8 yr old step son - application to come to US

[Darnell 8,478]

I was unaware one could send file attachments via the GUZ IV web portal.

But yer getting the gist of it -

The OF-169, with a copy of wife's NOA-2, maybe even copy of the pink slip,

should be sent to GUZ IV via postal mail. IMO, best to handle this in China (you can prep it in USA, send to some relative in china, they mail it in via EMS)

Make a cover letter, explaining exactly what's going on: Initiating the K-2 follow to join procedure.

Ask them in the cover letter, to expedite it, as well, mention there is a potential deadline problem.

so - the stack would look something like this:

1. cover letter

2. OF-169 plus the stuff it asks for (DS-230, photos, kid's bio page, etc etc)

3. copy of mother's visa stamp from passport

4. copy of mother's bio page from passport

You can prep this stuff yerself (tonight), email to a relative - they print it out, send it in via EMS.

(This is the kickstart I mentioned prior)

Once GUZ IV has it, he'll get into the Interview Scheduling Queue, then an interview will be made, then a Packet 4 will be sent back to him.

Inside o Packet 4 is the interview letter - with that he can get the medical done..

Good Luck and God Speed !

Edited June 9, 2011 by Darnell

[David and Ariana 2]

Thanks. Just sent them an email with the explanation and scans of the DS-230 and the original cover letter which accompanied theK-1 packet - as it names both her and her son. Will fax it too. May not do any good without all the rest, but it seemed a good way to get something going. Now that I got your advice I'll put the rest together and get it off. Thanks again!

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Thanks for the link. Showed it to both lawyers and they both acknowledged they were wrong. Have appt with one on Friday.

Lawyers are only human. Sometimes you have to help them out.

[Bsze 50]

Lawyers are only human. Sometimes you have to help them out.

And other times, you have to throw them out.

[David and Ariana 2]

Wonder of wonders. Composed an email describing the chronology and asking that the case be reopened and a new interview scheduled and included scans of our DS-230 and the Letter that came with the packet last year, both listing my step-son as a follow-on. Next morning had a response saying I had sent it to the wrong people (CIS) and to use the web portal to submit the request, which I did. Prepared a larger packet including the OF-169 and other documents, faxed it and tried to get it to a friend in China, but had repeated problems with scanning while trying to do my day job, so we hadn't gotten it off by the time I came home from work last night. An hour after I came home from work - there was an email reply to my original email, re-openning the case and granting us an interview on June 27th! Only took 24 hours!

Thanks for all your help - you have saved our family much heartache!

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Wonder of wonders. Composed an email describing the chronology and asking that the case be reopened and a new interview scheduled and included scans of our DS-230 and the Letter that came with the packet last year, both listing my step-son as a follow-on. Next morning had a response saying I had sent it to the wrong people (CIS) and to use the web portal to submit the request, which I did. Prepared a larger packet including the OF-169 and other documents, faxed it and tried to get it to a friend in China, but had repeated problems with scanning while trying to do my day job, so we hadn't gotten it off by the time I came home from work last night. An hour after I came home from work - there was an email reply to my original email, re-openning the case and granting us an interview on June 27th! Only took 24 hours!

Thanks for all your help - you have saved our family much heartache!

Awesome news!

K2 interviews are usually a cakewalk. The primary thing they'll focus on is evidence your wife is the biological mother of the child. US consulates in some countries are pretty picky about this, especially if fraudulent documents are easy to obtain. I would think your step-son's birth certificate listing your wife as the mother would be the bare minimum. A copy of a hukou listing both of them would be good. Other good evidence is photos of them together while the child is growing up, school records, etc. Check the China regional forum here. I don't know how picky the consulate in Guangzhou is about this sort of evidence.

Is your wife planning on going back for the interview?

[Darnell 8,478]

Ye Haw !!! That'll be 300 steamed venison jiaozi, please

Glad it worked out - you'll be under the deadline. You confused me with concept of 'file attachments to email to Guangzhou' as the Guangzhou IV Unit Web Portal email thingie DOES NOT ALLOW for email attachments, at all.

Edited June 11, 2011 by Darnell

[David and Ariana 2]

Yes, bought tickets for my wife to fly on Monday - very expensive on such short notice! Feeling lucky, bought the ticket for our son to come home as well. She has birth certificates, residence certificates and photos from baby to now, so I don't think there will be a problem. If there is a problem, it will be the short time line and the Chinese mail system. Its difficult to find an address for them to send the packet to that receives postal mail. Having to send it to the work place of her uncle.

In answer to Darnells question, I did use the web portal to send the same message that I sent the email and yes, it doesn't allow attachments. Turns out it was the email that got action. What actually happened was I sent the email to the contact email of the US CIS office there. They replied back - "we don't deal with immigration - send it to the immigration office using the web portal". However, I think they must have forwarded it to the right office anyway, as when I got the good news back, it was a reply to that email. I also sent two faxes, so perhaps that got someones attention.

I was so expecting the emails and faxes to not accomplish anything, as I expected that the proper process had to be followed - it must be submitted by mail. But I guess they are more flexible than I thought. In fact, at least for me, in this whole process from my wifes K1 to her green card and now, I have been continually suprised by how "human" and helpful the immigration service people that I have dealt with have been, from the jolly woman who easily gave my wife the K-1 (thought what she said made it easy was my 1 page, bulleted, succinct description of our timeline and relationship), to the officer in San Francisco who jumped through loops to get my wife a temporary green card because she had a trip planned immediately after the interview, to this quick response. I know it isn't everyone's experience, but I've learned that behind all the regulations and forms, there still are good people.

[Darnell 8,478]

Ah well, money for tickets could have been money for lawyers - so it's a win win, I think so.

Remind Mom she'll need to show the divorce certificate and maybe even a permission letter from the child's father.

To Sum Up, though - what you did was to jumpstart the K-2 FTJ process at the Embassy. I think yours is maybe the 5th case this year I've have this type of convo (with). Jumpstarting is cool, necessary even. It used to be a documented process on the GUZ IV website, but they changed the content, can't find it any more (cause it's gone) and there's some other reference,there, to the foreign spouse becoming an LPR, filing the I-130, instead (which of course, blows if you fit the requirements of a FTJ case) .

Go Get Em !

Edited June 11, 2011 by Darnell

[sib 7]

Glad it worked out on that short notice!

Keep us informed and wishing you a quick reunion of the family!

Sib

[David and Ariana 2]

OK, so far, so good. But of course, I have more questions.

My wife left SFO on Monday and arrived successfully in Changsha Hunan Province. Meanwhile the interview packet arrived at her mother's (a big relief, as we were concerned they would send to the wrong address). We have all the documents from last time, except we are translating the custody order, which we hadn't done before. My wife just asked me if we should complete a DS-156 in my son's name and I told here NO - we are still in the K-1 process - just completing what we didn't finish. She is still the applicant (even though she has her visa) and her son is the "follow on".

Do you agree that this is the right approach?

We are going to have to pay the fee again, as the receipt was taken the last time at the first interview. I'm going to suggest she ask if it can be refunded, but again, without the receipt, I don't know if they would consider that. Anyway, I don't want $400 to stand in the way.

She is asking if she needs to do a GNI-2. I don't remember doing this last year. Is this a new requirement?? Or maybe we did and I didn't keep a copy. But I looked at it and it doesn't look familiar. Do you know?

She goes to Guangzhou next Tue the 21st for the medical exam for her son and will stay there until the next Monday, the 27th for the interview. In the meantime I guess I will keep our appointment for the I-130 in San Francisco (just so happens to be the same day) just in case. Though I think I will know by then if we got the visa, because of the time difference. I don't know if the K-2 will somehow change or discontinue the I-130 process - if not it will make the green card come faster (though with more money - but that ship has sailed).

[Darnell 8,478]

what is the appointment for the I-130, and who is it with ? (sorry, I'm a bit dense today) - if it's with an attorney, IMO, should be a waste of time.

Visa Fee at GUZ IV - if there were two fees paid, and you have the receipts on both, not need to pay it again, just show the receipt. IF ONLY PAID for one VISA, then must pay for the 2nd Visa.

re: forms - if they came in a mailer packet, use those (for now) but do review the forms and forms list in the of-169 that's in the forms link I posted earlier, in post #9.

Edited June 16, 2011 by Darnell

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

OK, so far, so good. But of course, I have more questions.

My wife left SFO on Monday and arrived successfully in Changsha Hunan Province. Meanwhile the interview packet arrived at her mother's (a big relief, as we were concerned they would send to the wrong address). We have all the documents from last time, except we are translating the custody order, which we hadn't done before. My wife just asked me if we should complete a DS-156 in my son's name and I told here NO - we are still in the K-1 process - just completing what we didn't finish. She is still the applicant (even though she has her visa) and her son is the "follow on".

Do you agree that this is the right approach?

No. The K2 is a separate visa application. The eligibility is derived from the K1 petition, and the K2 can only be approved if the K1 is approved, but it's still a separate application. Your wife isn't applying - your son is. I can't read Chinese, so I can't read the instruction packets from the consulate in Guangzhou, but you can download them here:

http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/forms_and_packets.htm

We are going to have to pay the fee again, as the receipt was taken the last time at the first interview. I'm going to suggest she ask if it can be refunded, but again, without the receipt, I don't know if they would consider that. Anyway, I don't want $400 to stand in the way.

You'd have to pay the fee again, even if he was applying for a K2 at the same time your wife was applying for a K1. Same fee, medical, everything.

She is asking if she needs to do a GNI-2. I don't remember doing this last year. Is this a new requirement?? Or maybe we did and I didn't keep a copy. But I looked at it and it doesn't look familiar. Do you know?

The GNI-2 is listed in the required documents for K1/K2, but the form itself seems to indicate it's for a K1. Again, I can't read the interview instructions, so I don't know if it's required for a K2.

She goes to Guangzhou next Tue the 21st for the medical exam for her son and will stay there until the next Monday, the 27th for the interview. In the meantime I guess I will keep our appointment for the I-130 in San Francisco (just so happens to be the same day) just in case. Though I think I will know by then if we got the visa, because of the time difference. I don't know if the K-2 will somehow change or discontinue the I-130 process - if not it will make the green card come faster (though with more money - but that ship has sailed).

Personally, I would go to the the interview and withdraw the I-130. It could complicate things if there's an unapproved pending I-130 when you submit an AOS application for him. They could conceivably deny the AOS because the I-130 isn't approved yet. Obviously, this would be wrong because he'd by applying for AOS based on the I-129F petition rather than the I-130, but there's no reason to give them an excuse to screw up. Provide a letter that clearly explains why you're withdrawing the I-130 and sign it. Give it to the IO at the interview. If, for some bizarre reason, the K2 visa application blows up then you can always submit another I-130.

[Darnell 8,478]

ah - is local uscis interview - Thanks Jim - don't miss that one - must to go.

[David and Ariana 2]

Update - a new problem. Everything seemed hopeful. I did go to the USCIS interview in SF today and asked if I needed to withdraw the I-130. She said yes, and I presented the letter I had written withdrawing the petition.

My wife went to China 3 weeks ago, got all the documents prepared and went to her interview today. She just called me in tears - they say, she must have her ex husband's permission to bring the boy to America.

I had asked her if she had custody before, and she told me how she had had to go to the court to get it, but did have it. But I never saw a translation of the document, so I don't really know what it said. Whatever it said, it apparently isn't good enough, or isn't complete custody. This is a problem that I hadn't anticipated at all - if we can't get permission or custody, her son can't come, which means she must stay - which I don't even want to think about. Of course, if she can't get the birth father to agree, we can get a lawyer involved - but who knows how long that will take - certainly longer than the 14 days that we have left.

Do you know anything about Chinese custody law that might help?