need help! Russian Girl friend with child

[payxibka 10,045]

You won't find anything on the USCIS website because the USCIS does NOT issue visas... The American Consulates do which are a part of the Department of State.... The USCIS's role is petition approval not Visa.

Yes, a permission letter from the father will be required. You best get this worked out because without it or some sort of a court order, you are dead in the water.

do you have a link to the American Consulate web site. and are you certain about this for Russia, the reason I ask is we were told because she lives in Russia this was not necessary but if she was from the Ukraine then yes we would need the ex-husbands permission. I just want to be 100% positive on how we need to proceed, and is the only reason why I ask this question. also if you can provide the American Consulate web site to see if they say anything specific regarding this in regards to Russia.

Thanks very much

This is a US Governemnt requirement not a Ukrainian or Russian thing.... The requirement is the same worldwide... the difference is the piece of paper and the process to get it.

[pushbrk 12,569]

You won't find anything on the USCIS website because the USCIS does NOT issue visas... The American Consulates do which are a part of the Department of State.... The USCIS's role is petition approval not Visa.

Yes, a permission letter from the father will be required. You best get this worked out because without it or some sort of a court order, you are dead in the water.

do you have a link to the American Consulate web site. and are you certain about this for Russia, the reason I ask is we were told because she lives in Russia this was not necessary but if she was from the Ukraine then yes we would need the ex-husbands permission. I just want to be 100% positive on how we need to proceed, and is the only reason why I ask this question. also if you can provide the American Consulate web site to see if they say anything specific regarding this in regards to Russia.

Thanks very much

This is a US Governemnt requirement not a Ukrainian or Russian thing.... The requirement is the same worldwide... the difference is the piece of paper and the process to get it.

The requirement is not the same worldwide. In China, only the full custody court order is needed. The Consulates are familiar with the local laws on this and if the local law says full custody means the other parent has no rights, then the court order is enough. I have no idea what the answer is for Russia but from the best I can tell, more Consulates require the separate letter than do not.

Also, the Consular officers are allowed to consider totality of circumstances even in this matter. I've seen K2 and K4 visas issued when the immigrating mother has no way of contacting the father and any number of other special circumstances.

Edited May 6, 2008 by pushbrk

[payxibka 10,045]

The requirement is not the same worldwide. In China, only the full custody court order is needed. The Consulates are familiar with the local laws on this and if the local law says full custody means the other parent has no rights, then the court order is enough. I have no idea what the answer is for Russia but from the best I can tell, more Consulates require the separate letter than do not.

Also, the Consular officers are allowed to consider totality of circumstances even in this matter. I've seen K2 and K4 visas issued when the immigrating mother has no way of contacting the father and any number of other special circumstances.

Yes, the requirement IS the same... You must demonstrate that you have the appropriate permission to remove the child from the country... In each country the piece of paper is different...

Did you provide a piece of paper to the consulate?

[pushbrk 12,569]

The requirement is not the same worldwide. In China, only the full custody court order is needed. The Consulates are familiar with the local laws on this and if the local law says full custody means the other parent has no rights, then the court order is enough. I have no idea what the answer is for Russia but from the best I can tell, more Consulates require the separate letter than do not.

Also, the Consular officers are allowed to consider totality of circumstances even in this matter. I've seen K2 and K4 visas issued when the immigrating mother has no way of contacting the father and any number of other special circumstances.

Yes, the requirement IS the same... You must demonstrate that you have the appropriate permission to remove the child from the country... In each country the piece of paper is different...

Did you provide a piece of paper to the consulate?

Now that you put it that way, I agree. Actually no, the Consular officer did not request any document evidencing my wife's permission to take her daughter to the US even though she was prepared to hand over a Notarial translation of her custody agreement. I suspect it was because the interview took place 17 days prior to the daughter's 18th birthday.

My point is that only a Russia specific answer will apply to the OP's question.

[Boondocks 0]

Thank you both, fwaguy and pushbrk,

I have emailed the US Embassy-Moscow for help, hopefully I will get a 'Official' clarification from them. Just this morning I received an email from one of the Immigration Attornies that specialize in these matters having to do with the CIS (FSU) countries and the follow is their response

Thank you for your interest in our services. We would be very happy to assist you and your fiancée with K1/K2 Visas.

To answer your question, to obtain a K2 visa for the minor child one of these is required: court decree granting sole custody to the parent applying for a U.S. visa OR notarized consent letter from the left-behind parent permitting the permanent residency of the child in the U.S. If your fiancée has sole custody of her child, which means that her ex-husband doesn’t have any parental rights for the child (in Russian: «если отец был лишен отцовских прав на ребенка»), then she wouldn’t need a notarized letter of consent. The court decree or a letter of consent will be required only at your fiancée’s future interview at the US Embassy in Moscow.

We hope your fiancée can obtain one of the above documents.

since her divorce decree states she has 100% sole custody of her child, we will not need further permission from the ex-husband. I will have her take her divorce papers to a qualified lawyer in Russia to confirm this is what is actually stated in the divorce decree before we get our hopes too high.

I again thank you for all of your help, and hopefully the information that was given to me by the Immigration Attorney that I included in this post will help others with similiar questions that I have had when dealing with a Russian woman and her minor child.

Thank you all, now hopefully the true fun can begin