Why the "Candle" is so important

[shyaushu]

I recently posted some questions about filing a CR-1 visa application (beginning with the I-130) for my wife while I would be living in China, and I received some very helpful information from forum members. The basic advice here was to file directly at the Embassy in Beijing (since I'll be living in Henan Province) by physically bringing my completed I-130 to the Embassy.

 

However, when I tried to make an appointment with the Embassy in Beijing they told me they did not accept such direct applications, and that the Consulate in Guangzhou was the only place those visas can be adjudicated.

 

So, I made an appointment with the local "Satellite" USCIS Office here in Charleston, WV to "get it from the horse's mouth."

 

Turns out, they know less than nothing. The woman suggested that I file now (and avoid the price doubling on July 30) and then have someone in the US forward my mail to China and act as though I was still living in the US. She went on to say that I could not complete the Affidavit of Support if I wasn't living in the US, so that I would be required to return here without my wife and then, after being with her for a year in China, still wait for her to get the visa and come here.

 

Run-around; confusion; bafflement. What to do?

 

So, I need a step-by-step list of what I need to do, if anyone can do that.

 

Do I (1) file from here as though I was still living here? (My mail will be sent to a PO Box while I'm away).

 

Or, do I (2) actually file from China?

 

If I can file while I am living in China, do I file in Beijing or in Guangzhou? Do they require an appointment for that? How long will it take (i.e., can I drop by the Embassy, drop off my paperwork, pay the small fortune required, and then return to the airport and catch a plane to Chongqing later that evening?).

 

I am leaving in eight week and I really must get my strategy straight. Please, this is too confusing and I feel terribly dumb (even after doing a successful CR-1 in 10 months from the states in 2005)!

 

How do I file this stuff when I'm living in Luoyang, Henen Province?

 

Waiting breathlessly . . .

Edited June 29, 2007 by shyaushu (see edit history)

[JimandSarha]

Don't you have to have lived in China for 2 years or something to file DCF?

 

I'd say to just file K-3 and use your parents/other relatives address in the USA and play like you are still there. But that advice may be against the law, so take it with that in mind.

 

Jim

[shyaushu]

No, I haven't lived in China, ever, although I have visited there for as long as a month at a time. The word is that officially a petitioner needs to be living in China for 6 months, at least according to the Satellite office of the USCIS and many commentors here. But many people here have offered that the USCIS doesn't abide by that guideline and that lots of people have filed a DCF right away.

 

The focal question is HOW do I file it? I'll take my chances with the "when".

 

Thanks for your response and thoughts . . .

 

 

Don't you have to have lived in China for 2 years or something to file DCF?

 

I'd say to just file K-3 and use your parents/other relatives address in the USA and play like you are still there. But that advice may be against the law, so take it with that in mind.

 

Jim

[david_dawei]

You should check out the CFL DCF FAQ in Links & Resources.. top pinned topic... I'll condense down what I can.

 

----

 

You can always email or call BJ embassy to confirm filing with them, but a USC in HENAN would file to BJ:

DHS @ BJ:

Dhsbejing-cis@dhs.gov

10-8529-6740

 

if you go there in person, I think they have a I-130 checklist, which I would love a copy of to post here

 

But I am a little confused since you mention Chongqing. You file at the local consulate/embassy near YOUR RESIDENCY.. whereever you get the residency book.

 

If Chongqing, then you file at the US Consulate in Chengdu.

 

----

 

Basic flowchart to see the entire process:

http://www.laogonglaopo.com/001files/China...art_EN_Rels.htm

 

----

 

There is a 'tale of two cities' to DCFing... that which is posted and that which is related by experiences back to the board.. obviously in the end, you have to follow whatever the Overseas USCIS office says (at drop-off).

 

Both USCIS and the US Consulate post that a person has to have a residency book and a work visa ("Z") (or other long term authorization to live in china); members here have stated that usually once you show the residency book, they don't seem to care about seeing the visa and don't care about six months.. (who knows what you'll run into).

 

-----

 

What I think you need to bring, based on the DCF FAQ:

 

[Chinese National]

1, Passport

2, Divorce Book

3, Marriage Book

4, Birth certificate or one issued by a Sub-police station of Shen Zhen Public Security Bureau, where Hukou is located (if you don't have a Birth Certificate, was not born in hospital instead of at home. ( Kept by CO))

 

[uSC]

1, Birth certificate (kept copy)

2, Passport (kept copy with all pages)

3, Work Permit (kept copy)

4, Marriage Book (kept copy)

5, Divorce Decree (kept copy)

6, Residency Book (website says need 6 months residency; some report not needing this)

 

Notary certificate: ( kept all by CO)

1, Divorce Notary ( one Direct and one In-direct)

2, Marriage Notary ( one Direct and one In-direct)

3, Birth Notary

4, Birth Certiticate issued by Police station Notary

 

Forms:

1, I-130

2, G-325A (USC) with a passport photo

3, G-325A (Chinese National) with a passport photo

 

Fee:

Paid $190 by cash (USD or RMB). Check for current fee.

 

-----

 

Once you pay, keep your receipt; that's the only proof of having filed till you get the NOA1.

 

-----

 

Part of the confusion:

1. Many offices don't really know about DCF.. this is a slang term anyway and you have to stick to "filing a I-130 at a USCIS office overseas".

2. Overseas filing was stopped briefly and then restarted.. so some might be confused as to where you should file. Contact BJ as needed.

3. You need to get work (usually first) and then the employer gets your residency permit together. This is probably longest part to take care of.

4. USCIS posts different instructions for what notarials are needed compared to the Consulate website.. make sure you talk to someone to understand it.. again, ask info... see if you need an appointment, etc.

 

good luck... and keep us informed.. would like to hear how it goes and where I steered your wrong

[shyaushu]

You have reinvigorated my hope that this can be done in China. I will contact the Dept. of Homeland Security in Beijing (I suppose that's what those letters referred to) and see what shakes.

 

But it's amazing to me how little the people who get paid to be a resource to the public (and the actual consumer) know about all this. Yes, all this is very complicated and confusing, but it can be explained to someone so that the process is understandable. (I believe Einstein said if you couldn't explain Relativity to a grade schooler then you didn't understand Relativity).

 

Thanks for your all's help.

 

 

You should check out the CFL DCF FAQ in Links & Resources.. top pinned topic... I'll condense down what I can.

 

----

 

You can always email or call BJ embassy to confirm filing with them, but a USC in HENAN would file to BJ:

DHS @ BJ:

Dhsbejing-cis@dhs.gov

10-8529-6740

 

if you go there in person, I think they have a I-130 checklist, which I would love a copy of to post here

 

But I am a little confused since you mention Chongqing. You file at the local consulate/embassy near YOUR RESIDENCY.. whereever you get the residency book.

 

If Chongqing, then you file at the US Consulate in Chengdu.

 

----

 

Basic flowchart to see the entire process:

http://www.laogonglaopo.com/001files/China...art_EN_Rels.htm

 

----

 

There is a 'tale of two cities' to DCFing... that which is posted and that which is related by experiences back to the board.. obviously in the end, you have to follow whatever the Overseas USCIS office says (at drop-off).

 

Both USCIS and the US Consulate post that a person has to have a residency book and a work visa ("Z") (or other long term authorization to live in china); members here have stated that usually once you show the residency book, they don't seem to care about seeing the visa and don't care about six months.. (who knows what you'll run into).

 

-----

 

What I think you need to bring, based on the DCF FAQ:

 

[Chinese National]

1, Passport

2, Divorce Book

3, Marriage Book

4, Birth certificate or one issued by a Sub-police station of Shen Zhen Public Security Bureau, where Hukou is located (if you don't have a Birth Certificate, was not born in hospital instead of at home. ( Kept by CO))

 

[uSC]

1, Birth certificate (kept copy)

2, Passport (kept copy with all pages)

3, Work Permit (kept copy)

4, Marriage Book (kept copy)

5, Divorce Decree (kept copy)

6, Residency Book (website says need 6 months residency; some report not needing this)

 

Notary certificate: ( kept all by CO)

1, Divorce Notary ( one Direct and one In-direct)

2, Marriage Notary ( one Direct and one In-direct)

3, Birth Notary

4, Birth Certiticate issued by Police station Notary

 

Forms:

1, I-130

2, G-325A (USC) with a passport photo

3, G-325A (Chinese National) with a passport photo

 

Fee:

Paid $190 by cash (USD or RMB). Check for current fee.

 

-----

 

Once you pay, keep your receipt; that's the only proof of having filed till you get the NOA1.

 

-----

 

Part of the confusion:

1. Many offices don't really know about DCF.. this is a slang term anyway and you have to stick to "filing a I-130 at a USCIS office overseas".

2. Overseas filing was stopped briefly and then restarted.. so some might be confused as to where you should file. Contact BJ as needed.

3. You need to get work (usually first) and then the employer gets your residency permit together. This is probably longest part to take care of.

4. USCIS posts different instructions for what notarials are needed compared to the Consulate website.. make sure you talk to someone to understand it.. again, ask info... see if you need an appointment, etc.

 

good luck... and keep us informed.. would like to hear how it goes and where I steered your wrong

[xiaoheather]

I think you have to have a Chinese Z Visa (Work Visa) in order to be able to submit the forms at the consulate in China.

 

I submitted my forms in Shanghai - no appointment necessary, just went to the American Citizens Services window. However, I remember that it was necessary to have the Z visa, which has to be sponsored by a company in China.

 

Good luck.

[shanghaigale]

My information is rather old now. My wife and I did a DCF in China about 6.5 years (we actually started it 7.5 years ago) but I put it on hold for 6 months just before the interview so it took about a year, otherwise we would have been done a couple days over 6 months. When we did it you needed to be a resident in China for 6 months. We filed the DCF in Shanghai and it was transferred to Beijing where we were initally interviewed and approved then it was forwarded to GZ where the final interview was performed. I don't know if this is still true but back then, in Beijing the embassy was separate from the USCIS office, they were about a mile apart as I remember. We went to the embassy first and they told us where the USCIS (INS then) office was at and that is where we had to go for the first interview.

Its quite possible that the Embassy doesn't do the appointments you wanted to set up. You will need to locate the USCIS office I think. Also I think for a while they stopped doing DCF several months back for a couple of months but from what I now know they are again doing them. You probably won't be able to file the DCF until you have been a resident in China for 6 months but I could be wrong on this now since I don't know if the regs have changed in the last several years.

Once you file the DCF should go much faster than if you file in the states. The downside is that the cost will go up for the filing after the 30th of July so you may want to take that into account. Good luck in whatever you decide.

Gale

 

No, I haven't lived in China, ever, although I have visited there for as long as a month at a time. The word is that officially a petitioner needs to be living in China for 6 months, at least according to the Satellite office of the USCIS and many commentors here. But many people here have offered that the USCIS doesn't abide by that guideline and that lots of people have filed a DCF right away.

 

The focal question is HOW do I file it? I'll take my chances with the "when".

 

Thanks for your response and thoughts . . .

 

 

Don't you have to have lived in China for 2 years or something to file DCF?

 

I'd say to just file K-3 and use your parents/other relatives address in the USA and play like you are still there. But that advice may be against the law, so take it with that in mind.

 

Jim

[shyaushu]

Thanks for telling your experiences and for your comments.

 

If the direct filing option has resumed (and the consensus here is that it has), my procedure seems straightforward. But the stuff that shanghaigale posted suggests that he went there with his wife. Is that necessary? My wife will be in Chongqing when I go to the Embassy in Beijing.

 

If the two of us need to be there, I will have to delay filing and we will have to go there together later on.

 

But it's all "good news" here . . .

[shyaushu]

For those of you wanting to file a so-called "DCF", especially in Beijing, here is an update.

 

I e-mailed the American Citizen Services at the Embassy in Beijing and I was able to make an appointment for a certain date at a certain time. The place for filing the I-130 is separate from the Embassy, itself, and it is open on Wednesday afternoons, when the Embassy is closed. (It's TGIW in Beijing, I guess!).

 

The address to go for filing is Kerry Center, 2320 South Tower, No. 1 Guang Hua Lu, Beijing. It is apparently quite near the Embassy. Their phone number is 010 8529 6740.

 

Cheers.

[izus]

i swear David you should open your own business for legal work like this....

you'd for sure be succesful!!

 

shyaushu

DavidZ is the man for these questions

best of luck!!

[jbray]

I wish I saw this thread earlier... To be eligable to DCF, you only need a residence permit. I do not believe there is a time requirement like some have said. You should be able to file right away, as long as you have the residence permit. I did not have a work visa when I filed, I had a student visa.

 

You are correct, most of the people you talk to have no idea what the procedure is. To get answers to your questions, it's best to ask here. At least we have first hand knowledge. When I would go to the consulate in Chengdu, if the workers didn't know the answer, they would make it up... Anyone that files in Chengdu, try to talk to Ms. Ren. She is great! She DOES know her stuff.

[dcwfn]

You are so right. The Candle is very, very important! The problem is that the folks at these places really do have answers, it's just that they are afraid for some reason to give out free information. A lot of us here at CFL have been through this ringer in one direction or another. That is why this is such a good source of information. A lot of peopple at the various immigration offices act like anything they tell someone is costing them money. Truthfully, I think they are required to take classes in how to be "Anal Retentive".