't want to waste a trip to BKK since I'm betting Pkg 3 will arrive soon.

Thanks,

you can get the police report with your NOA2. that is what i showed to get ours.

I went with my wife and we used our NOA1

I only used NOA1 too and didn't have to show my husband's passport.

Thank you to everyone for your replies to my question. That question is moot at this point since Pkg 3 arrived today. I can't believe how fast my "DCF" is moving along.

I'm not surprised to see that everyone's experience with this is different. I've lived in Thailand for almost 5 years now and have learned that things aren't black and/or white here - there are multiple shades of gray in between.

USC 51 Alien 21

Sounds like March madness, a final four score eh? No, it's for real and we both couldn't be happier. My wife says it's not her fault she was born too late. It's not my fault I was born as early as I was either.

Sawasdee krap to all. I believe that the only stupid question is the one that you don't ask, so here I go.

On March 28. NOA2 (form I-171) approval for CR-1 arrived via mail in Chiang Mai. Expecting Pkg 3 soon. It doesn't have an file number, instead it says NA. I'm thinking that without an A number we'll have a hard time getting the Police Clearance. My "DCF" story is here

Does anyone know if we can start the Police Clearance Certificate with our NOA2/I-171 or will they make us wait until we actually show them something from Pkg 3? We live in Chiang Mai and really don't want to waste a trip to BKK since I'm betting Pkg 3 will arrive soon.

Thanks,

When I first started looking here for data I noticed there isn't a lot of recent data on dcf in BKK but that there were several success stories. Here's my story.

March 4. Married.

March 16. Filed I-130 @ USCIS in BKK.

I was first in the door at 8:00 AM and the only person there until I left at 9:40 to go pay the cashier across the street.

8:00 left cell phone with security guard and entered waiting room

8:10 Blinds opened and I was called to the counter. Spent 10 minutes at counter while DHS/USCIS employee Ms. Lily Sae-Chua reviewed my I-130. She was very thorough and helpful, I was pleased with the service I received.

9:25 Called back to counter to review needed corrections to my package and receive invoice. Made corrections with whiteout they provided.

9:40 left CIS to go across the street to pay cashier $355 USD cash

10:05 back to CIS with receipt. Advised approval would be 6 weeks, and notice w/b sent to me. Advised Pkg3 would be addressed to spouse.

10:20 Finished

Documents submitted (list copied from my cover letter)

Receipt/Payment in cash of $355.00 USD

Completed Form I-130: Petition for Alien Relative

A copy of all pages of petitioner's unexpired US passport

A copy of petitioner's birth certificate

A copy of translated marriage certificate

A copy of divorce judgment of petitioner's previous marriage

G-325A (all four pages) completed and signed by petitioner

One color passport-type photo of petitioner

G-325A (all four pages) completed and signed by beneficiary

One color passport-type photo of beneficiary

A translated copy of beneficiary's birth certificate.

Documentation showing joint ownership of property: a translated copy of the Chanote for condominium in Thailand, showing joint ownership by petitioner and beneficiary

A translated copy of the Tabien Baan (house registration paper) showing that beneficiary's registered address is the jointly owned condominium

Documentation showing co-mingling of financial resources: a translated copy of jointly owned savings account passbook

A copy of beneficiary's photo page from Thai passport

A copy of beneficiary's Thai National ID Card

Copies of affidavits from friends, family and third parties with knowledge of ongoing relationship

Evidence of the bona fides of the marital relationship in the form of SMS logs, chat logs and emails

Photographs as proof of ongoing relationship

I used ACCO fasteners but they didn't want them. They only kept passport pages that were relevant to my long term status in Thailand. They didn't want to keep the copy of the balance page from out bank book, only the name page and translation. They didn't want the translated copy of out tabien baan. They also returned the copy of her Thai ID card as well. My wife's name was changed 5 days after she was born. The official record of that was a small stamp on the back of her birth certificate. They asked to see the original bc as well as the original translation of it since on the photocopy I submitted the translation certification at the bottom was chopped off. Moral: get you copies at a real copy shop instead of doing it at home on my printer/copier/scanner/fax machine.

March 28. NOA2 (form I-171) approval for CR-1 arrived via mail in Chiang Mai. Expecting Pkg 3 soon. NOA2 doesn't have an file number, instead it says NA. I'm thinking that without an A number we'll have a hard time getting the Police Clearance.

Does anyone know if we can start the Police Clearance Certificate with our NOA2/I-171 or will they make us wait until we actually show them something from Pkg 3? We live in Chiang Mai and really don't want to waste a trip to BKK since I'm betting Pkg 3 will arrive soon.

Thanks,