Aztec&Taino

I have been where you are. The long months of waiting for an approval and between trips to see my fiancé were terrible. I spent more money that I care to admit in calling him to try to stay as close as possible. This shall pass. I would advice you to spend more energy in yourself, your daughter, and your business. Spend the energy creating the home that you will be sharing with him. Refocus your energy in building the life you want, now. Best wishes!

that 2 year mark has passed. i went overseas in may 25 2012 . What you think of the situation now?

You have to have met with your fiancé, in person, within the last two years of filing the petition. You will also need a more recent letter of intent from your fiancé. Sounds to me like a trip is in order. Also, ALWAYS go to http://www.uscis.gov/ in order to obtain the most up to date information and forms.

I don't have experience with this type of specific situation but I would be very hopeful for the fact that they KEPT his passport. Could you call the Visa Specialist to inquire since the case is at the Consulate?

I am so glad you got your approval!!! Our journey was long and crazy with my husband's GC as well. Eventually it was all taken care of. The reason they sent you a RFE was because you are supposed to file 90 prior to your conditional status expiring. My husband received a letter at POE and the immigration officer also advised him of this. His conditional status expired Dec 16 2013 and in August of 2013 we received another letter reminding him he had to file in the next 30 days. We were lucky and didn't receive an interview. I guess they thought they had harassed us enough!!! lol!!!

Glad everything went well!!!

Yes, I knew that we had to file 90 days prior to the expiration but for a variety of reasons, among them evidence gathering and procrastination, we didn't file earlier. I thought that "technically" it was still filed on time though. To other people approaching the ROC stage: "Do as I say and not as I did!" Anyways, that is all behind us now. Congratulations on your approval, too!

OP: You are soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo bad!!! Freaking your husband out like that...referring him how you told him the officer is taking him to jail for being a liar. LOL You are sooooooooooooooooooooo mean, poor guy! Haha Poor thing! Good to hear though that you guys got approved, I think they just were confused as to why you still haven't sent in the evidences they were asking for, and at the interview it was clear to the officer what is the situation and was relieved. Sometimes, just seeing the plan documents, and just getting a response to an RFE where they would go "That's totally not what we were asking for" kind of makes them think either you're a class clown idiot and did not get what they were asking for, or you are trying to hide something (such as visa fraud). But then when they see you in person, and how you handle your poor hubby (just kidding!) they see, you guys will be fine. Congratulations again!!! All the best to you guys!

Yes, it was a little mean but I should have added that as soon as I said that he laughed and said something like "yeah, right" so he knew that everything was fine since he knew I was joking. I did send additional evidence with the RFE, mostly new affidavits because we had already sent in what we had... Again, to me it was plain to see that he had already made up his mind about our case before talking to us and it was clear to me also that he had reviewed the file as he knew what proof it contained. Good luck to you, too!

Good luck, compatriota! You may find it helpful to select "Portals" and choose "Mexico" in order to find fellow countrymen's experiences. You could have also applied for DACA, but the lawyer probably advised you that the way to go was what you chose. As far as waiting times, I have heard from 6 months to years. Again, browse through the forums to find people with similar experiences and best wishes!

It occurs to me that the OP might be asking the question because of an important detail that perhaps has not been provided. Are you (the non-US citizen) in the USA undocumented? If yes, a conditional permanent residence is not granted to a person who entered the US illegally, even if they marry a US citizen and they apply. AOS (adjustment of status) requires that there is an original status, meaning a visa or legal way in which the applicant seeks to change the status to permanent resident.

It was good of you to contribute with your own experience. I, too, just posted my interview experience in the hopes that others find it helpful just as I found it helpful to browse through the forums during this years-long process.

Best wishes to the both of you! Good to know that you are still amicable.

As you might already know, the Santo Domingo consulate is considered high fraud and, because of this, people interviewing there are at a higher scrutiny anway. In regards to your case, there are several red flags that you pointed to in your original post:

- Previous marriage to alien and pending petition with now ex-husband (call USCIS to make sure they have received and acknowledged your cancellation of petition. Your should have proof of such withdrawal of petition).

- Starting a relationship with fiance while still married and how soon fiance petition was filed after divorce.

- Age difference (particularly since USC is female and older).

- Previous two attempts by fiance to obtain visa to come to the USA.

To me, all together, this makes for a difficult case and an almost certain stokes-style interview at Santo Domingo. Regarding the first point, however, it would be of the utmost importance that the pending case in which you were the petitioner is terminated because otherwise the fiance petition might be denied before even reaching the interview point, or worse, be denied at the point of the interview because of the other pending petition (months of waiting wasted!). I think that your situation is certainly complicated enough to merit the advice of an experienced immigration attorney (particularly helpful if such attorney has experience in dealing with the Santo Domingo consulate and cases similar to yours).

Best wishes!

Hi,

I just posted my I-751, RFE, and interview experience. You might find it helpful http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/498750-my-roc-rfe-and-interview-story/

You will have to demonstrate a bona fide marriage, mostly by financial ties. So, it would be a good idea to set up joint checking and savings accounts, along with credit cards, rental agreements, and loans together. I am too confused by what the officer told you about joint bills as this is one is listed on the recommended evidence page we received in our RFE and prior to the interview. Again, read my above post as you might find it helpful.

There was a post on this forum of a person who sent the file like a day before the 90 day window and the packet was returned since it was not within the 90 day before expiration window. So, just assemble your evidence and packet and wait a few more days...

The following post is for information only, in case anyone is experiencing the stress of receiving a RFE or an interview. This is what happened to us...

I-751 sent September, 2013.

NOA 1 and Biometrics pretty soon after, within weeks.

RFE received a few months later.

After RFE paperwork sent back our case was transferred to our local office (Chicago).

Interview date: May 13, 2014.

10 year permanent residence card received: May 29, 2014.

I mailed the I-751 the very same day that my husband's conditional residence expired. We received NOA 1 within two weeks of submission and the Biometrics appointment was scheduled in less than two months. Then, the long wait began for a response... I was nervous about our evidence since we don't have financial ties. I already owned my own home and all the bills are on my name. I didn't see a need to change all of this since it had all been settled for years and my husband has no experience paying bills, banking, writing checks, etc. When my husband needed his own car for transportation I simply bought it because I hate owing money (hate paying interest). Before anyone begins to think that I am loaded, I want to clarify that I bought my husband an older but reliable car. My house was cheap when compared to home prices in other areas of the country. I am frugal by nature and my paycheck is not large at all, but I have always tried to live within my means. Most of my furniture came from the Salvation Army and I only buy from clearance racks at the Department store. So, even though I knew that financial ties would be important when collecting evidence of a bona fide marriage I did not change bills to include my husband nor did we get a loan together. We don't have children together. What we did have for evidence I included in my original packet, which included copies of life and car insurance policies together, copies of our health insurance (my husband is on my plan), joint taxes, a common credit card, and affidavits from friends. I made my best effort to submit all of the evidence we had, but I was nervous since I knew that there wasn't much. So, after months of waiting, we received a RFE letter. First of all, they asked for a letter explaining why we had not filed within the proper timeframe. I figured that it was "technically" filed timely since it was posted on the same day the conditional residence expired. Also, they asked for additional evidence. The first thing listed on the letter as evidence was birth certificated of children born to the marriage. Well, I couldn't simply pop out a child for evidence purposes. Then, they listed joint mortgage or rental agreements, joint loans (cars, major purchases, credit cards, etc.) and other such financial ties that we do not have. So, I tried to gather some more evidence, but I simply sent repeats of evidence along with a few pictures and additional affidavits from other friends close to us. Not surprisingly, our case was transferred to our local office for an interview. By this time, both my husband and I were very nervous (admittedly, at times, freaking out) about the interview. However, I was in a way confident that everything would be okay since our marriage is real, even though we do not have children or debt together. The letter clearly stated that if an interpreter was needed we needed to bring one along since one would not be provided. So, I asked a friend of mine to come along to serve as my husband's interpreter. We arrived to Chicago pretty early, went out for breakfast, and then got lost trying to find the place and a close-by parking lot. We finally arrived to the building on Congress Parkway right on time. I brought along evidence that comprised most of what I had already submitted along with printed pictures and a copy of our joint 2013 taxes. I asked two new friends to write affidavits and I brought those to the interview. We did not have to wait too long to be called. From the beginning, the officer seemed overly relaxed. He asked who we were and I introduced my husband and myself and my friend introduced herself as the interpreter. We were brought into the office and the officer made us swear in. From the beginning, my friend was not repeating everything as an interpreter should and the officer had to prompt her to interpret the swearing in for my husband. After we sat down, the officer received a call and said something like, "yes, I am in an interview right now but should be done soon." I thought this probably meant good news since he was already thinking it would be done quickly and it must mean approval. Then, the officer asked my husband for our address. Again, my friend the "interpreter" was hesitant. I had told my husband that morning that he should speak slowly, clearly, and loudly so our friend could understand. Since our friend is more familiar with "Mexican Spanish" I told him, jokingly, "speak Mexican." Well, he then said our address in the fastest Dominican Spanish ever. Our friend could not understand him, so he simply said the address again in English. We were asked when we got married. I asked for clarification, is this a question for my husband or for me? "Either," the officer said in a relaxed way. I told him the date. Then the officer asked my husband how we met. Luckily, our friend seemed to get into interpreter moder at this point and actually repeated the question and the answer. We were then asked to show our wedding pictures. "We don't have wedding pictures," I said, to the surprised face of disbelief of the officer. I explained that our house had been broken into and our computers and camera were stolen. "You have on Facebook," my interpreter friend interjected. Then I said, "yes, but I have some other pictures here of the both of us" and handed the officer the envelope. Those were old pictures of my visits to DR, which were the pictures I had made for the fiance visa interview. He quickly looked at them, skipping most of the pictures as he said something like "it is not that these are not nice pictures, but I do these a lot, so I can see quickly." By this point, the officer's relaxed way had gotten even more relaxed and, for some reason, he seemed amused at us or the situation because I could swear that he was trying to hold in his laughter. By the way, our pictures were not inappropriate, just a lot of me and my husband hugging and kissing at different places and sceneries. Then he said that was all he needed and that we should get a response in the mail within a few weeks. He asked us if we had any questions. I interjected, yes, I have a copy here of our 2013 taxes which we had not filed yet when I sent the RFE response. He looked at the papers quickly and gave them back to me. "I will make a note of that," he said. "I also have two additional affidavits," I said as I attempted to handed these to him. "You already have affidavits," he said. At some point, he followed up with "I will make a recommendation for approval." At this point, I was more relaxed even though I wanted to give him some additional evidence that he clearly was not interested in adding to the ream-size file. He then said, I will escort you out. My friend did not interpret any of these interaction to my husband. So, when we got up and exited the room the poor thing kept asking, "where are we goind? what is going on?" I told him in Spanish, teasingly, "they are taking you to jail for being a liar." Then, annoyed, I told him, "ask your interpreter what the officer said." My friend then told my husband a summary of what had been said. Overall, the interview experience was uncomplicated and unnecessary. It was clear to me that from the get-go, the officer had already made up his mind about our case and was just following up with the interview as a formality. Even though he was surprised by us not having wedding pictures to show, we were able to overcome this by showing other pictures. Since I am a frugal and practical person, our wedding was nothing more than a small get together at a friend's house, anyway. Not at all the traditional fortune-costing ordeal that so many people seem to prefer. I hope this post helps people to overcome their fear of the interview, particularly if they lacked finacial evidence as we did. Do not be nervous! Just be honest and bring your evidence to the interview. Particularly, bring your wedding pictures!

Best wishes to all!

I congratulate you for your honesty and for the fact that you don't sound bitter at all, despite your experience. It is hard. Super hard, in fact. I have kept in close touch with three females friends who got their Dominican fiancés/husband here to the US. One is divorced, the other separated awaiting divorce, and the other one is good -but nothing is perfect. It sure is a hell of a difficult process and change of life...

First of all, you would need to be legally divorced before filing any new petition. So, you have been "dating" this new guy since November... It is still pretty soon into your relationship to be thinking about taking such a big step. I hope you don't get burned again! Make sure that as you continue to build on your new relationship you continue to build on evidence for your case. I have read cases where people were denied for second petitions and I think this would be difficult to overcome because it is all so recent. As you know, the DR is a high fraud country so it is difficult the first time around, but any subsequent petitions would bring lots of red flags. I would advise you to continue the relationship, see where it takes you, give it time, and collect evidence in case it does work out and you want to go down that path again. Best wishes!

I went through the K-1 Process around 8 years ago. I don't know how much, if any, has changed since then. I had gone to Nigeria about 7 months after meeting and chatting with the guy. I was supposed to stay 5 weeks, but changed my ticket to return back after staying only 3 because it was veryyy difficult being there. I stayed the majority of the time at the man's family's house with his parents and siblings. One day the whole family (aunts, uncles, cousins, etc) showed up in clothes like they were going to a wedding. There was no wedding, but we took pictures like there was.. Returned home, filed the petition...it got approved without me ever having gone back for another visit. I was 7 years older than him, which I believe was the only "red flag" that could've come up, but was never even mentioned. He breezed through the interview, (I still never had gone back for another visit), got his visa, came to the States, we married and then he disappeared. Soooo..........that being said, YES, it is a requirement that you only meet ONE time within two years of filing the petition, and it obviously can be done and approved after only meeting once......and NO the Visitor Visa won't affect the K-1 application.....however, my best advice is to visit more often and stay longer periods of time and keep your eyes open to everything. I was there, in culture shock, blinded by love and was more worried about overcoming the embassy's red flags instead of seeing the red flags flying all around me. So please reconsider your statement of " to go to Nigeria just to get the meeting requirements of meeting out of the way"......You should go to Nigeria to get to know the person very well before having him come to the States and marry you. Make sure you don't have your own red flags instead of just trying to overcome the ones for a visa.

Excellent points raised here... Everyone should be careful as to who they choose to petition... Thanks for sharing your experience!

Good Evening All:

I wanted to inquire about a K-1 visa process. My boyfriend and I have been talking about getting married but have yet to meet. I had been unemployed and have been the primary caregiver for my mother (who has dementia-like complications) from 2012-2013, and had just started working at the end of 2013, so we tried to bring him in on a visitor visa just ti satisfy the requirement but he was denied. So now I am trying to work on getting things rearranged in order to go to Nigeria just to get the meeting requirements of meeting out of the way. I may try to stay for a week but no more than 2 due to my mom's separation and health issues, I am not sure how long of a meeting they are requiring but with all that being said:

1. Will meeting once and spending nearly two weeks together (be favorably looked upon) in the K-1 process?

2. Will his denied visa visitor visa have any bearing or weight on our K-1 approval?

Out of the way? Really? I think it is very important to meet in person! How can you truly and honestly say you want to marry someone you have never met in person?

As you may already know, Nigeria is a high-fraud country and because of this the requirements are much more strict. I am not sure a 1 to 2 week visiting/meeting would suffice in that particular consulate. I would suggest you read the experiences at the consulates of other people who have gone through the process in Nigeria. I would also suspect that having been denied a tourist visa would be looked upon negatively... Again, read as much as you can about your particular country and ask Nigerian members questions about the process. They would be better able to help you out. Best wishes!

I think it was a waste of time and money for you to have sent the K1 petition. Of course he wouldn't be granted the visa! Living in Mexico with him could be a choice for you in order to "wait out" the ban. Or like others have suggested, visit as often as possible... Best wishes in whatever steps you wish to take from here on out!

I am assuming that the older male is the USC petitioner. If this is the case, it might not be as much of a problem since it is more fitting with cultural customs and traditions. However, I would advise you to gather as much evidence as possible in order to tip the balance on your favor. You can only try to do your best!

I am currently legally unable to leave the country, and securing a visa for my significant other to visit me will be both costly and time consuming, how do I qualify for a waiver to apply for a K1 visa?

Yes! This is a VERY time consuming and costly process. If these are concerns, then I suggest you disqualify yourself from the process. You would also need to prove that you can sponsor your fiancée. Again, it is a costly and time consuming process. If you are not ready or willing to accept this, then you are not ready.

Yes! Si! In Santo Domingo I have never heard or known of a visa being approved without the petitioner being present for the interview. You should know by now that, unlike other consulates in the world, Santo Domingo pretty much requires petitioners to be present for the interview and they will question both of you. Actually, at my fiancée's appointment they mostly questioned me (the US petitioner) and they will certainly question you, as well. It is a high fraud country and they know it, so any discrepancies in your answers or relationship and they will ask, ask, ask. That is why you have to being to build your evidence, now! You need to prepare for what might be the most important interview of your lives and YES you need to be there!

AP can take from one to two weeks to several weeks and months. Unfortunately, there is no way of telling how long a specific case will take...

You could file to obtain AP (Advance Parole), but I don't think it would be ready that soon. Sounds to me like she will have to cancel her travel plans...

Yes! Some people are that lucky. The fastest I have seen a petition approval was 15 days. Unfortunately, that specific visa was denied at the interview stage, but the initial approval was super fast.

Best wishes in the rest of the process!

If your "friend" is a real man, then he should come clean to his wife and declare his love for someone else and his desire to divorce her. Three months before the end of his conditional residence's expiration he should apply to remove conditions declaring that his marriage was entered in good faith.

On the other hand, he may continue to cheat on his wife and carry on with the co-worker nurse for a while, perhaps until the time to remove conditions on his residence comes and he could let his wife file for him.

I feel so bad for the wife. All the heartache and effort she made to bring him here and this is how he thanks her...

Was she completely for sure when she said this or was it just a moment of frustration and hopelessness? Along the process it is easy to give up hope for the long wait, so I am more hopeful than others in that maybe it was just a bad day, PMS, or plain momentary frustration.

If it is for sure, I am very sorry and hope you can recover from the heartache soon...