Is this kind of harassment common?

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

Immigration officer are people too. As such, some of them are more friendly than others, and some of them may have a bad day once in a while. The I.O. you encountered may not have liked you very much, but there's nothing you can do about it. Your "job" is it to prove -- somehow -- that your marriage is legit. If you failed to do that, they will either send you an RFE, or invite you to a stokes interview, or deny your AOS petition outright.

I.O.s are a bit like cops. They won't like you more if you file a complaint about one of them. Your main objective should be to gather the evidence needed to make your case. Fill up a joint bank account; put your car title in both your names, buy insurance in both your names, get AAA cards, a joint credit card, stuff boring and normal couples have. If you felt uneasy about the way you were treated at the past interview, I can't even imagine how you may feel after they put you though a stokes interview.

If you want to win this fight, it's going to be by their rules. They have all the power, you have almost none.

Edited November 24, 2010 by Just Bob

[MrAdvantage 0]

Immigration officer are people too. As such, some of them are more friendly than others, and some of them may have a bad day once in a while. The I.O. you encountered may not have liked you very much, but there's nothing you can do about it. Your "job" is it to prove -- somehow -- that your marriage is legit. If you failed to do that, they will either send you an RFE, or invite you to a stokes interview, or deny your AOS petition outright.

I.O.s are a bit like cops. They won't like you more if you file a complaint about one of them. Your main objective should be to gather the evidence needed to make your case. Fill up a joint bank account; put your car title in both your names, buy insurance in both your names, get AAA cards, a joint credit card, stuff boring and normal couples have. If you felt uneasy about the way you were treated at the past interview, I can't even imagine how you may feel after they put you though a stokes interview.

If you want to win this fight, it's going to be by their rules. They have all the power, you have almost none.

Seems like(unfortunately) they might have too much power and not care if they use it corectly. My situation, and countless others, should not be affected by "a guy having a bad day" Their descsion will affect the REST OF OUR LIVES. Its not like a cop giving you the max amount on a speeding ticket when he could have given someone a break.

[KittyPollitt 284]

Seems like(unfortunately) they might have too much power and not care if they use it corectly. My situation, and countless others, should not be affected by "a guy having a bad day" Their descsion will affect the REST OF OUR LIVES. Its not like a cop giving you the max amount on a speeding ticket when he could have given someone a break.

This may be true, but to me it doesn't sound like a case of "a guy having a bad day". It sounds like to me that the IO found what he believed to be legitimate suspicion of your relationship. IMO, sharing photos of yourself and your wife with other people going through the immigration process (especially from her home country) was a huge mistake, especially since Russia has a high rate of fraud involving mail order brides and marriage rings. Also, your handling of money is a red flag too. You can't just go on "business as usual" with your funds when you know that the government will be looking into them during the immigration process. I loathe banks, but I got a joint account and comingle my assets strictly because I know it's one of the things they want to see. Pictures of you and your wife all over America are not going to satisfy the burden of proof that your relationship is genuine. I have pictures of myself with the US Ambassador to Morocco, that doesn't prove that I actually know the guy- do you get what I'm saying? You should speak to an attorney, I think, about what you can do to rectify this situation. Good luck to you.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Immigration officer are people too. As such, some of them are more friendly than others, and some of them may have a bad day once in a while. The I.O. you encountered may not have liked you very much, but there's nothing you can do about it. Your "job" is it to prove -- somehow -- that your marriage is legit. If you failed to do that, they will either send you an RFE, or invite you to a stokes interview, or deny your AOS petition outright.

I.O.s are a bit like cops. They won't like you more if you file a complaint about one of them. Your main objective should be to gather the evidence needed to make your case. Fill up a joint bank account; put your car title in both your names, buy insurance in both your names, get AAA cards, a joint credit card, stuff boring and normal couples have. If you felt uneasy about the way you were treated at the past interview, I can't even imagine how you may feel after they put you though a stokes interview.

If you want to win this fight, it's going to be by their rules. They have all the power, you have almost none.

That stuff BEFORE AOS would have been fine. Any of this done after receiving an RFE is useless.

[kennym 275]

If I thought it would end the process I would take a stokes interview. Our relationship is air tight

If I were you, I would spend less time being pissed off and more time proving a bonefide marriage... The USCIS feels your case appears to have some red-flags and not having co-mingled your finances, and be able to show you're living a life as Husband and Wife has made your situation worse.. You need to focus on showing your "Air-Tight" marriage. If, your relationship is air-tight, then show that evidence to the USCIS and you should be fine.. Dont waist time being pissed off..

Focus Man! your wife needs you to keep your wits and get the evidence together... This is a no-brainer.. Just show the proof of your air-tight relationship

Kenny

[Dan and Judy 614]

This may be true, but to me it doesn't sound like a case of "a guy having a bad day". It sounds like to me that the IO found what he believed to be legitimate suspicion of your relationship. IMO, sharing photos of yourself and your wife with other people going through the immigration process (especially from her home country) was a huge mistake, especially since Russia has a high rate of fraud involving mail order brides and marriage rings. Also, your handling of money is a red flag too. You can't just go on "business as usual" with your funds when you know that the government will be looking into them during the immigration process. I loathe banks, but I got a joint account and comingle my assets strictly because I know it's one of the things they want to see. Pictures of you and your wife all over America are not going to satisfy the burden of proof that your relationship is genuine. I have pictures of myself with the US Ambassador to Morocco, that doesn't prove that I actually know the guy- do you get what I'm saying? You should speak to an attorney, I think, about what you can do to rectify this situation. Good luck to you.

I agree with squeaky, but let me put it in a different lanquage for you. What you did was the equivalent of dressing up like Osama Bin Ladin, with a fake beard and a three foot fuse hanging out of your pocket, and carrying a sign that said "Death to Americans" and trying to catch a flight to New York. And then you are mad cause

they frisked you.

When you are playing with the USCIS, it's House rules.

You're betting the max but you only have a pair of deuces showing.

The IO thinks you're bluffing.

He thinks if he gives you a little push, the house of cards you are showing him will tumble down.

He's not going to show you all his cards, but believe me he is holding all the aces.

At this point the deck is stacked against you.

I dont think he is bluffing when he says he can have her deported.

The odds are your complaint against this guy will be greeted with amusment if not congradulations.

and dont bet on it helping your case any.

Sorry for having a little fun, but these things are true.

Cool off, realize that you look like the poster couple for who the USCIS is supposed to deny and go about reshaping your image.

Are you willing to lose your wife to make a point about health care? buy the insurance

Are you willing to lose your wife to save a few thousand dollars in taxes? Put her name on the accounts.

At the risk of making you feel better, 20 years ago I went to the Philippines and married a girl. I was making $10 an hour. I applied to bring her to the states.

I was initialy turned down for lack of evidence. Among other things they wanted to know why we didnt have joint bank accounts.

what the hell did we need a joint bank account for, we were 7000 miles apart. If I remember there was a problem getting her on

the accounts because she didnt have a social security #. It's long enough ago that I dont remember any details but I did every thing

I could do to make them happy and if I couldnt do it, I explained why.

They approved her visa, I wish I could say we lived happily ever after,but thats another story.

Play your cards right and you get to keep the Queen of your Heart.

Dan

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Seems like(unfortunately) they might have too much power and not care if they use it corectly. My situation, and countless others, should not be affected by "a guy having a bad day" Their descsion will affect the REST OF OUR LIVES. Its not like a cop giving you the max amount on a speeding ticket when he could have given someone a break.

I think there's a problem of perception here. It seems like you perceive that you have a right to get a green card for your wife, and this immigration officer is making it unnecessarily difficult for you.

Here's the facts, if you'll allow me.

Immigration isn't a right. Your wife doesn't have a right to get a green card because she married a US citizen. You don't have a right to demand the government give her a green card. When you submit an I-130 petition you are asking the US government to permit your wife to apply for an immigrant visa (if she's outside the US) or a green card (if she's inside the US). When your wife submits an I-485 she is asking the US government to allow her to become an immigrant. Her eligibility to ask for this benefit is derived from the I-130 petition you submitted. Make no mistake - what you both are asking for is a privilege.

USCIS has the discretion to grant both of these requests, provided they believe the requests comply with immigration law. There are numerous reasons provided in the law for either of these requests to be denied. Some of the reasons are concrete. For example, if she had been convicted of certain crimes then she would be inadmissible to the United States, and ineligible for a green card. Some of the reasons are discretionary. For example, if the USCIS immigration officer believes the relationship is a sham, entered into primarily for the purpose of securing an immigration benefit. The law gives the authority for making these discretionary decisions to the Attorney General, who delegates that authority to USCIS immigration officers.

A USCIS immigration officer doesn't live with you, so he doesn't know how sincere your relationship is. He has to judge your relationship based on what he sees on paper. USCIS immigration officers are given guidance in the Adjudicators Field Manual for things they should ask for and expect to see as evidence that a relationship is bonafide. If, after looking at the evidence, he concludes that your relationship smells like rotten fish then he's going to deny you. There are only two possibilities that could lead him to this conclusion. Either your evidence was insufficient or not compelling, or he's right - your relationship is a sham. In the first case you would be guilty of not being adequately prepared with the necessary evidence. In the second case you would be guilty of fraud.

The interview is not much different from a trial. The outcome depends entirely on the evidence. It also doesn't help if you go out of your way to annoy the judge.

What happens next is entirely up to the IO. You could receive a letter that the green card has been denied. If they believe they have evidence of fraud then you might also be notified that the I-130 approval is being revoked. If this happens then you've got 30 days (or thereabouts) to file a motion to reopen the case. You have to provide NEW evidence for this to be successful. If it's denied, then your wife will be placed in removal proceedings for deportation. At that point, you'd better get a good immigration attorney.

You could be called in for a Stokes interview. You know now what this entails. I can virtually guarantee that if you give the IO attitude during the Stokes interview then the interview will be terminated, and the green card will be denied.

It's also possible that, after review, the green card may be approved. Based on what you've said so far, I don't think the chances of this are very good.

[baron555 934]

I married my wife after we knew eachother for 5 months and her visa was expired when we wed. Based on this info the officer handling our case(today was our green card app) did not give her a green card. Instead we recieved a letter asking for info that we brought with us today. He interogated my wife for 15 minutes of the interview about other russian girls and american guys in our photo album. One girl in our Christmas pictures had already been denied a green card with him as officer and he looked at her picture and sais "this one looks like she likes to have fun" He was rude and when I was rude back he responded "don't be harsh, I can have her deported" as he snapped his fingers. He started the interview by asking me if I knew a guy that lives 800 miles from me that I have not seen in 10 years and only text once in a while. After grilling us on her friends in pics for 15 minutes he said we had used our 1/2 hour and had other people to see. Is this common? Do I have any recourse?

My wife does not work yet and our joint bank statement only said we have $117.00. I am self employed poker player and pay almost everything in cash and he did not like this. He asked me 4 times where i kept my money . I have a business account but my accountant told me not to have my wife on it for tax purposes. We brought 2 photo albums starting with the day we met, through our wedding on Maui to present but he says we need more pictures(200 not enough?)

We had to cancell plans to go to Russia in December to see her family. Is this process this hard and course?

ty mike and alsu

Sounds like you got a perfectly normal interview. Let's rehash the facts, before you fly off the handle again.....

You married her during an overstay on her part....her visa was expired. That is not good, but AOSing can be done.

You hang around with other Russian who have filed for AOS and been denied....so guilt by association....maybe you should hang around more reputable people. Not saying those folks are not, but getting denied a GC is a major thing. Why was this one woman still in the US if her GC had been denied?

And what other evidence of commingling of funds and lives did you bring? When you put it all together, I can see why this officer was grilling you. Did you get approved? Or have to submit more evidence? There is no recourse. They are the judge and jury and you should shut your trap and act professional to them. They hold the key to your lives and do have the power to excersize it if they feel it is necessary. They normally are not unreasonable, so you should understand that your situation is not normal and they are going to vet out the truth. Give them what they want and you will be fine. Resist and you may not like the consequences.

[silvana.toma 15]

I just send my package as well, and if i would be in your shoes right now i would try and seek a profesional for help, because it sounds like it's going to be a bumpy ride to green card land(espacially since you spoke your mind, and i'm preety sure they are not to thrilled about that)

Try and talk to a lawyer, and see what your options are, and because you already filed it should not cost as much. Or at least go to a free consultation, see what they say.

I agree with you, they should not have the right to treat people like that. I would feel harassed as well. There were people that had nothing to fear and got intimidated to the point where they did not pass their first interview.

Also since when is 5 months too short to get married??? not everyone wants to be forever engaged, then get married....right?

anyway...all the luck to you, and let us know how it goes.

[kennym 275]

I agree with you, they should not have the right to treat people like that. I would feel harassed as well. There were people that had nothing to fear and got intimidated to the point where they did not pass their first interview.

I hope you don't mind if I say, I dis-agree...

Keep in mind everyone, part of thier job is to seperate the scammers from the legitimate applications... and from what the OP said, his case is suspicious.. Your best bet is to be prepared.. It's not hard to be prepared if you understand the process and the requirements..

Kenny

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Ty for answers guys. If I am not working , I am doing something with my wife. I expected an interrogation, but not not for the officer to have his mind made up before we walked in. Based on info here , we definitely fall into a profiled group. He asked next to nothing about us personally he spent 50% of interview asking about other people instead of trying to find out about us

The officer's minds are nearly always "made up" before you enter the room. You either confirm or refute what they have already decided. There is no other way to look at a situation where the decisions are made based on, at most, a few minutes interview. In our AOS interview we were not asked even one single question...not one...regardng our relationship and didn't have to provide proof of anything...nothing. We walked in, we were told the green cards were approved, we got a run down on what to do with the lifting of conditions and left. You think their mind was made up? I HAD included a lot of the items as proof in our filing so they already had that.

It is fine to say "I think medical insurance is a scam" and it would be no problem if you hadn't married someone from Russia that needs a green card. I could have thrown all the correspondence from our sons school addressed to both of us in the trash...but I didn;t because it is excellent evidence of living as a married couple. Good for the LoC. You are NOT in a "normal" relationship, she has no "right" to a green card and you must prove that she qualifies for one under immigration laws and that your marriage is not a scam to avoid immigration rules. The circumstances of your marriage cause suspiscion that must be overcome and you aren't.

They really like to see mingling of financial assets and such. Medical insurance is a good example that you are taking responsibility for your wife. A joint account with $117 proves nothing. Joint savings, listing her as a beneficiary on life insurance, listing her as a benficiary on a retirement account, listing her on a home deed, shared credit cards, listing her as co-owner of your vehicles, whether she drives or not. Joint utility bills really mean nothing...big deal, electric bill. If she runs off you still need electricity and will pay for what you use. How about medical records showing you as the responsible party or even as the emergency contact? Has she been to the doctor? Filled out the information form at the doctor's office?

[silvana.toma 15]

I hope you don't mind if I say, I dis-agree...

Keep in mind everyone, part of thier job is to seperate the scammers from the legitimate applications... and from what the OP said, his case is suspicious.. Your best bet is to be prepared.. It's not hard to be prepared if you understand the process and the requirements..

Kenny

All i have to say is that if i were in a fake relationship, and attempt to get my green card through a sham marriage i would not go all the way to Maui, Hawaii to get married.

[Dan and Judy 614]

Hi Mike, could you tell us when you got married?

thanks

[kennym 275]

All i have to say is that if i were in a fake relationship, and attempt to get my green card through a sham marriage i would not go all the way to Maui, Hawaii to get married.

your point isn't clear... Why wouldn't you?

You have to think like the a USCIS Agent... Not like a normal USC... Look at not just one thing, but everything combined.. Someone applying for a GC through Marriage to a USC while out of status, making excuses why they have no joint bank accounts, proof of co-habitation, co-mingling of finances, no insurance, no money in the bank, an unusual profession, friends with other suspicious characters.and... Pissed of the Immigration Officer in the ineterview...

To me, the trip to hawaii shows more red flags... No Money in bank, but can afford a wedding in Hawaii...

not any single one alone is enough suspicion but when you consider all the items together.. HUGE Issues..

The key to success is thinking like the Immigration Officer...

Kenny

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

I love Maui, have been there multiple times, and my daughter got married on Maui.

Maui is indeed a perfect location for quick-and-easy marriages. You can disguise a vacation, you have the marriage license within 1 hour, you have a compelling reason why no family and friends were present. Maui is number 2 only to Las Vegas, yet Las Vegas has gained somewhat of a negative vibe. Let's face it: "most" people getting married would like to have friends and family around and the wedding photos reflect this. I'm still convinced that my own AOS went so smoothly because my wife and I presented a beautiful wedding album with photos of friends and family having a great time. You can't just fake that stuff unless you're willing to spend silly money.