Beaurocrats Trying To Increase The Odds Of Failure?

[notmuch88tosay 21]

Hello,

I'm sure the beaurocrats know that learning a new language takes two years or more, sometimes as much as up to five years.

Is that why they require the Fiancee be tested on their ability to speak English during the interview? So they have one more excuse to fail them (and destroy their life) at the interview?

Why not let the Fiancee learn English in America where she will be surrounded by English speaking people and available classes and then test her before the Green Card or something like that?

notmuch88tosay

[TRanger 2]

My fiancee, while she knows English well, was more comfortable speaking in Japanese during her K-1 interview. Early in the interview the CO asked her if she would rather speak Japanese and the remainder of the interview was conducted that way.

[Anh map 2,098]

Hello,

I'm sure the beaurocrats know that learning a new language takes two years or more, sometimes as much as up to five years.

Is that why they require the Fiancee be tested on their ability to speak English during the interview? So they have one more excuse to fail them (and destroy their life) at the interview?

Why not let the Fiancee learn English in America where she will be surrounded by English speaking people and available classes and then test her before the Green Card or something like that?

notmuch88tosay

There is no English test as part of a K1 interview.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Hello,

I'm sure the beaurocrats know that learning a new language takes two years or more, sometimes as much as up to five years.

Is that why they require the Fiancee be tested on their ability to speak English during the interview? So they have one more excuse to fail them (and destroy their life) at the interview?

Why not let the Fiancee learn English in America where she will be surrounded by English speaking people and available classes and then test her before the Green Card or something like that?

notmuch88tosay

Alla was an English/Russian interpreter before we met, she now has a master's degree in teaching English. At her interview she chose Russian as a language and no one there ever heard her speak English. She was approved without a question, which means they can't say if she speaks any language at all.

I am at a loss as to what you are talking about.

[DanTes 21]

Hello,

I'm sure the beaurocrats know that learning a new language takes two years or more, sometimes as much as up to five years.

Is that why they require the Fiancee be tested on their ability to speak English during the interview? So they have one more excuse to fail them (and destroy their life) at the interview?

Why not let the Fiancee learn English in America where she will be surrounded by English speaking people and available classes and then test her before the Green Card or something like that?

notmuch88tosay

Perfect English is not required at any stage (even for U.S. Citizenship). It might raise a doubt in the CO's mind as to the sincerity of the relationship if neither one of you could communicate verbally with one another. How do you communicate with the love of your life??

[notmuch88tosay 21]

Thanks for the info, TRanger. You helped give me some hope.

Thanks Anh map. I hope very much that is the case, I was told the opposite.

Thanks for the reply Gary and Alla. I was told by two Immigration Attorney's that my Fiancee had better be able to speak English or there is a good chance she would be failed at the interview. Maybe China is different?

Thanks for the reply and info, DanTes. When it comes to communicating with my fiancee, I can speak Mandarin pretty well now, and I continue to learn and improve in it.

Me and my fiancee communicate nearly each night via video chat (using the text feature and Google translate).

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

[Ryan H 3,834]

Thanks Anh map. I hope very much that is the case, I was told the opposite.

Anh map is 100% correct, there is no "English test" at a K1 interview and to take it a step further, there is no such test at any other visa interview. What a CO will be looking for is how you and your fiancee can communicate with one another, if one cannot speak the other person's language at all, then the CO may doubt the sincerity of the relationship (as DanTes alluded to).

Edited August 14, 2011 by Ryan H

[notmuch88tosay 21]

Hey Ryan,

Thanks for the info. I do appreciate it very much.

Question: If I'm not allowed into the interview building, how will the Consulate Officer know that I can speak Mandarin? What if he/she doubts this and wants proof? How could I provide proof that I can speak Mandarin if they will not accept any 'recorded media' of me speaking Mandarin?

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Thanks for the info, TRanger. You helped give me some hope.

Thanks Anh map. I hope very much that is the case, I was told the opposite.

Thanks for the reply Gary and Alla. I was told by two Immigration Attorney's that my Fiancee had better be able to speak English or there is a good chance she would be failed at the interview. Maybe China is different?

Thanks for the reply and info, DanTes. When it comes to communicating with my fiancee, I can speak Mandarin pretty well now, and I continue to learn and improve in it.

Me and my fiancee communicate nearly each night via video chat (using the text feature and Google translate).

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

Yes, China could be different, ask in the China sub-forum but there are no requirements per se in any consulate to speak English and I immigration attorneys would be the last people I would ask.

However your premise is wrong. I have never gotten the impression that the government is in any way trying to increase the odds of failure. Your success or failure is up to you.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Hey Ryan,

Thanks for the info. I do appreciate it very much.

Question: If I'm not allowed into the interview building, how will the Consulate Officer know that I can speak Mandarin? What if he/she doubts this and wants proof? How could I provide proof that I can speak Mandarin if they will not accept any 'recorded media' of me speaking Mandarin?

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

emails, letters, skype logs, phone call logs. It is fairly easy to document that you communicate, they do not care how you communicate. What if one of you were deaf and unable to speak, you think you would be denied?

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Thanks for the info, TRanger. You helped give me some hope.

Thanks Anh map. I hope very much that is the case, I was told the opposite.

Thanks for the reply Gary and Alla. I was told by two Immigration Attorney's that my Fiancee had better be able to speak English or there is a good chance she would be failed at the interview. Maybe China is different?

Thanks for the reply and info, DanTes. When it comes to communicating with my fiancee, I can speak Mandarin pretty well now, and I continue to learn and improve in it.

Me and my fiancee communicate nearly each night via video chat (using the text feature and Google translate).

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

You are entering into a relationship where for some years you will be required to provide evidence of your relationship. For the visa (which is the easy part) for the AOS for the RoC and for citizenship. You need to be aware of this and keep records, you cannot throw things away and do things on the cheap like everyone else and it is YOUR job as the USC to know these things and do these things. You can learn them all here.

Most of your communication needs to be in a way that is documented, preparation and documentation will be the key.

[notmuch88tosay 21]

Thanks Gary and Alla,

I am feeling more and more optimistic. I appreciate it very much.

Maybe the Immigration Attorney was trying to over-prepare us.

I would be very happy to know that the Government beaurocrats do not in any way try to increase the odds of failure.

I would be very happy to be wrong about them and I'd owe them an apology.

I have had bad experiences with Government employees in the past and I have read of some horror stories with Government beaurocrats in this forum, that seemed very unfair... That is why I have been negative, critical and worried in the past. Because I cannot see any reason to prevent law abiding citizens who are good people from being together... while treating violent, criminal or aggressive illegal immigrants as a welcome new U.S. voter base.

Again, I would be very happy to be wrong about Government beaurocrats and I would feel bad about judging them and speaking harshly of them. And I would make an apology to all who might have been offended.

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

Edited August 14, 2011 by notmuch88tosay

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Thanks Gary and Alla,

I am feeling more and more optimistic. I appreciate it very much.

Maybe the Immigration Attorney was trying to over-prepare us.

I would be very happy to know that the Government beaurocrats do not in any way try to increase the odds of failure.

I would be very happy to be wrong about them and I'd owe them an apology.

I have had bad experiences with Government employees in the past and I have read of some horror stories with Government beaurocrats in this forum, that seemed very unfair... That is why I have been negative, critical and worried in the past. Because I cannot see any reason to prevent law abiding citizens who are good people from being together... while treating violent, criminal or aggressive illegal immigrants as a welcome new U.S. voter base.

Again, I would be very happy to be wrong about Government beaurocrats and I would feel bad about judging them and speaking harshly of them. And I would make an apology to all who might have been offended.

Thanks again,

notmuch88tosay

There are only a few things the consular officer will be concerned about. Is the beneficiary inadmissible as defined in INA 212? Is the petitioner ineligible to file a family based visa petition? Is the relationship a sham primarily to evade immigration law? Is the petitioner financially qualified to sponsor an immigrant? Have all aspects of the relevant immigration laws been complied with?

Most of this stuff can be proven with documentary evidence. The sham relationship determination is discretionary, and it's the requirement that gives more people problems than any other, especially in countries that have a high rate of visa fraud.

When a consular officer denies a K1 or CR1 visa they do sometimes cite that the petitioner and beneficiary do not appear to share a common language. I have never seen a denial where this was the only reason cited. Rather, it's included in a list of reasons that help support the conclusion that the relationship is likely a sham. I've also seen the common language reason cited in a few cases where it clearly wasn't true - where it was obvious from the evidence submitted that the petitioner spoke the beneficiary's language fluently. The point is that the visa wasn't denied because the CO thought they didn't share a common language. In fact, none of the items in the bullet list of reasons given by the CO are the main reason for the denial. The visa is denied because the CO believes the relationship is a sham, and the list of reasons on the denial sheet are only some of the clues that led the CO to that conclusion.

The CO spends no more than 10 or 15 minutes with the case file before the interview. Usually, the initial decision is made by reviewing the case file. You should think about the information the CO will be looking at in your case file, and what sort of impression it's likely to make. If there's anything in your case file that you think might get the CO's attention then that's what you want to be prepared to address at the interview. The language issue is usually an afterthought, added after the CO has already racked up a lot of points against the beneficiary.

When my wife went to her interview her English skills were weak, and my Vietnamese skills were much weaker. The first thing the CO asked was "Do you speak English?". She said "Yes, but for interview, please, Vietnamese." At that time, her accent was extremely heavy, and she couldn't pronounce most consonant sounds at the end of words. For example, she said "plea" instead of "please", and "Vietnamee" instead of "Vietnamese".

The rest of the interview - only four questions - were in Vietnamese. The decision had been made before she ever walked up to the window. She saw the pink approval sheet already filled out and waiting for the CO's signature.

[Jim N Augie 16]

Likewise dont forget at POE she can also ask for a translator. Jim.

[newlyweds2010 208]

What a consular officer may raise an eyebrow about is how you two communicate, if she doesn't speak English and you don't speak Chinese. But there is no English test at the K1 interview. Actually, when I went to the interview, I was the only K1 beneficiary, and the only one to whom the consular officer didn't ask questions in English. All others (DV lottery winners) were interviewed in English.