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Hello again. I last posted in June 2016 after going to China and being denied IV on I-601a at the interview. My wife remains in China while I am in US. Good news is 3 weeks ago we got I-601 approved. My lawyer says a second interview is not required but she has been wrong before. such as the 601a denial. We went to GUZ May5, 2016 for the original interview. approval of new 601 was 6/29/2017. that is more than one year. From what I read, on FB and Candle, a new interview is needed. Is that true? And #2 question: can I set up the date or must I wait for US Consulate to assign date? Furthermore I expect if an Interview is required then I also need: Medical, Police report, Biometrics, Photos. Affidavit of Support and also what? all supporting documents from first interview? My wife is nervous, ( like an alligator in a belt factory) to face another interview, after the dreaded denial last year. I say, our case has been 'adjudicated' approved and inadmissibility Waived, there is nothing to worry about. Background info: there was unlawful presence and entry. the I-601a apparently covered "unlawful presence" but not entry. it was a single entry by 'wave through' in 2003. It should have been included. That is in the past for us, however others may be helped to know it. the I-601A, must clearly address everything. My previous story, post, is: " Visa denied at interview with 601a" I can tell others that I-601 approvals now take 1 year, it used to be 4-6 months, but they slowed way down. also "expedited processing" is a no go. they get so many requests that they do not even bother to say No. just assume you did not get it. it appears that only very extreme medical issues will get it. in Sum my questions are interview required? can I set-up interview? medical? will I need whole file & docs, again? Is adjudication on I-601 final or are we at risk? Any idea if I-601 follows same typical timeline to complete? thank you so much. This is a wonderful site and service, it is a blessing to us lost souls. God bless Carl. Tom

My mother-in-law is here on green card as of Nov 2009. We filed for her to become a US citizen, using a lawyer. The reason we decided to use a lawyer was due to claiming inability to learn English based on her medical condition. We did not know how to initiate this. Using a lawyer made sense. Wow, almost sorry we did not do more research on this. Mom had an interview. The legal assistant meet my wife and Mom at the interview. She had all of the documents except the last page. She made an excuse about delaying the interview, she would be back in 20 minutes with the last page. My wife made a feeble attempt at delaying, but they went ahead and had the interview. What an interview. It lasted over an hour and a half. One question directed at Mom. All the others were in relation to the legal assistant. How did we find her, what did she tell Mom. on and on. Towards the end of the interview, the agent said, you do not pass. He stated do not worry. You have answered everything we asked truthfully. You are not in any kind of trouble.Reason for not passing is N-648 Page 4 Question 10. not answered complete. It was only one sentence. And no explanation on why she could not learn English. Page six was also missing. Agent recommended seeing a different doctor. I assume this was based on the form not being filled out correctly. Well, now it seems the legal assistant has disconnected her office phone and changed her cell phone number. The interesting part is that she changed it several months ago. Makes me wonder if she already knew about possible problems. Since we could not reach the legal assistant, my wife took Mom to see the doctor to find out his part. He looked at what the legal assistant gave Mom. This is not what he gave her!! He produced what he filled out. Question 10 was not only filled out, but the continuation section was used to complete the answer. It also had page six, which is where Mom signs. He said, give this to immigration, things should be fine. Next we got a letter from immigration. Dated day after her interview. It is a continuance letter. It states to bring this letter with requested documents to next interview. On line shows Question: Should we just wait for a bit to see if we get an interview letter? or would it help to speed the process up to schedule an Info Pass appointment to turn in the documents?

Hi. This applies to petitioners and beneficiaries whose petitions have been returned to USCIS. It doesn't apply to those petitions still at the consulate. I don't recommend you handle your own revocation. I don't recommend you start slinging cites from these cases at experienced USCIS adjudicators. But these are important cases. I post them NOT as legal advice - but to educate petitioners on their rights. -- I haven't have a lot of time these days. Sorry I haven't posted lately. But as a public service though. I'm going to post some cases on revocation & quotes from those cases. Most NOIR letters will cite both Estime & Ho. Estime stands for the legal standard of "good and sufficient cause", which must be met before a petition's approval can be revoked. However, a lot of people don't know that the Estime case also mentions what fails to meet that legal standard. A. “Good and Sufficient Cause”, Matter of Estime. 19 I&N Dec. 450 (BIA 1987) I've added emphasis. i. “…with respect to a decision to revoke, we ask whether the evidence of record at the time the decision was issued (including any explanation, rebuttal, or evidence submitted by the petitioner pursuant to 8 C.F.R. §§ 103.2(B)(2) or 205.2(B) (1987)) warranted such a denial. Where a notice of intention to revoke is based on an unsupported statement or an unstated presumption, or where the petitioner is unaware and has not been advised of derogatory evidence, revocation of the visa petition cannot be sustained even if the petitioner did not respond to the notice of intention to revoke.” ii. “Pursuant to section 205 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1155 (1982), a notice of intention to revoke approval of a visa petition not properly issued unless there is "good and sufficient cause" and the notice includes a specific statement not only of the facts underlying the proposed action, but also of the supporting evidence.” (Estime) Matter of Arias is a fantastic case. It's the best case of all for Petitioners fighting revocation proceedings. B. Matter of ARIAS 19 I & N Dec. 568 (1) A decision to revoke approval of a visa petition can only be grounded upon, and the petitioner is only obliged to respond to, the factual allegations specified in the notice of intention to revoke. (2). “Specific, concrete facts are meaningful, not unsupported speculation and conjecture.” (3) Observations of the consular officer that are conclusory, speculative, equivocal, or irrelevant to the bona fides of the claimed relationship between the petitioner and the beneficiary do not provide "good and sufficient cause" for the issuance of a notice of intention to revoke approval of a visa petition and cannot serve as the basis for revocation,notwithstanding the petitioner's failure to timely respond to the notice of ntention to revoke Matter of Tawfik really in its facts, was applied to subsequent petitions for the same beneficiary filed within the US. But the legal standard here very much resembles Arias. A District Director (not a consulate) denied an I-130). But the language and holding of Tawfik are important. Tawfik stands for the proposition that reasonable inferences from the record do not constitute "good and sufficient cause" for petition revocation. C. Matter of Tawfik 20 I&N Dec. 166 (BIA 1990) (Reasonable inferences do not constitute “good and sufficient cause) “where the district director concluded that there was evidence in the record from which it could "reasonably be inferred" that a marriage had been entered into for the primary purpose of obtaining immigration benefits, the substantial and probative evidence, requisite to the revocation of a subsequently approved visa petition was not presented.” Matter of Ho is cited in all NOIR letters. It stands for the proposition that the burden of proof in revocation proceedings is NOT on the consulate or USCIS -- it is on petitioner. That means not only must you rebut or give reasonable explanations to the allegations in the consular memorandum (quoted in the NOIR), you must also prove your relationship all over again. D. Matter of HO, Vol. 19: Int. Dec. 2951-3100/#3051 (p. 582) (Ho) The petitioner bears the burden in visa petition revocation proceedings of establishing that the beneficiary qualifies for the benefit sought under the immigration laws.Matter of Cheung, 12 I&N Dec. 715 (BIA 1968), reaffirmed. ---- This next cite is in the FAM. Almost all NOIR letters arise out of #3. So the question is: (1) Is the evidence developed by the consular officer "factual"? Or did the officer get the facts wrong? (2). Is the evidence developed by the consular officer "extensive"? Or is it outweighed by evidence proving the relationship? (3). And even assuming the evidence is factual & extensive, is a sham marriage the most reasonable conclusion one can reach from that factual and extensive evidence developed by the consulate? That is generally the battlefield. E. USCIS Minimum Standards for Instituting Revocation Proceedings on an Approved Petition (1) A written statement from one or both of the parties to the marriage that the marriage was entered into primarily for immigration purposes; (2) Documentary evidence that money changed hands under circumstances such that a reasonable person would conclude the marriage was a paid arrangement for immigration purposes; or (3) Extensive factual evidence developed by the consular officer that would convince a reasonable person that the marriage was a sham marriage entered into to evade immigration laws. (Restated at 9 FAM 42.43 N 2.2) F. 8 C.F.R. §§ 103.2(B) et seq., (A Petitioner’s Right to Inspect the Record) There are two types of revocation: Automatic revocation and: G. 8 CFR 205.2 (Revocation on Notice). Notice of Intent to Revoke letters obviously follow the revocation on notice procedures.

Hello My Friends My wife's sisters tourist visa was denied for the second time. The first time we did not have enough paperwork. This time we submitted all the necessary documents the affidavit of support almost everything identical what we would have with a CR-1 or a K-1 visa. It was denied again , is there some way I can contact the consulate in Shenyang to find out why it was denied. My next step is to contact my two senators local congressperson. Has anyone had a similar incident like this and what has been your results Michael in Seattle

Hello, My husband just recieved a letter in the mail denying his naturalization. I was a little surprised since I did not personally know of anyone who had not passed before. The reason has to do with him being a former CCP member. Below is an excerpt of his letter: On October 5, 2009, you obtained permanent residence status through your spouse in immigrant classification Ir1. USCIS received your form N-400 on June 24, 2013, and on September 11, 2013, you appeared for an interview to determine your eligibility for naturalization. During the naturalization interview and review of your application, the Immigration Services Officer asked you about your involvement in the Communist Party. You stated that you were a member of the Communist Party and that you stopped paying the membership fee since 2008. You also stated that you joined the Communist Party for a better future. According to your statement, you had a been a member of the Communist Party within the 10-year period immediately preceding the filing of your application for naturalization on June 2, 2013. Your membership was voluntary since you stated that no one forced you to join the Communist Party. You did not terminate your membership of or affiliatioin with the Communist Party prior to becoming 16 years of age because at the time you stopped paying membership fee, you were in the age of around 26 years old (2008). Based on the foregoing, you are ineligible for naturalization because you failed to establish an attachment to the principles of the US Constitution and be disposed to the good order and happiness of the US. My questions are these: 1.) The letter goes on to explain how we can overcome the grounds for denial by submitting a Form N-336. The cost is around $600 to do this and it doesn't seem likely the decision will be overturned (but I really don't know how high the rate of overturned appeals are). Has anyone had to go through this process and what more could we possibly say to help his cause? He joined the CCP in his mid twenties for a chance at a better job position (but did not get the job in the end) and said that once someone stops paying their dues after 6 months, they are not a part of the CCP anymore. He stopped in 2009 sometime. 2.) I looked online about non-profit immigration organizations but haven't found very many in the Sacramento, CA area. Does anyone have any experience with these types of organizations and do you think they will help our cause? 3.) My husband doesn't want to appeal because of the cost (it is a lot for us) but I'm afraid this will somehow affect his chance either at extending his 10 yr green card or another try at naturalization in the future. Can anyone elaborate on this? 4.) What do we have to prove with this sentence? He is a law abiding citizen, he pays taxes, he hasn't been in any trouble with the law. I'm really not sure how to interpret this... Based on the foregoing, you are ineligible for naturalization because you failed to establish an attachment to the principles of the US Constitution and be disposed to the good order and happiness of the US. My husband said that when he faced the interviewer, he felt the officer was already in a bad mood and was not friendly in any way. The officer had a thick accent, so when my husband asked if he could ask the same question again, the officer barked that he should be able to understand and answer the question if he wanted to be an American citizen. The officer then asked my husband about the CCP connection and my husband said that a letter had been enclosed in the packet, but the officer insisted on asking him a lot of the questions. I can understand this, maybe he wanted my husband to elaborate on his answers. The officer sent him home with a paper that said he didn't pass the US History portion, We thought we would get a letter asking him to come back for another interview to retake the portion he failed. We were very surprised he received this letter. Based on what my husband relayed to me, I feel like the officer was in a bad mood and chose my husband as a whipping boy. My husband is a very hard worker and a humble person. I know of other people whose character could be questioned and were once CCP members that have become citizens. I feel that this situation with the officer and his treatment of my husband was unfair. Could anyone offer advice, please? Thank you, Christal

Well.....I received another email from USCIS today letting me know that our petition was denied. Words can't express how I feel right now. I mean....after making us wait for over 3 years, and allowing us to have the hope that it will be approved, they decided to deny it. I don't know what to do. I want her to come to the U.S. to be with me. But, if they denied this one, then they will only continue to deny any petitions I file. I am filled with so much hate and anger right now that I feel like I am going to explode. I don't want to stay living in China for the rest of my life, especially since due to my criminal history, I can't get a good job here in China. I just don't know what to do. I love my wife with all my heart, but I don't want to stay here in China forever.

Does anyone know what a yellow slip denial means?

My wife receive the P4 today ( nov 18 ) by snail mail. when she opened it.. the interview date was for Nov 17. i'm so piss right now.. i am a lost for words.

I am thinking about filing some kind of appeal about our denial. I thought I had read somewhere that decisions related to the Adam Walsh Act are considered final by USCIS and cannot be appealed. But, it does not say as such on their website, so I am not sure. Also, I have been seeing many posts of AWA related denials filing appeals on other website forums, but have not seen what the results of those filings have been. If the decision is considered final and cannot be appealed, then I would be jut wasting time and money by doing so. Would you suggest I file an appeal? I have already written to my attorney inquiring about this matter, but I wanted to see what everyone here has to say about it. If I decide to do so, my attorney will assist me. Also, there are 2 different forms for filing appeals. There is the I-290B and the EOIR-29. I think we would use the EOIR-29, but I am not sure. There is a basis for an appeal. The issue is the USCIS concern for my wife's safety. We have lived together in China for more than 1 year, and have evidence to show this as fact. Also, my wife can write a very heartfelt letter telling them that she is aware of my criminal history, that I have never hurt her, etc. If I am going to file an appeal, we would need to move pretty quick because I only have 30 days from when the decision was mailed to me: January 4th.

My wife Yan originally interviewed on March 15th 2010 . They said it was not a bonafide realtionship and sent our case back to Customs and Immigration and National Visa Center for them to "reaffirm our petition" to Guangzhou. We had her second interview Sept, 22 2011 and this time no YES... no NO ...just "administrative Processing " It seamed like forever until last week when Yan was invited to come back to GUZ. She traveled 1572 km spent two nights and meet with the Consulate on two seperate occassions. They made her wait for four hours in a crowded room finally calling her to a window and DENYING our petition. They never asked a question. It has taken us 39 montyhs to get to this answer and they had no need to put my wife through the long travel and lodge charges etc... Just to say NO. I'm not sure the reason and I am sure we can appeal it but does anyone here have any advice for a story like ours. We we married 12/9/08. I have no reference point to match my emotions. It feels like somebody has killed a love one but no one is dead.... I'm lost. Anybody got anything for us?????????

My wife petition was denied. We are currently our appealing the decision. Does anybody have any information on the appeal process?

Unfortunately my wife's CR1 visa was denied at her interview Nov. 2nd. The VO does not even give her a second chance to supply document or anything. It looks like they are going to directly send the files back to USCIS. I was totally surprised by such an outcome, and totally devastated. What do I do. How could I ask them to stay the case in the Consulate and give it a second look? Any help is appreciated. http://www.gztv.com/vod/v23443.shtml I can't believe it happened to us.

Hi all, Just got a bad news from my wife. She got a letter said a denial after our additional documents submitted (got blue slip for her interview). The reason is not bonafide relationship. I got few questions here: we applied for CR1. Do I need to wait for the actual document from USCIS before I reapply again? Also, I have sent them some original documents, do I need to fill out a form to get those back? Is there anything I can do right now actually? Thanks a lot, Ricky

My wife and I have been married for over a year and a half. We have been working on the visa process for almost as long. She had her CR1 interview in Guangzhou, China on January 23, 2008. Her entire interview lasted about 10 minutes and it was determined by the VO that all the documented records of phones call, msn chat, yahoo chat, yahoo voice, my cell phone records, and personal letters between us that we put together could have easily been forged. Even more surprisingly ,he was not interested in taking a look at those documents and it seem like he had already made his determination even before she talked with him. I have read a lot about GZ... and now i am not so surprised by the reaction of the VO. My wife left the interview with a blue paper and a pink paper. The blue paper stated that Consulate was unable to issue a visa based on Title 221(g) of the INA. The pink paper was the check sheet of information needed. The checked boxes were: Correspondences… Provide as much information to document the development of our relationship. Statement… Provide a detailed handwritten statement by the petitioner describing the evolution of our relationship. Statement… A handwritten statement documenting every trip taken I had taken to China to visit my wife and how we spent our time together. I put together all the information that they required, assembly it into a 1" binder with folder tabs to make it very convent, and mailed the completed 1” binder full of pages and pages of information on our relationship to my wife in China. She added the original blue and pink sheets to the binder and as instructed mailed it to the Embassy. On Friday she received this letter in the mail: THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Name of Applicant: Date: Dear Immigrant Visa Applicant: The Consulate is unable to issue you an immigrant visa because, according to the section of the Immigration and Nationality Act, section 5a, you do not fulfill the eligibility requirements for the partitioned visa. The Consulate has determined, based on your testimony, documents and any other evidence, that you do not has a bona fide relationship with your petitioner. The Consulate will now return your case to the Home Land Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services of the U.S. Department (CIS) for review and possible revocation. You will be informed by mail when the Consulate transfers the case back to CIS. Once your case has been transferred, please contact the CIS for information on your application. Processing your for return to CIS may take several months. Additional specific information regarding the reasons for decision can only be acquired during the CIS appeal process. If you or your petitioner contact the Consulate by email, fax, letter, or in person, no specific information will be provided nor additional documents will be accepted. Now I do not understand why she was so coldly denied a visa. This has emotional devastated us. Cases that are sent back to CIS for revocation are based on clear evidence that will hold up in a court of law, supposedly (The more I read about this the more it seams like a big fat ugly joke on us!). I know we did not do anything wrong. We both worked very hard with preparing and documenting our visa information. Has anyone been here before? What can we do from here? I know that GZ is dead. Do we appeal? Do we terminate our CR1 and begin all over again? Do I stow her away and take our chances... I say this jokingly but now realise that she might have better chances on a ship vs GZ! I have read Title 221(g) of the INA… just a lot of words and really not any thing related, (After reading and reading... I am no longer surprised by this!) but where is section 5a? I cannot find any information on this. I would really like to know what the Consulate found to be detrimental to my wife’s visa ( I also now understand... after reading and reading that this will never find an answer.). My wife and I talk 2 to 3 times a day and on weekends we video chat. This was OK while going through the visa process but now we want to be together as a husband and wife should be. Please all advice and information is greatly appreciated. Khim and Bizhen

my lady got a white slip. That is so sad. Does anyone know that if i can ask help from a senator or a represenative? Did anyone try to re-apply? At the same appealling the petition. Did anyone succeed by applying another application?

Okay case was returned to USCIS on Feb 11th or Feb 16th, as I received 2 different emails from USCIS that case was received back for review. Case status was checked every week on USCIS website as well as there automated phone system. Same reply was received everytime that I checked, website was we will notify you when we make a decision on your case, automated system was please allow 180 days for a decision to your case. Now as of today these 2 systems still have the same message.I waited there 180 days without any notification as to what the hell was going on and what was happening with my case. After 7 months of waiting I was finally able to speak with someone at USCIS and explain that my case was over the process timeframe. The woman that I spoke with took all my information and sent a request to the Vermont Service Center. A week later I received this email from them,, A reveiw of USCIS records indicate that your application or petition was administratively closed on March 9 2010. The Vermont Service Center is unable to release a copy of the decision to you since the decision took place more than 6 months ago.. So as of today I still have never received any contact from USCIS , Another call to them turned into the same bullshit that I have been hearing over and over again,, Just what in the hell does administratively closed mean and what can I do now,, this was my question to them and they didnt have a clue,, WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I do hope that you other guys that are waiting do not receive the runaround that I did. Any advice would be appreciated..

Well, I just returned from Zhengzhou and received a I-797C Notice of Action in the mail. At least our case is being reviewed. We just a had great time together but I can tell she's not too sure that she will ever see the USA. Maybe she is just guarding herself from a possible bigger disappoinment next time. So, we wait and see what they do, right? If they believe what they see does it go back to Guangzhou for another inrterview?

My lady was denied and got a white slip. What the F-U-C-K. Does anyone have the same experiences? If so, how can you deal with it? Please give me some suggestion?

Tonight my wife and I are very sad. After filing for her visitor visa two months ago after compiling the required stack of paperwork we waited for two months. We just got the news that she was denied because my salary was too low? I'm shaking my head confused and wife is plain pissed. Without posting my financials to the board let me say that the salary evidence I sent was certainly enough to support all the costs involved. Dazed and Confused....

Our I 129f was denied in July 08 and sent back to USCIS who received it on Jan. 21, 09 for review, (reason not a B/F relationship). Don't bother asking for a more detailed reason for the denial because we don't know, can only guess it may have been to short of time from last divorce, to short a time knowing each other. Only the denying VO knows the reason. Anyway my question is, in a little more than 2 months USCIS will have had it for a year. We have never heard from them during this time except to notify us they had received it. Should we just consider it has been left to expire? We since married and filed an I-130 and she has her interview on 9 Dec.09. Did the I-129f and I-130 ever cross paths while they were both at USCIS as we submitted the I-130 in Dec 08, so for a time the USCIS had both petitions. Also once my wife has had her interview, gets a visa, arrives in the US do these two petitions get combined into one file? I never heard what happens to petitions once they are left to expire at the USCIS.

My wife, origanally applied for a I-129f visa. It was denied for the not a bonafide relationship, and sent back to USCIS for review, USCIS received it in Jan 09 . After we were denied, I returned to China and we were married and now have our I-130 knocking on GUZ's door, the NVC sent it to them in Aug. What should we do if in fact we get a letter from USCIS stating our I-129f has been denied or revoked, especially if she is granted a visa on our I-130? Do we just reply that we have applied for an I-130 and no longer want to continue the I-129f process. Thanks, Gary

Hi. Someone came to me today with an NOIR letter from CSC. It had sat 20 months. That is fast in my experience. Some observations, the Service Center adjudicator seemed to take the consular officer's observations at face value, even the silly ones. So maybe this case is an anomaly. Or maybe CSC is speeding up on CR-1/IR-1's. From what I can see, K-1's are still a black hole. If it is speeding up, it may be because some USCIS adjudicators may merely be accepting the consulate's conclusions as "legally sufficient" and sending out an NOIR letter, no matter how legally insufficient, or even downright silly, the consulate's conclusions may have been.

Hello All My fiancee got a White today. They decided to give her a white for a non bonafide relationship? What can I do? They ask her what is my favorite food, which type of music i like, what year I brought my car, etc. What can do I do now? Joe

hi everyone i have had 2 white slips and i dont know what to do anymore. my first one was for a K3 visa we were given the white slip because they thought it was not a bona fide relationship. so we decided to get married and file a Cr-1. we were given a white slip again for the same reason. is there any other routes we can take after this or am i out of options? can we file the same petition over again? and is there anyway we can check the status of the case when it reaches USCIS? thank you in advance for all your help.

I believe this is important information for anyone who gets a denial. I am pinning and closing this to keep it from getting cluttered. If anyone has any other links to pertinent articles they would like to add send them to me in a PM http://www.ilw.com/articles/2006,0323-ellis.shtm