LDRkristin

I am in the same situation as you are.... still thinking if I should go to the CS or not.... and to tell you the truth I am inclining more to take my chances and just bring the medical copies of what I have already to the interview. Let's hope that this will be enough...

Hi Everyone,

I'm also in the same situation. What was the verdict? Did you go to a CS, or no? If no, did it matter?

Thanks.

Hello lvcouple2010,

I posted a review of my interview at the Vancouver Consulate in the reviews section a week or two ago. Look for it. It was an excellent experience, so no worries. My interview was 30 days from when I sent in the packet, so I'm not sure if they do them earlier, however, I think I wrote on the checklist you send in with the packet days and times that were good for me, and the 30th day happened to be one of those days.

Good luck!

Here is the link to my review: http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/view-dos-cis-reviews.php?entry=7248

Hmm..well it will be way over my 90 day mark. I did end up going to try and see if I could get a license or state id with my K-1 status before my I-94 expired with my SSN#..lol, but they would not let me and told me I would probably have to rewrite the test and driving test over again when I get a Green Card.

I guess i'll be prepared for a written and driving test....They didn't mention anything about EAD document to get a License, but i'm going to try anyway!

Thanks for your reply.

Hi J&J,

Did you ever try to get your Texas license with your EAD? How did it go? I'm also Canadian and well past the 90 mark, but I got my EAD in the mail on Friday and want to know what I'm in for. Written test? Driving test?

I'm pretty sure an EAD will work to get a license based on this info I found for Lawful Status ID on the DMV website: http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/DriverLicense/LawfulStatusDLID.htm

"All others who are NOT a citizen or a lawful permanent resident of the United States must present:

* Valid documentation issued by the U.S. Dept. of Justice, U.S. Dept. of State, U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, that shows LAWFUL TEMPORARY ADMISSION to the U.S. for a period of six months or more."

It says US Department of Homeland Security, and shows one year validity right on it, so I think it should be okay.

To other posters on this thread, as others have stated before, you CANNOT get a driver's license in Texas as a K-1. I tried three different DMV offices in the Dallas metroplex, and brought every ID and supporting document I could find... and left in tears. Every staff person went into the big binder of immigration statuses to check, and turned me away immediately. It's really awful too, because the law was only changed two and a half years ago, and it looks like someone just went down the list of visas and put tick marks by all the ones with six months and exes by anything less completely indiscriminately. It's not like we're going to (or even CAN) leave the country, so what's the deal with not letting us have a license?! Getting an SSN wasn't a problem! The worst part of this experience was that my sixteen yearold sister in law passed her driver's test on the same day I was rejected. Way to add insult to injury.

Hehehe, I'm over it, and ready to just get my license in whatever way is necessary.

I think your proof is straight from the state of Georgia's driver's license webpage so what could be better than that? Print that and stash it in the car.

My husband drove on his UK license in Texas because he had to have EAD or a GC to get a a TX license. I wish I had printed the reference that says TX accepts foreign licenses for 1 year (not every country is included). He was stopped and the whole K1 process was hard to explain. A print out would have been helpful. Law enforcement officers in cities and states don't really know alot about immigration, especially K1s. Texas also says you have 30 days to get a license once you move here, and that is impossible for a K1, thus the long explanation. I told him we had been to the driver's license place twice and he was refused a license. Yes we had tried. (Texas had just changed their laws about immigrants and driver licenses.) The officer finally took our word for it, and dropped the failure to have a driver's license part of the ticket. He did ticket the speeding offense with the UK driver's license number. I would also put a copy of the AOS NOA in the car, not that a state patrol cop would have a clue, but it might lend some credibilty to the story when you explain why you "reside" in GA but can't get a license, but can drive on your foreign license until EAD.

Hi Nich-Nick,

I'm very angry after a bad experience as a Canadian trying to get a driver's license in Texas today. It turns out I didn't have all the facts. Could you post the link to the "reference that says TX accepts foreign licenses for 1 year"? that would be SO helpful!

Thanks!

Hi Beth,

Thanks so much for your response. I feel a lot more confident and prepared now. One thing I discovered on my own, however, is that I am supposed to pay the difference of the increased fee for the visa in cash at the consulate after all.

Hello friends,

A few questions:

About timing:

My interview at the Vancouver Consulate for the K-1 is coming up next week. I'm wondering how early I need to arrive at the consulate for a 1pm interview. Would it be okay to show up only 15 minutes early, or do I need to show up earlier to wait in a line, or go through security, or get fingerprinted? How long does the interview take? What else should I expect to happen at the consulate? How long should I expect to be at the consulate from start to finish? I'm trying to figure out what time to leave work, and whether I'll be able to go back afterward.

About fees:

On another note, I paid the $131 fee before it went up. I know I have to pay the difference of $219, but where do I do this? Do I need to get more deposit forms and go back to Scotia Bank, or can I pay the difference in cash at the consulate? Are there any other fees I should expect at the consulate?

About medical:

Also, I've read different things: do I need to bring my chest x-ray to the interview or not?

About the mail:

I've read that the Montreal Consulate requires you to bring an express paid envelope. Is this true for Vancouver also? If so, how big, and what is it used for?

Thank you in advance!

Hey everyone! I'm super excited because my fiance sent our papers in today! I just had to share with people who would understand my excitement. Happy waiting!

Thank you both for your responses. I agree that it makes most sense to write down the most stable address to get mail at and change the address when we have one that's more permanent. Has anyone had a problem doing it this way?

Hi, I'm a Canadian engaged to an American. We're almost ready to send in our I-129F, but a couple questions remains: On the I-129F, question 14 asks for, "Address in the United States where your fiancé(e) intends to live." Well, we don't know yet. My fiance plans to move in the next couple of months, so it won't be his current address, and he's living with roomates, so it won't be the next address either. Should I write his current address because I intend to live with him? Or maybe his parents' address for some stability? On top of that, because he intends to move, it would be horrible if all the documents for the next step of the application got sent to the wrong address, or returned. Is there a way for my fiance to specify the address he currently lives at versus the address he'd like to receive mail at?

Thanks folks. Reading this forum so far as been amazingly helpful!