Overseas Resident USCs: Where to File I-130

[avoci 0]

Does anyone know yet what is happening to those petitions sent in prior to January 26th? Are they also getting sent to the US for processing? Or will they be processed at USCIS Offices abroad? It looks like in Amy's case in Albania, they are getting sent to Vienna...but what about petitions that were filed at USCIS offices? We sent ours to Frankfurt in early December. If it was sent to USCIS then, does that mean it might just be processed there as it normally would have been?

Thanks,

Mary

USCIS.gov site instruction for filing I-130

See "Special Instructions"

"Special Instructions for Petitioners Residing Abroad:

Effective January 26, 2007, petitioners abroad must file their petition with a USCIS domestic Service Center. Petitioners filing from abroad are reminded that filing fees must be submitted by check or money order, payable in U.S. funds.

If you reside in: North America, the Caribbean, South America, or Europe, file your I-130 with:

By Mail:

USCIS Vermont Service Center

P.O. Box 500

St. Albans, VT 05479-0001

USA

By Courier:

USCIS Vermont Service Center

75 Lower Weldon Street

St. Albans, VT 05479

USA

If you reside in Africa, Asia, Australia or the Pacific, file your I-130 with:

By Mail:

USCIS California Service Center

P.O. Box 10130

Laguna Niguel, CA 92607-1013

USA

By Courier:

USCIS California Service Center

2400 Avila Road

Laguna Niguel, CA 92607

USA

Petitioners traveling abroad who actually reside in the United States should file their I-130 petitions with the appropriate USCIS Service Center, according to the filing instructions on the form."

This post has an interesting comment on the topic.

I am not 100% sure, but I've been told by both Albania and Vienna that because we were approved for our I130 before July 27, our case will proceed in Albania... But I will continue to call and email to be sure. We have now been waiting on packet 4 for almost 3 months.

[Captain Oates 911]

We followed the London Embassy guide and mailed to Nebraska > they sent it to California and they sent it back by DHL to us in the UK saying file in London....

I have sent it to London as their latest advice by email is now different to their website - and I have a thing against incomplete circles

They will send it to Condo-lease-a -rice-paddy so she can pad her bum out with it cos she is too thin some say ...

It will be another nice summer in the yookay I am sure and the dollar will collapse 10% so my piggy bank will convert better...

alan

[JazzeroKi 0]

The instructions in the original post have been taken down from uscis.gov as of today.

Don't anyone dare ask where they are supposed to file an I-130 today---who knows?! Proceed at your own risk

The official word at least regarding former soviet union and european countries is the following.

There is discussion currently going on between Department of State and USCIS regarding how and if Consular sections will continue to accept I-130 petions. These discussions are taking high priority and a decision is expected very soon.

People are being told if there is no USCIS office in your country then hold on to your petition for just a little longer. Or you can file with a USCIS office in the USA.

A decision has been highly expected to be given this week. But where this week is comming to a close it might be next week. Anyways considering how much faster an overseas office processes these in comparison to a stateside office I would just be patient for another week and wait to see what the operational decision is going to be.

Where are you getting your info from? My embassy (Tokyo) is still saying to send the I-130 to USCIS in California. I've already sent mine in, and am hoping that after approval USCIS will send it back to my embassy.

I get my information from USCIS in Moscow, Russia. I know Tokyo is under a different district that Moscow is, so maybe they are telling people there to send it to the states.

Moscow though is still accepting petitions from those living within the Russian Federation.

Sadly there still has been no word about if Moscow will start accepting petitions from other countries under their area, or in Consulates and other Embassies will start accepting petions and then forward them to a USCIS office.

As to the other item you mentioned about sending your petition to California. They will eventualy send the petition back to the closest consulate or embassy where the benificiary resides. You could however also file the I-29f with a stateside office to get her back to the states sooner.

Anyways I hope that helps.

[JazzeroKi 0]

We followed the London Embassy guide and mailed to Nebraska > they sent it to California and they sent it back by DHL to us in the UK saying file in London....

I have sent it to London as their latest advice by email is now different to their website - and I have a thing against incomplete circles

They will send it to Condo-lease-a -rice-paddy so she can pad her bum out with it cos she is too thin some say ...

It will be another nice summer in the yookay I am sure and the dollar will collapse 10% so my piggy bank will convert better...

alan

I am assuming you are filing the I-130 petition. London has a USCIS office it is small but I would think that all the Rome district offices like London would accept petitions from people residing in that country.

Now if you don't normaly live in England and just went there for a visit to get married and only your spouse is a long term resident of that country then you may be forced to file in the states.

Give them a call and talk to them in person. Sometimes when stateside offices give you the run around they might make an exception to the filing rules, but that's up to their discretion.

[Captain Oates 911]

We followed the London Embassy guide and mailed to Nebraska > they sent it to California and they sent it back by DHL to us in the UK saying file in London....

I have sent it to London as their latest advice by email is now different to their website - and I have a thing against incomplete circles

They will send it to Condo-lease-a -rice-paddy so she can pad her bum out with it cos she is too thin some say ...

It will be another nice summer in the yookay I am sure and the dollar will collapse 10% so my piggy bank will convert better...

alan

I am assuming you are filing the I-130 petition. London has a USCIS office it is small but I would think that all the Rome district offices like London would accept petitions from people residing in that country.

Now if you don't normally live in England and just went there for a visit to get married and only your spouse is a long term resident of that country then you may be forced to file in the states.

Give them a call and talk to them in person. Sometimes when stateside offices give you the run around they might make an exception to the filing rules, but that's up to their discretion.

GROUNDHOG DAY !!!

Thanks for that - we sent the I-130 to London last Friday so we should have something from them in the next few days to say what they are doing with it ....I also sent an email to them and they say THEY will send the petition to the US again ...I suppose there is a small chance they will take it in London after all this intra-continental run around. However, I reckon they will forward it to the US with a letter to say don't send it back to us yet again - like groundhog day.

The worst thing would be for London to send it back to us and say file in Nebraska again

The next worst thing would be for London to send it to the US and for Nebraska/California to send it back to us again

How we break out of this loop I don't know - I am hopeful though as London do seem particularly helpful so I am not totally dismayed... I am not hoping for the best (DCF) - just an NOA1 by some route....

How weird that all we want is NOA 1 and we are finding that so hard to achieve - it should be the easiest stage - so we can see the mountain we have to climb

I contrast this process with us getting the UK residency in 20 minutes at the UK Consulate in Chicago - I mentioned that once and some acidic VYer replied to the effect that 'well of course - who wants to live in the UK - it's a dump'. I didn't like that because I am not one of those who sets off to live in another country and starts bad-mouthing their birth country - however, I am straying from the point.....

alan