nab

April/May? Seriously, what the hell do you know? You sound like a complete a@@hole for posting here. With all due respect, I'm tired of people who got their NOA2 in 86 days but did not file until 2 months after me telling me that patience is good. You guys are not helping at all.

James and Rosa: I don't see this thing in such a rosy light. If they (the CSC) were so "overwhelmed" then why did they elect to just sit on our petitions for 3 to 5 months and then decide to send them away? Couldn't they see what was happening and send them right away? Now we have to wait until TSC decidss that they have sat on them long enough before we start seeing some ever so slight movement. Whew!

Is it just me or does she look like Loni Anderson?

not sure that you've ever been treated badly like some who are posting here have been... when i first came to VJ and posted for help, i was told "i'll be praying you dont get your visa" and a variety of other slings and arrows from someone feeling that we are taking up time ahead of them and they didnt feel we had the right to a visa. one person who treated me badly had been waiting impatiently for their NOA1 (for a whole week ). NOW it's funny and i realize she was a freaking spazoid idiot (and when she comes out of the woodwork she's still an azz), but at that time it was very hurtful. NOW i would respond to someone like that with "take a chill pill honey cause you have another 5 months to sit" but at that time i just was not accustomed to the rudeness... i dont normally interact with strangers on net, not for many years, and had forgotten how people think they are annonymous so can behave as rudely as they wish.
i used to participate in forums about 10yrs ago, but as the masses discovered them it went from intelligent discussion to rudeness, namecalling, and not worth the time to wade through the garbage. one particular forum it really ticked me off to see it lost and one particular woman was ruining it for everyone... so i gave her a taste of what a computer geek can do. people are NOT "annonymous" unless they know how to use servers and proxies properly, and she was just a newbie internet user with false sense of power and security behind her little computer screen she got a nice shock when i sent her a PM telling her to chill and explaining to her she is NOT annonymous and here is proof... then i listed her phone number, home address, as well as the fact her home had been on the market for 5yrs and my opinion that it was much over-priced for what it was (no land, split level, by the railroad tracks, and a busy intersection... price she was asking was more along the lines of homes over here which are custom homes, with land, best school district) and that she might get more offers if she didnt have all that junk out front.
you see, just by coincidence (and i LMAO at this!) she only lived a few miles away, on my way into town, and i had actually seen her place many times LOL! anyway, when she got the PM she immediately chilled. so sometimes when you treat people in return kindly and they still act like a big 'hole, perhaps they need reminded of the thigs they knew even as a kindergartner:
play fair, say sorry when you hurt someone....
http://www.heartwarmingstories.net/everything.htm

i would... and i do

perhaps they will be working like mules to get through the paperwork now that they've had a holiday break! and with another holiday coming perhaps that will keep the carrot dangling in front of them to clear their desks and start the new year clean

What happened to the 100s of millions of dollars that Arafat embezzled? Any success in getting some of that money back to feed the children？

Hi, I have my own personal reasons for filing the K-3 instead of just filing for CR1, but I will not share them on this forum. However, Loto gave some good examples of reasons that one would choose to do a K-3!

pushb, you are absolutely right
Let me clarify it. If you feel any wordings are wrong, please let me know.
1) IR1/CR1 is always better
First of all, we (petitioner and/or beneficiary) don't have a choice (they can just hope or wish to approve I-130 first and I-129F second and vice versa) to approve this one first and approve the other one second. It is the decision of the USCIS. USCIS approves I-130 and I-129F petitions together in almost all cases. Then USCIS forwards both approved petitions to NVC. Here, NVC kills I-129F to pursue K-3 visa. I don't know if we can request NVC not to kill K-3 visa, in this case (Please answer it for me!). Since NVC kills K-3 path in this case, IR1/CR1 path is the only choice.
Why most people like IR1/CR1 including me? There are many benefits here. Few are - Beneficiary is immigrant, gets the GC immediately on arrival, able to work immediately after POE with SSN, eligible for U.S citizenship in around 3 years and many more.
2) Why people would want a K3 non-immigrant visa
First of all, they can wish for it. Wish and hope are different than "I want it" in this context. As I mentioned above, both I-130 and I-129F will be approved together in almost all cases. Ok, now what about few other cases (note only few cases, I have seen this in this year as well) where I-129F gets approved first and I-130 approval comes later? Here NVC can NOT kill K-3 path. Petitioner and/or applicant quickly proceeds with NVC K-3 steps and the case file is forwarded to the Consulate for K-3 non-immigrant visa. After successful K-3 interview, applicant comes here as non-immigrant. Obviously, they need to fo Adjustment of Status, if they wish to be the permanent resident in this case with additional money and time.
Why these few people wish (again wish!) for K-3? It is personal choice. Few reasons had already discusses here. Let me elaborate it again.
1) NVC takes around 1.5 months to complete the case for IR1/CR1 path whereas just 2 weeks for K-3 path. So, time sensitive people, it is a month's time saving
2) Some petitioners will be really on the edge of poverty line and they don't have good income in the prior years. If they get K-3 path, Affidavit of Support is I-134 for K-3 path which is relaxed than I-864's stricter poverty guidelines. Later these sponsors can build their finances based on good job acquired etc. this year and file I-864 as part of the Adjustment of Status.
3) As nad mentioned, she doesn't want immigrant visa. So, if she is lucky to get K-3 path and subsequent K-3 visa, she wants to spend time in the U.S as non-immigrant and when the non-immigrant time period expires, she will leave the U.S.
Now pushb, come up with your points and we can discuss it. If I am wrong in any of the above wordings, please feel free to point out, so that I will overlook in to it.
Again, I respect your wealth of wisdom and I have enjoyed reading your posts and still do
Loto

From my understanding, as long as the I-130 is not approved prior to the I-129F, and doesn't hit NVC prior to I-129F or at the same time as the I-129F, I can still do the K-3. That's the information NVC has told me, so, that is what I'm going with. But, thanks anyway!
"Effective February 1st, 2010, when both petitions have been approved by USCIS and sent to the NVC or when USCIS approves the I-130 before the I-129F, the availability of, as well as the need for, a nonimmigrant K-3 visa ends. If the NVC receives both an approved I-130 petition and an approved I-129F petition:
The nonimmigrant K-3 visa case will be administratively closed.
The application process explained below will not be available to the foreign-citizen spouse and cannot be used.
The NVC will contact the U.S. citizen sponsor and foreign-citizen spouse, with instructions for processing the IR-1 (or CR-1) immigrant visa. For more information on the immigrant visa process, review the Immigrant Visa for a Spouse webpage.
If the NVC receives the approved I-129F petition before it receives the I-130 petition, the NVC will process the I-129F petition."

Us July filers got the short end of the stick on this one...

this person has to be crazy (for lack of better terms). I was going to say he will probably get a RFE for incorrect fees and could just forget about sending it in again to end the process, but when I read further its looks like he is trying to correct the fees.
You guys are totally mix up, if your wife wants to go back home then send her back home and stop wasting USCIS time. This time and space could be used on other couples who are eager to get this process over.

My I-129 is also gone to Texas and yes i know if both will approve at the same time I-129 will be canceled (no offense to any one but i am just tired or everyone repeating this and treating people who filed for K3 as if we have committed some sort of sin).

It's good as at least you know they are working on your case. Looks like just a information notice to me.

It's not that important how many affidavits you get as WHO signs your affidavits. Obviously the "friend" whose GC was denied would not be a good candidate.
We had 4 affidavits as well : 1 signed by my husband's parents (he is the USC), 1 signed by the owner of the apartment that we were renting at that time, 1 signed by a neighbor and another one done by an employee of the leasing office located in the same apartment complex, who used to see us every single day.

Yes, understood. It's because you didn't understand this that your interview was difficult. If you had known and understood this in advance then I'm sure you would have taken steps to have the sort of evidence they expect in a more typical marital relationship. I realize that you're somewhat of a non-conformist, and it probably rubs you the wrong way to have to do things you don't feel comfortable with, like getting medical insurance and joint bank accounts and such. Unfortunately, being a maverick will blow up in your face when dealing with any government benefit request where your situation is going to be compared with other people who are more typical. When you stand out from the crowd, you make an easy target.
By the way, scammers will pay anything they think is necessary to get what they want. Money isn't usually a problem in a "green card by marriage" scam. Where the scammers usually come up short is in the details - proof of common residency, co-mingled finances, insurance policies, co-owned property, etc. Pretty much the same areas where you were short of evidence. It takes a considerable amount of effort for a legitimate married couple to manage these aspects of their life together. For many scammers, it's just too much work.

I think there's a problem of perception here. It seems like you perceive that you have a right to get a green card for your wife, and this immigration officer is making it unnecessarily difficult for you.
Here's the facts, if you'll allow me.
Immigration isn't a right. Your wife doesn't have a right to get a green card because she married a US citizen. You don't have a right to demand the government give her a green card. When you submit an I-130 petition you are asking the US government to permit your wife to apply for an immigrant visa (if she's outside the US) or a green card (if she's inside the US). When your wife submits an I-485 she is asking the US government to allow her to become an immigrant. Her eligibility to ask for this benefit is derived from the I-130 petition you submitted. Make no mistake - what you both are asking for is a privilege.
USCIS has the discretion to grant both of these requests, provided they believe the requests comply with immigration law. There are numerous reasons provided in the law for either of these requests to be denied. Some of the reasons are concrete. For example, if she had been convicted of certain crimes then she would be inadmissible to the United States, and ineligible for a green card. Some of the reasons are discretionary. For example, if the USCIS immigration officer believes the relationship is a sham, entered into primarily for the purpose of securing an immigration benefit. The law gives the authority for making these discretionary decisions to the Attorney General, who delegates that authority to USCIS immigration officers.
A USCIS immigration officer doesn't live with you, so he doesn't know how sincere your relationship is. He has to judge your relationship based on what he sees on paper. USCIS immigration officers are given guidance in the Adjudicators Field Manual for things they should ask for and expect to see as evidence that a relationship is bonafide. If, after looking at the evidence, he concludes that your relationship smells like rotten fish then he's going to deny you. There are only two possibilities that could lead him to this conclusion. Either your evidence was insufficient or not compelling, or he's right - your relationship is a sham. In the first case you would be guilty of not being adequately prepared with the necessary evidence. In the second case you would be guilty of fraud.
The interview is not much different from a trial. The outcome depends entirely on the evidence. It also doesn't help if you go out of your way to annoy the judge.
What happens next is entirely up to the IO. You could receive a letter that the green card has been denied. If they believe they have evidence of fraud then you might also be notified that the I-130 approval is being revoked. If this happens then you've got 30 days (or thereabouts) to file a motion to reopen the case. You have to provide NEW evidence for this to be successful. If it's denied, then your wife will be placed in removal proceedings for deportation. At that point, you'd better get a good immigration attorney.
You could be called in for a Stokes interview. You know now what this entails. I can virtually guarantee that if you give the IO attitude during the Stokes interview then the interview will be terminated, and the green card will be denied.
It's also possible that, after review, the green card may be approved. Based on what you've said so far, I don't think the chances of this are very good.

This may be true, but to me it doesn't sound like a case of "a guy having a bad day". It sounds like to me that the IO found what he believed to be legitimate suspicion of your relationship. IMO, sharing photos of yourself and your wife with other people going through the immigration process (especially from her home country) was a huge mistake, especially since Russia has a high rate of fraud involving mail order brides and marriage rings. Also, your handling of money is a red flag too. You can't just go on "business as usual" with your funds when you know that the government will be looking into them during the immigration process. I loathe banks, but I got a joint account and comingle my assets strictly because I know it's one of the things they want to see. Pictures of you and your wife all over America are not going to satisfy the burden of proof that your relationship is genuine. I have pictures of myself with the US Ambassador to Morocco, that doesn't prove that I actually know the guy- do you get what I'm saying? You should speak to an attorney, I think, about what you can do to rectify this situation. Good luck to you.

Immigration officer are people too. As such, some of them are more friendly than others, and some of them may have a bad day once in a while. The I.O. you encountered may not have liked you very much, but there's nothing you can do about it. Your "job" is it to prove -- somehow -- that your marriage is legit. If you failed to do that, they will either send you an RFE, or invite you to a stokes interview, or deny your AOS petition outright.
I.O.s are a bit like cops. They won't like you more if you file a complaint about one of them. Your main objective should be to gather the evidence needed to make your case. Fill up a joint bank account; put your car title in both your names, buy insurance in both your names, get AAA cards, a joint credit card, stuff boring and normal couples have. If you felt uneasy about the way you were treated at the past interview, I can't even imagine how you may feel after they put you though a stokes interview.
If you want to win this fight, it's going to be by their rules. They have all the power, you have almost none.

I disagree...if you read the actual post, and all of it that I edited out, it was clear the guy was suggesting this as means of giving his wife 'another chance' to regain trust, but since he couldn't be around her 24/7, it was his way to make sure she didn't contact the bf while he was presumably at work.
But let's say you're right for a second; protecting oneself from a VAWA claim doesn't mean essentially holding your spouse hostage, without money, without a way to contact home, in a foreign country where English is not the spouse's primary language. Let alone the fact that a situation like that would actually HELP a VAWA claim. A good way to going about avoiding a claim is to leave the home/make arrangements for the spouse to leave the home...basically just making sure that he isn't alone with his wife so that she could claim VAWA.
Finally, the wife wasn't claiming VAWA...there was VAWA talk in the thread, but it was all speculation. The spouse in question supposedly is going home, last I read.
Either way, that advice above uses a power imbalance and exploiting the foreign SO's dependence on the USC, as means of controlling the foreign SO and that's just wrong. iIt's also what this article was about. No matter what anyone does, they don't deserve to be treated like that.

i believe they are referring to the federal tipped workers minimum wage, which i believe is 2.13, i pay my servers 2.65 an hour for the time they are actually waiting on tables, and it's my responsibility to pay them the difference if they don't make at least the regular federal minimum of 7.25 (which rarely happens if they are good servers).

If I were a terrorist, I'd come up with 20 ways to circumvent TSA "security" in a New York minute.
It's like a triple deadbolted door on the front of a house with open windows and a missing wall.
I may be smarter than your average terrorist, but I'm sure that not all of them are morons.

You will be in prison with real terrorists. Just like these guys...
NSFW

I call bullsh!t.

You in the back of an unmarked van. Mr. TSA - after the end of his shift, in his personal vehicle.