REJECTED!

[ELW 5]

Red flags? hmmm well she is 26, i am 35. same religion, culture, language, we were introduced feb 2007, engaged aug 2007, i applied for k1 jan 2007. I was divorced in Jan 2003 and have a child.

I'm thinking you meant introduced in Feb 2006.

Anyway all is in order, many of us have the so-called "red flags" and still got approved in India. Divorce in 2003 and a child is not really a red flag, I would say that many people filing for K1 visas have a divorce & children in their past.

It really makes me mad that you are given such a hard time. It's not fair!

Cases are really hard to fight once they are sent back to the NVC. If I were in your position, I would probably get married and then file for the spouse visa (K3 or other).

Are arranged marriages the norm or the exception with Indian people who are divorced and have children?

Gupt, I generally only stayed in villages and observed that often divorced men had arranged marriages with never-married girls. It was not generally socially acceptable for divorced women to get married again, especially via arranged marriage. In the cities it may have been different.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Are arranged marriages the norm or the exception with Indian people who are divorced and have children?

Eh, it's not uncommon to arrange marriages for widowers with children, so it's only a minor step to divorced men.

(unfortunately, widows and divorced mothers aren't exactly afforded the same)

[Charuhans 0]

Red flags? hmmm well she is 26, i am 35. same religion, culture, language, we were introduced feb 2007, engaged aug 2007, i applied for k1 jan 2007. I was divorced in Jan 2003 and have a child.

I'm thinking you meant introduced in Feb 2006.

Anyway all is in order, many of us have the so-called "red flags" and still got approved in India. Divorce in 2003 and a child is not really a red flag, I would say that many people filing for K1 visas have a divorce & children in their past.

It really makes me mad that you are given such a hard time. It's not fair!

Cases are really hard to fight once they are sent back to the NVC. If I were in your position, I would probably get married and then file for the spouse visa (K3 or other).

Are arranged marriages the norm or the exception with Indian people who are divorced and have children?

Gupt, I generally only stayed in villages and observed that often divorced men had arranged marriages with never-married girls. It was not generally socially acceptable for divorced women to get married again, especially via arranged marriage. In the cities it may have been different.

As CherryXS stated divorced men & widowers getting remarried is the norm in India, rural or urban. Most of the time to never married and very young girls. Of course, the only reason the girls get in these marriages (there will be exceptions) is financial security and one can't blame them given the social structure in India. BUT well educated women(read have high probability to be economically independent) who hail from well to do families (read strong social support) rarely get in such marriages (again exceptions will exist).

The issue the CO would have considered here is not whether a divorced man with children is remarrying and that too to a younger never married woman BUT WHY is the woman marrying him, since she is the one seeking the Visa?? Especially if she is educated and comes from a well to do family (they asked for list of relatives). What's the motive? Love? Definitely, but then the onus to prove it is going to be that much difficult since the CO is starting the case with a bais already formed in his mind. One slip, one thing that doesn't add up and the case goes to AP/AR with a 221(g). Then the Fraud Investigation Division comes in the picture ..... an acceptance/rejection is based on their report ....

Charuhans

[cjindia 0]

Red flags? hmmm well she is 26, i am 35. same religion, culture, language, we were introduced feb 2007, engaged aug 2007, i applied for k1 jan 2007. I was divorced in Jan 2003 and have a child.

As an outsider the only red flag I see in this timeline, is the filing of the K1 in Jan 2007 and being introduced in Feb 2007. Normally one would not file a K1 for someone they are going to meet later. Let alone get engaged with 8 months later.

OOPS... we were introduced feb 2006 not 2007.. and engaged Aug 2006 and filed for fiance visa jan 2007.. typo on my part..

[cjindia 0]

Red flags? hmmm well she is 26, i am 35. same religion, culture, language, we were introduced feb 2007, engaged aug 2007, i applied for k1 jan 2007. I was divorced in Jan 2003 and have a child.

I'm thinking you meant introduced in Feb 2006.

Anyway all is in order, many of us have the so-called "red flags" and still got approved in India. Divorce in 2003 and a child is not really a red flag, I would say that many people filing for K1 visas have a divorce & children in their past.

It really makes me mad that you are given such a hard time. It's not fair!

Cases are really hard to fight once they are sent back to the NVC. If I were in your position, I would probably get married and then file for the spouse visa (K3 or other).

Are arranged marriages the norm or the exception with Indian people who are divorced and have children?

Gupt, I generally only stayed in villages and observed that often divorced men had arranged marriages with never-married girls. It was not generally socially acceptable for divorced women to get married again, especially via arranged marriage. In the cities it may have been different.

As CherryXS stated divorced men & widowers getting remarried is the norm in India, rural or urban. Most of the time to never married and very young girls. Of course, the only reason the girls get in these marriages (there will be exceptions) is financial security and one can't blame them given the social structure in India. BUT well educated women(read have high probability to be economically independent) who hail from well to do families (read strong social support) rarely get in such marriages (again exceptions will exist).

The issue the CO would have considered here is not whether a divorced man with children is remarrying and that too to a younger never married woman BUT WHY is the woman marrying him, since she is the one seeking the Visa?? Especially if she is educated and comes from a well to do family (they asked for list of relatives). What's the motive? Love? Definitely, but then the onus to prove it is going to be that much difficult since the CO is starting the case with a bais already formed in his mind. One slip, one thing that doesn't add up and the case goes to AP/AR with a 221(g). Then the Fraud Investigation Division comes in the picture ..... an acceptance/rejection is based on their report ....

Charuhans

My fiance is actually very good family friends with my aunt(massi), she knows her since she was a child. Also, the above post said they asked for a list of relatives. But they didnt ask me that..

[sakurasama 0]

cjindia,

The same thing happened to me and my fiance with New Delhi. We had lived together for over 8 months, had been dating for a year and a half, had tons of emails, letters, phone calls, photos. My story is really long but at the end of it we were told our petition had expired and wasn't being revalidated because the CO wasn't convinced of a valid relationship and was sent back to the NVC. There is a silver lining- YOU WERE NOT DENIED, your petition just expired. This means you can file another one without having to wait for the first one to have to go through the review process (which could take years!!!)

My fiance and I attempted to get married but because neither he nor I am an Indian citizen and I couldn't stay in the country for the requistite 45 days we couldn't get married. I refiled a fiance petition for him with a very long explanation of everything that went wrong with the first petition, all the mishandling and incompetency at the Embassy level, included my emails to the Embassy and their vague pointless emails back (when they actually bothered to reply!). It has taken over 6 months for the second petition to be approved by USCIS and I don't know it that was just bad luck or because my petition was so long but it did get approved and is on its way back to Delhi. I am hoping that the CO there will realize that my fiance and I are SERIOUS about getting married and that she/he can't send it back to DHS after it has been approved TWICE!!!!

Incidentally, I pursued both petitions, the returned petition and my newly submitted petition. The returned petition is still in limbo after 13 months.

[brnidokiegurl 0]

how can you have two petitions still going, most expire by the time they are returned, but i thought you had to wait for the final notice before you refile....

[sakurasama 0]

My first petition was returned because it expired and the CO chose not to revalidate it, not because it was denied. So I didn't have to wait for a final notice from the first one. I was able to resubmit.

[cjindia 0]

This is unreal, I submitted more documents for proof than required. I also visited my fiance 3 times. Her family is best friends with my aunts family. Yet she got a 221g at the interview and then this:

Documents submitted by you are unable to establish that a crdible relationship exists between yourself and petitioner. The fiance visa petition is valid for 4 months from the date of its approval. Your petition was approved on Feb 6 2007, and since then more than 4 months past. Because the consular officer was not convinced with the relationship between yourself and petitioner, the petiton was not revalidated . We have returned the petition to the NVC.

What happens now.. Congressman didnt do a thing... supposedly they called up etc etc. she is a wreck.. what do i do now.

btw this is what we submitted

1. 200 emails

2. hundreds and hundreds of dollars in phone bills

3. 3 seperate pplane trips by me

4 over 70 engagement photos..

what else?

I am very upset. I called him lawyer and he was furious... he said my fiance will come here... and he will get working on it. The congressman, said he will directly call the consulate general. I dont know about that, but since he works with my dad on many projects I hope he means it.

My laywer told me to be reasonable and think what else we could have shown, he said based on the law, the consulate officer was out of bounds. They do have discretion but there is a limit, and they usually have to follow what the USCIS decides, and only overrule if they find concrete evidence to the contrary. he even faxed me the actual rules they must follow. It was sent to them by State Dept. Seems that alot of people are suing DHS since the consulates are not following the standards. But like i said, who knows .. this system is so wacky.

I just sent the embassy a detailed email stating what was provided, if they can revalidate the visa for 4 more months and I wil be more than willing to provide anything to prove the relationship.

My lawyer has advised me to reapply for a K1, then be prepared to get a RFE from USCIS and the lawyer will supply all the answers at that point. I asked him about the other case still pending. He said it is best to

1. follow up with the case being sent back

2. but at the same time do a new petition and over supplying them with proof of relationship.

I am planning to see my fiance in Sept, any ideas of what we should do? We will just do the normal photo taking and submit that but anything else that could support our relationship.

My congressman is also aggressively pursuing the case that was sent back.

How do you propose I prepare for this new petition.

My lawyer also said that along with his letter to the consulate general that I should send a personal letter, gentle yet firm stating my concerns and disappointment that a US citizen was not treated fairly and that how a 3 min interview can determine our relationship.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I am planning to see my fiance in Sept, any ideas of what we should do? We will just do the normal photo taking and submit that but anything else that could support our relationship.

Have a ceremony and invite the Consulate General.