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I have been reading a lot of information. My wife has been reading a lot of information, in Chinese. We live in Xi'an, China. What has been happening is that I have been getting more and more confused. When I wrote to the consulate in Guangzhou, they wrote back that the only documents that needed were the certificates of marriage. That usually became a "white book ֤." All other documents only needed to be certified by the translator. I got the distinct impression, when looking at the U.S. websites, there were only TWO times documents were submitted in the process: 1) When the I-130 is submitted; and 2) at the time of the interview. Are there other times and places for submitting documents leading up the issuance of the temporary green card? The minimum documents to be submitted when the I-130 is submitted is rather clear. But a lot of folk on these forums state that the decision for granting a green card is usually decided by the time of the interview. So does that mean that letters stating written by those who know us are to be submitted at the time the I-130 is submitted? Do Chinese know the difference between notarization and certification? My wife, as well as a friend's wife, who both are looking forward to my friend and I getting them green cards, seem to find that every document needs notarization ֤. Is this a language problem? Or is this a situation where the embassy website is not up-to-date with the current requirements? This is really confusing. If the police report needs a notarized translation, as well as the divorce papers from other divorces, then that is what I need. But if those only need certification, then I'll be wasting a lot of money and time. In the "Guide to IR-1 (DCF)," it states in step three the preparation of "supplemental documents," without saying what they are. The Guangzhou embassy told me that if my wife had a passport, then there was no need for a birth certificate. Is that actual not true? Also, my wife's passport has the biographical page already with a English in each significant field. Does this really need a notarized translation for what is already translated in the original document? Finally, is there any one list of ALL the documents needed for the entire process for getting that first temporary green card? I have some other questions and confusion, but I'll await for replies to this before adding them. Thank you in advance. -
A white-book notarial translation of the hukou isn't required for filing an I-130, right? Thanks :-) edit: becuase the notarial ofice said they could translate it but the translation is 100 rmb per page and the hukou has a bunch of family members in it... it'd be pretty pricey...
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Hey all, My girlfriend and I have been cohabitating for a few years in China and we're planning to get married in the middle of January, and then shortly after file an I-130 in Guangzhou. Of course, we need to provide evidence of our "bona fide marriage" but we are going to be married like a week before we submit the I-130 in Guangzhou. All the evidence we have is really just evidence of our relationship (pictures spanning three years, airline tickets, my passport exit/entry stamps, my residence permits and visas, copies of my most recent contracts, etc...), we don't have any stuff showing joint assets or anything like that. I was planning on getting affidavits from two of my coworkers here in China and my current employer, but after researching around I've found that the affidavits that they'd write would need to be notarized (i'm assuming that they'd need to be notarized by the US Embassy or Consulate). But we live in Henan and it isn't practical or really possible to ask them to travel with us to the Embassy in order to affirm/notarize their documents. I guess my question is: how screwed are we? -Jake
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Marriageability Affidavit at the Beijing Embassy
jwdoetsch posted a topic in Direct Consulate Filing
Hey China folks! I'm planning to marry my girlfriend next month in China to facilitate the filing of our DCF I-130, but I'm stumped on the Marriageability Affidavit. The Guangzhou Consulate has the Marriageability Affidavit form available from their website, but Beijing doesn't have a form available. The Guangzhou form has Guangzhou's address and stuff on it (you can see it here: http://photos.state....saffidavit.doc ) so I'm thinking "do they even do Marriageability Affidavit notarizations in Beijing?" If yes, what form would I use to do it? Also, I've read that the Embassy and Consulate don't do translations... I'm going to need to go to the Chinese Notary that serves my girlfriends Hukou region, the same notary that's going to need to translate her birth record and police background history, right? They'll be able to translate my Marriageability Affidavit, right? Who here has been through this process in Beijing? How did you go about it? Where did you get the Marriageability Affidavit translated? Thanks a ton, guys and gals! Peace, Jake edit: Did you have to "register your marriage" with the embassy or anything like that? When you finally arrived back in the US did you have to go to the state courthouse to register or get a state marriage license? I'm very confused on these points... -
Howdy, Please note, I am doing DCF in Guangzhou. I feel bad posting a thread every day, but I honestly don't know what to do when my searched turn up nothing or conflicting answers for some specific questions. But please know that I've been researching these questions for over a day and am still coming up short on answers. They're pretty brief questions, so here it goes: The Guangzhou Consulate website says to also bring the beneficiary's passport when filing the I-130, or if you don't have it you should bring the birth certificate. Is this true in practice? By beneficiary doesn't have a passport yet, but will have one before the interview... My father will need to cosponsor the beneficiary. I have a few questions regarding this:My father also lives with my mother in the household, but my mother doesn't provide any income. Is it necessary for my mother to fill out an I-864A?It's okay to have a co-sponsor when filing DCF, right?My father isn't going to be asked to be present at the time of filing nor interviewed, right?The household size would be 4 on both my father's and I's I-864, right? We intend to live in my parent's home (my father, mother, myself, my wife).I'm concerned that my girlfriend's hukou city (Changyuan, Henan which is near Xinxiang and I guess technically "belongs" to Xinxiang) isn't going to have a clue with regards to translating the necessary documents. I've read that the translations need to be done at, at least, a city-level notary. Changyuan is like a county. We are going to need to go to the designated notary in Zhengzhou to get our marriage certificate(s) translated, could this office also translate the rest of the documents we get from her Hukou city?I've heard from some Chinese friends that they received two marriage booklets and that is their marriage license. Exactly, what document(s) is/are received after registration of the marriage?Finally, I've read the filing guide on the Guangzhou embassy website and also the FAQ that states: I've read a bunch of reports of people's experiences submitting their I-130 petition and they included a bunch of evidence with it. So, in practice, is it necessary and/or helpful to submit as much evidence as you can at the time of petition filing? Thanks a ton, guys... All the best, Jake
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Hey all, I've been researching all night but haven't been able to successfully able to put the pieces together regarding paying fees at the time of filing the I-130 in Guangzhou. I also need to go to Beijing to notarize a Marriageability Affidavit so this question is probably also relevant to that as well. The Guangzhou Consulate website says that payments must be made at the time of filing either by cash or credit card. Is there like a cashier in the Consulate? Where do you go to pay? I've read about CITIC, but I'm confused as to what its purpose is in payment processing. Thanks for your help, all, you're all amazing. It's great how you've all been through the process already but stick around to answer naive questions from all us newbies. Peace, Jake
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Just getting the final things together for bobs and jens CR1/ IR1 papers. I have a 3 questions 1) I-130 section C line 17. (List spouse and all children of your relative) Do i put bobs wife and son here? (There reason i ask is when i filled this out for hong i put none and had no problems.) 2) same section and same line for stepson. What should be entered here for stepsons I-130 3) section D line1 I would enter stepsons name here right? Mike
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Hi Everyone, Just getting started on the immigration process for my wife, and currently filling out the I-130. Few questions here, I did a few searches of the site and couldn't find specific answers but assuming you can all help: Box C2 - Does this address need to match any of our documents (her Hukou, my residence permit, etc). I ask because I tend to use our office address in China (same company for both of us) for mailing, since we have a very competent mail room which I can't say the same for about my apartment complex. Box C17 - Do I need to list myself as her spouse again here or is this redundant since I am filing on her behalf as her spouse? Documentation - My birth certificate is in a box somewhere back home in the US. I do have my Passport and Social Security card here with me in China. Will these be sufficient or will I need to get the birth certificate? More documentation - we had her Chinese documents translated and notarized about 6 months ago, and the translator told her that they would expire in 6 months (now). However, there is no expiration date on the documents and I can't find anything online about these expiring. Does anyone know if they would remain valid? Last question (for now!). We live in Hangzhou, so based on all I've seen here we will be going to Guangzhou for DCF. Please correct me if wrong. thanks ahead of time
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Hi, To be more specific: I filed a i-130 petition in Guangzhou for my wife last thursday. It was her choice to use an agent for this process -- one based in Guangzhou -- though I'm sure I could've done it with you fine folks. The agent gave a very different answer to us re: wait times pending approval than the embassy did, though the embassy guy I spoke to tended toward dodging any direct answers to my questions of this nature. Anyways, the embassy guy said he had "heard" that the low end of the wait time for i-130 approval was "about 4 months." The lawyer, in great contrast, assured us we would have an answer in "two weeks," that at the moment application volume is low and that she does this so often that she's very aware of how long these things are taking right now. Personally, mentally, I've been splitting the difference, roughly, and assuming it will take about 1-2 months. That seems to be what most of the literature I've read has suggested, anyway. I'm just curious, since you all have been really helpful in the past, if anyone has current info on this, and could ease my anxiety-ridden mind a bit. I know all this is gonna take some time, I know that no one knows exactly how much time -- but any wisdom at all is appreciated. I had really hoped we'd be able to leave by Christmas, or at least New Years. It's, again, something our agent assures is possible. I imagine it's not likely, but having some kind of general time frame would help us plan our future a bit. For instance, I'm still not working. (On that last point, I'm here in China currently on a Q1 visa. I haven't been home to the US for over a year, and I haven't worked for the last 4 months because of my visa status, save some tutoring. This shouldn't be an issue for the public charge portion of the DCF process, however, since my grandparents have already filled out the applications of support as our joint sponsors, and their income fits the requirement.) S.
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Don't believe all you read about I-130 processing being so swift & an I-129F is not needed. Of course you must file the I-130, get a receipt number, then file the I-129F - with a copy of the receipt, & etc. I-130 processing times for a USCitizen living in the USA is 13 months. This has continually gone up every time they update. The below is a new update, finally. Processing TimesI-130, US Citizen for Spouse, at National Benefits Center.USCIS National Goal - 5.0 Month(s) USCIS National Average - 13.0 Month(s) National Benefits Center - 12.0 Month(s) Effective as of: September 30, 2013 California office is 7.7 months, so it says. Vermont is 11.4 But note the national average!!! 13 mo. I-129F Processing Times 1). I-129F, K3/K4, Texas Service CenterUSCIS National Goal - 5.0 Month(s) USCIS National Average - 5.0 Month(s) Texas Service Center - 5.0 Month(s) Effective as of: September 30, 2013 California Service Center is also at 5 months. K1/K2 is the same, 5 months. -
Hello Brothers & Sisters My Brother in-law to be is Going to China soon to Get Married to my Wife's Sister . They are seeking an Agent in Guangzhou to assist them in the Process of obtaining a CR1 for his Wife . They are also looking for Couples in Shenyang or Liaoyang and in New Mexico to become friends with , Tom will join CFL very soon . I just want to help them get started , Does any one know if Roger Lynn is still in Guangzhou ? Thank You Michael-Sean -
Hello everyone. Today I received the great news that my wife's visa was approved! We are very happy that it only took 5 1/2 months. I am waiting for instruction from the government. What can i expect now and how long before i can bring my wife to the US?
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Hey everyone, So I'm at a crossroads here. My wife is a Chinese citizen. We got married while she was here in the US, and she has now returned to China. I am moving to China (Guangzhou) in 4 days to work. Given the situation, I can choose two things here: potentially go through DCF or just submit an I-130 before I leave this week. I think the safe route is to just submit the I-130 here. However, I'd really prefer DCF if I can get things to work out (for timing reasons). The key is that the embassy/consulates in China require that one lives in China for 6 months (e.g. working) before one can qualify to go through the DCF process. Does anyone have any experience with doing DCF in China more recently? I read that the rule is not always strictly enforced. If I have a work permit, will they potentially allow me to file through DCF even before the 6 month minimum? If we go through filing an I-130 now, then how long will that take? I've seen a few other people on VisaJourney forums and other places whose time between filing and entry into the US only took ~7-9 months (from China). If we can pull of the same time, then it's no problem, but it'd be rather unfortunate for us if it takes longer than that. The goal is to be able to come back to the US in July or August of 2015. Thanks, Dan
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Greetings all, I'm going to China again on Sept 11th (3rd time now) but this time we will get married and spend our honeymoon in the Maldives for a week. I want to prepare all the paperwork ahead of time, plus the W-7 form. I've looked at a few examples online for the I-130 and the G-325A forms but some are in all caps, some are just normal (first letter cap, rest lower case). What's better? My kitchen sink so far: Cover letter G-1145 the check I-130 G-325A both her and myself passport pictures copies of our birth certificates (with translation in white book form) copies of our divorce decrees (once again, hers in white book form) copies of our passports copy of our Chinese marriage certificate (with white book) evolution of relationship letter (I'll be adding more when I get back) 3 pictures from each of the first 2 trips there (I'll be adding 3 more when I get back) copies of my airline tickets and receipts of places we went to while I was there a few emails from day one, and phone records and a good friend of hers will write an affidavit to affirm having personal knowledge of our relationship and marriage. Shwweee that's a lot of paperwork . . . . . Thanks
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Hello, I'm preparing my I-130 for my wife. We live in Shanghai. I read I can file for DCF at Beijing or Guangzhou, any recommendations which one I should choose? Thank you for your feedback. Best, Julian
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Well, I'm married now (!!!). After the hectic-ness of last week -- with the run to Shanghai, an endless wait at the embassy (6:00AM - 1:00PM), the marriage itself, and the usual bullshit given to us by the local PSB (they sent us to the police station nearest to her residence to get a form from them approving my residence at her parents' house, then they sent us to the police station nearest to my old apartment to get my original residence information, then back to the PSB where they asked my wife to scribble down a letter of invitation for me because, as the cop put it, "i think you need that, i think it's the same as a tourist visa as it is for a marriage one") -- we're gonna take a breather at home for a week. we get my passport back in 2 weeks, hopefully with a six month visa (with the 90-day exit/entry requirement), then i have to change my residence AGAIN (to my wife's family's house, because my old residence info will have finally expired by that time), and finally, we'll start work on her immigration. So, quick question: Should we definitely use an immigration lawyer? I paid 900 CAD to an agent to help with her Canadian Student Visa, which was denied, so I'm feeling a little burned by the process. But if you all think it's 100% necessary, then I will be hiring an immigration lawyer (we'll just need to decide on if we should get someone local or based in the U.S.). I have a friend that just went through this, for Canada, and he did use a lawyer. It took him 6 months; I'm hoping we can be home for christmas... It begins! - Sam
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My new girlfriend has a one year "M" B-2 visa and has already been to my lovely city already. We contacted a lawyer and he said doing a CR-1 here is not too much of an issue? She has a 14 year old son, and what is quicker to bring him here my thinking is K-1? The other issue is she was CCP when she taught at a university, is that better handled in the USA or in China? -
Dear member on this Forum, I am a new member of this Forumm and surprising found so many helping hands and kindness here. I got married with my wife last year when I was a green card holder in US and she is a Chinese citizen in China. We had a baby in Jan in China. We were waiting for me to become an US citizen to file their green card application, so that our family can be reunited sooner. I am ready for filing the I-130 application. One big issue I overlooked and now seems a big problem is: my wife is a memebr of the communist party. It is not because the belief, It is simply the job requirement. She is not an currupted offical, just an office manager there in a state own company. My lawyer told us not to mention she is a party member, saying they have been applying a lot of cases till now without any issue. The lawyer said if we disclose this information, the application will be delaid for very long time. However, both my wife and I are honest and afraid that we lie to the UCSIC and the consequences will be even more severe. I missed my baby very much and can't bear being apart from my wife and daughter baby any longer. Please advise what is the best way to deal with this issue? Thank you in advance! billy chang -
When filling out the g-325a and i-130 should my wife be using her English name (with my last name) as the "Name" and putting her Chinese name in "Other names used" or should it be the other way around?
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Hi, Every Friend here. After a long 10 months wait and NBC for no reason sending my wife and kid's I130 to field office for judication, I received the notice from my local field USCIS office to have an interview with me. I just finished the interview and was told both cases are approved. The officer who interview me told me there was no extra notes on our cases and he didn't understand why the NBC took so long and why they didn't approve the case by themselves and sooner. When I filed my application, my daughter was only three month old, she is now 13 month old. I missed all the happy time being with her since she and my wife are still in China. Since I filed I130s myself (I checked with the USCIS field officer, there was no errors on our applications), I would like to have your help again to complete the Visa application process. I have a few questions for the Visa process: 1. My wife and daughter are living in Shanghai, even there is a consulate in Shanghai, their interviews will still be in Guangzhou, correct? 2. Is the efiling for the Visa still available for our cases? 3. I have not yet filed my 2013 tax return. I did obtained 2010-2012 tax transcript. It is obvious not enough time to get the tax transcript even I am filing now. Can I send in the 2013 tax filing without the IRS approval? 4. What kind of time frame currectly for getting the green card visa after the I130 approval? Thank you in advance!
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I am not sure if the I-130 can be handed in at the ebmassy in Guangzhou. I saw that the USCIS has a walk-ins on Fridays from 8:30 to 10:30. Do they have to be handed in during this two hour window only on Fridays? Thanks for your help...I am just starting the process for my wife and getting my daughter registered as a US citizen.
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It's been a long time and i forget. How many passport photos needed for the complete I-130 IR1/CR1 process. From start to finished. Mike
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Hi everyone this is my first post. I am posting for a friend of mine who's going through this problem. Here's the situation: - My friend is a naturalized US Citizen. He was married with his wife in China, and they are living there, for over 2 years. - My friend applied for his wife to come to US, by filing I-130 stateside. It was filed around March 2013. It was approved and sent to NVC just recently, March 2014. -They had a baby girl born on July 2013 in China. - My friend thought his baby could get US Citizenship automatically. But when he went to the embassy, he found out she can't. Because he did not meet the "5-year US residency" requirement. - My friend will have to file for I-130 for his baby to come to US. Then, once the baby sets foot in the US, she can become citizen right away. Now, apparently, we would want the baby and the mother to come to US together. If my friend files I-130 stateside, it would take a whooping 12 months + for process. The baby cannot be separated from her parents that long. Again, the mother's case is now in NVC, and they were just starting to file I-864 and DS-260 etc for the mother. What can we do for the child? How can we get the baby to come with the mother? Please help. Thank you. -
I bet this question has been asked many times but searching did not reveal an answer. I am wondering which is the safer way to go, K1 or CR1. Thanks, Brad
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I've been married to my SO for over a year and a half but she couldn't move here yet due to family/work commitments. She's visited a half dozen times on tourist visas, though. She finally finished everything and was ready to move here for good and we were looking at starting the paperwork for her K visa, however, since she still had 8 months or so left on her tourist visa, I told her to just fly over and we'll just start on the next step. She arrived last week but now I'm sort of lost on what exactly that next step is. I was reading up on the "adjustment of status" but I think that's for K visas? Can anyone point me in the right direction? I hope I didn't make a mistake by having her come here... I apologize if this is a very common question, I've searched the forum a little for something similar but had no luck.
