Enigma11561

What he said. AP's are usually approved and received within a few months. Just don't make reservations until it is in hand. The last thing you need is the stress of having a plane ticket to leave in a few days and no AP in the mail. Sorry about your grandmother.

I, Raymond Jornd, do hereby state that I am still legally able and willing to marry Amy R. Antonio, and intend to do so within 90 days of her arrival into the US using the K-1 visa.

That's all you really need.The more you add, the more you open up yourself to questions. Keep it simple.

If you are dead you cannot apply for an AOS. Those are the rules.

It's been awhile but I think that green cards cannot be forwarded. They must be delivered to the address listed on your documents. So...if he is no longer at this address it should be labeled as "moved" or "addressee unknown" and put back in the mail to be returned. Let USCIS deal with it. Not your problem. If by some chance the envelope was opened, well...sometimes things get lost in the mail? Never received? (hint hint)

that website is not very accurate. My wife had her green card for several months and the site still said "it is under review". Go figure. This process can take some time, so as long as you have your NOA, your fine.

There is usually a 2-3 week lead time from date of notice to appointment date. I question the wisdom of being out of town so long while waiting for this critical appointment. Having said that, call them now, and get on record that you want to reschedule.Biometrics only takes a few minutes and, in our case, the place was fairly empty when we got there. The issues are pulling up your records in the computer.If they can do this at any time, I would drive there yesterday and plead to be given a shot then and there. If there is a "window" that has come and gone, then showing up will be a waste of time. Maybe some one else can help here on that question.

Mine was. He arrived before my wife received her green card but I do not think that matters. She had her interview and a few months later he had his. The interview was uneventful. Questions about belonging to any military organizations, are/will you be going to school/work, do you like it here, etc..He got his green card.

No insult to anyone was intended. I had been at this for some time and have met many, many people/couples from many nationalities. It's just been my experience that most ( but not all) who have a short term pre-martial relationship find out later on that cultural differences can be very hard, understanding American lifestyles/way of life can be challenging, and without truly knowing the other person well enough to help get them through these hardships can result in a negative outcome. Many people get caught up in the romance and excitement of the moment and having the person of their dreams finally with them it can be great. But you are talking marriage here. A lifetime. A successful marriage is a heck of a lot more work than anything the USCIS can throw at you.Sorry if you feel that truly getting to know someone is a bad thing.

Five times over 3 years. First in Bulgaria, then Ukraine then her home country Belarus. As someone above said..I wanted to make sure.

I truly question the mindset of those who only visit once and then apply for a K-1 even though you have communicated for some period of skype, phone, etc.. It's simply not enough time to make a decision that will last for your entire life. On other forums I cannot tell you how many of these so called "one week wonders" end up in divorce or something even worse. The cultural differences alone can be very rough. Yes, the USCIS demands at least one face to face visit, but can you truly know someone in just a few weeks? Would you marry the local girl/guy in such a short period of time? Just my two cents.

I never used a binder. All they are gonna do is take it all out. I had my cover letter, all the forms and their required attachments paper clipped together, in order, and that was it. Worked great. All your stuff is going to go into one of their folders like everyone else. the easier you make it for them the better.

Doesn't matter. These thing get transferred all the time depending on workload. As long as you got your notice that is all that is important. I doubt your attorney will be able to give you a better explanation. Sometimes one is faster than another, but in the overall scope of things the difference is minimal.

The best advice I can give you is do not count on any time line. They are only guides and many people can get approved earlier and many more a lot later. Case in point. I filed my wife's AOS in June 2010. She was given her green card in May 2011. Almost one year. No paperwork problems just "things" like a storm closing the office and having a reschedule 2 months later, a hiccup in biometrics getting lost in a computer. Stuff happens. With all this planning and scheduling going on the last thing you need is having to worry if you can pull it off to begin with due to unknown processing times. Like others have said. Make a small wedding and then relax and make a grand party after.

I have to agree with moonlight here. How can you marry someone you have never met in person? Regardless of have long you have been in communication it is VERY different in person. That is why the USCIS mandates an in person relationship. Please do not do anything foolish. Meet in person someplace. There is an old expression " you really don't know someone until the shoes are on the floor". If this person lived 10 miles from your home would you still do the same thing? Long distance relationships are very hard and if you really do not know this person, you are looking at a very difficult road.

You can get married in any state you want. Some people like to do Las Vegas. You just need to meet the requirements for that state and/or county.( In New York it is the state).

As the above states, you use your Belarussian passport both going and coming back. Just make sure you don't lose your green card! You will need to show it at your US POE. MAKE SURE THE NAME ON YOUR TICKET IS EXACTLY THE SAME AS IN YOUR PASSPORT.

As far as your husband is concerned, I have always used www.visahq.com for my visas. All info can be inputted online. Very reliable.They will provide the letter of invitation ( which is really BS) and handle everything. You send them your passport and in a week or so it comes back FedEx with the visa stamp. Never had a problem coming in from Kiev by train or Minsk by airline. And nobody ever asked for anything while I was there. Just stay away from the crowds as it is getting nasty there these days.

No, you don't. The requirement is to MARRY within the 90 day period.

The reason most people file immediately after marriage is for the convenience factor. The sooner you get your EAD/AP/green card then the sooner you can work, get your driving licence sorted and start building a history of your relationship from marriage ready for the RoC 2 years down the line. The majority of us want to get it mailed in so we can live without worrying about USCIS for a couple of years-ish.

Many people don't even get their marriage certificate for a couple of months after marriage, so filing within 90 days would be impossible. USCIS understands that these things happen, people who have just got married tend to be short on ready cash and life happens.

OP, just get yourself straight and gather your paperwork. Once you are ready, file the AoS. Don't be confused by the above posts that aren't relevant to your situation.

This is the best advise I have read here. And accurate. And this is what most people do. Get married within 90 days and file for AOS as soon as possible, without going crazy, after.

I took a lot of documents with us and the only thing he was interested in was the photos. But not wedding photos. I had about 10 photos of my wife with my dog, on a trip to the Statue of Liberty, a trip down to Washington D.C, at a party with friends. Things like that. They want to know this is a bona fide marriage and doing things together "as a family" will do more for you than a phone bill.

I concur. You have to wait outside. Sometimes it could be an hour and sometimes more depending on the number of people going through the process. If she has a cell to call you at least you can communicate, but many areas do not allow their usage either. Bring flowers !

Part of the process is that the beneficiary must produce a police report. Either it will state that he was arrested and the disposition of the charges or there will be no record and the document will state that. Have him go to the police station where all this took place and ask for the report. I doubt if the US is going to check every police record in his country so what he produces is what they will go by. However telling the truth is always best. Usually small criminal charges of drug possession will not prevent approval. Moving a few kilos of heroin is quite different.Lets be honest here, the USCIS does not look favorable on "criminals" entering the country so it is up to you to prove that any charges were insignificant to warrant denial.

I would also question the reason she was denied twice on her visa application after being here for so long and then returning home, assuming all was legal.Do you know the reasons for the denial?

I assume your wife's son is very young and that is why he is on her passport? He has one year after she receives her visa to enter the US as a K2.Being young you will have no issues with age limitations ( 21yo). But he must enter first before he can adjust status. I am also assuming you filed her AOS and AP/EAD together? If your wife must go back to pick him up then you have no choice but to get her AP to travel. My best suggestion to to have your wife travel there as soon after she receives her AP, because you don't want to possible miss her AOS interview. Once he is here then you need to file another AOS for him...and eat the extra cost. It MAY be possible that once he is here that you do an infopass appointment and ask if he can accompany his mother to her interview at the same time.I don't remember the age but very young children may not have an interview, but still must file.

I just went through this. There is a new ruling that took effect only a month or so ago. AS LONG AS HE IS ON US SOIL BEFORE TURNING 21, HE IS OK. K2's do not age out. Period. He should file for his AOS as soon as possible however.(Assuming he is coming in as a K2)

I just went through this. There is a new ruling that took effect only a month or so ago. AS LONG AS HE IS ON US SOIL BEFORE TURNING 21, HE IS OK. K2's do not age out. Period. He should file for his AOS as soon as possible however.(Assuming he is coming in as a K2)

I agree here. Making plans before you even knew when you were going to have your interview is VERY risky. Interview and green card come first. Vacation second. My step son wanted very much to go back to his home country and I told him that there was no way he was making any kind of plans until the green card was delivered to the house. Once he got it, 3 weeks later he was on the plane.

I went to pick up my my then fiancée and returned with her. I am the USC and she was the K1. Our POE was New York.I asked the woman directing the lines if she could go with me though the USC line. Yes. And no problems.This is really not a big deal