Do I have to be in the US when my spouse arrives in order for him to receive the visa?

[alicia98981 128]

I contacted the embassy and NVC and received no response. I'm deploying in a few months and my spouse is in AP. I will not have a legal residence during my deployment as I will pack everything up and put it in storage. I will have a mailing address (parents' house), but do I need to have a physical address before the visa can be issued? I'm uncomfortable with my husband arriving to the US alone and trying to figure everything out without me there and we are currently talking to friends and family members to see if someone will step up and help him get settled, but so far no one seems interested.

Edited August 10, 2017 by alicia98981

[Coco8 1,042]

He can push the medical + interview for later. It can be months later. How long will you be deployed? 

 

You don't have to be in the US but it can create problems for ROC. Also, he won't be able to do a lot of things on his own at the beginning. He won't have credit, he will have to get a social security card, open a bank account can be hard, etc. It will be too much for one person alone if he is just moving to be with you but you won't be there.

[alicia98981 128]

8 minutes ago, Coco8 said:

He can push the medical + interview for later. It can be months later. How long will you be deployed? 

 

You don't have to be in the US but it can create problems for ROC. Also, he won't be able to do a lot of things on his own at the beginning. He won't have credit, he will have to get a social security card, open a bank account can be hard, etc. It will be too much for one person alone if he is just moving to be with you but you won't be there.

He's already had the interview. He's in AP.

[JBMG 890]

1 hour ago, alicia98981 said:

He's already had the interview. He's in AP.

His visa to enter the US will expire 6 months from the medical appointment. 

[JE57 239]

More to the point you asked if you must be in the USA when your spouse arrives for him to receive the VISA.  I believe the answer to that is that the VISA can be issued rather you are physically in the USA or not.   As far as him entering the USA while you are deployed once he gets his Visa.. Again that should be allowed but could present some difficulties as mentioned above in addition to the fact that he could face additional questions at the Port of Entry if any of the questions asked requires him to indicate that you are not actually in the Country. 

 

[Happytobe 164]

One option would be, for him to enter and get the SS number started and then return to Morocco once his cards come (SS & green card). Or return to Morocco once he's applied and they can be sent to your parents address. They're not supposed to be sent overseas via the mail, but you could bring them to him. That would be costly to fly over twice, but he could visit with your family for a little while. Does he have any friends here that he can speak with? They might be able to give him instruction.  He just needs to go through a POE to get the ball rolling before the visa expires. It's different from the K-1 in that it's multi-entry (unless things have changed).  

[Lazybones18 261]

I dont see any problems to be honest ... once he obtains a valid visa he can enter the country legally .. period

 

as far as getting settled, i am sure you and him can figure it out.

 

good luck

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from Progress Reports to Process & Procedures.

[pushbrk 12,898]

On 8/9/2017 at 11:32 PM, alicia98981 said:

I contacted the embassy and NVC and received no response. I'm deploying in a few months and my spouse is in AP. I will not have a legal residence during my deployment as I will pack everything up and put it in storage. I will have a mailing address (parents' house), but do I need to have a physical address before the visa can be issued? I'm uncomfortable with my husband arriving to the US alone and trying to figure everything out without me there and we are currently talking to friends and family members to see if someone will step up and help him get settled, but so far no one seems interested.

You've got some good responses and some wrong ones and some just misleading.  Rather than addressing the specific posts, I'll cover all the issues I think relate to the circumstances you describe.

 

If the DS260 was completed correctly, the green card and Social Security card will simply arrive at the intended address given on the DS260 a month or so after entering the US. You do NOT have to be in the US for the visa to be issued.  Deployed military are considered as residing in the US for immigration related purposes.  Since in countries where AP is common, the AP itself might not be completed within six months of the medical, the visa validity will have no relation to the medical exam.  There are notable exception, like Manila, where AP is uncommon or usually short, where the exam date impacts the visa expiration but this is not generally the case.

 

Your concerns about him being in the US without you will need to be addressed as you see fit.

 

With those issues dealt with, you can focus on the real issue, which is whether the visa will ever be issued.  That will depend on the specific circumstances of your case, but if they don't usually do the AP security checks unless they otherwise intend to issue the visa.  

 

When AP is complete, it's also possible to delay visa issue, or as already mentioned, he only has to enter the US before the visa expires, not get settled.  He can leave as soon as he wants and come back when you return from your deployment, provided he doesn't leave for significantly longer than six months.

[alicia98981 128]

On 8/13/2017 at 9:36 PM, pushbrk said:

You've got some good responses and some wrong ones and some just misleading.  Rather than addressing the specific posts, I'll cover all the issues I think relate to the circumstances you describe.

 

If the DS260 was completed correctly, the green card and Social Security card will simply arrive at the intended address given on the DS260 a month or so after entering the US. You do NOT have to be in the US for the visa to be issued.  Deployed military are considered as residing in the US for immigration related purposes.  Since in countries where AP is common, the AP itself might not be completed within six months of the medical, the visa validity will have no relation to the medical exam.  There are notable exception, like Manila, where AP is uncommon or usually short, where the exam date impacts the visa expiration but this is not generally the case.

 

Your concerns about him being in the US without you will need to be addressed as you see fit.

 

With those issues dealt with, you can focus on the real issue, which is whether the visa will ever be issued.  That will depend on the specific circumstances of your case, but if they don't usually do the AP security checks unless they otherwise intend to issue the visa.  

 

When AP is complete, it's also possible to delay visa issue, or as already mentioned, he only has to enter the US before the visa expires, not get settled.  He can leave as soon as he wants and come back when you return from your deployment, provided he doesn't leave for significantly longer than six months.

Thank you, this was the closest response my question.

[milimelo 4,481]

Petitioner needs to be in the US or arriving with the immigrant at POE. My husband was deployed overseas and we went together to the US for vacation to activate my visa. 

[pushbrk 12,898]

9 hours ago, milimelo said:

Petitioner needs to be in the US or arriving with the immigrant at POE.

This is not universally true.  It applies when the couple is living together abroad.  Petitioner does not need to be physically present in the USA when the CR1 or IR1 visa holder enters the US.  There's actually no method of verifying the location of the petitioner.  Deployed US Citizen Petitioners are considered to be residing in the USA.