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thanks! Now, I have nothing left to worry about... I just got all of the papers on Saturday in the mail, just ordered all of the new stuff for our new apartment that we are renting, and just moved in all of the old stuff that I did not toss or sell! I even arranged transport for us back from NYC for this weekend. Now, I just need to get good work done, and finally be reunited later this week!!!! Thanks again.

Thanks Trigg! That is what I thought when I was reading all of the papers. However, knowing that you did the same and seem to have all in order, is greatly reassuring. Thanks!

Hello! When I read through all of the papers to file the i-485 document, it looks like my darling will *not* need a new police certificate. However, she has been talking with someone who is coming in as a K3 and swears that she will need one. When we were on the phone together, I read through the paperwork again and told her that I do not think that she will need one. Am I right on this? All I can see is that it says that people in "some special" classes, need one. However, I can not find the supplement which talks more about this online (although it says it should be there). Ok, thanks everyone for your help!

Carl, When I entered back to the US on January 30th into JFK, I asked them about the stamp. The lady told me that they give it to all incoming K1's. I said that she will come from China, and the lady there told me, that it is the same. All K1's coming into JFK, as of January 30th 2005, are given a stamp, *IF THEY ASK FOR ONE*, at no fee. I hope that it has not changed since then! Do you know if this is the case that is has changed since then? Thanks!

What Frank said!!! I could not believe when I took Quan to get a number issued at SSA after we married. I never saw an office so totally full of stupid people as I did that day. Very frustrating! I don't have enough free time from work to sample every SSA office in the area and see if they are all equally as stupid! Tony, I am really sorry to hear that you had a pain in the *$$ time at the SSA office. My darling is arriving this week, and we want to go shortly thereafter to get her SSN. If it is ok, could you either tell me in the thread, or via email or PM which office you went to in Boston, so that we could try a different one? I am sorry to hear about what happened, and I know that this can not improve it, but at least, we can hope to not go down the same path. Thanks for your help!

Congrats on your Fei coming through!!! Wait, no one knows what ever happened to the cookie-monster? to the cookiester? to the cookie-in-ator? Too bad in a way...at least she kept the discussions quite lively at the time, and kept us all on our toes about how small cultural and personality differences can blow up if people are not careful (Trying to see the bright side, even if it is really hard to find...). I certainly hope that everyone who is well intentioned makes it through and can be reunited with family, and work to synergize in the future.

If she wants to become a USC, then follow the other person's advice! Just let her know that by giving up the Chinese citizenship, that in the future, for her to go to China, or for you to open a business in China, will be extremely difficult. Usually, Chinese people who become americans face a tougher time of going back than ethnic Chinese who were born to parents who did the same thing. If this is the decision that you both want to make, then good luck with all that goes along with it (as well as the paperwork)!

PJ, I posted a link to the HK immigration website a few months back (can not remember, but search for it and you can find it). If she has a valid visa, and a return ticket (in this case, the one back to the US, and some proof of going in China), then she can stay in Hong Kong/Omen for up to 7 days. If she needs more time than that, go to the local Chinese consulate/embassy in the US. Good Luck! when I emailed the people in HK about this, they got back to me in about 24 hours and were really nice and helpful.

A K1 *does NOT* need a work visa to work, IF THEY HAVE AN EAD stamp or card. When you arrive at JFK airport, with a K1 visa, the stamp is automatically placed in your passport. You can hence work for up to 90 days (by which time, if you marry immediately and file for an EAD, I hope we can have it!). If you did not get this stamp (because you went through an airport which does not serve many immigrants, and hence does not know about the stamp), they I think you need to go to the local office to *get* the stamp. Good Luck!

The facts in this case are obvious: the numbers of infants who are dying prematurely due to hunger, pollution, and preventable disease are huge. the numbers are staggering. they make me so sad. and hence, this is a problem which we should address. the numbers are even more staggering when a lack of development is considered. however, the numbers from china, and from the us are roughly on par with each other. hence, adoption in the two countries, should be encouraged equally. i do not see this being the case in the us. and if it were merely concern for the kids, then the us would refocus its efforts to encourage adoptions from many of the central and east african nations, the south east Asian nations, and from the Caribbean nations and high population density regions in the us. but, i do not see this happening. there are *so* many easy solutions...but politics prevent them. here are a few i have recently thought of: 1. close the 'visa issuing point' in taiwan. have all people from taiwan, Macao, and Hong Kong interview for all visas in Hong Kong (which is one of the least worked staffs in the world). reshift all of these Chinese speaking staff to the mainland and use them to form a second mainland IV unit as well as more people to process NIV too. 2. have all people with their hukou in Guangdong interview at the HK consulate for IV visas (since they speak the same dialect anyway, and can all get a 7-day pass to HK). This would free up resources. 3. open a consulate in mongolia, and shift all Mongolian passport and north Korean passport visa applicants to this consulate (ie: not to mainland china anymore). 4. shift some of the staff that speak mandarin out of the singaporean embassy and into the mainland consulates (Singapore is another of the most underworked consulates that the US has in Asia). If this causes a problem, add some more English speaking people from the too many consulates that the US has in England or Canada to Singapore. These are all so easy to accomplish that they do not require a congressional law or bill to be passed, merely administrative prerogative. They are easy and fast to set-up. And they would make the system far more efficient, at least as far as East Asia and Singapore are concerned.

Curse on you Carl! May the wind of a thousand camels blow directly in your face! Mark... I am seeing the future... And your kids, wait, they are even more liberal than I am! Muhahaha! -- Good Luck getting home, together (I think that is the right decision)!!

That's a damn dirty lie Kim!!! You and your wife need to apologize now!!! No one has EVER stormed the consulate!!! You weren't even there, your wife wasn't there, your mom wasn't there!!! Why must you make up lies??? Why do you hate Chinese women so much??? ahem... er... oops... Sorry, wrong thread lol Congratulations Mark!!!!!! :D Oh! *that thread* Wow, I can barely remember it myself...I think that my first 2-3 posts were when that thread was just reaching its climax... BTW: does anyone know what ever happened to the people involved in that thread?

Hey! At least everywhere in China I have been, I have had access to some sort of bed (or other type of similar sleeping device ... with in Pingyao, getting to sleep on top of one of those heated raised late Ming and early Qing platforms, being a true historical and comfort treat!!! (if you want to see pics, feel free to PM me))! In many places (such as Korea where it is more tradition, and in SE asia where people can not afford one) the floor is where most people sleep!!

You can go to *any* hospital. I happen to know that the one Rong went to in Beijing returned the results the same day (although it took ALL day to do so). Since you are closest to Guangzhou, I recommend going there. However, be careful! There have been some issues with people getting ripped off by doctors/staff there on the take... Also, in terms of anywhere in the world you go, China is similar for danger as a function of transportation: car (most dangerous) bus (next) . . . airplane (quite safe) . . . train (likely the safest of them all) And, if you want to feel better, the busses in thailand are far worse than in China, since there, most of the time, the condition of the road is terrible, in addition to everything Carl has said! Yikes!!!

Jenny, My uncle (an accountant) says that in addition to having to give you your money back, that you *may* be able to argue for *interest* (the same way that late payers need to pay interest). Good Luck and get a-filing!!!

Jenny, The SOS clinic will do the vaccinations for you, for an extra fee. Rong declined them, but since your husband *must* get them (since he is on an IV), I would recommend getting them done at SOS. Rong told me they were very careful to be clean and use sterile equipment!

Once she has the green card, that is all you have to do, unless you are given a 2 year conditional green card, then you will need to remove the conditions within 90 days of its expiring. Once in possession of a valid green card, she and you have nothing else to do! A green card acts like a visa, which never needs to be renewed, and allows unlimited entry to the US. It also acts like a tourist visa to go to Canada or Mexico, and makes your SO obtaining normal tourist visas to the EU nations and others much easier. It allows your SO to obtain a normal social security card, without requiring DHS authorization. It allows for many many things. It entitles yours SO to work, and in some states to even vote in state-wide or local elections. It entitles your SO to be employed in almost any job in the nation (with a few working for the Military or Intelligence or other "critical" US government departments, being excluded). So, just get through it, and get the card, and enjoy! You do not have to do anything from that point forward...and be happy you are so close to done!

ps. we applied for a K1

Thank you! Oops...btw for those who do not know...My name is Jason. Thanks again to everyone.

Thank you everyone very much for all of your help and your ideas and your words and your stories and your experiences! My darling, Rong, told me that she indeed has a K1 Visa! This is extremely wonderful news. She will stay in Guangzhou until she and her parents leave on an afternoon train back to Qingdao (where she is from) tomorrow. Then she will fly on the 9th (we already reserved our tickets) to New York JFK on the direct Beijing to JFK flight. So fast! So much to do. But so happy, that even if I only get 4 hours a night between now and then moving all of my stuff into the new place (that is after purchasing it first!), taking classes, getting everything cleaned and in order, etc., that I will be flying even higher than when I was a little kid in the open candy-shop! I will not go into lurking away from the boards, I promise. Good Luck to everyone currently working through the process, no matter where the are! And if anyone has any questions about China or about Environmental Science (what I am studying) or anything in particular, send me a PM/Email! If I can not help, at least I may be able to point you in the right direction. so happy!!! but i have to run... thanks again everyone.

Two different suggestions: 1. talk with my darling!! She knows the Chinese contact for the broker that I use to always get me my incredibly cheap flights. They will send her the ticket that I am paying for here, today. Talk with her! See what can happen. I bet that if I talked to my broker on this side (or you did) and then they went via Beijing, you could fly out together. The only thing though is you must fly from Beijing to get the tickets. However, trains are really cheap inside of China. You could likely get the entire flight (for one way) for under 500$US/person (to the East Coast) and under 400$/person to the West coast. 2. go directly to the local university. there are many students who "work" part time for airline companies. They can usually get you a 20-30% discount. If you are not sure how this works, find my darling today when she comes out with what I hope is a visa! She can help you out with this (or at least telling you how to do it). Good Luck

Thanks for at least raising the issue Jenny! I think the fact that you of all people, who is obviously pregnant and a US citizen who can speak some Chinese, will do the future people who have to go through the process some good. I am not sure in the end if anything will change, but I know that you tried, and that at least for the short term, things may get better. Thanks for fighting the good fight, and now, get to rest and enjoying yourself before the stress/adrenaline hits when you get to GZ. You will be absolutely fine...and your husband will be a star!

Yeppers. My darling was asked to come back at 1pm too. Luckily after getting inside she was one of the first to be interviewed. She should be back in a few hours from now (about 3 more) to pick up her passport with visa (at least that is what she was told with the white slip yesterday). If anyone sees her (she is with both of her parents) say hello! And for all of you milling about and grinding down your shoes, there is a really nice Ming Era house (one of the most nice ones in all of southern china) which is not too far away, only 2 subway stops! Ask me for directions if you want... Good Luck, and remember, be friendly, speak English as much as possible, and it will all go fine!!! (at least I hope...)

Oh! Good luck.

That price is descent. However, my darling was the supervisor of such a similar company back in her home city before she started the interview process. I never though to tell people about this fact, but if anyone wants such a deal, I can talk with her, and we can likely arrange a large discount or extra bonuses for people through CFL (that is, if they have not already broken their links with her since she stopped working there). If nothing else, she can help with setup and other such things! And wow, you should see the demo photos that they arranged a few years back...stunning!