Travel to US during application (living abroad)

[bibliospecs 0]

Hi there,

My husband and I are currently in the process of applying for his green card. We live in Sydney and will be interviewing at the Sydney US Embassy.

However, we're about to have a baby, and we're not sure the green card will be processed in time.

Are we allowed to travel to the States and back while the visa is still processing? I couldn't find any restrictions, but I"m not sure this would work... would he just apply for a tourist visa in the meantime?

Cheers,

Eva

[Ozz777 23]

To the beneficiary: You are allowed to try, but there is no guarantee that they will let you into the country with a husband/wife with you and an immigrant visa in process. If you do try, make sure you bring evidence of strong ties to Australia with you, such as mortgage/lease papers, employment letter, etc. Wouldn't it be easier/cheaper to have the baby in Australia, or are you not covered by medicare?

Edited August 19, 2013 by Ozz777

[bibliospecs 0]

Thanks for that. I would hate to spend $4,000 on tickets and planning only to get turned down. Eek! We're having the baby in November and hoping to bring the baby to meet my grandma / brother (neither of them can travel) in December / Janurary and then return for the start of the Australian school year. It's just the only time that my family will get to meet their new (first) nephew. It's hard enough to have a baby alone overseas, but the thought of not being able to have my family meet him while my husband's application is pending is heart-breaking!

We have lease papers, but it's month by month, and my husband is graduating from his Australian Uni in December and then going to be a stay at home dad. I have a contract, but obviously I'm a citizen. What have people experienced with this? Do people get turned down at the US airport a lot? Yikes!

Cheers,

Eva

[NikLR 13,232]

Australia is a VWP country correct? Your husband should get ESTA and visit on the VWP it would make it easier for him to travel. If you have any proof both of you will be staying in Australia until such a time that the interview is, I'm sure even your rental agreement has a clause that they need XX days notice.

Edited August 25, 2013 by NLR

[bibliospecs 0]

Hi there,

Yes, that's what we've done in the past... used the ESTA and visit on that. The thing is, we're not sure when the interview will be, as it's right about the time we are thinking of travelling. We're currently waiting on his police check from the UK in order to file the IV Form and for the approval of the stat dec. Not exactly sure what the waiting time on that part is, but we'd love to have an idea of what we're doing and when the interview might be.

Our lease requires three weeks notice, and we're happy to pay through when we return but we're hoping to move to a new place soon after we return so we don't want to sign a new lease. With my husband as a stay at home dad and no coursework (he's graduating in December), I'm not sure what else to bring as "proof" other than my own teaching contract.

How long is the process once the IV has been filed ? I can't seem to find the timeline anywhere, but that might help in figuring out when the interview might be.

Thanks so much for your help,

Eva

[NikLR 13,232]

Each step at the NVC anticipate 20 business days (approximately a month) providing there aren't any checklists. You can get through much faster, but NVC is a little slow atm. Then anticipate another month or two after your case complete for an interview.

[bibliospecs 0]

Thank you so much. That's cutting it really close, but it's really good to know. When you said "providing there aren't any checklists" does that mean that it just takes a while to verify on their end or to put together on our end?

(I know getting the English police check was a pain and I wish we knew we needed it before so we could have ordered it. Is it ok to send in the rest while waiting for that to come through, or would that just confuse things?)

Are there more steps between the IV and the interview?

Thanks again,

Eva

[NikLR 13,232]

Thank you so much. That's cutting it really close, but it's really good to know. When you said "providing there aren't any checklists" does that mean that it just takes a while to verify on their end or to put together on our end?

(I know getting the English police check was a pain and I wish we knew we needed it before so we could have ordered it. Is it ok to send in the rest while waiting for that to come through, or would that just confuse things?)

Are there more steps between the IV and the interview?

Thanks again,

Eva

A checklist is the NVC version of an RFE at the USCIS. The NVC will send a checklist if something is wrong or missing from the paperwork you've sent them.

I'm not sure what stage you're on exactly. If you could here: http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=166843 that would help me figure out where you are in the process

[bibliospecs 0]

We just got a checklist for the Affidavit of Support because apparently we had our tax information wrong (or my dad did, since he had to co-sponsor, since my income is in Australia). We sent it back in and are waiting to hear, and in the meantime gathering our documents for the IV Form and waiting to get the police check back.

Is there anything else we should be preparing for in the meantime? I'll work on the timeline. I filled out a bit of it, but a lot of the abbreviations don't make sense to me. I know that's horrible, but I think we're ok, as we're putting together our IV now.

Is there a way to look at other people's timelines that file with your consulate (we're in Sydney).

Thanks again,

Eva

[NikLR 13,232]

Yes there is actually. Once you fill out your timeline you can "look at similar timelines" or go here:http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/ (it's on the main banner) then you can go to IR1/CR1 timelines. In there you can set it to Australia Only. It would be a good idea to set it also to National Benefits Center since that will be you the most recent timelines related to you. (you should change yours to this as well. )

This should help you with the acronyms: http://www.visajourney.com/content/us-immigration-abbreviations and http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/392836-vj-acronyms/

I think if you've gotten all your stuff together the only extra thing you can prepare for is what you'll bring to the embassy with you. Make sure you have re-establishment of domicile documentation.

[bibliospecs 0]

Thanks so much for all of the helpful advice. I'll work on filling that out. What a useful tool!

And thanks for the tip on the re-establishment of domicile documentation. That's tricky, but I believe there are other forums with suggestions and tips on that. I'll have a look into it.

Thanks again!

Cheers,

Eva