TJ 4EVER

Hey Ginie, Once in the country and interview is over and approved and it is time to book your husbands flight, do you then just go the ticket counter to book him a flight back home with you and do you know if there is a way to get a quote from the airline and take with you, so the airport will not charge double the price for your hubby to fly back?

Any ideas from anyone? This questions is for spouses wanting to fly home immediately with their husbands/wives on the same flight. Any thoughts would be very welcome.

Dana if you plan to fly back with your hubby on the same flight I suggest you buy a one way ticket to Nigeria and purchase a ticket back to the States from Nigeria. When my hubby booked his flight it was through the Turkish airline and it was not as expensive as the American Airlines. Maybe you can talk to my brother dear, he is the one who booked my hubby's flight and he shopped around. I believe he went through a travel agent but am not absolutely sure. He will be able to give you a better feel when you talk to him.

I just called the National Visa Center and asked if there are still date slots for September or October interviews, the nice young man told me the September slots are full and they havn't started on the October interview slots. I also asked if my husband will have to get another police certificate because his pc will expire Nov 2, he told me no because US consular will accept all police certificate within a year of the issued date even though the Nigeria pc expired 90 days after the issue date. The young man told me if I havn't sent in my package to them (ds 230, his bc, our marriage cert ect ect), I need to get it to them as soon as possible if I want an October interview, he did tell me it isn't guarentee my husband will get an October interview but it is a good chance he will since they havn't started the October interview slots. AWESOME NEWSSSSSS. LORD PLEASE INTERVENE ON OUR BEHALF IN JESUS NAME AMEN

I pray that you get an interview in October but I must tell you this person you are talking to at NVC is incorrect. I know a couple whose consulate is Nigeria has their interview is scheduled for October. I would be very careful about the PC as well, I believe that man is wrong about the PC lasting a year...my husband had to get his renewed after 90 days twice. God bless

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEBBIE...HOPE YOUR DAY WAS BLESSED

I could not have said it better. Compassion...we are talking about human lives. Yes it is not fair that we had to pay much higher fees to get our spouses here to the U.S. But on the other hand we do not walk in the shoes of those who have to live in this country as an illegal immigrant. We do not know what they have faced but instead we tend to lump everyone in one category assuming that everyone must be punished because everyone has done wrong. If you judge be prepared to be judged. Compassion...geesh...is that such a hard concept?

To those who castigate illegal immigrants I say: try living it.

Some people were brought to this country as a child and had no say in it. Some made questionable decisions that seemed like a good idea at the time. Others still just came here in search of a better life for themselves and their children.

Life is not as black and white as the Republican party perched on their ivory tower would have you believe.

Living in fear that this day could be your last amongst your family is no way for anyone to live. I'm not one to quote the bible, but since the Right seems to be in love with it I am fairly certain it says to examine the plank in your own eye before trying to remove the speck in your brother's. Perhaps the entire US population (sans native Americans, of course) should self-deport back to Europe? I'm fairly sure none of them had papers when they arrived here. The bible is big on punishing children for their parents' sins, after all.

At the end of the day it's about treating people as human beings, with compassion and dignity. Did some of them break the law by coming here? Certainly. Does this mean that none of them are worth helping, that we should just spit on them? No it does not.

Thank you so much for voicing this...my God these are human beings we are talking about.

Exactly. Being illegal inside a country is not a pleasant experience. Children who were brought here by their parents illegally should not be punished for mistakes they didn't make. It is hard to believe how judgmental people can be sometimes.

The group is developed for African/American spouses who have positive experiences. My point is that not All Nigerians are scammers and those who are not are getting a bad rap because of those who are. I would like to celebrate and support those who have found true love. There appears to be a lack of support for Nigerian and American spouses so let's start somewhere.

What about American's Loving their African Spouses?I have seen comments from some saying that more scammer's come from Africa seeking citizenship or that they scammed some American's out of their money.I come from Africa and I believe that you cannot judge everyone else based on some people's lack of morals or ethics based on hearing horror stories about their country ect.

Agreed...thank you for your support!

Nigerians are some of the most hospitable folks around. I attended a wedding this weekend where the groom is Nigerian & the bride is Spanisg. It was a blast and they changed into Nigerian clothing half way through the wedding. The clothing looked very nice and was colorful.

7

Here is the link...hope to see you there!

http://www.facebook.com/groups/AmericanslovingNigerians/

Could you post the link to it?

To anyone interested. I developed a facebook group called "Americans loving their Nigerian spouses" the group description is as follows:

Unfortunately we hear too often about marriages between Americans and Nigerians where the American who got married to a Nigerian later finds out that he or she has been scammed by the Nigerian spouse for the purpose of immigrating to the United States. This fact has caused many Americans to become suspicious of all Nigerians and has painted a negative picture of our Nigerian brothers and sisters. I am developing this group to support those who are in legitimate marriages, a place where we can support one another, share our love stories, and validate that it is wrong to judge a whole race of people based on what a few bad apples have done. Our stories are worth being told and we deserve the same amount of respect that other intercultural marriages receive. I love my husband with all of my heart and I know, without a doubt, that my husband (An Igbo Man) loves me with all of his heart. Let’s stand together and support one another through this process of loving our Nigerian spouse in spite of the negative reactions that the world throws at us.

We are not interested in any hate stories but are looking for support for those who are in loving marriages. Please join us!

This is good news for those who will be given the opportunity to become legal in this country. I am not sure why you believe this will effect you? Please explain how you think this will negatively effect removing your conditions or your spouses conditions?

At work, and I came across this link;

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/deferred-action-program-could-legalize-1-8-million-221839009.html

How does thrat affect us? I mean with the back logs thats going on now. Will this mean that the wait will be longer. I dont start removing conditions till sometime next year..but its just something that I have been thinking about since I saw it on yahoo news.

What are your thoughts?

There is a time to caution someone and then there is a time to answer the question asked. To be aware of when to point out something and when to remain neutral, is called tact. We do not have to be the self appointed siren to blast warnings 24/7 every time someone new steps into the forum for information and we disagree with the way someone chooses to live their adult live. Until such advice is asked for, it is simply overkill to judge someone's relationship a recipe for disaster based on one small post. Don't kill a fly with a grenade. Compulsion to control plans of other adults with unkind and force full judgments is uncalled for and an auto pilot power trip. Assumptions and advice are not the same thing.

Well said

Yes, we have met he has family here in Texas that own an African market. I have known him over a year longer than most people who meet in a club and who decide to marry or sleep with them in one night. My father is Ghanaian, I am fluent in Yoruba and was raised as a traditional Afrcan. I can also speak Igbo and Hausa. My father moved us here to the US when I was a child, so my African roots are strongly bound.....The creator just created me a spouse who could better serve me as to what I am accustomed to...As far as the marriage rates and the statistics that were given American citizens marriages aren't that sucessful either...So in my opinion things happen for a reason, season or a lifetime...No one crosses your path by change and when something is ordained by faith you just know...also I work with my intuition and if something feels wrong I go with my gut...Be blessed and I thank you for your concerns....O dabo.....

I applaud you for standing your ground. Geesh I understand that many people are scammed by Nigerians and I pray for their hearts and get very angry with the scammers. But my God, not everyone who marries a Nigerian goes into their marriage blindly. I believe with every ounce of my strength if God is made the center of anyone's marriage and He has ordained it to be so it will be successful. I am glad the discouraging words did not discourage you. God bless you and your future with you husband. You go girl!

I generally do not post often here because of the amount of attacks one receives for giving their opinion but I figured I'd stick my neck out for you just to share MY experience which then influences my opinion. My husband and I were married during my first visit. I returned home, front loaded my I-130 and sent in the petition. I visited him three more times after submitting my petition, sent more evidence during the NVC stage of my visits after our wedding and guess what? My husband has been home with me for the past seven months. My opinion is if you are intending on visiting him after your initial visit while the petition is being processed you should be fine. My advice is to front load you petition and send whatever evidence you have at the NVC stage and it should go a long way. I pray you have a blessed and wonderful wedding, God bless you in your future endeavors.

I too front loaded my I-130. Sent every piece of proof that I had at the time except I only sent 12 random photos. When my hubby went to the interview he had the info that continued from the front loading. Dana what I did for Julius was bonded all the info in books made at Staples and labeled each section. That made it neater and easier for him to thumb through. I made sure the books were not too thick and plastic rings were used.

I can't say I put much thought into the dangers of living in America. My husband lived in Lagos as well and from his stories and the stories I heard since I began visiting Nigeria, it's not peaches and cream there either. We watch the Philadelphia news every night and hear about all of the violence that happens there and we respond by praying for the families of the victims and the victims themselves. As far as our own precautions our number one defense is praying for protection. Secondly I and my boys educate my husband of the do's and don'ts on the streets. Since we live right outside of Philadelphia we have safer streets. Nevertheless my family lives in Philly and we visit often. My 20 year old is about to move into the city so we will be there even more often. I must say however, we choose not to live in fear and claim God's protection.

A husband is not enough proof that she has reasons to return. What are the other reasons for her to go back? Does she have children and grandchildren in Nigeria? Does she own property there?

Yes she has children and grandchildren and yes she and her husband owns their home...will that be enough?

Nigeria is a high fraud country so it is extremely difficult to get a visitor visa.

Her chances depend on her strong ties to Nigeria. What are the compelling reasons for her to return home after a brief visit to overcome the presumption that she may stay in the US after her permitted time expires?

If she is poor, her changes are pretty much zero.

Her ties are to her husband whom she has been married to for over 50 years. She is coming just to visit us. Deep sigh, she is in her 70's and has no intentions of immigrating here, she loves her husband and her home in the village.

Hi, my husband has only been in the US since December. We would love for his mother to come visit. My husband's mother is married and lives in the village and my father-in-law will not be petitioning for a visitors visa. What are the chances of her getting a visa? She will be returning of course because her husband is her life.

My husband and I both submitted a letter entitled "our Story" at the very beginning of the process. I don't know if it helped much but it surely didn't hurt. It gave me the opportunity to tell in my own words how I met my husband,how I feel about him, our life plans, etc.

Hopefully this link will help answer some questions.

"Your payments while you are outside the United States"

http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10137.html

Wow...THANK YOU!!!! This is very helpful. God bless

Your friend would be commiting fraud by deceiving our government. Personally I don't think it is worth it trying to hide this information from the US government in order to continue collecting SSDI. It would only takes one person to report her in, so I strongly recommend you tell your friend to not do it (this can potentially ruin her life). That's just my opinion.

Thanks for your opinion...I personally believe it is too big a risk and potentially ruin her as well. I just hoped once I ask the question here I would be able to go back to her with more information on how bad this has the potential of being OR that I am just being over cautious and she should do what she believes is right.

Depends on the country, most countries only allow a tourist visa stay for 90 days to six months. Anything after six months, most considered you to be living in the country not visting.

Deep sigh, wow...I am sure however she can be in Nigeria for more then six months without being detected....it's just when the interview comes about and the CO ask about her visits what will they make out of her being there for so long and know her income is provided by the US government.

First, define extended period of time, for most countries spending any time greater than six months requires you to register as a resident. If your friend register as a resident of another country, than yes she will lose her government funded benefits.

Hi and thanks for your response,

Like I said in the beginning she is planning on staying for the length of time it will take in her husband receiving his visa (8 to 12 months) Didn't realize she must register after being there for 6 months...is this a hard and fast rule?

She needs to find a co-sponsor, without a doubt.

Thanks Inky,

Yes she does realize that she needs a co-sponsor and has one. That is not the issue. The issue is I think she is putting herself in jeopardy in losing her source of income. Perhaps I am reading too much into this and immigration will not connect the dots about her income. I'm not sure, it is one governmental agency to another. I am hoping someone could shed some light on whether or not her income will be flagged because she has spent so much time in Nigeria...perhaps I am over thinking this, just do not want her to make a decision that will ultimately hurt her more then it will help her.

A friend of mine just got married at the end of February. She returned home to begin the CR-1 process for her husband in the beginning of March. She is planning to return to Nigeria at the beginning of April. She would like to stay there through the entire process it will take for her husband to receive his visa. I potentially see that she will face some problems. She receives SSDI and is planning on staying in Nigeria for approximately eight months to a year. It is my understanding that one cannot receive SSDI benefits if they are living outside of the US. Now she has the option of not telling Social Security that she is staying in Nigeria but when it comes time for her husband's interview and he provides proof of her visits the visa will show that she has been in Nigeria for an extended length of time. I am not sure if this will be a red flag in regards to her Affidavit of Support because she has stayed outside the States for more then 30 days and thus disqualifies herself from receiving SSDI and possibly face repaying the money. deep sigh...I realize that being away from your spouse is very difficult, I've done it and I know many of you have done it as well, so I empathize with her desire of being by her husband's side. But what I do not wish to happen is her messing up her financial stability. Please can someone advise me on how to advise her.