i'm at the end of the line , this is my last hope,

[pbilly 0]

any recomendations for a attorney

thanks

[maya62 7]

I can't suggest a specific lawyer, but I would find one who has experience in Cambodia, and is a member in good standing of this organization:

www.aila.org

You could also try asking for lawyer referrals at the Asia East & Pacific forum here on visajourney:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showforum=90

So far, it looks like you still have to get through the petition phase, which is here in the US, with USCIS. I doubt a trip to the US Consulate in Cambodia (is there one?? From the AE&P forum, it looks like maybe Cambodians have to go to Bangkok to interview???) is what you need. The visa application phase, through an entirely different agency of the US govt (Dept of State), happens after you have an approved petition.

You are operating under unnecessary fear and frustration, imho, because you do not yet understand the process. You can read the guides listed at the top of the visajourney page, or if you prefer, you may want to get a book on marriage-based immigration. I read parts of a guide published by NOLO publishing, which you may be able to get through your local public library or by inter-library loan. I found it helpful. A little research will give you a much better idea of what the real challenges are, versus the one(s) you have imagined. And you will be better prepared to deal with them.

Best wishes,

Maya

Edited October 16, 2007 by maya62

[pbilly 0]

i found a attorney by the name of marc ellis, and so far he has showed some interest in my case, he said he will look ay my paperwork interview my wife fora fee and then give me his evaluation

and we can go from there, wehave only emailed he said he might even meet my wife in seam reap this weekend for interview, so ithink he is based rightnow in vietnam, i'm nt sure, thats a guess,

but this is very hopefull for my wife and i.

the reason i was so gloom was the office manager for congressman jerry lewis here in redlands, whow handles imigration matters told me in no uncertain terms that when it goes to investigations like mine has that it can take yeats and nothing they can do or anyone else, and inher experience it wouldn't be aproved,

and i talked to another lawyer that would do a writ of mandamus, for 5000 retainer, and it could cot up to 10000 more with no guarantees

and now this ewlawyer marc ellis says definately not to do what holmes and tuttle suggested, tp withdraw both visas and start fresh with them, becouseitxould make her

enelligible to ever come to the usa ever again

wow

soo manyopinions

i wonder why this has to be so hard,

everyone has said the difference in our ages most probably is one of the problems, don't seem right

ohh well please keep helpinf thanks

it gives me hope

billy

[pbilly 0]

i jsrt got back from a month trip to cambodia thought that i might be able to get some help at the embassy in cambodia, and i wanted to visit my wife, no help at embassy, but was great to see my wife.

before i left i got a letter on my i=130 petition for marriage, it stated they would have a answer for me within 60 days but have heard nothing on it as of yet, but yesterday i got a blue letter on my k1 visa asking for my original marriage liscense in kamei, to be sent to them, and heres the letter i sent o an attorney

hoping him or one of you have some ideas, any help would be apreciated

hi marc

back from cambodia

got a letter from uscis on my k3 visa

they sent me a blue form and a letter asking for a copy of the original marriage liscense in kamai,

now i since i don't read kamei i had to find a cambodian go through all my paper work and try to find a copy

which i don't have,

somehow it has been lost i think it was the lady whow did the k3 visa for me

whow is now missing,

and m wife can not find a copy in her stuff in cambodia.

my lwyer that i had in the beginning whow did the originalmarriage visa, whow i fired senr me all my paperwork, which i'm guessing was everything i sent to the lady whow did the k3 visa i29f, and sent me back everything, i think,

so no copy anywhere of original kamei marrige visa,

my wifes father went to where we got the first marrige visa the original when we were married, the don't have copies. nut they will make me a new one, will this be suffecient.

will i have to let them know it is not an original or a copy of the origional it's a new one.

she wants me to send her a copy of the english translation of the marriage certificate so the can make it as the first.

i'm wondering should they date it, the same as the original, or have both dates the original and the date its being remade

thanks

any help would ne apreciated.

have a great day

billy

where you at in old usa maybe we can meet

thanks again

billy

as you can see, nothing seems to be going right does anyone have any thoughts

thanks

billy

[heartbroken 0]

i'm sorry i'm not clear, i'm quite upset

i got married in cambodia thanksgiving 2005

i applied for marriage visa feb 2006

i applied for 129f k3 visa 2 mothes ago

iwas just told by my congressmans secretary

that i probably won't be aproved if it hasn't been already

thanks

billy

just 1 woman

1 marriage

I think we can get this translated into vj jargon lol

You filed an I-130 petition for relative for your spouse. It has languished in the bureaucracy somewhere and is still pending.

2 months ago you filed an I-129f for a K-3 visa.

The I-129f was designed to allow you to bring a fiance to the country on a K-1 visa, to marry and then file for immigrant status. It was expanded in 2001 to cover spouses and children.

The LIFE act which was designed to stop the long seperations of families created the K-3 visa. You must file an I-130 for immigrant status because your wife will definitely be an immigrant. That must be done first. (and you have done that) Then you file an I-129 petition for a K-3 visa. You use an I-129f petition because they never got around to designing the new form for spouse. (and you have done that)

The idea is that you can get a K-3 non-immigrant visa so your wife can come here while the 130 is being processed. It is only recently that they began to process them at the same time.

The upshot is that you can get an I-129f approved and get a K-3 visa for your wife while your 130 is still pending. That was the original design.

The downside is that it takes about 6 months from the filing date to get an approval. You are already 60 days into the process and it may go faster or it may not.

Your congressman's office is full of s---. Contact your senator and speak to a decent immigration attorney and have your application materials double checked and then hang on fot a frustrating, fearful and tearful ride.

Do not under any circumstances let this get the best of you. You have made a commitment and you can and will see it through. The fact is that in legal marriage scenarios very few petitions are denied.

You are in my prayers.

[pbilly 0]

back from cambodia

got a letter from uscis on my k3 visa

they sent me a blue form and a letter asking for a copy of the original marriage liscense in kamai,

now i since i don't read kamei i had to find a cambodian go through all my paper work and try to find a copy

which i don't have,

somehow it has been lost i think it was the lady whow did the k3 visa for me

whow is now missing,

and m wife can not find a copy in her stuff in cambodia.

my lwyer that i had in the beginning whow did the originalmarriage visa, whow i fired senr me all my paperwork, which i'm guessing was everything i sent to the lady whow did the k3 visa i29f, and sent me back everything, i think,

so no copy anywhere of original kamei marrige visa,

my wifes father went to where we got the first marrige visa the original when we were married, the don't have copies. nut they will make me a new one, will this be suffecient.

will i have to let them know it is not an original or a copy of the origional it's a new one.

she wants me to send her a copy of the english translation of the marriage certificate so the can make it as the first.

i'm wondering should they date it, the same as the original, or have both dates the original and the date its being remade

thanks

any help would ne apreciated.

have a great day

billy

where you at in old usa maybe we can meet

thanks again

billy

[pbilly 0]

update just now about an hout ago received mail saying we were approved on the i130 petition

not quie sure what this means now

after 14 years on the job was fired 4 monthes ago becouse of going to cambodia yo many times and stayed too long rge last time

so im unemployed now collecting unemployment

so i dont know what comes next now

they say that the original sent to my original lawyer

have to call him tomorrow

and that they will be contacting my wife for further instructions

will i have to pay the existing rate for the visa or can i pay what it was when i filed

any way anyone know what i should expect now

later

billy

[Todd-Leah 0]

update just now about an hout ago received mail saying we were approved on the i130 petition

not quie sure what this means now

after 14 years on the job was fired 4 monthes ago becouse of going to cambodia yo many times and stayed too long rge last time

so im unemployed now collecting unemployment

so i dont know what comes next now

they say that the original sent to my original lawyer

have to call him tomorrow

and that they will be contacting my wife for further instructions

will i have to pay the existing rate for the visa or can i pay what it was when i filed

any way anyone know what i should expect now

later

billy

Congratulations, you have waited a long time!! Sorry about the loss of job though.

Your approved I-130 petition will be forwarded to NVC, you should receive letters from NVC shortly about what you should do next. You can also call NVC to check the audio recording whether your approved I-130 has reached NVC or not.

This guide by loto may help you to understand the next steps better.

Leah

[Thai family 0]

update just now about an hout ago received mail saying we were approved on the i130 petition

not quie sure what this means now

after 14 years on the job was fired 4 monthes ago becouse of going to cambodia yo many times and stayed too long rge last time

so im unemployed now collecting unemployment

so i dont know what comes next now

they say that the original sent to my original lawyer

have to call him tomorrow

and that they will be contacting my wife for further instructions

will i have to pay the existing rate for the visa or can i pay what it was when i filed

any way anyone know what i should expect now

later

billy

Congratulations! Was your I-129F approved too? It's cheaper to go the immigrant visa route than the K-3 in the long run. With the immigrant visa, one has a higher bar to meet financially for the affidavit of support at an earlier time. It's easier to find a financial co-sponsor for the K-3 versus the immigrant affidavit, because it's for a shorter duration and is not legally binding. That was one advantage of the K-3 for my kids (recent college grad).

You'll have to pay the existing rate for the visa - sorry. You've made it this far, so I'm confident you can go the rest of the way. Do you have a choice of going through HCMC or Bangkok? Because if you do, from what I have read, I would choose Bangkok. Of course, tensions on the border could change that.

Thai Mom

[DianaP 0]

Call 202-272-8000 and ask for customer assistance department, give them your receipt number for the I-130 first then request an answer in detail of what is really going on with your case since your time seems to have gone way over passed their approximate processing time ( do not get in the details of case showed approved then not approved or whatever just keep it simple and short)... they wil frst tell you that each case is an individual case and the timeline may be completly different bla bla bla, you will then request them to contact the service center that has your case and immediately call you back ( get their direct line, since this is the headquaters each officer has a direct landline you will reach them in the near future)... wait for her to call you back, until 3PM at same day if she doesn t call her back... This is the only way I can think you will be able to get some answers... I have seen this work out before where a marriage went into investigation all you can do is be patient and accumulate as much proof as your possibly can of a bonafide marriage you will need all of it... phone records, trips, gift receits, letters , greeting cards, etc...

Best of luck to you and dont give up...