claro

I typed everything that would fit and if it didn't left it blank and hand wrote it. I love the central american address system... it's so much more personal than a number on a grid.

Hello! I have filed an I-130 for my spouse and we are waiting on NVC to complete the case and for our interview. We have decided it is time to petition to bring his daughter also. He is currently living with her abroad as we wait for his visa petition to be completed. My question is whether I need to start a completely new process for the child: I-130 petition/$420 fee, Biographical data, NVC AOS bill, DS-230, etc or something else. She is written in on his application as his daughter and my step daughter but we said she would not be joining him to the US until later. Also, if I need to file the I-130 and biographical data for her, who signs the biographical data? Normally it is the beneficiary so does she sign? She is nine years old. Thanks for your help.

With I601 each argument is supposed to be unique to the individual circumstances, what those are largely shape the arguments. If there are US Citizen children either from this marriage or a previous one, it can be a hardship to you emotionally to have to raise them without his assistance here. If you have issues of health you might need him to help you care for yourself, or handle other responsibilities. Financial hardship having to earn a living on your own here and perhaps provide assistance to your spouse there could impact on your future retirement savings, your current economic situation. They have denied on "mere" economic difficulty but extreme issues combine to reach an aggregate hardship level.

if you want to lay out some of the arguments you have, perhaps we can come up with some more specific ideas for you. In other words what are your strongest arguments, going to the least strong?

Very good suggestions and perspective that helps me! I'll take each of my arguments and add a sentence explaining precisely how his presence is linked. They may not be the strongest but in aggregate and sway the argument away from separate domicile. I will get back to you on a argument list as that would be very helpful to get detailed feedback and perspective. Thank-you so much.

There is the cost of running 2 households. As a married couple it is a fiancial hardship to pay 2 rents ,2 utilities and all that

Yes, seems so simple but I hadn't thought of that one Thank-you!

visit immigrate2us.net

Yes, I have posted this questions there as well. I'm looking for ideas that can trigger my thoughts for how this might apply to me. Thank-you

I was just so happy to have sent my DS230 today but when I looked at the copy I saw that I left out the city and state from the address of my spouse in Nicaragua?? Will I get an RFE from the NVC for this? Is there something I can do now?

I need ideas for the arguments that have resulted in I601 waiver approval based on why the USC will suffer extreme hardship if the beneficiary can't move to the US. In my case the beneficiary was EWI but had no court orders, tickets or deportation or anything. I'm hoping to avoid the I5601 being denied based on the argument that I can remain in the US and he can remain in his country during the 10 year ban. I have several arguments for why I would suffer extreme hardship if I was to move to his country (financial, employment, health, family ties, etc).

You need to create an account (sign up) with USCIS and create your portfolio with your Receipt#. There is a field named "Last Updated Date" which tells you about touches.

Also, this touch is really nothing related to approval hope.

Loto

Oh yes, thank-you I see it now. They received my application on april 19 and the last updated date is April 20 so it's only been "touched" once! As you say it may not mean anything? Hmmmm

That had a last minute 'expedite'.

Loto

Can you tell me how to see "touches"? I don't see a date update button when I sign into my USCIS account? Thanks

U are a horrible person to say that! I hope it's not true...

How do you check for a "touch". When I log in the website I dont' see where to click to get the last updated date. Do you have to call to get that information?

What number can I call? Do I just ask for the status of my application?

I just called 18003755283 and used option 6 and a person answered. You have to give them the receipt number that is on your NOI1

All we have approved this week is two? my timeline and i know it doesn/t mean anything but it is still upsetting went from June 30th to July 14th. they are approving k-1's like crazy in march and not ours. what is the deal with that?

How were you able to find out how many were processed in the month? I'd like to try to track this as well.

Thanks

It took 2 months for us to receive the NOA2 from CSC for I-130. Usually, cause of delay is lack of evidence or there are just too many applicants. Give them a call once or twice a week.... thats what we did.

How do you get a person when you call? All I get is an automated message? I'm waiting for NOA2 since April 19, which is still within the 5 months but would like to know.

i brought my fianee over on a k-1 and we are now married.....we want to bring her child here now..on a k-2..she was never married to the father.

do we need to get permission from the father? even if they were never married?

Yes I am wondering about similar information regarding bringing step-children. My step-child has both parents on the birth certificate although they were never married. The child does not live with the mother in Nicaragua but with other family of the mothers. I was told on VJ that they would need a notorized letter from the other parent granting permission. Also a letter allowing the child to leave the country at the airport with only one of the parents. I had posted a question whether VJ had a sample letter for this but hadn't heard a response yet. Hope that helps.

I had just received a notice about visajourney a few weeks ago and had completely forgotten about it, but after thinking about it, I decided that I would just make a few comments to all of you out there who are anxiously waiting to bring your spouse over and to finally get a life going for yourselves. First of all, let me say that I did get Arlyn over relatively quickly. All toll, it took 15 months from the time that the I-130 was processed to the time that NVC took over the application and finally processed it. What I would tell all couples who are in this situation is to simply "Be patient!" To make it go quicker, I would build into your wait time (if you are a professional working stiff) an intermediate trip back to the (in this case) Philippines (or whatever nation). This got us through and gave us some breathing time and (how shall I say) "love time" to get through the ordeal. In retrospect, 15 months is not a lot of time, but at the time, it seemed like forever. Almost every week, Arlyn complained about the time that it was taking. Filipinas have a very hard time looking to the future and seeing anything that is more that 36 hours away, forget about even 36 months.

Second, on every application that you complete, whether it be the I-130, the I-864, the visa application, etc., make certain that you carefully fill out all the applications. YOU DO NOT NEED AN ATTORNEY! And I know that I am committing a sacrilege, since I am an attorney myself (not an immigration attorney), but it is true. So, many couples waste money by seeking out someone who probably can do no better than they themselves and it results in their paying out a tremendous amount of money. Unless you really have a compelling case where you simply feel overwhelmed with the task or something in your personal situation could become an issue, you don't need to contact an attorney.

Third, please understand the severity of the situation and that this is your life and your spouse's. I made the decision to go to Manila to be with my wife 15 months later, because I felt that my wife would be abused by the U.S. Consulate. Once I showed up, they were normal and behaved very professionally towards me and my spouse. They will do a thorough background and police check on you and your spouse. Also, realize that your every word at the interview is being recorded, and thus, hopefully will never come back to haunt you in the future. I think that if I had not shown up that my wife would have been denied the IV visa and would have either had to come back with more information later, or might have even been told to start over. The U.S. Consulate may act nicely to you, but they can be a very vicious lot and don't let anyone else tell you, otherwise. "Dirty Rotten Outrageous (not Glorious) Bastards" they are.

The other thing is starting planning for your future, even while you are waiting to get her (or him) over. Plan for school and education and training. This is a fabulous journey for our spouses and it is something that they should behold and relish. My wife is already planning her career in the health profession as a nurse at our local community college where she is enrolled in an RN program. However, there may be a one-semester break as she is pregnant and we are expecting our first child together in September.

It is an exciting time! Take all this in perspective. You won't even think about this later on after it is all over. Good luck to all of you. I don't plan to be involved in VisaJourney anymore after this blog. You realize that this is a monumentous time in terms of global migration and that you are a part of it. We wish all of you the best and hope that all of your dreams are realized in the years to come.

Mike and Arlyn

Thank you for your warm words of encouragement and helpful suggestions. I will be filing my I-130 within the next few days to bring my spouse from Nicaragua and your post helped me cope with this anxious time.

Does anyone know if VJ has an example letter for:

1. notorized statement of approval from the biological parent consenting to their child being taken to the US to live with the other biological parent on a K-3 Visa.

2. notorized statement of approval from one biological parent giving permission to the minor to leave the country with only one parent.

Not sure about Nicaragua as far as the child leaving, However if you are doing the I-130 once it gets to the NVC stage they will request this document from the ohter parent, best to send it along with the DS-230. This helps to avoid and RFE as we received when we applied for the boys.

When the boys left Colombia they needed an adtional document when they left the airport giving permission to the minor to leave the country with only one parent.

Does VJ have an example letter for the two cases you described?

1. notorized statement of approval from the biological parent consenting to their child being taken to the US to live with the other biological parent on a K-3 Visa. (one parent, my spouse, will be coming to live with me; the other parent, the childs mother, lives in Spain with her current husband).

2. notorized statement of approval from one biological parent giving permission to the minor to leave the country with only one parent. (in my case only one parent is in Nicaragua, the other is in Spain.)

Or perhaps it the document is as simple as the one sentence you described?

Thank-you

probably... it will be based on individual facts, circumstances and country specific (local) rules

Thank-you very much. Since the mother is in Spain it would take some time to get a form to her, have her sign with notary, and return to Nicaragua. Can you direct me to a place where I can find out more about this specific to Nicaragua? Perhaps I can contact the Nicaraguan consulate if that is the place to contact?... or is it something that may or may not come up and won't be known until interview time?.. or will they let us know in advance of the interview? Thanks again.

I should add that my spouse and the childs mother were never married, there is not enforced child support, but my spouses name does appear on the birth certificate.

My spouse and I would like to petition to bring his 8 year old daughter to the US from Nicaragua. My step-childs mother has lived in Spain for the last 6 years (since the child was 2 years old), and has a husband and child in Spain so doesn't plan to return to Nicaragua. My step-child was left by the mother in Nicaragua to be cared for by the mothers grandmother. I don't see anything that mentions what, if any, documentation is needed indicating consent by the childs mother to bring her to the US? Is any documentation required with the I-130 that indicates that the mother grants her consent for the father and I to bring their daughter to the US?

'daboyz' is correct. It is a newer requirement but your situation may be different since he lived in the states for a while. Every situation is unique. I say do lots of research ask the same question twice because you may get different answers. I know that the Embassy has set hours for taking questions and you can email the embassy as well. If your husband is in Nica now you will be dealing with them mostly...I would think.

Oh now I see what you are saying. Yes, that may be true. My plan was to marry in Nica then, unfortunately I have to return to the states. I plan to file from the US. Do you know if there is any requirement for him to have been in Nica for a period of time before we file. He has been there since November. Prior to that he was in the US for about 8 years and before that in Nica since birth. He is a Nicarauguan citizen. Thank you all for your help.

I find that if your situation is legit you should have no problems. My Husband is from Nicaragua and we looked into the I-130 because we were worried that the K-1 was going to take too long. The requirement that you need to live in Nicaragua for 6 months before receiving the IR visa was a major turn-off. I did find the embassy there to be pretty helpful. We mostly dealt with Blanca Perez. Good Luck! I do love Nica...an extended vacation could be nice

Congratulations. I can see your experience went very well. I hope ours does too. Thank-you for the contact at the Nicaraguan embassy. I'm not sure what 6 month waiting period you are referring to however. Can you explain a little better? Will we be subject to this?

Thanks

Correct except the order. The I-130 can be filed while he's here. There's no advantage in him leaving before the interview stage.

THank-you for your responses. My fiance left for Nicaragua in November. We will be married in Nica in a couple of weeks. He was not forced in any way to leave. I have read that if he was the "subject to exclusion, deportation, removal or rescission....." that the validity of the marriage has to be proven or he has to have lived outside the US after the marriage for two years. I don't thing this is our case since he voluntarily left but just checking. I'm not sure what they mean by "exclusion". Do you know?

Thanks

Yes, IMO, he's telling you the truth. However, the 70% is less important than your own specific hardship case. If there is no severe hardship, you'll be denied regardless of any statistics about approvals.

Thank-you for your feedback. I will anticipate filing the waiver and start building my case for severe hardship if I move to Nicaragua. Do you agree that that is the hardship waiver I must apply? There is very good information on VJ on this type of hardship. If any other references are available please let me know. I think my strongest case is that I work for the US government and I have specific engineering and research skills in an area that the US has a great need and shortage of by USC's. If this doesn't work we'll be married waiting out the 10 years. Thank-you.

I just visited a lawyer and told him my situation which is:

My fiance and I want to get married however he was in the US without inspection which is how I met him. He has been here for 9 years or so. We have known each other for 3years and have lived together for 2. He went to Nicaragua in November and we thought I could bring him back on a fiance visa, but the lawyer told me since he was here without inspection it would be denied. He said our only possible chance will be to get married in Nicaragua and file a I130 application, which he said would also be denied. He went on to say that from there we would have to file a hardship waiver for why I can't move to Nicaragua. He said 70% of these waivers are denied and he thinks ours will be denied also. Does this sound like sound and correct advise? Thank-you for your fedback.

Publication 519 (2008), U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens (No 2009 version) http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p519.pdf

See page 10, middle column Nonresident Spouse Treated as a Resident tells where you can "elect" to have your wife considered a resident alien for tax purposes with a written statement. I read the entire publication last year and printed and highlighted sections I thought applied to us. Then I read those 2-3 more times plus any other references until it started making sense to me. After getting the basic information in my head, then I was able to use TurboTax Basic (CD installed version) to complete my taxes. It only offered the Form 2555 which is overkill for our situation, so I downloaded the Form 2555EZ and filled it in to submit with my mailed return.

Other useful links including how to get the ITIN number and mention of mailing the ITIN application along with the completed tax return.

html version of Pub 519

http://www.irs.gov/publications/p519/index.html P

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/intern...=129431,00.html

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/intern...96,00.html#itin

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/intern...d=97324,00.html

And here's the post where I showed my version of the statement electing to be treated as resident alien for tax purposes.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...t&p=3614434

On a complicated side note: If you happen to have alot of investments and capital gains reported on Schedule D, your taxes are figured by a Captial Gains worksheet rather than the tax tables. Foreign spouses income does play a slight role in that so it's not as simple as show foreign income, then subtract it back out if you have lots of dividends and capital gains. Turbo Tax does all the work for you. I had to really dig and analyze how the foreign income played a role, only out of curiousity of how it worked. I still came out ahead filing jointly.

This is a very helpful response. I had posted a similar question elsewhere and this post is very informative.