USCONGUZ

Dear snoopy, As a practical matter, if there is any "overlap" at all in our processing whereby the K3 and the CR1/IR1's physical files are here at the consulate at the same time, we would comibne the cases together and just interview the CR/IR. All this is just to say that the situation you envision would be extremely rare, if it ever occurred at all. To have a CR1/IR1 appear at the consulate after a K3's been issued, and make its way through our documentary and interview scheduling process within a short time, would be seldom seen. In case this situation does come up, however, we request that you: 1) Make sure that you do not open up the sealed packet from the K3; 2) Because the vaccination requirements for K3 visas can be different from those of CR/IR1 visas, please re-submit a full medical exam; 3) We can accept the notarial documents if we here at the Consulate are the ones who unseal the K3 packet and take them out ourselves; 4) Please submit original I-864 AOS documents with supporting financial materials. Note that in this scenario the K3 visa-holder should not go to the United States. We almost never see the CR1 following so quickly after the K3 though... Sincerely, USCONGUZ

Dear CFL, U.S. Consulate General Guanghzou's IV Petitioner hour will not be held this Friday, August 25, 2006. This notice has been posted on our website for more than a month already but we wanted to remind everyone! http://guangzhou.usconsulate.gov/ivnw060711.html

As you mentioned, in rare cases the Consulate must delay visa issuance even after an initial approval slip has been given out at an interview. We are definitely aware that this causes hardship for the applicant, and really do try our best to make sure this type of situation occurs as infrequently as possible. Just-expired security namechecks are one possible reason for this rare situation. Another possible reason is discovering important information related to the case that we would have a duty to follow up on, i.e. fraud-related or security-related issues. Again, we know how petitioners and applicants can feel if this type of situation occurs. We do our best to make sure this type of thing happens as little as possible.

Dear CFL, In reply to your questions: 1. Any forms that have been downloaded from our website (or, as appropriate, from the USCIS website) and filled out electronically are acceptable, as long as any required signatures and notarizations are original. We’ll remind our associates of this policy; thanks for bringing it to our attention. Hopefully it was a one-time misunderstanding. 2. Our website’s K1 Fiance Visa FAQ has a list of forms included in the Appointment Packet. You can access this FAQ at http://guangzhou.usconsulate.gov/kvfaq.html. To answer your questions directly, though: a. A K2 under 16 needs to fill out two copies of the DS-156, a DS-156K, and of course, the required medical exam, notarized birth certificates, etc. DS-156 and DS-156K forms always go together. DS-157 and GIV-24 forms are required for all K1 / K2 applicants who are 16 years of age or older. Only the K1 has to fill out the GNI-2 form and the “Certification of Legal Capacity and Intent to Marry.” b. A K2 over 16, then, would additionally have to fill out a DS-157 and a GIV-24 form. We hope this helps clear things up! Sincerely, USCONGUZ

If the statement is initially written in English, you do not need to provide a Chinese translation.

A U.S. police certificate is not required for any visa classification. A U.S. divorce decree does meet the requirement. The notarized divorce document is a requirement if the divorce took place in China.

Yes, a derivative child can be added to a K1 case before the interview. If the case has not yet been sent to the Consulate, please contact the NVC. If the case has been sent to the Consulate, please contact the I.V. Unit by email, fax, or letter.

The FAM does not specify the kind of documentation required for the exception to apply. It is up to the petitioner and beneficiary to decide what evidence they will submit, and it is up to the consular officer to evaluate that evidence.

We apologize if any applicants are being treated with disrespect at the interview. Sometimes children are asked to sit in the waiting area (where they can still see their parents at the window) to allow the consular officer to conduct a more private one-on-one interview with the principal beneficiary. Occasionally, sensitive issues are discussed during the interview, and we feel that some parents would feel more comfortable answering these questions more openly and honestly if their children were not standing right next to them. In rare instances, derivative children begin answering questions directed at the principal beneficiary. This is unacceptable. It is not unreasonable for a consular officer to expect the principal beneficiary to answer questions directed at him/her. In these rare instances, the children are also asked to sit in the waiting area.

Further clarification and questions on this issue should be directed to the USCIS.

The law states that: IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘international marriage broker’’ means a corporation, partnership, business, individual, or other legal entity, whether or not organized under any law of the United States, that charges fees for providing dating, matrimonial, matchmaking services, or social referrals between United States citizens or nationals or aliens lawfully admitted to the United States as permanent residents and foreign national clients by providing personal contact information or otherwise facilitating communication between individuals. (B EXCEPTIONS.—Such term does not include— (i) a traditional matchmaking organization of a cultural or religious nature that operates on a nonprofit basis and otherwise operates in compliance with the laws of the countries in which it operates, including the laws of the United States; or (ii) an entity that provides dating services if its principal business is not to provide international dating services between United States citizens or United States residents and foreign nationals and it charges comparable rates and offers comparable services to all individuals it serves regardless of the individual’s gender or country of citizenship.

The P3 supplemental information sheet is no longer used by the Consulate for K visa applications.

There are some K visa beneficiaries who choose to return to China for their IR interviews. You should carefully consider the pros and cons of this option, especially if the benficiary's K visa is no longer valid.

Statements do not need to be handwritten. Typed or word-processed statements are certainly acceptable.

Please refer to the following Consulate webpage for info on the NIV Unit's American Citizen Hour-- http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/citizen.html. Please be aware that this is different than the IV Unit's Petitioner Hour on Fridays. NIV is on Monday, IV is on Friday. Our website's NIV FAQ's and travel.state.gov can also answer many questions.

Usually 12 months.

The Immigrant Visa Unit will not address B1/B2 visa issues.

Name checks do occasionally expire. As with any name check, there may be delays associated with the process.

Some K-1 petitions filed after the March 5th deadline were approved in error under the old procedures. DHS requested that posts return K-1 cases with a priority date on or after March 6th. Cases that were already issued visas by the Consulate will not need to be returned. The Consulate has no information about the extent of the delay for these returned cases. Any further questions about this issue should be directed to USCIS.

K cases and CR/IR cases are "eligible to be scheduled for interview" when: - the petition is approved by the NVC - the case file is received by the IV Unit - the Packet 3 is sent, the necessary Packet 3 forms have been returned, and the data entered in the computer (in CR/IR cases, this usually occurs while at the NVC) - the security name check process has been completed (in most K1 and K3 cases, this occurs at the NVC) For numerically limited visa classifications, the Consulate must also wait until the petition's priority date becomes current.

Some of your questions have been dealt with in previous threads: http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?...16&hl=namecheck http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?...76&hl=namecheck We understand that anything which could potentially delay an interview or visa approval will be the subject of much debate. But please be aware that the security namecheck process is sensitive. There is only so much we will discuss in a public (or private) forum.

The issue of child custody has been has been discussed at this thread, http://candleforlove.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=13959. If there is a legal impediment for the child leaving the country (custody issues), the Consulate can refuse the child's visa. This would not affect the K1 beneficiary (assuming there are no problems with any other aspect of the case). If the K2 lives in another country, the K1 visa would first have to be approved. Then, arrangements can be made to have the K2 beneficiary interviewed at the US Embassy or Consulate in the K2's country of residence. This sounds like there would be some case specific issues that would need to be discussed. Please contact the IV Unit by email, fax, or letter for further inquiries about a specific case, or contact USCIS.

For a third country national, he/she should apply for the initial certificate of no criminal record from the local police station as well as from the work unit where he/she resided and worked while in China. Based on this certificate, he/she can apply for the notarial certificate of no criminal record. If he/she did not register with the local police station while he/she lived or worked in China, he/she would not be able to get the initial certificate from the local police station.

For a child who has both a US and a Chinese passport, if it is the first time for the child to exit China, they will need to come to the Consulate's American Citizen Services Unit (ACS) to make arrangements for a "pro forma" visa. If the child has already been to the US and is now traveling to China, the child should use the US passport when entering and exiting China.

In most cases the namecheck process for K petitions is completed at the NVC before they send the file to post. I'm sure there are a small number of cases that arrive at post with namechecks still pending, but it is not common. We would not hold up the Packet 3 for the namecheck results, but we do delay the interview until the results are received.