Documents to bring to interview

[tmL]

Hello!

 

My wife is applying for a CR-1 visa. We are preparing to schedule my wife's interview and wanted to hear your thoughts about the documents she needs to bring to the interview.

 

Marriage Certificate

- The Immigrant Visa Instructions say that she needs to bring a notarized copy of our marriage certificate. However, when I went to the consulate in Guangzhou to submit the original I-130 application, the officer collected the notarized copy of our marriage certificate and said that he needed to keep it. Does this mean that we need to get our marriage certificate notarized a second time?

- Do we need ti notarize both marriage certificates or just one?

 

Birth Certificates

- The instructions also saw that her notarized birth certificate "must state the date, place of birth, and names of both parents," but the notarized copy we got (got it done before seeing these instructions) doesn't include the date and place of birth of her parents. It just includes their names and Chinese ID numbers. Do we need to get another notarized birth certificate with the exact information or will the one we already have be fine?

- Does she need to bring my US birth certificate? I am her husband and petitioner, a U.S. citizen.

 

Police Certificates

- We are a little confused where to go to get this and what it is called in Chinese. If someone could provide the Chinese for where we need to go and what to tell them we need, that would be great! vs ֤ vs ֤ We are in Hangzhou if that matters.

- I assume we need to get this notarized as well?

 

Medical Examination

- My wife will likely need to get all of the vaccines required, since she has no records of previous vaccinations. Is it possible to get all of them done at once or does she need to wait a day between getting vaccinations?

- We will be in Beijing for around 4 days, will that be enough time to get the medical examination done and receive the sealed medical report?

 

Evidence of Support

- I am filling out the I-864. Part Two (Information on the Principal Immigrant) requires us to fill in a mailing address, but it does not allow us to put in a Chinese address (for example the zip code box is limited to 5 numbers but the zip codes in China are 6 numbers). Am I supposed to fill out my address in the US for this?

- The form asks for her A-Number, but I do not think she has an A-Number. Are we supposed to have one by this point?

- The instructions say that she should bring my most recent Federal income tax return, but I see here that people suggest bringing the returns for the past 3 years. Does it make a difference? Also, would it help if she brought my employment contract for a new job I will be starting in August in the US?

 

 

Thank you so much for the help, we really appreciate it!

[dnoblett]

Firstly when filing a petition, it best to attach ordinary photocopies of all documents to the petition, bring the originals to the filing so the officer can compare copy to originals.

 

1. Marriage Certificate: Get another copy from the Notary office, it will be requested by the consulate for the visa interview, I would get two, to have as spares to bring to the states, and again bring a photocopy to the interview, if the officer wants a copy to put in the file they will accept the photo copy.
   
2. Birth Certificate: The consulate will accept the birth certificate as is, and again bring a photocopy along with the original so that you can keep the original for future uses in the states.
   
3. Police Certificate: Go to the PSB get a police record, and take it to notary office for a translation and binding into a white book, this you can give to the consulate, no need for a photocopy.
   
4. Vaccinations and Medical All vaccinations can be done the same day as getting the medical done. And yes 4 days in Beijing should be enough time to get the medical and vaccinations done.
   
5. I-864
   
   1. Hand write anything into the form that you cannot fill in by typing.
   2. She will not have an A# unless she had a green-card before, so write NONE there.
   3. Bring 3 years, the consulate will insist on them, you can get transcripts online here: http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Get-Transcript

 

 

[jonathantwu]

you will be given a checklist with XX marks. It is your best friend. Read it carefully. The best policy is to bring exactly what was asked! The only other thing is the supporting documents (photos, letters, emails, QQ logs). I am often amazed by questions here that was clearly explained on NVC's website and the official fact sheets and yet people ask those questions trying to take a short cut riding on other people's accounts. Everyone's case is unique and rules that was six months ago might not be in place any more. I did all the filing myself and saved a lot of money/pain because it was a straight forward CR-1 and I read the instructions multiple times! Sometimes, I heard the wrong instructions from other members' alleged immigration attorneys and I cringe. If it came across as too harsh I apologize as I only wish the best of everyone based on the 427 days I went through. There were mocked-up forms on visajourney.com I found useful just make sure you use the latest forms.

 

Best of luck.

Edited May 22, 2015 by jonathantwu (see edit history)

[tmL]

Thank you all for the replies!

 

We are using the instruction form that they linked to but I think it is always better to over prepare. For example, they do not ask specifically for the CCP membership statement or for 3 years of tax returns (the instructions just say 1 year) but I doesn't hurt to have this stuff all prepared in addition to what was asked by the instructions. Our timing is going to be so that I will return to the US first and then she will have to wait for her visa before coming over, so we want the process to go as fast and smoothly as possible.

[tmL]

We are assembling all of the materials now and we have some follow up questions:

 

- Is it true that it is beneficial to have a joint sponsor even if my income alone is above the poverty guideline??

 

- For the I-864, I am filling one out as the petitioner, and I have asked my father to be our joint sponsor. My income alone is above the poverty guidelines ($19,000 for a household of 2) but we have heard it is safer to have a joint sponsor. For him to be our joint sponsor, does he need to fill out an I-864 form of his own or an I-864A form?

 

- Should I list my assets even though my income is already above the level necessary?

 

- Our plans have changed and we will be getting the medical exam done in Shanghai. We made the reservation online and they said that it takes 4 work days to get the certificate. Has anyone had any luck getting it faster than 4 work days? Our timing will be really tight since my wife's appointment is June 8 and we are doing the medical exam on June 1. Is that enough time to get the medical exam and vaccinations done?

Edited May 24, 2015 by tmL (see edit history)

[dnoblett]

- Is it true that it is beneficial to have a joint sponsor even if my income alone is above the poverty guideline??

Take a look at your situation, how much above the poverty line? Is work as a temp, contractor or full time permanent job? Are you working overseas and once moving to the USA the job ends?

- For the I-864, I am filling one out as the petitioner, and I have asked my father to be our joint sponsor. My income alone is above the poverty guidelines ($19,000 for a household of 2) but we have heard it is safer to have a joint sponsor. For him to be our joint sponsor, does he need to fill out an I-864 form of his own or an I-864A form?

Joint sponsor uses an I-864 form not I-864A. Only a member of your household would use I-864A

- Should I list my assets even though my income is already above the level necessary?

 

Yes, however assets should be easily be converted to cash and not burden you, for example a collector car that is not your daily driver, or a second home, or retirement savings that would not hit you with a penalty if converted to cash. All assets would need added documentation attached to the I-864

- Our plans have changed and we will be getting the medical exam done in Shanghai. We made the reservation online and they said that it takes 4 work days to get the certificate. Has anyone had any luck getting it faster than 4 work days? Our timing will be really tight since my wife's appointment is June 8 and we are doing the medical exam on June 1. Is that enough time to get the medical exam and vaccinations done?

 

The center in Guangzhou near the US consulate can do them a day or so before interview, not sure if Shanghai will expedite.

[tmL]

Thanks again for the help! My current income is $5,000 over the guidelines but I will be starting a new job in the Fall that is over twice the amount necessary. However, I don't know if they will take this into consideration. We've decided to get a joint sponsor just to be safe, especially since my income in the previous 2 years was not over the guidelines.

 

So my joint sponsor fills out another I-864, and then if I am reading the instructions correctly her spouse would need to fill out the I-864A?

 

We squeezed in the medical exam today, so that we don't have to worry about timing later on. We will be flying to Shandong to have our wedding this weekend and want to spend a few days there. Since we got the medical done in Shanghai today, we can stay in Shandong until Thursday and then pick up the results before flying to Guangzhou on Sunday (interview is Monday)! It will be an extremely busy two weeks (not to mention I am also switching jobs right now and will need to move to a new location after her interview) but we want to get the interview done early on so she can get to the U.S. as soon as possible.

[dan1984]

Thanks again for the help! My current income is $5,000 over the guidelines but I will be starting a new job in the Fall that is over twice the amount necessary. However, I don't know if they will take this into consideration. We've decided to get a joint sponsor just to be safe, especially since my income in the previous 2 years was not over the guidelines.

 

So my joint sponsor fills out another I-864, and then if I am reading the instructions correctly her spouse would need to fill out the I-864A?

 

We squeezed in the medical exam today, so that we don't have to worry about timing later on. We will be flying to Shandong to have our wedding this weekend and want to spend a few days there. Since we got the medical done in Shanghai today, we can stay in Shandong until Thursday and then pick up the results before flying to Guangzhou on Sunday (interview is Monday)! It will be an extremely busy two weeks (not to mention I am also switching jobs right now and will need to move to a new location after her interview) but we want to get the interview done early on so she can get to the U.S. as soon as possible.

 

Good luck!!

[tmL]

We are about to go to the interview next Monday but realized we didn't bring our original marriage certificates, just the notarized copy. Do we need the originals? It doesn't say it is necessary on the list of documents they list.

 

Also, do we need the original No Criminal Record slip that we got from the PSB? We have the notarized copy but again left the original Chinese slip at home.

[dnoblett]

Bring all originals of what were submitted as photo-copies with I-130 and later to NVC or CITIC Bank, so that the interviewing officer can compare the copies they have in the file with the originals. They can and often do ask to see the original documents.

[Randy W]

We are about to go to the interview next Monday but realized we didn't bring our original marriage certificates, just the notarized copy. Do we need the originals? It doesn't say it is necessary on the list of documents they list.

 

Also, do we need the original No Criminal Record slip that we got from the PSB? We have the notarized copy but again left the original Chinese slip at home.

 

 

The notarial white book that you got from the Gong Zheng Chu IS the original. The Red Book that you got when married is for use in China and is not needed for the immigration process.

 

Same for the No Criminal Record - bring the "original" white book. They don't need the Chinese versions

[tmL]

Thanks! Just what I was hoping