To those who have ever had a 221(g) experience.

[Adventine 3,196]

The embassy asked for photos of the ex-husband laying dead in his casket?

 

And what "revised" death certificate are they expecting to see?

 

Do you have this in writing??

Edited October 20, 2020 by Adventine

[Chancy 6,241]

59 minutes ago, user555 said:

What if he was cremated? Do they want pictures of him in the oven? How insensitive can the US Embassy be? 

 

This is the first time I've ever heard of death pics being asked for.  Really strange.  Even if the person was not cremated, what's stopping the visa applicant from submitting photos of a random person in a casket?  Unless there was also a requirement to send pics or a photo ID of the ex-spouse, how would they know the dead person in the pic is the ex?

 

[Mylilelar 8]

With the strict divorce and annulment rules in the Philippines, I can see how sometimes there is fraud committed,  but why didn't they ask for these documents 15  months ago when she sent in his death certificate as requested?  I have a feeling she can just keep sending in documents, they'll go over them and then ask for more documents. Why can't they just ask for what they need all at one time? 

[Chancy 6,241]

16 minutes ago, Mylilelar said:

With the strict divorce and annulment rules in the Philippines, I can see how sometimes there is fraud committed,  but why didn't they ask for these documents 15  months ago when she sent in his death certificate as requested?  I have a feeling she can just keep sending in documents, they'll go over them and then ask for more documents. Why can't they just ask for what they need all at one time? 

 

Are you able to upload an image of the actual 221(g) letter (with personal info redacted) given to your wife?  Seeing the exact wording for the requests could give the folks here more insight on your wife's case and give you more useful input.

 

[Carpe Vinum 2,327]

3 hours ago, Chancy said:

 

This is the first time I've ever heard of death pics being asked for.  Really strange.  Even if the person was not cremated, what's stopping the visa applicant from submitting photos of a random person in a casket?  Unless there was also a requirement to send pics or a photo ID of the ex-spouse, how would they know the dead person in the pic is the ex?

 

The death certificate must be laid on the body for identification. 😕 

[Chancy 6,241]

3 minutes ago, boris64 said:

The death certificate must be laid on the body for identification. 😕 

 

I don't know if taking a picture of the death certificate laid on the body is standard practice for funeral homes in the PH.  At least, I don't recall our family getting such a picture from the funeral home after my dad passed.  I could be wrong, of course.  But if that really isn't SOP, then getting that sort of death pic would now be impossible for the OP's wife, right?

 

[Mylilelar 8]

18 minutes ago, Chancy said:

 

Are you able to upload an image of the actual 221(g) letter (with personal info redacted) given to your wife?  Seeing the exact wording for the requests could give the folks here more insight on your wife's case and give you more useful input.

 

The 221G letter askEd for my tax transcripts from 2019 from my IRS, a certified copy of my divorce decree and her NBI clearance. All simple and taken care of.

This was a phone call she received 2 days ago from the embassy. A little more clarification. They want a medical certificate from the hospital, a funeral certificate from the funeral home and post mortem photos. Or as my wife said "Photos from the funeral". And after talking to her last night, evidently they are on their way.

[Adventine 3,196]

So somebody from the Embassy called your wife asking for all that documentation about her ex-husband's death. Was there any follow up email to document this? 

 

It almost sounds like a bad joke.

 

Edited to add that yes: visitors to Filipino wakes do actually take pictures in front of the deceased's casket/urn. Almost like a big family reunion.

 

I personally always found the practice distasteful, but maybe that's what's being asked for?

 

I dunno, still hard to believe they are asking for photos.

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by Adventine

[Chancy 6,241]

8 minutes ago, Mylilelar said:

This was a phone call she received 2 days ago from the embassy. A little more clarification. They want a medical certificate from the hospital, a funeral certificate from the funeral home and post mortem photos. Or as my wife said "Photos from the funeral". And after talking to her last night, evidently they are on their way.

 

Thanks for the clarification and update.  Good to know the embassy didn't actually ask for the impossible.  I hope they won't ask for anything else to approve your wife's visa.

 

[Carpe Vinum 2,327]

28 minutes ago, boris64 said:

The death certificate must be laid on the body for identification. 😕 

 

12 minutes ago, Chancy said:

 

I don't know if taking a picture of the death certificate laid on the body is standard practice for funeral homes in the PH.  At least, I don't recall our family getting such a picture from the funeral home after my dad passed.  I could be wrong, of course.  But if that really isn't SOP, then getting that sort of death pic would now be impossible for the OP's wife, right?

 

Just my pitiful attempt at illustrating the absurdity of the situation...

[Adventine 3,196]

2 minutes ago, boris64 said:

 

Just my pitiful attempt at illustrating the absurdity of the situation...

Oh, I chuckled out loud

 

What could have possibly led the CO to doubt that the ex-husband is well and truly dead, though?

[Chancy 6,241]

4 minutes ago, boris64 said:

Just my pitiful attempt at illustrating the absurdity of the situation...

 

No worries.  At least now we know the embassy's request was actually a little more reasonable that what we imagined.

 

[Carpe Vinum 2,327]

1 minute ago, Adventine said:

Oh, I chuckled out loud

 

What could have possibly led the CO to doubt that the ex-husband is well and truly dead, though?

Yes, I would like to see the written notification on that. A photo proves nothing. 

[Chancy 6,241]

11 minutes ago, Adventine said:

visitors to Filipino wakes do actually take pictures in front of the deceased's casket/urn. Almost like a big family reunion.

 

Yep, I've also been to a few wakes where people did this.  But most people I've seen taking pics just posed by the side of the casket, which would not be useful for identifying the body in the casket.

 

In any case, though I see that funeral pics are becoming more common now, I think it's still not the norm.  Some families, like ours, are just not open to the idea.  So if that's all the embassy wanted, I would think that unreasonable.  Thankfully, that wasn't the case.

 

[Adventine 3,196]

6 minutes ago, Chancy said:

 

Yep, I've also been to a few wakes where people did this.  But most people I've seen taking pics just posed by the side of the casket, which would not be useful for identifying the body in the casket.

 

In any case, though I see that funeral pics are becoming more common now, I think it's still not the norm.  Some families, like ours, are just not open to the idea.  So if that's all the embassy wanted, I would think that unreasonable.  Thankfully, that wasn't the case.

 

Depends, if they manage to take a photo with the casket + the deceased's face in the casket + the big portrait + the giant flower arrangements with the deceased's name written in big bold letters, all in the same shot. 

 

I think some of my relatives managed to do just that with my mother's wake. Much easier to get a good angle because my mom was in an urn.

 

I always regretted not telling them off. Felt way too intrusive to me. But after reading this thread, maybe the photos will come in handy one day 🤣

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by Adventine