Greetings from a not-jaded-yet Australian moving to the USA

[NikLR 13,231]

You can make it better by making sure you don't get RFE's or checklists later on for sure.

Some of it is luck though and how the USCIS is moving. That is the part where you don't know what is happening etc... It's the hardest because you just sit on your thumbs and wait.

But you are VWP and can visit, and vice versa! YAY

[SharksBelow 99]

You can make it better by making sure you don't get RFE's or checklists later on for sure.

Some of it is luck though and how the USCIS is moving. That is the part where you don't know what is happening etc... It's the hardest because you just sit on your thumbs and wait.

But you are VWP and can visit, and vice versa! YAY

Please pardon my ignorance! What is VWP? I was always nervous about the visiting thing in case they get wary of travellers who are in the process of attempting to obtain a visa and it might look bad for us. Then I saw the thread on this forum saying that it's okay to visit as long as you have proof of returning to your country!

However, flights between AUstralia and the USA are pretty expensive! The other thing we could probably do is have my then-husband pop over to New Zealand (or we could go together!) before his WH visa is up, and come back on a tourist visa so he can stay another three months. The immigration person I spoke to said to be careful about doing that, and make sure that the country we visit doesn't mind that happening, before we go, which is good advice I feel.

[NikLR 13,231]

Visa Waiver Program. It means you do not need a B1/B2 visa to visit the USA. There is an application process, your regional forum should be able to help you with it, but you can visit for up to 90 days at a time. People from a VWP country like Oz or NZ or the UK generally have very little trouble visiting the USA during the process. As long as they have proof of their ties to their home country (which is seldom asked for) and you never lie to CBP, you're allowed to visit.

[SharksBelow 99]

Oh yeah cool I have visited USA on the waiver program before! Sorry, yes, I know what you mean now.

I'm probably organised in strange and unnecessary ways. For example, I have my new passport form filled out all ready to have my new name on it, because we are applying for the visa in my new name so that will need to be done ASAP.

Apart from the obvious things like forms required and my birth certificate and my to-come wedding certificate, I have:

• every single itinerary (and SOME but not all boarding passes, booo, wish I knew we should have kept those!) of ours that we ever used to travel together or visit each other
• lots of emails
• IRC chat logs (including the one where we first exchanged "the L word")
• invitations to things we received in both our names (wedding invites)
• our own wedding stationery
• announcements of our relationship and engagement on Facebook
• statutory declarations from lots of our friends and family (some still to come)
• a joint bank account statement
• letter that had his secondary credit card off mine with his name and address
• correspondence sent to him here from places like the NH & VT bar association
• emails to me from his lovely parents who are co-sponsoring me
• cards that we sent each other on occasions such as birthdays and Christmas
• cards addressed to both of us from parents & friends at above occasions
• Receipts for things such as the engagement ring, wedding rings, wedding photography etc

Gosh there's probably some things we don't even need to worry about in there! But I'd really rather be over-prepared than under.

What are some common RFEs? I suppose I should just look around the site..

[AnotherLostSoul 167]

Sharks: Don't let other people's post scare you. Just read them, take what you think is necessary but don't rely on them 200%. I am not saying don't listen to them, or ignore them, but don't take them too deep. Every case is different first of all, hence the speed of these processes vary greatly. Second, if you guys really love each other, you guys can wait out the time and can visit each other just as you guys did before you guys ever thought of a wedding. If he didn't propose you now and only maybe two years from now, but yet you guys would still greatly get along, I think you guys would've been doing the same visits, hanging out together for another two years. So really, if you don't sit down and say pick the lint off of your carpet every single day, then just watch, time will not seem that slow. Just live your life as before and in no time you guys will realize that it's done. The only difference is that you submit papers now, and occasionally realize you have to check and see what you need to do next, or what paper work is still needed. All the best!

By the way, I already see you with your visa in your hand!

[yairzick 0]

Different people have different bottlenecks, but for us the thing that really delayed the process was taxes. If your soon-to-be husband hasn't filed his US taxes properly this could become a major pain (I had to hire an accountant, and it took a while to figure out). One of the things that your partner would need to prove is that he can financially support you when you are in the US (the affidavit of support I-864). If he can't (due to low income), there are ways to supplement income using assets, but the most surefire way is to get a sponsor (a US citizen that has a high enough income). This is done to ensure that you don't become a welfare burden.

Also - he needs to have a permanent address in the US (a domicile) in order to sponsor you. If not, he needs to show intent of moving there (a job offer, plane tickets, a lease on an apartment).

Another thing that you will need to consider is criminal certificates: you need to get your criminal records from every country you have ever lived in for more than 6 months after you were 16. You mention New-Zealand, Australia etc. (don't get them too early though, I believe they need to be fairly recent). I would find out how to get them and what you need to do.

Good luck!

[philly2015 2]

If you file from Australia to the Chicago lock box you are likely to be expedited. There's a thread on here somewhere about it. Most are routed to CSC. We are in Oz and were approved at the CSC in 20 days. We are already upto filing the 864 at the national visa centre and we only stated the process in March. Hoping to have the interview within 7 months of starting this whole process... You might be lucky and get through quickly!

[TBoneTX 45,849]

*** Thread moved from "Introducing Our Members" forum to the "What Visa Do I Need" forum -- OP is weighing visa paths. ***

[SharksBelow 99]

If you file from Australia to the Chicago lock box you are likely to be expedited. There's a thread on here somewhere about it. Most are routed to CSC. We are in Oz and were approved at the CSC in 20 days. We are already upto filing the 864 at the national visa centre and we only stated the process in March. Hoping to have the interview within 7 months of starting this whole process... You might be lucky and get through quickly!

Wow, that's AMAZING! We will hope like hell for that!

I see my thread got moved, oops. Not really weighing up visa options! We only have one option and have not changed our minds ...

Edited June 5, 2014 by SharksBelow

[SharksBelow 99]

So should I get affidavits / statutory declarations of support or not worry about it? We're going to have my father do one because we're living with him and as such have no tenancy agreement or anything, but we are splitting the bills with him and doing a lot of manual labour type things around the place and at his work. We thought we could also get one from the guy with whom we were both staying when we met, also from a long-term friend of mine here in my home town with whom my fiance has become very good friends.

Thoughts?

[NikLR 13,231]

So should I get affidavits / statutory declarations of support or not worry about it? We're going to have my father do one because we're living with him and as such have no tenancy agreement or anything, but we are splitting the bills with him and doing a lot of manual labour type things around the place and at his work. We thought we could also get one from the guy with whom we were both staying when we met, also from a long-term friend of mine here in my home town with whom my fiance has become very good friends.

Thoughts?

Do you mean affidavits towards your relationship? They're really low on the list of evidence. But you could have your father do one because you are both living with him. But where you're from, they don't require as much as other places and also they don't expect a tonne from newlyweds.

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/EZGuideSpouse

there's a big list at the bottom of the wiki about kinds of evidence you can send.

[SharksBelow 99]

Do you mean affidavits towards your relationship? They're really low on the list of evidence. But you could have your father do one because you are both living with him. But where you're from, they don't require as much as other places and also they don't expect a tonne from newlyweds.

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/EZGuideSpouse

there's a big list at the bottom of the wiki about kinds of evidence you can send.

Thank you! I think I'll still send what we have already collated, since I worked so hard to do it. Good to know I can send copies of things.