carl.hops

Hi everyone. I'm not sure anyone would remember me, life throws some real curve balls. I broke up with my ex (15 years ago or so). That was a good thing, because I met my wife a few years after in Tianjin, where we got married in 2011. We have two children now, and I've lived in China since. She's gone to the states on a travel visa twice, and my boys have their citizenship of course. To the point, we are considering moving to the states now. On one of those trips to the states, we had a second wedding and got a marriage certificate in Oregon. So, we have both a Chinese and American marriage certificate. Which visa should we apply for, if we are looking to get to the United States, together, as fast as possible? Thanks for your time, Carl

Tsap, I figured as much. Looks like I'll be doing what Mike suggested but probably not sending it over all in one lump. We'll just have to open an account with the right bank after we land in the states, then start transferring the money over.

What provider do you use? You can PM if you don't want to post it publicly. I've read several articles about how VPN connections are being actively blocked by China Unicom. You can still connect with Astrill using their stealth settings but it gets blocked within a few hours. I'm not sure what you mean by "Not true" it's not true that Astrill is the best service or that VPN protocols are being blocked?

I've been looking into banks located in China and the states to transfer money over without any fees and it looks pretty hopeless. HSBC Premier offers a good service only if you have a combined deposit of cash and assets of 100,000 or more. We only have the cash. You can take more than 10,000 with you when you enter the United States but you have to claim it. It wont be taxed either. The only problem is, I don't want to be lugging around 150,000 USD in China or the states and I'm almost certain we would be stuck in customs for a few hours while they make sure we're not money launderers, traffickers or drug dealers. I guess we'll just have to take the hit and wire transfer the money. Apparently anything over three thousand USD or so set's off alarms in which banks are required to report to the IRS which could mean weeks of the funds not being available while they make sure we're not criminals.

Just in case anyone stumbles upon this I've been using Astrill for a few years now and it's the best service you can find. They are always making sure their servers work. The GFW was recently updated to block all VPN connection attempts, but they are looking for a work around. Meanwhile you can still browse the web via their proxy.

I have good news to share, yesterday Yakun got a B2 Tourist visa to go with me and visit my parents. Apparently the visa officer was impressed by her English after asking a few simple questions about her and me, then said, enjoy your trip to America. I guess this means we won't have any problems getting tourist visa's anywhere else after our trip, Australia is next!

Right now moon cakes are sitting rotting in our schools fridge, I'm afraid to even open it again for fear of passing out from the stench. I'll get to it later...

Mike, I planned on having her and her parents just send 50k each like you said but I had no idea the bank would just send it all in one amount, that's really good to know! I'm sure it will be a pain in the butt, but so has been sending money back home with western union, no one ever knows what the heck their doing, this I'm sure they've got down to an art in some places. The wisdom in this thread is priceless, we aren't currently planning on moving over to the states for another six or seven years. Right now we are trying to have a baby (trying to conceive) and once our child is ready to start school, we will move back to Portland. Yakun has a business here, that I volunteer at, as I don't have a work visa, and her income is more than enough. We will be back and forth between China through out the year in order to manage it. So for now this house is mostly for investment purposes, but also a possible future home. Tsap, we know it's a long shot but before she gets pregnant she's going to go down to the Beijing embassy and try for a tourist visa (or some other visa that allows her to visit my family) we will be completely honest, we don't plan on getting married in the states or staying, I think showing her bank statements may be enough to persuade someone that she's got a business worth coming back to. We have been married for almost two years, by the time we move over we will go for that IR-1 visa, the house should come in handy as my proof of residence for the affidavit of support. Do you think I'll need to move back to the states for a few months before she comes over, or is having a home enough to convince them? Also, will I need a job before hand as is needed with the F1 visa? If so I'd have to leave my family, but for how long... I remember you were off in aus with the SO before you made it to the states.

knloregon, All of the funds are in RMB currently, I remember almost six years ago hearing my first Chinese girlfriends boss telling me he could only transfer $50,000 a year, I'm surprised it hasn't changed. I'm guessing it would be more than a hassle to have say, me send 50,000 over, then have her transfer 50,000 over (I'll be getting her, her own account with Navy Federal) and then have say, one of my parents transfer money over? I'm not sure how I'd put all that money together, maybe I could just make three payments? At this point a loan is not out of the question, but it will be a hassle considering I haven't paid taxes in two years going on three. I just spoke to my bank and they said that all I would need is her ITIN like dnoblett stated earlier, but, she would simply be a co-signer considering that she doesn't have a visa and has never visited the states. Still, with her (our) assets I don't think it will be a problem getting the loan. We will need to make a trip to Korea in order to go to the nearest branch however. I'm interested in talking to you some more about the market in Oregon, especially about your experience building your own house.

We would like to buy a home in Portland, Oregon. There are still plenty of condo's, townhouses and detached homes around 150,000. We plan on borrowing 100,000 from her parents, and paying the rest with what we have saved. So we wold be paying all out in cash. I had given up the idea of getting a loan because I'd rather not get stuck in a bad interest rate, I can personally qualify for a VA home loan at an interest rate around 3.3 but I'm unable to now because I haven't worked for over three years and haven't payed taxes for two. I wonder if she would be able to secure a good interest rate... Her parents have no problem lending us the money (they know we plan to take care of them later) but I'd rather get a loan and a more expensive house at around 250,000 if we can land a good deal on a loan from a bank, I'd much rather loan from the bank than her parents just so we can avoid and future problems that might occur. If we do end up lending from her parents, I don't see it being a huge problem as the money we make together now is kept in a bank account under her name (for the majority of funds) that includes our savings, so if a divorce ever did happen I'd most likely be the one with the short end of the stick. She will have her name on the deed which ever route we take. I was just shown Zillow and Redfin yesterday and I've been looking into which counties in Oregon are cheapest property tax wise, thank you guys for your thoughtful replies. I should hang around here more often.Also, it's really good to hear you finally were able to go back to the states WITH your wife tsap! It looks like I'll be giving my bank a call later and asking them what I should do in order to get a loan for my wife, hopefully I can use Navy Federal still.

Thank you for clarifying that for me :-) I don't think her parents would agree to just give out 100,000 USD willy nilly with out her name on it too. I didn't mean to say that I'm not a citizen anymore, just that if she were to try and buy the house she would be taxed more yearly. I don't plan on ever changing citizenship <insert flying american flag n such>

I'm back! It's been quite a while since I've browsed this forum, but not much has changed. My wife and I live in China, and we are ready to buy a home in the states. As I don't have a job anymore and no real income to report we plan on borrowing from her parents so we would be paying in cash for our home. My question is this: is it possible to buy the house in both our names? I've read that a foreign home buyer will need a tax identification number and that they can indeed buy property, but it seems that a foreign buyer is subject to high taxes. Have any of you who have a Chinese wife (married in China only) bought a house together in the states? Thanks.

Glad to see you are doing well....married man. tsap seui Living it up here in Chinertucky like you might say.

啊，你肯定看过非诚勿扰。这些天我跟我老婆看。 -edited for "cheesyness" and incorrect characters.

I recently asked my students what extent religion had because a lot of them talk about being Christian, that and here in Tianjin we have a large French catholic church right next to the major shopping street. There are regular services there. The only limitation that they told me about was, you can't solicit religion, that means no going to schools and handing out flyers or bibles. IMHO I think thats a good law to have, keep religion and state separate. Keep it private.

Suprise! I'm married, anyways. She kept her name, thats the Chinese way and I'm still in China. We'd probably do the same if we moved to the states.

I'm happy to be here in China, yeah theres nothing good to watch on T.V. but that makes it so much easier to not watch it, and instead enjoy the language, culture and everything else on offer. It is too bad, because I'm a huge science fiction nerd but its not going to spoil any nerds parade over here, even with the great firewall they can't block all the sci-fi time travel etc... being shared on the net, and with new draconian laws trying to be passed in the states to censor torrent sites and the like I'm getting a bit worried, if the states cant keep the internet free than were all about to have an even bigger veil pulled over our eyes.

All I can say is, I just went through what shes going through now, and I got past it. First you are excited about the new country and culture, then it starts to bother you, and then you either leave or learn to adjust and deal with it and if you do stay all the bad things that you were seeing before are easily dismissed. I'm loving China now, I found my balance between American culture and Chinese culture. The way I stay sane is by staying away from the things that bother me, that being Traffic, I try and not ride my bike too much or go out during rush hour times which has brought down most of my complaints and unhappiness. I found some other locals around my age to hang out with and relate to, and a local American cafe that I can relax in every once in a while. The only real good advice I can give to you is, don't expect her to eat "western" food. No matter where you are I'm sure you two will be perfectly capable of cooking and eating Chinese food, a change in diet can change an attitude greatly, that along with culture shock makes things far worse. Give her a daily dose of Chinese culture, some CCTV, speak Chinese more with her, buy her a wok and a gas burner etc... All of that will go a long way. After that all you can do is wait and be supportive, not everyone adjusts at the same pace. When I first arrived in China I enjoyed life and was excited and curious for about a year, then that started to wear off and I became frustrated, that lasted about 7 months, then I got over all the small things, and then I finally accepted them and started enjoying my life again.

USCIS Introduces First-Ever Fee Waiver Form New Form Results from Extensive Collaboration with the Public WASHINGTON¡ªFor the first time, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is introducing a standardized form for requesting waivers of the fees charged for immigration-benefit processing. Form I-912, Request for Fee Waiver, will become available for use on Nov. 23, 2010 ¨C the same day USCIS¡¯s latest fee schedule takes effect. ¡°Our goal is to bring clarity and consistency to immigration-benefit services,¡± said USCIS Director Alejandro Mayorkas. ¡°The development of the new fee waiver form reflects our commitment to making improvements through extensive collaboration with the public.¡± The fee waiver form reflects significant input from stakeholders, community-based organizations, and the general public. In stakeholder meetings, USCIS heard concerns that the absence of a standardized form led to confusion about the criteria and standards used to approve waivers. In July, USCIS published and sought comments on a proposed form through the Federal Register, generating input from numerous interested parties. Comments reflected applicants¡¯ past experiences in requesting fee waivers and recommended changes to the proposed form and instructions to make them easier to understand for non-native English speakers. The new form identifies clear requirements for documenting a fee waiver request. The form¡¯s instructions also give information on the methodology that USCIS uses to evaluate the requests. For example, if an applicant can show that he or she is receiving a means-tested benefit and presents evidence to document that claim, then there is no requirement to submit further evidence. USCIS will use the same methodology in reviewing all fee waiver requests, whether submitted on the new Form I-912 or in a written statement generated by the applicant. USCIS announced today that it is also now seeking feedback on a new guidance memorandum documenting the agency¡¯s consolidated policy for reviewing fee waiver requests. Stakeholders and the general public are encouraged to visit www.uscis.gov/outreach to review the new memorandum and offer their input. USCIS¡¯s latest fee rule, which takes effect Nov. 23, 2010, expands the availability of fee waivers to several new categories. The final rule also increases fees by a weighted average of about 10 percent, but does not increase the fee on naturalization applications. For more information on USCIS and its programs, visit www.uscis.gov. http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=2a1c003cf147c210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=68439c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

Sure would be nice, but this is just a small part of the uglyness. Whats more funny is were all worried about how these animals are treated, but none of us cry too much when it comes to how much pollution is killing ocean life, etc... That's human nature I guess. Maybe China can get to human rights before all their zoo animals die

I drive my little e-bike here every day on the "bike lane" which is just as wide as a regular vehicle's lane so cars are always weaving in and out of it, and im doing the same in theirs. Its the only way to get around, you come to adjust to the way of driving here, people know its dangerous so they aren't driving at breakneck speeds (save a few a-holes) Its definitely dangerous, but the area I'm in people tend to follow the rules a bit more because a few of the intersections have camera's with large flash's going off every time someone runs the light. I'm thinking about getting a blow horn, this little squeak my bike makes just doesn't cut it.

The zoo here in Tianjin has its share of malnourished animals, this Rhino was just laying there, it looked to have an open wound in its leg that was probably infected. I haven't been back inside the Zoo since (its right across the street from me). http://www.imagerocket.net/photos/1268572879_rhino.jpg Its kind of strange how the Panda's don't seem to be suffering much? ;-) The rest of the animals looked alright, not happy but at least they weren't on the brink of death like the rhino. There was a circus act, it looked like they got the animals to do what they wanted through treats but a part of me knows that they probably don't treat them well if that doesn't work. You can take pictures with one of the tigers, I have to admit I did it with Yakun knowing the money probably wasn't going to feed them. What kind of Tiger is this? http://www.imagerocket.net/photos/1268572880_tiger.jpg Here are some leopards just laying around, not much space and no green but at least they can keep each other company. http://www.imagerocket.net/photos/1268572881_leopards.jpg

I think it has a lot to do with their parents, and their own personality. I tend to say I love you more, because that's the way I was brought up. Her mother rarely gave her much physical love, and neither parents said the 3 words very often so she doesn't feel the need for it as much as I probably do. But I think she understands the difference, and likes it when I tell her even though she feels its unnecessary at times. What I've come to realize is, she values things being done for her far greater than things being said to her. Like making her lunch, giving her a massage or just picking something small from the store for her to eat. To be honest I haven't been to great at this, but I'm getting better. And unlike my first Chinese SO she has no problems giving me what I need, and even more.

Thank's, I just watched the first episode on youku, if you want mandarin subs only go here: http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTM5MzQ0Mzk2.html

ÕâÊÇÖйúµÄCCTVµçÊÓÐã½Ð¿ìÀÖººÓï¡£ ¿ÉÒÔ¿´ÔÚÉÏÍø¡£ This is a TV show from china's CCTV called Happy Chinese Language. You can watch it online, for free. It's standard ÆÕͨ»° and includes English translation and ºº×Ö subtitles, breaking for little highlights of phrases and vocabulary. Kind of cheesy, but it gets the job done! And its free. http://space.tv.cctv.com/video/VIDE1266599797933886