TheSahlis

The status is already "Paid" but as I click on the option to print out the cover sheet I am getting an error. I have also tried the option of emailing the coversheet but I am getting an error as well. Anyone else experiencing the same issue? I have tried this both on explorer and Mozilla..

please post error message.....from that whats wrong may be determined

hi there,

Im kinda freaking out...

had my interview yesterday (tuesday) and got approved- they dont need me to send anything else in...

I have booked flights for next tuesday to go back to the USA....i know i should have done this until i had my visa in hand...however Ill be a god mother the day after i arrive! so I had to be there...

monday coming is july 4th for the USA...which means consulate gets a public holiday-

the lady at the interview said i should have it by friday....

should i be freaking thinking I wont have it by tuesday?

they have today, thursday, and friday to send it to me (overnight post)

do we think this is possible...or should i start stressing???

Xxx kiria

congrats on the approval, my wife and stepson interview tuesday the 12th so we are trying to get the travel worked out also.

your cutting it tight but its possable, depends on how fast auspost is, consulate advertises 2 days to process visa, that would be wednesday and thursday, that would put it in post on friday, my wife tells me that no mail moves on saturday or sundays in Oz but if auspost is on the ball you should have it in hand monday and be able to leave on tuesday.

dont forget to post a consulate review

hello

glad to hear that you guys are a step closer, fingers crossed for you. Sydney consulate has moved the interview up to July 12Th, two weeks earlier. if everything goes right she will be home in 4 weeks.

Figured I would start part 3 up, if i remember right our group has closed 4 different topics over the last year.

Once you know your interview date and your paperwork has made it to the consulate in sydney, just email them and ask for an interview at a later date. They are not backed up so if you email and ask for a september or october date you should get it with no issues. They are very prompt at replying to emails, but cant do much till they have paperwork from the states at the consulate already.

The email address is : SydneyIV@state.gov

Sweet!!! The "case complete" phone calling campaign begins tonight

for us it went like this

sif on web page

2 days later case closed phone message

3 days later email with interview date

1 week later (aprox) phone message changes to case mailed to consulate

start tracking on dhl using these directions from this wiki --

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/How_Do_I_Bring_My_Spouse_%28Husband_or_Wife%29_to_Live_in_the_United_States%3F#Step_0_-_Preparing_For_The_NVC_Process

How to track your valuable originals?

Listen to NVC's AVR message, it will clearly say “Your case is completed and forwarded to the embassy or consulate in XXX on MM/DD/YYYY…” Once you hear this message, immediately go to DHL Tracking by Reference and track your shipment.

For example, if NVC's AVR says your shipment date is 06/05/2008, NVC actually called DHL one day before this date to pick up the shipment. So your reference date is 06/04/2008 ( though mine was same date as AVR message ). Then enter EXP 04 JUN 2008A as your reference in the above DHL website. Then scroll down to your consulate link.

To be sure you can try a date range between 06/03/2008 to 06/06/2008 in the date range

once its delivered give them a few days then you can contact the consulate about case....we are asking for faster interview date as sydney isnt that busy..

As always, thanks so much for the reassurance Saylin!!

i sent my packages at the same time and got same message, changed once they processed AOS

Ok guys...latest update on our situation.....Gary got a call from the consulate today. They want him to come in and bring his notorized Divorce certificate ib June 22nd at 9a. They did not say this was another interview, they seem to just want this document so they can process to conclusion. They said his medical was just entered today and all is perfect on it. Any ideas on why he can't just send this document in instead of coming in person? At his initial interview they kept his passport and were just waiting for a clear medical. Do you think he just needs to sign some paperwork to finalize the process? I"m an absolute nervous wreck again. They AGAIN said they realize the urgency of our case and we are on expedite. I feel everything wil be OK but after Texas California I am so gun shy.....Peace and love to all.....

this has to be the end for you guys......maybe ( fingers crossed for you ) they will look at it and hand him his passport and visa

Im sending an email to all the candidats for president telling how messed up this process is, gonna tell our story from start to finish...election year is the time when all the right ears are open....

Are you sure you are in an overstay status...you fulfilled the requirements of the K-1 in that you married with in the 90 days.

from USCIS web site:

After the Fiancé(e) Visa is Issued

Once issued, the fiancé(e) visa (or K-1 nonimmigrant visa) allows your fiancé(e) to enter the United States for 90 days so that your marriage ceremony can take place. Once you marry, your spouse may apply for permanent residence and remain in the United States while USCIS processes the application. For additional information, see the “Green Card” link to the right.

i dont see anywhere that you have to apply for AOS just that you are then elegable to, and I cant find anything that says that you have to leave, I think but cant swear to it that you are just considered a non-immigrant visa holder till AOS is complete. The 90 limit as far as I can tell is only to get married which from your timeline you did.

now where you may have issues is if you leave the US with out completing your AOS ( though there may be some kind of waiver for this also ) you might have to start the i-130 process from the start and beleve me it can be painfull and long.

Im no visa guru but im sure that if I have someting wrong someone else will correct it, thats whats great about VJ.

my wifes Ex tried that, we called his bluff insted and told him sign or you keep the child but my wife was leaving....took him 10 minutes to decide he didnt want to raise a child and he signed the letter.

WOOOOW!

CONGRATS to you and your family

thanks celldoc.....hoping your case catches up fast....

OMG....i got up this morning and have two emails from NVC ......THE INTERVIEWS ARE SCHEDULED......July 26TH....gonna have the wife contact them and see if it can be moved up.....fingers crossed....OMG im in tears... :dance:

I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!! Thanks for the positive words!!! Peace and love to you and I pray that your wife is brought home to you very quickly.

thank you....case has been closed since the 6th but still no cc email or anything about packages being shipped to sydney, but in dhl tracking I saw two packages being sent yesterday to sydney...so i'm hopeful that they are my packages...at least I want to beleve that.

Hey guys

OK.....I have a question that maybe no one really knows but I'll throw it out there.....Gary just called Knights bridge and they said that he PASSED his medical and they are forwarding it to consulate. Gary then called consulate and they told him once they receive the medical he will , " be taken out ofadministrative processing and contacted again". At his interview his officer said he realized the urgency of his case and would reunite him with his family as soon as possible. Am I grasping at straws here or do you think he is done? Why will they be contacting him again? What does it mean when they say they are going to take you out of administrative processing? From what I've read that is a good thing? UGGH..... I"m certain I have irritable bowel syndrome from all this.....

i think gary can start packing his bags....

and looking at ticket prices.....

great news....hope it goes fast and he can board that long flight soon

I SOOOOOOOOO very much understand your feelings! My house is not empty but I am like a Zombie from this whole process and it does feel criminal to do this to people. I cry almost every night now, hide myself away in the bathroom so I don't upset my mom or son who are here with me. My mom is staying here right now until Gary gets back. Some days I don't even want to get out of bed and to make matters worse, I DON"T have a job anymore. I had a complete breakdown. I"ve always been a very happy go lucky person but this torture we have been put through has messed me up. Nothing will be ok until I have my Gary back home. Gary is going thru hell himself, living in a small bedroom in his moms house, he can't work because he needs a job HERE, not England. I sometimes wonder if I am a weak person and too sensitive, I always thought I was strong.

Take care everyone....sorry I sound so miserable, Being so very much in love with someone is a very scary place to be in times like this. You just want that person safe and next to you. Ok, I sut up now..

geeze Val I just cant imagine how you felt hearing that the interview wasn't the end of your journey, I know I would just be a mess. Diana is in the same boat right now no place to live of her own her and jack are splitting time at a friends her brothers and her mothers house, but she keeps moving around so that she doesn't become a burden on anyone but its taking a huge toll on her.

Just read celldoc's reply and yes I remember when we all used to get so happy but after month and months of such tiny steps they even lose there shine.

But hay try and keep your spirits up you have found your soul mate and even though this journey is HARD it will be worth it in the end and like all journeys it has to come to and end. Gary will be home with you soon and life will be good then.

I have been thinking once we have our loved ones safely home, we should all write our stories and send them to someone and try and get this process changed it just doesn't make sense, the talking heads in Washington want to talk about immigration reform well they can start but fixing the family visa process. maybe if we all coordinated a mail campaign to some of the big news shows someone will pick up on it and bring it to light. though we all sort of had each other we were still silent stories going on as far as the rest of America is concerned.

but don't apologize for venting some on here, sometimes good therapy to get the emotions out and writing about them can be a great help.

cheers from your fellow traveler

hello all

I finally got my SIF today for both wife and step-sons cases. Feel like a huge weight has been lifted, I actually started suffering from depression during this wait, all I seemed to be able to do is work then go home to our empty house and stare at the TV till I fell asleep then get up and do it all over again. So i appologise for not being a good VJ'er. But congrats to all that have moved on past the NVC. I never expected the emotional toll that this process can put you through. Its almost criminal they way they do this for a family visa it just isnt right. but i am actually smiling now and it seems that this long journey is finally coming to a close. again congradulations to all that have already moved on, and to thoes still waiting keep up the faith though I know its hard.

Boooo @ health insurance.

I'm currently screwed if anything happens (and I definitely tried hard whilst up in the snow for the season!).

Unfortunately, I can't sneak in on my mums, and well, I'm not "currently" employed... sooo I'm in the "you're f$&ked" bracket.

Thankfully I'm soon to be employed, so I can actually consider insurance etc (if not supplied by the company) haha.

if you dont mind me asking. I will be applying for a visa for my step daughter after she finishes UNI, at which time she will be right around 21. Why did your visa take so long at USCIS, from your time line it looks like it took 4 years from NOA1 till NOA 2, did they realy take that long to process the forms at USCIS ?

hey

just a question with Health Care over there... what has everyone done/doing over there when it comes to health... I'm hoping to be over there by the end of this month.. interview in 9 days ooooo haha scary.. but anyways yeh been thinking about what i should be doing.. travel insurance like i did last time i was there visiting or can i get health care when I'm over there... just not sure if ill need a greencard or sn number before i can get it there.... whats everyone done?

My wife and stepson have been on my health plan since the 1st of the year, they are still in Australia waiting for case to be sent to consulate, but they stayed with me from Dec till March and my step son got sick and I used the insurance gave me no hassles and paid the bills only thing was I had to call them and tell them that he didn't have a SSN and they said ok well process the claim which they did. Also my wife ran out of a medicine that she takes and I scheduled an appointment with the Dr paid the $20 co-pay and she got a scrip for her medicine and that was even free because it was covered by the insurance.

If your married you should be able to go on your partners insurance, though that may have some rules to follow, I could only add my wife and stepson during open enrollment because I hadn't added them right after we got married.

If your not married then you can either just wait till your married and go on partners plan if they have on o buy your own which can be a tax deduction in some cases. I'm not sure about travel insurance though it may cover you for awhile but you'll have to read their rules to find that out.

hope this answers some of you question.

Question for those that are already in the US....how has everyone gone getting a US driver's license?

I know it probably varies from state to state but I was just curious to see what other ppl have experienced. I've looked at the Texas state DMV website, but it really doesn't tell you anything if you have an international driver's license..only what to do if you have one from another US state.

Sorry if this question has been asked before .

I asked my MVA here in maryland below is what they sent back. Just email the question to the support email for the texas MVA.

Dear MVA Customer,

Thank you for your recent e-mail inquiry. The information you requested is

available by clicking on the links below. You must scroll down to

"Exchanging an Out-0f-Country License for a Maryland License."

http://www.marylandmva.com/DriverServ/Apply/license.htm

http://www.marylandmva.com/DriverServ/Apply/apply.htm

http://www.marylandmva.com/DriverServ/Apply/LawfulPresence/lawfulpresence.ht

m

Effective June 1, 2009, all new applicants for a Maryland driver's license

or identification card will be required to provide a verifiable social

security number (SSN) or proof of ineligibility, and demonstrate proof of

lawful presence in the United States, in addition to the residency and

identity requirements. Acceptable documents to provide your SSN include:

Your social security card (not a copy, the actual card itself)

OR:

A current W-2 form

A current SSA-1099 form

A current non-SSA 1099 form

A current pay stub with the applicant's name and social security number on

it

If you do not have one of the above documents to provide a verifiable social

security number, no product will be issued.

The information on the 3 Hour Drug and Alcohol Class is available by

clicking on the link below.

http://www.marylandmva.com/AboutMVA/INFO/26340/drugschool.htm

If you need further assistance, please e-mail us at mvacs@mdot.state.md.us.

We hope this information will assist you.

A0005

Maryland MVA Customer Service Center

Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information in this

e-mail. Please note this is the most current information we have at this

time.

though the three interview process is strange it does have its logic, though as a mid level manager it can be very frustrating to me as I want to get someone in to do a job but it takes months to get someone hired but as a little explanation here is my view on it.

1st HR weeds through all the received resumes and comes up with the closest candidates

2nd department looks through these and chooses best to call in for interview #1

3rd top 3 from interview #1 are called back for a more through interview to whittle it down to one person

4th final chosen interviews with VP of department or the highest person in charge to get a final blessing, if you get called for 3rd interview you have a great chance at the job.

all companies do it different I have been hired with only 1 interview many time and I have also gone through the whole 3 interview process. I think this was all started to protect companies from lawsuits for not hiring someone but cant swear to that.

Hi All,

I am just starting my visa journey and trying to be as prepared as possible to help things run smoothly. I recently downloaded the DS-230 and started filling it out. I came to Q41 -

"Have you ever been charged, arrested or convicted of any offense or crime? (If answer is Yes, please explain)'

I have been arrested a few times for stupid stuff (last time 8 years ago), mostly drunk and disorderly, but I have never had to go to court for any of these offenses. They all resulted in a night in the watch house (drunk tank) and let go in the morning.

My question is how will this affect my visa application ??

As far as I am aware I do not have any criminal convictions on my record ( a police officer friend recently checked my record). I will be getting a person check (in Queensland, Australia) and a national fingerprint check which should tell the story of my past.

I am just a little uneasy about how it will look on paper and in an interview.

I would love to hear from anyone who was/is in the same situation

Cheers,

John

p.s. I have read something about a petty offense act, does anyone know about this and if it list offenses covered under this act ?

report the arrests truthfully what ever you do do not lie about it. As you have no convictions getting arrested is not looked at very harshly, they are more worried about convicted persons with violent or drug related time plus the amount of time spent in prison. I wouldn't sweat it to much, if your completely truthful you should be right.

as far as petty offenses never heard that term we have misdemeanors and felonies with felonies being the worst. and a list would take up volumes of books, we have had 250 years of politicians both local, state, and federal making hundreds of new laws each year and no body ever goes back and takes out the old and stupid ones.

Mike

is so confused... i am looking at the k1 papers and confused completely what to do ... i know i need to get back to work this being stuck at home thing is driving me up a wall with craziness. I know one thing i don't want him to have to stay away after we are married so K-1 road here we come... because i don't know how the change of status and cr1 works and how long it will take... sad for now missing my fiancé great hopes November gets here soon i want to see him again if only for 10 weeks.

The process is very confusing and the best source of how to do it is here on VJ, the govt sites leave lots more questions than they seem to answer. Me and my wife have been married for a year now and started the process for her CR-1 visa right after I returned from our wedding in Australia. I chose the CR-1 visa route as it takes about the same amount of time to complete as a K-1 but you don't have to do an AOS once they are here which can cost about $1000 if i remember right. What we have done to not have to be separated the whole time is she comes her to visit on the VWP and stays 87 days then heads back down for a few months. The advantages to a CR-1 over a K-1 is that when he gets his visa he will have a SSN and a green card and can basically travel at will, and you don't have to worry about it for another year and a half when you need to update the two year green card, with a K-1 he is allowed to enter as a non-immigrant so no work no foreign travel till AOS is complete, and if you are not working or not in the best paying job that could put big pressure on a new marriage, i have taken the time to get us a house buy her a car get myself a good job that i can support her on and just gotten ready so that when we are a whole family ( she has a son thats coming also ) we will just be able to enjoy life together and not do as much struggling financially, plus once she is here in a strange land surrounded by strange people she has the ability to go out and find a job so she isn't just sitting at home staring at 4 walls and waiting for me to come home. I have read many threads posted on her of the foreign spouses getting depressed and having thoughts of leaving because they didn't plan the actual move / new life they just wanted to be together as fast as possible and chose a route that left the foreign spouse spending large amounts of time alone in a place that was not familiar and contained no friends or family, you have to remember that they are leaving everything they know and are familiar with to come here. You don't want to rush so fast to just be together and forget that they are human and can and will get home sick if they don't have something to occupy themselves during the days

read this document

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=73c63591ec04d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

For me an my wife we have experienced both acceptance and rejection

My Wife:

Her family and most close friends are completely supportive though she lost a couple of friends for falling in love with a "Yank". Her children have adopted me and treat me as if I had always been in there life, and they are teens.

Me:

I was raised by adopted parents that later split up themselves, My "Father" is tolerant to our face but hasn't shown any true acceptance of my wife, and my "Mother" has dis owned me. Two of my "Sisters" are very stand offish, one has embraced you with open arms, and one has also dis-owned me and we no longer speak and I don't think that will ever change she also was publicly rude and talked a lot of trash to the rest of the family. My birth "Mother's" family has embraced my wife as one of the family and love her as much as they love me.

lesson learned .... those that love you will also love your chosen partner, those that don't will use it as an excuse to show there true colors.