bluesgorilla

My wife recieved her permanent GC and we moved to the US about 2 years ago. At the time we moved, we didn't have jobs or anything established in the US, so her 2 minor children (ages 15 and 17) remained behind with their grandmother in Manila. The grandmother had a stroke today and there is not anyone else available to take care of the kids.

I'm familiar with the process to petition for the kid's visas, but I'm wondering if there is any way to get the papers processed more quickly. My wife and I have a newborn baby in the US so her going to Manila to take care of her kids while we wait for the visa processing to complete would create significant problems.

Does anyone know if there is a way to speed up processing or get the kids admitted to the US more quickly than usual?

This question is almost impossible to answer since the marriage process and documents required vary so much based on where you're getting married. It should be the same everywhere, but its not.

As the US citizen, the documents I needed to get married in Baguio were a certified copy of my birth certificate, affidavit of legal capacity to marry, and my passport. The best solution is to have your fiancée go down to her local city hall or talk to her captain about the requirements to marry a foreigner.

Church weddings are much more complex, especially if you're not Catholic or have been previously married. You'll have the same legal requirements, as well as any requirements the parish priest feels like adding on to the process.

We had our interview and the visa was approved. During the pre-screening process, the screener noticed our date of marriage and changed our paperwork to say IR-1. I did not have to mention it at all.

I'll be sure and verify at the POE as well. I don't want to have to go through the hassle and expense of removing conditions if we don't need to.

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'll update the thread with the outcome so people will know for future reference. I'll be able to attend both her interview and accompany her through her POE, so I'll make sure and point out the date of marriage to everyone along the way.

what was your wife's medical condition?

She had an inactive TB infection. She successfully completed her 8 month drug routine for TB, but her final chest x-ray showed a pulmonary abscess. It took another 2 months of testing to confirm her abscess was not caused by TB.

If you're applying for a visa in the Philippines, I recommend you get tested for TB long before you get to St. Luke's. Getting tested and treated in your hometown is much better than having to move to Manila and go to St. Luke's every day to take your meds.

My wife and I were married Oct. 9, 2008. We filed for her IR1/CR1 visa in March of 2009 and received an interview date of Dec 8, 2009. She had some medical problems that took nearly a year to resolve. We got her medical clearance and our new interview date is Nov. 2, 2010.

All the paper work we have from NVC and USCIS mentions a CR-1 visa since that was appropriate at the time the paperwork was created. However, due to the delay in her medical clearance, we'll be married for over 2 years before we actually go to the interview.

I'm hoping the 2 year requirement is judged when the visa is issued, not when it was applied for, but I don't know how that works. I'm hoping we'll get an IR-1 so we won't have to file any further paperwork.

Assuming we pass the interview, does anyone know which visa type we'll be issued?

It's not because he's Filipino. It's because he's a bum. He will have to be thrown out. It is the only way to better him.

C'mon, you are being too hard on him. Why not give him a hand up, instead of a hand out. Give him a loan to start up a Sari Sari store, and teach him to fish, instead of just giving him more fish.

Kanos are also national heroes by sending regular remittances to the PI every month. The heat is so tropical and oppressive every day of the year, it just saps out all your energy. This is why it is hard to work there. You are lucky to stay cool and sweat free during the day.

I almost choked on my drink when I read this. I'm a Kano living in the Philippines for the past several years and I can tell you for a fact, Kanos are NOT looked upon as heroes by people here. When my wife and I go out to the mall we hear people whispering 'pok-pok' (Tagalog slang for #######) and making other rude comments. When we go to the store, the 'hero' is charged 2 to 3 times what a humble local is charged. When you watch the news, Kanos are portrayed as meddling foreigners that are taking advantage of the Pinoys. Just listen to how Kanos are referred to when it comes to the VFA treaty.

People treat Kano money as a hero but have little use for the Kano themself.

As for the brother, sorry, he sounds like a bum to me. The father worked on the house, where was the brother? The father is now working a job, what is the brother doing? Probably sitting on his #### drinking Red Horse and waiting for the next remittance to come in so he can hit the sabungan with his buddies. There are plenty of hard-working Filipinos from all economic backgrounds but the brother in this story sure doesn't sound like one of them.

My wife and I are currently living in the Philippines and we talked about this before we got married. My feeling is that the family got along just fine without my help before I met them and they'll get along just fine without my help now.

When we met she was working and sending money to her mother every month. Once we married, we moved to another city and she has not been able to find work here since then. So, we continue to send her mother money each month. I think since my wife was doing this before we met but stopped because we got married that we have an obligation to continue to help her mother.

If there are medical emergencies we will contribute along with the rest of the family. For example, our 3-year-old nephew has heart problems that required an initial hospital stay followed by life-long medication. When he was diagnosed we were asked to pay all the bills. Since there are several OFWs earning a good salary in the family, I asked how much they were contributing and was met by blank stares. They looked at me like I was crazy to expect them to contribute when there was a Kano in the family. I offered to contribute as much as the other family members were going to contribute but not more than that. We wound up contributing about 4,000 pesos and between our contribution and the rest of the family our nephew is out of immediate danger and on his medicine.

Once we move to the US and my wife starts working we've agreed that she will contribute 40% of our monthly expenses including contributions to savings and the money we send to her mother. If her earnings are not enough to contribute 40% of our monthly budget than she will contribute 70% of her earnings instead. Anything left over she is free to do with as she pleases. If she wants to send it to relatives, go shopping, whatever....I don't care since it is her money.

Finally, I'd like to comment on the issue of us American husbands having to adapt to Filipino culture since we married a foreigner. That is certainly true, but my wife also married a foreigner. It is her equal responsibility to adapt to my culture and meet me halfway. In the case of financial assistance to the family she needs to understand that doing that is not the American culture and be willing to adapt to my cultural way of doing things and moderate her expectations. If she is not willing to compromise and meet me halfway, then I know she is not serious about making our marriage work and we need to go our separate ways.

Why should people that take care of them self be forced to pay for those that that make poor lifestyle choices?

By the same token, if you are an active person and blow out your elbow or shoulder while playing tennis, why should others bear the cost of your decision to play tennis?

Getting the govt. involved in health care just extends the tyranny of the Federal government. Giving the govt. a financial stake in what we eat and how we chose to spend our leisure time and take care of our bodies is a huge invasion of my privacy and an infringement on my human rights.

Collectivism leads to tyranny.

I'd wait until after the visa is approved and in my hand before buying tickets. You never know if you'll be denied, need to submit additional evidence, or just fall through the processing cracks and not get the visa in a timely manner. If you're approved and don't hit any delays you should be fine with that amount of time. However, unless the tickets are fully refundable or changeable I wouldn't take the chance of booking now.

My wife has her CR-1 visa interview on December 8 at 6:30am. Are there anyone else that will be there that day? We're looking for other members to pass the time with during the wait periods.

Also, we got our appointment letter on Nov 14 and the interview date was December 8. Is that a normal time frame for Manila? It seemed like short notice to me.

Thank you everyone, I understand it now. We're picking up her police clearances this morning and then mailing everything off to NVC. Its a relief to finally reach this stage, its been a nerve wracking experience so far!

I'm helping my wife complete the DS-230 part II form and we're confused about who's name they are looking for. I am the USC and my wife is the foreign national applying for a visa. The confusion is on Part II lines 36-39. Line 36-38 asks for her name then line 39 asks for the Petitioner name, email, and phone number.

Anyone know if the petitioner in this case is me or my wife?

I called NVC but the lady I spoke with waffled and changed her answer during the course of the call, so I'm not really sure I can rely on what she told me.

TIA

Thank you for the advice everyone. I'm still not sure what I'll do, but a co-sponsor is looking a lot better if for no other reason than as a safety net and peace of mind while I'm waiting for a decision.

You can't get a co-sponsor?

Yes, I can get a co-sponsor, but that wasn't my question.

*Shrug*

Your answer was given for your question.

I gave you another answer that would solve your question in another way, without resorting to liquidating your assets and suffering penalties.

You will find, the simplest thing is usually the best thing to do.

Co-sponsor = simple

Converting assets = not so simple.

Thank you for the advice. I looked at a co-sponsor but for a variety of reasons, I'd rather not go that route if I don't have to. Sorry for my earlier reply, I think the stress was getting to me. The entire visa application process is unknown and a bit scary. If my wife doesn't get her visa, I don't know what we'll do.

I think I'll just convert enough to raise 5x the poverty guidelines in cash.

You can't get a co-sponsor?

Yes, I can get a co-sponsor, but that wasn't my question.

I'm preparing to file my I-864. I'm currently unemployed while I attend school so will use all assets with zero income on the I-864. I have a question about which assets are acceptable. The form says that assets must be convertible to cash without "undue harm" to the sponsor or family members.

I have an IRA and other retirement accounts that are roughly 15 times the asset requirements for my family size. However, since there are penalties associated with converting these accounts to cash, I'm not sure if I can use them on the I-864.

Does anyone have any personal experience with using their retirement accounts to satisfy the asset requirements of the I-864?

I'm getting ready to file at the Manila embassy so my wife and I can move to the US. My wife has a son but we are not filing for him yet, just for my wife. There is an issue with the way my wife's name is listed on his birth certificate. In order for her son to go to the US we need to go to the Filipino authorities and have his birth certificate corrected in order for him to get a visa.

My question is, on the application for my wife it asks for her children's names. Does anyone know if we will need to file a copy of her sons birth certificate in order to apply for my wife's visa? We're trying to figure out if we need to fix his birth certificate in order for my wife to get a visa or if we just need to fix it in time for him to apply for a visa.

Any help is appreciated.