I-129F July 2016 Filers

[MeAlone 161]

Yeah don't worry Tasha, sometimes the consular just wants to delay people for no reason. If they wanted these random documents from the start they could of said so instead of giving so much anxiety to people. & Thank you!! I actually take a Web Design class at the moment. It's crazy how they want weird information from so long ago (but they wanted the same from us ). Good luck Tasha, hopefully things work out for you and everyone else that is still waiting !

Thank you for your nice words. We all so tired of waiting but we need to be strong. You got your share of worries, the most important is having the visa and start the life together, together any waiting is more easy.

Tasha

[MeAlone 161]

Hello everyone,

My fiancee and I went to go to apply for his SSN and they gave us 4 weeks timeframe to get his SS card. I am still waiting Does it take that long for us to get it? I am basically stuck until I get his number. . I want to add him to my bank account, health insurance, etc and I can't do anything without a social security number.

Yes, it looks like all things are slow at the end of the year. But think positive, you are together and waiting 4 weeks is a lot yet you are together, try to relax and enjoy your life and the Christmas season

Tasha

[MeAlone 161]

Hello at all

I'm sorry for you guys struggling so much withe the visa and your journey. Don't give up it's gonna be a long hard way but never give up!!

For myself I got a reply from Frankfurt that they received my medical.my interview was 11-21-16 the medical 11-15-16 so now they replied that my visa is being issued shortly . Hopefully next week i'll have it

Yes, you will have it soon, it's nothing to look at, they get it and all good.

Tasha

[MeAlone 161]

They said we MUST submit all documents.. wedding invitations... etc.. pictures with the kids.. as of know their decision is a denial. unless we submit all documents. I don't have all documents... i don't have pictures with the kids.. i don't have wedding invitations because we were just getting married just the two of us.. this is not my first marriage and we are not doing it with other people..... i have other items on the list (wedding ring pictures and receipts) wedding outfit, reservation at the place that we will marry, etc.... but i don't have everything...

CRamak, so sorry to hear about your hard time, it looks like all us are given a not very nice Christmas by the government. Please, calm down, pray, breath and start thinking, make the list of all they ask and start to think how to produce all what they ask, if it's not possible, write the explanation letter for each document explaining, visit your local senator, ask for help but after you got all in writing and sent to the embassy, try to resolve this situation or, maybe even think about to go and to marry but before research how long it will take the marriage visa.

I am praying for you both so much, much more than for myself, I hope they see it's all the real marriage and family you both, I do believe in prayers, prayers, specially if we pray together, help to clear the people's mind and heart, including the government people.

I am praying for all of us struggling and being alone now in a Christmas season, may God be on our side as we all wish to build the Family based on Love, so much Love at such a long distance and long waiting time.

God bless us all

Tasha

[MeAlone 161]

Oh, my dear friends, let's pray all together this weekend, who has the church, please, go to the church, who is not religious, just say your wishes as a simple prayer but let's unite our prayers, wishes, they are all as one, the same, we all wish to be reunited very soon with our beloved ones.

Let's unite our hearts, our thoughts for the best of all of us, we are doing such a great thing, hoping, waiting, not giving up because of Love. Let's be together this weekend and pray

Tasha

[Chris/Uni 23]

CRamak, so sorry to hear about your hard time, it looks like all us are given a not very nice Christmas by the government. Please, calm down, pray, breath and start thinking, make the list of all they ask and start to think how to produce all what they ask, if it's not possible, write the explanation letter for each document explaining, visit your local senator, ask for help but after you got all in writing and sent to the embassy, try to resolve this situation or, maybe even think about to go and to marry but before research how long it will take the marriage visa.

I am praying for you both so much, much more than for myself, I hope they see it's all the real marriage and family you both, I do believe in prayers, prayers, specially if we pray together, help to clear the people's mind and heart, including the government people.

I am praying for all of us struggling and being alone now in a Christmas season, may God be on our side as we all wish to build the Family based on Love, so much Love at such a long distance and long waiting time.

God bless us all

Tasha

Thank you, Tasha... I am just so upset. I keep crying. I don't know why they do this to people. We had MORE than enough proof. I thought we would be together for Christmas finally. It will be my third christmas without him. I only had one with him. I am so upset. And now more than ever I am worried we will be denied completely and maybe after months of waiting to be processed. I just can't believe it. I stayed up all night putting together pages and pages of phone bills and texts and photos and receipts of gifts and receipts of things for the marriage (but we are doing a small intimate marriage without guets and they wanted invitations. But i have rings and a dress and a place reserved and I have money wire transfer records, but they only go back two months - online at least. I will go down to their office today to see if I can get more history. They wanted proof of wire transfers of money for the past two years... ugh.. I only did it through western union.. not the bank since the bank charged high fees.. i feel sooo hopeless right now... sorry.. i am mostly just venting here.... long message...

Tasha, I also hope your issue gets resolved soon.. I'm sure they will see your business is legitimate and he will have his visa very soon. It is really crazy they ask so much. This process is already so intense. I know you have been working very hard to get him here.

[Arih3 3]

They said we MUST submit all documents.. wedding invitations... etc.. pictures with the kids.. as of know their decision is a denial. unless we submit all documents. I don't have all documents... i don't have pictures with the kids.. i don't have wedding invitations because we were just getting married just the two of us.. this is not my first marriage and we are not doing it with other people..... i have other items on the list (wedding ring pictures and receipts) wedding outfit, reservation at the place that we will marry, etc.... but i don't have everything...

Oh no! So sorry to hear this I wish I had some advice to give you. But I'm sure someone on here can give you better advice on a different thread. I know how difficult it must seem right now but it's not the end, just another speed bump on a very long and bumpy road unfortunately there is always a solution. You are clearly in a real relationship, it sucks that it just depends on one outsiders perspective to determine that or not... This is probably the last thing you want to hear right now but try to stay positive.

[MeAlone 161]

Thank you, Tasha... I am just so upset. I keep crying. I don't know why they do this to people. We had MORE than enough proof. I thought we would be together for Christmas finally. It will be my third christmas without him. I only had one with him. I am so upset. And now more than ever I am worried we will be denied completely and maybe after months of waiting to be processed. I just can't believe it. I stayed up all night putting together pages and pages of phone bills and texts and photos and receipts of gifts and receipts of things for the marriage (but we are doing a small intimate marriage without guets and they wanted invitations. But i have rings and a dress and a place reserved and I have money wire transfer records, but they only go back two months - online at least. I will go down to their office today to see if I can get more history. They wanted proof of wire transfers of money for the past two years... ugh.. I only did it through western union.. not the bank since the bank charged high fees.. i feel sooo hopeless right now... sorry.. i am mostly just venting here.... long message...

Tasha, I also hope your issue gets resolved soon.. I'm sure they will see your business is legitimate and he will have his visa very soon. It is really crazy they ask so much. This process is already so intense. I know you have been working very hard to get him here.

My dear friend, please, think about yourself, my case looks not so bad, I hope it will be visa very soon.

Please, calm down and start thinking maybe you prepare the new wedding plans and invitations and send them? Try to get involved your senator or congressman yet mostly prepare the clear answer to each question they ask. If you wish, send my in message and we work together. When I have my own trouble, I am very good in helping others, lol.

Girl, I understand you so well, crying and all yet we all need to put ourselves together and work on the documents, to be strong and go forward. God bless you both and all people waiting for Love and to be together.

And, please, pray, it could be magic in Christmas time

Tasha

[tortugarouge 16]

My dear friend, please, think about yourself, my case looks not so bad, I hope it will be visa very soon.

Please, calm down and start thinking maybe you prepare the new wedding plans and invitations and send them? Try to get involved your senator or congressman yet mostly prepare the clear answer to each question they ask. If you wish, send my in message and we work together. When I have my own trouble, I am very good in helping others, lol.

Girl, I understand you so well, crying and all yet we all need to put ourselves together and work on the documents, to be strong and go forward. God bless you both and all people waiting for Love and to be together.

And, please, pray, it could be magic in Christmas time

Tasha

I am so heartbroken for you both. I will pray for you both. They have been so cruel in this process - the things they are asking for are so petty. I am very hopeful for you both since there's a small window to submit documents. All the very best. ??

[Allison/Robert 43]

we didn't get the visa.. i can't really understand why.. my fiance is crying and cant explain it properly because he is so upset. We have been together for 3 1/2 years. 1 year in India together.. the rest of the time trying to be in the same country. We submitted pages and pages of photos. 3 signed letters from friends explaining how they knew us and our relationship, pages of text messages, photos of my engagement ring, photos of gifts we have sent each other. I visited him many times and he was here once - we showed the plane tickets. We took holidays together in India and showed the receipts. They said there is not enough proof we are a couple. They want more photos, more texts, proof we have registered at the courthouse.. how can i do that if he is not here?????

Please if anyone had any advice I would like to hear it... I am about to break down. I honestly do not know what to do. I showed every bit of proof I had.. I don't have more to show!!!!! I don't have MORE photos!! I have kids and he wanted pictures of him with my kids.. I don't have any. What can I do now?

He traveled 1 1/2 days by train and is now stuck in this city not knowing what to do. They handed him back his passport and said lookup a "drop off" location for the items requested - and do it within a year. That was it.

For those that were asked for more evidence, was the passport returned to you? How do you submit the new evidence? And how will you know when it has been received and you can schedule a new interview?

I knew I should have flown out to be at the interview but I did not have the money. I am so upset. Please any words of encouragement would help right now... i am devastated.

I can hardly believe nor imagine what you're feeling right now. I am so sorry that this is happening to you! I have one suggestion, though this may be something you had in your original package. You said you submitted pages of text messages. I know we had an entirely different embassy on an entirely different continent, but we sent in text messages from as far back in our relationship as possible, and then chose excerpts from that point all the way to the day we submitted the package. Also, the messages were more than just "I love you, you're cute, etc", they were of us discussing plans, making jokes with each other, talking about our day. By the time I had it all compiled, there were none I wanted to leave out, and it ended up being 60 pages of texts. I printed them front and back so that it consolidated it to 30 pages. Like I said, this is probably something you already did. BUT maybe when you send in the new information, create a new document showing the continuation of your texting, phone or skype conversations. I think showing the continuing relationship since the date of petition submission could help.

And if you were ever able to stay on skype (or similar application) at long lengths of time, choose take screen shots from random points throughout your relationship of the call durations. For instance, when I was on an extended holiday due to Christmas in 2015, we had one call that lasted about 70-something hours, and we had many lengths of time like that because we would sleep with skype on and then I was able, most weekends to hang out with him on skype during the day. Even when we didn't have long call durations, they were often, usually 2 or 3 times a day.

About the photos of him with your children, that one is obviously tricky. I'm assuming since you've been together for so long that he has indeed met them, just never thought to take photos. I completely understand that too. May seem odd to some people to not take photos, but we're not always thinking about immigration when we're visiting our loves. The second trip I took to visit Robert, we took no photos, and I was kicking myself so badly. It just never came up. The focus of the trip was more about us making plans about things and enjoying our time together again whereas the first time I went to visit him, it was my first time out of the US, so of course photos were the first thing on my mind. I wanted photos of the amazing place he lived and of us together finally. Anyway, sorry for that tangent. If he has met your children, are you absolutely certain that no one else who may have been there didn't take photos?

And in regards to contacting your senator... I don't remember where I saw this recently, but it was someone who works at a senator's office, and she said that if you're ever trying to contact your senator for anything, a letter is essentially the worst way to do so. Letters are put in a stack and by the time they are read, the sender is given a standard "thank you for contacting us" letter. Emails aren't good either, but are better than letters. The best way is to call because when you call the office, they have to talk to you, and if the senator isn't available that day or at that time, ask if there's a time you may call back. If they try to brush you off, try calling the next day.

Someone else here had suggested posting in a different topic on the VJ forums. That's also a good idea, especially if you post it in the India forum (assuming there is one). I'm sure you are not the only ones who have had seemingly impossible hurdles to overcome, and hopefully they can point you in the right direction.

I know at the moment it seems overwhelming and may sometimes be difficult to get your thoughts together, but it sounds like you are taking necessary steps to fill in any gaps that are possible to fill in. I hope you both get through this. I hope you are able to send in sufficient evidence even if it's not *exactly* what they're looking for. I am sending you the most positive energy that I can!

[Chris/Uni 23]

I can hardly believe nor imagine what you're feeling right now. I am so sorry that this is happening to you! I have one suggestion, though this may be something you had in your original package. You said you submitted pages of text messages. I know we had an entirely different embassy on an entirely different continent, but we sent in text messages from as far back in our relationship as possible, and then chose excerpts from that point all the way to the day we submitted the package. Also, the messages were more than just "I love you, you're cute, etc", they were of us discussing plans, making jokes with each other, talking about our day. By the time I had it all compiled, there were none I wanted to leave out, and it ended up being 60 pages of texts. I printed them front and back so that it consolidated it to 30 pages. Like I said, this is probably something you already did. BUT maybe when you send in the new information, create a new document showing the continuation of your texting, phone or skype conversations. I think showing the continuing relationship since the date of petition submission could help.

And if you were ever able to stay on skype (or similar application) at long lengths of time, choose take screen shots from random points throughout your relationship of the call durations. For instance, when I was on an extended holiday due to Christmas in 2015, we had one call that lasted about 70-something hours, and we had many lengths of time like that because we would sleep with skype on and then I was able, most weekends to hang out with him on skype during the day. Even when we didn't have long call durations, they were often, usually 2 or 3 times a day.

About the photos of him with your children, that one is obviously tricky. I'm assuming since you've been together for so long that he has indeed met them, just never thought to take photos. I completely understand that too. May seem odd to some people to not take photos, but we're not always thinking about immigration when we're visiting our loves. The second trip I took to visit Robert, we took no photos, and I was kicking myself so badly. It just never came up. The focus of the trip was more about us making plans about things and enjoying our time together again whereas the first time I went to visit him, it was my first time out of the US, so of course photos were the first thing on my mind. I wanted photos of the amazing place he lived and of us together finally. Anyway, sorry for that tangent. If he has met your children, are you absolutely certain that no one else who may have been there didn't take photos?

And in regards to contacting your senator... I don't remember where I saw this recently, but it was someone who works at a senator's office, and she said that if you're ever trying to contact your senator for anything, a letter is essentially the worst way to do so. Letters are put in a stack and by the time they are read, the sender is given a standard "thank you for contacting us" letter. Emails aren't good either, but are better than letters. The best way is to call because when you call the office, they have to talk to you, and if the senator isn't available that day or at that time, ask if there's a time you may call back. If they try to brush you off, try calling the next day.

Someone else here had suggested posting in a different topic on the VJ forums. That's also a good idea, especially if you post it in the India forum (assuming there is one). I'm sure you are not the only ones who have had seemingly impossible hurdles to overcome, and hopefully they can point you in the right direction.

I know at the moment it seems overwhelming and may sometimes be difficult to get your thoughts together, but it sounds like you are taking necessary steps to fill in any gaps that are possible to fill in. I hope you both get through this. I hope you are able to send in sufficient evidence even if it's not *exactly* what they're looking for. I am sending you the most positive energy that I can!

Thanks, Allison, This was very helpful. Lot of good advice. I think if i just calm down and think logically about it I can put together what they need. I really felt our package was solid, but I can add more to it. It really does feel like he was unfairly singled out. They asked many strange questions about if he knew my ex, had they met, why I was divorced... then he didn't like the response.. or didn't believe it. I was married a long time, but then my husband was gay. So it obviously was not going to work. The interviewer didn't like the reason. When my fiance came here it was really the first time the kids were understanding he was "Permanent" and we were taking things slowly with them.. not too many "family" photos and things. And, yeah, I did not think I was going to need them... he was here on an APPROVED K1, but had to return to India because his brothers were in a critical, life threatening auto accident - he rushed out of here - we knew it was massively risky, but so were their lives at that moment. We had not married yet bec we were taking it a little slower to make sure the kids were comfortable... ahhhh. Now the re-apply is falling apart. Sorry.. i'm texting too much again.. I will try to step through this and fix it as best I can. Thank you so much for your kind words, advice and encouragement.

[Allison/Robert 43]

Thanks, Allison, This was very helpful. Lot of good advice. I think if i just calm down and think logically about it I can put together what they need. I really felt our package was solid, but I can add more to it. It really does feel like he was unfairly singled out. They asked many strange questions about if he knew my ex, had they met, why I was divorced... then he didn't like the response.. or didn't believe it. I was married a long time, but then my husband was gay. So it obviously was not going to work. The interviewer didn't like the reason. When my fiance came here it was really the first time the kids were understanding he was "Permanent" and we were taking things slowly with them.. not too many "family" photos and things. And, yeah, I did not think I was going to need them... he was here on an APPROVED K1, but had to return to India because his brothers were in a critical, life threatening auto accident - he rushed out of here - we knew it was massively risky, but so were their lives at that moment. We had not married yet bec we were taking it a little slower to make sure the kids were comfortable... ahhhh. Now the re-apply is falling apart. Sorry.. i'm texting too much again.. I will try to step through this and fix it as best I can. Thank you so much for your kind words, advice and encouragement.

I do want to quickly clarify for those who are keeping up with this... we didn't submit ALL text messages, just a collection of many different conversations throughout our relationship.

Anyway... about you "texting too much". Nonsense. You're perfectly fine. Type as much as you wish as it may help to organize your thoughts as well as allow you to vent your frustrations. Let the readers here decide how much they want to read, etc. There are many here who want to help as much as possible, even if it's nothing more than encouragement. We've all been through this crazy process in varying degrees of difficulty, so we can definitely relate even if it was easier or more difficult than what you're going through now.

And yes, I am also certain that once you reach a point of clarity, you'll be able to go back with a strong case full of good evidence. Please keep us updated... even if you want to list what you'll be sending in this time... maybe we'll be able to add suggestions of things you hadn't thought of or things you meant to include and had forgotten.

[MeAlone 161]

Totally agree with Alison. Only 1 small thing, it' the bureaucracy, read well the requirements they put in the letter and go one by one, if you don't have 1 evidence and it's not possible to get it don't omit it, make a letter explaining and sign as a true statement. It should be to each question - it's own answer. If you don't do it this way, they will say it's a missing info and ask again or close the case

Tasha

[Allison/Robert 43]

Totally agree with Alison. Only 1 small thing, it' the bureaucracy, read well the requirements they put in the letter and go one by one, if you don't have 1 evidence and it's not possible to get it don't omit it, make a letter explaining and sign as a true statement. It should be to each question - it's own answer. If you don't do it this way, they will say it's a missing info and ask again or close the case

Tasha

Yes, very good point! This makes complete sense.

[Chris/Uni 23]

Totally agree with Alison. Only 1 small thing, it' the bureaucracy, read well the requirements they put in the letter and go one by one, if you don't have 1 evidence and it's not possible to get it don't omit it, make a letter explaining and sign as a true statement. It should be to each question - it's own answer. If you don't do it this way, they will say it's a missing info and ask again or close the case

Tasha

Yes! You are right! I had not thought of it exactly this way. I will do that. You guys are so great!! Thank you!!!!!!!