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Step 3 C Medical and Interview When the DS-260 application and supporting documents have been processed and approved, you will receive another e-mail outlining what you should do to register for your interview. During the interview at the embassy, your spouse will submit an I-864 and other supporting documents for your spouse. I will explain how to prepare these below. The other part in this step is the medical. The e-mail sent by the embassy doesnt have too many instructions for the medical because it is not done by the embassy, but by one of their approved panel physicians. Again, remember that if there is anything differing from these instructions and what the embassy sent you, follow THEIR instructions. PREPARING FOR THE MEDICAL This medical MUST be done by one of their panel physicians. There are only four of them, in Guangzhou, Beijing, Fujian, and Shanghai. The one in Guangzhou is just across the street from the side of the embassy; its on the fifth floor of the Poly Building. It is generally easiest to do the medical on Monday or Tuesday, and schedule the interview for Thursday. That way you can do everything in one trip. You need to give yourself time to do the medical and get the results before the interview, as they are given in a sealed envelope to the consular officer during the interview. You can make an appointment ahead of time, but I would personally suggest to not bother with it. They send you an e-mail and a text message saying you need to show it to them when you arrive, but that never happened for my wife. Hundreds of people get their medicals done every day, so just make sure you arrive early. It is far better to get in line at 7:00 before the doors open to get a number earlier in the day versus showing up later and waiting inside for hours to finally start the medical. We showed up just after 7 and got number 21. They open the doors to give out the numbers just after 7:30, and dont start doing the medicals until around 8. We got everything done and left around 10:30. There is little you need to do in preparation for the medical. You will need to fill out this form, as well as this medical history form. I didnt know you needed to fill this out before, and ended up paying a cut throat office on the first floor 100 RMB to fill it out and print off the two pages. The medical office, strangely enough, has no blank forms and will not let you in if you havent filled this out beforehand. The medical is very straightforward. You walk in, get your number, wait for it to be called, and do a standard physical examination, x-ray of lungs, blood test, and get a round of vaccines. Its pretty hard to find vaccination records in China, so even though your spouse likely had them as a child, unless you have the documentation they will need to get them again. Its not a big deal, and only costs just over 200 RMB to get them all done at the medical center. What you will need to bring to the medical: • The filled out forms (mentioned above) • Copies of the two emails sent by the embassy (i.e. the one instructing you to fill out the DS-260, as well as the one instructing you two schedule your interview) • Copy of the visa interview confirmation page (after you've scheduled your interview, you can print this page confirming the time and other information) • Original passport of the beneficiary • 8 two inch passport photos of the beneficiary (white background) After the medical is finished, you will be given a yellow vaccination book, another sheet explaining when to get the second and third rounds of shots (can be done in the US), and another sheet of paper instructing them on when they can return to pick up their results. We got my wifes medical done first thing in the morning on Tuesday, and were told we could pick them up Thursday at 8:00, just a few hours before her interview. That time worked fine for us, but be aware that you may not be able to get expedited results. When I asked, the lady just scoffed at me and told me there was no way to get the results any faster than that. To get the results, bring another copy of the interview confirmation page, original passport, and the paper they gave saying when to come and pick up the results. Make sure you are on time to pick them up! For example, if you were told to come at 8 to pick them up and miss that time, you have to come back during their open pick up hours to get them. I believe those dont start until 10. It may not be a big deal to you, but if your interview is also that morning, it could make for some problems. You will be given two sheets of paper, a sealed envelope, and a sealed CD. The sealed ones are to be given to the consular during the interview. Dont open them beforehand. The other two papers will be needed when coming into the United States. - I don't think there ARE "two sheets of paper" that are needed at the POE, but you WILL want to have paid your green card fee - rjw PREPARING FOR THE INTERVIEW First and foremost, here is a link to the instruction packet sent by the embassy. It by itself is already pretty helpful in letting you know what to prepare, but not so much in how to get those things. Much like when originally petitioning with the I-130, this step also includes providing a lot of documentation and forms. Everyones situation is a little different, so the documents you provide may be different than mine. Just make sure you get the required ones, and follow the instruction packet the embassy sends as well. I prefer to be over prepared, so I brought originals and copies of all of these things, plus all the documents from when I submitted the I-130. They told my wife I prepared too much, but that is better than not enough. Note: I use the terms applicant and beneficiary interchangeably. Beginning with the DS-260 part of the application process, the embassy and visa center seem to stop using the term beneficiary and instead use applicant. Example Cover Letter TIPS ON HOW TO GET THE DOCUMENTS AND FILL OUT THE FORMS Notarial Documents - GongZhengShu (公证书֤) - see Chinese Essential Documents - White Books In China, a ֤ can copy, translate, and notarize official documents. These are literally all over the place, so you shouldnt have too big of a problem finding one. The hardest part is getting them to produce these documents for you. Sometimes you will be sent to the main֤ of your spouses home city to get these. Sometimes you will just have bad luck with whoever is in the office. The best thing to do is just try and find another one nearby and see what they say there. Piece of advice, dont tell them you came from another one just before. Now that that is out of the way, there are 5 kinds of notarial certificates you will be needing, 6 if you have children that need birth certificates translated. Generally, you will bring all the required documentation, they will photocopy what they need, and call you within a week to come pick up the white books/notarial certificates. They are often called white books because that is exactly what they are. The official name is a ֤. They are basically a bound pamphlet that includes photos of whatever was copied, and a notarized sheet and signature stating what type of notarized document it is. It also includes translations of everything and a notarized sheet and signature stating that the translations are correct. This is the only format that the embassy will accept for these documents. Also, the embassy only wants original notarial certificates! They will keep the ones you give them. In case you might need these in the future, I would strongly suggest ordering two copies of each one when you are there. For each kind, we paid 230 for the first booklet and 40 for the second. Its much cheaper (and less stressful) to just get two of each one the first time there. Marital Status Certificates ֤֤ When married in China, both you and your spouse will be giving a red book wedding certificate. You need to get both of these notarized, one for each of you. As the petitioner, yours is used when you file the I-130. Your spouses will be used at the interview stage. We had to go to the main ֤ of the city in which we originally got our wedding certificates produced. Household Register Certificate ( not needed - never has been, unless asked for ) This one may not even be required. It doesn't mention it in the instructions and the officer never asked for it in my wife's interview. It was the only one he gave back to her from the packet she handed him as well. I had seen it was needed online here, and it may have been before, but it looks like it isn't required anymore. However you can choose whether or not you want to get one of these. Just bring the household register to the֤ Gong Zheng Chu, or 公证处. Police Certificate֤ This one was a little harder to get. Basically, we got a paper, and I don't know where from, saying my wife hadn't committed any crimes. Then, we went to the֤ ??? and got a sort of form from them there. We took that to the Public Security Bureau and then they gave us another paper. That was the one we finally took back to the֤ Gong Zheng Chu, or 公证处 to get the police record certificate. I'm not sure if this is how it works in every city, so I would call ahead and check what their procedures are. This certificate is only valid for one year, so don't get it too far ahead of time. Birth Certificate - see Chinese Essential Documents - White Books The notation on the notarial birth certificate is 出生公证书, or chu sheng gong zheng shu, which is what you need to ask for at the Gong Zheng Chu, or 公证处֤֤֤. This one was the hardest one for us to get. China didn't keep the best birth records until recently, so chances are your spouse won't have one. Most֤ will usually just look at the household register to produce this, but if they don't, you might be in for a difficult time. We ended up having to go to the Public Security Bureau for the district in which she was born, show them my wife's household register, then have them just type up a simple document that said my wife's name, her ID number, place and date of birth, and who her parents were. Then we brought that back to the ֤ and they produced the document for it. Even though the information is exactly what was written in the household register, the lady there still demanded we bring an original birth certificate or go to the hospital and get a blood test done to produce one. After multiple visits and phone calls, we finally got her to accept this. Hopefully the one you go to doesn't do this to you. You will also need to bring two Chinese standard white background passport style photos (or only one if you don't want two copies). It is the 2size. Evidence of Support (Form I-864, Tax Documents, and Documents Establishing US Domicile) This thread should be helpful for how to fill out the I-864 and what parts should be left blank. Your purpose with this portion of the application is to prove that you still have sufficient ties to America and a place to go back to. You want the officer to know that your life in America will be as good, if not better, than in China. As part of that, you will need to provide your tax transcripts (which you can get with a request to the IRS), documents establishing your US domicile, and fill out an affidavit of support (a Form I-864). You need to show that your income is at least 125% of the poverty line for you and your spouse (and children, if sponsoring them too). If your regular income does not reach that, or you would just like a boost to this section, you can also show proof of any other assets, such as savings accounts, property, and other funds. If you cannot reach the poverty line by yourself, you will need a joint sponsor. They will need to fill out a separate I-864, give you a copy of their passport, and their most recent year of tax transcripts. My father got three years just to be safe, and the embassy took all of it. I also provided my three most recent years, and they kept all of that information too. For documents establishing domicile, this will also be different from person to person. Any official documents with your name and address on it work. I provided bank statements, scholarship letters, other school documents, a letter to show up for jury duty (which I obviously couldn't make), and some official documents from my church. If you have copies of deeds for property I imagine that would be even better. A letter from your future (or current employer) is useful too. Have it put on a company letterhead, state your position, how long you have been employed (if a previous or current employer), your income, and anything else you think might be useful. In our case, what I provided was sufficient. Resume This basically works like any normal resume would. Just make sure to add the information explicitly asked for in the instructions. Take particular note of international travel history section, any publications written, and plans for obtaining employment in the United States. Other Documents This is all the documentation that applied to us. If your spouse has prison or court records, military records, or anything else mentioned in the instruction packet sent by the embassy, get that as well. For more evidence of our relationship, I included more recent pictures of us together, when my parents came from America to visit. Whatever you bring here is only going to be seen by the consular officer doing the short interview, so it may or may not be in your best interest to bring too much. Note: (from the embassy instruction packet) All documents not in English must be accompanied by certified English translations. A competent translator must certify the translation and swear to the accuracy of the document before a notary public. THE ACTUAL INTERVIEW Once you've made it to this point, the best thing you can do for yourself is to calm down and be confident. Arrive no more than 30 minutes before your appointment time; there is no need to come any earlier. You will not be able to enter the embassy with your spouse. Make sure that they know what all the documents you have prepared are. I would suggest putting everything together with a cover letter, and writing extra notes about things that might need to be explained (i.e. documents proving domicile, odd things in financials, tax returns, etc.). Ive also heard some say sending them in with your original passport lets the officer know you are outside waiting in person, and that it can convince them that you're personally invested in a real relationship. The first thing your spouse will do is turn in the documentation. If there is anything like relationship evidence, they will likely give that back for your spouse to show the consular officer conducting the interview. Your spouse will then pay the interview fee, take the receipt back, and wait to be called in to the interview. Everyone's interview experience will be a little different. From what I understand, they will address everything that seems to be red flags. In our instance, we were married after a 3 month courtship, the majority of which was while I was in America. I'm also still not finished with school. The officer asked a lot about why we got married so quickly, and how many people attended our wedding (thankfully we brought pictures of that). He did spend time looking at the few pictures we brought. He asked how my wife how I would support her while I was going to school. He also asked what my parents names were, where I lived, what school I attended, what my major was, and what my birthday was...little things that they expect a real couple to know. You can't memorize or prepare for these, but my wife's advice is to just treat it like a normal conversation and answer truthfully. It should only take a couple of minutes. From appointment time to leaving the embassy, my wife was inside for just over an hour. I can't speak to the quality of everyone interviewing, and I'm not taking away from others bad experiences with them, but of all the people Ive met inside the embassy, including the man interviewing my wife, I have never met one with a bad attitude. My wife was originally worried about this, as she saw her interviewer interview an applicant before her and she thought he was way too stern. But she went in with a cheerful attitude, cracked a few jokes, and he was smiling and laughing with her by the end. Your own attitude can go a long way. If the interview is passed, the consular officer will give your spouse a slip, keep their passport, and they can just walk right out of the embassy. I'm not sure what happens if there is missing documentation or additional processing needed. They don't give yellow slips to those who pass immigration interviews; its a white paper. I didn't see any blue or pink slips either. You can check the status of your passport and visa here, here, or by logging in to the ustraveldocs home page. If the first few days you see that it says administrative processing, don't get too worried. Even if its just in a pile waiting to get shipped out it will say that until its shipped. If that doesn't change after a longer period of time, then there might be some other issue that they will contact you about. If issued, you will be able to pick up the passport and visa from the CITIC bank location you previously registered for. Dont open the enclosed immigration packet, as that will be given to the border official when arriving in the US. I hope this guide wasn't overkill on the explanations, but I really wanted to be as helpful as possible to anyone else that comes down the same path me and my wife have. Again, thank you to all that helped me get to this point, and good luck to everyone else that follows!