LAND DOWNUNDER

[Katz 0]

Here ya go, Tracy!

DS2053: 05/31/2007

DS3024: 05/31/2007

DS3025: 05/31/2007

DS3026: 05/31/2007

All the forms I got in packet 3 were "expired"... So I wouldn't really worry about it. If I can get my scanner up and running, would you like me to scan the medical instructions for you?

To the girls who answered my other questions... THANK YOU again! I'd be so lost without you guys.

[patriciaofoz 0]

Oh, by the way, did you certify the copies of document you took to your interview (birth certificates etc)? Or just take the copies?

I had my originals and and then a photocopy of each of the documents they asked you to photocopy (the photocopies themselves weren't certified by a JP or anything). This was fine from the Consulate's point of view. I think as long as they see the originals they know the photocopy is valid. In fact, my photocopies looked like it was an original - I used work's fancy photocopier

I'm just patiently waiting for my passport. I went to STA Travel today and they quoted me a $1900 fare (One Way) all the way to Missouri flying Qantas and them American Airlines. I am going to book it as soon as I get my passport (hoping it will come while I'm interstate next week!)

I'm just itching to leave already and be reunited with Zach!!!!

[hawaiiandreams 0]

Oh, by the way, did you certify the copies of document you took to your interview (birth certificates etc)? Or just take the copies?

I had my originals and and then a photocopy of each of the documents they asked you to photocopy (the photocopies themselves weren't certified by a JP or anything). This was fine from the Consulate's point of view. I think as long as they see the originals they know the photocopy is valid. In fact, my photocopies looked like it was an original - I used work's fancy photocopier

I'm just patiently waiting for my passport. I went to STA Travel today and they quoted me a $1900 fare (One Way) all the way to Missouri flying Qantas and them American Airlines. I am going to book it as soon as I get my passport (hoping it will come while I'm interstate next week!)

I'm just itching to leave already and be reunited with Zach!!!!

Thanks pat - I ended up getting them certified by one of the lawyers in my office yesteday. Oh well, it guess it can't do any harm! Although good for others to know it's not necessary.

Very exciting about your passort coming back to you soon! Hopefully you have it back in your hand within the week! I am backing STA has the cheapest fare too, they always tend to be lower than the other agents.. did you have a look on expedia etc?

I am only going to Hawaii so I'll book directly with jetstar.. only looking at about a $700 fare.. hopefully they don't leave me stranded in Sydney overnight again like they did with my last flight - the passengers expereinced a 17 hour delay!

Have a great day!

[jennybeni 0]

HAPPY NEW YEAR FOLKS....

Yay to everyone starting the year off with excitement Pat CONGRATULATIONS on your interview girlie.. HOW exciting...

Katz...

can you PLEASE do me a HUGE HUGE favor being that you are the most recent to have received Packet 3 from Sydney... let me know if it was only the following 4 forms..

and could you please check the top right hand corner of the ones you received for the "expiry date"

Only reason I ask is that up until Xmas they were available as downloadables from the Sydney US consulate website, but now they are not LOL... typical - and I want to check whether or not the ones that I downloaded are the most recent..

For example the forms that I currently have

DS2053

DS3024

DS3025

DS3026

all have an expiry date of May 2007 in that top corner. Is that the same as what you have or different?? If different would you be so kind to scan in the new forms (good print quality resolution) and post them in the VJ gallery for folks to download..

It's just that I am jumping the gun a little LOL... I am not expecting my NOA2 until either late this month, or sometime in February - and really not expecting the interview till April... HOWEVER I am actually flying over to the USA on the 7th Feb to spend Feb and March with my darling man - purely to do some pre-wedding organising and other stuff, and it is much better than hanging out here (even though I am leaving my kiddos behind with their Dad during that time) - but they will be back at school, and now that my house was sold and we are only a fortnight away from moving out of it - all my stuff is packed, all I would be doing is sitting around in an empty hollow house all day twiddling my thumbs LOL... yadda yadda yadda... LOL.. However I expect that during my absence that Packet 3 will turn up, and I will have EVERYTHING ready to go, my eldest son and I have already done our police and fingerprint checks, I have all birth certs, divorce papers, affadavits (re: permission for the kids moving) and I also am pre-doing the medicals (we have an appointment for next week), so that while I am away - as soon as that Packet turns up (my ex) is kindly posting off the statement of readiness for me (grin - already signed - just waiting for the file number - all paperwork required is ready and sitting in a folder - and what isn't I will accumulate while I am in the USA)... I tell yah making all these arrangements for one person is hectic, when you are doing it with kiddos as well - ahhhhhh juggling time frames, appointments, airfares, school and more is just CRAZY...

have a GREAT day (and thanks in advance)

Tracy

;-)

Hi Tracy! I wanted to help you but I am confused... I thought the forms in packet 3 were DS-230, DS-156, and I-134. These are still downloadable from the website, and the 2 DS's have a 2010 expiration date. I think I am totally confused

[TracyOz 0]

Hi yah folks...

KATZ - that would be great if you could scan in those medical instructions - and post them in the gallery could end up helping others on this site as well in the future.

AND I am relieved to know they are still sending out the expired date medical forms - that is a relief actually LOL...

One thing I HATE with this process - apart from the time, the delays, the costs, and the separation (oh is that all) <grin>.... is the fact of trying to stay organised and "ahead of the game" but then constantly having to check the dates of the forms that the US Imm. want, incase they have been changed or updated... kwim??

JenniBenni - don't worry the WHOLE thing is confusing - those other forms you mentioned are still downloadable, it was just the medical forms that used to be (and are now not) which is where my concern came in that those forms were now updated.

Patricia.... I HEAR you -

it's a bit like running a LONG marathon... you start out and know it is going to take time - but then in the distance you can see the finishing line, and suddenly even KNOWING it is there, and just around the corner - you start to run out of steam, energy, breath and become dehydrated (ummmm not hard in the few 41+ degree days we have just had here - hey)... I am feeling VERY much like you, especially after having Steve here for the 2 weeks over Xmas - it was heartbreaking to say "see yah" at the airport last week, even though I know I am seeing him in another 4 weeks - why is it that the 2 weeks he was here FLEW by in a blink, but the week he has been gone has totally DRAGGED to a point it feels like a whole MONTH has gone by LOL...

Oh and re: your airfares...

Just as an FYI while $1900 one way is GREAT from ADL.... for the dates that you are looking at, you might find that for a similar price - maybe even less for a return ticket (which can be valid for around a year - and gives you some of the fare for coming back to visit your family done already)...

check out www.bestflights.com.au (I use them all the time for my flights over there - and FOLKS I also used them (Australian site) when we booked Steve's trip over here from Cleveland - they actually were $1000 less than ANY of the USA travel sites for the journey USA-AUS-USA.. I KNOW that at the moment Bestflights.com.au have a AirNZ return ticket ex. ADL for $1400 + 400 taxes (ish) for travel April to June (doesn't suit you I know)....

But in my experience of USA travel, both for work and for personal - in the past 4 years I have done 8 or 9 trips over there, including a bunch of (USA domestic), I tend to book the (AUS-USA-AUS) portion ex Sydney with Bestflights, (or directly with United) then I book the ADL-SYD component (directly with qantas), and any of the USA domestic legs I find that I get a better deal if I use either Expedia, or Travelocity - than I would have if I book the entire journey through an agent or one site... (if that makes sense)...

AND don't forget your travel insurance - as I do not believe you can be added to his health insurance until you are married...

a GREAT place to look at T/Insurance (I purchase a one year policy each year) and under this policy each trip can be for a period of 90 days.. which I found to be WAY way cheaper than anything else out there...

is through www.1cover.com.au

a one year coverage for a single person is around $325 AUS - it covers Australian Domestic travel as well, and even though because of the visas we are all going in under, the moment we travel over there for our marriages, after 90 days of being there you won't be able to use it for any claims - but believe me I don't think you will not find a 90 day to the USA travel insurance policy for less than $325.

SOME great and exciting news though - he got back to Cleveland last Friday - and FINALLY on Tuesday of this week his house sold...(we've had it on the market since September) to be closed/settled by the 31st Jan.... we had to take a bit of a cut in the price - but being that we did really well on the sale of my house at the end of 2007 that made up for it ... and to have his gone now and off our shoulders is such a relief - and JUST in time, for the closing on the house he and I purchased over there back in Sept. (our settlement for it is on the 18th Feb)...

alrightie think I bored you all long enough LOL...

have a GREAT day

Tracy

:-)

[patriciaofoz 0]

Patricia.... I HEAR you -

it's a bit like running a LONG marathon... you start out and know it is going to take time - but then in the distance you can see the finishing line, and suddenly even KNOWING it is there, and just around the corner - you start to run out of steam, energy, breath and become dehydrated (ummmm not hard in the few 41+ degree days we have just had here - hey)... I am feeling VERY much like you, especially after having Steve here for the 2 weeks over Xmas - it was heartbreaking to say "see yah" at the airport last week, even though I know I am seeing him in another 4 weeks - why is it that the 2 weeks he was here FLEW by in a blink, but the week he has been gone has totally DRAGGED to a point it feels like a whole MONTH has gone by LOL...

Glad to hear I'm not alone! I also have this irrational fear that they're going to deny my visa - so up until I get it right in front of me, I'm not going to believe it (as much as I want to buy my ONE WAY ticket already!). This whole process can be so emotionally draining - I remember the agony waiting for even just the NOA1, let alone the NOA2! But that seem so long ago now and here we are, near the end of the line and it still can't get here FAST enough (Perhaps I really am just that impatient?

But by far, this is the easiest separation I've had with Zach. Of course saying goodbye to him was still very hard (yes, sobbing like a baby was the order of the day), but because I had the interview to worry about, finishing up at work (gosh, that's what's driving me insane at the moment! There's so much info to pass on to the new Manager in SO little time!!!) and packing up (and selling) our life away here in Adelaide, I really haven't had a chance to just reflect and miss him miserably! Not to mention, we're planning our quickie Missouri wedding! So very overwhelming /end whinge

Oh and re: your airfares...

Just as an FYI while $1900 one way is GREAT from ADL.... for the dates that you are looking at, you might find that for a similar price - maybe even less for a return ticket (which can be valid for around a year - and gives you some of the fare for coming back to visit your family done already)...

check out www.bestflights.com.au (I use them all the time for my flights over there - and FOLKS I also used them (Australian site) when we booked Steve's trip over here from Cleveland - they actually were $1000 less than ANY of the USA travel sites for the journey USA-AUS-USA.. I KNOW that at the moment Bestflights.com.au have a AirNZ return ticket ex. ADL for $1400 + 400 taxes (ish) for travel April to June (doesn't suit you I know)....

But in my experience of USA travel, both for work and for personal - in the past 4 years I have done 8 or 9 trips over there, including a bunch of (USA domestic), I tend to book the (AUS-USA-AUS) portion ex Sydney with Bestflights, (or directly with United) then I book the ADL-SYD component (directly with qantas), and any of the USA domestic legs I find that I get a better deal if I use either Expedia, or Travelocity - than I would have if I book the entire journey through an agent or one site... (if that makes sense)...

I'll have to have a look at this more, but I am being very picky about my flight over. I definitely want to fly Qantas because I'm a Silver FF and I get an extra bag to go to the US. So even if I bring 4 x 30kgs bags, I'll only be paying for one excess baggage (for this trip there's soooooo much to bring over and we're definitely saving heaps by paying airline excess baggage as oppose to going via a freight company). Plus, I really want a direct flight to the US - I know that Air NZ probably would only require me a 2-hour stop over in NZ, but I still just want to bypass that altogether, just one time to step on a plane and that's done. I'm being picky about it, but will still look into other flights, especially if it's going to save us heaps of $$$$.

Also, glad to hear Bestflights.com.au has worked so well for you. I get their emails all the time and have taken one of their offers to a travel agent who then beat it a further $50. So yay for BF!

AND don't forget your travel insurance - as I do not believe you can be added to his health insurance until you are married...a GREAT place to look at T/Insurance (I purchase a one year policy each year) and under this policy each trip can be for a period of 90 days.. which I found to be WAY way cheaper than anything else out there...

is through www.1cover.com.au

a one year coverage for a single person is around $325 AUS - it covers Australian Domestic travel as well, and even though because of the visas we are all going in under, the moment we travel over there for our marriages, after 90 days of being there you won't be able to use it for any claims - but believe me I don't think you will not find a 90 day to the USA travel insurance policy for less than $325.

Thanks for the insurance advice. Definitely going to get insurance. If I pay with my credit card travel insurance is included in it too - but I just need to weigh out whether the fee I pay on my credit card is worth the cost of the travel insurance I automatically get. I have lots of Maths to do!

Have a lovely weekend everybody! I'm off to Melbourne and Canberra this week for work - kinda wishing I wasn't required to go since I have so much packing up to do here at home, not to mention starting to say goodbye to friends and family!

[vylex 0]

Happy New Year everyone!

Just checking in. Haven't had time to catch up since my wife and I have been visiting family throughout the holidays.

P.S. Still a little confused about the $120.00 payment I read about in Pat's posting a few pages back. Anyone know if this also applies to CR-1 visa's also or is this only for K1/K3 categories? I didn't read anything about it in the set of instructions I received from the consulate so I'm assuming it does not apply to me but just want to be sure..

Wow, time is flying! Our interview is only a few weeks away! Good Luck!

As for the $120, the CR-1 does not require that. Also, when I came with my wife to the interview I thought I had to pay more money but was pleasantly surprised to find out that all those back and forth payments during the NVC stage were the payments. We wound up spending the extra $$ on our celebration of the visa that night.

[Rings 10]

Okay we just got back and here is the scoop:

The place looks like a normal office building and does not really identify itself to be the USCIS, so you should leave early to be sure you are there on time. Once you walk in the building, it is on the right side and there is a sign that says USCIS so it was fairly easy to spot. Don't take anything metal because they make you walk through metal detectors and they will hunt through your purse. if you do not have your appointment letter and Legal identification, then you won't even make it through the metal detector.

Bring a cushy jacket to sit on because they have these blue metal seats that hurt your %@#! and you may end up sitting there for awhile. We waited about 25 minutes before they called our name. The security guard does look not like he can catch you if you run, but he does have a gun lol.

Once we got in there, they made us hold up our right hand to swear in oath to tell the truth and nothing but the truth so help us God. After we did that, we were seated in a general office with an immigration officer and he ask us the following questions:

1. Do you know the names of Loke's parents? (I did)

2. Do you understand that even if you get divorced, you will still have to take care of him? (I did)

3. Do you know his/his birthday? (We did)

4. Have either of you ever been married before? (we answered)

5. Have you ever been to the Sates before and when? (Asked to Loke)

6. How many brothers and sisters does Loke have? (I know he has 6 siblings and I had to sit there fore awhile and think of all the names of them and I still missed one and felt pretty stupid) LEARNING LESSON 101 - Know your husbands siblings names for god sake....

7. Do you have evidence of extablished relation ship? (We did and he made copies)

He also mentioned that he liked the fact that we brought in two boxes worth of stuff with us because it meant that we were prepared. We had copies of all our petitions and everything. He asked us if we had photos and we said yes, but he did not want to see them.

At the end, he esentially said that he was waiting for the files from USCIS to match up their paperwork with his, then he would generate the card and it should come in the mail in a couple of weeks. (I think that means we are approved)

So all in all... it was not that bad, but I did beat myself up for not knowing as many details about my husband as he knew about me. I think that because I am the US Citizen, I felt as if they would not ask me as many questions as him, but they asked me more than him.

SO LESSON OF THE DAY - USCIS HATES US CITIZENS TOO

Thanks for everything you guys. You have been the best support group for us *hugs*

[vylex 0]

SO LESSON OF THE DAY - USCIS HATES US CITIZENS TOO

Thanks for everything you guys. You have been the best support group for us *hugs*

Congrats you two!!!!

LOL, I think border officers hate us too. When I was with my wife during her POE, I felt like they were much nicer to my wife than me! They communicated to me with an emotionless tone but they were all chit-chatty and cheery with her lol.

[Kath 0]

hiya Rings and Loke

fantastic news that your interview went well...knew it would mate...am happy for ya...

hi vylex nice to see ya good to hear all is going so well for the two of you...is your wife working yet...

talk ya soon

take care

kath

[patriciaofoz 0]

Thanks for everything you guys. You have been the best support group for us *hugs*

Congrats, Rings and Loke! Thanks for sharing your experience!

[Rings 10]

Thanks for the support you guys! I will let you know when the card comes *hugs*

[Moonie 0]

Hello All!

I hope that everyone is well. Me and the hubby will have been married 6 months tomorrow. Time is flying by! He has been working at his new job for 2 weeks now. I am also starting back to school on Monday. Nervous..I want to do well. Things are great I am lucky to have such a wonderful husband.

[hawaiiandreams 0]

Happy New Year everyone!

Just checking in. Haven't had time to catch up since my wife and I have been visiting family throughout the holidays.

P.S. Still a little confused about the $120.00 payment I read about in Pat's posting a few pages back. Anyone know if this also applies to CR-1 visa's also or is this only for K1/K3 categories? I didn't read anything about it in the set of instructions I received from the consulate so I'm assuming it does not apply to me but just want to be sure..

Wow, time is flying! Our interview is only a few weeks away! Good Luck!

As for the $120, the CR-1 does not require that. Also, when I came with my wife to the interview I thought I had to pay more money but was pleasantly surprised to find out that all those back and forth payments during the NVC stage were the payments. We wound up spending the extra $$ on our celebration of the visa that night.

Thanks for this Alex...and nice to see you around these parts! It's been a while. I bet you are enjoying your new life with your wifey! I hope you guys shared a lovely Christmas and NY together.

I too can not believe that my visa interview is one week away!! At some stage it felt like the day would never come and now it's almost here! YAY! I got all of my paperwork in order on the weekend including 2 large bags full of evidence (cards, emails and photogrpahs - how much is too much? LOL). I have probably already re-checked it 2 times over to make sure all is in order.

I am nervous and excited! Any last minute tips?

[Kath 0]

hiya hd

good luck for the up coming interview...you will do just fine..to me and many it was the easiest part of the whole process..

advice hmmm....enjoy the view...take a magazine..something to munch on...and get in last into the elevator so your first to get through the security part and get a number...lol ohhh and relax by now you would know everything backwards that they might throw at you in the question department...im sure you will do just fine mate..

take care

kath