Chances of Success on Applying for CR-1 Visa

[thailen 0]

If my Philippine GF and I, an American citizen living in Thailand, decide to get married, and if we fill out all the forms and pay all the fees, if she gets the medical innoculations, etc. and if she is not found to lie, to work as a prostitute, deal drugs or been convicted of a crime, what are her chances of passing her final interview?

[stevie b 141]

read the guides for what you will need to do

the process will take 5-8 months before you should even think about medicals due to the fact that they expire

check in with the forum for your country for specifics

as long as the relationship is real and you supply the appropriate documentation, then there should be no concern over an interview

[dwheels76 5,468]

If my Philippine GF and I, an American citizen living in Thailand, decide to get married, and if we fill out all the forms and pay all the fees, if she gets the medical innoculations, etc. and if she is not found to lie, to work as a prostitute, deal drugs or been convicted of a crime, what are her chances of passing her final interview?

What strong evidence do you have to show proof of a bonafide relationship. That's what they are looking for.

Read the guides as stated.

[thailen 0]

What strong evidence do you have to show proof of a bonafide relationship. That's what they are looking for.

Read the guides as stated.

I'll read them, but isn't marriage evidence of a bonafide relationship, following a one-year live-in courtship? Maybe the guidelines will tell me..

[thailen 0]

What strong evidence do you have to show proof of a bonafide relationship. That's what they are looking for.

Read the guides as stated.

[thailen 0]

Wow!

Here are the Bonafides:

• Affidavit from petitioner and beneficiary verifying the marriage or relationship
• Affidavit from witnesses to the relationship/marriage (parents, siblings, other relatives, close friends)
• Wedding announcements, invitations
• Church certificate
• Wedding pictures
• Joint bank account letter (when opened and balance) and recent statements
• Joint credit card statement - including receipts from charges made by both of you
• Evidence of joint life and cohabitation: monthly bills, insurance, assets etc.
• A deed showing co-ownership of your property or a lease agreement with both of your names on the lease
• Receipts of money transfer (if applicable)
• Phone bills showing your conversations
• Receipts of gifts sent online or otherwise
• Transcripts of IM chats or Skype calls
• Copies of letters and/or e-mails
• Copies of holiday cards addressed to you both
• Birth certificate of any child that has been born to your marriage
• Airline ticket receipts showing trips taken together or to visit each other -- including boarding passes
• Copies of the passport stamps from any visits to your spouse's country
• Pictures of you together on vacation and/or with family and friends. It's best to include a range of times, not just a bunch of photos from a short period of time

In your opinion, which of the above(we can't submit more than half) are most important, outside of the affidavits and boarding passes and visa stamped copies)?

[stevie b 141]

I'll read them, but isn't marriage evidence of a bonafide relationship, following a one-year live-in courtship? Maybe the guidelines will tell me..

a one year live-in courtship is easily manipulated with address changes as a verbal statement is easily manipulated on paper over time

pictures, co-mingling of finances, boarding passes, etc

most initial understandings of a USC marrying a foreign national are completely out of whack with the realities of the process

yes, I could go and talk to someone about I am married so believe me, but where is the proof? oh, marriage certificate? that is just a fee and a document.

you basically have to go in first and show without a reasonable doubt to anyone who is looking at your relationship on paper that it is truly real. after you can do that, will you be granted the opportunity to have your fiancée actually speak with a government appointed official to convince them for one last time that the relationship is real.

be aware of your embassy specifics. file the appropriate documents. pay the fees. don't lie.

questions are easily answered

read the guides you will survive

[stevie b 141]

Wow!

Here are the Bonafides:

• Affidavit from petitioner and beneficiary verifying the marriage or relationship
• Affidavit from witnesses to the relationship/marriage (parents, siblings, other relatives, close friends)
• Wedding announcements, invitations
• Church certificate
• Wedding pictures
• Joint bank account letter (when opened and balance) and recent statements
• Joint credit card statement - including receipts from charges made by both of you
• Evidence of joint life and cohabitation: monthly bills, insurance, assets etc.
• A deed showing co-ownership of your property or a lease agreement with both of your names on the lease
• Receipts of money transfer (if applicable)
• Phone bills showing your conversations
• Receipts of gifts sent online or otherwise
• Transcripts of IM chats or Skype calls
• Copies of letters and/or e-mails
• Copies of holiday cards addressed to you both
• Birth certificate of any child that has been born to your marriage
• Airline ticket receipts showing trips taken together or to visit each other -- including boarding passes
• Copies of the passport stamps from any visits to your spouse's country
• Pictures of you together on vacation and/or with family and friends. It's best to include a range of times, not just a bunch of photos from a short period of time

In your opinion, which of the above(we can't submit more than half) are most important, outside of the affidavits and boarding passes and visa stamped copies)?

oh jeeze u put this before I finished my other post.. basically all of it is good .. affidavits carry the least weight .. go for it

[Ning 619]

If my Philippine GF and I, an American citizen living in Thailand, decide to get married, and if we fill out all the forms and pay all the fees, if she gets the medical innoculations, etc. and if she is not found to lie, to work as a prostitute, deal drugs or been convicted of a crime, what are her chances of passing her final interview?

I myself am not sure if she would interview in BKK or need to go back to the P I. It may depend on her legal status in Thailand. It probably doesn't matter when it comes to the answers you seek. I am sure someone with knowledge of this aspect will tell us. Karee is a good source for example.

Of course see the guides here on VJ. As a married person you would file for a C R 1 type visa. That will include a copy of the marriage cert which will have to be translated. There is no better doc to submit that proves your relationship. It was in fact the only thing we submitted in my case and there were no questions asked, Your laundry list contains a lot of overkill but I know where you got it and understand you think they want all of that info. Submit what makes sense.

She will eventually need a police report from the P I and Thailand. This will reveal anything in your potential list if it applied. I doubt it does but she may have to explain why she was in Thailand for example. Its an unfortunate fact that a lot of women from the P I are " working " in Thailand. The embassy knows it very difficult for citizens of other countries to work in Thailand because of how our laws are written. Illegals have to be very careful there. I am not saying she did that but if she interviews in BKK she will be asked. The forms for example ask her to explain where she worked. They will look into this and that will probably cause a certain delay.

Her chances of passing the interview will depend totally on her ability to answer some difficult questions. Other than that the problem will be in the prep of the required docs. You for example will explain your status in Thailand. Are you a legal resident? If so you could file using the DCF which saves a lot of time.

[pushbrk 12,879]

I'll read them, but isn't marriage evidence of a bonafide relationship, following a one-year live-in courtship? Maybe the guidelines will tell me..

No, marriage is not evidence of a bona fide relationship. The I-130 instructions will tell you what kind of evidence to submit, but usually most falls under the "other" category and would, in your case, consist of evidence you lived together in Thailand.

[Ning 619]

No, marriage is not evidence of a bona fide relationship. The I-130 instructions will tell you what kind of evidence to submit, but usually most falls under the "other" category and would, in your case, consist of evidence you lived together in Thailand.

I have always thought the marriage cert was evidence enough. It was all we submitted in our case but it may have been the fact that they knew we lived together in Thailand that caused them to not ask for anything else. Also at that time the USC was allowed to attend the interview so my husband was standing right there. The officer invited him to the window to listen.

[pushbrk 12,879]

I have always thought the marriage cert was evidence enough. It was all we submitted in our case but it may have been the fact that they knew we lived together in Thailand that caused them to not ask for anything else. Also at that time the USC was allowed to attend the interview so my husband was standing right there. The officer invited him to the window to listen.

The marriage certificate is usually all the evidence needed to get the petition approved. Though you may not have "submitted" specific evidence you lived together in Thailand, if they "knew" it from the facts before them, that would be strong evidence. Either way, a marriage certificate is NOT any kind of evidence of a bona fide relationship, BECAUSE, the most fraudulent of "relationships" in spouse cases ALSO have a marriage certificate.

[Ketsuban 1,034]

In a lot of cases, the petitioner and beneficiary aren't living together. They're applying for the CR-1 so they CAN live together. So how exactly can they show intermingling finances and lease/mortgage agreements if they are trying to get a visa that will allow them to begin doing this?

[pushbrk 12,879]

In a lot of cases, the petitioner and beneficiary aren't living together. They're applying for the CR-1 so they CAN live together. So how exactly can they show intermingling finances and lease/mortgage agreements if they are trying to get a visa that will allow them to begin doing this?

In those cases, the focus tends to be on evidence of time spent together in person and evidence of how and how frequently the couple communicates. This evidence comes from passport stamps and visas, and examples of email or chat logs, actual email examples, phone bills etc.

[Ketsuban 1,034]

Excellent news, many thanks (and sorry for hijacking the thread)