Can my girlfriend travel outside the Philippines for us to meet somewhere and spend time together?

[Chancy 6,241]

10 hours ago, Cody&Razely said:

 

@Chancy We are going through the process right now, but My Fiancé went out to eat before she will finish, I'll update here once she is done and let you know the steps.

 

Thank you!  Please do let me know how it goes.  I've been trying to register online but always got stuck because I've never tried skipping the part asking for an image of the visa.  I have a long time to go before the embassy stage, but I really want to take advantage of this time when we can get the CFO requirement out of the way without having to travel to their office.

 

[Chancy 6,241]

9 hours ago, Adventine said:

My fiancé had to return to the US recently and I was planning to visit him using my existing B1/B2 visa. My understanding was I don't need the CFO sticker for the visit, because I'm going back to the Philippines to complete the K1 process. 

 

I doubt BI will think you'll try to leave for good and ask you for a CFO sticker.  I think it's a big factor that you've returned from previous trips to visa countries and have a US tourist visa.  In my case, BI rarely even asked me questions.  Usually, they just look at my passport and return ticket, then stamp.  On the rare occasions they asked for my purpose of travel, they were satisfied when I said "vacation".  Of course, it's 100% truth for my trips to the US, even if lacking in detail.

 

[top_secret 2,414]

I'm starting to get about halfway serious about forgetting the K1 idea and flying my fiancée into some neutral third country that will allow forigners to marry and then filing for a CR1 visa instead.  In the time of coronavirus it is a pretty short list of countries that will allow forigners to marry with doable requirement. AND has no travel bans or visa restrictions against either Filipinas, Americans, or both. AND has flights operating. AND those flights don't transit anyplace with visa or travel restrictions against Filipinas or Americans.

 

So far it kinda looks like we could meet and marry in Colombia.  I could pull off the flights and language issues seem the main challenge.  I'm still researching, but Colombia seems the most promising.  Some countries in the Balkans like Serbia or Croatia may be possible though not much advice for forigners marrying, just the requirements don't seem insurmountable at first glance.  Some Caribbean countries might be great for easy marriage requirements but where flights are operating they mostly seem to be from US airports which is a deal breaker.  If anyone has any clever ideas where an American can marry in the short term future I'm considering it and we might just be the ones to attempt it.

[Cody&Razely 134]

Sooooo, My fiancé (after 4 days of sweating unnecessarily about it lol)  Did as the CFO told her to do in the first place and skipped the part where the Visa upload was required completed the rest based on the information of what will be her eventual need for CFO (K-1Visa which is still pending "At NVC) and got her Seminar within hours with no email asking for any more information. But Upon going into the seminar (which is not a seminar but simply they give you a phone number and a time to call and then you listen to someone talk for 20+ min) the CFO counselor was very nice and gracious but told her that she did not need and would not be issued a CFO certificate because she did not have a visa of any kind (not that a visa is required to get a CFO) but that because she is technically traveling only for tourism and is not coming to my home country to do so, then she can go anywhere else in the world she wants to and meet with anyone she wants fiancé or not with no CFO cert. 

 

So I was hoping she could get it just for in the future and to make things smoother at the airport but no such luck. 

 

Also, Yes she will be fully prepared I will be sending her the following. (as was the case with our I-129f I like to bury nosy people with mountains of docs lol)

• Affidavit of Undertaking / Guaranty Notarized and Apostilled by the Attorney General
• Affidavit of Support & Sponsorship Notarized and Apostilled by the Attorney General
• Declaration of Support with Invitation Notarized and Apostilled by the Attorney General
• My Bank Transcript issued on a bank stationary signed by the branch manager for the last year with totals, deposits, averages, etc...
• My Employment Verification listing my employer, my standing with the company, my hire date and my salary
• My last three years of IRS Record of Account transcripts
• My last 6 months of pay stubs
• An Authorized User Credit card in her name to my credit account at my bank
• A large sum of money to her bank account, a few thousand $
• My Credit report in full
• My FBI Criminal history 
• Signed & Dated letters of statement Attesting to my character and the credibility of our relationship from various family members listing how they are related to me and how long they have known me
• Signed & Dated letters of statement Attesting to Her character and the credibility of our relationship from various family members listing how they are related to her and how long they have known her
• 12 pages of photo's of us together in person just us and also us with her family at gathering and at home
• 12 months of conversation transcripts between me and her and screen shots and photo's of us video chatting
• Round trip tickets
• full Travel & Medical & Covid Insurance
• Pre-booked accommodations for the entire duration
• Negative RT-PCR Test Results
• etc... there's some more but I forgot what else lol

As well as printouts of legal outlines for exiting BI Law, IATF Exiting Guidelines, the Law allowing Apostille in stead of Consulate Authentication, etc... 

 

Should be fun, wish us luck lol

 

 

[Adventine 3,196]

2 hours ago, top_secret said:

I'm starting to get about halfway serious about forgetting the K1 idea and flying my fiancée into some neutral third country that will allow forigners to marry and then filing for a CR1 visa instead.  In the time of coronavirus it is a pretty short list of countries that will allow forigners to marry with doable requirement. AND has no travel bans or visa restrictions against either Filipinas, Americans, or both. AND has flights operating. AND those flights don't transit anyplace with visa or travel restrictions against Filipinas or Americans.

I understand the frustration of waiting. I'm sure that you've also done the research that, even if you find a third country to get married in, you're looking at a long wait for the CR-1 visa to be approved. Please do let us know once you've made a decision, and where you decide to get married. It would make for a really interesting thread.

 

 

[Adventine 3,196]

@Cody&Razely Glad to know it's re-re-re-confirmed that CFO stickers are NOT needed for simple tourist trips abroad.

 

Good luck and let us know once your fiancée manages to travel!

[Cody&Razely 134]

2 minutes ago, Adventine said:

@Cody&Razely Glad to know it's re-re-re-confirmed that CFO stickers are NOT needed for simple tourist trips abroad.

 

Good luck and let us know once your fiancée manages to travel!

lol, yeah, we jut got so many conflicting stories from people and also I mean this is the Philippines come on lol, where nothing is every what anyone says it is, even the laws are mere suggestion at best in some cases and finite in others and it seems no one knows which is which lol. But yes now we know for sure first hand.

 

Yeah, I will definitely update with our experience + any helpful tips

[NoMansLand2020 298]

@Cody&Razely

 

How did you get to do CFO without visa? We tried to register for online seminar in August, but the counselor who contacted us said they wouldn't allow her to attend seminar until we had sent a copy of the visa 

[Cody&Razely 134]

8 minutes ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

@Cody&Razely

 

How did you get to do CFO without visa? We tried to register for online seminar in August, but the counselor who contacted us said they wouldn't allow her to attend seminar until we had sent a copy of the visa 

huh, mmm idk, we sent a copy of our NOA2 maybe that was why, but even if you get into the seminar they will not give a CFO cert. unless travel is imminent and a Visa is either in hand or on it's way and it must be an immigrant visa of some kind

[NoMansLand2020 298]

3 minutes ago, Cody&Razely said:

huh, mmm idk, we sent a copy of our NOA2 maybe that was why, but even if you get into the seminar they will not give a CFO cert. unless travel is imminent and a Visa is either in hand or on it's way and it must be an immigrant visa of some kind

It's easier for her to do the seminar online because she's not anywhere near Manila, Cebu, Clark or Davao. Also she had two you children who don't have anyone to watch them if she had to travel. We sent all the docs they were asking for besides the visa.. As she hasn't yet had an interview nor medical. 

[Cody&Razely 134]

1 minute ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

It's easier for her to do the seminar online because she's not anywhere near Manila, Cebu, Clark or Davao. Also she had two you children who don't have anyone to watch them if she had to travel. We sent all the docs they were asking for besides the visa.. As she hasn't yet had an interview nor medical. 

yeah it's understandable. From my understanding though this is going to be the way it is administered even after they open things back up, so hopefully it remains, it's easiest for all especially with how spread out the PH is, my girl is also from the province about an hour from the nearest city and still another flight to Cebu for something like CFO

[Carpe Vinum 2,327]

See below...

Edited October 22, 2020 by boris64

[Carpe Vinum 2,327]

6 hours ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

@Cody&Razely

 

How did you get to do CFO without visa? We tried to register for online seminar in August, but the counselor who contacted us said they wouldn't allow her to attend seminar until we had sent a copy of the visa 

K-1s can do the seminar in advance. My wife did hers in Sept. of 2018 in Cebu and did not get her visa until March 2019. Then she went to the CFO office in Manila, showed her certificate of completion and got her stamp. Of course this was before Covid but it appears it is working the same per C&R's experience.

[payxibka 10,045]

6 hours ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

@Cody&Razely

 

How did you get to do CFO without visa? We tried to register for online seminar in August, but the counselor who contacted us said they wouldn't allow her to attend seminar until we had sent a copy of the visa 

Were you signing up for the wrong seminar?  Sounds like you were trying to register for PDOS versus GCP which is the seminar a k1 needs to take

[NoMansLand2020 298]

12 minutes ago, payxibka said:

Were you signing up for the wrong seminar?  Sounds like you were trying to register for PDOS versus GCP which is the seminar a k1 needs to take

No, it was GCP.