I live in Los Angeles area. Why does this site tell me to send my I-129F to Texas?

[Adriene H 89]

p.s. to those at large: I remember the change to send it to Texas now, the I-129F, but whhhy? seems like a waste of time, no? I sent mine in '09 to VSC.

I know sending it to the Texas Lockbox seems like a waste of time.

But USCIS, may be hard to believe or understand, is following some

sort of logic or internal process and they certainly have their

own reasons for why things must be sent to particular locations

and not others.

The biggest part of the immigration process is playing by their

rules and being patient.

[AKSinghSingh79 143]

As back-up plan... From the UK, you could also hold ceremony, but not TECHNICALLY get married... call it an engagement ceremony if you will.. After approval of k-1, do simple justice of peace or go back and sign papers with church...

No, this is the opposite of what the OP should do. Have you not read the previous posts in which I and other members have CLEARLY explained the serious consequences of holding a mock wedding ceremony? Lying or concealing a ceremony is dangerous and if it were to be discovered it could result in severe penalties which could include a lifetime ban from the US.

I cannot stress this enough! Do not do anything reminiscent of a wedding of you are planning on applying for the K-1!

Please browse around the forums and see the trouble others have experienced for attempting to do a marriage-like ceremony during the K-1 before giving advice like this to the OP.

[Justine+David 218]

I know sending it to the Texas Lockbox seems like a waste of time.

But USCIS, may be hard to believe or understand, is following some

sort of logic or internal process and they certainly have their

own reasons for why things must be sent to particular locations

and not others.

The biggest part of the immigration process is playing by their

rules and being patient.

their own reasons are usually dumb and include incompetence

civil surgeon anyone for K1 AOS???

Anyway, you're right though. We have to play by their rules. They are too gigantic to take on, unless you're President Obama.

[Mel & Ahmed 5]

I live in Texas and had to send mine to California

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

I live in Texas and had to send mine to California

You are doing a spousal visa. A bit different, no?

[Mel & Ahmed 5]

i sent both in i-130 and 1-29f to california and the reason i sent both is because USCIS said by doing the i129f would expedite my i130 , but here is the thing the i130 went through and so with it being the greater benifit it went through and this is what we are going for and currently in ap for over a week so we are in the end now..just a waiting game at this point.

[Mel & Ahmed 5]

i think in any case to expedite it must be for medical reasons and have to have doctor approval..they wont expedite you due to financial reasons. lso, some people that file for k1 visa are put in AP so this is even longer waiting. just research everything and stay 1 step ahead ..i wish you the best of luck! and speedy process

[Pitaya 2,577]

Although there may be exceptions, the printed instructions seem pretty straight forward, USCIS Form I29F instructions, as with many things with this visa process USCIS has amended their process. Additionally, seeking exemptions or exceptions may result in further processing delay.

For example, the original USCIS notice about the USCIS 129F filing address change , seems to have been tweeked a bit since first announced in August 2010. I have read on this forum that they continue to forward 129F petitions sent to the other service centers to the Texas lockbox address. However, that likely results in a delay in processing.

Bottom line is that it is their game and their rules.

Good luck on your visa journey.

[cdneh 3,112]

OP, you certainly have the cart before the horse. You need to do quite a bit of reading here on Visa Journey, starting with the K1 flowchart. It takes quite a lot longer than 6 months from application to Visa. Some people get lucky and get through the system faster, but they are the exception rather than the rule. Some people get sent requests for further information. That causes a delay. Some people who file petitions never successfully get Visas at all.

I'm sorry that you went ahead and planned your entire wedding, and made deposits, and invited people who paid for plane tickets to attend, but please understand USCIS will be unmoved by this. Poor planning on your behalf will not generate an emergency on theirs.

You cannot get around the process through perceived shortcuts, or hurry it up. You need to send your petition to the location they ask all K1's to be sent to. There is no short line, overnighting it only gets it to USCIS sooner, but once it is there, you will get into the line with everyone else.

You have not filed, so no. Contacting your congressman to hurry the process is of no use to you whatever. Even if you had been waiting beyond the projected time frame, calling on their help is of dubious assistance at best. They can call and inquire, but they will not be told more than you can find out yourself. It doesn't give you any special status or consideration.

It will do you no good to write your wedding date down on your paperwork or cover letter. USCIS are under no compulsion to make your time frame.

You cannot go ahead if your visa is not granted in time, and marry anyway. You would have to begin again, at the expense of more time and money. Impatience could earn your fiance a ban, and is it really worth that?

You will not get an expedite citing severe financial loss. That you imprudently went ahead and organized and paid for a wedding without benefit of Visa in hand does not fit the criteria. The US citizen portion of a couple needs to prove that they are financially able to support their spouse, and I get a little nervous when I see people at the early in the plot K1 petition stage pleading financial hardship.

Read up on the process. Understand that none of us are particularly fond of USCIS, or the way that they do business. They are the only game in town. If nothing else, please try to grasp that USCIS want what they want, and how they want it. If they grant you and your fiance a Visa, they will do so in their own good time.

[Robert&Karen 264]

Follow the timelines of others who have been in your shoes. It is very educational.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

I've been around a long time and know the London K1 process especially well. So a few comments to add the the excellent info you've already been given.

Lockbox

USCIS changed to the Lockbox setup for I-129F petitions to make their process more efficient and more cost effective by doing the preliminary work-up at one site. They had already been using a lockbox in Chicago for Adjustment of Status applications. They have contractors in a separate "lockbox" facility opening the mail. They check for basic documents, correct payment, and signatures. If all is well, they deposit the fee, generate a NOA1 receipt, scan documents into the computer, and reorganize your papers into a specific order/file for USCIS processing. Then it goes to a USCIS Service Center and waits until the day a USCIS adjudicator will review it.

I think many of the timelines of processing at the Texas Service Center are probably erroneous because other VJ members thought Texas Lockbox was the same as Texas Service Center, much like you did. So when they set up their VJ timelines they said TSC. Their data will be reported as TSC, even if CSC actually was the eventual Service Center, if they never go back and fix their VJ timeline. All the cumulative data on VJ is dependent on members making correct timeline entries and keeping it updated.

How do they find out K1s married or suspect such?

a few I've heard--

Photos in wedding garb they take to their interview (dumb!)

Photos in wedding garb found in luggage at POE. Were refused entry on a fiance visa.

FACEBOOK! Yes, USCIS has admitted they use social media to vet applicants qualifications for a visa. So imagine your fiance changes her profile picture on FB to you and her cutting the wedding cake in September. You go interview in London in November..... caught!

Timing

Times change constantly depending on workload. I looked at the I-129F filers the month before me and they were getting NOA2 in 2-4 weeks so that's what I expected. It changed to 2 months by my group (March). It was 3 months for the next group (April). Just shows how it's difficult to predict because it can change for better or worse quickly.

Service center to NVC--supposed to be a week. I remember when people have had delays there of many weeks.

K1 at NVC- supposed to take 3 days but some get held up and aren't sent on to the embassy right away.

London Embassy- The most efficient people can get through in 2 months or just over. Many who don't study the process for tips and tricks take 3-4 months. Here's a good thread full of London tips in the UK forum. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/350185-london-2012-k1s-from-noa2-to-interview-thread/

If I was placing a bet, I would say you will not have a visa in hand in 6 months but there are many variables so anything can happen. The smarter your are about filing perfect paperwork and being ready for London instead of waiting for them to send you instruction, the faster you will process. And the nicer you act on VJ, the more likely someone will take time to sincerely help you with the experience they have gained over years of seeing hundreds of cases. You've already shown a little bit of "attitude" in this post. Just sayin'.

Edited March 14, 2012 by Nich-Nick

[AKSinghSingh79 143]

If making your pre-planned wedding date is your main concern, do yourself a favor and file for the CR-1.

If you don't want to wait that long to file, get married via a small civil ceremony now and send your

I-130 petition package. After that, you are free to do another ceremony even with your CR-1 pending (as you two are already married).

My fiance and I are doing something similar. We are marrying in a small civil ceremony first because our big ceremony in India is scheduled for January and we did want to wait that long to file the I-130.

[Orando 57]

If making your pre-planned wedding date is your main concern, do yourself a favor and file for the CR-1.

If you don't want to wait that long to file, get married via a small civil ceremony now and send your

I-130 petition package. After that, you are free to do another ceremony even with your CR-1 pending (as you two are already married).

My fiance and I are doing something similar. We are marrying in a small civil ceremony first because our big ceremony in India is scheduled for January and we did want to wait that long to file the I-130.

Yep, this seems like the safest, risk-free option for people in these situations. Leaving it to chance that the CO would understand and be able to discern the situation is too risky given other people's prior experiences.

Edited March 14, 2012 by Orando

[bigdog 377]

Reread everything, get it straight in your head, don't make solid plans and decide how you want to do this, before you submit.

[tany1157 161]

Not to offend anyone, but I'm sure I will.... I can't STAND it when people try to "get around" immigration laws and procedures. I'm sorry, but if "oh, we have a wedding date, and vendors, and people flying out, etc etc etc" could get you an expedite, then EVERYONE would be doing it. UGHHHHH, people, don't plan ANYTHING until visa in hand. Geesh