Jonathan - Tamsyn

You will also need to fill out I-865.

It is up to you if you change the name on the green card or not.

Perfect. Thank you all so much!

The AR-11 is filed to change her address. I wouldn't worry too much that you are late.

The I-865 is for sponsors (on the Affidavit of Support)if they move. Is that you?

The I-90 is to get a new greencard with her name change. Did you read the part about the $450 fee?

Thank you so much for the response. We have been fretting about updating her address late!

Yes, I am the sponsor and we both moved on June 1st. We waited until we could go back to England to change her name since it was less expensive to change her passport while we were actually in England than doing it through mail from the US. Now that her name is change on her passport, we would like to change the name on her greencard, etc.

And yes we did see the $450 fee. OUCH!

So it seems that we just log on to the website and change her (our) address online for free. And then we update her name with the i-90 and the application fee and we should be all set? Or will I also need to fill out a form i-865 since I am her sponsor and have moved?

Thank you all again so very much!

After reading up more, I believe the process for our situation would be to:

1st - notify by using online form ar 11

2nd - file an i-90 form which will change both her last name and mailing address.

is this correct?

Thanks again... :-/

Hi all... so we are a bit frantic right now. We have just found out that we should have changed the address on my wife's greencard within the first 10 days of moving. With everything being so hectic, we just didn't even think about it until now and we also need to have her last name changed on her greencard as well. If anyone knows or could point us in the right direction for our questions below, it would be greatly appreciated! :-/

1 - What trouble will we get into when we change her name on her greencard? (We moved one street over and it has been a little over a month since we've moved)

2 - Is there a form that will cover both the name change AND the address change, or will we need to do the address change and then file the i-90 form seperately?

Thanks in advance...

Hi all, so there has to have been someone with this same question. We recently received the cr-1 visa but continued through all of the paperwork with her maiden name. Now that we have the visa, we would like to know the process for getting her name changed. Will she need to change her passport in England or can she do that while living in the US? Will she need to change her passport before she can begin to change any US-related documents (I.e. greencard, SS card, DL, etc...)?

Any help on this is GREATLY appreciated.

Thank you!

Visa arrived today, OMG. Was utterly confused for like 20 minutes, i wish the best of luck to everyone.

Congratulations Blublod!!! :) :)

I know I was in shock all day yesterday and extremely tired waiting for the courier to arrive. The shock wore off a bit last night, but it still feels weird... Like there's something more we need to do, lol.

Congrats again!

Thank you... No news yet. And this is absolutely killing us. We just want to know. We've come so far and just want to be together. Hopefully it will be soon though. I think I will call DX tomorrow and see if I can find anything out.

Any news on your end?

Congratulations! Hopefully we will be able to say the same very soon!

Just wanted to update... The courier attempted to deliver the visa on Monday but did not send a text messae first They rescheduled for today and the visa arrived!!! :)

Good luck to everyone and thanks for all of the help! :)

I agree!!

Thanks, and good luck to the two of you as well - any news?

Thank you... No news yet. And this is absolutely killing us. We just want to know. We've come so far and just want to be together. Hopefully it will be soon though. I think I will call DX tomorrow and see if I can find anything out.

Any news on your end?

I had a 221g as well and wrote an email which was deleted and not read, called up and lady told me it would take 10 -15 working days which in my calculation ended

on the 17/3/10, decided to call DX on the 19/3/10 since their tracking service doesn't tell you anything nor did I fancy calling the eye watering 090 number and to my surprise

the gentleman i spoke to tells me the embassy says my package is ready but not physically with them but would be delivered Monday!!!, i asked for a redelivery to Scotland

and will receive the package on Tuesday at no extra cost.

Try calling DX 1st before calling the embassy, just in case.

Goodluck everyone

Congratulations! Hopefully we will be able to say the same very soon!

I'm in the same boat - they've had my passport for almost four weeks now. As one's passport belongs to one's government, one could ask for it back, but they consider the application withdrawn if you do. I don't mind not being able to travel in the States in the immediate future as much as I mind all my other travel plans being dashed. The things we do to be with those we love...

Thanks for the response. I wish there were at least a way to get the status or some idea of how long it will take. It's horrible how they let people's lives hang in the balance and keep them completely in the dark about everything.

Well good luck to you and hopefully you will hear something back very soon!

Hi Jonathan

you can e-mail them but usually they have pre written reply and they just copy paste and reply

which says "your case is still pending under AP and we will contact you as soon as we are done bla bla bla

i emailed them few times and i got the same reply each time, then i asked them if they can be more specific and i think whoever replied was nice and they gave me little bit more info but not to my satisfaction

Thank you for the quick response. I was afraid that was going to be the case. We just thought it was going to be quicker than this. Especially since they have my wife's passport. I can't see how they would keep her passport, or allowed to hold on to it for much longer :-/

Hi all,

W e received the 221g at the interview in London and it has been approximately 3-4 weeks since we submitted the requested documentation via DXcouriers. Would it be alright to email the embassy or should we just wait until they get in touch with us?

Thanks!

Hi all,

Well we had the interview about three weels ago and received a 221(g) - blue slip. The issue was that the birth certificate was the short form instead of the long form (did not have parents' names listed on it). We ordered the long form birth certificate and posted it off to the embassy via their courier service - DXCouriers (London). This was approximately 3-4 weeks ago now.

On the blue form there was no mention of admin processing, or batch or invoice number. The consular officer stated that other than the birth certificate, everything was good. So does anyone know how long this might take? Also, is there any way we can find out the status of the visa? We are getting VERY impatient waiting for this and have no idea what's going on. We would call but we do not want to irritate the embassy and have our case dropped to the bottom of the pile or further delayed.

Thanks for any and all responses!

What do another Law Degree, no thanks sweetie I make enough money from my clients.

However yes please e mail the Embassy and double check, clog the system up some more asking questions that you have been given the answers too on piece of paper.

Oh and then when you get through (if you can answer the simple questions) lets face it you didn't know that you'd sent original documents in so who knows? You can be very proud telling everyone how long 'THE SYSTEM' took, ever stopped to think it would have been a lot quicker without people like you asking SFQ's? BTW thats Lawyer speak!

Thank you for your response

Thank you for the response Darnell.

This whole process has been more than frustrating, stressful and in no way clear from the beginning. We are just glad that it's almost interview time and we want to make sure that nothing gets delayed or there are any problems. We just want to be together.

Thanks to all who have helped us to this point, we couldn't have done it without this site. And good luck to all!

Its no wonder the guy was rude, can you not read? I'd be rude as well if I had someone like you calling, asking the answers to questions that are there in front of you, you interview notice quite clearly states what you should take its not rocket science is it!

Wow, someone's parents got them a shiny new computer for Christmas

No, it isn't rocket science, however if the process were really that clear, there would not be numerous forums nor thousands of immigration lawyers making serious money from this. Since this is a cut and dry process for you, you should be out there getting yourself a law degree specializing in immigration issues.

Or, you could call the London Embassy for us and let them know how easy you find this process and how they should respond to petitioners when they call as they didn't really seem to have a firm understanding of this process either.

Wow i hate when rude people answer. I tryed to call today but it was busy all day long. It's annoying i have to think about calling like 100 times before i call because im scared someone rude will answer, Thats there job they should not be rude.

I called back again last niht and of course the night crew is nicer than the day crew... The lady who answered congratulated us on making it this far and wished us luck

Either way, she said that there was nothing required from us at the time of the interview other than her passport. On the appointment letter, it will indicate what else is needed and also she said that she showed nothing in her system that was needed at the time of the interview. She definitely put our minds at ease a bit but we will still at least be bringing copies of everything in and emailing the embassy to confirm.

I just spoke to the NVC... And I got an INCREDIBLY rude person (like always during the day), they broke it down for me like this:

From the appointment letter, any of the documents that have "O" next to them are the original documents and will be sent to the Embassy. I do not need to bring these. He was really abrupt and rude with me so I am going to call again once the nigth shift comes on and post my results here.

Thanks all.

what does her appointment letter say? Personally I would have the originals too along with 2 copies like the guides say. The only evidence that you probably dont have to worry about is the police certificates. I know after coming this far I would hate to get a request for them when at the interview as the consulates can do pretty much anything since they are the ones giving the final approval.

The below is directly from the interview letter:

Visa Interview Requirements

You must bring the following to the visa interview:

* Any original documents that were requested by the NVC but were not submitted to the NVC

* The medical examination results if not submitted to the Embassy/Consulate by the physician

* The correct size and number of photographs

* Valid passport for all traveling applicants

The following table lists the documents requested by the NVC and whether or not the NVC received them. Please note that even though the applicant may have provided the NVC with a copy of a document, the applicant is still required to bring the original document to the visa interview.

Document Name Document Status

CORRESPONDENCE INSTRUCTIONS C

IMMIGRANT VISA APPLICATION Y

DS-230-II F

PASSPORT Y

BIRTH CERTIFICATE O

ADOPTION F

MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE O

MARRIAGE TERMINATION O

COURT RECORDS F

FINANCIAL EVIDENCE Y

CUSTODY PAPERS F

MILITARY RECORDS F

GREAT BRITAIN/NORTHERN IRELAND POLICE CERTIFICATE O

FEE PAYMENT $

PHOTOGRAPH Y

PETITIONER MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE F

PETITIONER BIRTH CERTIFICATE F

(Document Status descriptions are given on the next page.)

* Document Status Description

A = Applicant must acquire this document and present it at the time of the interview.

C = Direct inquiries to your consulate / embassy

F = This form is not necessary for this application.

O = The original document has been received and accepted as meeting post

requirements.

P = The police certificate must be requested by the applicant. If you have already

applied for this document, no further action is required. The issuing police authority will

send the police record directly to the appropriate US Embassy to have on hand at the time

of the interview.

T = An acceptable document has been received, but a translation is required as the

submitted document is not in English or the official language of the processing post. The

applicant must present a certified translation at the time of the interview.

U = The applicant has informed the NVC that the required document is unavailable.

X = The required document is unobtainable for this country per the Foreign Affairs

Manual.

Y = The required document has been received and accepted.

I = The required form is incomplete. Please ensure that a complete form is presented at

the interview.

S = Scanned document received. The original document must be presented at the time

of the interview.

$ = Payment received.

I guess the main part in the instructions is "Please note that even though the applicant may have provided the NVC with a copy of a document, the applicant is still required to bring the original document to the visa interview."

We will be scrambling to get everything sorted as soon as possible. More money! Argh!!! I can't wait for this process to be over and for us to be together

Any originals that were included in your initial petition should be forwarded with the original packet to the consulate. You will need to provide originals and copies of everything requested in packet 4. That should be your focus. Some of it may be redundant so if you submitted originals in your initial petition you can resuibmit certified copies. For example, In my petition I submitted (cetified copies of divorce decree with the gold seal), at the interview my fiancee submitted copies and I had a note attached that the certified copies were submitted with the I129F petition. If you want to go an extra step you sould have any copies certified again.

Basically she needs to bring EVERYTHING requested in Packet 4. We also brought duplicates of all the pictures and receipts and proofs from the original petition. Remember that what they are asking for at the interview if proof of continued relationship but we brought it all so we had things to go with the Timeline of Relationship, just in case they asked.

Hope I'm making sense and not just babbling!

I just read your post again and think I misunderstood the first time... (It's early in the morning and haven't had much sleep )

So correct me if I am wrong but you are saying that we do NOT need to get originals of everything again since all originals that we have previously submitted will be forwarded on to the Embassy by the NVC?

She will be taking copies (not originals) of the previous packets and all documentation anyways, but we will not need to order another set of original documents (I.e. birth certificate, police record, etc..)?

Thank you so much again

Thank you for the quick responses... I was under the impression that the NVC forwarded all of the original documents on the the embassy and that all that were needed were copies 'just in case'.

I guess now we will need to go through the process of scrambling to get all original documents yet again. Why can't this be easier!

Hi all... We have our interview scheduled for the end of February and are confused on something... What documents will my wife need to bring to the interview? I have heard that she will need to bring copies of everything that we have sent until this point and I have also heard that she will need to bring all original documents...

All of our original documents were sent off to the NVC before they were approved so we do not have them anymore. Do we need to get more original documents? Or can we just bring copies since the Embassy should have the originals?

Thanks in advance!

Nevermind... I paid the $16 and called the Embassy and found out the answer. No matter what, since she is living and applying from the UK, she needs to go to a medical exam in her own country at an approved facility. Maybe this will help someone else in my position.

Thanks again.

Hi all! We are FINALLY on the last step of this whole process thank GOD! Hopefully it will go by quickly for us (fingers crossed)... I have a few questions about the medical examination for the interview though...

When we first started this whole process, we were given a set of paperwork and requirements and what not by the local USCIS office. On that we saw that my wife needed a medical exam and paniced. Since she was in America at the time, we thought that we would need to get the medical done here. I just looked into the interview a bit more and saw that the only two places that she can get a medical according to the US embassy in London are in London.

My questions are:

1. Can she use the medical exam that was performed in the US by a civil surgeon for the visa interview?

2. She was not given a chest x-ray at the medical but we do have a sealed envelope with her results, etc that says "To be opened only by the USCIS"

3. If she needs to retake the medical examination, can she only take the chest x-ray in London at a discounted rate? (weird question I know, but we payed almost $500 for this exam!)

Any ideas or suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Thank you all so much!

Hi all! We now have an NVC number (woohoo!) and it's time to figure out this whole IIN number bit... I know that my next step is to get the IIN number so that I can pay the first fee, and tried using Ling Che's shortcuts guide and called the NVC to get this, but the man on the other end of the phone said in a really stern voice that I had to wait until I received the hardcopy to get the IIN which would take about 4-7 weeks!

Do I need to wait 4-7 weeks before I can do anything? I also found the thread below stating that there's no way to get the IIN number. So am I to assume that Ling Che's shortcuts guide isn't accurate?

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=217357

Any help is greatly appreciated!

Thank you all and good luck

Thank you so much for clearing things up for me. What I take from all of this is that:

The CR1 is a 'married less than two year' visa, but same filings/papers as IR1.

The CR1 will take a little longer, possibly more than a month due to it being sent to the NVC first.

Although there is an extra month or so, the benefits FAR outweigh the time saved with the K3

Bottom line, even though the K3 (I-129f) has not been approved yet, it will probably be quicker to attain than the CR1 in the short term. However, the CR1 would save time and money in the long run due to the immediate immigrant status, SSN, ability to work, and other benefits of a citizen.

Sorry for the repetition, but I want to make sure that I have all of the information before making a solid decision on this.

Thank you once again to everyone!