My Immigration Interview (Wow!) RFE's galore!

[Myopia 93]

Hello all

Today we had our interview at 26 Federal Plaza. We got there around 8am and didn't get to see an Immigration Officer until about 8.30am.

I was very very nervous, half expecting ICE to come and throw me in handcuffs but that didn't happen.

The IO came out to see us and swore us in and started the interview. She just threw so many questions at us, Im assuming that my being older than my husband, having been here for as long as I have was the reason. She asked so many questions, I lost count.

Questions to my husband consisted of:What are the streets around your house, What is the closest train stations, Where is the train station, What restaurants are around your house, What schools are around your house, What is the name of the school, What is the address of the Pizza Hut around your house, What are her children s name (She asked him this twice), How did her son die? Where did her son die? How old was her son when he died? (Oh boy did my husband mess that one up) First he said my son was 14(he was 13 and died a day before his birthday) then he said he was 16 (he would have been 16 had he lived) then he said the oldest living son is 2 years younger than the son that died (correct). Asked him to tell her something about me? If he knew where I lived before I was in NY, Asked about my parents name, asked about previous marriage( Been married Islamically but never legally) When we gave her the proof from the hospital of my miscarriage she seemed to get alittle softer and asked him If it was his(!!!!). My date of birth and where we lived, Asked about the home business and why I wasnt listed as an owner( Cause its cheaper being a sole prop).Asked when we were Islamically married, When we were NY state marriage, Asked how divorces are done in Islam.

Those were SOME of the questions.

She asked me about his parents, where he worked, what school he was attending when he first met, what was he working at when we first married, asked about my previous Islamic marriages and more.

All in All we were grilled. She asked for more proof of a marital relationship, didnt take any pictures, took the green 194 and clipped it to my file and told us that she was going to send us a RFE for documentation related to my islamic marriages and divorces. WHAT??

Yea you read right. She wants me to give her a certificate from where I was islamically married to prove that I was islamically married and divorced. She said , How do I know you arent married in the UK? I was stunned. First off divorce in Islam isnt like divorce in the state, there is no certificate to state that you are now divorced because it is the man who divorces the woman verbally. There is no paper divorce so I asked her how was I supposed to prove a divorce that was not done by anyone but the man. I asked her if she wanted a letter from my ex to prove that he divorced me? She said no and started to get a little ornery. She wants a divorce document. Again I explained that there was no letter to prove that or formal form but she wants something so I guess I have to get something to state that I was married at the mosque and divorced at the mosque. Not a problem with the marriage and divorce that lasted 3 months here in the US..but the London one? First that was in 1993 and I lost that piece of paper years ago..THEN he divorced me verbally so there is NO record with the mosque. The only reason that the mosque got involved with the last marriage was because he wouldnt divorce me islamically! So again I asked her what was I supposed to get when the mosque wasnt involved. She sighed a lot and then said something that stated that there was NO record of Me being married or divorced. OK I can work with that!!!

Crazy right? There was a lot more and if I can be bothered to write it I will. I wasnt upset, I knew that my case was going to be difficult and I did think it would be related to my Islamic marriage, I just never thought she would want past marriages that were religious in nature especially when they were done in countries where they were not even legal!

So thats where I stand? No place!

[Myopia 93]

Things that were off: I corrected my husband a couple of times and she did not like that one bit. He muddled up when we got married islamically and barely remembered when we got marriage in NY state. He offered the information about my religious marriages and then when she asked for details he gave her the wrong information. We dont talk about that. I messed up his date of birth(She asked me 2 times)

[Bobby+Umit 161]

I would get a lawyer.

It seems they are placing emphasis on your pass Islamic marriages - so you will need to provide what they want somehow.

Doesn't the UK recognize Islamic marriage? Were your past marriages in the UK?

Edited October 11, 2011 by Bobby+Umit

[Myopia 93]

I would get a lawyer.

It seems they are placing emphasis on your pass Islamic marriages - so you will need to provide what they want somehow.

Doesn't the UK recognize Islamic marriage? Were your past marriages in the UK?

I was thinking about that. The Uk doesnt recognize Islamic marriages. There is nothing in UK law that recognizes those marriages. I could have had 20 Islamic marriages in the UK (I didnt) and they would not be recognized. Its not going to be hard to prove what they want. The question that she seems to have is whether I am legally married to anyone else and ever was. ( I am not and never have been). See I knew mine would be more complicated than most others because the Islamic marriage in NY is legal and valid..so if the marriage in NY is legal and marriage...then why not in any other place. That seems to be what the RFE is about. Bear in mind if the NY marriage is legal and valid then technically they could give me a 10 year card based on that premise. I dont blame them for wanting proof.Im just concerned that there may be another angle.

[saywhat 5]

I'm confused as to why you even disclosed those old marriages in the first place? A marriage that isn't legal in the eyes of the law isn't a marriage at all in the eyes of the law. What you did is akin to listing all your boyfriends/girlfriends in the past on your green card application. I understand that in your heart of hearts those people were your husbands but that doesn't mean anything as long as there isn't a legal basis.

[misswiss 6]

this ###### sounds racist maybe she doesnt like muslim people i would have raised hell!!!!! Get a lawyer and see how you can maybe have someone else look at your case or interview you again who the #### asks about streets and schools from all these questions it sounded like she was doubting you already...pizza hut adress i dont even eat at pizza hut i wish they would ask me questions like that smh

from reading your timeline everything seems pretty straight forward so why would your case be difficult??

[106206 15]

Holy cow. We have interview Friday and I have not the foggiest idea of the local schools nor the local Pizza Hut (gross) let alone my wife, who doesn't drive and knows some but not even most of the local roads. We are toast.

[Myopia 93]

I'm confused as to why you even disclosed those old marriages in the first place? A marriage that isn't legal in the eyes of the law isn't a marriage at all in the eyes of the law. What you did is akin to listing all your boyfriends/girlfriends in the past on your green card application. I understand that in your heart of hearts those people were your husbands but that doesn't mean anything as long as there isn't a legal basis.

I didnt disclose them for the very reasons that you stated. Why on earth would I list marriages that aren't legal in the eyes of the law. I don't see them as my legal husbands, I know they aren't my legal husbands. I have a child that is considered born out of wedlock because he was not my legal husband. I cant even apply for citizenship for my son without his fathers agreement because he was not my (say it with me) legal husband so yea why the emphasis on marriages? No idea.

She asked my husband what did I do in Illinois and he said she was married. She knew from my children's birth certificates that my kids had the same father and she never asked about it until my husband said what he said.It is what is is..yknow.

[Myopia 93]

this ###### sounds racist maybe she doesnt like muslim people i would have raised hell!!!!! Get a lawyer and see how you can maybe have someone else look at your case or interview you again who the #### asks about streets and schools from all these questions it sounded like she was doubting you already...pizza hut adress i dont even eat at pizza hut i wish they would ask me questions like that smh

from reading your timeline everything seems pretty straight forward so why would your case be difficult??

All I know is she spent a lot of time asking about things that felt odd. She asked me when is the last time we went to the mosque together..well let's say never. Now ask me why? My husband is full time in Aviation school and full time at work. There is hardly time to sleep PLUS we have an online business so where is the time to do anything PLUS we have three kids in three different schools. Its hard enough finding any time for anything. Then she asked if my husband went to the mosque. She asked how divorce was done in Islam, asked what religion my husband was (he was dressed in Islamic attire), Asked me how long he had been muslim and how he accepted Islam. I mean yea, there seemed to be a lot of questions about religion.

It did seem to me that she was asking off the bat about things that seemed weird. What streets are around our home? Whats our address? Asking the kids names over and over. Asking him what highways were around our home and if he drove and how did he get around with no car..I mean she was firing them off and Im serious..if we were fake married we would have failed. She was throwing them out like crazy. I never expected that.

I thought the fact that we were married in NY in an Islamic marriage first and filed taxes would be the issue but not really. She kinda snipped at me when she asked for the tax return and I gave her the printout from taxfreeusa "How do I know you really filed!!?" So i gave her the joint checking account showing the tax refund deposit.

As for the streets...well you would know the roads where you live. We think she was looking at google maps. Our file had LOADS of yellow post it notes on it. I was hoping she had the best long weekend but may be not! I mean Yea whats the address of Pizza Hut. Even I dont know the address and I have lived her longer than him. She asked how my husband met my landlord...how about in the house lobby! I mean we dont have a lease nor do we have rent receipts as my landlord wants cash and is horrible about receipts!

Wow looking at all this...I think we had a real grilling.

SMH indeed.

Edited October 11, 2011 by Myopia

[Darnell 8,478]

One or both of you (you and the ex) were associated with a mosque in the UK, right?

Contact the Imam / Muallah there, ask for assistance in getting a record of 'islamic divorce',

he can help you, once you explain the dates to him, perhaps pay a fee as well.

[Bobby+Umit 161]

I was thinking about that. The Uk doesnt recognize Islamic marriages. There is nothing in UK law that recognizes those marriages. I could have had 20 Islamic marriages in the UK (I didnt) and they would not be recognized. Its not going to be hard to prove what they want. The question that she seems to have is whether I am legally married to anyone else and ever was. ( I am not and never have been). See I knew mine would be more complicated than most others because the Islamic marriage in NY is legal and valid..so if the marriage in NY is legal and marriage...then why not in any other place. That seems to be what the RFE is about. Bear in mind if the NY marriage is legal and valid then technically they could give me a 10 year card based on that premise. I dont blame them for wanting proof.Im just concerned that there may be another angle.

Yeah - quick g search showed this article.

Seems if you never followed that Islamic marriage with the civil - it's not recognized in the UK - so the US can't recognize it.

However - on the travel.state.gov site - this brings up something:

Validity of Marriages Abroad

In general, marriages which are legally performed and valid abroad are also legally valid in the United States. Inquiries regarding the validity of a marriage abroad should be directed to the attorney general of the state in the United States where the parties to the marriage live.

(bolding my own)

Perhaps the state your in recognizes it, even though the UK didn't. (not sure of that states law) - so check that - if the AG of your state says their not valid - then they can't use that against you.

this ###### sounds racist maybe she doesnt like muslim people i would have raised hell!!!!! Get a lawyer and see how you can maybe have someone else look at your case or interview you again who the #### asks about streets and schools from all these questions it sounded like she was doubting you already...pizza hut adress i dont even eat at pizza hut i wish they would ask me questions like that smh

Pet peeve - it's not racist, "muslim" is not a race. The word your looking for is bigot(ed).

The interviewer can ask any questions to determine if the people are true or lying. Perhaps most of those questions were to throw the person off?

But from what was posted - it seems that the Islamic marriages were the main issue (hence the RFE's) - I don't know why it would come up now in the AOS - I would think that would of happened in the initial visa petition.

[Myopia 93]

One or both of you (you and the ex) were associated with a mosque in the UK, right?

Contact the Imam / Muallah there, ask for assistance in getting a record of 'islamic divorce',

he can help you, once you explain the dates to him, perhaps pay a fee as well.

I have already put that in motion. She said she needs a letter stating that there is no record of our marriage or divorce. I suppose I can ask him to write a letter stating that I was married in the mosque in 1993 and was islamically divorced in 1997 but I really feel like I need to get something to prove that I wasn't married to anyone at all at that time. I was never legally married so to me it seems like a minefield...I get a document proving that I had an islamic marriage and divorce but it doesnt prove that it wasnt valid in the UK. Ya know?

[Myopia 93]

Yeah - quick g search showed this article.

Seems if you never followed that Islamic marriage with the civil - it's not recognized in the UK - so the US can't recognize it.

However - on the travel.state.gov site - this brings up something:

(bolding my own)

Perhaps the state your in recognizes it, even though the UK didn't. (not sure of that states law) - so check that - if the AG of your state says their not valid - then they can't use that against you.

Pet peeve - it's not racist, "muslim" is not a race. The word your looking for is bigot(ed).

The interviewer can ask any questions to determine if the people are true or lying. Perhaps most of those questions were to throw the person off?

But from what was posted - it seems that the Islamic marriages were the main issue (hence the RFE's) - I don't know why it would come up now in the AOS - I would think that would of happened in the initial visa petition.

Yea the thing is that I was divorced in the UK to my kids father so that wouldnt stand and Illinois doesnt recognize religious or common law marriages so my marriages were not valid. The ONLY valid marriage that I had (Islamically and Legally) is the one here in NY.

I dont think it matters why or how at this point. She wants this info so I have to give her the info asap. I just want to make sure I dont create a hole for myself by giving her something that USCIS could use to deny my case. My situation doesnt allow for appeal so I have no choice at this point.

[VadnVince 24]

Harrassment at best! What's the address of the Pizza Hut?! As calmly as possible, a supervisor should have been requested. The UK or US doesn't legally recognize an Islamic marriage ceremony without legal registration, There's no legal divorce done, so why should it be proven to the Consulate CLERK - oh, I'm sorry, Immigration "officer?!"

[ceadsearc 516]

All the questions about Pizza Hut, etc. sound similar to what you'd get in a Stokes (I realize this was not a Stokes interview) and make me think that for whatever reason, the interviewer was suspicious of your marriage from the start.