ChuckandRhean

I saw in their website last year that they had an outreach program in Texas (I forgot if that's in Dallas or Houston). I hope that happens again soon. It would be so much easier to just drive down there than to fly to LA.

Dang, I missed that.Hopefully ,Id travel closer to my place in getting things done.

They do biometrics for the ePassport. They also do outreach to the various areas within a consular region if you can wait until they come closer to where you live.

Availing their outreach program would be great.But They havent posted the new list of states for their forthcoming outreach programs. Besides,one crucial point to consider is that the span of pp release date is getting longer : from 6 weeks to 10 weeks now;others took 12 weeks.

Yeah would have been nice for my wife to just mail it too. But when we mailed the report of marriage to the Honolulu consulate, they lost it. So me and my wife had to go thte consulate in Honolulu. Damn that cost us 400 dollars for the short puddle jump from Kauai to Honolulu. But the reason you have to go in person is they take your picture and fingerprints digitally now. I look forward to 3 more trips for my wife's citizenship.

If those next trips are for interviews,how i wish it could be done on skype

They're closed today and tomorrow for Easter. I was just there 3 days ago for passport validity extension and renewal so it's your lucky day. hehe

Requirements:

Personal appearance

Filled application form (I suggest you do this ahead of time so you do not have to do it there)

Current passport

Copy of biological page of old passport (it's $0.25/page there)

$60 cash Application Fee + $6 Priority Mail Fee (OR $20 Express Mail Fee)

It's walk-in so no need to set an appointment. They start processing papers at 9AM, but I suggest you come in early around 8AM to be the first in line. They will be giving out numbers so be sure to be one of the first people in line, which is the window that says Legal Documents and Passports. I was 5th in line, so i was done in 2 hours including the wait time for my passport extension. Stay on the left side of the room so you'll hear them call out numbers. Once you're in, it will probably just take about 5 mins. They will ask you to remove your earrings. Then go to the Cashier window and pay the fees.

That's it, it's that easy and painless. The only downside is the release date of the epassport, which is 10 weeks. They stamped July 11, 2011 on my receipt and that is 12 weeks. So plan accordingly and do it as soon as you can depending on your planned travel to the Philippines. Good luck!

Oh,Ive tried calling them up couple months ago and every other day last week , the same voice recorded reply I received.. geez ,can somebody pick up the phone

About the application form,report of marriage,and copy of old passport data pages, did the office asked one of each? Bringing as many copies as they want, I will save some quarters

It's a long drive from TX to CA, but here's some info from a google search:

http://www.philippineconsulatela.org/consular%20services/conserv-ppt.htm

Here are the requirements:

http://www.philippineconsulatela.org/consular%20services/CONSERV-ePassport.pdf

I think it is crazy you can't renew it via mail. Who has the time or money to go to CA just to get one? Ridiculous, if you ask me!

I agree..its a pain in the butt. . I just hope they'll have an outreach program in Texas , it would be convenient for the applicants. I wont be driving. I'll take the plane going to LA.

Hello Kabayan ! Im from Texas.My husband and I have plans of taking a vacation in the Philippines this year.I have called the Philippine Consulate Gen. in LA to set an appointment and request if i could send the requirements early before my personal appearance. However, their service lines are out of reach ,and unable to save voicemails.Im holding a green pp which will expire 8 months from now and renewing it to an epassport . How many hours , at least, will it take processing the epassport?Are all applicants walk-in or some on schedule? For those who have applied for epassport , what are the requirements you've submitted, and how many copies of which the office asked ? I would love to hear your pp experience.

Hope to hear from you,soon..Salamat po.

It is well known that the government performs detailed background clearances on immigrants as part of the green card application process. However, what seems to be not as well known is that background checks are also performed on the petitioner in a family based petition. This means that in a marriage-based green card case, as part of the adjudication process of the immigrant visa petition, the government performs a background check on the U.S. citizen and not just the immigrant.

This was a shocking fact to a woman who came to see Audra Behne,US Immigration Attorney recently whose U.S. citizen husband was arrested by the police when they appeared for their green card interview at the local immigration office. The husband had an old warrant for a relatively minor criminal matter that he never completed.

As part of the heightened security measures put in place post 9/11, the Citizenship and Immigration Services performs background checks on U.S. citizens to see if there are outstanding warrants, such as the case above, but also they are looking for criminal convictions that have been completed. The Adam Walsh Act and other security measures that have been implemented prohibit U.S. citizens who have been convicted of sex crimes and a variety of security related crimes, from petitioning someone for a green card.

If the petitioner in a marriage-based case is a legal permanent resident (green card holder) with a criminal history, the background check can lead to deportation proceedings for the petitioner.

If the U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident petitioner has a criminal history, it is best to consult with an experienced immigration attorney before any documents are filed with the Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Location : Austin Texas

I arrived in Texas October 20, 2009. Ive enjoyed my Christmas and New Year's celebration with my honeybunch, had prepared dinner then after went from one friend's place to another. But I must say, walang mas sasaya pag nsa Pinas ka ! Ive met my honey's workmates and bosses,too, and played bowling with them during their Christmas party. Ive baked eggpies and he brought 'em at work . Ive met filipino couples who are members of AFAA. Aryle, who's at her senior age, has been a mother and friend to me. Shes taking me to places during her dayoffs. Chuck's friends are my friends. And I keep expanding my circle of friends at the gym ,as well.

I keep in touch with my family and friends thru skype,ym,and facebook...I miss papa,mama, my brothers, sister- in-laws, and nephew and nieces. I love them calling me "tita" and I miss their tight hug and kisses..miss' em all ! Cant wait to pack my pasalubong to them, hopefully next year

Oh btw, I just had my biometrics this morning, and my case is transferred to California Service Center .

What field of work were you in back home? My wife got her degree evaluated and is now a member of the American Dental Association as a foreign dentist, but the only state that currently will give licenses to foreign dentists is Minnesota, and it's on a case-by-case basis. The only way she could practice in our state (California), is to go through a 2 year program at an accredited university and the cost is astronomical ($120,000).

Im a licensed socialworker-psychologist and worked at Texas Instruments Philippines as a Process Control and Product Specialist . Behavioral science and process engineering in one.Oh,I love my work way back home!

Initially, $120,000 fee for a two-year school program is a great deal of money . But were talking bout earning a handsome pay practicing ones profession and work experience. I do hope your wife pursue her foreign dentistry license and practice it. Best of Luck!

the facts are: the girl has cheated, she likes the experienced of being around temptations(men in the club) and that she lessen the frequency clubbing when prompted not to . And this caused discomfort on your part not knowing whats happening behind you... ! Id suggest that you should know her better before putting a ring on her finger, two years of living together isnt enough.

..."she was feeling alone and emotionally vulnerable"-- and leads to being on bed with other man. Inevitably,she'll be caught up in same situation certainly in later time,And I do hope she learned from her cheating experience,to know how to respond maturely ,and get her acts together.

Be happy with the right woman!

An excerpt from the Consulate General of the Philippines in Los Angeles...

Can I acquire real property in the Philippines even if I am already a naturalized American citizen?

Any natural-born citizen who has lost his Philippine citizenship may acquire a private land up to a maximum area of five thousand (5,000) square meters in the case of urban land or three (3) hectares in the case of rural land to be used by him/her for business or other purposes. In the case of married couples, one of them may avail of the privilege herein granted (please see Republic. Act 8179, Sec 10).

Not necessarily true.

We applied for AOS using the Filipino way but our IO would not allow it. My wife's green card was issued with her single middle name and her new last name. We supplied documents showing her name the Filipino way but it did not matter. We decided not to go through the additinal hassle of getting it chnaged legally and will just get bank accounts, etc. chnaged to reflect the name on the green card.

Didn't work for us, sadly.

Howdy! Did she use her Philippine way married name when renewing her passport and on reporting for marriage?

I'll be having my AOS biometrics this February.My passport will expire next year so Im very critical on what to do next.

Kindly check this out. she has something interesting for us to know...

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=237595

It appears like when applying for Philippine passport renewal,we have to abide following Philippine name change way. Will it follow doing same thing on submitting the Report of marriage, using father's name as middle name?? One one hand, we follow the US name change way to all our documents such as SSN,driver's lic, bank accnts. city serv. billing ,basically transactions done here in the US, like I do.

international Immig.Inconsistencies,just like I-94

Oh my, theres got to be a final way to settle this out . We need more responses,if not defined ways on how to deal with this.

I need to renew my passport,thats for sure

Im using my Mother's maiden name as my middle name followed by my husband's last name.And so far Im not encountering any problem with my papers nor any transactions done concerning it.

They're open Monday to Friday 8AM to 4PM. When we were there in July I asked about walk-ins, they said sure.

Oh,great. Gee ,thanks !!

i went for an early biometrics when i had my ROC... w/ a reason that i happen to be in the area that day and i live an hr away from their office... if its not a hassle for u regardless of the outcome, take a chance coz it might help getting your gc/interview sooner

my opinion of course

getting my early interview schedule indeed! Its at least an hour drive to their office,and unfortunately,my biometrics appointment schedule falls on hubby's officehours,AM ( he will do the driving for me ) so Im planning on making it in the afternoon...( up to what time will they be open?)

if the security and staff aren't strict about it, yes. just give a very good reason and you should be ok

Thank you, May I ask up to what time they are open? open Saturdays ,too? Well, my hubby coming from work has to pick me up so ,I might as well calculate our time heading there and still make it.

Wednesday Rainy day America!

Walk-in versus appointed date of taking biometrics..

Am I legally allowed to take my biometrics prior my appointment date of taking it at Lakeline Austin Texas? :help

World Education Services (wes.org) also performs document evaluation for work and education purposes.

Kumusta ka na? I just got my EAD card in the mail...went to SS yesterday to apply for a number.

Hello Kaye! Im doing great . I'll have my biometrics appointment this 19th of February. But Ive read from a Vjer that she had it walked-in prior her appointment. Lets see if I could make it,before time. Thanks for sending me the link for my evaluation. I now have one option. Lets hope eveything works perfectly fine with our papers

Take care always. Regards to Pippo and ur hubby

Thank you- raquel1208,JSVP08,Jobel! . My purpose is both career and educational advancement. I'll check it out Texas area so Id know my best options . Hope you could continue update me with whats new concerning educational and work credential evaluation. Keep it up. God bless

Howdy y'all!!! Good MOrning America.

While my EAD is still under processing ,Im now exploring and narrowing down better job opportunities relating to my profession (health and medical related)and work experiences (IC Manufacturing). A friend of mine told me to have my school and work credentials evaluated to land a promising position. This put me to asking of who does it, what other documents needed,how should i proceed doing it,where should i take my documents for evaluation,and for how long will my school and work credential evaluation be processed?

Your response would be valuable and gladly appreciated

Have you read this?

http://www.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_con...9&Itemid=40

BTW, you might want to join the thread of January 2010 AOS filers:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=235083

FAE

So sweet of you.Ive joined in January 2010 AOS filers. Thank you

Apply for dual Citizenship when you are done with US Immigration that way you are not limited with your stay when you go back to PI.

Thank you for the sweet thought . A constant update on my AOS and related paperworks is being done, and so far,everything works perfectly great. Im the kind of person who calculate risks ,and make multiple plans at certain situation ahead. And I believe theres nothing wrong if applying for dual citizenship comes to mind the earliest time. This is inevitable, anyway. The purpose of the OP is to gather people experiences and shared links theyve used relating to Dual citizenship , thereby, I could assess and evaluate variables/factors relating to my case.Hence, by the time, I apply for it,Im well-aware ,knowlegeable and confident on what to do next

I don't see any advantage to being a US Citizen only, especially if you own land and wish to vote in the PI?

While there's definitely advantages to dual citizenship, the right to vote, own land, own a business, etc.

It's not a long or hard process from what I've read, I'm not sure why you wouldn't.

Even if you're extremely happy with your hubby (congratulations!), maybe someday he'd like to retire there with you, or do it for the benefit of your kids, so they have more choices in their life too.

:-? Paying vacation trips to Philippines, yes.But Im not sure if he'll want to spend his retirement to the country.I believe the said concern and whatever it entails would possibly address to our kids later on. Thank you

I am confused as to why our AOS is in "Requiring Initial Evidence". I should be patient and wait the 15 days for the letter to arrive, but I am not the patient type. I was wondering if the readers here could help me and try to figure out what I missed.

I filled out the AOS on January 8th, 2010 and did not have my 2009 taxes yet. I submitted my most recent return of 2008 and had an employment letter stating what my 2009 salary was. Here is what I submitted to USCIS.

I-485 Application to Register Residence or Adjust Status

(envelope has payment of $1010 and 2 passport-style photos 2x2)

-- Birth Certificate and Supporting Documents (for corrected spelling)

-- Copy of passport page with nonimmigrant K-1 visa

-- Vaccination report from St. Luke's

-- G-325A, Biographic Information Sheet

-- I-864 Affidavit of Support (based of K-1 visa)

-- Employment letter stating 2009 salary

-- Most recent Federal Tax Return (2008)

-- I-797 Petition approval notice

-- Official copy of Marriage Licence

-- I-94 Departure Record

I-765 Application for Employment Authorization

(envelope has 2 passport-style photos 2x2)

-- I-94 front side

-- I-94 back side

-- Passport K-1 visa

I didn't do the advance parole document because I didn't think it was needed. For these other two forms though, does it look like I missed anything?

certainly, ur missing the I-693,certified by a USCIS designated civil surgeon if u havent completed yet ur vaccination record. Try to include 2007,2006 Tax returs