Embassy's will no longer accept I-130

[girlafraid7 0]

Is this regarding certain Embassy(s)? I am in the process of getting ready to send my forms to London - is this a bad idea then? I am a USC who is married to an Englishman. I have been married almost one year but have been living here in the UK since 2003. I am also a dual citizen of the US/UK, does that make a difference?

thanks

Not to worry, ambientgirl. You are one of the lucky ones as petitioners within the UK are still allowed to file in London as it's considered a USCIS office. Proceed as normal and follow the instructions on the US Embassy London website.

As for your Affidavit of Support query, you have to make sure that you filed taxes with the IRS regardless of whether you were living in the UK since 2003, especially for year ending 2006. The federal 1040 plus Form 2555 will apply in your case. If you also have savings back in the US that brings you above the poverty level for a household of 2 people, you can show that on the I-864 as well. If this is the case, you might not need a co-sponsor. Don't quote me on the latter. Perhaps someone else here can advise you on that.

Check out Kimberly+Dave's thread about filing with the IRS. It should be on page 1 or 2 in this forum.

You're so lucky, but I'll still wish you luck anyway.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU Sooooo Much for your quick response. You have been wonderful. I didn't want to send out my papers to have them sent back to send to the US for processing.

I'm going to try to find the Kimberly and Daves thread to check out the Tax IRS info.

Hopefully we can do our own affidavit of support but if not, hopefully someone has the info that I need about it???

I wish you luck with your process.

thanks again

Hi there,

I read that you are still able to file in London, but that is NOT DCF. DCF, to my understanding was VERY quick, like less than a month in some cases. However, filing directly in London or in my case in Rome, well, I was quoted 4-6 months to get it processed. Anyone else out there been quoted filing times in London or Rome? Therefore, I am waiting 2 weeks to see if anything will happen with DCF (because if it comes back, I'm definintely doing DCF!) and if not file in Rome and wait 4-6 months. By the way, I live in Spain (waiting for DCF in Madrid) but am able to file in Rome because they have jurisdiction over Spain.

[maiki 0]

Well... they may set something up that allows consular officers to just email the names of petitioners to USCIS offices.

That would be great.

When I first got the Adam Walsh letter I was wondering why they couldn't just do that, email or fax all the names to a CIS office, have them do the checks, then email/fax back re-approvals. But the directive that started this whole thing clearly states that previously approved petitions had to be sent with all supporting documentation to CIS to be re-approved. Unless they change that "supporting documentation" part, then they have to continue doing it via snail mail.

[redtape777 0]

Here is the email reply I received from the Tokyo Embassy. Some of the answers have been addressed previously in this thread.

1)Can applicant enter US with an F1 or OPT visa without jeopardizing

the I-130 application?

If the applicant is going to the United States as a student, is in

possession

of an I-20, and will depart the United States upon termination of

his/her

course of study, he/she may apply for an F-1 visa. However, it is

important that the applicant applies for the visa suited to his/her

activities

and period of stay in the United States. An F-1 visa is a non-immigrant

visa and is for persons who will stay temporarily in the United States

and

depart after completion of their activities. Whether a spouse of an

American citizen will be issued this visa is the decision of the

adjudicating

consular officer. Even if you are issued this visa, it is possible that

the

immigrations officer with see immigrant intent and deny entry to the

United States.

2)If applicant is able to enter US on a non-immigrant visa,is it possible to arrange the interview in the US?

The interview must be in Tokyo.

3)When was my I-130 sent and to which USCIS office?

Your petition was sent to the USCIS on January 29th. We have be

instructed by the USCIS to advise applicants not to contact them about

case status. The USCIS is trying to screen cases as soon as possible

and

would like to use all available time for this process which is not

possible if

they are responding to applicant inquiries.

4)Should I wait for final interview or apply for k-3?

We are unable to advise you as to what you "should" do. You may like to

note however that petitions submitted overseas are not eligible for K

visas.

Please refer to the information on the webpage below:

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/ty...types_2993.html

5)How long after the final interview does it take to get visa?

If there are no problems at the interview, the applicant may be issued

an

immigrant visa in about a week after the interview. Each case differs,

however, and we are not able to inform you as to how long it may take

to

have a visa issued in your case.

6)I made an appt online after my initial one was cancelled,is it still

valid?

When the USCIS returns your case to Tokyo, you will be contacted to

arrange an interview appointment.

7)Is USCIS checking the I-130 again or just a criminal background check?

We do not have the details of the process at USCIS. We kindly ask you

to

contact the USCIS with your concerns or inquiries on procedures. You

can

do this through the information below. The USCIS website is at the URL

below:

http://www.uscis.gov

8)If it is just a criminal check how long does the process take once

received

by USCIS?

We do not have any answers as to how long the process for USCIS to

approve a petition will take. This is not under the jurisdiction of

overseas

consular services.

9)Is there any way to track our application without spending money on

emails and phone calls given that this is not our fault?

We kindly ask you to contact the USCIS with your concerns or inquiries.

10)USCIS informs us that they are processing applications from Okinawa

before Tokyo,how long will that delay Tokyo applications?

We do not have any answers as to how long the process for USCIS to

approve a petition will take. This is not under the jurisdiction of

overseas

consular services.

11)USCIS california ctr are processing I-130s from June of 2006, does

this

mean we will have to wait or are I-130s from Tokyo processed

separately?

Most likely the cases are processed separately.

We understand the inconveniences these changes may cause, however, the

law is clear and we must process cases accordingly. We kindly ask your

patience and understanding.

[dbzman 0]

This law has come as a surprise to everyone. I was planning on getting married to my fiancé in April. She lives in Japan and had to turn her work notice in to her company because she worked on a yearly contract that had to be renewed each year. We thought that she would be able to make it to the US before the end of the year. Her job runs out in March and I am now worried that she will have to live without employment for a lot longer then we planned.

While I can understand the need for the law (we needed to do something about child abuse) I can not understand why they have to complicate an already complicated process. Surely the US government can come up with an easier way to do this (I can’t believe that I said that!).

If I have to file in the US it will take a lot longer then it would have in Japan. My fiancé and I are hoping that they will fix this soon.

Here’s wishing everyone luck!

[iluvmymac 0]

Here is the email reply I received from the Tokyo Embassy. Some of the answers have been addressed previously in this thread.

1)Can applicant enter US with an F1 or OPT visa without jeopardizing

the I-130 application?

If the applicant is going to the United States as a student, is in

possession

of an I-20, and will depart the United States upon termination of

his/her

course of study, he/she may apply for an F-1 visa. However, it is

important that the applicant applies for the visa suited to his/her

activities

and period of stay in the United States. An F-1 visa is a non-immigrant

visa and is for persons who will stay temporarily in the United States

and

depart after completion of their activities. Whether a spouse of an

American citizen will be issued this visa is the decision of the

adjudicating

consular officer. Even if you are issued this visa, it is possible that

the

immigrations officer with see immigrant intent and deny entry to the

United States.

2)If applicant is able to enter US on a non-immigrant visa,is it possible to arrange the interview in the US?

The interview must be in Tokyo.

3)When was my I-130 sent and to which USCIS office?

Your petition was sent to the USCIS on January 29th. We have be

instructed by the USCIS to advise applicants not to contact them about

case status. The USCIS is trying to screen cases as soon as possible

and

would like to use all available time for this process which is not

possible if

they are responding to applicant inquiries.

4)Should I wait for final interview or apply for k-3?

We are unable to advise you as to what you "should" do. You may like to

note however that petitions submitted overseas are not eligible for K

visas.

Please refer to the information on the webpage below:

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/ty...types_2993.html

5)How long after the final interview does it take to get visa?

If there are no problems at the interview, the applicant may be issued

an

immigrant visa in about a week after the interview. Each case differs,

however, and we are not able to inform you as to how long it may take

to

have a visa issued in your case.

6)I made an appt online after my initial one was cancelled,is it still

valid?

When the USCIS returns your case to Tokyo, you will be contacted to

arrange an interview appointment.

7)Is USCIS checking the I-130 again or just a criminal background check?

We do not have the details of the process at USCIS. We kindly ask you

to

contact the USCIS with your concerns or inquiries on procedures. You

can

do this through the information below. The USCIS website is at the URL

below:

http://www.uscis.gov

8)If it is just a criminal check how long does the process take once

received

by USCIS?

We do not have any answers as to how long the process for USCIS to

approve a petition will take. This is not under the jurisdiction of

overseas

consular services.

9)Is there any way to track our application without spending money on

emails and phone calls given that this is not our fault?

We kindly ask you to contact the USCIS with your concerns or inquiries.

10)USCIS informs us that they are processing applications from Okinawa

before Tokyo,how long will that delay Tokyo applications?

We do not have any answers as to how long the process for USCIS to

approve a petition will take. This is not under the jurisdiction of

overseas

consular services.

11)USCIS california ctr are processing I-130s from June of 2006, does

this

mean we will have to wait or are I-130s from Tokyo processed

separately?

Most likely the cases are processed separately.

We understand the inconveniences these changes may cause, however, the

law is clear and we must process cases accordingly. We kindly ask your

patience and understanding.

Geez, the Tokyo embassy is the most useless institution.

[David A. 0]

I was one of the few who got caught in the middle of this situation... and we got a call from Sydney stating that my wife's visa had been approved. We originally filed DCF and a week before the interview, Sydney said they can no longer issue the visa. They allowed my wife to keep her interview date a week after this new Adam Walsh thing took affect, while my I-130 was pending. I assume Sydney sent my info/name to Bangkok USCIS to get a background check... and of course it ran clear.

My wife who is here in the US at the moment will be flying back to Sydney to drop off her passport.

I'm just glad this stupid thing is DONE!!!

Thanks for everyone's support and info...

[maiki 0]

3)When was my I-130 sent and to which USCIS office?

Your petition was sent to the USCIS on January 29th. We have be instructed by the USCIS to advise applicants not to contact them about case status. The USCIS is trying to screen cases as soon as possible and would like to use all available time for this process which is not possible if they are responding to applicant inquiries.

So they expect us to just sit around and not try to find out what's going on with our cases?

10)USCIS informs us that they are processing applications from Okinawa before Tokyo,how long will that delay Tokyo applications?

Where did you get the info. that CIS is processing Okinawa before Tokyo?

11)USCIS california ctr are processing I-130s from June of 2006, does this mean we will have to wait or are I-130s from Tokyo processed separately?

Most likely the cases are processed separately.

Ok, so Bangkok tells me they're handling it, Seoul tells me they're adjudicating and now this reply to you implies that they might be in California but processed separately? And they blame us for calling and emailing everywhere we can think of trying to find out what's going on?

[sooperspryte 0]

3)When was my I-130 sent and to which USCIS office?

Your petition was sent to the USCIS on January 29th. We have be instructed by the USCIS to advise applicants not to contact them about case status. The USCIS is trying to screen cases as soon as possible and would like to use all available time for this process which is not possible if they are responding to applicant inquiries.

So they expect us to just sit around and not try to find out what's going on with our cases?

There is the problem that if they spend time fielding all our calls, that's less time that they can spend actually processing the I-130s. Still you tend to feel that if they gave us at least a *little* information, like where our application is and how long they expect it to take to process, that we wouldn't feel the need to try to chase them down so much.

11)USCIS california ctr are processing I-130s from June of 2006, does this mean we will have to wait or are I-130s from Tokyo processed separately?

Most likely the cases are processed separately.

Ok, so Bangkok tells me they're handling it, Seoul tells me they're adjudicating and now this reply to you implies that they might be in California but processed separately? And they blame us for calling and emailing everywhere we can think of trying to find out what's going on?

They don't actually say that California is doing it, they just don't disagree with redtape777's assumption that they were. Since they are obviously deliberately not giving us info about which office it goes to, they just didn't address the point, is my guess.

Honestly, the USCIS seems to know more of what's going on, even if they don't know very much. I'd certianly take their word for it over the Tokyo embassy's at this point. Tokyo has repeatedly been saying "look, we don't have a clue either."

Waiting and waiting. Incidentally, I wrote to my congresswoman in the US and got a response from one of her staffers, who does genuinely seem to be looking into it at least a bit. Write to your reps. They can at least start conversations going about what's going on.

[John and Sonya 0]

3)When was my I-130 sent and to which USCIS office?

Your petition was sent to the USCIS on January 29th. We have be instructed by the USCIS to advise applicants not to contact them about case status. The USCIS is trying to screen cases as soon as possible and would like to use all available time for this process which is not possible if they are responding to applicant inquiries.

So they expect us to just sit around and not try to find out what's going on with our cases?

There is the problem that if they spend time fielding all our calls, that's less time that they can spend actually processing the I-130s. Still you tend to feel that if they gave us at least a *little* information, like where our application is and how long they expect it to take to process, that we wouldn't feel the need to try to chase them down so much.

11)USCIS california ctr are processing I-130s from June of 2006, does this mean we will have to wait or are I-130s from Tokyo processed separately?

Most likely the cases are processed separately.

Ok, so Bangkok tells me they're handling it, Seoul tells me they're adjudicating and now this reply to you implies that they might be in California but processed separately? And they blame us for calling and emailing everywhere we can think of trying to find out what's going on?

They don't actually say that California is doing it, they just don't disagree with redtape777's assumption that they were. Since they are obviously deliberately not giving us info about which office it goes to, they just didn't address the point, is my guess.

Honestly, the USCIS seems to know more of what's going on, even if they don't know very much. I'd certianly take their word for it over the Tokyo embassy's at this point. Tokyo has repeatedly been saying "look, we don't have a clue either."

Waiting and waiting. Incidentally, I wrote to my congresswoman in the US and got a response from one of her staffers, who does genuinely seem to be looking into it at least a bit. Write to your reps. They can at least start conversations going about what's going on.

If you read some of the posts, people, including mine and Sonya, are starting to get their new rescheduled DCF interviews. Calling them, I have found, gets you nowhere. They can only give you the posted message they were instructed. You cannot track you DCF application through USCIS, however, you can call DOS and give them your case number and they can tell you status of. But let me save you the wait on the phone, your application has been sent to the nearest USCIS office overseas for background check. It will be processed based on your priority date, example January 23rd is first. Our application was sent early feb and was processed two weeks later. I cant imagine anyone elses taking much longer. Rome might be longer because it handles more embassy's. Maybe < one more month and you will here of your new appointment. Calling them just, as mentioned above, tie up their resources. I talked to my senator and they said DOS, NVC, and USCIS was overwhelmed with 1000's of calls every day and they just were not prepared to handle. Also almost every state senator recieved mail and calls. So the mistake was very made aware to those involved, and they are working as fast as possible to process. I think its a great law and believe one month turn around on a new instruction is great. But I am more grateful that we were able to file DCF while others wait over 9 months to bring family to the US.

[marcycat 0]

I was one of the few who got caught in the middle of this situation... and we got a call from Sydney stating that my wife's visa had been approved. We originally filed DCF and a week before the interview, Sydney said they can no longer issue the visa. They allowed my wife to keep her interview date a week after this new Adam Walsh thing took affect, while my I-130 was pending. I assume Sydney sent my info/name to Bangkok USCIS to get a background check... and of course it ran clear.

My wife who is here in the US at the moment will be flying back to Sydney to drop off her passport.

I'm just glad this stupid thing is DONE!!!

Thanks for everyone's support and info...

David - you were one of the MANY caught in this! Glad it's resolved for you. My husband's interview was rescheduled -- originally it was March 28, now it's April 11.

I get the impression that timelines vary widely by country (which of course isn't fair. But I think it's always been that way.)

I also have the impression that AT FIRST, they were considering sending paperwork back to the US to be processed, in the case of USCs who reside in the US. That's my case, and we were first told that our file would have to go to the US. But, then it turned out that, for Paris, everything got processed through Rome. My GUESS is that those dealing with Bangkok, Seoul, Tokyo, etc will not have stuff processed in California. Basically, I think you do just have to be patient and wait -- but I still recommend asking your US Senator and/or Congresspeople to help. They're supposed to! You might have to educate them (their staff) about DCF and Adam Walsh.

[maiki 0]

More news of Tokyo's stunning inefficiency ...

Looked in the mailbox today and got all excited to see a letter from the embassy. I naturally thought it was re-approval, especially since many people from other countries are already getting theirs. But it was just an update saying they've sent my petition to Seoul. This is a full 2 weeks after the Seoul office told me themselves they had the Tokyo petitions and a month after Tokyo actually sent them.

[Skain 0]

I too am one of those unfortunate souls in Japan who has had to deal with the miserable Tokyo Embassy. I mean, we never received an e-mail from them telling us that our interview had been canceled. So imagine our shock when we showed up on January 29 for the interview only to be told that we couldn't do anything! So that was a waste of money (we're in Osaka).

You have to pay to call or e-mail them. I called them twice, only to receive nondescript answers. All I know is that my paperwork was sent "to USCIS" on January 26. I don't know if it's in Seoul or Bangkok. I tried calling Seoul several times and was finally able to talk with a human. She said that she doesn't even know if they have my paperwork and that "if Tokyo says they sent it here, she presumes the Korean Embassy has it."

Yikes.

Anyway, our flight is in about two weeks and my wife doesn't have a green card. My apartment lease and job contract both expire at the end of this month, so staying here is not an option. We've already mailed most of our personal belongings and clothes to the US, so my wife couldn't stay behind. Her family lives too far away for her to move back. This whole situation is very depressing.

Our priority date is in early October of last year, so you would think that we would be one of the first cases to be readjudicated, but it turns out that some people with later priority dates are getting their stuff reprocessed faster, according to a Japanese blog site with a community group focused on this very problem.

I am so angry about the way this situation is being handled. I wrote a letter to the Tokyo Embassy explaining how I don't know what to do and they had the gall to write me back saying that "they no longer do visa inquiries by mail" and instructed me to use their pay service and e-mail services. They even cut my name and address from my letter and used that to address the envelope they sent back to me. Absolutely amazing.

Seriously, the Tokyo Embassy seems to be one of the worst ones out there. The Osaka Consulate is not much better. Everyone is telling us what we CAN'T do, but nobody can tell us what we CAN do.

The Tokyo people did say that we could enter the US on the VWP, but that we'd have to return to Tokyo for the interview. But why on earth can't our case simply be forwarded to a USCIS office in the US?! And we are not about to spend $2000+ for another set of plane tickets and hotel reservations. It is driving me absolutely crazy.

When I asked the Tokyo call center staff what we should tell the immigration officer at the airport, they said we should tell them we are coming as tourists. I then asked the staff if they were telling us to lie to the immigration staff, but they had no answer to that. And of course, she wouldn't give me her name or the name of her supervisor "for security reasons" even though I just want to have a point person should I need to cite where I got my information.

When this situation is finally resolved, I think the Tokyo Embassy staff should be the subject of a congressional investigation or something because this is ridiculous. There's no accountability here whatsoever.

I really hope we can get a waiver or some other visa after entering the US somehow. We have round trip plane tickets, but we were hoping we wouldn't have to use them...

[meauxna 15]

Skain,

I know you're frustrated--you made a lot of plans hinging on things going as you envisioned. Things change. I can only advise you to go with the flow or you'll blow a gasket.

There is no transferring of this process into the US. Once in the US, you are probably welcome to file an AOS case. That will be starting from scratch with fees and forms.

There is no getting another visa from inside the US--visa are for asking to enter the US.

There is returning for her interview, after she waits in the US as a tourist. DavidA of Australia and his wife did that--Florida to Australia is surely not a cheap air ticket, but it was better for them than leaving her behind. Only the visa applicant need travel for the final interview.

Don't waste your time baiting the Embassy staff. Most of them will NOT know the details--it only affects a minute portion of the building's workday. Find a manager or USC staffer if you have to talk to someone (and I realise they've cut off that communication).

[David A. 0]

Hey MEAUXNA... speaking of which... yes... that definitely was an expensive ticket... especially since it barely lasted 3 weeks because Sydney ended up telling us that the visa had been approved! I wish they could have told us that it might take a couple weeks rather than months! Well, my wife flew back, and sent off her passport to get the visa placed in it and she recieved it back today. My wife is flying back for good this sunday... we are done...

want to read about it go here... Land Downunder

Edited March 14, 2007 by David A.

[Mary G. 0]

Congratulations David and Stephanie! Glad to hear the visa has been approved!

Hey MEAUXNA... speaking of which... yes... that definitely was an expensive ticket... especially since it barely lasted 3 weeks because Sydney ended up telling us that the visa had been approved! I wish they could have told us that it might take a couple weeks rather than months! Well, my wife flew back, and sent off her passport to get the visa placed in it and she recieved it back today. My wife is flying back for good this sunday... we are done...

want to read about it go here... Land Downunder