smsgrl2009

I just wanted to update that we never received a letter for biometrics..so we called the uscis and did an investigation. They responded just before Thanksgiving that my husband's biometric data was up to date and we didn't need to go but they weren't refunding the money..lol...so now i am not expecting to hear anything for several months..but that is why I never filled in the date for biometrics...i imagine its up to date since he had to do it twice for flights to the UK since getting his CGR...

My hubby just picked his up at the pick up location in Bangalore...ahh..really miss Bangalore!!

I had a similar situation with my husband's father's name spelling...my husband spelled it differently on our application than it was spelled on his birth certificate. I called USCIS and they had me attach a letter along with my application explaining the differences. I would not let it go without at least calling the USCIS first to be on the safe side..

I am a conditional permanent resident, (married to an american), about to apply for the conditions to be removed, currently waiting to hear back about the fee waiver I applied for. I am desperate to go home to England to see family for 4 weeks but I have no idea if I will be allowed back in at LAX without an updated status. Does anyone KNOW if having an expired permanent resident card makes a difference to my status, such that I would have problems re entering the country? Thanks so much...

* I should have applied 90days before the card expired, but I did not! *

If your green card expires while you are out of the US and you have no extenstion letter with you, yes, you will not be permitted back into the country. You MUST file your I-751 form and wait about a week or a week and half until you receive your NOA letter. This letter will inform you that your status has been extended for one year during processing. Then, you can travel out of the usa safely as long as you bring that letter and your expired green card with you. My husband and I are traveling to UK Dec 19th and his card expires Dec 23..so we studied this very carefully and have already gotten our NOA letter. Good Luck!

Just saw your card is already expired?? Umm..yeah you may be in trouble period..you should follow up with USCIS ASAP!!

I am hoping you included the front and back copies of the green card cos this is one of their requirements

Yep, I did..

California Service Center (3 applicants)

VJName............Date of I-751.....NOA1 Date......Biometrics......Approved....

ONE DIRECTION.......09/29/12........10/01/12........11/02/12.......--/--/--....

SEBAS&LILY..........10/01/12........10/03/12........--/--/--.......--/--/--....

OBNANCY.............10/03/12........10/04/12........--/--/--.......--/--/--....

Vermont Service Center (5 applicants)

VJName............Date of I-751.....NOA1 Date......Biometrics.....Approved....

MRTEE12.............09/29/12........--/--/12.......--/--/--.......--/--/--....

SMSGRL2009..........09/29/12........10/03/12.......--/--/--.......--/--/--....

AN & CH.............10/01/12........10/02/12.......--/--/--.......--/--/--....

GLYNN & JEAN........10/05/12........--/--/12.......--/--/--.......--/--/--....

CRISSIE.............10/10/12........--/--/12.......--/--/--.......--/--/--....

IMPORTANT!

* Make sure that your VJ Text Editor setting is set to Rich Text Editor.

* Go to the MOST RECENTLY POSTED VERSION of this list (go to the last post and scroll UP) and "Reply" to it, deleting the "quote" tags in your reply.

* Please DO NOT change the font, font size, add colors, stuff like that.

* Please PREVIEW before posting to make sure it is properly formatted.

* Please check that you have not deleted anyones NAME & DATA.

Date of I-751 = The Date you sent your application

NOA Date = The Receipt Date on your original NOA letter

Biometrics = The Date of your biometrics appointment

Approved = The Date your case was approved

* Please Capitalize your VJ Name when adding it to the list.

* When you're on this list, please come back to update your information accordingly.

* If you cannot add your information yourself, please ask another VJ member to help you do so.

got our NOA dated 10-03-2012

When hubby first moved here, he was not on my mortgage and all of the bills were in my name and I didn't add him to them. I did add him to my bank account right away so I sent a copy of the first month i added him, as well as a copy of the most recent. Didn't think to send anything in between. And we just moved in August as we bought a house and the loan is in his name but I am on the deed so I sent that information. I didn't send any photos because we didn't take any vacations yet. As soon as he arrived, we got pregnant and decided to buy a bigger house so we had to save our money. Considering we do have a baby, hopefully this will be pretty strong evidence in and of itself that we are living as a married couple.

After crunching over different items, I think this is what we will try to submit. Another set of eyes would be great, to make sure I didn't miss anything. And, the lists that others posted were very helpful to me, so hope others can customize what I have here.

Of these, today I found out that my wife forgot to assign me as her life insurance beneficiary, so she is updating that today. Should I try to include that information once she does? or is it odd that she is doing that now? Should I just leave it out entirely? She did the 401(k) a while ago, and I have documentation for that.

By the way, my wife is my sponsor.

Other than the check, copies of the Permanent Resident card, and the form, here are the items I am thinking about:

• Mortgage document
  
• Lease agreement – from our previous rental
  
• Driver’s licenses – showing our shared address
  
• car insurance identification cards – showing joint coverage for both our vehicles (Nov 2011 – Apr 2013)
  
• Life Insurance policy designation – showing <my spouse> as the beneficiary of <me>
  
• 401(k) Beneficiary designation – showing each other as beneficiary
  
• bank statements for 2012, 2011, 2010
  
• joint credit card statements (one month)
  
• Cell phone bill – showing our shared family plan
  
• W-2’s – proof of same residency
  
• 2011 and 2010 cover letter – as prepared by HR Block software
  
• our 2011 and 2010 US tax return – filed as Married Filing Separately*.
  * Because <spouse> works in MA, and <Me> works in CT.
  
• Boarding passes – from our trip to <Country> and <Country>
  
• our passport pages – from our trip to <Country> and <Country>
  
• receipts from the wedding ceremony expenses – shared expenses.
  
• tickets for our honeymoon – shared expenses.
  
• our BJ’s Wholesale Club – showing joint account.
  
• Mail addressed to both – showing our shared address -- if I can find any...
  
• Three (3) sworn affidavits by U.S. citizen friends – attesting to our relationship.
  
• Dated pictures
  
• Transcripts of emails to each other -- Maybe?
  

Any thoughts? Any help would be appreciated.

I think it sounds like a solid package...I didn't send half of that information..kept it pretty simple so lets see how it goes! Good luck

I downloaded a coverletter sample and sent with my proof package from VJ..If it helps, here is a list of what I sent in my packet:

I-751 form (Hubby is filing, I am USC)

Copy of our Mortgage deed (hubby's name alone is on the loan but I am on the deed)

copy of our drivers licenses showing matching addresses

copy of our credit cards showing matching numbers and a downloaded from from the company showing i am authorized user on his account

copy of our bank statements from the day i added him and then one copy of the most recent

copy of our daughters birth certificate

copy of our electricity bill with both our names

copy of my benefits form from work showing he is my beneficiary

copy of our bug spray contract showing both of us as residents in same household

copy of our marriage certificate

copy of hubby's passport and ss card for his id

I don't think they need the marriage cert or the passport copy but hubby wanted to send so figured it wouldn't hurt..hope this helps

also sent copies of his green card and the check too...

I downloaded a coverletter sample and sent with my proof package from VJ..If it helps, here is a list of what I sent in my packet:

I-751 form (Hubby is filing, I am USC)

Copy of our Mortgage deed (hubby's name alone is on the loan but I am on the deed)

copy of our drivers licenses showing matching addresses

copy of our credit cards showing matching numbers and a downloaded from from the company showing i am authorized user on his account

copy of our bank statements from the day i added him and then one copy of the most recent

copy of our daughters birth certificate

copy of our electricity bill with both our names

copy of my benefits form from work showing he is my beneficiary

copy of our bug spray contract showing both of us as residents in same household

copy of our marriage certificate

copy of hubby's passport and ss card for his id

I don't think they need the marriage cert or the passport copy but hubby wanted to send so figured it wouldn't hurt..hope this helps

We sent our package Saturday...still waiting for confirmation and check cashing...especially since we are going to London in December..need that letter!!

My husband and I are in the process of closing a loan and he is still a CR1. We cannot apply for ROC until October of this year. At the beginning of the process, they asked for a copy of his green card and we submitted what we had. We are due to close on July 27 and I am nervous that will be our hiccup as he is the sole person on the loan. I have another home in my name and cannot be on his loan. Since his arrival in America, we have a child together so I don't think removing conditions will be an issue for us..but am concerned how the underwriters will view the CR1..

My hubby entered the US near Christmas and I didn't receive the green card until February 14. The Welcome letter came the next day ironically enough. Now he went back to India to finish up things and isn't coming to live here until April so I am fedexing him his green card for his return. I was really hoping his social security card would arrive as we checked the box on the 230 form but looks like he will have to go in person to apply for that after all. Anyways...about 6 weeks..like clockwork you should get some correspondence..

Just an update...1 year and 2 months after our journey began, we are approved! I got notice this morning from the embassy in Chennai that my husband's visa was approved. We rescheduled the interview for October 4th and due to my change of jobs at the end of september, they denied his visa initially pending supporting documentation of my income (blue sheet). We got everything submitted to the VFS in Bangalore 10 days ago and when I emailed the embassy last night to inquire the status of our case they replied this morning with the approval notice! So thank you to all who have helped along the way. Now if we can actually convince his parent to "let" him move here...we will all be good!

smsgrl2009 - I see you got your interview date. Congrats ! Are you still planning on getting a Local/District PCC before the interview date ?

Zeban - are you still waiting for the local PCC, or did you already submit everything in the DS-230 package without the local PCC?

kruz_patz - what is the source of info you are using? Where are you looking to confirm the NVC only needs the passport PCC?

Right now I am still waiting for the Police PCC and it seems to just drag on. Every week they say it will take another week - so I have no idea when I will actually get it. At this point the wait does not seem worth it, especially if NVC is really in fact accepting simply the Passport PCC and you can get the Local PCC for the interview.

Has anyone else to date, so far sent only the Passport PCC to the NVC ?

We are not getting the local PCC...our checklist letter for interview said we had all documents required except for medical .... we are however postponing the interview. My husband was out of town when we got our date assigned and his work will not give him the time off he needs to go to Chennai for the medical in time for the interview. I have to call the embassy after September 15 to get an October date assigned...

Hi guys,

I have to kick myself out of this forum...Although we had an interview scheduled for September 2, we are rescheduling for October. Just not enough time to get the medical and all completed before the original date. Not sure what the new date is as I have to wait till after September 15 to request the new date. I think I am the only person on here with a spouse/fiance..etc who wants this process to take longer. Oh well..POE won't be till at least December anyways..Good luck to everyone else though!

Hi smsgrl, wow yours and my situation are indeed very similar (had even remarked this before). My wife is from bangalore too and its been a couple of months since she got here. she, like your husband, had all kinds of trepidations about the US, espeically the job situation. My wife was at IBM in bangalore (thus in IT like you guys) and in a great position and was very scared as to what would happen to her in terms of obtaining a job. let's face it; there are reports of job losses everyday in the US and India's outlook is portrayed as sunnier and sunnier on a daily basis. she was concerned about having to start over, go to school, possibly work at a 7-11 and all kinds of stuff. there were similar family issues, although perhaps not to your husband's family's extent. to boot, after she got here, she got a 1st taste of NYC by getting bitten by bed bugs (a real epidemic in NYC), an ear inflammation from her flight from India, and real homesickness (she's from Kerala and really wanted authentic kerala food, which unlike other conventional s.indian food, is not readily available in NYC). she also doesnt have anyone in the US, so the feeling of being completely alone was also there, regardless of how much we love each other...

so where are we now? well, as someone commented earlier, the IT job situation is not that bad at all. the IBM experience really has opened doors for her and does command respect, despite the fact that her IBM experience is in India. I'm happy to say that she got a job within a month (nailed the 1st job interview she went on and is in a place where just in a month, she's commands her boss's and coworkers' respect - not surprising cuz she's damn good!). we didnt do anything fancy, except for put her resume up on monster and careerbuilder. as a matter of fact, she just got her 1st paycheck yesterday. right now she's on a contractor basis (which btw, is not that bad at all) and her company was nice enough to let her work despite having a SS # already issued (we got a letter from the SS office saying that she was eligible to work while she waited for them to issue her a #). she finally got her SS # last week and will now start receiving the back pay owed to her. so while you may not get paid immediately, at least you're not sitting around the house waiting for your spouse - you guys should do the same thing - apply for the ss# and get that letter saying he can work whiel waiting. that'll give him some confidence. hopefully you'll find a decent contracting company willing to let you do that. btw, she works for a major finance company in wall st - something we'd all dreamt about working at, and now its a daily occurrence for her.

is everything perfect? not by a milestone! we're still trying to deal w/ bed bugs. we've been sleeping on the floor while trying to deal with the bugs in our bed. believe me, going w/o proper sleep is NOT fun, especially when you've been given promises of a beautiful life, after going thru months of waiting in visa hell. so we're still dealing with that, but are making progress daily. and we've been house-shopping. so you have to take it one day at a time. but finally getting the ss# and getting paid was huge to both our morales!

i'd say that you have to make every effort and go beyond to make them feel as much as home as possible. try finding social groups/organizations in charlotte that cater to his background. my brother lives in raliegh and i know that there are lots of indians in NC and in that region and also temples. the more you're around that environment, the better it will be for him to adjust, esp. after he meets ppl from a similar background and starts making friends. cook all his favorite foods - also, you have to let him talk to his family/folks as much as he wants. maybe set up video conf thru skype or something, so that he can see them. the one thign that works in our favor is that we live in NYC, so mobility thru public xport is not an issue. but living out there in NC requires one to drive. you have to set up some kind of thing where he doesnt feel stranded/isolated. i dont know what that is - perhaps take him to the local library when you go to work or something so that he has his own thing to do while you're gone. this is where the social contacts that you make will come in use; so that friends can hang out w/ him whiel you're not around.

anyway, hope this helps some. obviously we havent gotten it all figrued out at all and take it 1 day at a time, but it WILL be a gradual process. you will hit milestones (like getting the SS, GC, dirver's license, getting paid etc) that will be major morale boosters, but it may be punctuated a lot more by fights, confrontations and periods of unrest that will drive you absolutely insane. but ultimately you have to frame it as such to him - that it is/was his choice to come to the US to live with you and if he wants a life w/ you and loves you, this is what he will have to do, or else this is doomed to fail. perhaps that's a talk to have now, rather than after he comes here and feels trapped. here is one idea - right after he gets the visa, tell him to NOT quit his job; rather take a month or 2 long leave or something. let him enter the US and thus get the GC. once he has entered, the GC will allow him unrestricted access. if at anytime he feels trapped, he always has a way out. in that time, it will be up to you to convince him that this indeed is the life to go forward with.

organizations like meetup.com will have lots of listings of social meetups and such that can help you get started.

best of luck, truly!

Wow, thank you so much for replying. I am going to copy and paste this to him in an email. Day to day it is a struggle with him. One day he has the confidence and one day..well he thinks I am pushing to hard. I told him I will wait as long as it takes but that it is my wish for him to come here and be with me and my daughter (whom he adores as his own) and live as a family and that just like his parents, we are his family too. I didn't know we could take that SSN letter and apply for work so thank you for letting me know. That may make all the difference. I am planning to take the first week off to be with him and get all the "running around" done..but then i have to go to work during the day. I live in the suburb and work in the city...and I had planned to bring him to work with me as he would be close to the mall, best buy...etc..and even bus stops if he wanted to just take a ride into downtown so that he isn't just sitting home all day. I am learning how to cook indian food..his favorite dishes in fact..and familiar with the good indian grocery stores. I haven't located temples yet but will look into that as well. I am looking into some social sites to meet some other indian people and get acquainted with that can help him too. As far as him talking to his family, I have vonage so he can talk unlimited. They have webcams and we can all video chat but his family is telling him they will have nothing to do with him..so this is an issue that will just take time to resolve. I also told him we can go visit his family at Christmas (if they are willing)..but he seems to be doubtful that this can happen.

Bottom line is, I am trying to my best ability to be patient, and supportive and understanding with him but my patience is wearing thin. I have waited a year and half to be with him and I don't want to wait any more. Moreover, I know once he is here, his family will begin to accept me, he will find a job where he isn't a slave, and overall, he will be happy. I know he will get homesick and I am prepared for a mild depression..another thing is winter..he has never experienced temperatures lower than 50 degrees F...I am trying to figure out if its time to just flat out tell him that he made the commitment when he married me and that his parents are no longer his only family..that he as my husband has to consider my feelings in this as well and that he has had the last year to prepare mentally for this transition. Now the time has come and he needs to just man up to it...But..not sure how these statements will fly with his delicate ego..lol.

Currently, he is planning to go Friday to get his vaccinations from local hospital in Bangalore. He has not scheduled his medical though plans to call tomorrow and see what appointments are available. Based on that, I have to email the embassy back and see if they have a later date in September that he can attend. Their first response was maybe...to email them the date we will have all our paperwork complete. Not sure if he will be able to interview Sept 2 or not..and even if he does and passes, I am not sure when he will come. My hopes is by the end of September I will get to hug him once again! Love can be such a B*$#@h sometimes.

Thanks to everyone for their input. It looks as though he is going to try and postpone the interview date. Even if he gets the visa on September 2, he won't come for a while. I am not sure that any of this is going to work out and I am pretty devastated. What do you say to someone who thinks you are being selfish because you want to be with them so badly? Maybe I am just too selfish..either way, we are at an impasse. I hate being alone as much as he hates the idea of coming here to live. Its to the point we are attacking each other and thats no good so I am just giving him space for now. I am happy everyone else's stories work out..but I cannot foresee my happy ending anymore. Good Luck to you all!

I am glad his English is well, which makes the transition a whole lot easier. Do you have a circle of friends who are also Indian? If you do have Indian friends than I'm sure they will welcome him and show him friendship. But just like rodceasar mentioned above "Just be sure to not allow acquaintances of his nationaailrty as well as others to infiltrate your marriage, at all..." That statement is so important and so so true! Don't let anyone get between you! Good luck!

This may sound like a dumb question, but what do you mean by infiltrate our marriage? I have a circle of friends and they are all excited to finally meet him in person. It never occurred to me that anyone could affect our marriage but I can be naive. Thats why I am getting advice from you guys.

Hey, congratulations!

Loto

Thanks!

By the way, today is our one year anniversary..We made it a year through all this and it sure hasn't been easy but definately worth it!

IT job market is picking up (you know it, right?) from this year onwards, rates are not caught up as in 2006/2007 levels generally. But in some areas, it is still lucrative. If you are near RTP in NC, there are big shot companies in that area.

Loto

I live in the Charlotte area..plenty of IT here with all the banks and there are several large companies here like IBM and Siemens..It is a perfect for us both since we are both in the IT industry. Of course his company is actually headquartered out of NY and I offered to move there if he wanted to transfer though I think we would live better here due to costs of living comparisons... Bottom line is..I just have to get him over the hurdle and get him here. His parents have forced him to choose between me and them...and he is just in turmoil..he wants to come but he literally feels he is leaving his world totally behind. The only way to prove to him that he will flourish here and we will be happy together is to just take the leap of faith.

I have to admit that for someone who has never left their country, it is very, very difficult to adjust, but not impossible. The same thing happened when my husband first arrived almost 3 years ago. The first 3 months were pretty tough because he missed his country, his family and his friends tremendously. On top of that, he didn't know the language, felt like a total stranger and wasn't comfortable with me taking care of the home financially. So I had a tough talk with him and told him that nothing around him was going change and that if he wanted to fit in, it was all up to him. Once he got his driver's license he found a job, started school for his English classes and sure enough things started to change.

So in summary, it's up to the people who arrive to make that change. They have to get rid of all the stereotypes, the feeling less than others just because they just landed in this country and give their all, 100%. If they don't do this, they'll be miserable and everyone around them.

Diana

Thank you for sharing this. My husband will indeed miss his family and friends the most. His advantage is that he is very westernized as far as his movie, music, clothing preferences..and his english is better than mine..lol. He has never driven so this will be a challenge but one that he is looking forward to I think. What makes him most uncomfortable is the idea that I will be supporting him financially until he finds a job which I am assuming will take at least a month or two since he has to get his SSN and learn to drive first. I love him dearly but his ego is as big as they come and I know this will indeed be a blow. I make enough money so that we won't have financial woes but still..its just backwards from everything he has known.

Everyone, thanks for the advice, please keep it coming!! I plan to copy these texts and make one big motivational speech for him!

In our plight to reunite with our loved ones we, especially the USC, sometimes forget that our loved one is about to come live in a foreign country and in some cases, leaving their own country for the first time. This is the situation I and my husband are facing and since I do love him very much, I would like to get advice or experiences from you guys on how to help him and ease his fears of coming to the US.

Our interview at the Chennai embassy in India is coming up very fast. He has never left India and all of his perceptions of the US come from heresay and watching the news so you can imagine he hasn't heard alot of good things or even accurate things. He will be moving to the south east (NC) where I live. In my area, there is a large Indian population due to the large amount of IT jobs available (this is my husband's and my field as well). His parents have told him (they have never been to the US either), that he will not fit in, be discriminated against, not find a job as economy is bad, and be depressed and our relationship would suffer along with it. Obviously, if I thought for one second any of this would be true, I would never have agreed for him to come to the US. I would go live in India tomorrow if I did not have a 6 year old daughter to consider. If he passes the interview next month, it would mean he could come to the US within the next few weeks and I would love nothing more than him board a flight and come here the day he has his visa in hand. His fear however, is causing him to postpone his departure. I understand and definately can sympathize that he is leaving everything his life has been about for the last 29 years for something as volatile as love.

Any advice or shared experiences are welcome especially those who have immigrated from India. Information on everything from how you are able to maintain your customs, beliefs, food preferences, to your experience with finding a job. These are all the unknowns to anyone migrating to the US. I think this article may be helpful for many. Thanks for sharing and I will post our experiences once he arrives.