Will NVC throw out your case for one misspelled word???

[Mrs.A2010 4]

We planned on using a lawyer throughout the i-130, NVC, and i-601 waiver parts of our case. We have just completed the i-130 step using the lawyer and our case just got to NVC.

From my extensive research, intelligence and use of this forum, I feel more than confident that I could do the NVC step myself, saving us at least $1500 I'm guessing....

My husband is saying (and always said) he's heard that if "you do the process without a lawyer and you put one letter or number out of place they can deny your case & won't allow you to fix your mistake." He says someone his family knows tried to do everything himself back in 1986 and messed it up and he still hasn't been able to fix it.

I already have the full list of documents we need to send in for this, all we would have to do is pay the fee online, mail our packet in with the very simple looking forms filled out.

I don't believe what he's saying because he was told for years by others that they've all heard stories of ppl who go to CDJ for their interview and 'if the agent is having a bad day they can assign you the 10 year max to stay JUST BECAUSE THEY CAN or if they are happy that day they can give you 3 months," yadda yadda. Well I asked our lawyer that and she was like that isn't true at all, so naturally I'm hesitant to believe any more hearsay from his people.

Opinions please???

[littoral1 15]

why u have to apply for waiver

[Mrs.A2010 4]

why u have to apply for waiver

Because it's part of our process to get a visa.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Nope that's a lie. It's a pretty common misconception though - one I had in the beginning from all the reading online as well (prior to VJ).

USCIS WILL deny if you willingly lie and it's a "material misrepresentation" (i.e. If the lie gets you approved when if they knew the truth you would be denied).

If you make a typo, not the end of the world. Most of the time they won't even notice. If they do you'll get an RFE (request for evidence). If you DO notice a typo though you should try and correct it when you can.

Here's a thread from an Aussie chick who made a typo: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/395500-ds2301/ I'm sure there's other example on here, and online too.

That said, what are the reasons for using an attorney? You used the attorney for the I-601. Is the I-601 approved already?

[reese1 68]

LOL...my fiancee came to me with that crazy he said she said non sense and I ignored all of it, because most of the people had never even been through the process so were just passing on what they had heard. Misspelled words or names may not get you case cancelled or denied BUT it can case delays so I say just make sure you double and triple check anything before you send it. Most on vj have done every step of the process without and attorney, so only you know your situation and parts of it will and won't need an attorney. I think you will be fine to do the NVC portion by yourself. Best of luck to you!

[Jalos-LongBeach 7]

I can tell u that I heard all these "stories" and they were drilled into my fiancees head while she was over there in Mexico waiting. No one could believe I would risk not hiring a lawyer. They all said I must be crazy. I can tell you that alot of what we hear about the immagration process in Mexico is nonsense when it comes to immigration issuses and about 95% of the time the story originates from something an immigration lawyer told someone. Seriously 90% of the people I talked to over there were convinced you had to try to cross the border at El Paso that same day in order for the visa to be valid. That makes no sense cuz they dont even give it to you that day. But people think this is a fact over there. My own mother filled my head with stories of how so and so's Uncle or cousins neighbor didnt do this or that right and how it was better to let a professional handle it. I didnt pay any attention. Thanks to VJ it was all so simple. she couldnt believe it went so smooth. And they all think I so smart for saving the $2000 an attorney would charge. Now alot of people where she is from are looking up VJ and sending me questions all the time. I never did a waiver myself but I have not read one single thread on VJ where someone followed the directions on any topic and got burned.

[Phil & Alla 26]

No one, including an attorney is above making a mistake on visa forms. I can speak from personal experience, one I spelled my wife's family names wrong and some other things on the K1 and I did not get it returned or an RFE. On my AOS packet I checked an incorrect box and again did not get an RFE. If you follow the guides here it will probably be accepted and if there is a mistake you will get an RFE and fix it. You would supply an attorney with all the information and they would put it on the forms, who knows the information better than you? NOT an attorney, you would take more care filling the forms out. If you get stuck on a question or what to put in a box, people here will help. I read a lot of posts where attorneys make silly mistakes, costing more time in the process, most here regret ever hiring an attorney.

[natalieblake 0]

on the entire i130 form i accidentally put my husbands birthday with his birth year as 2012. they corrected it right in front of us in the interview, we never even got an rfp for it. i'm not sure if this is common but i have read on here where other people made typo's and they were also corrected in the interview stage. good luck!

[GlobeHopperMama 95]

Is the lawyer you hired contracted to do the full process, I-130, NVC, interview, and I-601? I say this because it could cause more discontinuity and confusion than you need to deal with, to break the relationship for the NVC only to resume it for the I-601. Personally, I think most well-read people who have already consulted with a lawyer and confirmed that they're eligible for the process at hand and waiver should be able to do the I-130 and NVC parts by themselves, but the waiver and anything involving inadmissibility is a really rough thing to do on your own. Also, have you checked that you'd be saving money by doing what you're planning? My lawyer, for example, charges the same for doing the process start to finish as she does for just the I-601 because she points out that when a client has done any part alone, her office has to be brought up to speed on what has been filed, what was stated on each form, and what was submitted so that they can keep things consistent when they do their end of the work, and they still have to collect all the same history and biographical information on the applicant, and all of this updating consumes a lot of their time, which is why they don't necessarily give a discount for doing stuff on your own. If you're doing this in the interest of money, make sure you really will save money by doing so.

I do think that when the intending immigrant has complications that require an I-601 waiver, you have to be MUCH MORE CAREFUL because placing one incorrect date or entry on the DS-230, for example, can create an extra inadmissibility that can be really hard to undo if you go into the interview with that mistake still standing on the paperwork. As long as you've checked and double-checked your paperwork, you should be fine. But it would also be very useful to visit a forum like immigrate2us.net (which is focuses on people needing I-601 waivers) and read around to make sure you're using the correct terminology and information based on the fact that you have a spouse who will be inadmissible and need an I-601 waiver. VisaJourney can be a very enlightening site, but if your spouse is inadmissible, your process and the prospect of DIY is a lot different and much more risky.

As far as ONE MISSPELLED WORD, no, they can't just throw out the case (the NVC, by the way, they are just document-collectors, they are not the ones making the decision on your case as that's done at the visa interview with USCIS). However, a lot comes down to what that mistake is, as I referenced above. Mess up your father's birthdate on a biographical information form? Probably not a big deal. But mess up a date or mode of entry to the US when there were multiple ones, legal or illegal, and you could cause an additional inadmissibility problem that can't be immediately waived. In other words, they aren't going to deny a case because you messed up something insignificant on the forms, they would deny a case because something you stated triggers an inadmissibility under the law, even if that was a mistake that you put on the form. Visa denials, at least at Ciudad Juarez, are NOT arbitrary. There's always a reason there, and if denied, the applicant is given a form stating which section of the law they violated to be found inadmissible. Waiver approval is often much more arbitrary, although even that has come under a lot more standardization now that waivers are filed centrally to the lockbox in the US instead of at individual consulates.

Finally, like the others have said, lawyers can and do make just as big mistakes as individuals sometimes. This is why it's important to make sure the lawyer you're using is trustworthy, is able to dedicate the necessary time to your case that you need, and is charging appropriately for the time required to spend on your case. Since immigration lawyers generally charge by flat rates rather than hourly, their rate needs to be sufficient to cover all the work hours that will be put into your case. When a waiver is involved, this means a LOT more hours than for a straightforward non-waiver case. Good luck and I hope your case concludes smoothly!