Help! I'm confused about my document submission.

[sidmando 15]

Last September I submitted all of the required documents in support of my wife's spousal visa application as well as the application for my stepdaughter. A few months later I received a notification that some of the documents were rejected because I left out a sentence in the translation certificates. So I fixed the problem and resubmitted all of the documents in January. Today I received two notifications. The first informed me that my stepdaughter's application has been DQd. But on my wife's application it showed that the resubmitted documents were accepted but that my wife's divorce decree from her first marriage was missing. But as can be seen in the attached jpeg, the marriage termination documentation (at the bottom) was accepted. But this is the same document as the divorce decree. So I am confused. I just resubmitted the same document in the field for the divorce decree that they said was missing. But again, it's the same document that was accepted as additional documentation.

Can anyone shed any light on this? Also, given that I had to re-upload this document should I expect another 3 month wait while they process it?

[SalishSea 17,839]

15 minutes ago, sidmando said:

Last September I submitted all of the required documents in support of my wife's spousal visa application as well as the application for my stepdaughter. A few months later I received a notification that some of the documents were rejected because I left out a sentence in the translation certificates. So I fixed the problem and resubmitted all of the documents in January. Today I received two notifications. The first informed me that my stepdaughter's application has been DQd. But on my wife's application it showed that the resubmitted documents were accepted but that my wife's divorce decree from her first marriage was missing. But as can be seen in the attached jpeg, the marriage termination documentation (at the bottom) was accepted. But this is the same document as the divorce decree. So I am confused. I just resubmitted the same document in the field for the divorce decree that they said was missing. But again, it's the same document that was accepted as additional documentation.

Can anyone shed any light on this? Also, given that I had to re-upload this document should I expect another 3 month wait while they process it?

Are they asking for both a marriage certificate and a divorce decree, for that marriage?  And did you submit both?

[sidmando 15]

1 minute ago, Jorgedig said:

Are they asking for both a marriage certificate and a divorce decree, for that marriage?  And did you submit both?

The divorce certificate is the same document as the original marriage certificate, but there is a section at the end saying the marriage has been officially dissolved.

[SalishSea 17,839]

Just now, sidmando said:

The divorce certificate is the same document as the original marriage certificate, but there is a section at the end saying the marriage has been officially dissolved.

Oh, I see.  I wonder if that is too perplexing for them to cope with, although clearly it won't have been the first time they've encountered that type of document.

 

I think it is worth a call to NVC.  Best time to get through is early morning (Eastern time, right when they open).  Years ago, calling at the end of the day also worked.  Not sure if that is the case these days.

[pushbrk 12,898]

5 hours ago, sidmando said:

The divorce certificate is the same document as the original marriage certificate, but there is a section at the end saying the marriage has been officially dissolved.

They need the actual public/court record that dissolved the marriage.

[sidmando 15]

4 hours ago, pushbrk said:

They need the actual public/court record that dissolved the marriage.

In Peru the document we submitted is the only document that exists relating to a divorce. It consists of the original marriage certificate with a section appended at the end that states the marriage was officially dissolved.

[carmel34 3,634]

4 hours ago, sidmando said:

In Peru the document we submitted is the only document that exists relating to a divorce. It consists of the original marriage certificate with a section appended at the end that states the marriage was officially dissolved.

See below, from the Dept. of State reciprocity of documents section, in particular the note near the end, in bold:

the U.S. Embassy in Lima requires the Sentencia de Divorcio/Resolucion de Alcaldia. The annotation on the marriage certificate is not sufficient

 

PERU Divorce Certificates

Available: Yes

Fees: S/3.70 Nuevos Soles (approximately $1.20 dollars) per page, if issued by the court. Price may vary depending on the issuing authority.

Document Name: Sentencia de Divorcio (Divorce Decree)

Issuing Government Authority: Judicial Divorces are issued by the Family Court.

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: The format varies depending on the issuing office.

Issuing Authority Personnel Title: The document is issued by judges in the Family Court.

Registration Criteria: A divorce is noted on the left margin or back of the marriage certificate and makes reference to the resolution of the civil court dissolving the marriage.

Procedure for Obtaining: The procedure for obtaining the document varies. Subject must approach to the entity that processed the divorce to request it.

Certified Copies: A certified copy of the resolution may be obtained from the clerk (secretario) of the lower court that ordered the divorce.

Alternate Documents: Divorces may also be processed in a Municipality or in a Notary's office (Administrative Divorce). In these cases, the issuing authority is the Mayor of the Municipality or the Notary respectively, and the document may be called Resolucion de Alcaldia (Municipal Resolution) or Testimonio. Law N.29227 authorizing these divorces went into effect July 14, 2008. As part of the divorce proceedings, divorces processed by a Municipality or Notary must be registered by the Civil Registry Chief (for those municipalities not yet incorporated in RENIEC or by RENIEC for those incorporated). An annotation would then be placed in the original marriage certificate indicating both the date of the legal separation as well as the final divorce date. For these divorces, the following could be presented as proof of divorce:

Please note that in Peru, divorce is a two-step process. First, the couple has to request the legal separation "municipal resolution of separation or "Acta Notarial" (Notary Minute). Two months later either party can request the final divorce resolution. This final divorce resolution is necessary for the divorce to be legal.

• Resolucion de Alcaldia plus copy of the marriage certificate with the divorce annotation on the back of the certificate.
• Resolucion Jefatural de RENIEC plus copy of the marriage certificate with the divorce annotation on the back of the certificate.
• Notary Deed of Arrangement (Testimonio) or Minute plus copy of the marriage certificate with the divorce annotation on the back of the certificate.

Exceptions: None.

Comments: In the event that an individual marries in Peru and dissolves that marriage outside of Peru, the foreign divorce must be formally recognized in Peru by the Superior Court through an "exequatur" process prior to either party entering into another marriage in Peru. When the exequatur is finalized, the court issues a decree that should be annotated on the marriage certificate. The decree is valid as of the date of the foreign divorce. If the foreign divorce is not registered through the exequatur process and the individual enters into another marriage in Peru, the second marriage will not be legally recognized until the exequatur process is completed.

Note: Immigrant visa processing, the U.S. Embassy in Lima requires the Sentencia de Divorcio/Resolucion de Alcaldia. The annotation on the marriage certificate is not sufficient.

When submitting civil documents to NVC please submit a copy / scan of front and back even if it is blank.

Edited April 1, 2022 by carmel34

[sidmando 15]

6 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

Note: Immigrant visa processing, the U.S. Embassy in Lima requires the Sentencia de Divorcio/Resolucion de Alcaldia. The annotation on the marriage certificate is not sufficient.

5 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

Thanks so much for the additional information. I just asked my wife about this, and she said there are two ways of getting divorced in Peru. Since her divorce was mutual and uncontested, they did it through a notary rather than through a court. So the document you mentioned doesn't exist for the type of divorce she did. That document is only generated when a divorce is done through a court (usually because the divorce was not mutual or was contested for some reason. So, what should I do given that the document they're asking for doesn't exist for my wife's divorce?

 

[SalishSea 17,839]

1 hour ago, sidmando said:

 

The text that Carmel appended addresses the issue of notarial divorces, vs court divorces.  You may need to provide this verbiage to the NVC as a reminder of their own policy.

 

Does she have the 

• Resolucion de Alcaldia plus copy of the marriage certificate with the divorce annotation on the back of the certificate.?

Sounds like that is a separate document from the annotation on the marriage cert.

[sidmando 15]

3 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

The text that Carmel appended addresses the issue of notarial divorces, vs court divorces.  You may need to provide this verbiage to the NVC as a reminder of their own policy.

 

Does she have the 

• Resolucion de Alcaldia plus copy of the marriage certificate with the divorce annotation on the back of the certificate.?

Sounds like that is a separate document from the annotation on the marriage cert.

First off, this site is an absolute godsend. Thank you so much, everyone, for the advice. I feel like I understand what needs to be done now. But now I have another problem. Before I understood that there was an additional document required I just re-uploaded the same document I previously submitted. Now that I realize that document isn't sufficient I wish I hadn't done that, because now it seems like I might need to wait another couple months for them to reject the document, thus giving me another chance to submit the correct documents. So my question is whether there is any way to short-circuit that process. If I submit the additional document as a supplementary document would that do the trick? Or is there some way to get NVC to cancel the document I just uploaded so I can re-upload the correct documents?

[SalishSea 17,839]

Just now, sidmando said:

First off, this site is an absolute godsend. Thank you so much, everyone, for the advice. I feel like I understand what needs to be done now. But now I have another problem. Before I understood that there was an additional document required I just re-uploaded the same document I previously submitted. Now that I realize that document isn't sufficient I wish I hadn't done that, because now it seems like I might need to wait another couple months for them to reject the document, thus giving me another chance to submit the correct documents. So my question is whether there is any way to short-circuit that process. If I submit the additional document as a supplementary document would that do the trick? Or is there some way to get NVC to cancel the document I just uploaded so I can re-upload the correct documents?

I did a K-1, so I'm not personally familiar with uploading documents to the NVC.  Maybe @Crazy Cat or @Jeanne Adil are around and can comment?