Scandinavians Part 2

[Scandi 4,176]

Different states have different marriage licenses/certificates. It doesn't matter if your state issues lisences where there's no space for "new name" or " married name", you still file AOS with your spouse's surname if that's the name you want to use. USCIS doesn't need anything else in regards to name change. Maiden name is then written under "other names used" on the i-485 form.

 

In California we can add our married name on the license and certificate, but like I said, not all states have it like that.

 

You do NOT want to file for AOS in your maiden name if you want to take your spouse's name. It'll cost you a hood $500 to have the name changed on the greencard afterwards.

 

And don't use a lawyer, it's very much wasted money. The AOS part is also several times easier than the i-129f/K-1 part was. Very, very easy to handle yourself.

[Jo&Bob 83]

7 hours ago, Scandi said:

Different states have different marriage licenses/certificates. It doesn't matter if your state issues lisences where there's no space for "new name" or " married name", you still file AOS with your spouse's surname if that's the name you want to use. USCIS doesn't need anything else in regards to name change. Maiden name is then written under "other names used" on the i-485 form.

 

In California we can add our married name on the license and certificate, but like I said, not all states have it like that.

 

You do NOT want to file for AOS in your maiden name if you want to take your spouse's name. It'll cost you a hood $500 to have the name changed on the greencard afterwards.

 

And don't use a lawyer, it's very much wasted money. The AOS part is also several times easier than the i-129f/K-1 part was. Very, very easy to handle yourself.

Hi Scandi,

Thank you very much for your answer! That clears up a lot!
Do you know if its okay to file for the AOS in the new surname but using the old passport with the maiden name?

[Scandi 4,176]

17 hours ago, JosephineAndBobby said:

Hi Scandi,

Thank you very much for your answer! That clears up a lot!
Do you know if its okay to file for the AOS in the new surname but using the old passport with the maiden name?

Of course, no problem at all. File as soon as you can. 👍

[Ralph2CO 2]

Hi

 

I got my passport & K-1 Visa at the PostNord service agent today (incl the sealed package) I've enjoyed the valuable information very much in this sub-forum where the Scandinavian experiences have been shared. Many thanks to the people that have traveled before me ... 😉

 

What are your recommendation of sub-forum to cover the next steps of the process:

 

Is this the best = Adjustment of Status (Green Card) from K1 and K3 Family Based Visas or should I find if there's a special sub-forum for my State = Colorado ?

or are there other better places to follow ? Where did you move your focus ? or do you make a search on keywords in all forums to see what shows up ?

 

What about insurance until I'm married ? The plan is PoE at 2018-11-14 and legal Marriage 2019-01-21. My "interpretation" from many different posts in different forums is that Travel insurance from Sweden & ERV or WorldNomads will not give me the help I want. (focused on Health and Dental) I found this from https://help.ihealthagents.com/hc/en-us/articles/360007198194-Can-you-get-Health-Insurance-with-a-K1-Visa-  & Patriot America Plus. What did you choose until you got married ?

 

Thanks for any input !

 

 

[Scandi 4,176]

11 hours ago, Ralph2CO said:

Hi

 

I got my passport & K-1 Visa at the PostNord service agent today (incl the sealed package) I've enjoyed the valuable information very much in this sub-forum where the Scandinavian experiences have been shared. Many thanks to the people that have traveled before me ... 😉

 

What are your recommendation of sub-forum to cover the next steps of the process:

 

 

Is this the best = Adjustment of Status (Green Card) from K1 and K3 Family Based Visas or should I find if there's a special sub-forum for my State = Colorado ?

or are there other better places to follow ? Where did you move your focus ? or do you make a search on keywords in all forums to see what shows up ?

 

What about insurance until I'm married ? The plan is PoE at 2018-11-14 and legal Marriage 2019-01-21. My "interpretation" from many different posts in different forums is that Travel insurance from Sweden & ERV or WorldNomads will not give me the help I want. (focused on Health and Dental) I found this from https://help.ihealthagents.com/hc/en-us/articles/360007198194-Can-you-get-Health-Insurance-with-a-K1-Visa-  & Patriot America Plus. What did you choose until you got married ?

 

Thanks for any input !

 

 

Filing for AOS is the same no matter what state you live in. All you need is this guide: https://www.visajourney.com/content/k1k3aos

 

If you want to follow other AOS cases from the same month as yours, this will be the subforum: https://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/131-adjustment-of-status-case-filing-and-progress-reports/

 

If you want to read reviews from others who had their interviews at your specific field office, this is where you go to choose the office and type of application: https://www.visajourney.com/reviews/

 

Can't say anything about the insurance as I've never had one.

 

If you plan on moving soon, go apply for your SSN as soon as you land in the US. It'll come in handy in April when you and your spouse file taxes together. 

Edited November 10, 2018 by Scandi

[Reverie 10]

So I got my visa several weeks ago, and at the interview, they said they'd return all my original papers like birth certificate etc. But the package only contained my passport and the sealed envelope I'm not allowed to open. Could they be inside it?

[NDP22 11]

Hi, 

I am currently in the process of getting my fiance to America. She is from Norway and we are doing the I-129f. I was curious if there are any Norwegians, or anyone, that could give me some advice and guidance on this process. We just got our NOA2 on Nov 16th, 2018. What follows this? And what exactly do I need or what does she need for the process ahead? I would just like to have a tentative timeline and what we need to get together now and to make this a speedy process.

Thanks!

Edited November 28, 2018 by NDP22

[aprilfiler2018 47]

Hi to all fellow applicants in Stockholm! 

I am applying for a K-1 visa and this process has been extremely slow. I got my Noa2 on October 4th and will have my medical on the 10th of December. I think I have all the documents ready but the embassy in Stockholm has not sent me a checklist yet so I could not continue to pay the visa fee.

I know that I can only schedule the appointment after the medical. But do you bring the documents to the interview or will you need to sent them in before?

 

I was hoping to have my interview before Christmas because I need to quit my apartment and job.. 

 

How did the process work for you? What are the next steps?

 

Thank you

 

anna

[Scandi 4,176]

On 12/4/2018 at 11:56 PM, aprilfiler2018 said:

Hi to all fellow applicants in Stockholm! 

I am applying for a K-1 visa and this process has been extremely slow. I got my Noa2 on October 4th and will have my medical on the 10th of December. I think I have all the documents ready but the embassy in Stockholm has not sent me a checklist yet so I could not continue to pay the visa fee.

I know that I can only schedule the appointment after the medical. But do you bring the documents to the interview or will you need to sent them in before?

 

I was hoping to have my interview before Christmas because I need to quit my apartment and job.. 

 

How did the process work for you? What are the next steps?

 

Thank you

 

anna

Seems weird you haven't got your checklist yet. Normally you get your case number when you call NVC about 20-30 days after your NOA2, and then it doesn't take more than a week for the embassy to send you the checklist. For you that process has already been 2 months.

 

Are you sure there is no checklist in your or your partner's spam folder? My now husband (the US citizen was the one who received the checklist, not me, the beneficiary). 

 

Remember to get with the embassy if you wait much longer in taking action, the NOA2 is only valid for 4 months although the embassy may extend it. But don't expect it to happen by itself.

 

You bring all documents to the interview, nothing is being sent in beforehand.

Edited December 6, 2018 by Scandi

[EllenE1230 22]

On 12/5/2018 at 2:56 AM, aprilfiler2018 said:

Hi to all fellow applicants in Stockholm! 

I am applying for a K-1 visa and this process has been extremely slow. I got my Noa2 on October 4th and will have my medical on the 10th of December. I think I have all the documents ready but the embassy in Stockholm has not sent me a checklist yet so I could not continue to pay the visa fee.

I know that I can only schedule the appointment after the medical. But do you bring the documents to the interview or will you need to sent them in before?

 

I was hoping to have my interview before Christmas because I need to quit my apartment and job.. 

 

How did the process work for you? What are the next steps?

 

Thank you

 

anna

I waited until I had my interview in Sweden scheduled to schedule my medical. But coming from Denmark I could have scheduled it earlier since they didn't ask for anything when I booked it. 

The checklist will definitely be sent to the US citizen. The email they send also says that the USC have to forward it to the beneficiary 

[aprilfiler2018 47]

9 minutes ago, EllenE1230 said:

I waited until I had my interview in Sweden scheduled to schedule my medical. But coming from Denmark I could have scheduled it earlier since they didn't ask for anything when I booked it. 

The checklist will definitely be sent to the US citizen. The email they send also says that the USC have to forward it to the beneficiary 

@EllenE1230 @Scandi Thank you both! Today I scheduled my interview and it worked! I guess I got confused because I read some info that you would get notified by post not email.. they should be more clear about the steps!

I was so sure that I was supposed to be contacted personally, not via the fiancé. It said in the description the local embassy reaches out to the beneficiary  Well it is fine! Now I have my medical on Monday and will have my interview before Christmas which is great!

Everythinh worked out fine because I am planning to leave end of February! So plenty of time.

i was only afraid the validity of my police certificates would run out

[RandB 156]

A great day for the Norwegians in the US. Today, the parliament voted to allow dual citizenship for Norwegian citizens. It's great news for everyone who don't want to give up their Norwegian citizenship in order to become an American citizen.

Here's a link (in Norwegian): https://www.dagbladet.no/nyheter/na-blir-det-lov-til-a-ha-to-statsborgerskap/70536737

[RandB 156]

On 11/28/2018 at 7:02 AM, NDP22 said:

Hi, 

I am currently in the process of getting my fiance to America. She is from Norway and we are doing the I-129f. I was curious if there are any Norwegians, or anyone, that could give me some advice and guidance on this process. We just got our NOA2 on Nov 16th, 2018. What follows this? And what exactly do I need or what does she need for the process ahead? I would just like to have a tentative timeline and what we need to get together now and to make this a speedy process.

Thanks!

Hi,

You need to get a case number from the National Benefits Center. Then, you can schedule an interview with the American embassy in Stockholm (the one in Oslo don't do K1 visas). In the meantime, schedule the health check appointment. This has to be done by a specific doctor in Oslo. Which doctor this is should be provided on the embassy website, I believe. The doctor sends all the documents to the embassy in Stockholm. After the interview, you get the passport in the mail with the visa glued to one of the pages. Then, you need to emigrate to the US within the expiration date of the visa. You can only enter once on the K1 visa.

I might have gotten some of the details wrong, but this is the general timeline. Hope this helps.

[EllenE1230 22]

2 hours ago, aprilfiler2018 said:

@EllenE1230 @Scandi Thank you both! Today I scheduled my interview and it worked! I guess I got confused because I read some info that you would get notified by post not email.. they should be more clear about the steps!

I was so sure that I was supposed to be contacted personally, not via the fiancé. It said in the description the local embassy reaches out to the beneficiary  Well it is fine! Now I have my medical on Monday and will have my interview before Christmas which is great!

Everythinh worked out fine because I am planning to leave end of February! So plenty of time.

i was only afraid the validity of my police certificates would run out

Glad to help! I'm wondering which country you're from? I couldn't find it in your profile. If you're from Denmark you have to book a separate appointment for the x-rays to be taken which they weren't 100% clear about when I booked. I had to read it off their website. 

I wasnt sure either how new the police certificate was supposed to be. I searched a bit around and I believe that as long as it's less than 12 months old you're okay

[Scandi 4,176]

4 hours ago, EllenE1230 said:

Glad to help! I'm wondering which country you're from? I couldn't find it in your profile. If you're from Denmark you have to book a separate appointment for the x-rays to be taken which they weren't 100% clear about when I booked. I had to read it off their website. 

I wasnt sure either how new the police certificate was supposed to be. I searched a bit around and I believe that as long as it's less than 12 months old you're okay

It says Sweden, but I believe you can't see it if you're on a phone? I can only see it from a regular browser on tablet or computer, not my phones.