Documents needed for interview: Conflicting information?

[Cenobite30 4]

Bottom Line Up Front: Does my wife (applicant) need to bring my (petitioner) original divorce decree (or a certified copy thereof) to her visa interview? Or is it alright to use just a regular old photocopy?

 

Background: Greetings, all. Our I-130 was approved, and now we are on the stage of submitting forms and documents to the NVC. I have a question about a conflict I see between what is said on the State Department website and what is written here by people more knowledgeable and experienced than I am. My question revolves around what documents the applicant is required to bring to the embassy interview.

 

The State Department website appears to plainly state that my wife (applicant) needs to bring my (petitioner) original divorce decree to her interview.

"If you are applying for an IR1, CR1, or F2A visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident and your petitioning spouse was previously married:  You must obtain evidence of the termination of EVERY prior marriage your petitioning spouse has had. This evidence must be an original or certified copy of one of the following documents:  FINAL legal divorce decree, death certificate, or annulment papers.

-Send a photocopy of the petitioner’s marriage termination document(s) to NVC.
-Bring the original petitioner’s termination document(s) plus a photocopy to your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate."

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/collect-and-submit-forms-and-documents-to-the-nvc/step-5-collect-supporting-documents.html

 

A thread on this website (admittedly from 3 years ago) had a different take. Some people on this forum (especially pushbrk) whom I trust more than my lying eyes said this:

"I advise taking a complete copy of the I-130 petition package, for reference and just in case. However, it is the job of USCIS to establish the US Citizen's eligibility as a citizen, before approving the petition. It would be an anamaly to be asked to show a copy of it."

He was saying this about a birth certificate, not a divorce decree, but it seems that the principle is the same. Incidentally, I don't think I submitted an original or certified copy of my birth certificate to anyone during the I-130 application. I just sent them a regular old copy. And that was apparently good enough to establish that I was a US citizen, since my wife does not need to bring my original birth certificate to her visa interview. So does that mean my photocopied divorce decree was enough to establish that I was divorced?

 

I suppose the answer to this, like many things in the process, is that they might ask or they might not, but I should still have it?

 

Other details which may be relevant:

- I am a US born American citizen.

- I was married previously.

- The person I was married to was another foreigner whom I helped to immigrate to the US.

- My current wife is Russian and will be interviewed in Moscow.

 

Edit: I just got off the phone with a representative from the NVC. He said that they do not need divorce decrees at all, either originals or copies. He said it was all submitted in the I-130. This directly contradicts what is on the State Department link from above. I was skeptical so I called back. Another guy at NVC said the same thing, they don't need the divorce decree and he doesn't believe the embassy needs it either. This only muddies the water further.

Edited August 2, 2018 by Cenobite30
New information

[pushbrk 13,259]

Comments have context.  Divorce decrees are not Birth Certificates.  She may or may not be asked to SHOW the certified copy or copies of your divorce decree but since she may be, it's best she have the actual certified copy on hand.  I suppose you noted that a certified copy of your birth certificate is not on that same list, right?  The difference in context is that the petitioner's birth certificate is only one of several potential ways to provide evidence of US Citizenship, some of which don't feature a Certified Copy option.  Divorce decrees do and are used to verify the facts therein are consistent with the petition and visa application.

[Cenobite30 4]

5 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

Comments have context.  Divorce decrees are not Birth Certificates.  She may or may not be asked to SHOW the certified copy or copies of your divorce decree but since she may be, it's best she have the actual certified copy on hand.  I suppose you noted that a certified copy of your birth certificate is not on that same list, right?  The difference in context is that the petitioner's birth certificate is only one of several potential ways to provide evidence of US Citizenship, some of which don't feature a Certified Copy option.  Divorce decrees do and are used to verify the facts therein are consistent with the petition and visa application.

Thanks for the quick response. How crazy. I noted you specifically from a thread from three years ago, and here you are.

 

Yes, I had noticed that. I had more confusion about the documents that are listed as part of the VisaJourney I-130 guide. The list of documents to bring to the interview doesn't specify if they belong to the applicant or the petitioner. To me it reads like it weakly implies it is only the applicant's documents, but I can't tell.

"Interview Forms / Items:

1.	Valid Passport.
2.	Original or certified "long" birth certificate. *
3.	Original adoption decree. (if applicable)
4.	Original or certified copy of the marriage certificate. (if applicable)
5.	Original death certificate. (if applicable)
6.	Original divorce decree. (if applicable)
7.	Police certificate. **
8.	Court record(s) (if applicable).
9.	I-864 Affidavit of Support Form along with past 3 year U.S tax returns (or transcripts) and any other financial documents required. (see poverty limits here)
10.	Court and prison records.(if applicable)
11.	Medical examination information
12.	Two passport-type photos (see specification) of the spouse or benefitiary"

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

 

Did you happen to see my edit? I got off the phone with NVC just minutes after submitting the thread. I don't really know what to make of it.

 

Anyway, I appreciate your help.

[pushbrk 13,259]

16 minutes ago, Cenobite30 said:

Thanks for the quick response. How crazy. I noted you specifically from a thread from three years ago, and here you are.

 

Yes, I had noticed that. I had more confusion about the documents that are listed as part of the VisaJourney I-130 guide. The list of documents to bring to the interview doesn't specify if they belong to the applicant or the petitioner. To me it reads like it weakly implies it is only the applicant's documents, but I can't tell.

"Interview Forms / Items:

1.	Valid Passport.
2.	Original or certified "long" birth certificate. *
3.	Original adoption decree. (if applicable)
4.	Original or certified copy of the marriage certificate. (if applicable)
5.	Original death certificate. (if applicable)
6.	Original divorce decree. (if applicable)
7.	Police certificate. **
8.	Court record(s) (if applicable).
9.	I-864 Affidavit of Support Form along with past 3 year U.S tax returns (or transcripts) and any other financial documents required. (see poverty limits here)
10.	Court and prison records.(if applicable)
11.	Medical examination information
12.	Two passport-type photos (see specification) of the spouse or benefitiary"

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

 

Did you happen to see my edit? I got off the phone with NVC just minutes after submitting the thread. I don't really know what to make of it.

 

Anyway, I appreciate your help.

Yes, that's a list of applicant documents.  It's still best to have Certified Copies of Civil Documents for inspection during the interview.  If your spouse is not asked for them, then next one may be.  It's all circumstantial.

[David & Diana R 1,005]

1 hour ago, Cenobite30 said:

Bottom Line Up Front: Does my wife (applicant) need to bring my (petitioner) original divorce decree (or a certified copy thereof) to her visa interview? Or is it alright to use just a regular old photocopy?

 

Background: Greetings, all. Our I-130 was approved, and now we are on the stage of submitting forms and documents to the NVC. I have a question about a conflict I see between what is said on the State Department website and what is written here by people more knowledgeable and experienced than I am. My question revolves around what documents the applicant is required to bring to the embassy interview.

 

The State Department website appears to plainly state that my wife (applicant) needs to bring my (petitioner) original divorce decree to her interview.

"If you are applying for an IR1, CR1, or F2A visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen or Lawful Permanent Resident and your petitioning spouse was previously married:  You must obtain evidence of the termination of EVERY prior marriage your petitioning spouse has had. This evidence must be an original or certified copy of one of the following documents:  FINAL legal divorce decree, death certificate, or annulment papers.

-Send a photocopy of the petitioner’s marriage termination document(s) to NVC.
-Bring the original petitioner’s termination document(s) plus a photocopy to your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate."

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/collect-and-submit-forms-and-documents-to-the-nvc/step-5-collect-supporting-documents.html

 

A thread on this website (admittedly from 3 years ago) had a different take. Some people on this forum (especially pushbrk) whom I trust more than my lying eyes said this:

"I advise taking a complete copy of the I-130 petition package, for reference and just in case. However, it is the job of USCIS to establish the US Citizen's eligibility as a citizen, before approving the petition. It would be an anamaly to be asked to show a copy of it."

He was saying this about a birth certificate, not a divorce decree, but it seems that the principle is the same. Incidentally, I don't think I submitted an original or certified copy of my birth certificate to anyone during the I-130 application. I just sent them a regular old copy. And that was apparently good enough to establish that I was a US citizen, since my wife does not need to bring my original birth certificate to her visa interview. So does that mean my photocopied divorce decree was enough to establish that I was divorced?

 

I suppose the answer to this, like many things in the process, is that they might ask or they might not, but I should still have it?

 

Other details which may be relevant:

- I am a US born American citizen.

- I was married previously.

- The person I was married to was another foreigner whom I helped to immigrate to the US.

- My current wife is Russian and will be interviewed in Moscow.

 

Edit: I just got off the phone with a representative from the NVC. He said that they do not need divorce decrees at all, either originals or copies. He said it was all submitted in the I-130. This directly contradicts what is on the State Department link from above. I was skeptical so I called back. Another guy at NVC said the same thing, they don't need the divorce decree and he doesn't believe the embassy needs it either. This only muddies the water further.

The answer to your question in red above.  Plus if you can attend the interview with her that can be helpful.  I/we had numerous "original" copies/certified of all documents that we hand carried to her interview. 

[Cenobite30 4]

14 minutes ago, David & Zoila said:

The answer to your question in red above.  Plus if you can attend the interview with her that can be helpful.  I/we had numerous "original" copies/certified of all documents that we hand carried to her interview. 

Thank you for your response as well. I cannot be there with her, but I can provide her document support.

 

The plot thickens even further: Another list on the State Department's website from a real official source (the US embassy in Moscow) is completely different from the other list on the website, as well as the list from VisaJourney. I know I'm not the first person to make this observation, but it's just so bizarre that it works this way.