audelair

update as an FYI for you guys: I called SS. They were able to verify that my wife did indeed get a SSN assigned and they also verified that the card was sent out. She said we could go to the local office with proper ID and get the number written down for us if we were in a hurry. We got in our car to go to the social security office, and on the way, stopped by our mailbox, and luckily, the card was in the mailbox. So we didn't have to go to the office

hmm, what can I do since my wife did not arrive into the US until January 2006. Although we were married in mid-2005 and lived abroad. How should I file? Thanks for any advice

thanks guys for the information. The SS office is closeby, so we may go get it so we can get moving with getting bank accounts setup and looking for work!

My wife applied for her SSN (she is a CR1) last monday and expect to receive the card in a few days. Do you know if we can call or visit the SS office and obtain our number before receiving the card? Thanks!

These sections may apply: ---------------- 9 FAM 40.34 N5 Relief for Non-Meaningful Association: Non-meaningful membership or affiliation... does afford relief from ineligibility in appropriate cases. 9 FAM 40.34 N6.4-2 Membership for Employment: ...solely for the purpose of obtaining, retaining, changing, or advancing in employment commensurate with their educational background and experience, whose memberships were nominal, and who do not appear to have subscribed to communist ideology, may be considered to be within the purview of INA 212(a)(3)(D)(ii). 9 FAM 40.34 N7.1 Cases which Require Advisory Opinions: Consular officers must request the Department's security advisory opinion in all cases involving claimed non-meaningful or non-voluntary memberships by nationals of <list of countries which include, unfortunately, the People's Republic of China> who are, or were during the past five years, members of the Communist Party. When an SAO (security advisory opinion) has been requested, no visa may be issued until the Department's response has been received. ---------------- Likely you will need an SAO for your spouse. If your spouse doesn't qualify according to the above procedure, then she still has a chance with a waiver of ineligibility, as king explained, from the Department of Homeland Security. From what I understand, the SAO's are needed for the non-voluntary and non-meaningful communist memberships. But even if your spouse doesn't qualify (for instance, they decide that she DID in fact believe in communism and that it was voluntary), she still has a chance through the waiver, because she is a spouse of a US citizen.

It has been a SUPER busy past few months for me and my wife. On top of having very limited internet access until recently, my wife finishing her studies, the two of us going on an extended month-long honeymoon, having to take a sudden trip to Taiwan for family reasons, and finally making it back to the US, we've had to deal with a multitude of errands (including looking for new work in a new city). But throughout all this, I kept reminding myself that I owe a LOT of my current happiness to the CFL community. I am certain that without CFL and without Visajourney, we would have waited until after my wife finished her studies and returned to China (which, after he thesis, would have been summer 2006) before even beginning the visa process. It would probably have been almost 2008 by the time she could make it to the United States. During that time, it would have been a huge struggle with a long distance relationship, or me having to find work in China. Instead, with the help of people here (helping me learn and deal with specific issues related to Chinese) and the people on Visajourney (helping me deal with specific Australia DCF issues), I successfully completed the entire process, achieving a CR1 visa in only a month and a half. Several months later, we arrived successfully through Los Angeles, and only 2.5 weeks later (just today), we received her permanent residence green card. I just wanted to express my wife and I's gratefulness. We are so happy to be living here, together. Everyday we remind ourselves how fortunate we should feel. I feel like being a part of this community going through the visa process has helped us both grow as individuals, and as a couple. For those that are still waiting, keep your chin up, and for those that were successful, big big congratulations! If anyone ever has a question on applying DCF in a third country, and the complications that might arise (and there definitely were a few!), please feel free to PM me. I'll certainly still be hanging around the forum. Thanks again to everyone on CFL!

From what I gathered on the I-864's, W-2's are only required if you filed a joint tax return with your spouse (or previous spouse) and using only your own income to qualify. If your 2004 tax return was a single return, than you probably don't even need the W-2 unless they specifically ask for one. In any case, I gave the Sydney embassy copies of my W-2's for all three years. I kept the originals with me, in case they asked for it. They never did, so I gather that the copies were sufficient (and likely not even needed in the first place).

thanks for the replies. Hopefully the GC arrives without a hitch, but i will wait the standard 2 weeks for the SSN before going to the office. So is it absolutely necessary to have the SSN before working?

My wife is entering the US on a CR1 (through DCF process). From what I understand, the Green card should be mailed automatically (hopefully within a month). The SS# is also supposed to be generated and mailed out soon. However, I have heard from some people that despite entering on an immigrant visa, they had to apply for a SS# at the local SS office. Is this true? Additionally, if we are still waiting for her SS card, is she already assigned a number and how can we find out what that number is? Anyone that has gone through this no the best way to deal with it? We hope that my wife can start looking for a job immediately and sign up for healthcare and everything as well. Thanks!

Technically, no. The letter from the employer is supposed to be all that is required, but many people provide the W-2 and provide three years' worth. 172933[/snapback] for the I-864, at least, the W-2 forms are only required if you filed for a joint return and only using your own income to qualify. I provided them anyway, though, just in case.

cool thanks. i figured it might have been something that was relevant in the past! I never heard of anyone on here talk about such things before Thanks for the info!

I have to admit that both times I went to see her after a long separation, i was a bit out of my wits at the airport. But we both decided it was because of the jetlag

gather as much stuff as you have. This may include phone logs, but if it doesn't, make sure you have other stuff. It turned out that I needed everything, including testimonies from friends and family. Phone logs that show that you talk a LOT (like, an hour a day at least) would seem to me to be very good evidence of a bona fide relationship. There are a few good calling cards out there that offer a decent rate. Under 3 cents a minute

That's what i was thinking too. But i just wonder if there is any validity about this, perhaps in the past? He is a Chinese and lived overseas for many years, so maybe this was something that was important before, but not anymore?

I have a Chinese friend here in Australia who tells me that my wife should change her passport after arriving in the US. He says that it's better to get one issued at an overseas embassy, as it is easier to get it replaced in the future, and other countries like to see that she got a passport overseas. He also told me that my wife eventually has to do it, because as a PR in the US, China will expect her to have an overseas passport. Is this true? I have never heard of anything like this discussed here on the board, and I did a search and couldn't find anything. For those that had wives arrive in the US on CR1 or IR1, did she have to change her passport? I thought she could just use that until it expires. And upon expiration, she would just apply for a new one at the Chinese embassy? Thanks!

as warpedbored, the official rule is that if you were in Canada for less than 12 months duration, you don't need a police certificate. But some consulates are different. In the Sydney consulate, they require police certificates for every country that you resided in for more than 6 months (instead of the usual 12). They state this in writing on one of their forms, and thus, we had to get an Australian police certificate for my wife. That is unfortunate that Canada takes so long. I just checked the website for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and it states this: Q: Can I pay an extra fee to have my application expedited? A: No. CFSS processes all applications in order of receipt. If you can contact the embassy in Guangzhou (with information on when you were in Canada, and for how long), maybe you can get some good news and find out you don't need the police certificate.

thanks for the links. wow, that thread was scary to read... so glad it got resolved!

Congratulations on the visa, and best of luck to everything! I'm so glad things pulled through and that the interview wasn't too stressful on Amy.

I was putting my wife's newly acquired passport and CR1 visa along with the big sealed package in a safe place, and my wife asked what happens if we lose the stuff or get it stolen. I shuddered at the question and said that would be my biggest nightmare and really don't want to think about it! After thinking about it though, i was wondering what the procedure would be? If you lose it, of course you have to get another chinese passport, which would already be a big enough pain. But how about the visa (and the sealed package?)? I'm just wondering if you would have to reapply for a visa, or if it can be reissued? I did a search for this and saw that this question never came up, so i'm glad to hear this hasn't happened to anyone here, at least not recently!

My wife's sister had to take care of the notarial certificates for her (which turned into a further complication since my wife couldn't go in person). But it took her 3 times to successfully get them. My point is that you can be surprised how much easier it can be if you go back at a later date and talk to a different person! Try that a couple of times, and if it looks like the bribe is necessary, then i'd say do what it takes. So sorry to hear you are running into this problem, but I would say most likely you'll successfully get it sooner or later. The first 2 times my wife's sister tried to get them, i thought a bribe would be necessary, but the 3rd time was a charm, and no complication at all

Hey, we got the visa today! We were so worried there would be some last minute complications! For those that got the CR1 visa, i have a qusetion about how it says "upon endorsement..." it serves as a temporary permanent residence proof for 1 year. The reason I ask this is that US Nationals are allowed entry into New Zealand without a visa. What does "upon endorsement" mean? Does it mean she needs to enter the US and get it stamped before it can be considered a temporary permanent residence? For those that got IR1 or CR1 did the visa get stamped upon entry? I would LOVE not to hvae to apply for the New Zealand visa, because we are terrified of letting this passport leave our hands, as I'm sure all of you can understand! Thanks for everything, and we're so happy to have the visa finally!

I have made several connections in LA, and would only be comfortable with such a short layover if they were domestic flights. Going international, you will very likely have to go through security again. I've had experience going international with a connection at LAX, going to Asia, Australia, and Europe, and they all took a lot of time and included a second security check. Also, LAX can get very hectic. Glad to hear you got it extended to 3 hours!

Good luck and have a good trip!

Wow! I admire your persistence and patience, and congratulations!

yea, it's best to inquire with the consulate directly and ask, and tell them exactly what type of visa you are there on, where the marriage took place, etc. The few things to consider: - What visa (if any) is the USC on in that country? Additional residence requirement? - Does the marriage have to take place there? - What status is the intending immigrant in that country? For Australia, it seemed to have the most relaxed rules. The USC can be just a visitor on a simple tourist visa. The marriage can take place anywhere, as long as it is translated into English. And the intending immigrant can be a 3rd country national as long as they can show they are in that country for a purpose OTHER than visiting or for filing the visa (i.e. someone no a student or work visa can file).