dashaoz

Thank you for your prompt answer. Have a good one!

Hi there,

We have a situation like this. Normally most applicants try to speed up the process of entering U.S. On our end I, the petitioner, and my wife, the applicant are trying to delay our moving process since we will start working around May.

My wife received her IR-1 visa last month which expires mid December. We are planning on going to U.S for a week in November, come back to Turkey and work until April and then move to U.S for good. Can you please tell me if this would be ok?

Also we have a package that needs to be given to the officer at the port of entry. Also, it does state that "Upon endorsement the visa serves as a temporary I-551 evidencing permanent residence for a year." But is it better that we wait until the card comes? (As I read in forums in some cases it might be months...)

Thank you for your time

Thank you. I'd appreciate the advice. I just don't know when we'd be in U.S so the lease date would be kinda blurry, no?

1. Country USC resides in: Turkey
2. Is there a USCIS field office in this country / Is DCF still possible? No
3. When did you file the I-130: NOA1 April 15, 2013
4. How long had you been living abroad: 2 years
5. Do you reside in the country legally? Yes
6. What is the reason for your residence: Living with my other half
7. Did you list your foreign address on all forms in I-130 package? Yes
8. Did you send I-130 package from abroad? Yes
9. Did you include evidence of your residence abroad in the I-130 package? Yes
10. Did you mention the fact you reside abroad in the cover letter or write a letter describing your current situation and the evolution of your relationship with your spouse (mentioning your residence abroad)? Yes
11. Has your case been "auto-expedited"? How long between NOA1 and NOA2? I don't know... I am still waiting for NOA2

Hmm. Thanks Darnel and Lost. You guys are right, I did not maintain that per se, but I still get mails to my old address from school, bank etc. I have lived there many years with my roommate and I still have that address on my drivers licence which will expire in March. I'm thinking of maybe going to U.S for a week to renew the license if I can.

Other than that the AOS is another problem. Hopefully my boss back in US whom I worked 7 years for, will be a sponsor as well. I did get a letter from him stating that he'd be pleased to have me and my wife both work again for him. I don't know if that would be enough.

Thank you for that.

Just to be sure - I done a quick search on the proof of domicile

As you are aware my husband has been living abroad for 1.5 years - He still has his car back home at his mothers house, registered in his name, and when we were on vacation there last month he took some money out of his bank account. Also, we have been looking at apartments online.

Would this be enough? If we printed out some quotes from agencies maybe?

Hi Teacup and good luck to you both.

I'm an April filer and still waiting for the NOA2. Our case is also similar to yours since I did not want to be away from my wife and chose to live with her in Turkey now (Before we were in her country of origin, Belarus).

I am the USC and truthfully I do not have a car or house or anything like that back home... Just my old checking account and my almost expired drivers license.

I started a topic as well and I will let you know if I hear anything. Hopefully my NOA2 would come anytime soon.. Fingers crossed.

Oz

No one responded to this post. Please help a brother people.

Thanks Alan. I just started a topic. Good luck.

I have a question regarding proof of U.S domicile. I am the USC and my wife is from Belarus. Since Winter 2011 we have been in residing in Turkey together. Now, back in US I do not own a house or vehicle. I do not have mutual funds either. I transferred all my savings with me when I was moving to Turkey with her and helped my mum & dad to get an apartment here.. I see a lot of items in the lists regarding proof of domicile but how can a person in my shoes prove all items in the lists? For example, bank accounts might not be that hard but how can one get the voter registration without being present in U.S? I believe you have to be a permanent resident of the state that you're living in order to get that.. Or my driver's license which will expire in a few months. You can not renew that without being in US either.

Any help is appreciated.

Thank you all...

Oz

Sorry for the late reply Nola. I see that you went through a tough time with the paperwork! I wish you an easy one for the rest of it.

When I found this out I kinda blame myself. I could have given my parents address or a p.o box here but I didn't..

I'm thinking since I am the USC I don't need to file an AR-11, do I?

Anyways I think I'll be able to pull some strings and be able to receive any document that will come to a previous address. The problem is the NOA2 stage. I'm still waiting and I don't know when it will come. Because of NOA2, we are postponing our moving to Belarus plans. Once I have it, I definitely need to change the address then..

Ms Goyave hi,

We have a similar case with you. At the end of this month, we are moving to a different apartment while waiting for our NOA2. We received our NOA1 back in April. Have you changed your address to an address in U.S or not?

Yes, that's what I've just been told since the rep said that the system will not allow the zip code..?!!

We received the NOA1 back in April to our address in Turkey and while waiting for NOA2, I wanted to change my address since rental contract is done and we are definitely moving in a week. The rep told me that I can not do it and I have to contact Embassy?? What does the Embassy have to do with this? It's coming directly to my address.

Any thoughts?

Good luck to you Alan with your paperwork and thanks to you dwheels76 with this detailed information which I think I'll be using this format as well. But I have a question at this point. We do not have kids. I do not own a house or vehicle in U.S. I do not have mutual funds either. I transferred my savings with me when I was moving to Turkey with my wife and helped my mum & dad to get an apartment here.. So, How can I prove those in your list? For example, bank accounts might not be that hard but how can one get the voter registration without being present in U.S? I believe you have to be a permanent resident of the state that you're living in order to get that.. Or my driver's license which will expire in a few months. You can not renew that without being there.

Thanks...

Congrats Natalie! We have received our NOA1 mid April and still waiting for NOA2. We're thinking of having the interview in Ankara as well since I didn't want to be away from my wife.

Airbnb is an option, much cheaper then hotels but doesn't he have any friends? Turkish people are great with hospitality, they don't mind to have you guys for a day or two..

Medical information is listed under this link,

http://turkey.usembassy.gov/medical_requirements.html

Someone recently told me that they paid 555TL (around $270) for the whole process.

Hope the interview goes great!

Oz

Thanks for the heads up kitchen princess. Unfortunately, when we move out from our rental place I will have no access to the mail anymore. Before I specifically told the officials to sent the NOA1 to my P.O Box address in Turkey but they sent the it to home address anyways. But yes I will try my best to chance it via email, phone, best way I can.. Thank you.

Thanks to both.. Stevie I didn't get what you wanted to say, " if it went to you there, which I see few to none going to out of the country addresses".

I sent to U.S yes but we both live in Turkey for the moment and planning on moving to Belarus.

Gary, thank you sooo much for these insightful information. Good luck to you to everyone here since no offense but U.S citizens are a little not welcome in Belarus. Each time I go in & out, I spend way too much time waiting & thinking that ok this time they're not gonna let me in.. I just wish that my wife's entrance to U.S would be an easy one.

For starters, I'm Turkish American and my wife is from Belarus. We got married in summer 2010 in U.S. We decided not to stay away from each other and moved to Turkey where we can live together back in September 2010. We started our IR-1 procedure in April this year after realizing that we should have done this earlier. But anyways, April 11 was the date that we got the NOA1. It's been over 5 months now and we are still waiting for NOA2. Now, here's the thing. My father-in-law is asking us to help him out with the grocery store that he will be opening in Belarus. Although we told the officials that we are living in Turkey and requested Ankara as our interview post, now I don't know if moving again would create a problem. In general, I see that the USC remains in US and the spouse takes care of the needed stuff from overseas. I already moved to Turkey and we've been here almost 3 years. Now thinking about another move??

About the domicile, I kept paying my school bills in U.S and kept my accounts open. I have a job offer for both myself and for my wife for the next summer from my boss that I worked over 7 years. When it comes to AOS, my boss will help us out.

So at this stage, I'm concerned about moving again. Anybody has any experience or suggestions?

Thank you for your time

newguy:

Keep in mind these estimates are just estimates based on other visajourney users filling out their timeline. Any estimates this system is generating is already "old", as they are from people who already went through the process, incomplete because there are thousand of people who do not submit timelines, or do not keep them up to date. The time it takes your particular petition will vary...but check out the cr-1 visa progress forum.

4 months seems rough, but try waiting a year. Hang in there buddy. If you want some advice, make the most of your time, and read on the process, gather all the necessary documentation, and get ready so that you don't waste any time. Seeing that you don't understand what info your USCIS receipt number is about, I assume you are not fully prepared nor fully understand the next stage in the process. Mistakes will generate RFE's and wasted time. There is still a lot of questions issues and work you can take care of now.

Have you read LingChe's shortcuts already? Have you gotten foreign documents translated? Passport photos prepared? Etc...

I totally agree with squirrelisan, giving a head start helps. Hope we all will not make any mistakes that would prolong the situation..

Also, I received my NOA1 exactly 5 months ago (April 11) and no NOA2 yet, still waiting and waiting. I, on the other hand, moved to Turkey and started the whole process from here thinking that it would be faster (I'm Turkish -American, my wife Belarussian). But I guess it won't be that fast.. Good luck to you new guy..

DirtyHarry, I think I have less knowledge on immigration issues than you, but on this one you are absolutely wrong.

First of all, he has an intention of migrating to U.S. This is obvious. At any time applying for a non-immigrant visa like H-1B or L-1 as you mentioned is an automatic rejection when USCIS finds out that he intends to migrate to U.S. Plus, it would make his chances to get an immigrant visa lesser. I got this info directly from the Istanbul Consulate.

Michael good luck with your case. Mine is a little similar, trying to get a Green Card for my wife but I choose to be with her during this period in Turkey (I'm a dual citizen).

Since I made way less than the amount required I will need a sponsor as well. I might use a friend or my last employer in U.S. Your wife may use a family member or one of her friends as well since the purpose of this procedure is for you not to go on Welfare. And you are saying that you have a business offer, this is a good thing, make sure to take that with you at the interview as it may qualify as a document that shows the intention of living in U.S.

Correction, Boiler is right. I got this info when I was going to get a tourist visa for my wife. So, H-1B & L-1 might be good. But not a tourist visa Michael.

Sorry DirtyHarry.

Get your employer to file an H1B for you. Its a lot easier and quicker coming from a corporate and their lawyer will deal with the system. It will take a few months for you to get a GC through DCF. I doubt your company will wait that long.

DirtyHarry, I think I have less knowledge on immigration issues than you, but on this one you are absolutely wrong.

First of all, he has an intention of migrating to U.S. This is obvious. At any time applying for a non-immigrant visa like H-1B or L-1 as you mentioned is an automatic rejection when USCIS finds out that he intends to migrate to U.S. Plus, it would make his chances to get an immigrant visa lesser. I got this info directly from the Istanbul Consulate.

Michael good luck with your case. Mine is a little similar, trying to get a Green Card for my wife but I choose to be with her during this period in Turkey (I'm a dual citizen).

Since I made way less than the amount required I will need a sponsor as well. I might use a friend or my last employer in U.S. Your wife may use a family member or one of her friends as well since the purpose of this procedure is for you not to go on Welfare. And you are saying that you have a business offer, this is a good thing, make sure to take that with you at the interview as it may qualify as a document that shows the intention of living in U.S.

If your wife wants to petition using her Belorussian passport, she may need to go to Warsaw. As you said the Minsk US Embassy has very limited functionality. If she waits to get Turkish citizenship, that is a whole different matter. If the need for a Turkish passport is because you plan to live there for a long time, or because that passport may offer fewer travel restrictions, then go for it. But if you plan to live in the US, why would you want this?

Thank you for your reply. Yes, Warsaw is one of the few posts that she can travel to when the interview takes place. My aim is for her to get maximum benefits. By becoming a Turkish citizen, in the future benefits like healthcare, and retirement are possible with a less fee vs. U.S. After all, she wants to keep her Belarusian citizenship. Turkish one would be additional. And yes, we would like to move to U.S in the near future and I would like her to get a Green Card through me. As most immigrants, a permanent residence permit is enough.

I'm an American currently residing in Turkey with my wife. She is a Belarusian citizen. We got married in Delaware August 2010 and started living in Turkey since September 2011.

I would like to find out if it would be our best interest to wait for her Turkish citizenship and then apply for an IR-1 visa for her, or start the application process now. From what I heard, after Belarusian government had the U.S Embassy reduce their American personnel from 35 diplomats to 5, Belarusian citizens have hard time obtaining visas. Now, they can get the visas only from designated countries.

Turkish & Belarusian people who had similar experience are recommended to answer please.

Thanks in advance.

Wow, it has been more than 2 years since my post and things did change in a different way.

But before all, Gary, visaveteran, I respect your thoughts. Everyone has different backgrounds, experiences, friends who had awful experiences. So, I understand if you guys felt that way back then (and probably still is), but fact of the matter is not all Russians come to U.S to get a quick fix. Plus, a person like me, who swore to God that I was not going to get married again for a few years! But then destiny called and I did what I did.. It's easy to get a license in MD, DE or NJ. Not like overseas.. Also, my wife was on a J-1 visa, work & travel. And NO, SHE DID NOT want to stay in U.S.

Therefore, now we are living in Turkey for the last 16 months. Truthfully, the wages, food, healthcare is much more better than U.S for me in Turkey, however I miss U.S a lot! I mean a lot!! All my professional life I was in U.S. and believe me it's really hard to get adjusted to the business life in Turkey. Dog eat dog world here! Things run in a very different way. You have to know somebody to have something done to be at somewhere.

So, now I will be pursuing other options. After spending all this time in Turkey, my wife is realizing that you have to have perfect language in the country where you live.. Turkish.. Hard to learn, and truthfully I would not want her to deal with this.

I used to think having a dual citizenship is a good thing, but see sometimes you do feel the heaviness on your shoulders. If things don't work out in country A, then yes you have country B option, but... what about all the time and effort you gave for all that time? Is it really easy to give up everything and start all over again.. We'll see..

"Brokenfamily" is now "used to be broken", so I hope things worked out good for you. Also, Slim, tom&tanya, neonred and all others hope you have a great year filled with happiness and good luck with your paperwork.

http://www.northwestregisteredagent.com/apostille-delaware.html

http://corp.delaware.gov/faqs.shtml#decourts

http://corp.delaware.gov/apost_info.shtml

http://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dph/ss/vitalstats.html

Thank you "broken family" and "why me" for your insightful information. Yes, the apostille thing is something that is not easy when we are in Minsk right now. One of the links tell me that the copy of the certificate, apostille and the oversees shipping charges total would be around $340. At this point, we decided to do this when I come back to U.S in March.

Visaveteran, to be honest with you we did not know about this apostille thing until the marriage bureau in Minsk told us that it is needed for them to recognize this marriage. Furthermore, when we were getting married, we had no idea about what we would need in the future. It was pure love and it still is! Sometimes it just takes your breath away you know.. Don't question it too much.

Also, like I mentioned, Turkey is an other option for us. Who knows maybe I might change my mind about my U.S dream and start making plans to live in another county. After all, home is where you make it. First priority is whom you love...

If you read the whole thread, the OP states that he is a naturalized citizen originally from Turkey (that maintains Turkish citizenship). I'm pretty sure Turkey and Belarus have a visa free regime. The OP obviously has some means to travel and given that the marriage of a Belorussian woman to a Turkish man isn't really atypical at all. It's not unlikely that he has had business in Belarus at some time or other.

Thank you Slim & SMR for your comments.

Yes, I had never been to this country before and I'm finding some of the things difficult like this apostille stuff..

Smr, as you mentioned travelling to/from Turkey/Belarus is not that hard at all. That's why after my first visit I took her with me to Turkey and then I came back here to Belarus. Right now, the biggest obstacle for us was to see each other when I get back to U.S in March but looks like, me going to Belarus, or for her to come to Turkey would be other options for us to get together.

I wish everyone luck with their paperworks especially when the couples are away from each other.. That really sucks...