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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Philippines
Timeline
Posted (edited)

http://www.easyfiancevisa.com/

That is who we used. They aren't just document preparers, they are a law firm as well. Ask for Perry Bautista, he is Filipino and specializes in Philippines K-1 visa paperwork. They really take all the headaches out of the paper work. All you do is upload any required evidence and they do the rest. No headaches.

They even do AOS, ROC and US naturalization.

I'd like to add, get the platinum package. Having Perry call my wife a day before her interview and prep her was priceless. All the questions she asked her were the same ones given to her by the C.O. She answered confidently and made her interview less stressful. Also with the platinum package, you get 1 on 1 questions and support. I could call Perry any time with questions if I wasn't sure on something.

Good luck!

Edited by Mike-eeh and Odie
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Venezuela
Timeline
Posted

if you dont have a complicated case, why waste money on hiring an attorney? I've been parto of visa journey since 2011 and I was also a k1 beneficiary. During our entire process we haven't hired anyone and we did great, Im about to start the last stage of my journey in january by filling my citizenship and we saved A LOT OF MONEY using vj tools. Unless you have an exceptional or complicated case, is actually fairly easy and "inexpensive". My experience here tells me that attorneys don't make thing necessarily easier.

OUR AMAZING JOURNEY 

 

2011

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2012

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2013                                                  2014                                                     2015

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2016

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Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Philippines
Timeline
Posted

if you dont have a complicated case, why waste money on hiring an attorney? I've been parto of visa journey since 2011 and I was also a k1 beneficiary. During our entire process we haven't hired anyone and we did great, Im about to start the last stage of my journey in january by filling my citizenship and we saved A LOT OF MONEY using vj tools. Unless you have an exceptional or complicated case, is actually fairly easy and "inexpensive". My experience here tells me that attorneys don't make thing necessarily easier.

I think many of us here read the guides. And while the process seems straight-forward, there are still many of us with tons of questions on what to include, etc. If the process was so easy, there would not be a need for VJ, yes?

That said, some people, like myself, or my wife, do not have the time in our busy lives to read all of that, nor deal with the headaches and worry that come with filing. With a visa service like the one I mentioned, I just "signed and waited." No hassle, no worries, and peace of mind, very much worth the $800 bucks in my opinion.

So if one has the money, I say go for it and save yourself the time, just be sure to check over the paperwork they prepare, as even a visa service is only human.

Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Philippines
Timeline
Posted

if you dont have a complicated case, why waste money on hiring an attorney?

Can you be specific on what warrants a "complicated case"?

I am a strong believer that if I can do it myself, I should. So far we have done exactly that. Months of preparation, research, and countless hours scouring VJ have given me the confidence to bypass an agency / legal firm when submitting the I-129F / K1. We are almost to that stage of the process now. My only concern is that Dyn was married. Just this month she received a decision in her favor (by the district judge) in her annulment case. The decision was forwarded to the OSG for approval two weeks ago, and that is where it currently stands.

Will a recent annulment constitute complications in the visa process? Let's assume that all paperwork and documents are in place, and correct at time of submission.

MEETING

12 March 2012: Met Dyn at a coffee shop in Kuwait

Summer 2012: I returned home to the U.S. to prepare a way for Dyn

Fall 2014: Dyn returns home to Philippines after seven years in Kuwait

ANNULMENT

February 2014: Engaged while I visited Philippines

March 2014: Officially hired attorney and filed for Dyn's annulment in Bohol, Philippines

December 2015: Bohol District Court issues decision in our favor

December 2015: Judge sends transcript of his decision to OSG for processing

February 05 2016: OSG returned receipt and approval to district court in Bohol. CoF to be issued end of second week in February

February 09 2016: Dyn is presented with the Entry of Judgment and her Certificate of Finality via the local court.

February 15 2016: LCR issues annotated marriage certificate, and necessary documents are forwarded to the NSO / PSA visa LBC

April 19 2016: Received CENOMAR and Annotated MC from PSA via private courier. DONE! COMPLETE! FINISHED! OFFICIAL!

I-129F / K1 VISA APPLICATION PROCESS

April 04 2016: I-129F sent to Texas Lockbox via USPS Priority Mail

April 12 2016: Email from USCIS acceptance confirmation

April 17 2016: Official NOA1 hard copy received

July 12 2016: NOA2 Approval hard copy received

July 14 2016: Post Decision Activity email from USCIS

THE LONG WAIT (USCIS misplaced approved petition)

September 16 2016: NVC received approved I-129F petition and assigns case number

INTERVIEW / MEDICAL PROCESS

October 04 2016: Day 1 of medical at SLEC in Manila

October 05 2016: Psychiatric evaluation off-site due to psychological incapacity annulment (10 hour eval with 800 question profile test)

October 13 2016: CFO Seminar completed successfully and certificate awarded (CFO stamp not issued until visa is presented).

October 20 2016: Return to SLEC complete psychological evaluation with resident psychologist (less than ten minutes)

October 21 2016: Vaccination day at SLEC (medical finally complete)

October 25 2016: Visa interview at USEM in Manila (APPROVED)

HOMECOMING

November 19 2016: Dyn's arrival at POE Dulles IAD in Washington DC

December 01 2016: Married

Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Philippines
Timeline
Posted

Can anyone recommend a agency , para legal or a firm that can take care of all paperwork for a fiancé visa from the Philippines , someone that won't take your entire savings

I went through the K1 process for my Filipino fiance and we were just married 2 weeks ago. I did pay someone $1200 to help me put the K1 visa petition together and he did a great job. If I had to do it over again, I would do it myself and save the $1200. The guides here are very easy to follow. You should also use the Philippines forum here on VJ as it is specific to the process for a Filipino fiance or spouse.

There are some web pages created specifically for the Filipino K1 visa process. Both Hank & Greenbaum have created web pages that will guide you step by step through the process. You can find those web pages here:

http://dennyeyberg.wix.com/filipino-am-visa

http://visaconnection-philippines.com/

Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Germany
Timeline
Posted

Any red flags? If not, why not save yourself the money and do it yourself. In fact, I read posts here almost every week from people whose lawyers have screwed up their paperwork, resulting in RFE's or delays. And no, it does not take long to read the instructions and assemble the paperwork. We have done everything by ourselves so far and have never had any problems. Good luck.

K1 Visa
Feb. 29, 2012: I-129F sent
March 8, 2012: NOA1 (VSC)
August 30, 2012: NOA2
Oct. 1, 2012: Packet 3 received
Nov. 3, 2012: Packet 4 received
Nov. 15, 2012: Interview - approved!
Jan. 18, 2013: POE New York Seaport
Feb. 2, 2013: Wedding

AOS
March 6, 2013: AOS Package sent
March 12, 2013: I-485, I-765, I-131 NOA's
March 29, 2013: Biometrics Appointment

May 10, 2013: EAD/AP approved
Sept. 5, 2013: "Potential Interview Waiver Case" letter received
Nov. 2, 2013: AOS approved (no interview)

ROC
Aug. 4, 2015: I-751 sent
Aug. 6, 2015: NOA1 (CSC)
Sept. 4, 2015: Biometrics Appointment
Feb. 10, 2016: ROC approved

 

Dual Citizenship
Aug. 26, 2016: BBG application sent (permit to retain German citizenship)
Nov. 21, 2016: BBG approval notice received (p/u at German Honorary Consulate, OKC: Feb. 6, 2017)
Dec. 8, 2016: N-400 sent
Dec. 12, 2016: Priority Date (NBC)

Jan. 9, 2017: Biometrics Appointment

Aug. 31, 2017: In-Line for Interview

Sept. 6, 2017: Interview Scheduled

Oct. 16, 2017: Interview

Oct. 25, 2017: Oath Appointment Letter received

Nov. 1, 2017: Oath Ceremony

Filed: Other Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted (edited)

Can you be specific on what warrants a "complicated case"?

I am a strong believer that if I can do it myself, I should. So far we have done exactly that. Months of preparation, research, and countless hours scouring VJ have given me the confidence to bypass an agency / legal firm when submitting the I-129F / K1. We are almost to that stage of the process now. My only concern is that Dyn was married. Just this month she received a decision in her favor (by the district judge) in her annulment case. The decision was forwarded to the OSG for approval two weeks ago, and that is where it currently stands.

Will a recent annulment constitute complications in the visa process? Let's assume that all paperwork and documents are in place, and correct at time of submission.

Perhaps not complications but scrutiny may happen Edited by Transborderwife
Posted

Can anyone recommend a agency , para legal or a firm that can take care of all paperwork for a fiancé visa from the Philippines , someone that won't take your entire savings

You can save all your money in savings by doing it yourself. I have done this process successfully without any issues, as have many others on here. Keep in mind that you will still be doing the brunt of the work even if you do use a visa service or attorney, because you need to provide all the information.

I would recommend taking a look at the K-1 guide here: http://www.visajourney.com/content/k1guide

And also check out the Philippines forum here, where you can find a lot of helpful information specific to the Philippines: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/129-philippines/

If you need help with filling out the forms or any part of the process, don't hesitate to ask.

Will a recent annulment constitute complications in the visa process? Let's assume that all paperwork and documents are in place, and correct at time of submission.

An annulment is an annulment, no matter if it is just recent or decades old. As long as the annulment is finalized by the day you mail the petition, you will be fine.

K-1
NOA1: 04/08/2014; NOA2: 04/21/2014; Visa interview, approved: 07/15/2014; POE: 07/25/2014; Marriage: 09/05/2014

 

AOS

NOA1:  09/12/2014;  Biometrics:  10/06/2014;  EAD/AP Received:  11/26/2014;  Interview Waiver Letter:  01/02/2015;  

RFE:  07/09/2015;  Permanent Residency Granted:  07/27/2015;  Green card Received:  08/22/2015

 

ROC

NOA1:  05/24/2017;  Biometrics:  06/13/2017;  Approved without interview:  09/05/2018;  10 Yr Green card Received:  09/13/2018

 

Naturalization

08/09/2020 -- Filed N-400 online

08/09/2020 -- NOA1 date

08/11/2020 -- NOA1 received in the mail

12/30/2020 -- Received notice online that an interview was scheduled

02/11/2021 -- Interview

Filed: AOS (apr) Country: Cyprus
Timeline
Posted

The lawyer or service will tell you what you need (some don't tell you everything you need) and you yourself have to do the leg work to get everything

together for your specific case. You can pay a lawyer/service to tell you and pay them $$$$ or you can read every step here and save the money

for another trip to visit.

The lawyer or service puts a stamp on it and mails it or you do it following the guides.

If your case warrants front loading, most lawyers do not tell you to do so because they are clueless themselves.

Lawyers / services help many but many also get delayed by not staying on top of things and end up firing the lawyer.

Spoiler

 

I-129F Sent : 3-31-2014, NOA2: 4-6-2014

NVC Received : some dinkelsberry yehoo in the house of clingons send our petition to the wrong consulate.

Consulate Received : July 30,2014 Transfer to right embassy complete.

Interview Date : Oct 22, 2014

Interview Result : AP , requesting another PC (not expired) and certified divorce decree (was submitted)Stokes interview via phone for petitioner 4 hrs after interview.

Oct 23 email notification visa approved.
Visa Received : Nov. 3 , 2014 VISA IN HAND.

US Entry : Nov. 21, 2014

Marriage : Dec 27, 2014

AOS send : May 12, 2015, received May 14, 2015 USPS priority

Email &text : May 18, 2015, check cashed May 19,2015, return receipt May 21, 2015 stamped USCIS Lockbox, NOA1 (3x) May 22,2015

Biometrics : June 1, 2015 letter received for appointment June 8, 2015, successful walk-in June 1, 2015

RFE : June 12, 2015 for income not meeting guideline. Income does ( ! ) exceed guideline.

RFE response : June 26, 2015 returned with a boat load full of financial evidence.

UPDATE: July 5, 2015 updated on all 3 cases, RFE received June 30, 2015.

Service request : Aug 12, 2015, letter received that it will be processed within 90 days from receipt of RFE.

UPDATE: Aug 24, 2015, EAD card being produced/ordered. ( 102 days from AOS receipt day and 55 days from RFE response received.) Thank you Jesus !

Emails : Aug 24, 2015, EAD approved, EAD card ordered.

I-797 EAD/AP approval notice received : Aug 27, 2015

EAD/AP combo card mailed : Aug 27, 2015, EAD/AP combo card received: Aug 31, 2015

Renewal application send for EAD/AP : May 31,2016 (AOS pending over 1 year). Received June 2, 2016,Notice date June7, 2016, emails,texts, NOA1 hard copy

Service request for pending AOS April 21, 2016, case not assigned yet.
Service request for pending AOS June 14, 2016, tier 2 said performing background checks.
Expedite request for EAD/AP Aug 3, 2016, Aug10 notification >request was received, assigned, completed. RFE letter requesting evidence for expedite, docs faxed Aug18

*Service request for I-485 Aug 3, 2016, Aug11 notification> request was assigned. Service request Dec 2, 2016.
AOS Interview letter received Aug 12, 2016

AOS Interview September 21, 2016.

Second Biometrics appointment letters received for EAD and AOS on Aug 15, 2016 for Aug 17 ( 2 day notice).

Second Biometrics completed Aug 17, 2016

Third Biometrics appointment letter received Aug 19, 2016 for Sept. 1, 2016. WTH ?!

EAD/AP (renewal) approval Aug 22, 2016, NOA2 received Aug 25, 2016

Renewal EAD in production notification text and online, expedite successful 4 days after RFE request response was faxed, Aug25mailed,Aug29received.

Sept. 21 Interview, 2 hour interview, we were separated and asked about 50 questions each for an hour each. IO was firm but professional, some smiles.
Several service requests made, contacted Senator and Ombudsman. Background checks still pending.
July 21, 2017 HOME VISIT.  Went well. Topic thread in AOS forum.
Waiting to skip ROC and get 10 yr GC due to over 2 year while pending AOS
AOS APPROVED Oct. 4, 2017 * Green card in hand Oct 13, 2017 !!!!!

First K1 denied after 16 month of AP. Refiled. We are a couple since 2009. Not a sprint but a matter of endurance.

 

Filed: K-1 Visa Country: Thailand
Timeline
Posted

I did it myself and it was tedious but not hard just a lot of paperwork and we were very fast. Met my wife 3 years ago this May submitted I129 last December 19, and if it was not for a shadow on her x-ray in Thailand medical which turned out nothing there with updated x-ray machines she would have been here by May but we got back July 22 2015 and that was after a stop over in the Philippines which was suppose to be a week but you have to take a course there which delayed us another 2 weeks. We are married waiting on our I-797 and I-485 did Biometrics but got RFE because I did not put my name on page 3 of the I-485 at the bottom it gets hidden there so watch but was cheaper and not difficult to do paperwork. She would I think like to meet a friend here we are located in upstate New York so message us if you are close to Poughkeepsie,NY.

12/20/2014 Sent I-129F to Texas Lockbox

12/22/2014 Signed by Lockbox Staff

12/24/2014 Text and Emailed that it was received by TSC

12/29/2014 Got Hardcopy of NOA 1 in mail.

01/26/2015 Got Hardcopy of NOA 2 in mail

02/05/2015 Called NVC had a case number given to me.

02/18/2015 Case sent to Thailand Embassy.

Posted

Save yourself the expense of an attorney . You need only to print the instructions that come with the forms ,from the USCIS website, and follow them to the letter. Make dual packets and never send originals. Save those for interviews . Lawyers are a waste of money.

 
Didn't find the answer you were looking for? Ask our VJ Immigration Lawyers.

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