K-1, packet 3, police certificates... what?

[bluenoser77 0]

Hi there,

I have recently received my packet 3 for the K-1 visa app. On the checklist it states that I need police certificates from every locality where I've lived for a year or more since the age of 16.

I have lived in 3 different countries and 7 different cities in that period of time. Does this mean I have to attain 7 different police certificates? And if so, do I need to have this before I send in my packet 3?... or do I get the process started (this could takes months!), send in packet 3 and hope for the certificates to be ready by my interview?

To make things more complicated, I am currently living overseas for a period of a month and a half. After research on how to attain police certificates from Japan (only one of the countries), I've found through on online source that this could possibly take 2-3 months, applying personally at a consulate. Since I'm leaving here before that time, i won't be able to take advantage of the consulate here and I might have to wait to apply when I get back home. I'm really hoping someone can tell me that this isn't going to be as complicated as I think it could be. .... please???

Any insight or similar experiences appreciated. I've looked around for other posts on this topic and didn't find anything helpful, but if I've missed anything that's already on here, please guide me to it.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Otto 83]

You'll need at least 3 police certifications - often it is by country and not necessarily country and municipality. If one of the countries you lived was Germany, for example, you would only need one certification for the entire country (even if you lived in several of the 16 'states' within Germany.)

I can't speak directly to the Japan certification other than to suggest doing whatever you can while you are there.

What countries?:

• Canada (I presume)
• Japan (You mentioned)

[bluenoser77 0]

You'll need at least 3 police certifications - often it is by country and not necessarily country and municipality. If one of the countries you lived was Germany, for example, you would only need one certification for the entire country (even if you lived in several of the 16 'states' within Germany.)

I can't speak directly to the Japan certification other than to suggest doing whatever you can while you are there.

What countries?:

• Canada (I presume)
• Japan (You mentioned)

Hi, and thanks for your response.

Canada, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. My fiance read somewhere that Vietnam doesn't actually have these certificates and it might not be necessary/possible to get a certificate from here (I'm in Vietnam right now).

[EasternDE 35]

You need a police certificate for each of those 3 countries.

And yes, depending on which country is issueing the certificate it can take months.

That's why it is important to read the guides...!

Well I agree with you, this is not in the basic guide but in the flowchart:

Step 4 - 2nd Notice of Action (NOA)

*Beneficiary can research and prepare forms required by embassy.

For the most of us, getting this certificate isn't a big deal, for example in France it takes 3 or 4 days max.

You may want to ask in the Regional section for Japan if someone can help you and give you more information about the process.

I can help you, if one of the countries is France.

Edited November 4, 2009 by EasternDE

[Lona.C. 16]

I see from your timeline that your interview would be montreal ,

Montreal usualy gives an interview around 2 month ( aprox take or give a week or so ) after they recieve pakage 3

you say your in vietnam right now , do you think you will be back in canada on time for the interview , if so ,

cant you go to the japan and south korean consulate aply there , and the local vietnam police , i found this site ( yes its about how to get on for canada , but basicaly the same steps )

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/s...cific/index.asp

as for the canadian police cert you could try to get it a few days before your interview if your back by then at the RCMP , ( when I had to get it at the RCMP I got it right at the stop waite 5 min )

[Guitarlo 2]

Hi there,

I have recently received my packet 3 for the K-1 visa app. On the checklist it states that I need police certificates from every locality where I've lived for a year or more since the age of 16.

I have lived in 3 different countries and 7 different cities in that period of time. Does this mean I have to attain 7 different police certificates? And if so, do I need to have this before I send in my packet 3?... or do I get the process started (this could takes months!), send in packet 3 and hope for the certificates to be ready by my interview?

To make things more complicated, I am currently living overseas for a period of a month and a half. After research on how to attain police certificates from Japan (only one of the countries), I've found through on online source that this could possibly take 2-3 months, applying personally at a consulate. Since I'm leaving here before that time, i won't be able to take advantage of the consulate here and I might have to wait to apply when I get back home. I'm really hoping someone can tell me that this isn't going to be as complicated as I think it could be. .... please???

Any insight or similar experiences appreciated. I've looked around for other posts on this topic and didn't find anything helpful, but if I've missed anything that's already on here, please guide me to it.

Thanks in advance for any help.

I just wanted to comment that I can't believe you would need so many poilce clearances. It sounds unreasonable but have you been able to explain your situation and verify what you need to do is correct? All I rememeber the headache my fiance went through in the Philippines just to obtain (1) NBI clearance.

Good luck.

[Stephen + Elisha 92]

You'll need at least 3 police certifications - often it is by country and not necessarily country and municipality. If one of the countries you lived was Germany, for example, you would only need one certification for the entire country (even if you lived in several of the 16 'states' within Germany.)

I can't speak directly to the Japan certification other than to suggest doing whatever you can while you are there.

What countries?:

• Canada (I presume)
• Japan (You mentioned)

Hi, and thanks for your response.

Canada, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. My fiance read somewhere that Vietnam doesn't actually have these certificates and it might not be necessary/possible to get a certificate from here (I'm in Vietnam right now).

The State Department reciprocity list is your friend: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3272.html

Choose a country from the drop-down list, and it will tell you how to obtain police certificates from that country from either inside or outside the country. More importantly, it will tell you whether it's even possible to obtain such certificates. If it says on the State Department site that a certificate from a given country is not available, then the consulate won't ask for it at the interview (consulates are, after all, part of the Department of State).

Off the top of my head, I can tell you that Korean police certificates (at least the kind that are acceptable for visa purposes) cannot be ordered from outside of Korea. Hence, the State Department considers them "unavailable." So there's one you can cross off your list.

(moving to Embassy and Consulate Discussion)

[bluenoser77 0]

You'll need at least 3 police certifications - often it is by country and not necessarily country and municipality. If one of the countries you lived was Germany, for example, you would only need one certification for the entire country (even if you lived in several of the 16 'states' within Germany.)

I can't speak directly to the Japan certification other than to suggest doing whatever you can while you are there.

What countries?:

• Canada (I presume)
• Japan (You mentioned)

Hi, and thanks for your response.

Canada, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. My fiance read somewhere that Vietnam doesn't actually have these certificates and it might not be necessary/possible to get a certificate from here (I'm in Vietnam right now).

The State Department reciprocity list is your friend: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3272.html

Choose a country from the drop-down list, and it will tell you how to obtain police certificates from that country from either inside or outside the country. More importantly, it will tell you whether it's even possible to obtain such certificates. If it says on the State Department site that a certificate from a given country is not available, then the consulate won't ask for it at the interview (consulates are, after all, part of the Department of State).

Off the top of my head, I can tell you that Korean police certificates (at least the kind that are acceptable for visa purposes) cannot be ordered from outside of Korea. Hence, the State Department considers them "unavailable." So there's one you can cross off your list.

(moving to Embassy and Consulate Discussion)

Wow, that's super useful for me. Thanks! Indeed it seems that south korea is off my list. I read somewhere that they could only be obtained in Korea and thought I might have to make a trip out of it. Pheww! Vietnam seems easy enough since I live here and am registered... Now Japan seems to be the stickler.

Thanks again.

[SunDrop 59]

You'll need at least 3 police certifications - often it is by country and not necessarily country and municipality. If one of the countries you lived was Germany, for example, you would only need one certification for the entire country (even if you lived in several of the 16 'states' within Germany.)

I can't speak directly to the Japan certification other than to suggest doing whatever you can while you are there.

What countries?:

• Canada (I presume)
• Japan (You mentioned)

Hi, and thanks for your response.

Canada, Japan, South Korea and Vietnam. My fiance read somewhere that Vietnam doesn't actually have these certificates and it might not be necessary/possible to get a certificate from here (I'm in Vietnam right now).

The State Department reciprocity list is your friend: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3272.html

Choose a country from the drop-down list, and it will tell you how to obtain police certificates from that country from either inside or outside the country. More importantly, it will tell you whether it's even possible to obtain such certificates. If it says on the State Department site that a certificate from a given country is not available, then the consulate won't ask for it at the interview (consulates are, after all, part of the Department of State).

Off the top of my head, I can tell you that Korean police certificates (at least the kind that are acceptable for visa purposes) cannot be ordered from outside of Korea. Hence, the State Department considers them "unavailable." So there's one you can cross off your list.

(moving to Embassy and Consulate Discussion)

Wow, that's super useful for me. Thanks! Indeed it seems that south korea is off my list. I read somewhere that they could only be obtained in Korea and thought I might have to make a trip out of it. Pheww! Vietnam seems easy enough since I live here and am registered... Now Japan seems to be the stickler.

Thanks again.

I would contact the Japanese consulate in Vietnam, ask them if the certificate would have to be collected in person or if it can be mailed to an address of your choice. If the latter, then simply provide your Canadian address. Explain your circumstance. If it's got to be collected in person, I would call the Vietnamese consulate in Canada (assuming this is where you're going in 1.5 months' time) and ask if the application for your police certificate has to be made in person, or does it consist of submitting a form and paying the fee. If this is just a 'submit the form via the consulate and collect in person' then you should be able to mail the form to a friend/ relative and ask them to forward/ deliver it to the consulate on your behalf.

If you have to present the request and collect in person, then you'll have to wait until you're back in Canada before applying. You can still go ahead with your interview, but assuming all the other documentation is satisfactory, they will approve you pending further documentation (reason code 221g, I believe) and ask you to submit the missing certificate within a certain timeframe. Off the top of my head, it's 4 months, so you should be more than fine.

If this information isn't correct for the Canadian USEM, I'm sure a more knowledgeable canadian will set me straight! lol

Also, don't forget to find out how long it takes for the vietnamese certificate to be produced! You might have to make arrangements for it to be forwarded.

[SunDrop 59]

I would contact the Japanese consulate in Vietnam, ask them if the certificate would have to be collected in person or if it can be mailed to an address of your choice. If the latter, then simply provide your Canadian address. Explain your circumstance. If it's got to be collected in person, I would call the Vietnamese consulate in Canada (assuming this is where you're going in 1.5 months' time) and ask if the application for your police certificate has to be made in person, or does it consist of submitting a form and paying the fee. If this is just a 'submit the form via the consulate and collect in person' then you should be able to mail the form to a friend/ relative and ask them to forward/ deliver it to the consulate on your behalf.

Sorry, that should have said Japanese.. lol.

[bluenoser77 0]

I would contact the Japanese consulate in Vietnam, ask them if the certificate would have to be collected in person or if it can be mailed to an address of your choice. If the latter, then simply provide your Canadian address. Explain your circumstance. If it's got to be collected in person, I would call the Vietnamese consulate in Canada (assuming this is where you're going in 1.5 months' time) and ask if the application for your police certificate has to be made in person, or does it consist of submitting a form and paying the fee. If this is just a 'submit the form via the consulate and collect in person' then you should be able to mail the form to a friend/ relative and ask them to forward/ deliver it to the consulate on your behalf.

Sorry, that should have said Japanese.. lol.

Thank you (and everyone else!) for your comments. I went to the Japanese consulate today in Hanoi. Good news and bad news. Good news is, I can have someone else pick it up for me and then mail it to me since I will probably leave before it's ready. Bad news is I have to find my old passport that holds the Japanese stamp and Visa (which was 3 passports ago), which should be somewhere in Canada deep in my stuff, hopefully.

Vietnamese one shouldn't be a problem. I already got one for my current work permit and it only took a day. canada's ok and Korea's out. I think I'm almost done.

My other question is: What forms am I required to send back right away from packet 3 in order to get my interview date, and which forms/paperwork can I prepare for the interview? Somebody mentioned above that I can still have an interview without the paperwork complete. It doesn't explain this anywhere in the packet 3, or on any US/Canadian embassy websites that I can see. Basically it's unclear to me what I am required to send back right away.

Thanks for any help.

[bluenoser77 0]

I actually found another post that answers this question.

Cheers.