johnxiaoying

My wife and I married in November, 2003 after a short courtship. The interview lasted all of three minutes and she picked up the visa the next day.

My wife and thousands of others have had their physicals at this hospital. This is the first negative I have heard of. Yup, ask them to recheck or go to another hospital in GZ that does the physicals.

Try this link. http://www.usdoj.gov/04foia/foiacontacts.htm

This is the same gd bureaucracy that was caught with their pants down and ..(fill in the blank)........that renewed student visas for some of the 911 terrorists, several months after they were dead. The people that most often end up at the top of the government agencies do not get there by their knowledge and hard work but by who they knew or blew. This is the same government that oversaw hurricane Katrina relief and put in their top administrators. The same government that has handed out lucrative no-bid contracts to Haliburton. The bureaucracy is usually inept and incapable, and we all see it in our immigration laws and enforcement. Special strokes for special folks. I think the baseless denials in Guangzhou are mostly due to having quotas. They can't pass everyone, if they did they're not doing their jobs. They often pass the wrong couples and deny the good legitimate ones. There doesn't appear to be any rhyme or reason to it. Perhaps they deny the ones who seem to be less prepared than others. All anyone can do is to become as informed as possible in this process and hope to be in the 95% that have a hassle free interview. Read the old archives and experiences of those who came before you (like Carl and Bing) and have your contingency plans. Know where to get a video tape made if that is what is asked for, have the name and phone number of a competent attorney in GZ, know how to make a freedom of information request concerning your case, know the overcome process, have the phone numbers of your Congressmen (as though that would do any good!). Have your SO's attend English classes and encourage them to really work at it, not only does it help in the 3-5 minute interview but it is beneficial to them when the arrive in the US as well as help the couple communicate. Practice the 95 interview questions over and over. I know of one jerk who admitted to his fiancee the night before the interview that he had previously been married and had several children. (She should have told him to take a long hike, he hid much other personal information that is just now coming to light-- this is one of the cases that shouldn't have received a visa....unprepared but successful). There's a lot of good advice in the archives, more available information than you'll receive by posting a question. The best experience is in the past, by the people that have been though it and overcome the adversity, than the advice of some newbie that is four months or so into the process, presumably for the first time, and purports to be immigration genius. There's both experience and supposition in CFL.

The rocket scientist that processed your greencard must be the same one that processed my wife's. He/she needs to go back to grade school and repeat the geography class. It took eleven days to receive the Taiwan greencard after the interview and then another two months to get a "corrected" greencard. Call the telephone number on the paperwork that came with the greencard and get the instructions for the paperwork and where to mail the greencard. Send it certified return receipt.

This is why the kitchen sink approach is recommended. Keep every piece of paper regardless of how insignificant you think it is. After the visa is in hand you can toss a bunch of the junk.

Splitting the name like that by Guangzhou is a common concern but it's not a problem. My wife's name came out split on the P3 as Xiao Ying.

Worrying about her arrival is normal. It is a very big change for them unless you happen to live in the middle of San Franciscos China town, then they'd only be homesick for family. Before her arrival be familiar with the nearest Asian markets. Check out where ESL classes are available. Hopefully you have met another couple in your area here on CFL, if not try to find out what churches the asian community attends in your area. When my wife first arrived in Oklahoma City she always claimed she was doing well and had no problems during the day while I was at work. She persisted that she had no problems then she began noticing hair loss after washing her hair and also a spot the size of a quarter that was bald. I started taking her to the dermatologist, they gave her some creams etc, a few injections in the bald spot, then one day the "Real Doctor" saw here. She told her that it was just stress of the change in her environment, to not worry about it and eventually her hair would be back to normal. Which is what happened. Recently she told me that often she would often cry when I would leave for work. The big change was when she met her best friend here, a lady from Nanning. It turned it around for both of them, helping them to adapt to their new surroundings. Now my wife has five or six friends from China that live here, including a lady from her home town of Guilin, they recognized each other as they had attended the same English class prior to coming to the US. Small world. My wife has several American women as good friends also, but they relate so much better with another woman from China.....to share their difficulties of the changes, to talk all things China, etc.

My wife received the MMR's (2) and the TD (3) at the County Health Department for free. The Varicella costs $60+ for each of two shots. If your SO previously had chickenpox then she can get a blood tider test (about $25) done which will show if she has the chickenpox antibodies. If the test turns out positive then she won't need the varicella shots.

In China the dentistry is more painful and a more dreaded thing than here in the US so they usually don't go until it is absolutely necessary (big pain). I would think the big cities would have some good, modern dentists though with an actual degree of some sort! My wife supposedly saw one of the best dentist in Guilin before she came over. Crowns were about $100 each for the best quality (as I recall, I ain't asking and telling her I'm talking about her teeth, I know how to keep peace!). Before my wife came I told my dentist she would be coming in to see him. He said that often the crowns done in some countries are the proverbial tin can knocked onto a fence post. When I took her in for her first dental exam the dentist said the work actually looked pretty good. She had deep cleaning and received one new crown (gotta sell them crowns). Her dental hygiene is much better now. It's a good idea to have your SO get dental work done in China (as in expensive crowns) but insist they go to one of the better dentists, one that uses new needles if giving novacaine, and to get an estimate of the costs.

I've got two Commies in my family now, many more if we count uncles, aunts and cousins. Many people join because it is often a pre-requisite to getting a better job. If moving to China I wonder if they would bar us for being either a Democrat, Republican or Independent.

Great story Dennis. You are doing a great job teaching...you enjoy it and your students enjoy it. Keep up the good work.

Hi Jany, It's good to hear that life is better for you and Cindy now. I wish the two of you a happy and prosperous future, you both deserve it.

Too many people get married for the wrong reasons, that is why there are so many breakups.

Hopefully you are flying to Guangzhou rather than taking the train. I have read of several reports of women having their suitcases & purses stolen at the train station containing all of their paperwork for the interview. We arrived in Guangzhou at the train station one time and it had more scum bags per square kilometer than anyplace I've seen before. A good friend of my wife had her purse snatched by two guys on a motorbike on Shamian Island. Hopefully you can meet another SO to hang out with while you're in Guangzhou.

May be time for the affected K1's to grab their honey and head to Hong Kong for a wedding.

I miss the no tipping in restaurants. The Li beer. The beautiful countryside. Shopping for junk. The good restaurant in Nanning (generally we are in Guilin). Normal looking people. I miss everything that I don't miss here. One thing I don't miss is Guangzhou.

Unfortunately 100% or 125% of poverty level is the requirement, it should be much higher. It's sad that some SO's don't understand the cost of living in the USA and come here to end up living in poverty.

Difficult days lie ahead, I've seen my wife adjust and several other women from China who have immigrated recently. They all have crying spells and consider returning to China. Even in the best of situations there is homesickness to overcome. Try to meet other couples, particularly those with a Chinese wife, and get your wife involved in ESL classes or other activities as soon as possible. The quicker she makes friends the better. Plan to take your wife back for a visit before the first year is up, it really helps their homesickness and perceptions of their new life. I read that advice from someone who preceded me on CFL and it does make a difference. My wife went back to China unannounced after 8 months in the US, she had told her mother she would be away on a business trip with me and that she wouldn't be near the internet. She surprised her mother by walking up behind her and tapping her on the shoulder while she was shopping at the market. It lets them know that this isn't such a big world anymore and than they can show up at anytime, that they haven't left China forever, provided sufficient funding is available!

A new Lowe's is going in near our home so my wife decided to apply. We went by and picked up an application and came home to fill it out......it's in Espanol. I'll have to go back and see if they are giving consideration to legal immigrants or US citizens.

Bribery is widespread in China, the greasing of palms gets many things done but speeding up a visa by bribeing a Consulate staff isn't one of them and is just B.S. salesmanship by the crook trying to do business with your SO.

She had some knowledge since they married in China. This would suggest they spent some time together. Looks like a case of the con getting conned.

I purchased my wifes one way and allowed 10 days after the interview before the flight. The plan was to get the VISA and then go visit the family, or have the time in GZ to clear up any problems. Also there was a $100 or $200 fee if we needed to change the date of the flight.

My wife has spoiled my (now hers) 70 & 120 pound outside dogs. Now they think they are inside dogs!

Don't listen to the lying scum. Don't hire an attorney! I hired an attorney and he told me the same thing, that K3 was faster than K1. The attorney put a few more hundred dollars in his pocket for steering me to K3.......he had to have his clerk stick one more cover letter on top of the second set of documents we had filled out (I-130). Only form I-129F for K1, both I-130 and I-129F for K3. The attorney made several errors in the submissions to USCIS which I caught in his office while reviewing my copies. The subsequent submissions to correct the errors cost us several weeks to a month in the process.........this I paid good money for. Luckily you found this website early on and have the opportunity to learn about the process and paperwork before you go. Go to links and resources. If you decide to go K3 and marry in China (Hong Kong is faster) then read the following: http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/marriedchina.html