Christian

First I want to thank this forum, great info! Day 1: Exploratory trip to check out the area and know how to get there. I stayed in a nice little hostel 2 subway stops away. Day 2 (Document intake): VO only asked for I-864s, Tax returns, and Police Certificates. VO gave me the EMS slip. Since I wanted my passport delivered to the Junyuan post office (a few blocks form the embassy), I went there after the Doc intake and they filled the EMS slip for me, very nice clerks. The clerk told me that the embassy sends a text message to the cell phone provided in the slip when they ship the passport. Day 3 (Interview): it took 3 hours until they finally called my number! I saw a few rejections before me but also some approvals. One guy even fainted in front of the VO window!! VO asked where I met my wife, if I was CCP, and asked for photos, then she said you have been approved you will have your visa in about a week, and gave me a copy of the EMS slip.

It's a combination of several things and you will need discipline. The best way is live classes with a good teacher. On the side you should immerse yourself as much with movies, songs, children books, etc. It's a daily commitment. It is a language that is so different that you need daily reinforcement. If you quit for a week you will see how easy is to forget. Learning the pinyin system and proper sounds is useful to learn basic Chinese to get by but you will not be able to reach an intermediate/advance level. You will need to memorize the characters and this will take you very far, it is hard but worth it.

For future small packages have them ship it via USPS Priority mail and declare under US$100. It will arrive in 8-10 days straight to your door via China Post. I once made the mistake and had a used iPhone shipped via Fedex. They asked for passport copies and a letter of realease so they could let customs inspect the package. After that they told me I had to pay duties. They sent the Fedex boy to my office, I signed, go the box, and refused to pay any duties...Success!

Dnobblet, Thanks for your adivce! Yes, we have plenty of evidence for Domicile. One question: My wife (petitioner) has not enough income to support the I-864, so we are using a wealthy family member as co-sponsor. We have the co-sponsors tax returns and trasncripts for the last 3 years, birth certicifate, and passport copy. My wife flew back to the states two weeks ago because, she is 3 months pregnant and wanted to continue all the medical monitoring there. She is not actively seeking for a job because she is pregnant and our baby is the priority now. Me (beneficiary) have a very good job offer to work with a US company. I even have a letter from the company stating a proposed start date, salary, benefits, etc. So the question is: Will it hurt to add the job offer letter at the document intake? In my eyes this is just very solid proof that I will not become a public charge.

I got my interview scheduled!!!!! The lady from NVC said December 8 12:30, so the actual interview will be on the 9th!!

It's been a month since we received NOA2, I e-mailed GUZ today and within 4 hours they answered (see below). They gave me my GUZ case number and green flag to send P3 documents, so I just mailed them via EMS. What is scary is the wait time 2-3 months!!! I hope our case gets processed faster than that... "We have received your beneficiary's petition and sent him an Instruction Packet (Packet 3) this week. In the packet your beneficiary is requested to fill out the DS-230 and OF-169 and prepare documents to start her visa application. We will schedule your beneficiary for visa interview within 2-3 months after receiving her completed DS-230 and OF-169. Please feel free to download the forms from our website if your beneficiary has not received the Packet 3."

Just wanted to report here. We DCF a I-130 in Beijing in July 13, 2011 and we just got a letter (Notice of approval for visa petition) saying it was approved on September 16, 2011 and forwarded to Guangzhou. So hopefully we will receive P3 soon. FYI, we sent an e-mail to Beijing asking for the status of the petition on September 2, to which they replied that at that time it was still pending for review.

Good point! This would be if you are from a different country, e.g. Russian.

I'm talking about the PSB that deals with the visas and resident permits for foreigners. Here are the details of the place: Shuangxiong Foreign Service Company No 3 An Ding Men Dong Dajie Phone: + 8610 64027616

Just did it myself and want to report how is the deal: The Police Certificate is not handled directly at the PSB office, don't even waste your time trying to ask there. It is outsourced through a company. Their offices are located just 30 m west of the PSB on the same street, just before a bus station. There are no signs. Cost of the "no crime" (that's how they call it) and one notarized translation to english was RMB 518 and it takes 3-4 weeks! If you want it faster or want more copies there will be additional fees. Documents needed: - Your passport with the chinese visa - Home registration - "No crime" letter from your employer Hope this helps someone...

FYI things look busy for Beijing at this time of the year. Just got an e-mail from them and our petition I-131 I-130 is still pending for review after two months...patience...

In my own personal search I found out this useful information from the Australian Embassy Website, I hope this helps. To obtaining a Chinese Police Clearance Certificate bring the following to the Beijing Public Security Bureau (PSB): 1. Contact your company(s) in Beijing and request a letter to confirm that you haven't been doing anything unlawful while working in the company (s). 2. You will then need to take the following documents to an authorised agency to obtain the certificate: a. the letter(s) from your company(s) B. the passport with your Chinese work visa c. your current passport. d. a letter of authorisation (Please note you will need to authorise someone in Beijing to apply for this certificate on your behalf). Pleased be advised that the above information is provided by Beijing PSB. If you worked in other cities, you will need to contact their local PSB for information.

Thanks for you advice guys! FYI: we have not received P3, we are just getting ahead of the game... Yes, the US embassy charges US$50 per notarized/certified document, crazy! Fortunately we have a friend that is a notary in the US to whom all the affidavits will be mailed to, then they will all mailed to us. Yes, my husband has translated his birth certificate and Colombian Police record. We will have these translations notarized by our friend in the US. We just realized that in the OF-169 it says that certified copies of birth certificates (petitioner and beneficiary) are not essential: "Photostatic copies are acceptable provided the original is offered for inspection by the consular officer." So, after getting the Chinese police certificate, where do we get this "white book"?

I searched but did not find my question answered to the point ----------- Ok, We DCF and I-130 in Beijing on 07/13/2011, they accepted the documents with no problem. Now we are putting together the documents for P3. FYI: My husband is from Colombia and I am an American citizen. We got married in the US while in grad school. Now we are both working in Beijing with permanent residence permits. We want to know: - Where to notarize translations here in Beijing (spanish to english, and Chinese to english)? - Is it necesarry to notarize the Affidavits supporting bona fide from family members? - Is it necesarry to certify the copy of the birth certificate of the joint-sponsor? Thanks for you advice!