DCF for Ukrainian wife in Cyprus.

[Jjackson123 20]

I filed a I-130 locally for my wife on March 24, 2022. We were told it would take 2-3 weeks until we received the next steeps. I emailed the embassy to to ask for an update. I was told the I-130 petition is currently under administrative processing with the USCIS. Once the processing is complete the will contact me. 

 

Is this normal for a DCF?  Has anyone else had this experience?  

[Crazy Cat 41,823]

If you filed the I-130 stateside, DCF is not available.......The consulate is not authorized to process I-130s which have been filed with USCIS.

[Crazy Cat 41,823]

Do NOT post this question again......duplicate posts can be considered spamming....

[Crazy Cat 41,823]

13 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

Is this normal for a DCF?

Absolutely normal....

[Jjackson123 20]

We are both in Cyprus and filed the I-130 at the embassy in Nicosia. 

[Crazy Cat 41,823]

2 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

We are both in Cyprus and filed the I-130 at the embassy in Nicosia. 

OK.  Thanks.  

[Jjackson123 20]

Why is it under administrative processing with the USCIS  since we DCF locally in Cyprus? I thought a  DCF circumvented the USCIS. 

[millefleur 5,046]

Sounds normal to me. 2-3 weeks is incredibly fast even by DCF standards, so if that's true, it is great.

[Jjackson123 20]

Yea it seems fast to me as well. I am nervous after seeing administrative processing with USCIS. I read it could last for years.

[millefleur 5,046]

6 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

Yea it seems fast to me as well. I am nervous after seeing administrative processing with USCIS. I read it could last for years.

To be honest, I've never heard of "administrative processing" with USCIS. That's usually a Dept of State thing that happens after the interview and is related to the visa not the petition, so maybe they just called it that but what it actually means is they are just processing the petition. If they told you 2-3 weeks, follow up with them if you still haven't heard anything by then.

[Jjackson123 20]

1 minute ago, millefleur said:

To be honest, I've never heard of "administrative processing" with USCIS. That's usually a Dept of State thing that happens after the interview and is related to the visa not the petition, so maybe they just called it that but what it actually means is they are just processing the petition. If they told you 2-3 weeks, follow up with them if you still haven't heard anything by then.

That is what I am hoping. Today was the 2 week mark and that response is what i received about the administrative processing with the USCIS. They did not tell us we were approved but, the consular at the interview said he was happy to meet us gave us documents for the next step and said he was looking forward to see us again in a few weeks. So it sounded promising. 

[millefleur 5,046]

25 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

That is what I am hoping. Today was the 2 week mark and that response is what i received about the administrative processing with the USCIS. They did not tell us we were approved but, the consular at the interview said he was happy to meet us gave us documents for the next step and said he was looking forward to see us again in a few weeks. So it sounded promising. 

I wouldn't worry about getting the I-130 petition approved, unless you have some glaring red flag there shouldn't be a problem. There will be another "administrative processing" after she has the interview, but again, it's really typical and for the vast majority of people it takes days to maybe weeks max. Unless your wife has some background that would trigger a longer AP (government/military ties, STEM job, etc) then it should not be a problem.

[Jjackson123 20]

11 minutes ago, millefleur said:

I wouldn't worry about getting the I-130 petition approved, unless you have some glaring red flag there shouldn't be a problem. There will be another "administrative processing" after she has the interview, but again, it's really typical and for the vast majority of people it takes days to maybe weeks max. Unless your wife has some background that would trigger a longer AP (government/military ties, STEM job, etc) then it should not be a problem.

I appreciate your help. I wont worry about it then. She applied for a B-2 visa on March 8 and got denied. We were going to visit first America for a month before meeting her family in Slovakia and getting married down the road but plans change.  So I am not sure if that would be a red flag. We have been together for 3 years and I lived in Ukraine. We also traveled to 10 different countries together. So our marriage is definitely bona fide and are ready to start a life in America. 

[millefleur 5,046]

2 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

She applied for a B-2 visa on March 8 and got denied. We were going to visit first America for a month before meeting her family in Slovakia and getting married down the road but plans change.  So I am not sure if that would be a red flag.

Not a red flag at all. It's very common for people to get rejected for a B visa and then apply for a spousal/fiance visa after that. Same thing happened in our case. We also did DCF.

 

2 minutes ago, Jjackson123 said:

We have been together for 3 years and I lived in Ukraine. We also traveled to 10 different countries together. So our marriage is definitely bona fide and are ready to start a life in America. 

Sounds like you have more than enough evidence and strong case to get approved quickly. Only thing is, if you've been living abroad, you might want to start thinking about "intent to reestablish domicile" as you will need to submit proof of that once your I-130 is approved.

Edited April 7, 2022 by millefleur

[Jjackson123 20]

20 minutes ago, millefleur said:

Not a red flag at all. It's very common for people to get rejected for a B visa and then apply for a spousal/fiance visa after that. Same thing happened in our case. We also did DCF.

 

Sounds like you have more than enough evidence and strong case to get approved quickly. Only thing is, if you've been living abroad, you might want to start thinking about "intent to reestablish domicile" as you will need to submit proof of that once your I-130 is approved.

Yea, I have a home in America. I only leave the country for 1-2 months then return to America. I did unknowingly commit a small crime in Ukraine and had to pay 1700 UAH ($60) but I got to renew and keep my Ukrainian residency. Both the lawyers I consulted with told me it was legal to send collectable AK47 magazines to myself in the USA from Ukraine but they were wrong.  CBP scanned those documents when I was in secondary in Houston after spending 9 months in Ukraine and asked me a few questions. I was stopped because I had 12 bottles of champagne and 6 bottles of vodka.