cameron.beckett05

Unfortunately bad news - sent an email explaining the above asking about DCF and they responded back with Good afternoon, Thank you for your email. Unfortunately, we are unable to accept your local filing. However, we do have availability for you to do an SB1 interview. Best regards, Immigrant Visa Section U.S. Consulate General Naples, Italy --- I'm not one to read tea leaves, and I'm not sure why they can't accept my local filing, but it feels like we might be cooked here....

Howdy folks, I imagine this is a common topic here, but my wife and I are navigating a complicated situation, and we’re trying to gather information on how to move forward with Direct Consular Filing (DCF) at the U.S. Consulate in Naples. Background I’m a U.S. citizen, born and raised in the U.S., with family, bank accounts, and a tax history in the States. My wife is an Italian citizen and a U.S. Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) with a valid, unexpired 10-year green card (I-551). We got married in the U.S. in 2015, later registered our marriage in Italy, and moved to the U.S. together in 2017, when my wife entered on an IR1 visa. In 2019, we moved back to Italy for graduate studies, unaware of the requirements for maintaining returning resident status. The pandemic hit soon after, significantly delaying our ability to return. Despite this, we have maintained strong ties to the U.S., including filing taxes and keeping U.S. financial accounts. The Issue In 2021, we visited the U.S. briefly, and my wife’s passport was stamped “I-327 advised”—at the time, we didn’t fully grasp what this meant. In 2023, I had a temporary work opportunity in the U.S., and my wife joined me, but she mistakenly entered on an ESTA instead of her green card. She was admitted without being asked to sign Form I-407, so there was no formal abandonment of her LPR status, but the ESTA entry complicates things. Why We’re Pursuing DCF I’ve been offered a full-time postdoctoral position in Chicago, starting in July 2025, and we need to relocate together. We initially explored the SB-1 Returning Resident Visa, but after consulting immigration lawyers and getting feedback from others, it doesn’t seem like a viable option in our case. Now, we’re looking into Direct Consular Filing (DCF) as a way to expedite the process, given that I am a U.S. citizen who has been residing abroad since 2019 and now have an urgent need to return due to employment. We’ve seen that DCF is sometimes possible under exceptional circumstances, including job relocation, but we’re trying to get a clearer idea of how this works in Naples. Looking for Advice Has anyone here successfully gone through Direct Consular Filing at the Naples consulate? How strict are they in determining exceptional circumstances? Any insights on what documentation they look for or how to approach this process would be incredibly helpful. We fully acknowledge that we could have handled things more carefully and appreciate any guidance from those who have experience navigating this process. Thanks in advance!

Well that is encouraging news! My wife has not submitted Form I-407 and has never formally abandoned her status. We moved to the U.S. in 2017, she entered on an IR1, and we lived there till 2019. we've been bouncing back and forth since then as we pursued graduate studies in Italy. Then COVID-19 pandemic made returning much more complicated. In Summer 2021, we briefly visited the U.S., and a CBP officer marked her passport with “I-327 advised”, though we didn’t fully grasp what that meant at the time. In Fall 2023, she joined me in the U.S. for a short period, but unfortunately, she entered on an ESTA instead of using her green card, which we now realize was a mistake. She was admitted without being asked to sign Form I-407, so there was never a formal abandonment of her LPR status. We initially looked into the SB-1 Returning Resident Visa, but I don't think it would be approved. Fast forward to now, last week I was offered a position in Chicago starting in July and have got a formal letter. I've got residency in Italy (carta di soggiorno). It looks like we're in really murky waters here entirely of our own making; we got married when we were both 21 and have been living together for over 10 years now. I know that, whatever happens next, we are both going to try immediately to apply for citizenship in both countries to avoid this headache in the future.

Hi! I'm new to the forum and am in literally exactly the same boat - I just sent an email to Naples on the DCF process, and initially, it sounded like they only provide this service for United States military service members. Is this true from your experience? I got a job offer last week and we'd have to move to the U.S. by July. Time is very tight and we're trying to figure out how to go forward with this - wife similarly had an old green card; she's an Italian citizen and we've been living outside the U.S. for an extended amount of time. Definitely a finger-biter of a timeline.