The importance of indexing and exhibits in Mena petitions

[Beauty for Ashes 257]

A lawyer brought this up to me. Using those prongs on top of the petitions to keep every relevant document together helps. So does INDEXING and EXHIBITS

Like exhibit A... pictures of the trip

Exhibit B.. phone records.

Tie everything together at the top with those straight prong holders like they do with lawsuits across the top with a metal bar so nothing gets seperated. It makes it easy for the CO to flip through and my lawyer does that with every petition he sends them. He always does a number page with an index page and exhibit page so everything can be easily cross referenced and flipped through

this would help with aos and removal of conditions cases because he does the same thing with them

Just a thought

[Nagishkaw 510]

Paper clips.

[Beauty for Ashes 257]

Paper clips.

No I dont know what they are called but as the petitions are fowarded to the consulate the clips remained. My lawyer told me that he does it on all petitions and its legal to do. It involves 2 punch holes at the top of the petition with like a metal wire or flat wire clip..It keeps all the papers together. Then you make an index page listing all the documents you have sent. Its really important in a cr1 or k3 petition because of all the extra papers.

Its completely legal and makes it easier I think for them to see all your proofs.

[RAKASA 0]

Paper clips.

Paper clips & stickie notes worked for us!

[Beauty for Ashes 257]

Paper clips.

Paper clips & stickie notes worked for us!

On a k1 petition I think that would be sufficient. All I know is my cr1 petition was over 60 pages. The indexing and punch holes helped immensely

[♥JP♥ 5]

Ive never heard of a petition being denied because of the way it was assembled.

[Beauty for Ashes 257]

Ive never heard of a petition being denied because of the way it was assembled.

I havent either. But I think a well assembled petition will help a co understand and see the proofs as he or she is flipping through the petition that they receive

[Nagishkaw 510]

Paper clips.

No I dont know what they are called but as the petitions are fowarded to the consulate the clips remained. My lawyer told me that he does it on all petitions and its legal to do. It involves 2 punch holes at the top of the petition with like a metal wire or flat wire clip..It keeps all the papers together. Then you make an index page listing all the documents you have sent. Its really important in a cr1 or k3 petition because of all the extra papers.

Its completely legal and makes it easier I think for them to see all your proofs.

Acco Fasteners.

[sara535 15]

yes they are called Accos and when I first joined this site years and years ago there were threads all over the place about using accos and signing the forms in blue ink, etc etc. I dont know if all that advice still exists in the guides and FAQs but I did it all and I have to say that at our AOS interview when we sat across the desk from the interviewer woman she complimented me on my well organized paperwork

[Nagishkaw 510]

http://www.officeworld.com/Worlds-Biggest-.../ACC12992/08Q2/

[PetraPerson101 0]

On a k1 petition I think that would be sufficient. All I know is my cr1 petition was over 60 pages. The indexing and punch holes helped immensely

Aw man 60 pages ouch!

I'm sure the officer looked at that and thought "Holy ... it's a phone book... hey guys look at this!" ( Whole office laughs at their misery, donate advil & coffee. )

Yeah, definitely you want to note. It's an excellent idea. For anyone who hasn't seen my previous post of this sort - I mentioned a while back - about people who review papers. Auditors and such with the Gov't. They usually have a stack of papers that all look the same. They need to sit through each one, read, bore themselves to death, drink coffee, bore themselves to death, then read some more while the guy in the next cubicle has a mental meltdown.

Now, from my parent - who worked with the Gov't for 20 years - she had a comments about "perfect cases". More often than not, these were submitted by lawyers - but - she did say that everyone in her office always appreciated a well prepared document. It went so far they'd always get done first... because they were always the easiest ones to work on - and the worker's productivity would go up. It's a sort of "unwritten guideline" to get your forms on a fast track to getting done quick. The less work they need to do, the quicker they finish your forms. ( Really - even if it takes long to reach their desk. )

- Clean papers.. ( Yes, clean as in no coffee rings, food, dirt, or wrinkles. Make your work look, smell, and feel PROFESSIONAL. { Yep, I've heard stories ... } A paper with food/dirt on it will be greeted with a frown, then tossed off to the side somewhere while the person goes to wash their hands. )

- Legible writing. Type, or write VERY CLEAR. Don't use chicken-scratch or bubbly handwriting. Your writing should be sort of like the Arial or Tahoma font in windows - clean & easy to read. When typing documents use a Sans-Serif or Roman font (like Arial, Tahoma, Times New Roman, Garamond. Nice crisp fonts. )

- Stapled/bound pages. But, don't make the binding so complex where they can't take it apart to make copies. They've got a huge stack of papers there - don't let yours be the one that makes them swear.

- Noted exhibits. If you're presenting evidence, tell them what it is easily. Here's how you should note - use a square post-it note with a piece of removable tape to secure it. Why? Because if it helps your case, they'll staple it. If it doesn't help your case - they'll pull it off. Note here - that this is also a reason why you don't use complex binding - it will prevent stuff like this from happening. I don't think an index page is really necessary. And most important of all - DO NOT WRITE NOTES ON THE DOCUMENTS YOU SEND IN. Can't stress that enough. Attach your notes to the pages so they can be removed easily if they need to be. The only thing that should be written in pen on your documents is your case number. See the next note for more info as to why you might need notes taken off -

- Don't send more information than you need to. If they don't ask for it, don't send it. ( Hehe, 60 pages more than likely was too much. ) Sometimes too much info can cause you delays & harm. If you don't need to say it - then don't say it. If you did your case nice, and have it easy for the reviewer to follow, if they see a sticky note that might cause you problems, guess what? They'll take it off for you. They'll like the effort you put in to make their job easier.

- Send your papers in a big, sturdy express envelope. Like those FedEx or UPS Legal mailers. If you can, stick a piece of (clean) cardboard in there to keep your papers nice & crisp. (You can take a UPS or FedEx express box, and cut a piece of it to the shape of the express mailer. It's quick & free.) After all the preparation you did - you don't want your file looking bad.

I followed this TWICE - and the second time around, it got done even *faster* than the first. If it weren't for my bungling with NVC -(yeah, I caused delays. I followed the wrong instructions)- I'd have finished my case 2 months earlier. It took me maybe a total of 4 hours of work to prepare the CIS & NVC documents. Shouldn't be a big project - if you feel like it's taking you too long to do, then it probably is.

Edited May 16, 2008 by KyanWan

[Cassie 8]

Ive never heard of a petition being denied because of the way it was assembled.

I havent either. But I think a well assembled petition will help a co understand and see the proofs as he or she is flipping through the petition that they receive

I have used binder clips the whole process and haven't had troubles yet.

[Beauty for Ashes 257]

On a k1 petition I think that would be sufficient. All I know is my cr1 petition was over 60 pages. The indexing and punch holes helped immensely

Aw man 60 pages ouch!

I'm sure the officer looked at that and thought "Holy ... it's a phone book... hey guys look at this!" ( Whole office laughs at their misery, donate advil & coffee. )

Yeah, definitely you want to note. It's an excellent idea. For anyone who hasn't seen my previous post of this sort - I mentioned a while back - about people who review papers. Auditors and such with the Gov't. They usually have a stack of papers that all look the same. They need to sit through each one, read, bore themselves to death, drink coffee, bore themselves to death, then read some more while the guy in the next cubicle has a mental meltdown.

Now, from my parent - who worked with the Gov't for 20 years - she had a comments about "perfect cases". More often than not, these were submitted by lawyers - but - she did say that everyone in her office always appreciated a well prepared document. It went so far they'd always get done first... because they were always the easiest ones to work on - and the worker's productivity would go up. It's a sort of "unwritten guideline" to get your forms on a fast track to getting done quick. The less work they need to do, the quicker they finish your forms. ( Really - even if it takes long to reach their desk. )

- Clean papers.. ( Yes, clean as in no coffee rings, food, dirt, or wrinkles. Make your work look, smell, and feel PROFESSIONAL. { Yep, I've heard stories ... } A paper with food/dirt on it will be greeted with a frown, then tossed off to the side somewhere while the person goes to wash their hands. )

- Legible writing. Type, or write VERY CLEAR. Don't use chicken-scratch or bubbly handwriting. Your writing should be sort of like the Arial or Tahoma font in windows - clean & easy to read. When typing documents use a Sans-Serif or Roman font (like Arial, Tahoma, Times New Roman, Garamond. Nice crisp fonts. )

- Stapled/bound pages. But, don't make the binding so complex where they can't take it apart to make copies. They've got a huge stack of papers there - don't let yours be the one that makes them swear.

- Noted exhibits. If you're presenting evidence, tell them what it is easily. Here's how you should note - use a square post-it note with a piece of removable tape to secure it. Why? Because if it helps your case, they'll staple it. If it doesn't help your case - they'll pull it off. Note here - that this is also a reason why you don't use complex binding - it will prevent stuff like this from happening. I don't think an index page is really necessary. And most important of all - DO NOT WRITE NOTES ON THE DOCUMENTS YOU SEND IN. Can't stress that enough. Attach your notes to the pages so they can be removed easily if they need to be. The only thing that should be written in pen on your documents is your case number. See the next note for more info as to why you might need notes taken off -

- Don't send more information than you need to. If they don't ask for it, don't send it. ( Hehe, 60 pages more than likely was too much. ) Sometimes too much info can cause you delays & harm. If you don't need to say it - then don't say it. If you did your case nice, and have it easy for the reviewer to follow, if they see a sticky note that might cause you problems, guess what? They'll take it off for you. They'll like the effort you put in to make their job easier.

- Send your papers in a big, sturdy express envelope. Like those FedEx or UPS Legal mailers. If you can, stick a piece of (clean) cardboard in there to keep your papers nice & crisp. (You can take a UPS or FedEx express box, and cut a piece of it to the shape of the express mailer. It's quick & free.) After all the preparation you did - you don't want your file looking bad.

I followed this TWICE - and the second time around, it got done even *faster* than the first. If it weren't for my bungling with NVC -(yeah, I caused delays. I followed the wrong instructions)- I'd have finished my case 2 months earlier. It took me maybe a total of 4 hours of work to prepare the CIS & NVC documents. Shouldn't be a big project - if you feel like it's taking you too long to do, then it probably is.

Well the lawyer said the acco fastners worked wonders and I really think they do. My case with all its ups and downs boogied compared to some and I think it was the way he indexed in and the exhibits. I will definitely use acco fastners when I remove conditions. My time even with issues was shorter at USCIS than some and I credit the organization done by him. To this day , I think those acco fastners really helped

[PetraPerson101 0]

Well the lawyer said the acco fastners worked wonders and I really think they do. My case with all its ups and downs boogied compared to some and I think it was the way he indexed in and the exhibits. I will definitely use acco fastners when I remove conditions. My time even with issues was shorter at USCIS than some and I credit the organization done by him. To this day , I think those acco fastners really helped

I tell you - when you've got a mess of papers documenting will *ALWAYS* help. You can't go wrong with that - at the least - even if you've got a lot of work, your reviewer will appreciate that you already took care of half of their work. (sorting, figuring out what the papers are, labeling)

( Heh, I'm more of a binder clip person btw - I've got hundreds around the office. I buy em in bulk. But, for the CIS/NVC packets - I used staples & paper clips ... only because I didn't want to use a UPS box when I sent my papers in - binder clips don't really like the UPS legal mailer. )

Edited May 16, 2008 by KyanWan

[morocco4ever 63]

My husband assembled all of his papers for his first interview. I was watching him on the webcam and was freaking out because there were so many papers and no organization. We were denied, but I am sure it wasn't because of that. On the other hand it does make a CO more likely to look at the evidence if it is easily located.

I was there for my husbands second interview and had it prepared as you stated. I had attached a letter to the consulate on the first page and made notations to the evidences on where to find them (Evidence 1, Evidence 2, etc.). The second page outlined what was included in each evidence. This way they could either locate it easy from my letter, or if they didn't read the letter they could find it from the index.

The CO didn't look at nothing....lol. She did however ask my husband who put together his packet and he told her it was his wife. She just smiled, nodded, and said "good job".