k3/CR dilemma

[ninjarocket 1]

Me and my wife have a k3/CR dilemma:

My wife had her k3 interview on September 16. Everything went fine. They didn't ask to see any evidences of proof of relationship in spite of many documents we had prepared, and she got a pink slip only, even thought the document verification was only paid 13 days earlier and could not have been completed. Maybe they seem not to be worried about that?

We were wondering why the k3 visa had not been released when others had already received their visas. I called the call center today and was misinformed: I was basically told that her visa was still under review and I needed to wait at least 6 weeks before calling back. Then I called Lorraine later (after a beer or two using extension numbers provided by helpful VJ members (many thanks to VJ members!)) and was told that they had suspended the final k3 processing because the paperwork for the CR visa had arrived. I had asked for it to be expedited, but it hadn't got there by the morning of her interview. It got there in the afternoon by which time we had left the embassy. Sigh! They had tried to call my wife since Thursday, but somehow didn't get through last week (maybe because my wife has annoying call back music on her cellphone?), which is a pity because both myself and my wife were still in Manila until Sunday 21. Now I'm back in the US and my wife is in Mindanao (at least a somewhat shorter plane ride away than me).

Anyway, it seems we have a difficult choice to make. Either:

1) drop the CR and just take the k3 and run: they will just print it I suppose and mail it to my wife as they would have done already if it wasn't for the CR paperwork

2) suspend the k3 and my wife returns to the USEM to see a CO which is a necessary part of completing the CR application in spite of the fact that she already had an interview with a CO.

So I'm not sure what to do. Advice would be kindly accepted by VJ members!!!!! My wife already has completed the necessary steps for a visa, but maybe she screws up in going for the CR and ends up with nothing? I can't be there with her for this one.

I don't know whether she will have a full blown interview for the CR having had the k3 interview. Part of the problem is that stupidly I've brought all of the evidence for a relationship back with me to the US. I will need to ship that pretty damn quick just in case, although they didn't ask to see any of it during the first interview. Just the standard questions. Unfortunately Lorraine at the embassy can't seem to be able to give me a complete picture of what would be required because she's just acting as a messenger.

How did I manage to make this so complicated?

[STEPHnRIA 2]

uhm.... i think option 1.

[tedjen 0]

For me, number 1...

[noel_jas 0]

if you are willing to go through the AOS process when she gets to US then choose K3 but if you are willing to wait a bit longer then choose CR1. if i were in your shoes i will just wait a bit longer so I will no longer go through the AOS. I'm on K1 but now I kinda regret it because when I get to US I won't be able to work right away and that I have to go through another 'torture' with USCIS again. God bless and good luck!

[RickieAndEva 0]

If you go CR1 you will have a green card right away and save $1000 in fees. You will have less hassle when you get here. I would go CR1.

Edited September 23, 2008 by RickieAndEva

[STEPHnRIA 2]

I will choose option one if all they will do is just print the visa and deliver it. I don't want to go to an interview again and risk being interviewed by a consul who at that time is having a bad day. And then that consul will decide to put me under AR... Oh my!

[ninjarocket 1]

What you are saying is quite true. They could just print the k3 visa and then my wife could enter the US and we could fight the AOS while being together, although she wouldn't be able to work and would have to return to the Philippines to do the practicum for her university study.

I was hoping that since she already did and passed the k3 interview, they won't repeat that process since the interview process is basically the same. Rather than going to the consulate at 8:30 which is the normal time for going for a CR interview, they asked her to go at 10am on any day that the USEM is open and to go to window X (although I don't remember seeing a window X). So it could be that the CR visa is essentially already approved and all she has to do is sign the right form and do the finger prints for the CR visa.

When we went to the prescreener on September 16, I told her that I had asked NVC for the CR paperwork to be expedited so that the k3 visa could be switched to a CR visa. This wasn't immediately possible because the CR paperwork had not yet arrived at the consulate. However, the lady gave several options. Either we could wait for the documents to arrive or we could continue with the k3. We chose the latter because who knows how long it was going to take before it would arrive. The prescreener lady then did also say that the visa could still be changed to CR if the CR paperwork arrived before the visa processing was complete, which it did (that afternoon apparently).

Is there anyone out there who has done this process before of changing the k3 to CR after the interview?

I will choose option one if all they will do is just print the visa and deliver it. I don't want to go to an interview again and risk being interviewed by a consul who at that time is having a bad day. And then that consul will decide to put me under AR... Oh my!