baobeizhu
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Dear Forum Members,
Quick sanity check before I mail out my Affidavit of support here.
On the envelope which I received with the AOS bill packet instructing me to use to return requested documents, the last four digits after the 5 digit zip code have one digit that is different than what is on the bar coded coversheet.
envelope:
ATTN CMR
NATIONAL VISA CENTER
32 ROCHESTER AVENUE
PORTSMOUTH NH 08801-2901
bar coded coversheet:
National Visa Center
Attn. CMR AOS
32 Rochester Avenue
Portsmouth, NH 08801-2909
so where do I mail this darn thing and must I use this flimsy envelope? I am guessing the coversheet has the 'more' correct address. Maybe they just had a bunch of extra printed stationary they are trying to get rid of with the AOS packets
However, I don't want to guess. I (finally) got all my paperwork in order and am ready to send this packet out tomorrow! yeah.......hope it gets there...A recent/ongoing problem with something I mailed to the IRS has shaken my faith in anything arriving where or when it is 'suppose to'....waaaaah -
My CR-1 was forwarded to GUZ on April 13th!!
Another hurdle cleared in the race to bring my wife home.
Thanks for all the encouragement, assistance, and support from
the members of CFL!
Ron & Jing
Congrats!
Approximately how long did it take to process in NVC after you submitted both the AOS and her documents?
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On the topic of ink:
Now that I'm an expert in signing forms let me add that if you press hard enough you can definitely determine whether something is signed or zeroxt by rubbing the other side of the paper. I say use black ink and press hard!
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I need some help, I'm not clear on whether I have my wife collect on the info for the DS-230 and send it to me or does she send it the consulate in GONZ???? I'm reading from the LingChe Short cut page, I think I am reading that I need to send photocopies of everything also??
Thanks
re: photocopies - yup - PLUS ORIGINALS !!!
So you'll need to get from her (original, plus notarial translation) -
(usually generated as 'white books' in China) -
1. marriage certificate (original white book is sufficient)
2. police certificate
3. any divorce certificates of hers
plus
4. certified divorce decree from you, the USC, if any.
Some ppl get 3 'sets' of originals - might be a good time to get it done NOW in China.
There's a list o stuff to do for NVC processing - most of it is in the Ling n Che's Short Cut list - but there's 'other' stuff on the uscis website - see http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3195.html , rehook it back to page 1 - and have a read (or three.. four.. seven even.)
Now, this is old, but shows the parallel processing done at NVC -
http://www.visajourney.com/examples/NVC_Pr...wchart_v1-2.pdf
Good Luck !
wait, now I'm confused for
'4. certified divorce decree from you, the USC, if any. '
isn't that just for certain types of visas?
http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3195.html
"Petitioner Documents
Applicants in the following visa categories are required to provide 1) an original or certified copy of their Petitioner¡¯s birth certificate and 2) original or certified copy of their Petitioner¡¯s marriage certificate from the Petitioner¡¯s current and all previous marriages.
Parent of a U.S. Citizen who is at least 21 years old (IR-5)
Brothers and sisters of United States citizens (F4) "
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from my experience, his english won't be an issue as long as you show evidence that you speak chinese with one another. when i first sent our petition to uscis, i included email logs (sender, recipient, date, and subject) showing communication in chinese over the course of a few years. also, i sent copies of some letters my fiancee had written me in chinese, along with my english translations of them. this stuff got forwarded to GUZ and the vo used them for the interview (my fiancee saw him looking at them).
the other two things i'd recommend doing are 1. go to ACH (on Mondays at 2:30, i believe) and request that the interview be in chinese. when i did this, the vo said "that's no problem." 2. handwrite a letter to the vo in chinese, explaining your relationship (e.g., your feelings, your history together, your hopes). this is what i did, and then i took the letter to ACH to request that they put it with the other materials for the vo to see before the interview. the vo said she couldn't take the letter then, but she did look at it and, i'm sure, made a reference to it in the notes she made for the interviewing vo to see. you could also ask the vo if he or she wants you to read the letter out loud, in case they have any doubts it was you who wrote it. finally, give the letter to your husband when he goes for the interview. he can hand it to the vo when he or she requests your husband's passport. (also include an english version of the letter, in case the vo can't read chinese).
good luck! let me know if i can help in any other way...
Thank you, this was extremely helpful already!
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we use chinese. but now that she's in the united states, we speak english if we're with other people (aside from when i have to translate something she doesn't get). i think the vo didn't ask about this because i had already told them at ACH the day before.
Nice, I see. Thanks for your follow up ( I am a bit worried about this issue when my husband interviews since he really knows very very very little English so we speak Chinese too, so that's why I was curious about the VO's questioning.
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thanks for sharing and congratulations!!
I’d like to share a little of my and my fiancee’s experience at the consulate (as well as a few details about how we prepared) to help others as I’ve been helped through this forum. Hopefully later I'll have some time to share some other thoughts (both mine and my fiancee’s) that might differ a little from the conventional wisdom.Fiancee: Ni hao.
Consular Officer: Ni hao. Can you speak English with me? (still in Chinese (i.e., putonghua, not baihua, yueyu, or whatever else people around Guangzhou sometimes speak))
Fiancee: No, I can’t.
Consular Officer: (so continues for whole time in Chinese) Give me your passport.Consular Officer: (Looked briefly at Chinese version and then carefully read the English version.) Have you gone to the US before?
Fiancee: No.
Consular Officer: Can your fiance speak Chinese?
Fiancee: Yes.
Consular Officer: How did he learn Chinese?
Fiancee: He probably had a few classes years ago, but then he just studied by himself. We’ve talked on the phone every day since the beginning of 2007.
Consular Officer: When?Consular Officer: Do you have work in China?
Fiancee: Yes, I’m an English teacher in a kindergarten.
First of all, CONGRATS!
Secondly, question, if she's an English teacher & the interview was conducted in Chinese, what is the actual language you two use to communicate, if I may ask? I am actually surprised this question wasn't asked by the VO...
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Thanks Dan!
hmm interesting. So many forms do want an A-number.
For the CR-1 approval however, an A-number isn't given, right?)
I guess then I just keep typing in NONE whenever this is requested on other forms..
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Background:
on the letter notifying us that our case was sent to the NVC, it says our records indicate that the beneficiary is XYZ and if this address is not correct, to send the correct address to the NVC immediately.
Now, this address is in English, so I doubt he will ever receive anything sent to this address as it is written (his name is also at the top, not even surname first so I am sure it's just completely undeliverable...but maybe one day it will arrive there...). So, yes, the address is correct, but it's not really the best way to mail him something.
Which leads me to these Questions:
1) Do I need to provide NVC w/ the address in Chinese in response to the DS-3032? Or does it NOT matter b/c he has already sent the choice of address & agent DS-3032 form w/ my information in the US.
2) Later on, when the case eventually lands at GUZ, do they use the address in Chinese to send materials? (i.e. that's why they are asking for it again in supplement 3?)
3) He sent in the DS-3032 from China & I paid the AOS bill of 70 bucks. So now, I know I need to send NVC my support info per the instructions on the DOS website, but what else am I waiting to receive in the mail? Is it the next package/invoice asking for Applicant Document Processing, which is on an independant track from when I mail in my support documents and just waiting on NVC to receive his signed D-3032?
4) Just to clarify, it is the petitioner or beneficiary who signs supplemental GUZ pack 3?
Ok, that's all I can think of for now....I am trying to time if it is worth it for him to mail me his notarized documents, or for me to just pick them up when I go back out there in 2 months...hmmm
Oh yeah, just other General info:
Also, as an FYI, it says the AOS is sent to both the beneficiary & Petitioner and that while only the applicant can sign it, you may send or fax a copy of the enclosed form to the applicant, if you learn that he or she has not received it. Anyway, he has definitely not received it (so far)...The only thing bad about faxing it is that the bar code seems a bit unclear. But at least the case number is legible. We'll see if this causes any problems...
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omg where is the edit button?
Should read: Nice write up
there is another small white note came along with the p4 saids that ever since this year,the medical centre will not gathering all the forms anymore.just take the medical forms,the interview letter ,passport and 5 photos (size 2 inch),and also do not eat or drinking anything in the moring before the medical exam.
after that take all the forms with you and medical results sealed packet and the affidaivit of surport and all the notories to guz for the interview!
i am still here in guz waiting for the visa pick up tomorrow,if anyone has interview questions just call me at 86-1360-115-2729
ps,am on the k1 visa
Thanks a million for the clarification!
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I received my NOA2 notice 02/26/2009 and when I log on to to the USCIS site it shows my case is pending at the center it was transfered to. I registered to received email notification on this site and have never received an email showing approval.
I have called the NVC every day now for 2 weeks and the AVR says
they have no record of my case or I have entered the wrong receipt
number. I have read the short cuts thru the NVC and I am still trying
to get a case number.
Thanks,
Ron & Jing
Hmm, I remember our filing times were very similar~Maybe you need to wait 1 week...I just received the AOS notice on Friday 3/6/09 w/ my case number, although on the USCIS site it does say my petition has been approved and is being forwarded to NVC...
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omg where is the edit button?
Should read: Nice write up
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So my question is when your spouses apply for their passport, what procedure and what stuff they brought in with them?
yeah, my hubby kinda had to go on a wild goose chase...especially b/c in the middle of nowhere people only show up at the office for a few hours a day and then disappear for 'meetings'
1) He had already gotten all of our other documents notarized & brought them: marriage, birth, police cert.
2) The lady told him he needed the police cert. from BJ which was BS, b/c he's hukou is not there. He already had his police cert from his hometown, so he argued with her (cuz clearly she didn't know what was up but if he DIDN'T know better and listened to her, then that would have been a real mess) and then he was finally issued the form. But, he had to go back to the PSB he was just at and get the police captain guy's signature/stamp on the form too anyway.
3) He needed to get something in his hukou updated before they would sign his form though. (something was missing in his,the first page or something)
3) He kept getting asked why he's applying for a passport (at PSB & passport office) and would just show our wedding certificate to say he was gonna reunite with me...
4) Go to bank, pay 200 rmb, bring receipt back to passport office. (oh yeah, and at some point he had to take pictures...I forgot what the chinese picture standard is, the US's is of course 2.5x 2.5" (5x5cm)..but China's is different)
Optional: Bring cigarettes too. They come in handy when visiting offices (especially in the countryside...but girls don't really give out cigs, so your wife probably can skip this step)
Overall, if she has a hukou ben, marriage cert, id, and police cert, and gets all the required signatures she will probably be able to get one, but it's not necessarily as easy as just dropping into an office and wala...even if it could/should be since each office can basically give the applicant as hard of a time as they want..
oh yeah, his passport can only be delivered w/in his home province too, so after approx 10 days I guess his family will receive it and just send him some copies of the info page, and then wait until another relative makes another trip to and from beijing (in order not to risk it getting lost in transit...
)Overall, it took him about 1 week of running around to get all of our notarized docs and apply for his passport. & Maybe this will be useful (or not), but he spent about 3000 RMB for all of the notarized copies, translations, and documents (4 marriage, 2 birth cert, 2 police, 1 passport) plus train and other transportation, cigarettes, and whatever lil' expenses he encountered. (but he didn't have to pay for room and board of course b/c he was traveling to his hometown and actually has family there)
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Submit these items during your medical exam:
*Form DS-2053 and associated worksheets (Medical exam forms).Every applicant must have a medical exam,regardless of age .These forms will be completed by the panel physician during the exam.
*Valid passport,4 passport photos,and a photocopy of passport's personal information pages.Each applicant must have a passport that will be valid for at least 8 months beyond the visa issuance date.
*Form DS-230 part II
*Form GIV-24 Family Composition Sheet.
*Notarial Bith Certificate
*Notaria Unmarried Statement (if applicable).Only males 22 or older,and females 20 or older need to submit this document. This certificate is only valid for one year.
*Notaria Marriage Certificate
*Notaria Divorce/Death Certificate proving dissolution of all pervious marriages.
*Notaria Police Certificate.Applicants aged 16 or older must submit this form for all countries in which the applicant has resided for one year or more and wherever the applicant has been living for six months prior to the interview since attaining the age of 16.Pplice certificates are only walid for one year.
*For applicants 17 years old or younger,document showing that the principal applicant has legal custody of the child ,or a notarized statement form the parent who has custody giving permission for the child to immigrate to the U.S.Only children with divorced parents need to submit this document.
*Adoption certificates (if applicable)
*Court records of any legal violations
Wait, I'm so confused, how are you suppose to submit these during the medical exam if they are suppose to be submitted to the NVC? ..I mean sure you could submit 2 of everything....but the actual timeline of when official notarized forms are suppose to be submitted seems really unclear to me...hmm...ok, i guess I'll have to do more digging.
Good right up by the way...
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I was on the phone with my Fianc¨¦e while she was walking out with her parents to Lunch.... Then I hear her scream, I thought she had stepped on something terrible but it was our P3. Great!
So, now we need to get all the documents together. So, what do we need? As far as I know they are:
Original I-129 Petition
I-134
2006, 2007, 2008 tax record
3 months of pay stub
Petitioner proof of employment
Text Chat Log
Web Cam Chat Print Screen
Phone Record
Pictures
Proof of Engagement (my ring receipt)
Beneficiary Birth Certificate
Beneficiary Single Certificate
Beneficiary Police Certificate
Beneficiary Passport
DS-156K
DS-156
What else am I missing? I know I am missing something.
Please help!
Thank you very much!!!!
Congrats! I'd also add:
W2s, passport style pics of your fiancee, could also include an updated and notarized "intent to marry/evolution of relationship" letter (from you) for the VO to read, if willing.
you're lucky that you can get phone records. my fiancee and i use calling cards and i don't believe either of us can get any records...
good luck!
hmm..i use cheap calling cards I buy in China town and i just called customer service and inquired about getting the calling records on them. They supplied them to me (for a price, but still pretty cheap all things considered, and a copy of my ID, and a letter stating what the records consisted of to prove it was my own calling record). Maybe you just want to call the customer service number on the card and ask. (although FYI they may only keep records for a short period of time..i think the company i use said just 3 months..)
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great news !!
ok la - a coupla things.
1. nvc will require original sets of stuff - police report, birth certificate, etc. make sure you gots this - if no have, get !
2. Study James' Shortcuts at http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/...'s_Shortcut - you can reduce the time the approved petition sits at nvc.
Go Go GadgetBarCodes !
Yes, thank you very much for the link! Now I have some serious 'catch up' homework to do this weekend!
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Ok, well I wanted to follow up on this thread today with my experience on this topic. ( I didn't want to mention anything until I received news about my application..but since I did, here it goes:)
My SO and I weren't planning on this whole immigration thingy when we married last year and never obtained the white book. I translated and certified my wedding booklet myself* and my application was just approved, so I guess it was 'ok'. We are going back to his hometown for our anniversary so I will probaly get a white book for good measure (for the interview perhaps?), but apparently at least for the I-130, you can indeed do it stateside...or more correctly, it has at least been done before w/o the whitebook.
(*disclaimer, I worked as a translator while in China, so I pretty much knew what I was doing, but just wasn't sure if it would rejected for 'a conflict of interest' or any other random reason)
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omg i dunno why I thought to check the status of my application today (I usually just check it online 1x per week..or every two weeks) but it says approved online! yeah! very happy. The only bad news is I was thinking I would have more time to prepare for the next wave of paperwork..and file taxes! no worries...I'm not gonna argue about not waiting.
Also, as an update, I decided against filing the I-129F. I think this was the right choice for us and I appreciate everyones advice above.
Wow..so, this was very unexpected...so...um...soon
So, CFL members, consider yourself warned, I'll probably gonna have some more random questions here and there ~but~ at least I may be able to offer some value added advice now too, since I apparently didn't screw up my application too majorly!
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Wow. you left with both of them? If you left one with your wife, she could at least have it translated in Wuhan (my lass is there, she could have shown her where).
FWIW, you don't have to have it translated by any Chinese Consulate in USA. The 'official translation' requirements are a bit loose, actually, for the USCIS.
So you'll need to find a translator, and a notary public to certify the translation.
Wait, now I'm getting confused, a notary really can't certify the translation itself, they can only certify the statement of accuracy from the person who translated the document, and that the marriage cert. copy is from the original, correct?
I-130;
'Translations. Any foreign language document must be accompanied by a full English translation that the translator has certified as complete and correct, and by the translator's certification that he or she is competent to translate the foreign language into English.'
So does the 'translator's certification' then HAVE to involve a notary?
Just wondering...b/c the requirements, at least at the I-130 stage, seemed a bit loose to me too...
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So, originally I was thinking of going the K3 route, but now I am a bit uncertain after weighing the pros and cons. I have everything all prepared and ready to go, but I think I am going to wait a week before I send it out to think about it. The processing times for both the CR-1 and I-129F both say 6 months at the processing center when I log onto the USCIS website....so I guess my question is exactly where in the process is this I-129F actually quicker, and what are the current estimates on how much quicker it is.
If it's just 3 months, well no bit deal. If it's 6-12 months, well I think I better file the I-129F. (But, yes, I do understand all cases are different...)
In any case, the back up plan is if all of this goes beyond 2 years, then I'm just going back to China ºß£¡
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Hey!
I am an American woman (born and raised in Hawaii) but I am Asian. lol. However, if there is ever anything you have questions about, I would be glad to help you!
xiaofeizhu,
I have a question for you, do you happen to know if the DCF is only an option if you are a resident w/in China for the 6 months prior to filing?
I have just done the CR-1 route, but had formerly resided and been registered in China for just under 3 years when married but later ran into visa difficulties around the Olympics....I remember the lady at the US embassy had told me something about filing an immigration petition when I picked up my single status paperwork, but at the time I was like 'yeah, I don't think we'll need that' and didn't really pay attention. Funny how things work out
Anyway, I'm another female on this board. I think the other 'big question' how many people (men or women) didn't meet through the internet. So far I see xiaofeizhu and myself (baobeizhu...hehe oink oink)
Cheers!
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Ahh, thank you. This was very informative. I will keep a look out for that A number on the NOA2.
Yeah, I think I'm just gonna supply him with my copies of certificates to have later on down the line for the interview since at that point it will be clear that all of our communication would have to have been in Chinese.
Thanks again
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All I can say that nothing has been "misrepresented" thats kinda stupid to do this since I have been working on this for so long. It could possibly put my FBI and Homeland Security clearance in jeopardy and I wont do that.
Hmm, you have a security clearance?
Not to pry, but isn't your marriage to a non-citizen have the potential to negatively impact your clearance anyway? I mean of course there are different levels of security clearances...so maybe I am just thinking of some of the higher ones...but heck, even living abroad and having 'associations' with people in a 'sensitive' country like China makes it pretty hard to get a clearance.
Anyway, my comment has less to do about the visa process, and I am just being nosey about your security clearance
However, I hope your case makes some progress in the near future.
Kind Regards.
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Note I-130 receipt # is NOT an A#, simply indicate "NONE" on for A# number on the I-129F and/or G-325A used with the I-129F.You are filing an I-129F for a K-3, which presupposes that you've already filed that I-130 for a CR-1/IR-1.
Hopefully, you've made copies of everything that you submitted with the I-130. Include those things again with the I-129F submittal.
The A# for the I-129F (K-3) is from the receipt # from the I-130 NOA-1 notice.
ALL marriage-based visas in China are processed in Guangzhou, so list Guangzhou as the place.
Thanks for the replies so far
Still some questions:
Yes, I do have all my copies. By submitting 'everything' that I did with the I-130 pack, does that also mean the evidence of a bonafide marriage as well? If so, then drats, I should have just made a minimum of 4 to 5 copies of everything instead of 'just' 3.
I am under the impression the A# on my 2nd set of G-325A's for the I-129F should still be "None". I see there is some difference of opinions up above...hmmm
Lastly that visajourney link, aren't numbers 3 & 10 under preparing the i-129f packet just referring to the same piece of paper, ie. the NOA1? Maybe, what is actually mailed just varies case by case.
I guess, the issue is that I don't mind sending in a thick packet full of extras and such, but it's more a matter of being completely clear about what is being requested in the first place.
Final question, do people ever include more information on the I-129F than on the CR-1? For example, since my SO doesn't really speak English at all (hence will NEED ESL after arrival if we get that far, so I am not worried about an instant green card or a SSN right away), after reading some posts, I am thinking that I need to include proof of my Chinese proficiency. At first I was just going to give him a copy of my degrees and proficiency exam/interpreter certificates from China, etc for the interview, but now I am thinking I may want to include those in my I-129F which I am currently preparing to send off.
Advice, as always, is appreciated.
Kind Regards.
"Documents Only" envelope VS Barcode Coversheet Address
in Consulate Process: P-3 ~ Interview
Posted
hmm..ok I see you are talking about both the applicant processing and affidavit of support doc's. I actually just sent in the applicant processing documents last week, and I just used the coversheet address, since I only received the notification via email for that 400 fee and such so I never actually received an envelope for those documents.
I am now only mailing my AOS documents. But that particular envelope that I mentioned actually came in the AOS package which I did receive in the mail....So although I'm still a bit confused, it seems like AOS papers should go to the address that says AOS on the bar coded coversheet.....so I'm thinking that's just what I will do...