HELP! No pictures for interview BUT other documents

[Waiting4Wife 0]

We have no wedding pics, no other pics from anytime being together - it is against our religion to take pics without a necessary reason (the only pics I have are for ID card and drivers license).

However, we have lots of receipts of being together all purchases we made hotels we stayed at cars we rented, we have all of my airplane tickets, I am submitting copies of my passport that have all stamps of travel to her country, emails with her brother prior to marriage, all emails and phone logs after marriage, she uses my bank card to withdraw money there I have copies of my bank statements, she has some receipts from the western union I sent her, we have written letters from our parents and siblings, and for my work I put her as a dependent under my health insurance and as a beneficiary for my life insurance and I have sent her the paperwork which lists her under my medical and life insurance. Plus of course we have the marriage certificate from her country. I have submitted my original tax papers to her to take to the interview.

Do you think we will have any issues or problems at the interview? I will be accompanying her to the interview.

[himher 634]

It might be a cultural choice but it is against no religion to take pics. We live in Saudi and are aware of the discomfort that some have with photos however USCIS/DOS personnel know and are familiar with what is or is not allowed and they will not, if they ask for pics, accept that there is a religious prohibition against them while at the same time the conservative governments that are based on religion want sets of pics for every dam thing.

Cultural / personal choices are otherwise not protected religious activity.

Just sayin' habibi

We interviewed for K3 and interviewed 4 years later for DCF and never once submitted a pic, or travel receipts, or phone logs, or ticket stubs, or anything other than bank, insurance, marriage documents, ID documents, and other required documents specifically listed on the various and sundry applications. We BROUGHT a photo album to our AOS interview in 2008 just because we had a cool one. It was not needed. Bank records for the K3 are especially good when the benificiary, even though they are not on the account, can withdraw and use the account so that's pretty handy for showing that you are merging your assets to the best of allowed ability.

Accompanying your spouse to the interview is, in my view, is the best possible thing and helps clear up any questions about marriage validity. Do not, however, try to sell that religious prohibition concerning pics to the interviewing officer. They are smarter than that.

Hope your interview goes well!

We have no wedding pics, no other pics from anytime being together - it is against our religion to take pics without a necessary reason (the only pics I have are for ID card and drivers license).

However, we have lots of receipts of being together all purchases we made hotels we stayed at cars we rented, we have all of my airplane tickets, I am submitting copies of my passport that have all stamps of travel to her country, emails with her brother prior to marriage, all emails and phone logs after marriage, she uses my bank card to withdraw money there I have copies of my bank statements, she has some receipts from the western union I sent her, we have written letters from our parents and siblings, and for my work I put her as a dependent under my health insurance and as a beneficiary for my life insurance and I have sent her the paperwork which lists her under my medical and life insurance. Plus of course we have the marriage certificate from her country. I have submitted my original tax papers to her to take to the interview.

Do you think we will have any issues or problems at the interview? I will be accompanying her to the interview.

[Waiting4Wife 0]

It might be a cultural choice but it is against no religion to take pics. We live in Saudi and are aware of the discomfort that some have with photos however USCIS/DOS personnel know and are familiar with what is or is not allowed and they will not, if they ask for pics, accept that there is a religious prohibition against them while at the same time the conservative governments that are based on religion want sets of pics for every dam thing.

Cultural / personal choices are otherwise not protected religious activity.

Just sayin' habibi

We interviewed for K3 and interviewed 4 years later for DCF and never once submitted a pic, or travel receipts, or phone logs, or ticket stubs, or anything other than bank, insurance, marriage documents, ID documents, and other required documents specifically listed on the various and sundry applications. We BROUGHT a photo album to our AOS interview in 2008 just because we had a cool one. It was not needed. Bank records for the K3 are especially good when the benificiary, even though they are not on the account, can withdraw and use the account so that's pretty handy for showing that you are merging your assets to the best of allowed ability.

Accompanying your spouse to the interview is, in my view, is the best possible thing and helps clear up any questions about marriage validity. Do not, however, try to sell that religious prohibition concerning pics to the interviewing officer. They are smarter than that.

Hope your interview goes well!

They are experts on visa stuff, not religious jurists. They cannot tell a person how to practice his religion simply based on experiences with other members of same religion who are non practicing.

Ya I will take all the other stuff. Thanks for the reply!

[himher 634]

Luck wished was sincere and advisement is based on personal experience / full understandind of the issue and not to be taken for or intended to be critical.

Laws in referenced countries are based on and developed by religious jurists and those religious jurists who developed the reciprical laws demand photographs for all sorts of reasons and activities. Familiarity with reciprical laws would be a basis for determining what is and is not accepted religious practice and in the case of the (2) conservative posts we went through (Indonesia and Riyadh) I would guess that the consular officers are extremely familiar with what is or is not required religious practice as dictated by the religious jurists who DO make the laws.

Again just sayin' - still wish you luck!

They are experts on visa stuff, not religious jurists. They cannot tell a person how to practice his religion simply based on experiences with other members of same religion who are non practicing.

Ya I will take all the other stuff. Thanks for the reply!

[pushbrk 12,883]

They are experts on visa stuff, not religious jurists. They cannot tell a person how to practice his religion simply based on experiences with other members of same religion who are non practicing.

Ya I will take all the other stuff. Thanks for the reply!

I'll give an extremely strong second to the notion that Consular Officers are fully familiar with local customs, including religious issues. It's part of "visa stuff" BECAUSE it's a big part of how they identify fraud. Further, it doesn't really matter whether you are "right" and they are wrong. What they think is going to rule the day. If you want to assert that you have no photos together for religious reasons, then take documentation from your religious authorities to back that up.