Mistake that slipped past the NVC...

[andreamo 1]

I recently discovered a mistake in the documents we sent to the NVC. (Without going into great detail, our applications were not put together as carefully as I would have liked due to circumstances at that time.) However, it appears to have gone unnoticed. What are the chances of it being picked up at the interview? Would you bring up the mistake or wait for the CO to mention it first? It's kind of a big mistake but nothing can be done about it due to the current circumstances in my husband's country.

I have our lawyer's opinion on how to handle this. I'd like opinions from people here, as well...

Thanks...

[Villanelle 4,122]

Yikes you had hired a lawyer and they submitted your papers with a mistake. How nice.

Well, since youre not saying what the mistake is, just that its a big one- I really have no clue how to answer that.

My gut response is that it needs to be addressed in the interview (at the latest). Does it really matter who says it first?

Also- do you have to wait to the interview to fix it? I mean is it something they can fix at the interview? Or is it something that if you alert them at the interview thats wrong theyre going to tell you- oh okay we see that this is wrong, let us fix this, come back in a week or two when its ready. Why not tell them its wrong before the interview, so when you come for the interview you wont have that delay?

[Kazulie 132]

For the best help on how to fix your situation, you should probably tell us what the error is. I'm willing to bet it has happened to multiple people on this website and someone will know exactly how to fix it.

[Janelle2002 3,865]

It depends on the mistake. If it is anything that could affect their decision I would tell them. You dont want them to hit you with misrepresentation or fraud. Or one of the worst things that can happen happened to my friend. She is Vietnamese and husband Mexican. They have 5 kids. ICE came and got him in 2009 because they didnt tell the truth about something on their application. So the question was would it have affected their decision maybe not but they were not given the opportunity because the embassy was never told. In my opinion it is alwayz better to tell the truth and let the embassy make the decision. As long as you do tell them at some point it is not fraud or misrepresentation I think. You dont want to fight them about your problem that you have and about the fact that you lied to them. If you have an attorney I hope he/she told you to tell the truth. They are the ones that can help you with your problem and if he cant then you should get another attorney.

This is just my opinion only. In the end the decision is yours. Trust me I understand your feelings. Good luck. This journey is hard. I wouldnt wish this visa process on my worst enemy. It is long, hard, hurtful, stressful and low down.

[EminTX 131]

If the mistake got past the initial reviews of your paperwork, I would expect that it is better to try to correct it face-to-face at the interview. When you contact anonymous people in distant places where several agencies touch your stuff, you cannot determine if it is even put with your file or not.

[Cathi 5,757]

Lying or misrepresentation on any or all forms carries a ban. Why would you risk that even if it was a mistake? I noticed you had your case expedited. If you are not being forthcoming with the correct information because you are afraid it will delay your process, in my opinion, is not smart ,if it as you say something "big". Always tell the truth. I wouldn't wait until the interview because it will delay the visa when you could have taken care of it long before that point. I also noticed the beneficiary is from Syria, Syria cases get routed through Amman because the consulate in Damascus is closed. Having been at the interview with my husband in Amman this past summer, I can tell you that they are very thorough, including the consulate officers, and your mistake won't sneak past them. Good luck.

Edited January 26, 2013 by mimolicious

[Cathi 5,757]

If the mistake got past the initial reviews of your paperwork, I would expect that it is better to try to correct it face-to-face at the interview. When you contact anonymous people in distant places where several agencies touch your stuff, you cannot determine if it is even put with your file or not.

no. it can be corrected at the NVC stage, long before it gets to the interview stage.

Edited January 26, 2013 by mimolicious

[EminTX 131]

My husband's demographics were mistyped at that stage--they were correct until everything hit the NVC and there the error occurred. When I called, I was told outright that nothing could be changed but had to be dealt with at the embassy level. Before the interview, my husband sent an email and got a response back within a couple of hours telling him to deal with it face to face.

It probably wouldn't hurt to call them and talk to them--they were very nice to us for phone calls to both locations. My concern is documents that are sent not being matched up because of the sheer volume of things that they have to keep track of--or of your document package being sent on to the embassy before the envelope containing your corrected documents being added to it.

Good luck.

[andreamo 1]

Our lawyer is not filing our papers for us because he is located in the U.S. and we are in the United Arab Emirates. We hired him from here. He is from my state, NH, where the NVC also happens to be located. I hired him because he has contacts with the NH governor's office and I knew he could probably speed up this process for us using his clout. I was right. Our case is currently being transferred to the embassy in Abu Dhabi to be expedited.

The mistake is that I matched my husband's birth certificate with the wrong English translation. The birthday months do not match but they wouldn't have known this at the NVC unless the person checking his documents knew how to read and write Arabic. (I won't go into why he has translations that don't match - it will take a few paragraphs.) I realized my mistake AFTER the package had been sent - only @ 5 days ago, really. As I mentioned above, we live in the UAE together - my husband is not in Syria. His interview will be in Abu Dhabi, not in Amman. Obviously, people here know Arabic. If an Arabic speaker here checks the birth cert with the translation, they will catch the mistake.

We can bring the correct translation with us to the interview and explain the mistake. But that will cause a problem because it does not match his passport birthdate. The mistake on the birth cert was made by the gov't office in his city in Syria that deals with such matters. He never had it corrected because you have to initiate a court case in Syria to do so and he hadn't needed his birth cert for anything up until now. He has 4 copies of his birth cert - two have been altered with pen to match his passport birthdate and were translated into English with the mistake. That's how I matched up the wrong ones.

I am not sure at this point how to correct the problem before the interview (I've been told the case has been transferred to Abu Dhabi but I have not been contacted by the embassy here yet) and anyways, it's the kind of problem that could get him denied as I'm sure you all know. I'd rather speak about this with someone face-to-face because my husband cannot get another birth cert due to the violence in Syria. He absolutely cannot enter his country and his family cannot help him as some of them have fled his city and another is in hiding. (And he cannot get Affidavits of Birth. We've already checked that option out.) I'm banking on the CO's compassion at this point because we have two small children and I'm moving home to the U.S. to be with my dad who now has cancer. I need my husband with me.

I had a friend here with an Indian husband with a similar problem with his passport and birth cert. They told the CO at his interview what was going on and the CO thanked them for their honesty and gave him an IV despite his discrepancy. I am hoping the same thing might happen with us.

The lawyer's opinion is to only offer information if asked - typical lawyer response. But he is with a highly respected firm in my state and, even though it's not his life that will be affected by the outcome, I do trust his judgement. He thinks they won't notice the discrepancy.

I am not trying to be deceitful here. It was an honest mistake made. I can't be the first one to make it, I imagine....

[Roosha 51]

I think that once you've explained the situation to the CO and showed him the different birth certificates and translations, it'll be understood. This isn't such a bad thing, people here in the middle east don't always have accurate records and while it's not normal, it's also not unheard of.

My first reaction when reading your thread yesterday was that you should follow your lawyers advice. But now that you've explained it more, there's really no reason not to be honest. I'd wait and see how the interview goes though, don't be nervous and immediately launch into the explanation right at the beginning of the interview, wait until there's an opening; or even just wait until the end of the interview and mention it.

[Futurebright 1]

My husband birthdate is incorrect on his greencard but the error was made at the NVC stage. Even though he tried to correct it at interview, and even return the GC upon receipt, it was still return with the incorrect birthdate. His lawyer advised to have it rectified when he applies for citizenship. I dont know what to tell you but i personally would only provide info if asked

[andreamo 1]

We have decided to deal with this issue at the interview and not before. We need compassion to jump this hurdle and that will not be present in the equation if I try to rectify it by phone or mail. So come what may, that's what we're doing...

I have talked to some friends here about our situation and I have received mixed responses. Some people have said to play stupid - which would have been my real reaction had I not realized my mistake before going with my husband to his interview - and ask what to do to rectify it once they've brought it up. Others have said to offer up the other translation only if asked. Others have said I should bring it up but not until the end of the interview.

I don't know what to do. I'm going to have to think hard about this. If he is denied, we are in real trouble. As aforementioned, we have two small children, and I no longer have a job after this coming Thursday. I have to go to the U.S. regardless of what happens.

[Villanelle 4,122]

So if Im understanding this correctly, you have a birth certificate with an incorrect date on it? Youre hoping that they will accept it because you are unable to provide them with the corrected one? (Im not saying this in any kind of sarcastic tone).

If thats what youre trying to do, then yes, it can happen. The USCIS policy on that is as follows-

There are situations in which primary evidence is unavailable. This gives rise to a presumption of ineligibility , which is the applicant or petitioner’s burden to overcome.

Title 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2) sets out the procedures relating to unavailability of documents. A petitioner or applicant cannot simply assert that the primary evidence does not exist. The absence of a primary record, instead, must be proven either:

·By a written statement from the appropriate issuing authority attesting to the fact that no record exists or can be located, or that the record sought was part of some segment of records which were lost or destroyed; or

·By evidence (such as an affidavit) "that repeated good faith attempts were made to obtain the required document or record."

(So in theory, your verbal or written affidavit that you made a good faith attempt to get the corrected BC could be enough)

BUT- according to the DOS Foreign Affairs Manual, birth certificates from Syria are available. They are not classified as a country where records can not be obtained, so you truly are banking on the compassion of the person in front of you.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/fees/fees_5455.html?cid=9712#docs (manual)

If I were you I would stress the 'repeated' good faith attempts at obtaining the corrected document. Remember its your burden of proof to overcome.

[andreamo 1]

So if Im understanding this correctly, you have a birth certificate with an incorrect date on it? Youre hoping that they will accept it because you are unable to provide them with the corrected one? (Im not saying this in any kind of sarcastic tone).

If thats what youre trying to do, then yes, it can happen. The USCIS policy on that is as follows-

There are situations in which primary evidence is unavailable. This gives rise to a presumption of ineligibility , which is the applicant or petitioner’s burden to overcome.

Title 8 CFR 103.2(b)(2) sets out the procedures relating to unavailability of documents. A petitioner or applicant cannot simply assert that the primary evidence does not exist. The absence of a primary record, instead, must be proven either:

·By a written statement from the appropriate issuing authority attesting to the fact that no record exists or can be located, or that the record sought was part of some segment of records which were lost or destroyed; or

·By evidence (such as an affidavit) "that repeated good faith attempts were made to obtain the required document or record."

(So in theory, your verbal or written affidavit that you made a good faith attempt to get the corrected BC could be enough)

BUT- according to the DOS Foreign Affairs Manual, birth certificates from Syria are available. They are not classified as a country where records can not be obtained, so you truly are banking on the compassion of the person in front of you.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/fees/fees_5455.html?cid=9712#docs (manual)

If I were you I would stress the 'repeated' good faith attempts at obtaining the corrected document. Remember its your burden of proof to overcome.

You are right, birth certificates are available in Syria. I didn't mean to suggest they weren't. If there were no conflict, my husband would be able to eventually get one. (In order to change his birthdate, he would have to go through the court system, which would probably take a while. But it could be done.) However, his city has been destroyed by the conflict there and, because of the conflict, he cannot enter the country. His family name is well-known due to its political and social status within the society and certain members have been very vocal about their opposition to Bashar. My husband is concerned that he will be taken by the government if he were to step foot in Syria.

I don't know if this is something we should tell the embassy but it's the truth. If my husband would fear for his life in his country, why would I ever ask him to go there and get a new birth certificate? And, unfortunately, I didn't learn of the problem with the birth certificate until we had made it through USCIS and were preparing to move on to the NVC. So we had already gotten the ball rolling with his paperwork...

I don't know how we'd demonstrate "repeated attempts" to get a BC. We can't even attempt once. I guess we're screwed.

Maybe he should just enter the U.S. illegally through a fence and then be pardoned by the gov't. Clearly, that's the easier route to U.S. citizenship...

I'm totally regretting this whole process now and wish we had never started it.

[Villanelle 4,122]

Do not take the word 'repeatedly' too literally. Were talking about you being able to show you made attempts during the process to obtain the document. Because of what you described above- I would suggest, your best bet is to be prepared. Understand what the person is going to be looking for, what your burden of proof is, and what you could present to satisfy it.

If his family name is 'well known' because of political and social status and have been vocal, perhaps there is some kind of documentation that you can provide proving such? New articles or perhaps simply an affidavits (does not have to be notarized) simply a 3rd party statement from someone attesting to such. That combined with your husbands own testimony that he fears to enter the country to complete the process of making changes to his document should be sufficient.

You need to give the person something to point to, to say okay, based on this, this and that, its okay and will meet the burden of proof. You dont have the primary evidence, but a verbal statement from your husband stating he is afraid to enter, combined with a 3rd party statement that he does have a valid reason to be afraid or other proof its dangerous to him specifically, and the knowledge that there is conflict there should IMO be enough.