New Topic Area Suggestion

[AaronLV 12]

I have been on this site since the start of our Visa Process in 2008. We are coming to an end in a few weeks with my wife's oath ceremony. I have used the site extensively for searching and finding information on my questions and it has been wonderful. One of my pet peeves with lots of posts and topics on the site is the fact that there is so much hearsay. When I was searching for information specific to a topic, I would read well I heard about this person or that person, but never had any credible first hand experience. Then when and if I did find the information, it was followed by a ton of negative comments. It is always better to deal in firsthand facts, if my employee's ever tell me: They said this, or this happened to so & so cousin, I dismiss them and tell them to speak to me with the names of who "they" are, and which employee's cousin said what. Drives me nuts.

I think if a topic area was added that was titled First Hand Experience (or something similar), with people required to put in what the posts pertains to, and not allow for comments or follow up. Make that Topic area read only, and just the experience of people (Only related to the Visa Process), no questions, just statements and what issues or roadblocks they had to overcome on their journey (not personal, just things they ran into at the embassy, NVC, USCIS, interview).

Example:

For instance my wife received a 10 yr GC at AOS (should have been a 2 yr). I called USCIS 5 or 6 times spoke with different people over the years (all documented on my end), and even made an Infopass appointment, and had been told by every single one of them she does not need to file ROC she has a 10yr GC. We get to the citizenship interview the officer called us in and says the GC is invalid because it has K1 on code and not C or P, so we can't complete the process. The AOS officer made a mistake 3 years ago, and now we were delayed, even with all the information of who I spoke with etc. The officer even told us we were lucky she was let through the point of entry, if the CBP officer would have noticed her physical card was wrong she would have been denied entry even though the computer had the correct code with 10 yr permanent.

We were lucky in the fact that USCIS admitted it was their error and they expedited our ROC (2 1/2 months start to finish). But could have been avoided had I been able to get first hand knowledge of someone's similar situation. I would have filed 2 years ago, and not had the issue. I did searches on the site and could not find anyone that had the same situation, although I did find people asking the questions, but never got an answer. I myself posted a question and never really got a good answer from someone it had happened to. I have gotten quite a few emails from people asking the outcome as they were in similar situations, I did reply to them all with my experience and what they should look for and the questions they need to ask USCIS.

[ThaiStyleUSA 1]

Hey AaronLV, I know your feeling. I went through a lot trying to get my woman over here. As for New Topic Area suggestion, you can start that topic. It it for read only, it wouldn't be called "Forum"; it would be just FAQ only site. I joined this forum since 2007 and I found it is very informative. People here are very helpful and have good advice, and as well as encouragement. I didn't run into any negative comments at all. Anyway, congratulations on your next step. Best of luck to you and your love one.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I can appreciate your concern. It can be very frustrating to ask for advice then receive a variety of conflicting advice, or judgmental comments or something that is completely inaccurate. The important thing to remember, however, is that Visa Journey is by its very nature an 'experiential' website of individuals who are going through the immigration process and are sharing their personal experiences. The biggest problem is that immigration is not a one size fits all. Every person will have their own individual experience that contains specifics based upon their personal circumstances. There will be times when someone does not receive an answer to their question - as well as times when they will not like the answers they receive. Visa Journey was never intended to be the 'be all and end all' for immigration information. It is meant to be a forum for people to share their experiences and to offer support and camaraderie while going through the process. This is outlined in the Terms of Service where it clearly does state:

Information contained on or made available through VisaJourney.com Websites and Services (including but not limited to the discussion forums) is not intended to and does not constitute legal advice, recommendations, mediation or counseling under any circumstance and no attorney-client relationship is formed. Do not act on or rely on any information from VisaJourney.com Websites and Services without consulting with a licensed attorney as this site is not a substitute for obtaining appropriate legal advice from a competent, independent legal counsel in the relevant jurisdiction. Moreover, due to the rapidly changing nature of the law and the reliance on information provided by outside sources, we make no warranty or guarantee concerning the accuracy or reliability of the Content on VisaJourney.com Websites and Services or at other sites to which we link. Nothing submitted to this Web Site is treated as is privileged or confidential with the exception of items listed in Visajourney.com's Privacy Policy. All communications and Content Posted via the Service (including but not limited to the discussion forums) are NOT treated as privileged or confidential.

and

No Endorsement. Visajourney.com does not endorse, support, represent or guarantee the truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of any communications or Content Posted via the Service. These communications and Posts express the views of the author and not necessarily the views of VisaJourney.com. You acknowledge that any reliance on Content Posted via the Service (including but not limited to the discussion forums) will be at your own risk.

http://www.visajourn...m/content/terms

It would be great if we could guarantee that all of the posts here were accurate and supportive and helpful, and for the most part, people try to be accurate, supportive and helpful - but that problem of 'immigration is not a one size fits all' raises its head again and the best we can do is remember that every post here should be understood as starting with 'in my experience' or 'based on what I know' whether it is actually stated or not. The ultimate reference is always going to be the USCIS and appropriate DOS websites and I really recommend everyone to become very familiar with those sites: http://www.uscis.gov and http://www.travel.state.gov

Edited February 5, 2013 by Kathryn41