Darkmoonfaerie

37 minutes ago, Chancy said:

 

For London, likely no need for chat records and phone logs.  Prioritize evidence of time spent together in person, like passport stamps and boarding passes from your/his visits to the UK/US and his I-90 travel history.  Get a screenshot of the results from here -- https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/#/history-search

 

Oh thanks for the link!  That's very helpful

Sorry for the VERY late reply, my summer got crazy with work and life and then I jetted off to the UK for a visit.

Thank you both for the help. My sponsor is my Dad, who has a full retirement from teaching public schools and is still working as an adjunct professor at the same college where I am working.  My parents both have great retirement plans from their jobs and they are willing to support us until Alan is settled in and working. I have been picking up more hours at the community college where I teach so do have a better salary than over the past few years, but I am not yet considered full time and still come up short on income. Alan is a math and science teacher in a secondary school, so employability should not be an issue for him. There's been a horrible teacher shortage lately, especially in STEM.  We've already had his transcripts reviewed and have full information for what he needs to begin the process of getting a teaching license in MA.  He can even start the process while he's in the UK so that will help him speed things up. I made sure to double check with the state regarding what he needs to do when I called to ask about the possibility of me moving from university level teaching to taking a position in a local high school.   

We have been doing regular visits throughout this time, and have plenty of documentation from friends, family, etc that we regularly interact. He and the kids have been to the USA 2-5 times a year and I try to get to the UK at least once a year.  We're on a video call almost 24/7, chat on whatsapp daily and pretty much anyone who knows either of us is well aware of our unusual situation.  I have no problem showing chat records, phone logs, photos, statements, etc. and we can show that we have regularly seen each other until covid kind of put a halt to everything after summer of 2020.  I'm actually over in the UK now, typing this as he's working on his timetable for the fall semester of teaching.  It's been nice to just sit here and do work like a normal couple, which I'm sure most people would think sounds odd....but the VJ community would understand

Hi Everyone,

I originally signed up for Visa Journey over 10 years ago while filing a K1 Visa for my then fiance (now husband) and everyone was so helpful. Back then, we made it all the way to the interview stage and the UK Family Court decided that we needed to have more time together before they would consider allowing his children (6 & 😎 to move to the USA. We withdrew the petition and planned to marry and then refile in a year or so but life had other plans. Shortly after we got married in 2013, my health problems began. I have had I think six or seven surgeries since then and have had everything from a emergency spinal surgery to a brain tumor diagnosis (it's benign, I'm ok). In addition to my health problems I am also a caretaker for 3 elderly relatives. Because of this I have only been working part-time, but I do have a co-sponsor and I will be able to work many more hours once I have family here to help me out. After all of the delays, we are now getting ready to file for an IR-1 Visa for my husband & his sons (16 & 18). Since I've already done the K1 Visa I have a lot of the documents already and I'm somewhat familiar with the process.  I didn't know if I needed to do anything to explain our first withdrawal or even my current working and living situation here in the states or if we'll run into any issues because we've lived separately for so long. I'm planning our 1st trip to see him since Covid so we can celebrate our 10th anniversary & I can have him sign papers and get me updated documents while I'm there. 

I don't know anything specific about Detroit, but my husband has traveled to the US about 3-8 times per year since we first met in person in 2010. He's only run into two issues at border in Boston, MA. Once was when he had a signed letter from the kids' mum but it wasn't notarized (of course it was the one time they asked to see it). He had a bunch of other proof that she knew and gave permission so they just grumbled and let him through. The other issue was when he was brought into secondary and asked why he was in the USA 17 times in 2 yrs. They thought he was doing business here on the VWP. He said that he was visiting his wife and had extra visits due to medical emergencies. He told them we're planning to start the IR1 process soon and they were fine with that. 90% of the time he's never asked for any ties to the UK, not even a return flight. He just says he's here visiting me and my family and they tell him to have a nice trip. Now me visiting him in the UK is another story and I'm already getting anxious about visiting him in May! Don't stress. You should be fine. Hope you have a wonderful trip!

Awesome, thanks! That's what I was thinking but figured it was best to ask before I created a huge mess

I'm filling out the paperwork to file an I-130 for my husband and his boys. I just ran into a question when filling out the g-325a form. It asks for A# if they have one. We previously filed a I-129F for a fiance visa and made it to the London Embassy before having to withdraw the petition at that time. The RFE that we got for that petition has an A# on it. Do I put that number or would that no longer be applicable? I didn't know if the A# is tied to the petition or the person.

Thanks Ian. We had to drag out the K1 process at the London Embassy so know all about being able to put things off. We went through 18 months of hell with UK courts rescheduling and asking for more info about the visa before the judge decided to drop our case and have us re-file later. Where we ran into the issue was trying to cancel and get confirmation of cancellation of the K1 application. That took ages and multiple letters /calls to the embassy and DOS.

I'm working on the paperwork and have a couple of more questions:

Do I need to do a G325-A for the kids as well?

I *think* there's an A number for Alan from the K1 visa paperwork - do I put this on the paperwork for the CR-1?

They now require a signature on the G325-A so I'm guessing this means I get to email it to him then have him sign it and snail mail it back to me so I can add it to the package to mail off. I don't remember needing his signature on anything for the initial petition with the K1 but I might be wrong.

Sorry if I end up with a million questions. I felt much more prepared when I did the K1 application back in 2012.

Thanks everyone! Looks like I'll be saving up a little more money before sending off the new petition, then will be putting extra away for the next part. I was out of work for 6 months this past year with a medical situation requiring major surgery and am self employed so we were down to one salary for a bit and it's taken its toll financially. I am finally getting caught up on bills and such and we really want to move forward with this because we're so tired of waiting. Thinking right now that it's better to skip a trip to see each other and focus on the visa process to be here for good.

@ NLR: We were married 08/24/13 so it looks like we'll most likely qualify for the IR-1 by the time we get the visa. At least that's one plus to this whole mess, right?

Hi everyone,

My husband and I went through the K1 process in 2012 but had to abandon it before the medical when we did not get permission to move his boys at that time. I'm preparing to file a petition for the CR1 visa and wanted to check on something. Do I need to fill out a separate I-130 form for my husband and each of his two boys (both under 18)? Also, does that mean that I have to pay the initial $460 x 3 when I file? They all just went on the same application for the K1 but thought I read that they each need a separate application now.

Thanks

I'm Australian. Chelsea loves hearing me say "bear, bar, car, etc" because we really don't say the R at all. It comes out beah, ba, ca hahaha

Haha sounds like the Boston Accent from around here

Aaah ok thanks...they were on the same petition for the K-1 so didn't realize it was different for the CR1/ IR1

Having been born in Liverpool , brought up just out Manchester , gone to college in the Black Country and then lived and worked in Lahndan I get it all :-)

Firstly many Americans think I am Australian.....

HAHA my husband is from west Lancs and so many people think he and his family are Aussies. We were walking to a bar one night and some random guy walked by and said "g'day mates" and they were like uhhhh...wrong country! I did discover that the accent is very useful when you want good service. Every time we go out and have a female server or bartender, I make them ask for everything as they tend to get far better service than I get when asking for the same thing. Yep, I totally send the shy english guy to flirt with the bartender to get stronger drinks hah!

My favorite things to make Alan say are "bear, there, wear..." They just sound like "brrr, werrr, herr" and are adorable. I threaten that if he loses the accent, he'll get shipped back to the UK for a bt. He's not moved here yet but is already so Americanized. regularly says trunk for boot/ hood for bonnet, cell phone, garage, not gar-age, and the best is that he's picked up my new england quirk of saying "wicked" all the time, oh and "dude" which sounds hilarious with his accent

Thanks!

Yeah Nich-Nick, after 19 months of them delaying us and just one disaster after another (like catching our objective CAFCASS officer having lunch with his ex and chatting like they were friends), we finally got appointed a new officer. We requested a month's extension to meet with her and get her to take on the case. The judge said that she thought the case dragged on enough and that we could reapply at a later date but would not approve now. I don't know how this even makes sense. We were told the news on 31 July. Alan was flying out the following week, for the whole month. We talked to our families and decided to marry while he was here. We had an amazing wedding officiated by my neighbor who's like family and known me since I was three. It was small, but nice, 30 people. We had the ceremony, dinner and the customary dances but no real party. After the wedding all of my friends and cousin went out for drinks and snacks at a local sports bar lol. We got a whole 2 days away before I had to work. Once they're finally approved to work, we'll have a church wedding and a big party. I honestly don't know how we could top the first one though. It was perfect

I was under the impression that a fiance coming over on a K-1 visa does not qualify for public health insurance and would have to be added to a private or work sponsored insurance. I don't know if this changed since the affordable care act went into place.

Hi everyone,

This is probably going to be the dumbest question. I'm starting the I-130 paperwork in the hopes that my husband and I can file in the somewhat near future (we're still waiting for the UK to tie up all the ends of the disaster in family court for our K-1 application from 2012). I got to question #17 on the petition and was wondering how to list my husband's kids. Are they looking for child or stepchild or does it not matter?

Thanks!

Just an FYI - I have just tried calling :

NVC: 803-334-0700 Press 1 for English

Hours: Monday-Friday from 7:00 AM to midnight (EST).
Best time to call is 7:30 AM to 9:00 AM or 10:00 PM to midnight.

And got "Hi you've got someone's text plus texting number. To get your own texting number...blah blah"

I've checked the number three times and keep getting the same recording.

EDIT: The OP listed the wrong number. I got the number from the DOS and it's area code 603, not 803

Thanks Nich-Nick, I don't really have anything to update them with until we get the new solicitor's letter with the April dates. What they have is the most up to date info we have. When we knew this was going to court last Feb, we immediately called the embassy and then followed up with an email once we had the code from them. I sent all the information they said to send in the email and used the extension request template found in the templates section of this site, plus added an explanation of the circumstances and copies of our NOA2 and the letter from the solicitor requesting my attendance at the hearing in Jan. I assumed we'd get some kind of reply to my request for an extension. At this point, I'm paranoid that the extension will be granted and that will also run out because the UK takes forever to get anything done and the hearing won't be completed in April.

Hi all,

There's a lot going on with our petition right now and we've had to go to family court to seek permission to move my fiance's boys. Our original court date was last week. As per the norm with the UK, things didn't happen on schedule and we're less than half way through the hearing. Next available date is April. Problem is that my I-129 petition expires on Feb 1. At the end of December, I wrote to London to ask for an extension using the form on here and sent along documentation of the court date in Jan. We still haven't gotten paperwork on the next court date, but can send that along as well. I just need to know if there is a way to check on the extension, and does it mean calling the $20 hotline? Also, does anyone have a possible time frame that I should be looking at for this kind of thing? The solicitors want paperwork ASAP, so I keep having to explain that I cannot move faster than the government.

Thanks!

I'm so sorry to read all that you've been through Meg - it's such a shame when people just can't bring themselves to make the right choices - especially where children are involved! I hope you get your extension AND approval to remove the children and that things get a lot easier for you both this year

Shezi

Thank you! I'm looking forward to the night when I can actually sleep peacefully again. I haven't had one in ages with all of this stress. I really do love the boys as if they were my own and want the best for them. All factors considered, that best life will be here in the states.

Hi all,

I know that I've totally disappeared for a bit now, and I do apologize. My life has really just been hell for the past 6 months or so. I've had family medical issues, personal medical issues, a dead computer, trying to work two jobs with no computer (when both rely on a computer), and issues with removing my fiance's kids from England. I just wanted to pop in with a quick update. They went through multiple statements and rebuttals and his ex is still trying to block the move. She's not making sense in some of her statements and suddenly has decided that she'll keep the kids full time when she's never wanted them before. Things went to a hearing and I had to fly over to give a statement and be cross examined. The trip was pure misery. I got sick for the first week I was there, then we had court for 2 days. I really only got 3 days to enjoy my stay in the UK.

Due to a number of delays on the part of the court adviser and a few other things, we barely had 1/2 a full day of court in the two days I was there. They put me on the stand and started with my fiance, but had to stop after he was being cross examined for over an hour and on the stand for over 2.5 hours total that day. The next scheduled date is April. Thankfully they allowed me to give my statement first, as I can't make it back for April. I've had to write to London and ask for an extension of our petition based on the court dates. Our current petition expires Feb 1. I've not heard back from London, so may try to call this week to see if there is any news. Please keep fingers crossed for us. If we get approval to move, but the petition is not extended, then we will get married over the next few months and then apply for the spousal visa. We've weighed all the options and feel that it is in the best interest for everyone to make the move, so are praying that we're approved. I really hope everyone else is having a much easier process. I'll come back and get caught up on posts once I'm caught up on the work I've missed while I was abroad.

http://www.britishdelights.com/ Can be pricey but good selection. They also carry meats, dairy and other products.

British Delights

63 Power Road Unit 2

Westford MA 01886

(978)-392-0077

Email: sales@britishdelights.com

http://britishfood.com/

http://www.britishsupplies.com/ Small Store with tons packed in. The owner is very nice, but prices are a little high.

British Imports of Plymouth

1 Court Street

Plymouth, MA. 02360

Phone: (508) 747-2972

Many of the supermarkets in the Boston area carry English and Irish foods

http://www.foodireland.com/ Has decent prices on some stuff

http://www.tommymoloneys.com/ has meats, sauces, etc. BACON!!!

Just popping in to say huge congrats to everyone who's been approved, done POE and all the exciting stuff that comes afterward. I'm really so happy for you all! Like others have said before, it would be great to stay in touch with this great group of people after everyone's through the process

WOOHOO Congrats!!!!! :dance:

4.00am, Wake up.....CHECK

4.40am, Get ready and get leave for work.....CHECK

5.20am, Arrive at work.....CHECK

6am-8am, Wait.....CHECK

8.00am, No delivery yet, slight worry.....CHECK

8.10am, Look around to find a phone number for DX to talk to someone.....CHECK

8.20am, Call and find courier is stuck in traffic.....CHECK

9.03am, Delivery.....CHECK

9.05am, Check that envelope is there and unopened.....CHECK

9.06am, Check that passport is my passport and has the visa in it.....CHECK

9.10am, Big smile.....CHECK

9.37am, Clock watching for online check in for flight at 10.10am.....CHECK

In other words, I have finally held the illusive visa in my hands

Hiya everyone,

I've been crazy busy this week and just realized I didn't post an update about our petition to bring Alan's boys to the USA. There's good news and bad news. The good news is that the judge wasn't happy with the reports submitted by family services and wants more information because they were very one sided had lots of errors. The bad news is that this means I have to fly over for a full court hearing because they want to interview me, the social worker, both parents and other involved parties. I don't know what else I could possibly say since I've submitted about 200 pages of statements and information, but I'll do whatever it takes. Unfortunately, the earliest date they could assign is Dec 12. This is the date of the last class I teach before final exams at the college. There's no way I can get it off of work so we'll have to reschedule. I'm submitting my request for a different date and getting a letter from the university and will be sending that off ASAP. I'm praying for early January. Looks like we'll be sending a request to London for an extension of our petition based on all of this. It just kills me that we went from his ex being amenable to us moving with the kids at the start to her making every excuse to block us now. For now, I'll be living vicariously through all of you who are having your interviews, getting your visas and prepping for a move! Congrats to everyone who's finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! I'm really happy for you guys

Thanks Gavin and Joy! We're trying to stay positive here but today has been really tough for us.