Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Filing Married Joint for my taxes, will ITIN affect her petition?	Thanks for the info What do we need, aside from the W7 form, to apply for an ITIN? You need to send in proof of her identity and such. Read the W7 instructions, it says what is needed. Also, I was looking at the W7 application and it looks like she needs to sign it and we need to provide proof of her ID and residence outside the US. Does she absolutely need to sign it? Can I sign it on her behalf? There isn't much time to send docs back and forth with April 15 looming over the horizon and I'd want to avoid having to file an extension if I can. It has to be her signature. You can't sign anything for another person unless they're a minor. Email her the necessary forms, have her sign it and then mail it. As for the deadline, all I can say is you really shouldn't have waited until the last second. You can always file for an extension if necessary.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-02 21:42:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Filing Married Joint for my taxes, will ITIN affect her petition?	Hi everyone. I'm pretty much done with my taxes this year and I was going to file Married filing separately since our petition is still pending approval. I'm using TurboTax btw. However, doing so, I would owe a lot on my taxes. Now, I switched my filing status to Married filing jointly and I'm going to get a refund instead it seems. Now, this would mean I need to get an ITIN for my wife. She's not working right now and is studying part time. Would getting an ITIN for her affect our visa petition in anyway? Also for those who had filed before, how long does it take to get an ITIN? Thanks Nope, getting an ITIN wouldn't affect the visa process at all. But doing taxes as Married Filing Jointly will be good proof of relationship evidence (compared to filing as single ). For us, when we filed for an ITIN last year, my husband mailed off the tax package around the second week of March. It was processed and he received his refund around the third week of April, so just around a month, in our case.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-02 17:17:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	2011 Tax script	Hi, my Tax Return was transferred from the ITIN-office to the IRS processing Dept. (I don't know the process)The IRS received my Tax Return on March 29th and I was able to order my Tax Transcript today. I haven't received the refund yet. If they already received your Tax Return then you can order the transcript. They probably processed your return, but just haven't issued the refund.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-04 15:40:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	2011 Tax script	Thank you. If I take my tax return pdf document sent to IRS for the interview, do they accept. I can talke online status showing that they received and its under processing. You have to take the entire tax return (1040, plus all schedules, if applicable) as well as all W2s for it to be accepted.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-03 22:01:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	2011 Tax script	I have CR1 interview on Apr.20th. I did paper filing of my Federal taxes and sent on Mar 20th to IRS and its received by IRS. When can I request 2011 tax script from IRS. Will it be ready only after they send a refund or can I request before that. You have to wait for the IRS to at least process your return. The contents of the tax transcript are the numbers from your tax return. If it hasn't been processed yet, then there's no numbers, thus no tax transcript. If your interview is on the 20th of this month, I don't think you'll have the tax transcripts in time. It usually takes a month for tax returns to be processed, and then another week or so to receive the tax transcripts by mail after requesting them.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-03 14:51:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	ds-230 question	Hello, I have a quick question on the ds-230 form. It's question 31a. Person(s) named in 14 and 29 who will accompany you to the United States now. I am not sure what to put here. I am listed in question 14 but I am a USC. Is the question asking am I escorting my wife here or am I accompaning her as an immugrant? Thank you for any help. Accompany in this sense on this form means "immigrating with". In this case, you're the USC, so the answer for that question is 'none'. yes, its asking you if you are going to go there and get her, then bring her back so she doesnt have to come by herself. Nope, it doesn't. It means immigrating with, not travelling with.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-04 15:00:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Pregnancy Can Delay My Petition?	I wonder if my wife pregnancy could delay her coming into US? She is about 2 months. This process takes about 6 months? I heard of someone who wen to the interview and they told that someone, to wait until her child was born and than go back to get her visa. Is this the procedure? I'm not sure where you got 6 months, but you'd be lucky to be done with this entire process in 6 months. On average, it takes about 5 months to get an I-130 approval after sending it in, so in your case, around September... On average, it takes about 2 months to get through NVC, so, in your case, around November... And I don't know El Salvador waiting times from case complete at NVC to interview date, but I'll take the average of 2 months (common for most consulates/embassies), so, in your case, the interview would be around January... In total, about 9 months. Unfortunately, it looks like your wife is going to have your baby there.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-03 08:49:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NVC processing times differences K1 vs IR-1	did you try calling them in the last couple of days? 3 weeks seems very long for something that should only take a week. No, it's currently taking 3 weeks from NOA2 to case number being generated, so they're within the correct timeframe. And although it might seem like it could take a week, keep in mind, NVC receives hundreds of thousands of cases and have to deal with them one by one. And when there's an increase of cases, then it takes longer.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-02 15:54:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NVC processing times differences K1 vs IR-1	Well I guess you guys have answered my question, I just hate the answer. It's extremely frustrating to be in limbo again after finally getting out of CSC hell! 3 weeks have passed since our NOA2 and still no case #. thanks for the info. Looking at your signature, it's been a little over 2.5 weeks since your I-130 petition was approved. You should be getting a case number this week, or at the latest, next week. It's been taking roughly 3 weeks recently.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-02 12:07:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NVC processing times differences K1 vs IR-1	In addition to what Laure said, you have to keep in mind, for K1 applicants, NVC is just a middle man. They simply assign a case number and ship the case out. As far as I know, they don't input the information into their system since K1s don't submit anything to NVC. With IR-1/CR-1 cases though, there are fees paid and packages sent in. So, NVC has to take the time to input all the information, which takes drastically longer than just simply assigning a case number.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-02 09:29:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Affidavit of Support	hi again it takes even 2 weeks for them to receive the money order that will send my husband even he is living in US? Well, he has to mail it to NVC first. Then it'll probably sit in the mailroom for a few days. Then they have to manually process it as it's not done online. Then you'll have to wait for confirmation from them that it was accepted. They'll then send you the bar-coded cover sheet that is included for the packages. And considering it's Easter this weekend, I'm sure there are officers taking vacation so productivity will be down.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 17:46:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Affidavit of Support	hello where can he see the bar coded sheet?yes i send the ds 3032 already last march 30 but he will pay the aos on monday since its holiday now.thank you. requirements for IV when he will pay. I read that original birth certificate,marriage,police etc.... The bar-coded cover sheet is found on the payment portal after you pay the respective bill. For the documents needed in the IV package, please refer to the link I posted in my last response. The first post contains an FAQ which I created that lists the documents. It's also listed in a few guides I linked to in that same post.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 17:30:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Affidavit of Support	hello friends, I would like to ask where to send the I-1864 form we are CR1 and when my husband send the payment thru money order. Thanks for all your help here. In additional to that whats the next step after the AOS is it the IV?what are the requirements again? The address for where to send the AOS package is on the bar-coded cover sheet. Why is he paying by mail order? Why not online? It saves about 2 weeks, at least. Have you sent the DS-3032 by email yet? The acceptance of that triggers the IV bill being invoiced. Once that's appearing as PAID, you can submit the IV package. What do you mean by "requirements"? Perhaps you should head over to the NVC April thread: http://www.visajourn...ers-april-2012/ The first post contains links to guides and such that I compiled, and the second one is an FAQ I put together. It should help you if you read it	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 08:33:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Just to make sure.. the barcoded cover sheet page is the invoice i received from NVC? and the receipt is when I paid the bill online correct? After you pay a bill, there will be a button that says 'document cover sheet'. That is the bar-coded cover sheet that we all talk about. Here's a link to a screenshot of my payment portal: http://i128.photobuc...tscreenshot.jpg See the 'Print Document Cover Sheet' button near the bottom? That's what you need to press to get your bar-coded cover sheet.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-06 13:31:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Thanks Cathy, I have another questions. from reading over vj posts it seems like I can submit the aos packagae as soon as the iv bill shows paid online correct? also I have read that the beneficiary's birth certificate is required with one of the froms. My wife is UK citizen but she wasn't born there. She only has her UK documents like passport and Naturaliztion certificate. Does she still need a birth certificate from the country she was born in? or can the Uk natraliztion certificate will sufice instead of birth certificate? Thank you It doesn't matter if her birth certificate is from a different country than of her current residence. A birth certificate is MANDATORY in the IV package. http://travel.state....ml#certificates	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-06 12:43:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Saylin is the go-to girl for NVC procedures but you can take a look at my timeline and signature for an idea of UK specific timings. Have you booked/had your medical yet? I can help with the general stuff, but for UK, I can't be of much help there. But with your timeline, it'd give the UK posters a good idea on time frame for the interview process	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 15:58:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Thank you Saylin You're welcome	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 15:22:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	I paid the AOS fee of 88 dollars last week. now I got the bill for IV which is 404 dollars. So to understand correctly there are no more fees after that ? how long does it usually take for the counslate to get the file from NVC and how long does it usually take for the counslate to schdule somoene for an interview? when do they ask for Affidavite of support forms etc? The only fees left are: -medical -courier fee to receive your visa/passport after interview (if applicable, free for Canadians) -flight to US The consulate/embassy doesn't schedule the interview (in most cases), it's NVC that does. Once your interview date is scheduled with NVC, then the case is shipped out, typically the next day. The AOS package is sent during the NVC stage, after the AOS bill appears as PAID in the payment portal. No more fee at your end after IV fee. Your spouse may have to pay for sending any paperwork to consulate through courier. If everything goes well at NVC then probably 1-2 weeks till they forward the case to embassy or consulate abroad. Interview date could be 4-8 weeks later after the consulate receives documents. Not sure though it depends on their schedule and varies for different consulates. You may refer to embassy reviews or information section for this. The beneficiary may be asked to show affidavit of support at time of interview. Please see my answer above on a few things.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 13:41:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Is not the AOS fee $88 now instead of $74 because it includes biomatrics fee as well. The $74 fee doesn't apply to the AOS. The $74 surcharge is only for the IV fee. The AOS is $88 and has been for quite awhile.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 13:05:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	I'm a little confused, the DS-230 is currently $330? That's the same as the IV fee, right? If so, I just paid $404 the other day. Also maybe you'd know the answer to this question: When you pay the IV Fee, NVC refers to it as a visa processing fee. Does the $404 cover the actual cost of the visa or just to apply for one and a separate bill will be sent for the cost of the actual visa? Thanks for any info. The IV fee IS for the DS-230. IV stands for Immigrant Visa. The DS-230 form is called the Immigrant Visa Application. It currently costs $330 plus $74, a total of $404. After you pay the AOS and IV fees, there are no more fees to pay.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 12:19:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	IV bill payment	Hello VJ members. I just recieved the IV bill and instructions to pay online, after a few days of sending the DS 3032. I paid the AOS processing fee last week. now when I log in to the site it shows that AOS fee is paid but the option to pay IV bill is greyed out. Does it take a few days before I can pay it. Or is there any other reason? I have read a few post of people not having IIN but I go that already on the invoice for IV bill. I can log in perfectly but the option to click on the little box and pay is not there. its all greyed out. Any suggestions? Thanks Just to make sure, you're using IE right? If so, then just wait a day or two. It does take time for things to be invoiced at NVC.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-05 08:38:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Skype call logs	That's what I'm wondering, because we use Skype allot. Give me that link to this "Skype thingy" again. It's linked to in this thread, scroll up.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 17:21:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Skype call logs	I know I'm getting in the game late, but what if you use Skype video chat (no phone calls made through Skype, but just talking through video chat through the internet?), does this program does something with the call logs (what ever you might call this portion of Skype communication?? Because this is how my lady friend and I talk most of the time. Yes, it still shows the call logs as you're still calling the other person. That's how me and my husband used Skype each night, through video chatting.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-04 21:59:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Skype call logs	I have downloaded both the chat and call logs from Skype into an Excel file. I have filtered to show the logs and chats with my husband for selected number of days, which I plan to print and submit with the I-130. Do you think these alterations to the original large excel file may cause an issue with USCIS? Thank you No, it shouldn't cause an issue.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-03-26 16:15:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Skype call logs	Thanks! Dont mean to be a pain in the butt on purpose..BUT..I downloaded both and..the first which was skypelogview will not pull up anything when I open it, it says skype locks the logs close skype and hit F5, which I did and to no avail (all 15 or 20 times) and the other one skypecallexporter, works perfectly, but it goes wayyy back...and says i have to print about 50 pages, of which i may need only about 10, if that...but it gives me no option to edit....any other suggestions??? Please??? Thanks again! I used both for my case, and the programs worked perfectly. For the Skype Call Exporter one, you should be able to select which pages you want to print, once you hit 'print', just like any other program. For the Skype Log View one, you have Skype completely closed before executing the program, right? The log view program does NOT work properly unless Skype is first closed.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-03-19 16:13:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Skype call logs	For those that want a Skype program, check out this thread: http://www.visajourn...kype-chat-logs/ (posts 3 and 8 in particular have the links).	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-03-19 15:13:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	question	Could you tell what else goes into that package? Please read the first post here: http://www.visajourn...ers-april-2012/ The first post contains links and guides I put together as well as an FAQ that I wrote for the NVC process. You'll find your answer (and many others) there.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 22:36:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	question	Does IV stands for Immigrant Visa? If it does, this means DS230 as well? Yes, IV means Immigrant Visa. The DS-230 form is one of the needed documents in the IV package.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 17:18:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	question	can you send in the I864 and the ds230 packets together as in the same time in the same envelope ? or do they have to be sent separate? just getting the correct instuctions to give to my family to mail the things in and which bundle to put what in etc etc. thanks guys They can definitely be sent together in the same package. They just have to be clearly labeled, preferably in their own manila envelopes, so it's easy to tell which is the AOS packet and which is the IV packet.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 09:17:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	you mean a signed part I? Part II is signed at the IV Unit, on interview day. Well, page 2 is part of part 1...	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-08 22:05:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	Thanks Saylin. Fixed original post: The petitioner doesn't need to "mail" anything. Don't waste time. DS-230 is easily available online. Have the beneficiary fill it out correctly and accurately, then print it, sign it and date it. Gather all possible documentation that needs to go along with it and then have the beneficiary mail this package to the petitioner. The petitioner will then forward it to NVC via USPS, once they receive it. Much better And I agree. Don't know why the petitioner has to mail anything to the beneficiary. The beneficiary just has to print out the pages she needs to sign (in this case, just page 2 of the DS-230). I'd also suggest the beneficiary prints out about 5 copies of page 2 and signs it (in case it's needed). But don't have the beneficiary fill out anything. Just send blank copies of page 2 (signed) to the petitioner. That way, if something goes wrong, the petitioner can have back-ups of the DS-230 already with the beneficiary's signature. The beneficiary would just mail those 5 or so copies of a blank but signed page 2 as well as the documents (certificates, passport pictures, copy of bio-data page of passport) to the petitioner. This saves greatly on mailing time if the petitioner fills out the DS-230, mails it to the beneficiary, they sign it, and then return it. Edited by Saylin, 08 April 2012 - 10:04 PM.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-08 17:11:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	Your wife doesn't need to "mail" you anything. Don't waste time. DS-230 is easily available online. Fill it out correctly and accurately, then print it, sign it and date it. Gather all possible documentation that needs to go along with it and then YOU mail this package to HER. Your wife will then forward it to NVC via USPS, once she receives it. I believe the OP is the petitioner, not the beneficiary.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-08 09:24:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	This template you talking about? http://www.visajourn...il_DS-3032_form Yes, that's the one	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 22:38:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	This is not good news for me. This means my wife will need to mail me DS3032 signed as well with the visa application DS230 Am I right? No, the DS-3032 can be emailed by following the email template. But yes, the DS-230 has to be mailed along with the other documents needed in the IV package.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 18:17:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	Are you serious? So if the beneficiary country is not listed this process is not available? Yes, exactly.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 18:08:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Electronic Processing HELP!	If I am doing the Electronic Processing with NVC do I need to email or mail the AOS and IV packages? Also if doing the EP does the beneficiary needs to fill out form DS230? Those from El Salvador are not eligible for EP nor online forms. http://travel.state..../info_5165.html	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-07 17:48:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	DS-230 expiration date	Thank you so much for the help grrrrreat and Saylin You're welcome	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-09 00:15:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	DS-230 expiration date	The downloadable DS-230 on the travel.state.gov site has an expiration date of 03/31/2012 (part I) and 02/29/2012 (part II). Since we're now into April 2012...is it ok to use these? Please read post 2 here: http://www.visajourn...s-expire-today/	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-08 23:57:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	DS 230 Question	we are trying to fill out the DS 230 and came across question 33. seems pretty simple but when we try and fill it out it doesnt allow us to enter enrolled or currently studying. so what date should we use if my wife is still in school? additionally since i am doing two applications, one for my wife and another for my stepson, i should do the same process as i did for the I-130 correct? duplicate evidence for both DS230s correct? any imput would be appreciated. thanks. For the DS-230, after you've finished completing it, just print it out and hand-write in "Present" in the second box (the "to" field) for the first line if she's currently enrolled in school. Not sure about your second question as I'm not familiar with spouse-children cases.	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-09 11:12:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Still no NVC #... March NOA2	OOPS, I apologize, I hadn't noticed. I ought to be more attentive! Sorry! Haha, it's okay. I've seen it happen multiple times!	Saylin	Female	Canada	2012-04-09 15:55:00