re: DCF Eligibility (US Citizen marrying Japanese Citizen)

[Bryan in Tokyo 0]

Konichiwa!

Good evening,, THANK YOU so much to all involved in this forum,, if anyone can help to answer my questions, 'twould be much appreciated

Background: I'm a US Citizen (LA native;) living and working (full-time; management level) in Tokyo since Oct 2001 (long time). I met and fell in love, at work, with a wonderful Japanese lady (same age) and we've been together as a couple for over 6 years now. Last Sept '08, I popped the questions, she said YES (Phew ).

Currently: We are engaged and intending on moving back to LA to start out lives together here. Financially, we're OK according to USCIS guidelines and, in addition, have my parents in LA to co-sponsor the Affidavit of support. I am currently home for the holidays (Culver City), and intending on sending our K-1 petition package on Jan 5th; I fly back on the 6th to Tokyo.

Question:

1. Am I correct in understanding the DCF avenue applies only to currently married couples? We are only engaged with intent to move back and marry; does DCF apply?

2. Have any of you applied via DCF with my similar background? What were your experiences/results? I live in the heart of Tokyo at the moment, but haven't visited the embassy yet.

Thanks in advance for any help; again, this website is a wealth of information! -b

[rmncm 0]

DCF is only good for marriage based visa'a, not K1's. Why not get married there being you lived there for the 6mo requirment and have this process done in a few weeks instead of 6+ months? If you come back here and file for a k1 then you are going to be seperated for a long time and you will have to be the one to visit her as she wont be able to use the vwp.

[kaffy 2]

If I were you, I'd get married there (easy process at your local ward office - all you need is your gaijin card and a certificate from the US Embassy saying that you are free to marry. My husband got his from the Sapporo Consulate and paid a small fee. I believe your wife requires a copy of her family register and perhaps a few other pieces of documentation too, I'm not sure), file DCF and in a few short months when that is approved you can move back to the US and have a wedding ceremony & reception there to celebrate.

Edited January 3, 2009 by kaffy

[Bryan in Tokyo 0]

DCF is only good for marriage based visa'a, not K1's. Why not get married there being you lived there for the 6mo requirment and have this process done in a few weeks instead of 6+ months? If you come back here and file for a k1 then you are going to be seperated for a long time and you will have to be the one to visit her as she wont be able to use the vwp.

Thanks for the quick reply!

[Bryan in Tokyo 0]

If I were you, I'd get married there (easy process at your local ward office - all you need is your gaijin card and a certificate from the US Embassy saying that you are free to marry. My husband got his from the Sapporo Consulate and paid a small fee. I believe your wife requires a copy of her family register and perhaps a few other pieces of documentation too, I'm not sure), file DCF and in a few short months when that is approved you can move back to the US and have a wedding ceremony & reception there to celebrate.

Wow,, this is rocking my world; it almost seems to good to be true,, how about this....

1. I live in Tokyo,, I'm assuming your hubby lived in Kansai and that is the reason he used the Sapporo Consulate, correct? The reading I've done on the internet re: DCF = "...DCF is not available at all consulates" which worries me. After reading your comments, I'm starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel...

2. How did you start the process exactly? Did you go to to the embassy and make an appointment to get counseling; then , start the process from there?

3. Any landmines (common mistakes/time wasters) I should look out for?

Congratulations on your experience, and I appreciate the advice, feel free to PM me at bguevarra@gaba.co.jp

[kaffy 2]

We didn't actually do DCF in Japan. We met in Sapporo (Hokkaido), lived there together and married there ("paper" marriage at the ward office, then ceremoy & celebrations a few months later in the States - I wasn't an LPR then so I entered on VWP). However we didn't start our DCF process until about 10 months after we had left Japan & returned to Australia (my home country).

All in all it's a pretty simple process - far more simple than the K-1 process in my opinion. And you're lucky you live in Tokyo beause the Embassy there actually does handle visa processing. First thing you'll have to do obviously is to get married. The US Embassy in Tokyo's website has good information on this: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-7114a.html

Once you're married, the first step of the DCF process is to file the I-130 : http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivpetition.html

Then when the petition is approved (not sure of the timeline in Tokyo but in Sydney it took 1 week), your spouse applies for her visa: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivapplication.html

I did a quick search on the forum to see if anyone had done DCF recently in Japan and found this thread: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...13&hl=japan

Edited January 3, 2009 by kaffy

[Bryan in Tokyo 0]

We didn't actually do DCF in Japan. We met in Sapporo (Hokkaido), lived there together and married there ("paper" marriage at the ward office, then ceremoy & celebrations a few months later in the States - I wasn't an LPR then so I entered on VWP). However we didn't start our DCF process until about 10 months after we had left Japan & returned to Australia (my home country).

All in all it's a pretty simple process - far more simple than the K-1 process in my opinion. And you're lucky you live in Tokyo beause the Embassy there actually does handle visa processing. First thing you'll have to do obviously is to get married. The US Embassy in Tokyo's website has good information on this: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/acs/tacs-7114a.html

Once you're married, the first step of the DCF process is to file the I-130 : http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivpetition.html

Then when the petition is approved (not sure of the timeline in Tokyo but in Sydney it took 1 week), your spouse applies for her visa: http://japan.usembassy.gov/e/visa/tvisa-ivapplication.html

I did a quick search on the forum to see if anyone had done DCF recently in Japan and found this thread: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...13&hl=japan

Wow, that seems simple enough. Thanks for the info.

Since we are not married yet; our first intention is to get married "on paper" and start the DCF process. If our exit strategy was to leave by September 2009,,

I'm assuming we'd get married on paper asap say Feb/Mar, and then start the process some time around July 2009? Would that make sense?

Also, in terms of "joint accounts" or "same apartments"as newlyweds often will do ; how much of a weighting does that have on our petition? We currently live separately (she's with her parents/I'm in Ikebukuro); after we marry, would you recommend we move in together even if it will be for a short time? i.e. marry in Mar, live together Mar-Sept (approval date).

Once approval is given, is there a time limit within we must leave Japan? Thanks for your help!

[kaffy 2]

Once your wife receives her visa she has 6 months to enter the US before it expires.

As for timeline, you can file DCF immediately after you marry as long as you are prepared & have everything in order.

I do recommend moving in together after marriage to show them that you have a joint residence. It's kind of weird to me (and to the Embassy I'm sure) for a married couple to not be living together