mrjones

I think they took away that month on her EAD because you failed to report your wife's foreign income on your income taxes.

This is an extension on: http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?...opic=15648&st=0 Lee provided some good information on publication 519 and alien resident status. If choosing to treat a non-resident alien spouse as a resident alien, those who were married in 2005 might be able to claim a foreign earned income exclusion. Most Chinese probably did not even come close to earning $80,000 and by claiming the exclusion, you can report the exact income without any creativity. According to Publication 54: To claim the foreign earned income exclusion, the foreign housing exclusion, or the foreign housing deduction, you must satisfy all three of the following requirements. 1. Your tax home must be in a foreign country. 2. You must have foreign earned income. 3. (paraphrasing here): A U.S. resident alien who is a Bona Fide Foreign Residence and physically present in the foreign country for at least 330 full days during any period of 12 consecutive months. The Bona Fide residence must be for the entire tax year, but the 330 full days during 12 consecutive months can span between 2004-2005. If anybody is interested in reading more, Pub 54, Chapter 4 is at: http://www.irs.gov/publications/p54/ch04.html Don't know if anyone reading this has either claimed that exclusion before, or thought about it; but it seems like a valid option.

I agree with everything Lee wrote. This link provides a nice little summary of the topic in this thread: http://www.finance.cch.com/text/c60s10d039.asp I'll be looking at taxes soon myself (after I mail out the damn AOS package -hopefully Friday). My wife was working full time in China, but her wages were so low (compared to US income) truthfully reporting it, with the foreign tax credit, may work out well.

Thanks to everyone that replied. We won't take any chances. My wife will contact her father and have him send us another copy of her birth certificate. We're waiting on blood tests from a family doctor to provide to the Civil Surgeon. Aside from the birth certificate and vaccination appendix, everything else is done. I've been following David's checklist from the AOS FAQ and that's where I saw the birth certificate requirement. David, if you read this post, your efforts have been invaluable. If your travels ever take you to or around Chapel Hill, North Carolina; dinner and drinks are on me.

My wife told me that her birth certificate was sealed in the K-1 envelope that was taken by the customs official upon entry into the US. Has this happened to anyone else? I'm not sure whether we need to try to obtain another copy of her birth certificate for the AOS package, or don't need to send it in the AOS package because they should already have it. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Thank you both for your replies. I called back and a second agent told me that we need to send the supplement..only after I read it to her from the application form. I thought it sounded too good to be true.

Like some others, we've been struggling to figure out the I-693 requirements. My wife had her Medical Examination in Shanghai in October 2005. Those records were taken by customs when we arrived in the US. My local USCIS sub office website indicates that an I-693 is required when filing the I-485. Based on what I've read, I should only need to seek a Civil Surgeon for vaccinations and complete a supplemental I-693. The local sub office website never mentioned anything about a supplemental form so I called a Federal toll free number, 1 (800) 870-3676, for more information. Eventually I was transferred to the AOS department (surprisingly everything happened quickly) and was told that in order to receive the K-1, my wife had to have her medical examination AND vaccinations up to date and approved by the embassy. That information was taken by customs and should be in the USCIS sub office. I was told that I DO NOT have to see a Civil Surgeon for AOS filing. I might have to do this for the interview, but at this time it is not necessary because the USCIS already has the information. Does this information match with other people's experiences? For the record, the USCIS agent that provided me with this information was Amy, ID 6647. PS. Wishing everyone a safe, happy, and healthy, new year.

My SO never received the first P3 package supposedly sent by the Embassy on April 8. On May 3 we contacted the embassy to send another package. The Embassy requested that my fiancee fax them her mailing address in Chinese characters at 86-20-8121-8341 before they would send a second mailing. She received the second mailing on May 16. About a week later I received P3 in the US. I don't know if that was the first package that was sent to me by mistake or if they automatically send a copy to the sponser when a second mailing request is made. The bottom line is that you should either email or call the embassy to re-send the P-3. The P4/interview dates seem to be based on the embassy receiving the completed P3. Our interview was a month behind others who had filed around the same time. The longer you wait for the P3, the longer you wait for the K-1 visa. Good luck.

Scott, My SO can read and write English fairly well but her listening and speaking are very limited. I told her that if she doesn't understand a question, ask if the VO can write it down. She told me that she understood his first question, which was, "Do you speak English?" Her answer was, "A little". That's as far as they got. She could not understand the next question, stared at him for a moment, and asked if he could write it down. He immediately called over a Chinese interpreter and that's how they did they interview. She passed the interview. I don't think you need to be too concerned about her not speaking English. Hope this helps.

We flew in from Korea and had no problem going through customs and immigration. Since the lines were designated for either US citizens or non-citizens, I asked one of the officials if I could go through the same entry as my SO. He told me a specific line to enter. My SO seemed to think another line was mandatory for Chinese and headed there on her own. After catching up with her, I asked a second official standing nearby who directed me to the same line as the original. By the time we reached the line, we were at the end. Immigration seemed to want to get people through quickly and opened up a second table. The official at the table asked for the envelope and explained that he would keep certain papers and we would receive them in the mail a few weeks later. Even with the line delay (and I restroom break for me) we still got to the baggage area before our luggage arrived to go through customs. Nobody asked any questions and we got our luggage back in quickly. The time between connecting flights was 8 hours. We got through immigration and customs so fast, that we still had to wait until Delta could issue us a boarding pass for the next flight (they cannot do so until 6 hours before the flight). Just an aside, the LAX terminal was about the deadest terminal I've ever been in. Maybe the other LA terminals are better, but this was horrible. We had spent 4 hours waiting in Korea, but there was so much going on it wasn't too bad. LAX was like waiting for paint to dry.

Culture has something to do with it, but relationships are as varied and complex as the individuals that comprise the relationship. From my own experience, I cannot categorize how Chinese women choose to express love any more than I can American women. I've never seen exactly the same expression from any two individuals. Like the US, China is a big country with a variety of cultural differences within each province. Each individual is a product of their culture and personal life experience. In responsding to your question, a baby boomer vintage television commercial tag line paraphrase comes to mind "Only your SO knows for sure".

Thanks for keeping these records. I'm still in China right now (Shaoxing) but wanted to let you know that we passed the interview (Oct. 19). There were many people lined up for 7:00, 8:00, and 9:00 interviews. Ours was for 8. They started admitting the 7:00 line in at about 7:20 and began working on the 8:00 line at about 7:35. I saw my SO go up to the 5th floor at about 7:50 and didn't see her again until 11:15. The whole morning I only saw one foreigner waiting. Around 10:00 I saw him walking out with his SO and asked about what was going on. Apparently his SO never received all of the P4 papers and was told to come back in two days. He told me that my SO probably wouldn't get out until 11:00 which is what one of the "guards" who spoke English also told me. When she arrived with the acceptance we immediately arranged for a flight back to Shaoxing on Saturday morning. Just before the Embassy closed on Wednesday we received a call at the hotel that they never took her fingerprints. She was told to come back at 9:00 on 10/20 but her visa would not be ready for pickup until Monday. That was a real problem for us, but the next day we worked it out for a Friday pickup. There were a large number of foreigners waiting on Thursday, but my SO told me that there were far fewer Chinese waiting on the 5th floor. I only waited about 30 minutes for her to finish the fingerprints. For anybody picking up the visa, going around 11:00 AM seems to be a good time as the lines have diminished and the wait is minimal. Good luck to everyone.

Doug, It seems Randy might have a point about lawyers. Although my wait has been longer than average, partially due to lawyer problems, it has not been nearly as long as your wait. Like several others, yesterday I found out that our P4 was mailed on 8/29. My eligilibility date was June 6 and it seems GUZ was interviewing April dates in September and May dates in October. They seem to be more efficient now and I don't know how far into June they'll be able to go for October interviews. With your date being July 1, maybe you'll get an October date but November seems more likely. Your visa petition has been plagued with misfortune. Several other folks seemed to have success after calling their State Representative or Congressman. For the record, our interview was scheduled for 135 days after our P3 was entered in the computer (eligibility). I understand how you feel when, after waiting more than a year, others get the interview and reference their "long 7 month wait" which would have been a blessing for you. If there is any consolation for you, the overall process seems to be on the upswing. My personal process was 11 months and 10 days between petition and interview. The attorney, who advertised shorter waiting periods and guidance, originally told me the average time was 7-9 months. Apparently that was only for people who did not use his law firm. This forum provided me with far better guidance than the lawyer, and it didn't cost me a penny. MJ -- K1 Timeline -- 11-09-2004.... Attorney sent petition to USCIS 11-18-2004.... USCIS registered receipt 02-02-2005.... Cleared NVC 04-08-2005.... GZ mailed P3 04-29-2005.... Attorney notified P3 mailed - never received 05-03-2005.... Attorney request GZ resend P3 05-17-2005.... SO receives P3 in China 05-23-2005.... P3 mailed to GZ 05-24-2005... Petitioner receives P3 in US with original letter 06-06-2005.... GZ posts P3 on computer 08-29-2005.... GZ mailed P4 10-19-2005.... Interview scheduled

Congratulations and thanks for sharing your timeline. I'll call DOS today to see if we are also scheduled. Your process went relatively smoothly with barely more than 7 months from application to interview. Our P3 went into the computer on June 6 so I don't know if it was close enough to May for us to make an October interview. Doug, unfortunately a July eligibility suggests a December interview. -- K1 Timeline -- 11-09-2004.... Attorney sent petition to USCIS 11-18-2004.... USCIS registered receipt 02-02-2005.... Cleared NVC 04-08-2005.... GZ mailed P3 04-29-2005.... Attorney notified P3 mailed - never received 05-03-2005.... Attorney request GZ resend P3 05-17-2005.... SO receives P3 in China 05-23-2005.... P3 mailed to GZ 05-24-2005... Petitioner receives P3 in US with original letter 06-06-2005.... GZ posts P3 on computer WAITING FOR P4/INTERVIEW

Thanks for the response. Actually, the original P3 package had a cover letter date of April 8, 2005. That package should have gone to, but was never received in, Shaoxing. A second mailing request to the GZ embassy resulted in the P3 arriving in Shaoxing on 5/17/05. According to DOS, all name clearances have been completed and we were cleared for an interview on 6/6/05. That is the same date our P3 was entered into the computer system. This makes me suspect that the inteview schedules are mainly based on the date the P3 enters the system. Although our P3 was originally mailed on April 8, I think our interview date will be based on June 6. I am afraid we will have a November interview which is a two month delay in the process. Of course the attorney claims there is no delay and that his firm is doing a great job. -- K1 Timeline -- 11-09-2004.... Attorney sent petition to USCIS 11-18-2004.... USCIS registered receipt 02-02-2005.... Cleared NVC 04-08-2005.... GZ mailed P3 04-29-2005.... Attorney notified P3 mailed - never received 05-03-2005.... Attorney request GZ resend P3 05-17-2005.... SO receives P3 in China 05-23-2005.... P3 mailed to GZ 05-24-2005... Petitioner receives P3 in US with original letter 06-06-2005.... GZ posts P3 on computer WAITING FOR P4/INTERVIEW

Judging by the postings, April P3 registered dates were scheduled in September. Does anyone know of any P3s after April scheduled for interviews? I wish I knew about this forum when I started. I paid a relatively hefty fee to a law firm that promised "we all do the work" and "quicker interview time". The result is just the opposite. A 9 month process is turning into 11 or 12 months. When the attorney waited 3 weeks to notify me the P3 had been mailed (original never received..at least in China) I started searching the web and found this site. Thanks to all who have been so generous in sharing information. Special thanks to David for extensive and informative postings. -- K1 Timeline -- 11-09-2004.... Attorney sent petition to USCIS 11-18-2004.... USCIS registered receipt 02-02-2005.... Cleared NVC 04-08-2005.... GZ mailed P3 04-29-2005.... Attorney notified P3 mailed - never received 05-03-2005.... Attorney request GZ resend P3 05-17-2005.... SO receives P3 in China 05-23-2005.... P3 mailed to GZ 05-24-2005... Petitioner receives P3 in US with original letter 06-06-2005.... GZ posts P3 on computer WAITING FOR P4/INTERVIEW

On April 29 my attorney’s office notified me that the Guangzhou embassy mailed the P3 on April 8. My fiancé never received it. I believed that the embassy should have mailed it to her business address; however the attorney thought they mailed it to her parents’ residence. We requested a second mailing and on May 6 the embassy requested her to fax the preferred mailing address in Chinese characters to them at 86-20-8121-8341. She faxed her business address to the embassy on May 7 and received her P3 on May 16. I received a P3 postmarked from Washington, DC in early June. A handwritten “petitioner” appeared next to my name on the April 8-dated cover letter. According to the attorney, “The delay in receiving P3 has no affect because currently the embassy does not even consider setting an interview date for a K visa until they have had the case for 6 months or longer.” The attorney did not know why I received the P3, however I suspect the embassy may automatically send a P3 to the petitioner after receiving a second beneficiary mailing request.

Experienced the same as amerchin. First P3 never received in China. Eventually received in US 6 weeks later, 2 weeks after embassy complied with request to mail second P3 to China. Original P3 letterhead 4/18/05 P3 registered in GUZ 6/6/05 Hope for interview in 2005, but starting to become wary.