Quickest (Non-Illegal) Ways To Bring Spouse With Me to US

[Bruce3 0]

Hello Everybody,

Long time listener, first-time caller. I'm a US citizen married to a Chinese national and we're both currently living in China. We're expecting our first child at the end of April (he will have US citizenship) and I found a job back in the US that I need to be at by June 23rd. We've filed the I-130 for my wife in early January and filed for her K3 visa in mid-March and I'm just worried about my wife and son not being able to come with me to the US when I have to go back for work.

My question is, what are the quickest ways available for my wife to come to the US? The thing is, she won't need to work, drive, etc. I'm just looking for a way for her to physically be with me in the US. We don't need a permanent visa or anything like that because I'm not even sure I'm going to live in America for the rest of my life but the longer, the better. We filed for her permanent residence just because the lady on the USCIS help line told us too.

I'm thinking about trying to get her a student visa and signing her up for an English program here in the states but I'm not sure that the US government will give her a student visa if they know that she's married to an American and is in the process of applying for a green card. Another thing that may be a problem is that she's been a housewife now for about 9 months and I'm her means of support. We have no problem surpassing the poverty guidelines for the affidavit of support.

Any and all advice is welcome!

[milimelo 4,477]

She won't be given a student or tourist visa with a USC husband and a USC child - ties stronger to the US especially with I-130 /I1-29f filed. You'll just have to be separated until her visa comes through.

[RandyW 149]

Something you need to be aware of is that the baby will need an exit visa from the Chinese authorities (the PSB Entry/Exit folks) - this is required in order to leave China, since there is no entry stamp in the baby's passport.

As of Nov., 2013, some people have experienced difficulties getting one - the new policy is that the baby is a Chinese citizen, and the American citizenship is not recognized since dual citizenship is not allowed under Chinese law. Under this policy, the baby would need a Chinese passport and a visa.

The solution from the American consulates is to offer a 'pro-forma' visa - basically a visitor's visa for an American citizen.

See http://candleforlove.com/forums/topic/46311-new-policy-for-chinese-born-baby-for-exit/

[RandyW 149]

Hello Everybody,

Long time listener, first-time caller. I'm a US citizen married to a Chinese national and we're both currently living in China. We're expecting our first child at the end of April (he will have US citizenship) and I found a job back in the US that I need to be at by June 23rd. We've filed the I-130 for my wife in early January and filed for her K3 visa in mid-March and I'm just worried about my wife and son not being able to come with me to the US when I have to go back for work.

My question is, what are the quickest ways available for my wife to come to the US? The thing is, she won't need to work, drive, etc. I'm just looking for a way for her to physically be with me in the US. We don't need a permanent visa or anything like that because I'm not even sure I'm going to live in America for the rest of my life but the longer, the better. We filed for her permanent residence just because the lady on the USCIS help line told us too.

I'm thinking about trying to get her a student visa and signing her up for an English program here in the states but I'm not sure that the US government will give her a student visa if they know that she's married to an American and is in the process of applying for a green card. Another thing that may be a problem is that she's been a housewife now for about 9 months and I'm her means of support. We have no problem surpassing the poverty guidelines for the affidavit of support.

Any and all advice is welcome!

The quickest way would have been to have filed DCF (Direct Consular Filing) with the USCIS offices in Beijing or Guangzhou (depending on jurisdiction).

That may still be the quickest way - to withdraw your existing I-130 petition and re-file with the overseas USCIS office - and may even been cheaper than going the K-3/AOS route (which usually is no longer available once the I-130 is approved).

Edited April 4, 2014 by RandyW

[Bruce3 0]

Hello,

Thank you both for the reply!

Yeah, luckily we got in contact with the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau and they said that it shouldn't be a problem to get the little guy an exit permit. They just said that we need the mom's Shenzhen residence card, my passport, birth certificate, baby's passport, and my baby and I's temporary stay report form and we were good to go. Those sure are some nice guys over there.

It sucks that we didn't do DCF because if I had known that we could, we would have. The lady told on the help line told us that we needed to mail in the i-130/i-129f to the Chicago dropbox. Oh well, it's my fault for not double checking.

Seeing that it was free for me to file for a K3 visa， does anyone know if it's possible to do this. Could I file for a K3 visa through Guangzhou (the nearest USCIS office to me) even though I filed an application through the Nebraska Service Center already? I know it's a dumb question, but hey it's worth a shot.

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

***** Moving from Bringing Family to CR-1 spousal visa forum ***

The K3 is an obsolete visa, it won;t make your visa journey any faster. It also canot be filed locally, only the CR-1/ IR-1 can

[RandyW 149]

Hello,

Thank you both for the reply!

Yeah, luckily we got in contact with the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau and they said that it shouldn't be a problem to get the little guy an exit permit. They just said that we need the mom's Shenzhen residence card, my passport, birth certificate, baby's passport, and my baby and I's temporary stay report form and we were good to go. Those sure are some nice guys over there.

It sucks that we didn't do DCF because if I had known that we could, we would have. The lady told on the help line told us that we needed to mail in the i-130/i-129f to the Chicago dropbox. Oh well, it's my fault for not double checking.

Seeing that it was free for me to file for a K3 visa， does anyone know if it's possible to do this. Could I file for a K3 visa through Guangzhou (the nearest USCIS office to me) even though I filed an application through the Nebraska Service Center already? I know it's a dumb question, but hey it's worth a shot.

Hopefully, the information you got on the phone is correct, but, if I remember correctly, the exit permits go through Beijing - so it depends on what the current policy is. Hopefully, they've come to their senses and WILL issue the exit permit. Be sure to leave yourself enough time to re-group, though, if it gets denied,

Yes, you can file the I-129F. No laws have changed regarding the K-3 visas, only the processing has. The I-129F/K-3 are available by law ONLY until the I-130 is approved.

The I-129F MAY provide a hedge against a long processing time for the I-130 - the current processing time for the I-129F is 5 months. The I-130 processing times may be something of a political football, with the processing time for the spouse of an LPR SHORTER than for an American citizen

Cost of filing is a little ink, the paper, and a stamp. YOU decide if it's worthwhile. A friend of mine who filed the I-130 came to regret not having filed the I-129F when his processing time went beyond the 5 months.

Edited April 5, 2014 by RandyW

[Darnell 8,478]

So,

when you were researching Direct Consular Filing of the I-130 into the USCIS Office in Guangzhou,

what were your research results, and why you not file there?

I ask, because you are thinking the K-3 is a viable option for you.

It is not.

=-=-=-=-=

You could, instead, submit a new I-130 set into Guangzhou (yes, another fee) on Monday, and maybe match your timeline to get out of China. Maybe..

----

keywords: DCF China missed-it, clueless, not reading properly, no shift of focus

[Darnell 8,478]

Hello,

Thank you both for the reply!

Yeah, luckily we got in contact with the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau and they said that it shouldn't be a problem to get the little guy an exit permit. They just said that we need the mom's Shenzhen residence card, my passport, birth certificate, baby's passport, and my baby and I's temporary stay report form and we were good to go. Those sure are some nice guys over there.

It sucks that we didn't do DCF because if I had known that we could, we would have. The lady told on the help line told us that we needed to mail in the i-130/i-129f to the Chicago dropbox. Oh well, it's my fault for not double checking.

Seeing that it was free for me to file for a K3 visa， does anyone know if it's possible to do this. Could I file for a K3 visa through Guangzhou (the nearest USCIS office to me) even though I filed an application through the Nebraska Service Center already? I know it's a dumb question, but hey it's worth a shot.

You could file a new I-130 on Monday to Guangzhou USCIS Office, since you qualify for DCF already. After you file, withdraw the other/first I-130 within a week.

IMO, that'll be yer only method for matching your jump date, if all 3 of you are to travel together.

[Bruce3 0]

So,

when you were researching Direct Consular Filing of the I-130 into the USCIS Office in Guangzhou,

what were your research results, and why you not file there?

I ask, because you are thinking the K-3 is a viable option for you.

It is not.

=-=-=-=-=

You could, instead, submit a new I-130 set into Guangzhou (yes, another fee) on Monday, and maybe match your timeline to get out of China. Maybe..

----

keywords: DCF China missed-it, clueless, not reading properly, no shift of focus

Well, the first thing I did was look up ways to bring my wife to the US, I looked at all the ways possible and so I came across the US embassy in Guangzhou's page for filing I-130 and when I called USCIS to ask them questions about how to apply and all that, the lady on the phone said that I had to apply through the Chicago lockbox.

And here's a helpful hint for you to help you adjust to life in America. Let me tell you something your mother may not have told you. When you post, "keywords: DCF China missed-it, clueless, not reading properly, no shift of focus" that's considered rude. I know that you probably were in a bad mood that day or something, and that's fine and everything, but don't insult people because no one ever wants to be insulted.

But thank you for your tip about trying to send a new I-130 to Guangzhou, I'll give them a call today and see what I can do.

[christeen 966]

The keywords you need to know now are DCF ... The uscis non help line is useless for in country filings... You tell them you are resident in china and want g to move back a d want to file DCF... Good luck

[Darnell 8,478]

If you live in China, and have residency there,

then you qualify for DCF.

That's it, that's all. The intake process is listed on the Guangzhou US Consulate website, so instead of calling around and wasting time, you should prep that I-130 (paying particular attention to the 6 types of bonafide relationship evidence listed in the instructions) and submit all , already already.

DCF from start to finish is between 2.5 to 4.5 months in duration (I-130, DS-260, appointment getting, medical exam, etc) and it's great you two are nearby, the slog won't be as painful ....

[pushbrk 12,882]

I think Darnell was insulting himself but he's often cryptic. Nevertheless, filing a new petition in Guangzhou us the answer to your concerns.

[aaron2020 11,651]

Hi.

With June 23 being only 2.5 months away, it's highly unlikely that your wife will be moving with you. Sorry.

DCF is your best shot at a quick reunion.

A student visa will not work because she needs apply to and be accepted at a qualified school before she can even file for a student visa. This would take more time than a DCF. Furthermore, it's almost impossible for her to show the required intent to return home after completing her studies when her USC husband is moving back to the US for a job.

[pushbrk 12,882]

Or when he is on record having declared her immigrant intent by filing an I-130 petition in her behalf.