Living address vs. Registered address

[n10cd1 0]

Privet all,

I have a question about what address should be listed and referred to as my fiancé's current address.

She lives in St Pete but is officially registered in Ulyanovsk. She has lived and worked in St Pete for over 5 years now.

The problem lies with police reports and such - she says she can't get them in St Pete due to not being registered there.

Should she ignore the St Pete police report, or just add a note that says they aren't available?

I'd prefer to keep the address as her living address and not the registration address, but it may cause problems.

Also, will this end up making her interview in Moscow instead of St Pete?

Thanks for any advice or opinions!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Privet all,

I have a question about what address should be listed and referred to as my fiancé's current address.

She lives in St Pete but is officially registered in Ulyanovsk. She has lived and worked in St Pete for over 5 years now.

The problem lies with police reports and such - she says she can't get them in St Pete due to not being registered there.

Should she ignore the St Pete police report, or just add a note that says they aren't available?

I'd prefer to keep the address as her living address and not the registration address, but it may cause problems.

Also, will this end up making her interview in Moscow instead of St Pete?

Thanks for any advice or opinions!

USCIS and the consulate do not care about Russian registration of addresses. List the current address she LIVES at as her current address. If any mail is sent to her, you want her to get it. List any other addresses on the G-325a as needed. NEVER tell a lie on a US immigration form. Her current address is immaterial to if she will get a visa. LYING is not immaterial. It would be really silly to get denied for lying about something that doesn't matter.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Privet all,

I have a question about what address should be listed and referred to as my fiancé's current address.

She lives in St Pete but is officially registered in Ulyanovsk. She has lived and worked in St Pete for over 5 years now.

The problem lies with police reports and such - she says she can't get them in St Pete due to not being registered there.

Should she ignore the St Pete police report, or just add a note that says they aren't available?

I'd prefer to keep the address as her living address and not the registration address, but it may cause problems.

Also, will this end up making her interview in Moscow instead of St Pete?

Thanks for any advice or opinions!

FYI, her interview WILL be in Moscow anyway. They are the only consulate in Russia that issues family based visas.

If she cannot get the report in St Petersburg, then she will have to go to her other city to do so. You can plan a some travel in this process for one reason or another. FWIW, our eldest son got a Russian police report in Moscow and he is nothing but a student there, not registered as living there, but he IS registered as a student there. He is Ukrainian, not Russian. But I am not sure how it works, worst case she makes a trip to her "home city" and gets the report there.

[n10cd1 0]

Thanks! I definitely wasn't considering lying. I just wanted to know if the registration address had priority over the actual address. - like in Russian documents it seems the registration address is basically considered the actual address.

I am not worried about the US at all as we are generally reasonable about addresses though.

[clueless_in_usa 8]

Thanks! I definitely wasn't considering lying. I just wanted to know if the registration address had priority over the actual address. - like in Russian documents it seems the registration address is basically considered the actual address.

I am not worried about the US at all as we are generally reasonable about addresses though.

In our case we gave each address she LIVED in with the corresponding timeline. She was living and working in Moscow, but her registered address was in another city. She got only one police report and it was from her original city. However, I think that she got away with it because she had not lived more than a year in Moscow by the time of the interview. Otherwise, I believe that the consulate is clear when it requires a police report from every city where the beneficiary has lived more than six months, even if it is a foreign country (a year in this case).

Therefore, start collecting them because they may take time.

READ THIS:

Applicants are required to submit police certificates (original and translation into English) in ALL names (including maiden names) as well as ALL dates of birth that they have used. The police certificate must contain references to EACH place (subject to the jurisdiction of the Russian Federation) in which the applicant lives or has lived for more than six months since their 16th birthday or must indicate that the applicant’s name(s) have been checked against the central database of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD). This includes localities where applicants have lived during university studies. If the applicant was on military service, he/she should bring the certificate from the local draft board. If an applicant has lived abroad for more than one year, a police certificate must also be submitted from the country in which he/she lived. Detailed information on how to obtain a police certificate can be found at: http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/fees/fees_1341.html

[elya 17]

FYI I would list both the registered address and the "real" address, including the dates of living there and being registered there (and yes they will overlap).

Our petition just got returned to USCIS and our best theory at the moment as to why is that we didn't include a "registered" address that he had never actually physically lived it on his list of places he's lived. They said our petition contained "inaccurate information".

They asked specific questions about this address while investigating us (they called his parents and talked to them on the phone).

As for the police certificate - get one issued in the city she is registered at and make sure it references that it's been checked against the central database (as per the instructions located by the previous poster). You only need one certificate, it will count for all places you lived (my fiance had lived in two regions in Russia; they listed both on the certificate and we had no objections to the certificate).

[slim 1,514]

She will be required to get a police report from EVERY address she lists on her G-325A.

If she lists the address in St. Pete she'll need a police check from there. You said she can't get one. Why? Is that her saying it's impossible because she's tried or is that her saying, "I can't possibly get one because my propiska still says Ulyanovsk. I can't tell government I live in two places."? Regardless, she needs one from both places.

She can either list the St. Pete address as her current address and get a police check from there too or she can omit it entirely. However, she's got a lot of 'splainin to do when they ask her what she's been up to for the last five years. Either way... get her story straight and then stick to it.

[elya 17]

She will be required to get a police report from EVERY address she lists on her G-325A.

They CAN cover everything inside of Russia on ONE police report which you can obtain in ONE jurisdiction (wherever you are currently registered). Typically you would ask them to list every place you lived but in this case, go for the generic and see if she can get them to refer to having checked all possible places.

No need to give her ####### about not trying hard enough - the office in St. Petersburg will NOT give her a report there, because she's not registered. Registration is a big deal in Russia. It's not officially illegal to live/work where you're not registered but for all practical purposes you could think so. Police can stop you and extort bribes if you don't have documents (although in St. Pete they are more lax about this in Moscow).

As to the other thing slim is hinting at - leaving the address off would be a possible (questionable?) solution if her employment history matched up with having been in Ulyanovsk.

The whole question of living without proper registration could come up as an issue. But so many people do it, can't imagine they haven't come across this before. Just go for the generic police certificate and treat it as a non-issue, hopefully it won't even come up.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

They CAN cover everything inside of Russia on ONE police report which you can obtain in ONE jurisdiction (wherever you are currently registered). Typically you would ask them to list every place you lived but in this case, go for the generic and see if she can get them to refer to having checked all possible places.

No need to give her ####### about not trying hard enough - the office in St. Petersburg will NOT give her a report there, because she's not registered. Registration is a big deal in Russia. It's not officially illegal to live/work where you're not registered but for all practical purposes you could think so. Police can stop you and extort bribes if you don't have documents (although in St. Pete they are more lax about this in Moscow).

As to the other thing slim is hinting at - leaving the address off would be a possible (questionable?) solution if her employment history matched up with having been in Ulyanovsk.

The whole question of living without proper registration could come up as an issue. But so many people do it, can't imagine they haven't come across this before. Just go for the generic police certificate and treat it as a non-issue, hopefully it won't even come up.

This is correct. Alla translates lots of these things. They typically (if applicable) list ALL the names of a person (maiden and one or more married names) and ALL the places of residency on ONE certificate. It is quite common to see at least two names for women previously married and not uncommon to see 2 or 3 cities or Oblasti listed.

The US consulate does not concern itself with such things as Russian registration of addresses. They do not care if you registered the address or not and they do not enforce that law, if there is anything to enforce. They DO care if an address shows up on the registration but not on your G-325a.

Our son had no problem to get a police report in Moscow, but he IS registered as a student there. He was asked if he ever lived at any other address in Russia when he applied for the certificate.

[slim 1,514]

you would ask them to list every place you lived

If you do that, she has to list the St. Pete address. The police check should cover every address listed. If she doesn't live there, there's no need for it to be on the check, is there?

leaving the address off would be a possible (questionable?) solution if her employment history matched up with having been in Ulyanovsk.

How hard would it be for her to come up with an employer? After all, she's been registered there for 5 years, right?

The whole question of living without proper registration could come up as an issue.

It would only be an issue if you make it an issue. The US could care less where she's registered. All they care about is the names and places on the G-325A matching up with the police check provided. That's it.

If there are discrepancies, that could be an issue. Make sure there aren't.

The US consulate does not concern itself with such things as Russian registration of addresses. They do not care if you registered the address or not and they do not enforce that law, if there is anything to enforce. They DO care if an address shows up on the registration but not on your G-325a.

The US does not check registration, they check the police check you provide. Make them all match up. There will NOT be a problem.

[elya 17]

How hard would it be for her to come up with an employer? After all, she's been registered there for 5 years, right?

OP said his fiance has been working in St. Petersburg for 5 years. Are you trying to suggest she could leave her address in St. Petersburg, along with 5 years of employment history, off her paperwork, and invent an alternate employer in Ulyanovsk? That would seem like a surefire way to get denied and a permanent note of misrepresentation on your file.

Hope I misunderstood what you meant by that statement.

The US does not check registration

It's as easy as googling you - You can look people's registered address up in free online directories (I type my fiances name into this thing and I get his full address, home phone number - out of date but still - and DOB!!!) In most cases they probably don't, but why risk it?

I concur with Gary, better be sure your G-325a matches up with registered address. In Russia that is pretty much public record and something the US can easily and does occasionally check. And, like you said, they should also make sure it matches up with the police check - which is as simple as requesting a generic Russia-wide blanket statement on your police check instead of the typical list of addresses.

Anyway, like you said, this should not be a problem. Good luck OP!

[slim 1,514]

OP said his fiance has been working in St. Petersburg for 5 years. Are you trying to suggest she could leave her address in St. Petersburg, along with 5 years of employment history, off her paperwork, and invent an alternate employer in Ulyanovsk?

That's exactly what I'm suggesting.

That would seem like a surefire way to get denied and a permanent note of misrepresentation on your file.

Hope I misunderstood what you meant by that statement.

You understand correctly although you're insinuating the embassy does a complete and thorough investigation of every single case. That is simply not accurate since they have neither the time nor the resources to do so. And why would they? They ask you to fill out information and provide a legal way to check on that information. You do all the work for them. If all your work matches up, why would they further investigate it?

It's as easy as googling you - You can look people's registered address up in free online directories (I type my fiances name into this thing and I get his full address, home phone number - out of date but still - and DOB!!!) In most cases they probably don't, but why risk it?

Why risk what? A government employee going above and beyond their job requirements in an attempt to audit paperwork? Online directories don't equal "getting caught."

I concur with Gary, better be sure your G-325a matches up with registered address.

Registered is the key word.

In Russia that is pretty much public record and something the US can easily and does occasionally check.

Really? Like when?

And, like you said, they should also make sure it matches up with the police check - which is as simple as requesting a generic Russia-wide blanket statement on your police check instead of the typical list of addresses.

Paint the picture they ask to see. "List all addresses... provide a police check for all addresses..." As long as those two things match up, there's no problem.

Anyway, like you said, this should not be a problem. Good luck OP!

It won't be a problem unless there are discrepancies.

[elya 17]

Well it's obvious slim and I have had different experiences and therefore have differing opinions. I have nothing to add for the OP beyond what I've already said. In any case I hope we haven't scared you off with our little discussion here and I wish you the best for your case :-)

[slim 1,514]

Well it's obvious slim and I have had different experiences and therefore have differing opinions.

Yep, my wife is here and had no problems during her interview process. elya.... well, just look at her signature line.

I don't say that as a cheap shot, I say that as a confirmation of what works and what doesn't. I have no idea the specifics of her case all I can offer is what worked in my own. And, obviously, my way works. Hers.... not so much.

I have nothing to add for the OP beyond what I've already said. In any case I hope we haven't scared you off with our little discussion here and I wish you the best for your case :-)

Me too. I'm not posting the above to be an @$$#ole, just saying, I'm posting from the position of "been there, done that" as opposed to "I'm kind of apprehensive of the whole process due to my recent visa petition being denied."

If you jump through the hoops they ask you to jump through and you paint the picture they want to see - without discrepancies or complications - then you will get your petition approved. The visa will be issued.

There's no reason to try "extra hard" to get it. Do what they ask, and that's it.