marks1957

Roger, Really great news. You really flew thru to the GC. Congrats.

Roger, I am surprised at your response here. You seem very jealous that I asked for and got my pregnant wife here in the US for better health care. And yes, the consulate was very helpful and I am glad they let her come when they did or even if she had gotten her interview around the time of your wife, my wife would have been ready to deliver and would not have been to go for at least a month after she delivered (we had a daughter on May 11th, Mother's Day). This time I am partly at fault because at the time my wife got her physical, the plan was to have the daughter come with her. But before we turned in her passport we decided it would be better for her to finish her HS there. We had already done police checks and physicals for both. The consulate, to the best of my recollection, told us she only needed to return with her invitation sheet and get her K4 Visa. I told them it would be in December 08. Nothing was said then to repeat the physical or police check. The bigger issue is that the second day when she returned to pick up the papers to pay for the visa to go to the Post Office, the consulate said nothing to her about needing new doccuments. When they called me on the 3rd, they did not leave a message or call back number. I emailed and faxed them twice since then and they have not replied to any of them. I even faxed Mr Wong and asked him to give my inquiry to the non-immigrant dept and still no reply, even as of today. The Shanghai customer service number was a joke. They said they could not tell me anyting. I got more info the the DOS and then finally got some help from a Chinese National working in the US Citizen side of the Embasy. She took my sister-in-laws cell and within 15 minutes they had called her. It turned out they had been trying to reach my stepdaughter at her mothers old address. It has been changed with USCIS since she came to the US. They also said they were calling the other contact number, my sister-in-law. But she was in GUZ waiting with my stepdaughter, for the visa to come at the Post Office. Heck, they could have sent a letter to the post office saying the visa is on hold until..... My gripe here, which is why I am posting it here, is that emailing the consulate and Faxing them went unanswered and paying the $7 to call Shanghai is a waste of money unless you have a general qustion. With her K4 expiring Jan 2nd, time was not on our side. I needed answers. I faxed/emailed them on the 4th....today is the 16th...still no answer... do the math. Of course I know what the problem is now and hopefully its fixed.

Today (in China) she turns in her newer Police Check and Physical. Hope she gets the Visa by Friday so I can get her here by next Monday. I asked her to give the VO a note saying that if there is still a problem, to call her local cell phone. Lets hope she does not get that call,but the visa this Friday.....fingers crossed.

Just a note: As of today GUZ has not replied to none of my recent emails or FAXs. Shanghai was worthless to call. They only have info on my wife's K3 and she has been here for 10 mths. I did FAX Mr Wong and call him but he said he deals with refugees and would only forward my FAX to the Non-Immigrant department. The only way I got some action was to call the US Citizen side of the Consulate and explain the situation. She at least took my sister-in-laws cell phone and said she would take care of it. Result. The consulate called her within 10 minutes. It turns out the consulat had been trying to call my sister-in-law, where my stepdaugher was staying, to notify them of the hangup. Well of course they were not there but waiting in GUZ for the visa. Why they did not tell my stepdaughter the second day when she returned to get the papers to then pay for the visa to be mailed to the Post Office I do not know. Why, when they could not reach them, did they not try to call me again or leave me a message, I don't know. We did find that they wanted a new Police Check, and physical. We initially were going to get the K4 when my wife got her K3 ,but felt she should stay and finish her HS. What we should have been told when we told the consulate we wanted her to FTJ is to do another police check and physical before returning to get the approved visa. Hopefully she gets this turned in Wed and her visa this Friday to fly her next Monday for XMas...

The Dos gave me some very bad news. They said there are problems with her physical and police check expiring (?expired). They have waited there for 10 days for nothing. She could have redone her physical and police check already. Now I think they will have to return to Dalian to get the Police check there.(it was done last NOvember 07). I don't think her other sister's in Dalian can get this done without my stepdaughter being there in person. I can ask but...why did't they tell her last Tuesday at the window that there are a couple of issues? Why let her wait this long for nothing? What a mess?

I have already returned the call ...the number on my cell, but it was a general number that when you press "1" it says no longer working...when I called back again and pressed to hear in Chinese my wife said I could leave a message which I did but that was 7 days ago now. I also already faxed the number below and emailed them too. I guess I need to fax them again, every day until I use up all their paper. My poor sister-in-law flew down their with her neice thinking she would return on the same week (they flew down early Monday morning last week, turned in the papers on Monday, returned Tuesday to pay the fee to have the passport sent to the PO and was told to wait 2-3 days...last Friday). They have been staying in a hotel all this time and my sister-in-law left her 12 y/o son with her sister to care for expecting it to take only a week. My wife was given her K3 on Jan 2nd this year but did not enter the US until Feb 19th. Does her daughter need to have her visa before the 2nd of Jan or when her mother entered the US on the 19th of Feb? If it's 19Feb then we have some breathing room, but if she must have her Visa by the 2nd then there may be a problem unless the clock stopped on Dec 1st when she presented her passport to get her already approved K4 Visa put into it. As a back up her CR2 is already in the NVC waiting for the DS230 part I&II but I have not mailed them because she was to be here already. Maybe I should mail them off just in case. What do you think? I can fax them every day until I get a reply...but I don't want to piss them off but just get an answer as to why the delay and why they felt they needed to call me last week. Not true - the visa MUST be used (at the POE) within one year of the Mother's date of entry. This is ridiculous - now they're torturing our children as well? Try email, also. http://www.usembassy-china.org.cn/guangzhou/iv/email.html

My stepdaughter has been in GZ for two weeks now. She should have had her US Visa in her Chinese passport last Friday. It is now Friday in China and still no Visa at the end of the second week. If there was a problem why didn't they say something to her when she presented her paper to get the Visa. She stayed in China for the last 9 months to finish high school. Now it is time for her to follow her mother. Last Wed the Consualte called me but my phone was on vibrate and I did not get the call. I tried calling the number back but when I pressed #1 for English, it cut me off. I called back and had my wife listen in Chinese and left a message, but no one has called back. I have sent a email and fax and it has been 8 business days and no reply. I am really concerned as I have heard everyone gets their visa in 2 to 3 days. She must leave China within 1 year of her mother getting her Visa. My wife got her Visa on Jan 2nd. I had hoped to fly her here this week but I am really worried about getting her here before the year is up and they void her visa. Any suggestions other than flying there in person? Do I keep sending a fax until I get a reply?

Help, I have a couple of questions. I am about to send in my I-485 for my wife who entered on her K3. On the I-765, item #16 should be [a][9] acording to instructions since my wife is here on the K3. Why do you indicate [c][9]? I will be sending in the I-765 along with the I-485. For Item 15, current immigration status, I just put 'awaiting I-485 AOS approval. Is this correct? On the I-485, Part 1, for Current USCIS Status, I put K3. Is this correct? Also, I see I must send in another G325A. Can I send a copy of the one we sent in for her K3 Visa or do we need to redo another one? Also, am I correct that we only need the I-693A, supplement? My wife's physical was in Dec in GZ. It is good for a year, correct? We may have a problem in that she will be breast feeding our daughter for the next 5 months. I do not believe she can get all her shots. How will that affect the I-485 processing? USCIS does not list the I-693A. Where can I get it? Perhaps the CS will have one. Also, do we really need to file Application for Travel Document I-131. My wife's K3 is good for two years. Is this in case it takes longer than two years and still want to travel? Thanks for your help

Roger, C O N G R A T U L A T I O N S Have not heard from you in a while. Now I know why. I knew you would have PINK. You were really well prepared. Now the long trip home...at least you can relax with your wife and daughter on the way home. Mark BTW my wife had a daughter on Mother's Day.

Roger, Let me know where you went to do this. I am planning a short trip to Canada after our baby is born in May. I will need this travel Visa as well. (I have not yet sent in her I-485..still working OT for it..this week it will go out for sure..see my other email to you) Mark Link in post #8 above tells you how to apply for a visitors visa. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/visit/apply-how.asp Note Baby will be US Citizen, so will either need a US Passport to fly into Canada, or just the birth Cert if you drive into Canada. Soon you will need passport book or passport card to cross into Canada by car. http://travel.state.gov/passport/ppt_card/ppt_card_3926.html thanks for the info. Just what I wanted to find out....more forms and fees to pay...oh well....I better get to work on the visa for my wife then..

Roger, Let me know where you went to do this. I am planning a short trip to Canada after our baby is born in May. I will need this travel Visa as well. (I have not yet sent in her I-485..still working OT for it..this week it will go out for sure..see my other email to you) Mark

I have a silly question. My wife has her K3 visa. I thought this visa allows the holder to travel without any more paperwork. We are planning on returning in December to bring her daughter here. I doubt that she will have AOS by then. Will this K3 Visa be enough or does she need to file more papers other than the AOS to return to China? thanks

I did pay for the I-130 for both. So I only pay $1010 for each? Does this get them work permits and the ability to get SSAN's? Also, since our daughter will stay until August when her high school class is over will I be able to get her I-130 (CR2) processed and upgraded from her K-4? She has not put it in her passport and will not until school is out in August. But the NVC has not sent me a fee bill for either aproved I-130, although my wife's CR1 is mute as she will be her on her K3 soon. USCIS is now holding approved I-130s per new policy for all K-3/4 petitions because the majority of K-3/4s were electing to adjust status in the USA instead of counselor processing. In order to get them to bump the I-130 for the K-4 on to NVC you will need to file I-824 and pay a fee ($340). Read: http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/PN_i-129f.pdf You file I-765 along with I-485 when adjusting status to get EAD (Work permit) there is no extra fee when you file the I-765 with the I-485 using code (c )(9 ) "Pending I-485" Thanks for the info. I wish the NVC was up on this. When I called them in early November, they told me to save my money that the USCIS sends all the approved petitions to them. I told them I had approved I-129F, and I-130's. But they instisted I did not need to send in the I-824. I now wish I got the name of the official I spoke with. The question is it will cost $340 for the I-824, then the NVC sends a fee bill, I think $485 and then the consulate charges $300 for their fee. This is over $1100 as well. I made an appointment to go to INFOPASS next week. I am not sure if I can still get my daughter's I-130 moving if her mother enters the US on her K3 Visa. Or another way of looking at it , can her daughter get her CR2 without her mother getting her CR1? I figured that since our daughter will stay in China the next year, why not have her Visa keep on moving...the CR2? If I do nothing, her daughter will not be here until Aug or Dec 08 and then we need to wait for the AOS paperwork/timeline. The cost is about the same, so why not try to get her CR2 moving? What do you think?

I'm only trying to figure out how she signed them Why because he was too fast The reason my timeline was "fast" was because I was there and had her sign the P3 forms in person and had them with me when I went to the Consulate. I had asked for a medical expedite of my petition, which was fortunately granted. I had tried to get this approved and expedited through my Senator, but she had no luck. So I had nothing to loose but to plead my case to the consulate myself in person. The Consulate was very understanding and took my P3 forms from me. They mailed my wife her P4 and interview date at the same time. I guess all the trouble I went through, proved a real relationship, not counting the fact that my wife is pregnant. At her age it is considered a "high risk" and should be under special medical care not available in China. When my wife originally went to a hosptial in her city saying she was pregnant, they told her she was too old to be pregnant and she should take the baby out (terminate it). This along with other things that only someone in healthcare could understand, really drove me to push for the expedite. I hope others here understand this is unusual and not normal. I was very lucky.

Hi, my timeline is about the same as yours, I got my P2 on Oct. 26 and NVC sent to GUZ on Nov. 16. How come your P3 only took about 1 MONTH to arrive?!!! And your P4 has already arrive as well?!!! DOS is still telling me that my papers are stuck at the custom!!! HELP PLEASE!!! Thanks tons~ I feel for you. I had gone through my Senator (although she was of little help) but when I went in person and asked the Consulate for an expedite because of my wife's high risk pregancy,they were very understanding and helped. My timeline is unusual and I was very fortunate to have an understanding ear at the consulate. Yes, customs can keep them perhaps 3 months. I hope you get through customs faster. By the end of Feb you should have your P3. Best of luck to you.

I did pay for the I-130 for both. So I only pay $1010 for each? Does this get them work permits and the ability to get SSAN's? Also, since our daughter will stay until August when her high school class is over will I be able to get her I-130 (CR2) processed and upgraded from her K-4? She has not put it in her passport and will not until school is out in August. But the NVC has not sent me a fee bill for either aproved I-130, although my wife's CR1 is mute as she will be her on her K3 soon.

and while you're at it, come to Florida and take a shot at our $38 million lottery!!!! A BIG CONGRATULATIONS and thank you for the write-up for those waiting!!! : ) Michael ... you tryin to give away MY 38 MILLION OK, Dave You can take that. I'll take care the California's Super Lotto . Best wishes, Gino & Lulu Fair enough Gino ... and when we win we can meet up in China and " Party like rock stars " .. btw ..it went up to 45mil. last night Hi Dave Are you trying to turn my PINK thread into GREEN? Best wishes, Gino & Lulu Pink and green go together just fine Pink and green, we tied the knot Best wishes, Gino & Lulu Gino & Lulu, CONGRATS. You did not waste any time. Hope you have a happy honeymoon. My wife should be here soon. Perhaps we can get the wives together to shop...and we can relax with a beer Take care, Mark

Thanks, Make it pink. We are having a daughter, due in May. I am quickly going to be outnumbered. My wife and her (now our) daughter and a new daughter on the way. Three against one, specially with the bathroom. OH BOY. My small apartment with ONE bathroom is not going to cut it. Before my wife gets here I need to find a bigger place.

My wife said they did not ask her anything but gave her a paper to return in Aug to get her US Visa put in it. Do you know if, once my wife comes her, are the I-130's defunct? Since her daughter will remain for 8 more months, it might be worth while to see if I can get her CR2 processed. But I have a feeling I must do this before I AOS for my wife...so the question is do I wait until I get her CR2 going to the Consulate before AOS or what? I can save some money this way. I am not sure how they will look at it if my wife already is in the US under the K3....eventhough many of us have submitted both I am glad my wife is coming...although under the more expensive route. Do you know if we will be able to get her SSAN with the K3 Visa? or does she have to AOS first? Yes, I treat her daughter as is she were mine, but remembering that if a problem occurs, to let her mother talk to her about it. I just want to be a good role model and friend to her. Thanks for your help and advise. Mark I don't know about the K3/CR2 thing ... someone else can answer I'm sure. K3's need a green card or an EAD (work permit) prior to getting a SSAN. Re daughters, there is a danger that she will find your attempt to be a friend and let mom discuss all the problem issues to be confusing. You may wish to consider a fairly rapid transition into a typical father role, always consulting with your wife, of course. Thanks, I wanted to get our taxes off as soon as possible. There is a thread here but one said we must try to get a SSAN first. Another said to just send in the W7 and a letter asking to be considered as a resident for tax purposes. I have the letter and W7...but should I wait to try hitting up the SSA for her SSAN in case they give it to her? I am going to go to the Immigration office as soon as I can and find out about the CR2 vs when I AOS. But if it turns out I must file the I-824 and then another fee here in the US plus the 3000rmb fee at the Consulate to process the CR2 there, it will be better and less hassel to just bring her here on her K4 and do the AOS here. What do you think? Mark Mark, with respect to the taxes, there is no need to wait !! Just send in the form W-7 which was signed by her, along with your 1040, which she has, or will, sign, to the address for the special W-7 unit of the IRS. Last year it was in Texas, most likely the same this year also. They will process the W-7, which is in essence, a temporary number, until she gets her SSN later on. They will also process your form 1040, and issue the refund. I filed late, in April, last year, so it took seven or eight weeks to get the notice of approved W-7 with her new ITIN back in the mail, and another month or so to get my refund check, due to the backlog. Rog Thanks Roger, While I was there last month, I had her sign the W7 and the 1040. Of course I have to hand write the first page. I am using TurboTax. I may have to put a fake number in there. I have not gotten to that point yet. I will leave it out, but the software may not let me complete the computation for lack of a SSAN. I will try to trick it, and if I have to, put in a fake number like 111 22 3333, even though it could be someones number, just for the sake of fininshing the computation, and address a letter to the IRS reflecting this. Of course they may redo it as I won't be able to efile. I understand we can not claim her daughter even though I supported her, until she is actually here. But do I list her anyway? What about the state return? Do I list both, even though like the Federal return, I may only be able to claim my wife? What do you think/ Thanks again for your words of wisdom.

My wife said they did not ask her anything but gave her a paper to return in Aug to get her US Visa put in it. Do you know if, once my wife comes her, are the I-130's defunct? Since her daughter will remain for 8 more months, it might be worth while to see if I can get her CR2 processed. But I have a feeling I must do this before I AOS for my wife...so the question is do I wait until I get her CR2 going to the Consulate before AOS or what? I can save some money this way. I am not sure how they will look at it if my wife already is in the US under the K3....eventhough many of us have submitted both I am glad my wife is coming...although under the more expensive route. Do you know if we will be able to get her SSAN with the K3 Visa? or does she have to AOS first? Yes, I treat her daughter as is she were mine, but remembering that if a problem occurs, to let her mother talk to her about it. I just want to be a good role model and friend to her. Thanks for your help and advise. Mark I don't know about the K3/CR2 thing ... someone else can answer I'm sure. K3's need a green card or an EAD (work permit) prior to getting a SSAN. Re daughters, there is a danger that she will find your attempt to be a friend and let mom discuss all the problem issues to be confusing. You may wish to consider a fairly rapid transition into a typical father role, always consulting with your wife, of course. Thanks, I wanted to get our taxes off as soon as possible. There is a thread here but one said we must try to get a SSAN first. Another said to just send in the W7 and a letter asking to be considered as a resident for tax purposes. I have the letter and W7...but should I wait to try hitting up the SSA for her SSAN in case they give it to her? I am going to go to the Immigration office as soon as I can and find out about the CR2 vs when I AOS. But if it turns out I must file the I-824 and then another fee here in the US plus the 3000rmb fee at the Consulate to process the CR2 there, it will be better and less hassel to just bring her here on her K4 and do the AOS here. What do you think? Mark

My wife said they did not ask her anything but gave her a paper to return in Aug to get her US Visa put in it. Do you know if, once my wife comes her, are the I-130's defunct? Since her daughter will remain for 8 more months, it might be worth while to see if I can get her CR2 processed. But I have a feeling I must do this before I AOS for my wife...so the question is do I wait until I get her CR2 going to the Consulate before AOS or what? I can save some money this way. I am not sure how they will look at it if my wife already is in the US under the K3....eventhough many of us have submitted both I am glad my wife is coming...although under the more expensive route. Do you know if we will be able to get her SSAN with the K3 Visa? or does she have to AOS first? Yes, I treat her daughter as is she were mine, but remembering that if a problem occurs, to let her mother talk to her about it. I just want to be a good role model and friend to her. Thanks for your help and advise. Mark

All the stress is over....for now....my wife got her K3,...and her daughter will return in Aug to get her K4. Sucess. Now she is off to the post office to set up delivery of her passport with that beautiful US Visa in it. Now I have to think about really cleaning house.....oh boy. Roger, soon it will be your turn...

Thank you ... so he has 6 months from date of issue Does this apply for the K3 and K4 visas too? My wife is about to interview and I believe her daughter will too....next Wed, Jan 2nd. But we want the daughter to follow to join (FTJ). And we also want her to come in Aug, 7 months from this potential date of issue. So we do not want her daughter to get the visa in her passport at the same time as her mother. BUt can she interview now and just come back to get the visa put in then? Would this be considered an extension or should we ask for a blue slip for admin? We want her daughter to finish this school year at least. ( I already paid for her private school until this Aug 3rd) I suppose if she came now she could take ESL classes for the next 7 months, but I do not think this would be enough to put her into HS here without severe consequences...failing grades. This would be a lot of pressure I think.

If you go past the 6 months and do not use the visa to enter the USA before the date it expires, it then becomes invalid (void/expired/denied entery). You can get the extension by asking GZ to do it as a follow to join and splitting the paperwork that she will need for the POE. GZ does this often and it is a simple procedure. Once the visa is issued (after the fact) in the passport, GZ may be able to change it for you and split the envelope, but how to do that I am not sure. It will for sure take another trip inside the consulate and an explaination on what you need them to do. Email, fax and verify before you/they go to do that so you know what the procedure could/would be beforehand. So while my wife is at the VO's window next Wednesday morning, she must ask the VO to have her daughter's K4 be a FTJ. If so, will the daughter still interview, since she is there with her mother? Will they hold her passport and put in the K4 later, say in Feb, so that she will be out of HS when she comes in Aug? Or does she have to have a separate, later, by herself (since her mother will be with me in the US) interview? I am trying to avoid her missing more school. If they split the paperwork, does this mean her daughter comes back by herself to interview after Aug 3 when she has graduated? I am not sure my wife will like the idea of her then 17 y/o daughter making the trip back to GZ on her own. And she does not want to inconvience her family to bring her daughter. I have thought about bringing her now, but she speaks little English. She probably would be put in 11th grade but have much work to do before being allowed to attend class, like a year of ESL. She would be 19 before she would finish HS in the US or even 20 depending on how fast she picked up English and in Calif took US History and Calif History. This is why I am hoping she graduates there and then comes. If fact I am not sure her daughter will interview at the same time/with her mother on Wed. Is it normal for them to interview together? What can they ask a 16 y/o? The whole time I have know her, I have seen her on the webcam more than I did in person because when I was there she was in private school most of the time. She only had 1 day off from school where we could all go out as a family before going back to school.

I always wondered what it looked like, thanks!!! Thanks. I wondered about this. My I hope the airlines will let her on the plane with a copy of passport...maybe a certified copy. sadly does not yet have a national ID. She only has her Chinese Passport. She will not get her National ID for another 3-4 months. I hope the airlines will let her on the plane with a copy of passport...maybe a certified copy. Whoa here - the passport is left at the consulate and delivered with the visa 2 days later. I don't think they will keep it for a month I agree with Randy on this one. GZ sends the visa to the post office in two day and I'm sure they will not hold on to it for 3-4 months? Second thought: NO! They will not!!!!!!!!! Trust me , they look very closely at the passport and visa before boarding. Let alone a copy or certified copy. B) Anyone can make a fake passport and visa now days. Infact: With a little work and time, The photo that dan gave in the post above would work fine! Sorry for being so blunt: But if GZ does not grant your daughter the visa. You will have to wait, Well She will. Remember, GZ is GOD!!! and they do not play by the rules. But then again, We MUST play by there rules. Sorry!! But good luck!! The problem is if we get her K4 Visa on the 2nd of Jan, in her hands the 4th of Jan, then she must leave with in 6 months or July 2nd. She does not finish HS until the first week of Aug 08. Can we get an extension? What happens if we go past the 6 months?