SansTortoise

You’re also allowed to translate yourself and self-certify if your English and non-English language levels are sufficiently high.

I wouldn’t even say “boyfriend” unless prompted. It’s a vacation and there likely will be no follow-up if that’s the answer. If they ask who OP is staying with, etc. then it can be brought up, but an initial visit to the U.S. on ESTA from a low-risk country doesn’t need details beyond one word (“vacation”) in most cases.

Chileans entering on ESTA tend to have zero questions asked because low risk country and the CBP officer assumes they don’t speak English, and they tend to arrive on flights that have people from high risk countries so CBP has better things to do with their time. If asked why she’s here she can honestly answer “vacation”, since that is true, and the officer won’t ask a follow-up. She is not required to volunteer that one of the activities she will be doing during her vacation is getting married. All the other advice here is true about showing intent to return, etc. if marriage comes up, but given the fact pattern I would be shocked if any question was asked at all. My advice would be to have all the paperwork needed to show connection to Chile, but to be surprised if the CBP officer speaks more than once during the entire interaction.

Yes, we agree. Though I’d add: someone innocently says something wrong vs. is defrauding the government is a judgement call on behalf of the government, and acting on advice in good faith can help show it wasn’t fraud, but a misunderstanding of the law rather than a misrepresentation of facts. Which is why I think OP should have a heart-to-heart with their counsel taking into account all they’ve learned today and move from there.

Yes, this is my point. “I applied for the incorrect visa because my lawyer told me to and was completely honest throughout the process” is neither fraud nor misrepresentation. People are being overly harsh on OP here, even if on substance they’re correct that IR-1 doesn’t seem to match OP’s goals.

There’s a difference between making sure the form is accurate and relying on legal counsel to tell you what the law is. Obviously OP needs to be completely honest with both their counsel and the CO, but given that an interview has been scheduled they should be asking their lawyer how to act given the (valid) concerns raised here and how far along they are in the process. They should also feel comfortable relying on their lawyer’s legal advice. They’ve paid for the legal advice. They should use it given the concerns.

Since you’ve already retained legal counsel, I’d have this conversation with them, and do what they tell you. They’re more familiar with the facts of your case than us, and unlike members of this forum if anything goes wrong, “I relied upon the advice of counsel” is something the government recognized as a defense.

Did she sign any form to abandon her green card or did the green card physically expire (I.e. it’s past the date printed on the physical card)? Or are you just assuming it’s invalid because of the 12 month rule? Asking because CBP has been known to use discretion around the 12 month rule even without a re-entry permit, but a lot depends on the exact circumstances. If it’s not expired and she didn’t sign it away/an immigration judge didn’t revoke it, it might be worth talking to a lawyer to see what they think the best option is.

The CR-1 visa is the document fixed in your passport by the embassy or consulate that gives you permission to seek admission to the United States as an immigrant at a port of entry. Said in layman’s terms: its permission for you to get in the plane.

You clearly haven’t worked with the government much… I’d also add the strictness on this probably partially depends on if the country is a fraud risk. Europe and contractor so I’m assuming Germany or similar. Not much fraud coming from the wealthier countries in the EU.

The embassy doesn’t get a say. It’s decided by the Assistant U.S. Attorney your case lands with.

Do you or your wife have a sufficient level of both German and English to provide an accurate translation even if the English part wasn’t there? If so, you are allowed to do the translation yourself and self-certify. I’m assuming the answer to the above is “yes” since you’re writing here in English about a marriage to a German national. If the biggest concern is cost, it seems like the most straightforward answer is to certify the translation yourself — which USCIS allows — certified does not mean professional. It’d also probably be quicker than getting a response from them. Yes, it’s stupid. But give them what they want and move on.

Also — if you need additional documents translated you don’t need to pay. Your English looks to be sufficient to self-translate for USCIS and presumably your husband is fluent in English and Spanish since he originally is from Peru and is now a USC. You guys can self-translate and certify your fluency in both languages on your own.