BEWARE= DS 156K is expired!

[C_María 6]

My fiance and I are August filers (K-1 Mexico) trying to get a jump on these packet 3 papers now. We are filling out forms that we have found directly on the CJ website and discovered when filling out DS 156k (suppliment to DS 156)that it actually expired 11/30/2010. Here it is a few days later and it looks like the website still has the old form.

Luckily WE have a little while to wait for a new one to pop up but hopefully none of you out there are submitting this form right now!!! (We already made that mistake with an expired form 129F and they were nice enough to send it back right away and give us a chance to refile- only setting us back a few weeks)

Also we're finding the intent to marry form (401 and/or 402)is expired as of years ago and I'm assuming it's not as essential to have a current one if it hasn't been updated in THAT long!

Anyone else having these problems with expired forms? I thought the Embassy webpage was supposed to have the most current versions! Also I was under the impression that "packet 3" does not contain many actual forms, just an open invitation letter and a link to the website that we're working with now. Anyone know for sure? Or is there a special link that they give you with the letter and if so does anyone know what that is?

Thanks for reading, hope your visa journeys are going well!

[missicy 87]

I was just filing out the forms and find out that DS 156K has expired. I checked Department of State website and they haven't updated it yet. If a new one comes out before my interview I will fill that one out, if not I will bring the expired one.

As for intent to marry, I don't think it's necessary to use any forms. You just write a new letter, like the one you sent with your petition, but addressed to your consulate and dated close to the interview.

[marlea 84]

In a lot of cases, they will still accept forms that are expired. You can look at the DOS website, and they will tell you which expiration dates they will accept. Just because a form expires doesn't mean it changes. Sometimes there won't be any changes made from one date to the next, and so the old one is still acceptable.

[Kimchimex 8]

Great catch on the expiration...odd that they have not updated this form yet.

Good reminder for all of us to check that we have the most recent forms!

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

That OMB date at the top of forms doesn't mean the form is obsolete. I don't have a great knowledge of this but it goes roughly something like this--

The Office of Management and Budget oversees all government forms concerning information collected by the government and how long the form will take to fill out. It's part of the Paperwork Reduction Act. So each form has to be reviewed periodically to make sure the government isn't asking for more information from you than is required for that particular "benefit" or purpose of the form. And they review the burden of time it takes to complete the form.

The actual form date (when it became effective) is at the bottom. The DS-156k date is Oct 2007. The same form could be used forever or until it needed to be changed because of changes to visa policies. The OMB date would still have to be reviewed and updated...maybe every three years (??). I'm not sure on that. So the DS-156K is due for review concerning the information it asks of you and the time to complete, but the form itself can remain unchanged. Forms don't have specific expiration dates planned in advance so they don't "expire." They can undergo revisions and newer versions produced. So it's always best to get the form straight from the goverment agency website, where the latest version will be found and also information about if previous versions will be accepted.