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CR1 (Green Card) vacation travel to Europe

By Spinnors in Working & Traveling During US Immigration

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Spinnors Newbie

Spinnors   0

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Hello, my wife recently arrived in the USA (from the Philippines) and has received her Green Card.  

 

Now we want to travel to Europe for a small 2-week vacation.  It appears she still needs to get a Visa for Europe even though she is living in the USA?  If that is true, who does she send the Philippines Passport to?  Does she have to send it to a Philippines embassy?  

 

The other issue is we're wanting to go to Ireland, UK, and France -- which apparently all three of these require separate Visas.  Can anyone offer advice on how to handle this?  We wanted to leave in about 10 weeks (seems unlikely now).

Lil bear Mentor

Lil bear   4,262

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Australia
 Timeline
Posted
57 minutes ago, Spinnors said:

Hello, my wife recently arrived in the USA (from the Philippines) and has received her Green Card.  

 

Now we want to travel to Europe for a small 2-week vacation.  It appears she still needs to get a Visa for Europe even though she is living in the USA?  If that is true, who does she send the Philippines Passport to?  Does she have to send it to a Philippines embassy?  

 

The other issue is we're wanting to go to Ireland, UK, and France -- which apparently all three of these require separate Visas.  Can anyone offer advice on how to handle this?  We wanted to leave in about 10 weeks (seems unlikely now).

Visa requirements are based on Passport country ( eg Philippines) not country of residence 

 

Google will easily provide you with information about getting visas for those countries for her . Search it, apply .. i would be hopeful that you can get out done in time.  But start now !! 

Redro Experienced

Redro   4,611

Posted
Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: South Africa
 Timeline
Posted
1 hour ago, Spinnors said:

Hello, my wife recently arrived in the USA (from the Philippines) and has received her Green Card.  

 

Now we want to travel to Europe for a small 2-week vacation.  It appears she still needs to get a Visa for Europe even though she is living in the USA?  If that is true, who does she send the Philippines Passport to?  Does she have to send it to a Philippines embassy?  

 

The other issue is we're wanting to go to Ireland, UK, and France -- which apparently all three of these require separate Visas.  Can anyone offer advice on how to handle this?  We wanted to leave in about 10 weeks (seems unlikely now).

If you want to travel to all three countries you will have to apply for all three visas. 
 

Maybe only choose one of those countries.

Requirements for France are fairly strict and she might not get the visa as a brand new resident. (think 3 months of bank statements) and of course with Schengen she will have to get travel insurance. 
I also know for the UK she will have to send her passport off to get the visa in her passport. Probably the same requirement for France. Not sure about Ireland… 

.yana Community Regular

.yana   598

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Russia
 Timeline
Posted

If you apply ASAP, you might get all three visas in time for your trip.

I only have experience with French embassy, and it took about 10 business days to get my passport back.

Timeline:

Spoiler

AOS Journey:

Spoiler

 

08/19/2016 - day 0 - I-485, I-130, I-765 sent to USCIS office in Chicago (PD: 08/23/2016)

08/31/2016 - day 9 - electronic NOAs received via text and email, check is cashed.

09/08/2016 - day 17 - biometrics appointment notice received in the mail (appointment date 09/19/2016).

09/13/2016 - day 22 - early biometrics walk in.

10/28/2016 - day 67 - EAD status changed to "New Card Is Being Produced".

11/16/2016 - day 87 - EAD card received in mail.

06/27/2017 - day 309 - contacted the congressman office.

07/28/2017 - day 340 - finally received an interview appointment in mail (online status has not changed).

08/31/2017 - day 374 - Interview; I-485 status changed to 'New Card Is Being Produced'

09/08/2017 - day 382 - greencard received in mail

I-751 & N400 Journey:

Spoiler

06/20/2019 - day 1036 - ROC packet mailed (PD: 06/21/2019)

06/29/2019 - day 1045 - NOA/Extension letter received in the mail (new GC expiration date is 2/28/2021)

01/17/2020 - day 1256 - biometrics appointment

06/03/2020 - day 1382 - N400 filed online (PD: 06/04/2020)

02/01/2021 - day 1626 - Biometric Reuse notice uploaded to my online account

02/08/2021 - day 1634 - Interview Appointment notice uploaded to my online account

03/16/2021 - day 1670 - N400 Interview - passed; due to I-751 stuck in another office 'No decision can be made at this time'

06/01/2021 - day 1747 - with help of Sen. Sanders' office, I-751 file finally forwarded to St. Albans field office

06/28/2021 - day 1774 - I-751 status changed to 'New Card is Being Produced'; N400 status changed to 'Oath Ceremony Will Be Scheduled'

08/19/2021 - day 1826 (exactly 5 years since day 0) - Oath Ceremony (notice received on 7/19/21)

 

 

 

top_secret Proficient

top_secret   2,462

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Philippines
 Timeline
Posted (edited)
On 2/4/2024 at 10:00 AM, Spinnors said:

Hello, my wife recently arrived in the USA (from the Philippines) and has received her Green Card.  

 

Now we want to travel to Europe for a small 2-week vacation.  It appears she still needs to get a Visa for Europe even though she is living in the USA?  If that is true, who does she send the Philippines Passport to?  Does she have to send it to a Philippines embassy?  

 

The other issue is we're wanting to go to Ireland, UK, and France -- which apparently all three of these require separate Visas.  Can anyone offer advice on how to handle this?  We wanted to leave in about 10 weeks (seems unlikely now).

 

We just completed a UK tourist visa for my wife and stepdaughter (CR1 and CR2 with Philippine passports).  We are currently in the middle of processing German tourist visas which covers all the Schengen Area countries in Europe. 

 

For UK the process is that they apply online and pay the fee (USD $151).  Then they must schedule and attend biometrics a USCIS Application Support Center.  Obviously the UK and USCIS are on very close friendly terms.  Then the receipt for the biometrics, all the documents, and passport are mailed to New York City to await adjudication of the application and placement of the sticker.  UK seemed primarily interested in financial documents and proof of US LPR status.  Bank statements and pay stubs showing how the trip would be paid for.  I could guess the US spouses financial records would suffice with proof of the marriage.  They accepted expired CR1 and CR2 green cards with extension letters without any problems.  It took three weeks to get the UK visas which seems about typical.

 

I think France requires biometrics at a VFS Global application center and pretty much any Schengen Visa requires a big stack of paperwork.  Before my wife was a US LPR she was denied by France and at that time we discovered the Netherlands is the most "Filipino friendly" Schengen country.   Though I think she would be fine applying through France now.  This time we are applying through Germany based on some unsubstantiated anecdotal speculation that Germany is more likely to issue longer term multiple entry visas to US LPR's than some other Schengen countries.

 

 

Edited by top_secret

Wife and Stepdaughter                                                                            

  • December 17, 2020:  Married in Costa Rica
  • March 08, 2021: Filed l-130s Online
  • March 09, 2021: NOA1
  • April 26, 2021: NOA2, I-130s Approved
  • April 30, 2021: NVC Received
  • May 01, 2021: Pay AOS and IV Bills
  • May 06, 2021: Submit AOS, Financial Docs and DS-260s
  • May 14, 2021: Submit Civil Docs for Stepdaughter
  • May 21, 2021: Submit Civil Docs for Wife
  • June 25, 2021: NVC review for Stepdaughter, RFE submit additional Doc
  • July 08, 2021: Wife Documentarily Qualified by NVC
  • August 31, 2021: Stepdaughter Documentarily Qualified by NVC
  • September 15, 2021: Received Interview Date from NVC, October 05, 2021
  • September 22, 2021: Passed physicals at Saint Luke's Extension Clinic
  • October 05, 2021: Interview at US Embassy Manila. Verbally approved by US Consul. Positive interview experience.
  • October 05, 2021: CEAC status changed to "Issued"
  • October 07, 2021: Passports tracking for delivery on 2GO Courier website
  • October 08, 2021: Passports with visas delivered.  "Visas on hand"
  • October 08, 2021: Paid Immigrant Fee
  • October 12, 2021: Temporary CFO Certificates Received
  • October 26, 2021 POE arrival at LAX
  • November 02, 2021 Social Security Cards arrive in mail
  • January 31, 2022: USCIS Status changed to "Card Is Being Produced"
  • February 04, 2022: USCIS Status changed to "Card Was Mailed To Me"
  • February 07, 2022: Green cards received. 

 

Redro Experienced

Redro   4,611

Posted
Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: South Africa
 Timeline
Posted
3 hours ago, top_secret said:

I think France requires biometrics at a VFS Global application center and pretty much any Schengen Visa requires a big stack of paperwork.  Before my wife was a US LPR she was denied by France and at that time we discovered the Netherlands is the most "Filipino friendly" Schengen country.   Though I think she would be fine applying through France now.  This time we are applying through Germany based on some unsubstantiated anecdotal speculation that Germany is more likely to issue longer term multiple entry visas to US LPR's than some other Schengen countries.

 

 

This is interesting news. As I know Germany isn't too generous with the amount of time they give tourists. Some friends of mine were only given permission to stay in Germany for the stated time they said they would be traveling. 

top_secret Proficient

top_secret   2,462

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Philippines
 Timeline
Posted
7 minutes ago, Redro said:

This is interesting news. As I know Germany isn't too generous with the amount of time they give tourists. Some friends of mine were only given permission to stay in Germany for the stated time they said they would be traveling. 

 

One thing we discovered from my wifes earlier Schengen visa applications before she was a US LPR, is that different Schengen embassies have differing responses to different nationalities.  So the embassy that might be the most generous towards Filipino passports, may have a much tougher attitude towards some other nationalities and vs versa.  It remains to be seen what response we get from Germany but we saw a number of anecdotal accounts of them giving somewhat longer term multiple entry visas to US LPR's with Filipino passports.  Plus we missed Germany our last trip so plan to stop there anyways. 

Wife and Stepdaughter                                                                            

  • December 17, 2020:  Married in Costa Rica
  • March 08, 2021: Filed l-130s Online
  • March 09, 2021: NOA1
  • April 26, 2021: NOA2, I-130s Approved
  • April 30, 2021: NVC Received
  • May 01, 2021: Pay AOS and IV Bills
  • May 06, 2021: Submit AOS, Financial Docs and DS-260s
  • May 14, 2021: Submit Civil Docs for Stepdaughter
  • May 21, 2021: Submit Civil Docs for Wife
  • June 25, 2021: NVC review for Stepdaughter, RFE submit additional Doc
  • July 08, 2021: Wife Documentarily Qualified by NVC
  • August 31, 2021: Stepdaughter Documentarily Qualified by NVC
  • September 15, 2021: Received Interview Date from NVC, October 05, 2021
  • September 22, 2021: Passed physicals at Saint Luke's Extension Clinic
  • October 05, 2021: Interview at US Embassy Manila. Verbally approved by US Consul. Positive interview experience.
  • October 05, 2021: CEAC status changed to "Issued"
  • October 07, 2021: Passports tracking for delivery on 2GO Courier website
  • October 08, 2021: Passports with visas delivered.  "Visas on hand"
  • October 08, 2021: Paid Immigrant Fee
  • October 12, 2021: Temporary CFO Certificates Received
  • October 26, 2021 POE arrival at LAX
  • November 02, 2021 Social Security Cards arrive in mail
  • January 31, 2022: USCIS Status changed to "Card Is Being Produced"
  • February 04, 2022: USCIS Status changed to "Card Was Mailed To Me"
  • February 07, 2022: Green cards received. 

 

DaveAndAnastasia Experienced

DaveAndAnastasia   2,093

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Russia
 Timeline
Posted
On 2/4/2024 at 11:03 AM, Lil bear said:

Visa requirements are based on Passport country ( eg Philippines) not country of residence 

There are a few countries where US permanent residents can normally visit legally without a visa, but they're in the Americas. 

K-1                             AOS                            
NOA1 Notice Date: 2018-05-31    NOA1 Notice Date: 2019-04-11   
NOA2 Date: 2018-11-16           Biometrics Date: 2019-05-10    
Arrived at NVC:  2018-12-03     EAD/AP In Hand: 2019-09-16     
Arrived in Moscow: 2018-12-28   GC Interview Date: 2019-09-25      
Interview date: 2019-02-14      GC In Hand: 2019-10-02
Visa issued: 2019-02-28
POE: 2019-03-11
Wedding: 2019-03-14

ROC                             Naturalization
NOA1 Notice Date: 2021-07-16    Applied Online: 2022-07-09 (biometrics waived)
Approval Date: 2022-04-06       Interview was Scheduled: 2023-01-06
10-year GC In Hand: 2022-04-14  Interview date: 2023-02-13 (passed)
                            	Oath: 2023-02-13

 

Lil bear Mentor

Lil bear   4,262

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Australia
 Timeline
Posted
13 minutes ago, DaveAndAnastasia said:

There are a few countries where US permanent residents can normally visit legally without a visa, but they're in the Americas.

Yes. Understood. Just not the countries OP is considering visiting 😞

harry.st Contributor

harry.st   62

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Greece
 Timeline
Posted (edited)
On 2/4/2024 at 10:01 PM, Redro said:

If you want to travel to all three countries you will have to apply for all three visas. 

 

Definitely not true https://www.dfa.ie/media/embassyindia/ourservices/bivs-faq.pdf

and https://www.irishimmigration.ie/coming-to-visit-ireland/british-irish-visa-scheme/

 

 

Edited by harry.st
Redro Experienced

Redro   4,611

Posted
Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: South Africa
 Timeline
Posted
2 hours ago, harry.st said:

 

Definitely not true https://www.dfa.ie/media/embassyindia/ourservices/bivs-faq.pdf

and https://www.irishimmigration.ie/coming-to-visit-ireland/british-irish-visa-scheme/

 

 

Explain the caveat. 
You don’t have to apply for an Irish visa IF you

Have a UK Visa and you ENTER the UK FIRST AND you still have time on the UK visit visa… 

 

harry.st Contributor

harry.st   62

Posted
Filed: Citizen (apr) Country: Greece
 Timeline
Posted (edited)
7 hours ago, Redro said:

Explain the caveat. 
You don’t have to apply for an Irish visa IF you

Have a UK Visa and you ENTER the UK FIRST AND you still have time on the UK visit visa… 

 

 

The OP's wife does not have any visa.

 

She needs only 1 visa for the Common Travel Area. Whichever country they land at, first.

Edited by harry.st
Redro Experienced

Redro   4,611

Posted
Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: South Africa
 Timeline
Posted
1 hour ago, harry.st said:

 

The OP's wife does not have any visa.

 

She needs only 1 visa for the Common Travel Area. Whichever country they land at, first.

For France, UK and Ireland?

What is the common travel area?

And please show the link that indicates if a Filipina applies for an Irish visa they do not have to obtain a UK visa...

I can see the link indicating the opposite is true for traveling to Ireland after going to the UK... 

 
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