OK, mini-update news from Senator- RFE's, IMBRA

[lashernyc1 0]

Hi all, got ~another~ call, unsolicited, from my senator's office- it looks like everyone's IMBRA ordeal is on the way to being resolved.

They spoke with CIS offices here AND Vermont SC. Vermont told them that petitioners should be receiving the RFEs within 3 weeks the latest. The RFE appears to be a few questions we'll have to answer and send back. I was told to call my senator back if I didn't recieve the RFE by that time. Hearing that makes me think that the plans to get everything back on track seem solid.

Hope this brings people some comfort- I know we've all needed it- and thanks to everyone who's been supportive here

[kitkat1 5]

Hi all, got ~another~ call, unsolicited, from my senator's office- it looks like everyone's IMBRA ordeal is on the way to being resolved.

They spoke with CIS offices here AND Vermont SC. Vermont told them that petitioners should be receiving the RFEs within 3 weeks the latest. The RFE appears to be a few questions we'll have to answer and send back. I was told to call my senator back if I didn't recieve the RFE by that time. Hearing that makes me think that the plans to get everything back on track seem solid.

Hope this brings people some comfort- I know we've all needed it- and thanks to everyone who's been supportive here

Thanks for providing good news! And who is the senator? I think if I asked my senator's office to tell me what time it is right now, they would have to research it and get back to me.

[Gomez 3]

Hi all, got ~another~ call, unsolicited, from my senator's office- it looks like everyone's IMBRA ordeal is on the way to being resolved.

They spoke with CIS offices here AND Vermont SC. Vermont told them that petitioners should be receiving the RFEs within 3 weeks the latest. The RFE appears to be a few questions we'll have to answer and send back. I was told to call my senator back if I didn't recieve the RFE by that time. Hearing that makes me think that the plans to get everything back on track seem solid.

Hope this brings people some comfort- I know we've all needed it- and thanks to everyone who's been supportive here

Cool...works for me

[gtigiant 0]

I think I can deal with that. Of course, that is vermont, so those of us that got transferred to the California SC will probably have to wait 12 weeks

[AstroM33 0]

It's really great to hear that. Although the comment about the California Service center maybe taking 12 weeks rather than 3 or 4 worries me. Well at least it is some information rather than being in the dark. Thanks guys!!

[raymaga 25]

That sounds like some positive news..... at least something is being done at last.

Good luck to everyone who is still in the process awaiting approval.

Best wishes all !!!!!!

[keith88gt 0]

Hi all,

I am using an immigration attorney for the K1 processing..I spoke to him yesterday and he told me that there should be no RFE's comming since the old 129f form was still vaild until the new one is approved.I told him about this site and what everyones been speculating about and he said not to listen to all this stuff...that his firm is well aware of whats going on and that i wont recieve any RFE's coz of the new draft 129f form.

So i guess we'll see what happens..he just said it might take a bit longer due to how backlogged they are due to the ones comming back for more securtiy checks.The firm does advertise on this site..if anyone is interested the firms name is Roth,Livingston,&Poles...I hope he is correct..he seemed offened when i told him waht was being said on this site,rather than what he knows from his expertise in the immigration field.

Thanks guys,

Good luck to all,

Keith& Irish

[kitkat1 5]

I would consider firing your attorney immediately! Seriously, the IMBRA law went into effect on March 6. It requires, by law, that USCitizens provide information regarding their "possible criminal background" before the petition can be processed. Since we know that every single service center has completely stopped processing I-129 petitions that were received after March 6, we know this is true.

It's correct that the old form was valid, but it was missing the questions that need to be answered in order to comply with the law. Therefore, USCIS has to find a way to get this additional information from the USC. While we speculated about how they might do this (do they need the USC's signature to perform a background check, are they going to provide a questionnaire, etc) we now know from the posting on the USCIS's own website that they are going to send RFEs to each and every petitioner.

Show this post from USCIS to your attorney and then ask for a refund!!

USCIS NOTIFIES PUBLIC OF NEW POLICY CONCERNING FIANCÉ(E) PETITIONS

Agency to Request Additional Evidence to Comply with IMBRA

Washington, DC – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that in order to comply with provisions of the International Marriage Brokers Regulation Act of 2005 (IMBRA), it will need to issue “Requests for Evidence” for more than 10,000 Alien Fiancé(e) Petitions (Form I-129F) currently being held at USCIS Service Centers. USCIS will begin issuing RFEs to affected petitioners as soon as the RFE template has been approved and cleared by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Although USCIS began work on necessary revisions to the Form I-129F shortly after passage of IMBRA, the form has not yet received OMB clearance. All petitions filed on or after March 6 must be supplemented with additional information to satisfy the new evidentiary requirements established by IMBRA. To adjudicate the petitions that are being held as quickly and efficiently as possible, USCIS, upon clearance from OMB, will issue “Requests for Evidence” (RFEs) asking petitioners to provide the additional information including data pertaining to a petitioner’s criminal history (if any). Details on the waiver process for those affected by the new limitation for filings of I-129Fs are also provided in the RFE. A new Form I-129F that incorporates these changes should become available later in June. In certain circumstances, USCIS may need to issue a second RFE to some petitioners later in the process if it is determined that other required information was not provided in the initial filing.

[Ladylethal 12]

I was gonna say the same, fire your attorney.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Hi all,

I am using an immigration attorney for the K1 processing..I spoke to him yesterday and he told me that there should be no RFE's comming since the old 129f form was still vaild until the new one is approved.I told him about this site and what everyones been speculating about and he said not to listen to all this stuff...that his firm is well aware of whats going on and that i wont recieve any RFE's coz of the new draft 129f form.

So i guess we'll see what happens..he just said it might take a bit longer due to how backlogged they are due to the ones comming back for more securtiy checks.The firm does advertise on this site..if anyone is interested the firms name is Roth,Livingston,&Poles...I hope he is correct..he seemed offened when i told him waht was being said on this site,rather than what he knows from his expertise in the immigration field.

Thanks guys,

Good luck to all,

Keith& Irish

This totally contradicts all that we've learned from other sources... (Read Below)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060613/ap_on_.../wedding_delays

Chris Bentley, a Homeland Security spokesman, said about 10,000 applications are currently being held because they did not address the criminal or marriage broker issues.

"They did not have all of the information needed to determine whether someone qualified or not," said Bentley, who works for the department's Citizenship and Immigration Services.

He added: "It's certainly an inconvenience brought about by the new requirements of the law."

Homeland Security said Tuesday it would send additional forms to the estimated 10,000 couples in wedding purgatory to get answers to the questions about criminal pasts and marriage brokers. But it said it was still waiting for the White House Office of Management and Budget for approval of those forms and the new application.

OMB spokeswoman Andrea Wuebker did not have details immediately on the additional forms, but said the new applications were approved Monday in an emergency clearance process. It was not clear when the new applications would be distributed to the public.

[YnaYeBa0808 0]

yeah i agree... that was a bogus statement on his part... (your attorney)

[bradentejas 0]

Hah...your first mistaje is to hold an attorney at the level of God.

Attorney or not, advertises on this site or not...he may not know everything. As the others have said, fire him immediately!

I hired an attorney for my first marriage on a K1 a few years ago, now divorced from her, and that attorney was an FIRM specializing only in Immigration Law. They were, at time, WORTHLESS and I found myself correcting THEIR errors!!!! They also knew nothing of some evidence required, shortcuts and some other things which were required or would assist the process!

I will never hire one again and feel that this site, with the plethora of reserch done by hundreds of people, is almost unmatched by any paid service.

[Barry2005 0]

I would consider firing your attorney immediately! Seriously, the IMBRA law went into effect on March 6. It requires, by law, that USCitizens provide information regarding their "possible criminal background" before the petition can be processed. Since we know that every single service center has completely stopped processing I-129 petitions that were received after March 6, we know this is true.

It's correct that the old form was valid, but it was missing the questions that need to be answered in order to comply with the law. Therefore, USCIS has to find a way to get this additional information from the USC. While we speculated about how they might do this (do they need the USC's signature to perform a background check, are they going to provide a questionnaire, etc) we now know from the posting on the USCIS's own website that they are going to send RFEs to each and every petitioner.

Show this post from USCIS to your attorney and then ask for a refund!!

USCIS NOTIFIES PUBLIC OF NEW POLICY CONCERNING FIANCÉ(E) PETITIONS

Agency to Request Additional Evidence to Comply with IMBRA

Washington, DC – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that in order to comply with provisions of the International Marriage Brokers Regulation Act of 2005 (IMBRA), it will need to issue “Requests for Evidence” for more than 10,000 Alien Fiancé(e) Petitions (Form I-129F) currently being held at USCIS Service Centers. USCIS will begin issuing RFEs to affected petitioners as soon as the RFE template has been approved and cleared by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Although USCIS began work on necessary revisions to the Form I-129F shortly after passage of IMBRA, the form has not yet received OMB clearance. All petitions filed on or after March 6 must be supplemented with additional information to satisfy the new evidentiary requirements established by IMBRA. To adjudicate the petitions that are being held as quickly and efficiently as possible, USCIS, upon clearance from OMB, will issue “Requests for Evidence” (RFEs) asking petitioners to provide the additional information including data pertaining to a petitioner’s criminal history (if any). Details on the waiver process for those affected by the new limitation for filings of I-129Fs are also provided in the RFE. A new Form I-129F that incorporates these changes should become available later in June. In certain circumstances, USCIS may need to issue a second RFE to some petitioners later in the process if it is determined that other required information was not provided in the initial filing.

I think these lawyers are just people making money off helping people do petitions and really don't know everything like they claim. I knew about IMBRA before my lawyer and he warned me to beware of misinformation on this site. I wonder if their 100% success rate is true! The main thing I worry about is how meeting my girlfriend from a dating site will affect me. I wonder is there is any chance the k1 would be denied completely or would I have to do a waiver(not sure what a waiver is). I guess I will have my answers soon when I get my RFE.(I hope)

[iceyspots 0]

Hope it comes fast