lalouse

shortly after we got married,I legally change my name to my husbands last name. Should I apply using my maiden name, which is what we used in the original petition, or just use my new name?

also we recently had a baby, a beautiful girl born in April . We are both on her birth certificate. since we now have a child together, do I still need to provide as much evidence as other people? I'm going to put in the standard bank statements, lease, but do I need to go above and beyond like so many other people have?

My husband's conditional permanent residency expires at the end of the year (Dec 2014). I would like to submit now, in June, because everything seems to take longer than usual with us. Any issues with submitting before the 90 day period?

Thanks!

Hi,

I am helping my father, who is a US citizen, petition for his sister. She is over 50 years old, never married, and living in Lebanon. We are filling out the i-130, which is only a 2-page form, and attaching his naturalization certificate and a Lebanese legal document that proves they are siblings (family registry).

This seems to simple to me? What will happen next? Will they ask for more information? How long will this take?

Thanks for sharing your experiences!!

I definitely think it is difficult to be a Muslim going through this process, from the very first petition to AOS and beyond. While the US is a great country, there is always a rough phase when it has accepted new people and, as we all know, has a history of oppression, racism, and discrimination, much of which still exists.. against black people, against other minorities, against women (recently Trayvon Martin's death has put this in the limelight). Many people on these forums may say that it is better than other countries, and it is!, but that doesn't mean there are no problems.

Since 9/11 things have been bad when it comes to the civil rights of Muslims, Arabs, and people of other nationalities that the government may consider to be suspicious. We shouldn't expect it to be different when it comes to visa, greencard, or citizenship processing. There is structural, social, and individual bias and discrimination against many people that can't be ignored (but it is!)

Other Muslims and non-Muslims may not understand how you feel, (just like I can't understand the experience of a black person with racism) but as a US citizen who has lived with my Muslim family here for a long time, it's easy to say that you probably do and will continue to experience discrimination and feel some fear. If you'd like me to give examples, I'm happy to send people private messages with the stories my family and I have had to endure.. and we are not even openly Muslim. I don't wear a headscarf and neither do my sisters, but just having that as part of our identity has lead to some bad experiences.

Most recently, in my neck of the woods here in NYC, the story has blown up of how the NYPD has been secretly monitoring innocent Muslim student groups throughout New York and other states. That is just a sad disgusting thing and a violation of everyone's rights. Thankfully, I didn't go to university in New York and only recently moved here from Boston, but it's just a sign of the situation and the times.

After saying all of that, I will say, Brother, that I think you should try to just continue to live your life normally, including praying and going to mosque. Take it easy and not worry about the visa process. You might be paranoid and right about being watched or judged, but if you are doing nothing wrong, even if it takes them years, you will achieve your goal.

Good luck and inshallah no more nightmares!

Yes, this is the standard AP letter, that everyone gets, although they have a highlighted more concerns than they did on my fiance's letter. You are not rejected, just possibly rejected later, and just have to wait to go through AP now. They have concerns including standard AP issues, health issues, and becoming a public charge. Not sure how long this will take, but Pakistan usually has some of the longest AP waiting times.

We've been in AP almost 7 months now, and be prepared, it is a long, emotionally draining, non-transparent, terrible process.

Good luck and wishing you a speedy AP.

Lama

Don't stress out. We received ours in our 7th month.. it'll happen you just have to wait.

Hello all,

I am hoping someone more knowledgeable than myself can give me some advice or options on how to proceed given the following situation.

My I-129F application hit the 5 month mark today since the NOA1. I called the USCIS nationwide line at 1-800-375-5283 and proceeded through the system until I reached a customer service representative.

She was pleasant with me and answered my questions to the best of her knowledge. She was starting the process to open a service request for me when she came back and told me the following:

CSC is backlogged and is only processing applications for June 16. So, she told me she can't open a service request given that information. I asked her if CSC is reporting that they are processing application from June 16, why are there applications submitted in late July (15th-22nd) that are being approved. She couldn't/wouldn't answer that question and offered to transfer me to secondary customer support.

I was transferred to Officer Lopez. She was also pleasant but unhelpful. She re-iterated the processing time of June 16th and that she couldn't open a service request because of that. When I asked her why applications from right around my NOA1 time are getting approved, she responded that some officers work faster than others and my application must be in a stack of someone who is behind/slow/something else. Since I don't know enough of the inner workings of the CSC, I have no way to refute this claim.

So, my hope is that someone on Visa Journey can give me some helpful advice or options. Or even just a sympathetic ear. I am really hoping there are some more options to pursue to get our application approved. Please help VJ'ers!

Thank you for taking the time to read! And MANY thanks for any advice or help!

Cliff notes:

CSC - I-129F - NOA1 on July 20th - 5 month mark today

USCIS customer service says CSC only at June 16th for processing so won't open a service request

VJ'ers reporting approvals from NOA1's around my application (July 18 to July 21)

secondary support says that our application is just unlucky and stuck on a slow officer's desk

Options? Advice? Is that really the way it works at the processing centers?

I hear you.. and feel exactly the same way.

Even if you have spent all the money, even that is not enough. I used to visit my fiance twice a year, the most recent being for 2 months this past summer. Before that I visited for 1 month on the new year, and the summer before that and the new year before that .. and have been doing this for years. Even with all that spending, with a formal engagement party with family members and pictures, with endless phone bills and long emails, it was not enough. Because of my fiance's religion --- or actually, it's not really because of his religion, because the interviewer never asks him if he is religious, or whether he believes certain things.. it seems more to be that he has a Muslim name and that is problematic. Because of that, we have been sitting in the never ending AP for 6months now.

I was hoping he would have by the time I moved to another city and started a new job in September.

Then I hoped he would be here by Halloween in October. Nope.

Then my family and I were very sad that he could not join us for Thanksgiving in November. No.

Now the holiday season and new year are approaching and there is no end in sight.

I really don't want to enter 2012 without him, but what can I do? His parents gave him a Muslim name 25 years ago, so now we have to wait endlessly.

I'm just very unhappy right now. and yes, we are all at the discretion of the US government.

I don't mean to make you unhappy. I wish you the best of luck and hope that you will quickly be rejoined with your loved one.

Welcome to the lonely road of AP! I don't mean to discourage you, but it can be lonely when one person is in one place, and their lover is in another, and they are both frustrated over the AP.

When you talk to the State Department, they will almost always say that your case is at the Embassy. I've talked to the embassy (in Lebanon) and they have said that the case is in Washington and they are waiting for clearance from there. I think it's either just difficult to know where exactly it is or no one is honest about it, or it moves around alot for verification of information purposes. There is also reason to believe that it goes to other agencies, possibly homeland security and other security agencies.

I don't think you should stress out about the exact location of it. You should just call in to DOS every couple of weeks to check on it, and/or email the embassy for updates. They won't give you much information. You can also ask your Senator or Congressman to inquire about it, but from my personal experience, where I've had both inquire, it doesn't speed the process up at all, but puts down on the file that a Congressperson is interested in the case.

That's all the advice I can give for now! Hold on there! Inshallah it won't be too long! My fiance has been in AP for 6 months and counting. We are hoping he will be here by end of year, but who knows.

Best of luck!

Best of luck to everyone and HANG IN THERE! This too shall pass!

I am a newbie to AP, so I am hoping for an educated answer from all the veterans out there. I was under the impression that AP takes place at DOS or other agencies in DC. We received notice that our case is in AP as of 11/14, but I called DOS today and they said that our case is still at the Embassy in Amman.

Are all cases required to go to DOS? Can AP be done just at the embassy? Which parts of the AP process take place in each location and is it a "good" or "bad" sign that our case is still just sitting at the embassy after 3 weeks?

Any further information would be appreciated!! Thanks for your time and inshallah your patience will be rewarded!

Still in AP(Cairo),coming up on our 2 month mark. I know that I shouldnt complain comparing to the months or years that other couples may have. But I do honestly miss my hubby so much. Wish everyone good news here on this threat and that we may all start a new calender year with our loves.

We're coming up on the 6 month mark. I make the calls every couple of days now, and send emails to the embassy. They are pretty much sick of me, but I just cannot stop calling or trying to get an update. I miss my fiance tremendously and can't even take a vacation to visit him because I just started a new job a couple months ago.

I really hope he is here before the new year!!

Good luck!

You can try contacting your senator or congressman, but there is no proof that those types of things expedite.

Just email the embassy for updates every couple of weeks or call the state department.

There's nothing you can do but wait. We've been in AP for over six months now, but I hope that yours will be much speedier!

Lama

Dear VJers,

Firstly, Thanks for all the supports and words of encouragement.

Meanwhile, I am highly depressed because I had my K1-visa interview today and the consular returned my original passport, birth certificate and divorce papers of my fiancee AND he said they will get back to me in the next couple of weeks.

He gave me a visa refusal sheet saying I am on ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESSING..... Please what should I be expecting from them ?

I will update my timeline in due course.

Thanks

I am not claiming that most muslims are terrorists or viceversa however, quite a few common Arab names are shared by terrorists too and that is where the probem is. Now if the innocent ones could protest against the terrorists instead of calling AP racist, the problems would get solved quicker. Treat the ailment, not the symptom. BTW, I was in AP too, not because of my common name but because of my father's profession (he's retired now). I did not think it was racist. A country has a right to protect its borders and its people against any potential threats.

In case you forgot, I'm a US Citizen, and was one long before you were. I've lived in the United States probably for longer than you have and much longer than my fiance (who is still not here yet). I'm the first person to object to terrorism in any form, including home grown and international terrorism, because I live in New York City and it is a threat to my personal safety and this country's sovereignty. I work in the area of criminal justice in the United States for one of the largest states in the nation, have an advanced degree from the #1 university in the country, and do not say things without thinking them through.

However, as an Arab-American and a Muslim, with civil and legal rights given to me by this nation, I also have a right to protest discrimination carried out by leaders in this country. That includes discrimination at home in the United States and discriminatory practices by the United States abroad.

As I've said over, and over, Yes, AP is practiced in many countries. It is used for a variety of reasons all over the world. But it is utter discrimination for a large group of people in certain countries to suffer from it because of their individual unsubstantiated possible connections to terrorism.

I'm not saying that the United States should not protect its borders. I'm saying it should be more creative and have ways that do not discriminate against people and do not allow families and loved ones to suffer due to a lengthy, life-altering process.

You don't have to support this effort. I'm just looking for people who do, trying to find the numbers, and will try to use legitimate constitutional means to end this form of discrimination against Muslims and Arabs who are only trying to reunite with their loved ones and have a better life in the United States.

will that end all AP? No.

Will it hopefully end AP for the vast majority of Muslim/Arab men who have never done a suspicious thing in their life other than be given a Muslim/Arab name at birth? Yes.

Oh dear, I think you don't realize that NO, not everyone goes through administrative processing.

I personally know many couples that interviewed the SAME WEEK as Hasan and who are now happily married and living together in the United States.

I even know Lebanese Christian couples who did NOT go through AP.

and I'm very happy for them. I would NEVER wish for anyone to go through AP, but the reality is that most young Arab and Muslim men who want to marry American women will go through it.

I'm also not saying it doesn't happen in other countries. It certainly happens all over the world... but for different reasons.

That is why I put this in the MENA discussion.. not because I don't think other countries go through it, they do..

but the reason we are flagged is because of discrimination.

The interviewer told Hasan that she did not doubt our relationship and we had a great file, and then she basically told him that we're going to go into AP and why...

My congressman and senator have explained to me that certain countries are treated like terrorist countries, unfortunately. Even they believe its discrimination. I wouldn't feel it was if I hadn't talked to numerous people about it. Thankfully, my congressman and senator are two very strong liberal individuals who believe in justice and immigration reform as well.

So, yes, there are plenty of countries and people going through AP for non-racist or discriminatory reasons.

But there are too many Arabs/Iranians/Pakistanis/etc.. going through it only because of discrimination and racism.

The belief that we are all terrorists is at the root of Islamophobia, discrimination and racism.. and at the root of AP in Middle Eastern countries.

Lama

I understand you want to make this a Pick on Arab Muslims fight, but it's not.

Everybody that wants to immigrate to the United States goes through Administrative Processing.

Everybody is checked.

Everybody. And if there's a "hit" - which means it needs a secondary investigation - whoever is doing the investigating has to read the file and examine the paperwork.

If you don't like it, feel free blame inefficiency but don't blame racism.

I'm aware that Muslim is a religion not a race, but I think that there isn't an adequate easy-to-use word for discrimination based on religion,

second of all, I think Arab is a race (personally that is how I identify) and so it is racism at its finest.

Finally, while the Arab Revolutions were very inspiring, lebanon didn't have a revolution.. neither did most of the other non-Arab Muslim countries (Iran, Pakistan)

and neither did other Arab countries like Saudi, etc.. I can understand what you are saying for countries like Egypt or Tunisia and Libya.

Lama

It's not just Muslims. If it were, Tammy's husband wouldn't have been in AP, but he was.

AP (or "name checks") takes such a long time because a good part of it is done manually. That's right, digging through paper at court houses, police stations, Ministry of whatever, those records have to be sorted through. With the roughage that's resulted from the Arab Spring, there's no telling what's happened to records because official buildings have experienced wide-spread ransacking and arson.

And, FYI, Muslim is a religion, not a race, so whatever slight you're feeling is misconstrued.

Wait a second, I won't comment on the claim that most of today's terrorists are Muslims -- I can understand why you believe that

please explain the claim that "most of your kin with similar names are trying to come in with all kinds of destructive intentions."

to me this means that most other Arabs and Muslims have terrorist intentions.

so what you are saying is the majority of people applying for visas to the United States in the Arab and Muslim world are coming here for terrorist acts..

it would be good to know where you got that information..

Lama

quote name='Confused 2' timestamp='1320389230' post='4989154']

Unfortunately, in today's world it is easier to call anybody racist but heaven forbid if a country try and do additional check on countries where more than 99% of the terrorists with ill intentions for the US come from. Being an Arab for you is a problem not because the US is trying to stop you from coming in but because most of your kin with similar names are trying to come in with all kinds of destructive intentions. For once, instead of calling the people trying to stop another 9/11 from happening as 'Racists' maybe you can have the balls to tell those terrorists to 'Stop' so you can have a more normal life just like the rest of us who do have their loyalties and prayers with America.

You know, I'm not even gonna get into this. if you think it is fair to racially select people into AP, then that's fine. I'm not going to try and get into arguments with racist people. I'm not saying that they shouldn't do AP, but overdoing it in the Arab countries is the wrong thing to do.

The airports used to racially select out the Arab travellers, including an Arab-looking woman like me who is a US citizen, and make sure that we went through additional, often time-consuming searches. President Obama realized that this was a racist, backwards practice and he ENDED it. Since then, I've thankfully never been singled out because I have an Arab name, and although I know it still does happen because of racist officers, I'm glad the President is working to put an end to it.

Now, was he able to use his brains a bit and find an alternative way to sift through the good guys and the bad guys in the airport?

Yes.

And you should too.

I know that some people may think what I'm saying is harsh to you, but I'm finding it very offensive that your blatantly racist remarks may be considered acceptable.

Then how do you suggest to sift the good guys from the bad guys ? What is the solution and how would you change things.

Whom would you put in AP and why ? Bring solutions to the table.

AP is a necessary thing to do sometimes. Agreed, but not to every Middle Eastern man with a Muslim name. For us, based on what my congressman and senator have told me, it's not about verifying the relationship... it's about homeland security, and that is where our files are. The embassies have to wait for a security clearance from Homeland Security. Yes, that might be necessary sometimes, but it is racist when it is done to every Middle Eastern man with a Muslim name. We're not all a threat to national security, believe it or not.

The goal of this poll is to see who is experiencing it and whether we can do something about it. I can't necessarily comment on the other kinds of AP out there (validating relationships, etc.. ), as I only know what I know from my experience and speaking with others like me.

Lama

Hi all,

Just trying to figure out how many people are currently in administrative processing (AP) on this forum right now? I know MENA is NOT super active, but I think so many of us are in AP it's ridiculous. Please fill out the poll and let us know what you're experiencing. I'm trying to gather more information about people's different experiences in AP. Apologies if I missed your country in the poll; I tried to base it on the AP conversations that I've been seeing.

Thank you all.

Lama

Folks, I'm confused. When you get the 221g, doesn't this mean you are going into additional administrative processing?

Administrative processing is not about the authenticity of relationships, it is about homeland security?

Am I incorrect about this??

Hi Kimberly,  

That's probably the time that you'll get your NOA2 and your case will be sent to the embassy in Tunisia. After that depending on the embassy there, your fiance will get contacted to put together his application and paperwork and then go for the interview.

A word of advice: don't hold your breath. My fiance is in Lebanon, another Arab/Middle Eastern country and he also has a Muslim name. Everything went smoothly including his interview, and then we were shocked and thrown into the hell that is "additional administrative processing". If you search for it on these forums, you'll find that this is very common for people from Arab/Muslim countries, especially for fiance's who are MEN (not women) and who have Muslim names, like your fiance and mine.

We've been in admin processing for 3 months now.. and counting. No one can give us any information. I've had my congressman inquire into it, but still no budging. I call the State Department weekly and email the embassy bi-weekly.

Just so you know, the consensus seems to be that the vast majority of people get approved after admin processing.. but it can take months .. maybe even a year.

Good luck, but just wanted to give you a heads up. I had no idea and planned my life around him coming here right after his interview. Silly me.

How long was your administrative review?