ORGANIZING DOCUMENTS FOR INTERVIEW

[Shmily 3]

All papers were bound in flexible plastic folders. Please note "FLEXIBLE". Imagine a glass between you and the interviewer. The bottom of the glass touches the table, so it's a flat surface." In the middle of that table divider, there is a foot long slot where the papers would go through. It slopes 2-3 inches down, and 2 inches inside and out, except upwards.

Only papers and flexible plastics would go through. The hard side binders, spirals and covers will NEVER go through. So rule of thumb: stack your documents less than an inch, or even half an inch together. DO NOT use hardbound covers for your photo albums and document covers.

I've noticed that some interviewers got annoyed at applicants who took forever in submitting their documents and photos, as these applicants had to take out the photos from the albums one by one. It was time consuming. I followed the advices here and there. I taped my photos in bond paper, and put captions below them.

A.Appointment Letter and valid ID

(will be shown to the guards before you enter the embassy)

B. DS Forms

(staple 2 sets of DS 156 and DS 157. DS 156K alone)

C.Identification papers and police clearances

(only the first 3 were asked from me, and they were all together in one plastic separate)

- NSO Birth certificate

- NBI Clearance

- Police Certificate/s from the countries you stayed in for 6 months or more.

Other identification papers that were asked from other applicants

- Baptismal Certificate

- Divorce decrees

- Death certificates

- Annulment papers

D. Affidavit of support papers

Notarized Form I-134

- Ricky’s Employment Letter

- 2010 Tax Copies (Tax Transcripts and E-filing)

- 2010 W2 Copies

- Sample Recent Pay Stubs / Copies

(Those are all I submitted. The 2008-2009 forms were in a separate folder, as I have read that some Filipino interviewers only glance at those to make sure your fiance pays taxes, and has a stable job, then gives them back to the applicant. I did not want to clutter the folder with unnecessary papers, just in case she was just going to glance at them and return them to me.)

In clear plastic separates, I also had the following optional papers, JUST IN CASE they asked for it. In my case, they didn't ask for these. But some applicants were asked for the following:

- Bank letter/statements

- Insurance papers

- Stocks/Bonds, etc.

E. Proof of Engagement Documents and Photos

(in flexible plastic folders, stacked back to back)

- Renewed Letter of Intent to Marry

- Engagement Ring Receipt

- Engagement Photos (with Captions)

F. Other Documents for Proof of Continuous Relationship

(in plastic separates)

- Snail mails, cards and postal envelopes and waybills (they vary in sizes and bulky when stacked together)

- Electronic Correspondences (bound in folder, with button fasteners)

---> Skype VIDEO Chats (Print Screen)

---> E-mail Correspondences (5 of his, 5 of mine)

---> Screen Shots of Yahoo! Messenger Archive - Everyday Conversations

--->Yahoo CHAT Logs (from 2006-2011)

- Money Transfer Receipts (In plastic separates)

- Text messages

- Phone Bills - (In plastic separates)

G. Proof of Meeting Prior to Application

(In flexible plastic folder, stacked back to back)

- Immigration Stamped Passport Page

- Ricky’s Airline Receipt

- Ricky's Itinerary from the Travel Agency

- Ricky's Original Boarding Passes

- Hotel Receipts during Ricky's visit

TIPS in organizing your documents:

1. Make your documents look very presentable and clutter-free.

2. Use side tabs for easy reference.

3. Use color-coding, but avoid neons!

4. Use button fasteners, instead of long fasteners.

5. DO NOT stack your papers too thick. They will not pass through the slot. Maximum thickness should be half an inch. And make sure that the stack will be flexible enough, as they will be bent when passing though the slot.

6. DO NOT use hard-bound covers, hard side binders, and thick photo-albums. In fact, drop the idea. You might earn the ire of a grumpy Filipino interviewer if your documents and photos are in hard covers, and you would find yourself taking them out from the binder one at a time.

7. Use paper clips if you don't have plastic separates

8. Know where your documents are! Don't mix your proof of relationship documents with the financial documents.

9. Most importantly, your documents should be COMPLETE! Some applicants left the embassy in tears, and were put in AR because they lacked important documents. These are only tips and suggestions.

[patient2010 93]

Thanks for sharing this detailed info

[Dan & Jenni 457]

[Crazyaboutyou 0]

All papers were bound in flexible plastic folders. Please note "FLEXIBLE". Imagine a glass between you and the interviewer. The bottom of the glass touches the table, so it's a flat surface." In the middle of that table divider, there is a foot long slot where the papers would go through. It slopes 2-3 inches down, and 2 inches inside and out, except upwards.

Only papers and flexible plastics would go through. The hard side binders, spirals and covers will NEVER go through. So rule of thumb: stack your documents less than an inch, or even half an inch together. DO NOT use hardbound covers for your photo albums and document covers.

I've noticed that some interviewers got annoyed at applicants who took forever in submitting their documents and photos, as these applicants had to take out the photos from the albums one by one. It was time consuming. I followed the advices here and there. I taped my photos in bond paper, and put captions below them.

A.Appointment Letter and valid ID

(will be shown to the guards before you enter the embassy)

B. DS Forms

(staple 2 sets of DS 156 and DS 157. DS 156K alone)

C.Identification papers and police clearances

(only the first 3 were asked from me, and they were all together in one plastic separate)

- NSO Birth certificate

- NBI Clearance

- Police Certificate/s from the countries you stayed in for 6 months or more.

Other identification papers that were asked from other applicants

- Baptismal Certificate

- Divorce decrees

- Death certificates

- Annulment papers

D. Affidavit of support papers

Notarized Form I-134

- Ricky’s Employment Letter

- 2010 Tax Copies (Tax Transcripts and E-filing)

- 2010 W2 Copies

- Sample Recent Pay Stubs / Copies

(Those are all I submitted. The 2008-2009 forms were in a separate folder, as I have read that some Filipino interviewers only glance at those to make sure your fiance pays taxes, and has a stable job, then gives them back to the applicant. I did not want to clutter the folder with unnecessary papers, just in case she was just going to glance at them and return them to me.)

In clear plastic separates, I also had the following optional papers, JUST IN CASE they asked for it. In my case, they didn't ask for these. But some applicants were asked for the following:

- Bank letter/statements

- Insurance papers

- Stocks/Bonds, etc.

E. Proof of Engagement Documents and Photos

(in flexible plastic folders, stacked back to back)

- Renewed Letter of Intent to Marry

- Engagement Ring Receipt

- Engagement Photos (with Captions)

F. Other Documents for Proof of Continuous Relationship

(in plastic separates)

- Snail mails, cards and postal envelopes and waybills (they vary in sizes and bulky when stacked together)

- Electronic Correspondences (bound in folder, with button fasteners)

---> Skype VIDEO Chats (Print Screen)

---> E-mail Correspondences (5 of his, 5 of mine)

---> Screen Shots of Yahoo! Messenger Archive - Everyday Conversations

--->Yahoo CHAT Logs (from 2006-2011)

- Money Transfer Receipts (In plastic separates)

- Text messages

- Phone Bills - (In plastic separates)

G. Proof of Meeting Prior to Application

(In flexible plastic folder, stacked back to back)

- Immigration Stamped Passport Page

- Ricky’s Airline Receipt

- Ricky's Itinerary from the Travel Agency

- Ricky's Original Boarding Passes

- Hotel Receipts during Ricky's visit

TIPS in organizing your documents:

1. Make your documents look very presentable and clutter-free.

2. Use side tabs for easy reference.

3. Use color-coding, but avoid neons!

4. Use button fasteners, instead of long fasteners.

5. DO NOT stack your papers too thick. They will not pass through the slot. Maximum thickness should be half an inch. And make sure that the stack will be flexible enough, as they will be bent when passing though the slot.

6. DO NOT use hard-bound covers, hard side binders, and thick photo-albums. In fact, drop the idea. You might earn the ire of a grumpy Filipino interviewer if your documents and photos are in hard covers, and you would find yourself taking them out from the binder one at a time.

7. Use paper clips if you don't have plastic separates

8. Know where your documents are! Don't mix your proof of relationship documents with the financial documents.

9. Most importantly, your documents should be COMPLETE! Some applicants left the embassy in tears, and were put in AR because they lacked important documents. These are only tips and suggestions.

God bless you! Thanks a lot!

[Shmily 3]

thank you so much everyone! I am hoping this would help others as much as it did me

[BobGee 5]

thank you so much everyone! I am hoping this would help others as much as it did me

[TJ01212011 47]

This helped me a lot during my interview. made it easy for me....Thanks a lot for posting this...