ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE recieved twice!
Ugh. Just received the second IMRBA RFE. Like others, I'll fill it and mail it with a copy of the first one. Could it be that different branches of the government need this information? Or would that be a totally logical (and inappropriate) explanation?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-15 11:34:00
IMBRA Special TopicsReceiving A Second RFE for IMBRA
Dirk, this is an exercise in patience. They say it's a virtue (but don't give any clues about how to practise it). So here's my take. We're in a holding pattern, circling the airport indefinitely. We have two choices. We can keep looking out the window for hours, waiting for the landing. Or we can watch the movie to pass the time.

On good days, I have no doubt everything will eventually work out for the best. So in the meantime, I don't want to miss all the good things going on around me because I'm too preoccupied with things I can't control. When we finally land, I want to be relaxed and ready for the next adventure. Not jangled and wild eyed, with coffee stains on my shirt, running to the bathroom because I've absentmindedly been living on beer nuts and Oreos.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-16 07:39:00
IMBRA Special TopicsReceiving A Second RFE for IMBRA

has your I-130 been approved yet? if not, it should be anytime now. are you still gonna go with the K-3 or the CR-1? i don't think we wanna give up on the K-3 just yet.

No news yet on I-130. Like you, I'd to believe K3 will still be quicker and haven't given up on it. I'm trying to remain loose, flexible, and sane. My new role models are Gumby and Pokey
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-15 14:37:00
IMBRA Special TopicsReceiving A Second RFE for IMBRA
Shanny, we're twins. Look at our timelines. Maybe this is good luck and I'll be buying you a brewski in Montreal!
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-15 12:01:00
IMBRA Special TopicsReceiving A Second RFE for IMBRA
Same here. Got a duplicate two weeks after the first. Can't let it get to me, though. I'll just send it back filled, with a copy of the first. I've never been on a journey that didn't have a few bumps and this one's no different. Got Gravol?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-15 11:47:00
IMBRA Special TopicsMy VSC experience today...

But dogonit if this isn't just the hugest test of faith ever.

That's exactly what it is: a test. Of character, strength, faithfulness, sacrifice, perseverance, and even one's beliefs.

I thought this would be a simple summer hiatus. I'd submit forms to a faceless bureauracy and keep myself busy for a few months. Then my husband would come back and we'd pick up where we left off. But no. I was actually signing up for a new kind of stress and seige, where hair turns gray overnight and you contemplate the meaning of life and death.

Ever watch Rescue Me? It's a raunchy drama-comedy series and it's no accident I'm glued, even to the re-runs. It points up how ridiculous our thinking gets when we're going through trauma. Here's my imaginary cameo appearance:

I'm sitting on the bed, surrounded by my honeymoon lingerie. I'm wondering if it will still fit when he finally gets here. Will it be too small because I've been self-medicating with beer? Or too big because I can't cook anything more complicated than lettuce sandwiches? I put the pink panties over my head and start to cry. That's when I see a guy trimming the grass outside.

He looks like an illegal Mexican, so I dive through the window and tackle him to the ground. "Rights!" I scream. "You want your f***ing rights?!" I wrestle away his weed wacker and hold the spinning trimmer close to his crotch. "How about the right to be protected from hormonally challenged women waiting for K3s that never come?!"

But he rolls away, yanking the trimmer with him. "Lady," he says, "calm down. I know how hard it is. I had to wait for my visa, too. Take the underwear off your head and I'll share my lunch with you. It's nothing fancy, just sandwiches and beer."
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-22 07:51:00
IMBRA Special TopicsMy VSC experience today...
zethris, I'm so sorry to be learning about the recalled petitions. This has got to be the worst kind of tease. You're approved! Opps, no you're not! But when you look at your actual petition, it has only been a few months. Everything was moving along well until you got sucked down by IMBRA. Think of it as a bathroom clog. At some point, the build up and pressure will create an explosion. Then they'll have to clean up the mess.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-21 19:49:00
IMBRA Special TopicsMy VSC experience today...
Ugh. I was reading the timeline instead of the signature. Hope they have a plan to send RFEs to these folks soon.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-21 08:12:00
IMBRA Special TopicsMy VSC experience today...
zethris, before you rage at the machine, help us understand. Your I-129f was approved in less than a month? And you have the NOAs to prove it? Give the NVC a few minutes to catch up with you. Or you'll bust a main artery over nothing.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-21 06:39:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
Hi hafiz30, follow the link to the poop ... may not affect you, though. Vermont I-130 transfers
We're an Alice-in-Wonderland, topsy turvy world that would make a good reality TV show. Let's see who breaks from the pressure first. What's your strategy for maintaining your sanity in the face of the bizarre and unexpected?

Edited by Jersey Girl, 14 July 2006 - 08:53 AM.

Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-14 08:52:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
Just when you thought it was safe. We got our IMBRA stuff put to bed, we're waiting patiently (ha) for NOA2, but now, some Vermont K3s are being transferred to California and you know what that means. Get ready to switch from ski suits to bathing suits, maple syrup to bean sprouts, and real boobs to fake ones.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-13 09:01:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
negrabsahrm, please know there are far more knowledgeable people in the IMBRA topics who may know the site you met through and will have better answers.

hafiz30, keep your damn pants on, it's early days! Since we have lots of time to wait, we could start something in Off Topic and I could tell you about my other three husbands. No marriage broker was needed.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-10 21:30:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
Michael, did you pay to join the site?

Did you have a look here? Broker
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-09 16:29:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
desperatewife, you can add me to your list. Hope you see a positive pattern emerging soon. But in case the government doesn't appear to be proceeding logically or expeditiously, just remember there are other, more reliable patterns to observe. The stars in summer, for instance. The migration of Canada Geese in Fall. The second chin I'll develop from drinking beer if there's no K3 by Thanksgiving.

Jersey Girl ..... NOA1 - May 2 ..... RFE received - July 3
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-09 08:20:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3

No matter how down and discouraged I get some of your posts make me laugh and find my positive attitude again.

Hi Raevin13, hope today is a good one for you. If not, make it one! Beer, ice cream, a walk in the park, a dip in the pool, a good book, a bowl of angel hair spaghetti ... Pick one. Or if you're like me, take all of the above.

This process shows how we obssess about details we can't control. We get so wound up in minutia, we miss the good things in our lives at the moment. Especially that our relationships are being tested, making us appreciate our partners even more.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-08 08:21:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
Thanks, aussiewench. You do more to help visa petitioners than people who're paid to do it! You could write a book. Because even people with higher educations are brought low when faced with this confusing process.

Now that K3s are getting RFEs, the next issue will be what to do: follow K3 or CR-1? It's a numbers game that's too early to predict. But if you got your CR-1 in 8 months, and IMBRA adds 2 months to a K3 that previously took 6 months, then ...
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-05 07:24:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3

Since K3 are in one service center I think they will maintain the order of NOA1.

Huh? My SC is Vermont but the RFE came from Missouri. Are they all coming from there?

We filed in April and still nothing...

Huh? CR-1s are not getting the IMBRA RFE (as far as I know). Did you file for K3 and forget to update your timeline?

RFE via FedEx, or if we need to use Certified Mail?

I used Certified so I can track online. FedEx may get there quicker (not sure they wouldn't accept it) but may not speed the process. Nothing moves July 4 anyway.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-03 15:32:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
Add me to the party. I received and returned my IMBRA RFE today. There was no email or touch beforehand. Let's see how much time it will add to the process. I'm still hoping K3 is the fastest way to have him here.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-03 12:32:00
IMBRA Special TopicsIMBRA RFE for K3
So I'm now looking forward to being asked if I paid for a mail-order husband whom I'm likely to abuse. Yipee. Do I have to report shopping crimes? Or neglecting to dust behind the couch? Or letting the laundry pile up until there are no clean socks and underwear?

Edited by Jersey Girl, 02 July 2006 - 06:49 AM.

Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-02 06:48:00
IMBRA Special TopicsThe secret meaning of IMBRA...
And the prize goes to (drumroll) NorthernGirl!

Yes, there's a patron saint of immigrants, complete with stories about her going into the taverns of Newark, New Jersey. She'd pull people out and remind them about their responsibilities to support their families. She must have caused quite a stir, as guys dove under tables, spilling their beer and yelling, "Here comes Mother Cabrini!"

Does she answer prayers? Ya never know...
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-06-21 15:23:00
IMBRA Special TopicsThe secret meaning of IMBRA...
Oh chris&o, you've fallen victim to the common complaint of having to wait too long and letting your mind play tricks. IMBRA does not stand for "berate" because the government doesn't use big words unless they want to obfuscate, such as on their forms.

In Fact, IMBRA is an acronym for a simpler code. It means, "I am a bra." Restrictive, sweaty, and designed to set off alarms in airports.

Take a deep breath and use the Web to look up the patron saint of immigrants. (Yes, there is one.)
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-06-21 07:35:00
IMBRA Special TopicsTheory on IMBRA RFE after filing new I-129F
Andy, you got me thinking so I went back and reread the RFE. If I were a paranoid left winger, I'd be screaming about my civil rights, because my signature seems to give permission for a broad investigation, whether I commited an offense or not.

"...any related criminal conviction information pertaining to me that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services may discover independently in adjudicating this petition will be disclosed to the beneficiary of this petition." (italics mine)

They may have been able to run cursory background checks before, but now they could become like high tech bounty hunters who can pull up your credit history, high school transcripts, medical records and more. Who's to say where they'll snoop to "discover independently"?

Edited by Jersey Girl, 21 July 2006 - 09:26 PM.

Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-07-21 21:25:00
IMBRA Special TopicsHaven't had better sleep in weeks
zethris, glad to hear the tide has changed. Take care of yourself every day. If you catch yourself sinking into anxiety or despair again, go do something to take your mind off things. Hey, maybe we'll meet in the drug store in the hair color aisle. I sprouted a few gray ones myself!
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-08-03 08:59:00
IMBRA Special TopicsOur friend CHRIS- red'c my RFE!
Congratulations, zethris, you're back in business. The letter you got was standard. It simply means they'll pick up where they left off before IMBRA. Where is that, exactly? You'd be better off interpreting tea leaves to get an answer. Hope it all works out soon!
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-08-12 14:45:00
USCIS Service Centersonly Vermont issues RFS currently

(USCIS) has indicated in a July 13, 2006 press release


If this date is correct, the press release hasn't happened yet. Which makes me wonder: can I trust the rest of the facts they put forth?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-06-18 12:15:00
USCIS Service CentersUSCIS OFFLINE?
I believe they've been upgrading and refreshing the site, but the Case Status section still works fine. Which browser are you using?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-11-21 07:27:00
Waivers (I-601 and I-212) and Administrative Processes (221g)There's Hope
Congratulations. We love your story. If you want to give back, then teach others how to forgive themselves. What we do out of self loathing is far worse than any punishments handed down by law.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2007-01-08 20:59:00
National Visa Center (Dept of State)Case recieved at NVC
Yes, CairoBound, that seems to be the case. We have to call to see when they get our case and assign a number.

As for I-130 vs. I-129f, I still believe our K3 will unite us quicker, which is what we want. We're a only a day's drive to Montreal, so we could go back there for the CR-1 interview. But everyone's different. Some may not be close to their Embassy, or may want to work immediately, or would rather do AOS. How about you?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-08-04 21:33:00
National Visa Center (Dept of State)Case recieved at NVC
Hey desperate, I'm across the Hudson in Jersey and today's the first bearable day in a long time. Take care of yourself in that non-air conditioned office, and stay away from alcohol and caffiene. They'll drain the fluids right out of you.

You called the NVC for your case number. Is that the only way to find out? No touching, no emails, no letters?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-08-04 15:23:00
National Visa Center (Dept of State)NVC sent package!
Hooooraaaay!
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-08-16 16:35:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresCan't fill in PDF form
Thanks, scy, that's the first fillable form that has worked!
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-03-04 12:55:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresCan't fill in PDF form
Thanks, aussiewench, I found the problem. The I-130 is not a "fillable form."

You may wish to revise the Guide, which says "The above forms can be filled out on your computer and printed." http://www.visajourn...om&page=k3guide

It might also be worth updating the example I-130 to something more current than 2002, which gives the impression that the PDF is fillable.

The only K-3 fillable forms are I-129f and G-325a.

My source is a government chart with icons for fillable PDFs. http://uscis.gov/gra...index.htm#chart

... knew it wasn't a Mac thing ...
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-03-04 11:52:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresCan't fill in PDF form
Thought the I-130 could be filled on the computer but am having no luck. I'm using a Mac G-4 and have tried the latest free Acrobat Reader as well as Acrobat Professional. Any suggestions?
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-03-04 09:13:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresWe got our NOA on our I-130
Hi sowens, I too am in the same place, having sent the I-130 at the end of March and gotten the first NOA. I'm now assembling the I-129F and waiting for my husband in Toronto to sign and date his G325a bios. It's a bit overwhelming, but if you've already done the I-130, the next round is fairly similar and less stressful. So just do the paperwork and stay calm, because it will be awhile before he can join you.

My question to more experienced people is this: where's the information on what my husband (and sowen's) will need for the U.S. Consolate interview? How can we prepare in advance, especially if he never had vaccinations except for travel? He was born in the Azores Islands and kids were not routinely vaccinated there. What about health and police records? Many thanks.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-04-12 17:45:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresSO it begin's again!!!!

we are hopefully doing everything right this time

This is a complex process, as I'm discovering. The best way to do it right, I think, is to have patience.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-04-19 08:18:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresAlready in the US, marrying in 2 weeks
Do you have an address in Canada where you intend to live and work while Jose, the new U.S.citizen, petitions on your behalf? This might be the most straightforward option: a K3 Visa that many U.S.-Canadian couples here are pursuing. Not sure if your dual status complicates things, though.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-04-24 14:27:00
K-3 Spouse Visa Process & ProceduresCanadian citizen born in the Azores
I mailed the I-129f today and figured it's never too early to start preparing for the Montreal interview. My husband is a Canadian citizen, born in Terceira, a small island in the Azores Islands. He has a Portuguese passport as well as a Canadian one.

Does anyone know details for birth certificates in Montreal? I suspect he only has a baptismal cert (in Portuguese) and no vaccinations other than the whooper he got on his arm when he came to Canada as a six-year old.
Jersey GirlFemaleCanada2006-04-24 16:27:00