question about i-130, pic size, stapled documents!

[hokuspokus 1]

I just submitted the petition for i-130 yesterday. here is the problem..

i read somewhere that documents shouldnt be stapled together. is that true? if it is? can they reject the application? i stapled the marriage cert with translation, birth cert with translation, etc.

2nd question. the dimensions for my wife picture was 1 1/2 inch in width. everything else was dead on. is that gona be a problem? again can the petition be rejected? hopefully not cause i am not tryin to waste our time to bring my wife here..

[mustafa1232 3]

I just submitted the petition for i-130 yesterday. here is the problem..

i read somewhere that documents shouldnt be stapled together. is that true? if it is? can they reject the application? i stapled the marriage cert with translation, birth cert with translation, etc.

2nd question. the dimensions for my wife picture was 1 1/2 inch in width. everything else was dead on. is that gona be a problem? again can the petition be rejected? hopefully not cause i am not tryin to waste our time to bring my wife here..

Assembling the I-130 Application - If you love spending your days reading confusing language and trying to figure out what some beauracrat is going to find acceptable this is the document for you. The application itself is fairly simple and is only 2 pages long. The additional data that you have to submit is quite extensive and can be very time consuming to assemble. When I was finally done putting this thing together my "2 page document" weighed 1 1/2 pounds (no joke) with all of the supporting documents.

Our Completed I-130

What I included in our I-130 application....

A cover letter explaining what I was filing all this ####### for

A check for $355

The I-130 application

Continuation pages for information that won't fit in the spaces provided on the I-130

A G-325A (biographic information) for me

A G-325A (biographic information) for my wife

Continuation pages for information that won't fit in the spaces provided on the G-325A

A passport-type photo of you and one of your spouse

A copy of my birth certificate (both sides)

A copy of your marriage certificate

A translation of all documents in a foreign langauge

A certification that the translator is compotent to translate the documents

Copies of wedding photos

Copies of phone bills showing that we call each other every day

Western Union receipts showing money that I've sent to my wife

Information on our joint bank account

Evidence that my wife is the beneficiary for my life insurance policy

An affadavit from my aunt stating that she has knowledge of our marriage

Everything must be done meticulously since if you make even a tiny mistake your application will be rejected. There are rules for how you must do everything so attention to detail is of the utmost importance. Documents, for example, should not be stapled together. The entire document should be 2-hole punched at the top and held together using ACCO fasteners. (Since I had never even heard of ACCO fasteners I had to do a search on the internet to find out what they were) I also put stick on tabs to indicate where each document was located in the stack of papers. According to the USICS website these need to be on the bottom of the pages and not on the sides.

ACCO Fasteners

Random tips on filling out the forms -

NEVER, NEVER LIE ON AN IMMIGRATION FORM! No matter how trivial you think something is put it on the application. The penalties for giving false information or willfully omitting data are SEVERE. There are large fines, possible jail time, and worst of all your loved one may receive a LIFETIME BAN from ever immigrating to the United States. It's simply not worth the risk to lie.

Your packet should contain a cover letter that clearly identifies what you are sending and what you are applying for. Don't assume because you are sending in a certain form the government will know what you are applying for. The I-129F, for example, is used for both a K1 and a K3 visa. You need to clearly state which one you are applying for. If a beauracrat has to figure things out on their own you are inviting problems.

If the data you need to enter won't fit on the form use a continuation sheet. On the continuation sheet indicate what question you are answering and sign and date each sheet.

If addresses are in foreign languages do not translate them. Certain documents will be sent to your relative so the address must be one that the local mail service can deliver to.

When submitting an I-130 you must submit proof that you are married above and beyond a marriage certificate. Some of the things they list as acceptable proof are joint bank accounts, joint ownership of property, etc. This evidence needs to show that there is an "ongoing" relationship. Some simple things that you can include are photos from your wedding, phone records, receipts for money transfers, travel documents for visits to your spouses country, etc.

Translating documents - You can translate your own documents if you are compotent in your spouses language. The USICS says on their website that this is an acceptable letter for certifying the translation...

Certification by Translator

I [typed name], certify that I am fluent (conversant) in the English and ________ languages, and that the above/attached document is an accurate translation of the document attached entitled ______________________________.

Signature_________________________________

Date Typed Name

Address

Copies verus original documents - The USICS webite says that copies of documents are acceptable except where originals are specifically asked for. In the case of the I-130 originals are never asked for so I submitted copies of everything. From what I understand when your spouse has their interview at the embassy original documents are required at that time.

Acceptable "Official" Documents - Make sure you research what the local embassy you are going to be dealing with considers an "official" document. The embassy in pakistan for example, requires your marriage certificate to come from the pakistan registerd with court registar office

It also cost about $20 in "special" fees (if you know what I mean) to get all the stamps and signatures that were required. Every stamp you see on the documents below came from a different office and required another "fee".

Make 2 copies of your final packet - Once you have completed your final packet and everything is signed make 2 exact copies of the packet including the check. You want to have a record of exactly what you filed in case you receive a request for evidence (RFE). The last thing you want to do is have to try and remember what you sent trying to replicate what you've already done.

Sending in your application - Send your application via the USPS with return receipt requested and delivery confirmation. The last thing you need to be worrying about is whether they received your application or not. You also want to have proof that you filed in case something bad happens like they lose your application. If you have evidence that you submitted it and they screwed up you then have recourse for priority processing if you have to refile.

Payment - Pay by check if you can. If you can't pay by check use a money order that you can track when it's cashed. Having a cancelled check or evidence of a cashed money order provides another safety net in case anything goes wrong.

Photos - Your biographic information sheet must be accompanied by a passport photo of you and one of your spouse. These should be placed in a clear plastic bag and attached to a blank sheet of paper. Each photo should be labeled on the back using a felt tip pen with the name of the person in the photo. The is very picky about photos and they have strict guidelines. tell your wife to photo studio and tell the guy i want american style imigration photo photo studio person know very well about imigration photo which is white gloosy back groundsome think like that

[mustafa1232 3]

hi i include here if you sumit your i-130 you have done lot of mistake i think your application will be rejected

[hokuspokus 1]

hi i include here if you sumit your i-130 you have done lot of mistake i think your application will be rejected

why? all the info is correct. i dont think they will reject cause of staples. i seen it its "acceptable" for their other forms so i think i-130 should be fine too. are you sure ur not giving misleading info? cause i read somewhere on uscis (if im not mistaking) that DONOT use acco fasterners!

Edited February 28, 2010 by unmaskedtruth

[mustafa1232 3]

why? all the info is correct. i dont think they will reject cause of staples. i seen it its "acceptable" for their other forms so i think i-130 should be fine too. are you sure ur not giving misleading info? cause i read somewhere on uscis (if im not mistaking) that DONOT use acco fasterners!

you dont concerate my words i say in my thinking because of that resons I suggest using paper clips or fasterners acco rather than staples on the documents. Staples can sometimes cause tearing when they separate stuff, and the result of a torn I-130 could very well be an RFE asking for a new copy!! Save the headache, use paperclips or fasterners for everything because the whole package will be separated at the service centerYou SHOULD staple all pages of form like I-130, I-485, I-864 and others. However, you should NOT staple supporting documents, payment check, picture and other stuffs, but pages of forms must be stapled.

When i talk about not stapling i meant to talk about not stampling the supporting documents, pictures, evidence and payment check. The pages of an application/petition MUST be stapled.

[OBX 51]

I just submitted the petition for i-130 yesterday. here is the problem..

i read somewhere that documents shouldnt be stapled together. is that true? if it is? can they reject the application? i stapled the marriage cert with translation, birth cert with translation, etc.

2nd question. the dimensions for my wife picture was 1 1/2 inch in width. everything else was dead on. is that gona be a problem? again can the petition be rejected? hopefully not cause i am not tryin to waste our time to bring my wife here..

If you have already sent you application in there is not much you can do about it at this stage. I have read that they do not like documents stapled as it makes it more difficult for the agents to separate them. However, again, I would just wait and see. Have extra copies ready just in case you receive an RFE.

As far as the photos go, they can be particular about the size. They do request US passport style photos which are 2 in x 2 in. Perhaps you can have additional photos on hand if they request new ones.

This process can be very daunting but take it one step at a time and try to be as prepared as you can be. Good luck!

Edited February 28, 2010 by OBX

[pushbrk 12,883]

I just submitted the petition for i-130 yesterday. here is the problem..

i read somewhere that documents shouldnt be stapled together. is that true? if it is? can they reject the application? i stapled the marriage cert with translation, birth cert with translation, etc.

2nd question. the dimensions for my wife picture was 1 1/2 inch in width. everything else was dead on. is that gona be a problem? again can the petition be rejected? hopefully not cause i am not tryin to waste our time to bring my wife here..

No worries. Make sure the photos used at the medical and visa interview are the square ones. USCIS will accept about any size photo and I've never seen anybody rejected for using staples. In the future, stick with paper clips.

[inzango 0]

I just submitted the petition for i-130 yesterday. here is the problem..

i read somewhere that documents shouldnt be stapled together. is that true? if it is? can they reject the application? i stapled the marriage cert with translation, birth cert with translation, etc.

2nd question. the dimensions for my wife picture was 1 1/2 inch in width. everything else was dead on. is that gona be a problem? again can the petition be rejected? hopefully not cause i am not tryin to waste our time to bring my wife here..

Hello and welcome to VJ.

I would go with what pushbrk says. Let's hope for good. And next time, I would suggest you read the instructions for things like photo size and putting together the documents before submitting anything.

Good luck

[CanadiaGirl 10]

Copies of wedding photos

When you sent in your copies of wedding photos did you also place them in a plastic bag like your passport photos?

[hokuspokus 1]

No worries. Make sure the photos used at the medical and visa interview are the square ones. USCIS will accept about any size photo and I've never seen anybody rejected for using staples. In the future, stick with paper clips.

what a relief, thanks. yea ill make sure the picutres are 2x2 from now on. i dont know why in PK they take pictures with less width. dude told my wife family that it was the standard passport size. yea i think staples should be fine too or it would of said that on the application that its not acceptable.

[hokuspokus 1]

When you sent in your copies of wedding photos did you also place them in a plastic bag like your passport photos?

No, i didnt put any pictures in the plastic bag. i just insert the pasport sized photo in a card holder they provide at kinkoes, where u insert it.. and i just put the wedding pictures in the main envelope i sent the document in. i didnt use seperate bag.

[pushbrk 12,883]

what a relief, thanks. yea ill make sure the picutres are 2x2 from now on. i dont know why in PK they take pictures with less width. dude told my wife family that it was the standard passport size. yea i think staples should be fine too or it would of said that on the application that its not acceptable.

You filed a petition, not an application. The photos are not passport photos. They're passport style photos with a specific dimension.

[hokuspokus 1]

You filed a petition, not an application. The photos are not passport photos. They're passport style photos with a specific dimension.

youre right. thanks for the correction.

[hokuspokus 1]

for people that are under the impression that stapled papers is forbidden, here is something i found on us immigration in london for i-130, says

"You should submit your I-130 package in the following order with all documents STAPLED firmly together"

[mustafa1232 3]

for people that are under the impression that stapled papers is forbidden, here is something i found on us immigration in london for i-130, says

"You should submit your I-130 package in the following order with all documents STAPLED firmly together"

hi unmaskedtruth i think you re read topic again the site you are mention is clearly talking about document it meant document like i-130 i-129f i-485 i-864 you should stapled all document firmly together

the site is not talking about supporting document like marriage certificate pic evidence check photo and other stuff you can not stapled supporting document it is better for use paper clip fasterner or pin