xtal

Awesome - congrats!

Just out of curiosity, what if your SO is unable to make the interview date, for whatever reason? Will GUZ reschedule? Will that take another 5 - 6 months or is it shorter?

China does not recognize or allow dual citizenship. The US allows it, but does not encourage it (look at people who have dual citizenship between India and US for example). Check out www.newcitizen.us. 157269[/snapback] The wife loses her rights as a Chinese citizen whenthe CR-1 is finished????? First I heard of that, because even after she comes to the US she is not yet a US citizen, she has to have citizenship in some country. What is the deal here? 157272[/snapback] No, she would lose her rights as a Chinese citizen when she becomes a US citizen. If she has IR-1 / CR-1 status, or any other kind of status (K-1, K-3), then she'd still be a Chinese citizen.

China does not recognize or allow dual citizenship. The US allows it, but does not encourage it (look at people who have dual citizenship between India and US for example). Check out www.newcitizen.us.

Yes it is possible but actually, if the couple purchases the property during their marriage, then it is common property between the two, even if the Chinese spouse is the sole owner. If you want to legally specify how much percentage goes to which spouse then BOTH parties need to legally agree how much each spouse gets.

Also thanks to those who made some suggestions - I will check into it and keep you all posted...

It has to be notarized by a US notary......My wife sent me her passport with the signed 1040 and the W-7. I immeaditely made a copy, got it norarized and sent the passport back to her. she had no trouble at all. Send it back express mail if you are worried about it. 157223[/snapback] I assume the passport was for the W-7 IRS form. If so, just FYI, you can also get it done in China - we went to a nearby US consulate and they made a copy of it, and then put a stamp on it that says something like 'original seen and returned' with a signature. But this was part of Citizenship services - not sure if my wife could have done this without me being there (to show my identification). They explicitly wanted to see my ID so probably both have to be there if you want to get the equivalent of a notarized copy while in China. Also I asked them if it needed to be notarized, and they said no, that a US consulate stamp is good enough. Seems they were right because IRS had no problem with our W-7 application.

Sorry to revive this old thread but it caught my attention. My wife and I also filed jointly but we have the strange catch-22 now where we cannot cash the check we got back from the IRS.... My bank (and from what I gather, other banks also) won't do it because her signature is not on the back (and the check is made out in both our names). Even if I'd let her sign it next time I go see her they still won't take it cuz her name is not on the account so they require her to be physically here when she signs it. This would not be an issue if we would have a joint account. Now, with the US Patriot Act, you cannot open a joint bank account unless BOTH parties have an SSN (an ITIN, as obtained through a W-7, won't do). It's a royal pain in the a****. The IRS will not issue another check in just my name, nor will they change that little word "and" into "or" that sits between my name and my wife's name on the check (if they would, then we would not have this problem). Once they cut the check, it's 'out of their hands'. And it's only good for one year. Maybe I am missing something very obvious here but I'm curious how other CFL'ers have dealt with this problem. Maybe requesting an electronic transfer of funds on the 1040 would have been the way to go but I was not expecting this problem when we filed, and the IRS for sure will not alter their payment to this after the fact.

Hmmmm - well couldn't wait - I called and got a GUZ number for our case, however, they said that it is in 'Administrative Processing'.... I guess this is the name check stuff? Should I be prepared now for a very long wait?

Thanks Gene. Yeah seems their automated system is only for I-130 cases. I'll call again tonight or early tomorrow - seems it's been too busy today to where you don't even end up in a waiting queue...

Thanks Frank - those are good and helpful points. But I could see that red flags might be raised if the time between a divorce, on either end (applicant or petitioner) and a new marriage and/or the start of some immigration proceeding is relatively short. If this is so, then I would think that this should not be a problem for Robq8888 since the divorce there was over 8 years ago.

Both the petitioner and beneficiary must prove by certified and documented evidence that they are free to marry. Documents must show that previous marriages ended either in legal divorce or death. If there are underage children involved there must be a clear order as to who retains custody. 157154[/snapback] True, but I'm thinking of esun41's case (I believe Eric) and the overcome evidence that is asked of them: I'm sure they submitted divorce decrees and all that stuff - but then they want proof of her (and his?) ex's whereabouts. My question is - can the same thing (or any other difficulty) occur if the petitioner was married before (even though all the right paperwork was submitted)? It maddens me that it is made so difficult for people who love eachother but such is the way of things and we just have to deal with it.

It seems that the focus falls a lot on the applicant's ex. But what about any previous marriages from the petitioner? Do those ever matter in this process?

Having seen some dates on this forum here and there, is it fair to say that the time from NOA2 (K-3) to the time when NVC sends the paperwork to GUZ is around 45 days? How long does it take for NVC to enter the case into their system after the NOA2 date? Trying to figure out when it is realistic to call NVC to get a useful update. Thanks all.

Haven't heard of that one. But after getting married in the US you'd then file for AOS (Adjustment of Status). On a K-1, you can only enter the US one time. As far as I know, while AOS is pending, she should be able to apply for advance parole with USCIS and then re-enter the US with that. But you cannot freely travel without the advance parole (on a K-1).

Did you put $ amounts on the declaration by any chance? I know I had problems with that when I shipped something to Canada to a buddy of mine a few years back. Made the mistake of putting the value on it instead of declaring it as a gift - customs promptly charged him when the package arrived.

Cool deal. Thanks.

Thanks tywy - that I knew - the instructions in the I-129F specific for K-3 do say that you may omit documents listed in section 5 (which is all the stuff Gene mentioned earlier). I was only wondering if it is beneficial to include evidence anyways at that point (or even later on with the P3 and P4), since the VO will look at the packet before the actual interview takes place (I would think). And yeah, maybe USCIS will come out with a K-3 specific form sometime in the next century. Maybe... never.

Gene, I think that applies for K-1 - I'm doing K-3.

Hi all, I am going through K-3 proceedings and my I-129F was approved and should arrive at the NVC any day now (hopefully). However, I have read some posts where people mentioned they included (some) evidence of their relationship with the I-129F packet. I didn't do this though (well, except copy of marriage certificate + translation of course) - I only included the stuff that was needed as per the instructions. Is this a problem later on when the case arrives in GUZ? If so, can this still be sent together with the P3 or P4 later on? Or should I just sit tight and rely on the VO asking for evidence during my wife's interview? Thanks!

I wonder how the stats are for K-3 visas? I didn't see that on the USCIS pages.

I think that if she arrives in the US on a K-3 then she can travel freely on her Chinese passport (K-3 is valid for 2 years with free travel as far as I know). You, the US Citizen, will need to continue to use a Chinese visa (single, double or multiple entry visas). If your wife becomes a US citizen, she also will need to use a Chinese tourist visa but since she was a Chinese citizen the following would apply: "An applicant born in China who applies for a Chinese visa with a new foreign passport is required to submit his /her Chinese passport or last foreign passport with a Chinese visa." (from the Houston Chinese Consulate website). However, K-1 visas are ONE-TIME ENTRY VISAS ONLY as far as I know. You enter the US to marry a US Citizen and then you need to apply for adjustment of status - and while that is pending, you also cannot just travel - you'll need an advance parole document I think. If you leave the US on just a K-1 then you can't come back on it.

Your wife's mom would have to apply for a B-2 visitor visa at a local consulate, I think. I'm by no means an expert on it but she may have to prove that she has no immigrant intent - like show things that prove strong ties to her home country. You can check it out on http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/types/types_1262.html. Good luck.

Well I called them and even though I didn't get a resolution on the online case status issue, I did learn that they do have my case in their system (since they read off some information from it) so I figure I'll just wait a few weeks since the I-129F hopefully won't take so long anyways. And thanks for the welcome people, and good luck to all of you.

LOL - yeah I guess I got spoiled when I saw my I-130 status in the system right away when I got the NOA for it... I'll call 'em and see what they got to say.