My Vietnamese girlfriend and me need help

[Teacher Mark 53]

Well, that's the first time I've heard it. Of course, this just means that the US part of the mental exam CANNOT and SHOULD NOT be skipped. Hopefully the OP reads this.

Another way to find out would be to have the fiancee call or go to the local authorities and ask them. If she's in HCMC they're located at 141-43 Pastuer. Here's a link to their site.

http://www.sotuphap.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/web/tintuc/

Edited August 5, 2010 by Mr. Saigon

[hniHnitsuJ 8]

You have to do more than address red flags, you have to counter red flags. you should have some "green" flags. If i was trying to scam the consulate, I would be doing the same things most of us are doing. A couple of visits, pictures, phone/chat logs, money tranfers. A scammer does the same thing we do. I think it's important for us to disect the scammers' process.

The scammer will be funded by someone. Let's assume it'll be 30k plus expenses (plane tix, hotel, coffee money) and paperwork and stuff like that. Scammers exstablishs relationship, goes to VN, comes back and files paperwork. Exact same thing we do. Looking back on the package we submitted, it's probably not any different than a scammer's package.

Follow the money. The funder will want to keep cost down to a minimum. Therefore they will not pay for any children or any other family members to make the trip. Scammer will not buy tix for anyone else, because it's going to cut into his bottom line, beside, it's fake.

With this in mind, i suggest these as green flags.

If you have children, bring them along on your trip, paint the picture of a family unit.

Invite your family to the wedding/engagement. Best if your parents can come. It would be a huge plus, to have both sets of parents approve and support the relationship.

I would actually rather see ppl pay for the kids or parents to go to VN with them than to spend it on a laywer.

The consulate knows no scammer will buy extra tix for family members to attend a fake wedding/engagement. That just counter-intuitive.

Back to the scammer while he's in VN. So the family has already arranged the wedding/ceremonies. All he has to do is show up. So he shows up, goes through the hoopla, take some pics, then he's gone. He might hang around for a couple of days or two to take pictures. Then he's gone. Scammer focus on wedding pics and pics of the two together.

My third green flag is take picture with friends. Anybody can take pictures together, that's too easy. Scammer will not have time to go out with her frinds to take pics, plus the girl would probably be too embarassed to ask her real friends to take pictures with her fake husband. Having pics with friends shows you are part of her social life as well.

Obviously, these are just my thoughts and have no actually bearing on what the consulate will do. If we are trying to speculate through the eyes of the consulate, I believe these would be pluses.

This is exactly what I want to say... hihihi.. good points...