liz0215

Thats maybe good for u but not for others . (1 ) --u can just jump on a plane or take a road trip and see yr fiancee once a month , (2) It is easy and cheap to communicate with each other , (3) Maybe you guys have all the time in the world before you marry and start a family , (4) you dont miss having yr love ones close to u . I am just saying . Calling or sending a request to my congressman is my democratic right as a Us citizen .

Totally agree. joevegas is fortunate in having a fiance(e) from Canada, which means cheap, easy communication and the possibility for visits on both sides cheaply and easily. The cheapest I've ever been able to call my fiance is at 28 cents a minute, which is crazy. And forget about him every being able to visit me, its impossible to get a tourist visa for a single, male, in Mali because they claim you won't return (even if you try to explain that you need to return to complete your k-1 visa process). Plus, Mali is a muslim country that has had problems with terrorist camps in the desert, which means we will definitely be put on AP even after the interview is over. I'm not trying to complain, we all have difficulties and problems to deal with and I think a lot of us are in the same boat, and I'm happy to deal with them if it means being with my fiance at the end of all this, but I'm certainly going to do everything I possibly can to be with him as soon as I can. Besides, they give us the 5 month mark to begin with, if they didn't want us to have a reference point, they wouldn't say it.

The way I think of it, I want to be with my fiance as soon as we can, so I am going to do anything in my power to keep things moving. This whole process is much longer than it should be, and so when USCIS claims it will take a certain amount of time, and it takes longer, I think people are totally justified in calling them out on that. If they said from the beginning it will take 7 months, then fine, I would wait the 7 months. I don't think people are trying to rush or don't have patience, I think we just want the work done within the time frame the USCIS, itself, set up. For me, I don't really have the option to go and visit my fiance right now, communication is difficult, no internet, no steady cell service, he doesn't even have a post office box that I can send mail to, so the sooner we get our NOA2, the closer we are to being together again. It is a long, drawn out process, but the NOA2 is only halfway through, for my fiance, he still has to travel to another country he has never been to, speaking a language that isn't his native one, and go through the medical/interview process. So of course I am anxious to get started on that. Plus, that is what our congressmen are for; they are there to help their constituency and act as a liaison. Its not about not having patience or being high strung, its about keeping the process going and being proactive about getting the service that USCIS claims it provides.

got there at 5:30 told to fall on like at 6:30, showed the guard my confirmation letter & valid ID. directed to go to gate 2. bags were scanned & i went to the immigrants area, fell in line at the ticket booth. they took my DS forms , confirmation letter & BPI receipt
, they asked some questions & gave me a number which will be used for the whole process.
i was told to take a seat & wait for my numner to flash on the queuing board. (they appear in random order)
7006 flashes ont he board, i then went to window 14. fa nice ilipina prescreener asked some questions, look at our photos, took the NSO birth cert, cenomar & NBI clearance, didnt ask for other evidence of meeting nor our evidence of genuine relationship (which is 2 inches thick lol)
consul was a nice black american. interview was quick , asked me a few questions almost 10 i think.
who is your petitioner?
how did u meet?
when was the last itme u saw him?
how many did times he visit you?
di u have kids?
have u ever been married?
have u been outside the country?
is he married before?
does he have kids & if yes how many? & what are their age
do u have photos?
asked me to flip some of our photos for him, didnt ask for other evidence of meeting like boarding passes , ticketsnoe evidence of gen. rel. Told me that my visa is approved & i can go back to my seat & wait for my name to be called (releasing)
before i even reached my seat, i hear them asking #7006 to go back to window 38 lol so i went back. no one was there. stood at the cubicle/window for 10-15mins lol then he walked on front of me & he was like suprised that i was there lol & then he said oh i just for got to ask you if u intend to marry your fiance within 90 your arrival? & I said YES . & he said ok & told me to wait for my name to be called for releasing. after 15 minutes, i was asked to got o window 26, the lady there gave me a slip to fill out & be given to 2GO counter/booth after. & i went outside to look for my sister & brother in law & we headed home happy.
** u can buy drinks/snacks inside the embassy kinda pricey though. u can bring bread/biscuits/ candies. Liquids not allowed.
affix your 2x2 photos to your DS forms before the interview. Bring extra photos.there is restroom inside the embasssy best time to use it is right after u got your number as it will take time before your number flashes on the screen & after finger printing.

This is the best place to attend your seminar. St. Mary is a one stop shop. You can have your seminar and have your CFO sticker at the same place! Unlike in other seminar place where you still need to go to CFO Office in Quirino after your seminar.
1) Reached the place around 9am.
2) Im a K1 visa holder, I showed my passport and visa, then told me to write my name and sign on their log book, then passed 3 xerox copies of my visa and 3 xerox copies of my passport at the reception, paid P250.00, showed some identification (license, sss, tin, nbi, etc), had my picture taken for the certificate they will give after the seminar, and then I proceed to the second floor to attend the seminar. (10 minutes) (930am)
3) At the seminar, we talked about financial, cultural values and traits of foreign partners and what is CFO is all about. We also watched an audio visual presentation about marrying a foreigner. (1 hour) (10am - 11am)
4) Seminar proper finished around 11am then we filled up CFO forms. Be sure that you know all the data of your fiance/fiancee including telephone numbers, birthday, address, work, etc. If you have a copy of his/her g 325 the better so that you can have all the details needed in filling up the CFO forms. (10-20 minutes) (11:20am)
5) After filling it up, you will pass it on your counselor then wait until he/she called your name for COUNSELING. (Depends on how fast you accomplished and submitted your CFO forms to the counselor) (I waited for about 15-20 minutes before my name was called.) (11:40am)
6) She will ask you questions about your relationship and counsel you about migration. After counseling, he/she will give you the signed CFO forms and she will tell you to proceed again to the reception for your seminar certificate. (5 minutes) (11:45am)
7) The receptionist will give you the certificate and tell you to have it xerox (Xerox room is on the other room) for CFO. The personnel who will xerox your certificate will give your original certificate and take the signed CFO form. (5 minutes) (11:50am)
8) After xerox, just proceed to the other room (CFO Office) and pay P400.00 for the CFO Certificate & sticker that will be attached in your passport. That's it!!! Done (5-10 minutes) (11:55am)
YOU CAN NOW FLY TO US!
PS
This is my personal experience, it can change on your time of visit! This is for reference only!

Thought this would be a good idea for the holidays, I have used dealextreme with luck so far to the philippines (the free shipping with them takes a while, about 30 days)
Here is a list complied of online stores that ship international with free shipping. , , I have ordered a few times and had items shipped to the philippines with success and low customs fees (deal extreme add drop shipping so it will be stamped as gift) Here is the list. Personally I have only used dealextreme so far
Gadgets: Free international shipping
http://www.dealextreme.com/
Cheap gadgets and junk
http://focalprice.com/
Cheap gadgets and junk
http://popbuying.com/
Cheap gadgets and junk
http://dinodirect.com/
Cheap gadgets and junk
http://www.pandawill.com/
Cheap gadgets and junk
Books: Free international shipping
http://www.bookdepository.com
Books etc
http://booko.com.au/
Books etc
Clothing: Free international shipping
http://www.blueshire.com/
Socks, Accessories.
http://www.revolveclothing.com/
Clothes, bags, shoes etc (carts over $100 are free shipping) (coupon code "tulip" 15% off)
Cosmetics: Free international shipping
http://www.strawberrynet.com/
Make-up, Perfume etc
Crafts: Free international shipping
Etsy (search for free shipping)
http://www.etsy.com/

Saddenednow,
I commend you for being such an open minded person. But sometimes even you love someone the most, you have to learn how to let that someone go even it means hurting yourself temporarily.
She has done this to you without even thinking what you will feel if you find out, but her you are you are trying to fix a broken glass but sooner or later it will also shatter.
She has made mistakes and its only right that you forgive her. She had your forgiveness by giving her second chance.. YET, she failed you again, how many more chances you will give her until you really realized that this girl is not right for you. Marriage is about giving oneself fully to your partner not half for you and half to the other. Based from your posts, you seem to be very loving man, but even though you and her try to work things out, you will always have that thought at the back of your mind that she has once, twice and how many more times will try to cheat on you, because she knows you will always forgive her.
Talk to her and lay your last words. She will have a better life when she moves on, and so will you.

Patience people! No ticket yet is the correct answer---I do have a conscience, even if my wife does not. I consider purchasing the ticket a irreversible decision, and sending my wife home knowing I can not/will not ever allow her to return is an action I do not take lightly.
I had to investigate further, so I have given it time, and allowed her to solidify my belief that sending her home is the right thing to do. A ticket will be purchased in the next few days, and she should be on Philippine soil within a week---the day of departure will depend on ticket price and my schedule.
The support offered here is tremendous, but so is the criticism. Being called a moron, idiot, etc is kind of unsettling. I am not one to act hastily, but once I do make a decision, it is usually decisive and absolute. Maybe many of you would send my wife away instantly, but we all approach things differently. That I have reacted slower than you think I should have does not make me stupid; rather it makes me human. If I wait a week, two weeks, or even a month, it is my decision to make, and one that I must be able to live with.
To those of you that suggested forgiveness, or a second chance----kudos! I carefully considered whether I could forgive her or not. With careful contemplation (and further derogatory information) I have decided forgiveness is not possible or deserved, but I appreciate that some of you have the fortitude to suggest it despite the avalanche of criticism tossed at you. I did give her a second chance of sorts, but within a day or two she failed.
Thanks again to all. I will update when appropriate.

Johnny, you are clearly a kind, smart, honorable guy and I wish you the best in your future.

Thanks everyone for your comments! After so many months it's still a bit painful but I know I'm going in the right direction. I read about so many people on VJ that coninue to go backwards out of blind faith for someone that doesn't love them and I always told myself I would do what needs to be done if this ever happened to me. It's way easier said than done. I knew about VAWA from reading VJ and during the marriage I did everything I could to not have any instance of perceived abuse upon her. I bit my tounge a lot. Like when she was chatting with another guy from a dating site on my laptop right there next to me. Inside of me, I wanted to slam the laptop into the wall, but I knew she would be dialing 911 and I would likely have handed her just what she wanted. I also had my daughter there to consider. Contacting ICE was one the most difficult things I've ever done in my life. Still chokes me up 4 months later to think of a grown man crying to a federal agent.
And to all the VJ filipinas. I apologize, I hope I didn't offend anyone. I really don't hate any race. I just happened to marry a bad apple who happens to be a filipina. I have lots of friends that have wonderful marriages with filipinas and everyone says my case is not normal.
God Bless everyone!

Dearest Johnny,
My deepest sympathy for what happened. I am sorry that a fellow filipina will do such thing and was a big disgrace to our country. Rest assured that there are only very few of her like and most filipina can still be trusted and loved. Im a constant reader of this site but very seldom comment but on your story i cant help myself. I was very angry that why on earth this kind of person exist. There are couples who struggled so much to be together and her given the opportunity wasted it all..it is only once we will find one true love. On the brighter side, you should be thankful that you see her true colors, at the earliest possible time you will never know your life will be more miserable with her. Don't sign her AOS! Let her do her way! Well as a legal person here you should have reported him to the Immmigration and she should be deported here and back to the cave she belong. Life is good and you will find someone who deserve your love...and think of the "law of Karma", she will pay for it soon...God bless..

@ Admin..hehehe..kindly erase my post above..typo error..lol..thanks..
wow.. ...wow..you've almost make the most of what you can do just to make sure she feels @ home...lucky her...as for some of us here, we don't have any TFC/GMA's..nor we go out always...but still, we are happy with our lives here in US..my husband doesn't earn much but he is striving to provide our needs everyday...there are times that I am sad and misses my family back home(it's pretty normal I guess)....but after all, to think and be contented and be happy with your new life with the person you love the most is far more important than anything(if it's true love!!)..and specially if you both have/share the same goal(to start your own family and love each other unconditionally) and you respect each other...misunderstandings are pretty normal....but before the day ends, you would really smile and look back to where you both have started/gone through and the LOVE you have for each other...
your wife my have her own goals and some of her wants weren't met..even if how hard you try to make everything work, if she is not happy, she will never be happy about it..and maybe you were one of the props in one of her goals(sorry to say that.. )..sometimes,it's really about "contentment"..and "communication" really plays a very important role to any relationship...and I would also agree to what other fellow members here have said..once a cheater will always be a cheater...giving chances are always there..but knowing that you will still end up into bad terms after every chances you will give is really a "stupid" thing to do...she asked to go home, then let her wish be granted...it's not punishing her but it's the "right" thing to do..
They said, "it's ok to love someone with all your heart...but always leave something for yourself"...God has plans..you just don't know...just have faith coz you will find and be with the right person for you who deserves your utmost LOVE & RESPECT....God bless us all..

how long shes been there?i feel sorry for what she did..i am also a filipina and feel bad whenever i heard stories like this......being away to my hubby kills me everyday cause were missing each other then heres your wife get there in States so easy and doing this kind b.s to you is obviously just mean one thing...she's just using you!i know a filipina who lives close to my house having a usc fiance whose supporting her financially for couple of years and guess what shes been doing???shes using the usc money to her filipino bf and shes sleeping and staying with the filipino guys house it is not a "hearsays" i see it myself ...i hate her so bad and if i only know how to contact her usc bf and tell him what shes been doing while shes gone...and shes also telling her friends that she really dont love her fiance and its all about the money...im like wth!!...if you feel like that theres something going on, decide now for it will get worst later....once you have that chat log translated and it says theres really something going on...you have to follow all this vj'ers advice to you...i know it gonna hurt now but it gonna hurt you even more later when you guys have kids or you guys have been together for so many years.....time will heal and you will be thankful one day that you didnt end up being with someone that will betray you forever in your life....Man that has a good heart and has good intentions with someone deserves better...May God Enlighten you and help you find what your heart is longing for.... Godbless us everyone!

The email updates let you know if a major change happens....like if you're approved. Unfortunately, they don't email you about "touches" (Sad I know!).
If you make an account on USCIS.gov and add your petition, then theres a little box that says when your petition was last updated. If it's a later date than you've previously seen, then you know it's been "touched". I've been touched twice...SO EXCITING....but nothing else in the last month.

When you make an account on the site, you can add cases by case number. https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/Dashboard.do on the left there is the option for "Sign-in to my account". Once you have an account and sign in there will be a link in the middle of the page titled "Add a case to your portfolio", enter in the number you recieved on your NOA1. Once a case is added it will show up and you will see a table with "Select Receipt Number E-mail Alert Mobile Alert Last Updated(mm/dd/yyyy) Form Number Form Title " with your case info below each of those.
Where it says Last Updated(mm/dd/yyyy)is where you can tell if you were touched. Essentially, if you checked it yesterday and the last updated column said 10/16/2010 and today it says 10/17/2010, it means you were "touched". So if you know the last date that was in the "Last Updated" column and you check in the future at any point and it has changed, it was touched. Though touches really don't mean anything (could be they moved the file from point A to point B, moving the file to a new room, etc etc).

Thank you! I will check now.....

yay!!!
you can sign up for updates that will tell you whether you have been 'touched' here https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/jsps/selectusertype.jsp .

The OP is from the Philippians , where the wait for a sibling is a bit over 23 years and that would be after she gets to be a citizen which is at least 3 years away.

That's right you can only bring children or spouse to the US if you were permanent resident.

You can't sponsor a brother-in-law nor can you sponsor a brother while you are a permanent resident. My understanding is that your only option is to wait until you're a citizen (eligible 3 years after immigrating assuming you are still married) and then sponsor him. There is something like a 10 year wait for siblings, so your child will probably not need a babysitter anymore by the time your brother could come over. I don't know if parents are faster - someone will know, though. Either way, it will be several years from now. Good luck.

It is not possible that he file for a visa for your brother or mother
but you could file for them after becoming a permanent resident
check this section of Bringing Family Members of Permanent Residents to America
http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/112-bringing-family-members-of-permanent-residents-to-america/
Good Luck

Congrats! That's weird it's not showing up...
I'm really hoping to have our wedding in June...VEGAS! Maybe that's wishful thinking
Goodluck! Hope you have a speedy journey!

Try to put yourself in their shoes. Imagine if 'wealthy', older Arab men from the Middle East were flocking to the town you live in, courting young American girls and taking them to their country, what do you think your honest reaction would be? And imagine that for most of these young women, their only chance of making a better life for themselves is to leave your town and go live in the Middle East? I would recommend you try and understand rather than get defensive.
In the most cynical and perhaps pragmatic view of Fil/Am courtships is that it is a commodity. Countless young Filipinas sign up with international dating sites in the hopes of courting a Kano or other 'wealthy' foreigner to escape the cycle of poverty that most of them are stuck in. While there are plenty of Filipinas that don't fit exactly into that generalization, a good majority of them do. Does that make these relationships a sham or less valid than other marriages? No. But understanding that reality of Fil/Am courtships will help you to better deal with the problems that go along with it, including the disapproving glares from bystanders.
When I first visited my wife in the Philippines, I was fortunate enough that her parents allowed me to stay in their home, although they were a bit apprehensive toward me. I just tried my best to let them get to know me. And as far as my parents were concerned, they were even more apprehensive about me getting involved with a woman who lives thousands of miles away.

I see a lot of 'touches' from the Vermont Service Center and none to very few from the California Service Center. What does this mean??? Either Vermont is kicking butt and taking names and California is sitting on their hands, or Vermont just tends to log when they do something to a petition and California does not have batteries for their scanners.
As a general rule, a 'touch' doesn't really mean much of anything. Someone may have moved your petition from pile 'A' to pile 'B' or to a box in a storage area. The only thing that matters is when a decision has been made and you receive your NOA2. Some people have arrived in the US, adjusted their status and still show as in initial review on the USCIS site. Your mileage may vary.
Good luck on your journey.
John

For you Newbie J and others whos packets were recieved on a Friday, you probably won't hear anything until Wednesday or Thursday. My packet was recieved on Oct 1. (a friday) and I wasn't notified (via text) until Thursday Oct. 7.