Casprd

I would seriously look at doing a cr-1. You still will need a cosponsor but then you new husband will hit the ground running with a green card and be able to work instead of waiting until you can afford to as later

Good Post.

The OP contradicts himself by saying it should be tougher and than at the end says the process is tough. Which is it?

Making up some statistics without any credible evidence to back it up it quite erroneous as well.

Breakdown the word assume...you get my point. Post some legit facts and cite them to back up your claim.

I agree with the extension of 180 days. In the US, it's quite difficult to plan an average wedding in that time. 90 days, good lord your asking for an overload of work to throw a decent wedding in that amount of time!

No the OP never said the process was tough. he said "it sure was very tough" referring to the past two years with his wife I would assume. The K-1 visa is targeted with fraud and abuse and that is why the process is so difficult, but unfortunately it sets people up to fail so to speak. Personally I disagree with the OP only in that I would like to see the K-1 process eliminated. If you can't make the commitment of getting married before bringing someone to this country then you really need to think twice about what you're doing anyway. For many people the K-1 ends up being a sounding out period between themselves and their fiance(e). We have all seen the posts about the fiance(e) who comes here, then either skips out on the marriage or goes through the motions long enough to adjust status and then leave. The whole co-sponsor concept needs to be changed as that takes a great deal of the incentive for fraud out of the picture. So many things about the K-1 and CR-1 should be changed, including the ability to appeal the seemingly arbitrary decisions by the VO's. I read one article written by a former VO and it was very eye opening. I have also read many things that show stats between 20% and 40% of all family based visa's are fraudulent. Even on the low side you're talking 1 in 5. That's ridiculous. The penalties for committing fraud need to be such that it takes away the incentives and the penalties need to be enforced. The loop holes need to be closed and the process needs to be streamlined and more rigorous (no those aren't mutually exclusive)

I am no lawyer but I watch cops on TV . In most states you can't change the locks or not let her back in. Once she brings her belongings in and stays one night (check your local laws)... she is there. This is why I said you have to move out. Leave her with the house. If you plan on staying there, I wouldn't. I think you can get her out in 3 days if you have no lease... but you need to start proceedings immediately with a real estate lawyer... which is way cheaper than a criminal lawyer.

Not true. In most states, the simple act of beginning to move means you have abandoned the residence (I know cause I had a hell of a time getting my stuff back). You can change the locks and any pin numbers or passwords for accounts. Be very careful about filing a change of address for her. You do not have a power of attorney you can not file such a form on her behalf. You can mark her mail as not at this address (don't throw it away and for goodness sack don't open it as these are federal offenses).

The part of the OP that is tripping me up is She has been here 6 years. She is on a tourist visa and she was an intern at Disneyland.

Questions that come up then are how did she stay here for 6 years on a tourist via?

How was she working as an intern (even unpaid) on a tourist visa?

The B-2 may expire on the 21st, but when did the I-94 expire?

I would have to say that staying here for 6 years on a tourist visa is intent to immigrate. Unfortunately the folks saying do a CR-1 and go home are giving bad advice. As repugnant as AOS'ing from such an egregious overstay is to me, it is still perfectly legal and the last thing you want to do now is have her leave the country. My guess is that the I-94 expired long ago so the "expiry" of the B-2 visa is moot and doesn't matter. The issue you will have to overcome is proving that the marriage is legitimate and not just to let her stay in the country. You can AOS in this situation and your best bet is to read the guides on how to accomplish this. I don't know how immigration's will treat the AOS petition but be overly prepared and you can get through it. I would also search the forums for information on stokes interviews just in case.

If you're going to be in Guangzhou with her for the interview, have her take your passport in with her. She can have it on the top of the stack of documents and the VO will know that you are there with her. The people doing the Notary are not always the same people doing the interviews and as often as not they aren't. Not to mention getting something notarized at the consulate is a PITA (they refused to notarize copies of her passport for the IRS).

And for Guangzhou, the EOR is very important and generally looked at. For our interview, the EOR and the photos were the only thing he looked at and my wife said that was generally the case.

Just need to get the signature of the spouse and the requested documents, or proof that the financials are only from the person who is the co-sponsor. Shouldn't be a big deal, but there is no hard and fast rule on how long it takes the consulate to re-adjudicate the case. Could be a couple weeks, could be several months. Each consulate is different.

Only certain consulates will let the petitioner go in to the interview with the beneficiary, but if you go and CJ isn't one of those consulates your wife/fiancee can always take your passport in with her and have it sitting on top of the stack of documents where the VO can clearly see it and will know that you are there with her. She can even have it open to the BIO page and show it to the VO. It is debatable whether it helps, but it certainly doesn't hurt for you to be at the interview. Worst case if there is a denial or blue slip and you aren't there, you would wonder if it would have made a difference and best case you get to spend some time with your girl and celebrate the good news.

Congrats. Yeah the approvals always seem to be anti-climactic. Ours certainly was and they only looked at pictures and the EOR. 30 minute interview to ask 5 questions, one of which they had no way of knowing the answer (what's his favorite food)

With all of the other evidence then you shouldn't need the cards you sent him but he would be advised to bring them to the interview. You could have him scan the cards and the envelopes and email these to you and include this in the package. From what I've seen on other threads, the evidence issue comes up when there is a significant age difference between a female petitioner and a male beneficiary as this is outside the cultural norm for Egypt. Yes, many will tell you "age doesn't matter" but when it comes to the VO's in Egypt it very much does matter, but many have still successfully gotten visa's when in that scenario.

I haven't read of it being "required" for Egypt, but I know Guangzhou wants to have an evolution of relationship letter from the petitioner (one from each party is probably better) and if there is any previous marriage and divorce, a letter explaining these as well. I would check on the regional forum before including these however, as sometimes too much evidence seems to be as bad as not enough.

Which form are you talking about?

This is incorrect. Advance Parole is routinely approved for people with AOS pending. The AP will take 2-3 months from when you apply for AOS. So plan a few months or more where you cannot travel. You can minimize this time by marrying soon after entry and applying for AOS as soon as possible.

No it isn't incorrect. Nothing in any part of the process is a given and that is a cold hard fact. While AP may be routinely given, there are still cases where it isn't and it IS up to the adjudicators discretion.

You may want to look at flying through Dublin and do your POE there. That way if CBP does have an issue, it isn't such a pain and expense to fly back to the UK.

Don't worry about writing dates on he photos. As long as they show the two of you it is fine. With family and friends is better and different times and situations helps. Anyone can write a date on the back of a photo but the USCIS knows that doesn't mean it is actually true. Looks like you guys have enough evidence that it shouldn't be a problem. Just keep all of your email and chat logs and maintain all the proof of an ongoing relationship and it will be fine.

Good Luck

You don't extend your non-immigrant stay in the US. Basically the K-1 visa dies the minute you pass the POE as it authorizes you for entering the US only. Not staying. From that point you have a valid 90 days to get married to the K-1 petitioner only. As long as you are married within that 90 days you are ok. when the 90 days ends you will be out of status but there is no issue or penalty for that. you don't even have to file for the AOS right away, but if you can afford to then it makes sense to file AOS as soon as possible to get the ball rolling.

The petitioner being at the consulate is never a bad idea. Many consulates won't let the petitioner attend the interview but what you can do is take their US passport in with you and have it sitting on top of the stack of evidence so the VO knows they are there. In my opinion it is always a good thing if at all possible. Whether it helps or not is debatable, but it certainly never hurts.

First off, it isn't the number of questions but rather the type and substance of questions. If they asked you about 40 questions in the interview then the VO had suspicions before you even arrived. It is very unlikely that they even knew the answer to all of those questions so they are reading your behavior throughout the interview. Being hesitent, talking quickly, taking a lot of time to answer, being fidgity or any number of behaviors are deemed as signs of hiding something by the VO's. So when you look at how the interview went, you can't just focus on what you did or didn't answer "correctly".

Secondly, did they give you a blue slip or a white slip? I'm guessing a white slip as it doesn't seem they asked for any more evidence or additional information. If so, then one thing you can try to do is engage the petitioners senator to intervene and see if the consulate will re-evaluate the petition. I would say generally for a white slip it would be unlikely but it doesn't hurt to try. You can also consult an immigration attorney to see if they have any other options. One who is well versed in that consulate is the best bet.

As for refiling a new petition, going with another K-1 isn't a good option as those have the most fraud and the VO has already determined that it wasn't legitimate. In my opinion, your best bet is to get married and start a new CR-1 (not K-3) petition. Normally it would take about 8 to 10 months, but with a denied K-1 already, you can expect some significant delays for the petition to be processed.

On the DS-230 there is one section where you have to enter your name in your native characters but other than that everything should be in Roman Characters.

From Reading a previous post by the OP, it seems the petitioner wasn't very involved in the case and left a lot of the work up to the beneficiary. Not sure what is going on with that, but if so and as stated the petitioner didn't send any/much supporting evidence in then it is understandable that the VO would be skeptical. If I understand correctly the petitioner and beneficiary are actually in France which explains why the VO is asking about coming back to China.

for the OP. Let us know what was sent to USCIS and what the petitioner's involvement in the case is. Because of the foreign residency and presumably lack of evidence submitted, it may be time to talk to an immigration specialist.

Did your fiance submit an Evolution of Relationship letter? This is one of those things that Guangzhou seems to always want. What other evidence of bona fide relationship did you send? Phone logs? Chat Messages? Emails? Letters? Did you submit pictures of the two of you together?

Did you get a blue slip after your interview?

You had to submit something to prove you had met in the past 2 years or you would have never gotten past the USCIS stage.

the metric size of I believe 51 mm x 51 mm ( may be 55 mm ) will work also.

Good news. congrats

The 6 months left on the passport is a visa requirement. But I would get the passport renewed while in China.

Coming to the US on a tourist visa with the intent to stay is fraud and could result in a lifetime ban. I would be very very careful through this whole process. Double and triple check any answers you get from attorneys or people on the forum.

If his income is solely government disability pension then you will need to look at getting a co-sponsor. If he has income in addition to the disability pension that meets the requirements then you are good to go. One person got all the way to Guangzhou and because he is on government disability his petition was blue slipped for a co-sponsor. The VO's "logic" was that he is already a government charge so his wife would be also. BS, but the VO's have the last say. For a K-1 visa it is a bit more lax as the support issue really comes in to play at the AOS stage. But be prepared for this and plan accordingly and you will be fine.

Passport stamps are the proof of entry. Boarding passes are not. It isn't unheard of to get a boarding pass and then not get on the plane. People will tell you that pictures aren't necessary, but to that I say they don't hurt and they certainly do help. Knowing what a crazy process this is why in the world would someone take the chance of not including photos. The key is the photos must clearly show both of you. If you can get or have photos with family and friends that is even better. Posed or studio photos are not a good idea. But pictures from your time together in different places and different clothes are a plus.