biggish data

Shaz 'n' Daymo's Sad Arse X Factor Thread

I hate Diana Vickers soooooooo much!

How can someone with so little talent get so far while real singers of substance like Ruth and Laura are out?

If Diana wins this, we will all know it is a fix and I will be there to storm the offices of ITV and physically grab back the money due me from whomever is working there. I kid not.

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-29 18:27:00

Excess Baggage

I am in the process right now of using Excess Baggage, and so far their customer service has been outstanding. They have worked up several quotes for me, answered my dumb questions without complaint and generally been right on the ball.

I have just ordered my boxes, will now spend the next two weeks packing and getting everything ready for shipping.

Again, I'm just in the middle of this, but as it stands Excess Baggage has been prompt, courteous, knowledgeable and professional.

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2009-03-09 12:00:00

Taxback.com

Many thanks everyone, I think I'll take everyone's advice and take a pass on this

Cheers

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2009-03-09 15:16:00

Taxback.com

I don't know exactly where to post this, so I'll try here first.

I'm an USC who has lived and worked in the UK since 2002. I am here legally (my wife is British) under an Indefinite Leave To Remain visa.

Now, however, because of family reasons (my parents are elderly and ill and need taking care of), I am moving with my wife and kids back to the US.

I am using Excess Baggage to ship my stuff back to the US, and they have recommended to me Taxback.com, a company which helps you get back the tax you paid while working in the UK.

I've never heard of this scheme before and they want a lot of sensitive information.

Would any one know about this? Is this a scam? Anyone used Taxback.com before?

Any thought or experiences would be appreciated

Cheers

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2009-03-09 12:12:00

QUOTE (Frenchwife @ Nov 9 2008, 08:28 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Don't go for K3 eventually but of IR (I130 only)
marginally longer but avoiding paperwork in the US you know it can last.

Ok, you've lost me. On the Embassy Website under Immigrant Visas I can't see anything about IR, only K status.

Could you explain what an IR is? Cheers!

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-09 03:40:00

QUOTE (Gemmie @ Nov 8 2008, 08:47 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's about residency, not marital status, unfortunately. I think they figure that after a long period of time of living in the US, the non-USC would have filed for citizenship (so hence if you moved to the UK and wanted to move back, you'd have the same rights to just walk right in without paperwork). It's such a shame that you had problems with the GC.

I appreciate the difference between residency and marital status, however I think that it would make more sense to try to combine those two factors somehow then treating them as two independent issues.

Also, weren't the only people who were as having trouble with our GCs, we met a woman from Germany who was in her tenth year (!) of trying to get her GC sorted. We thought our seven years was bad, lol. So, yea, I don't think we could have applied for citizenship until we got our GC anyway.

I think a lot of it came down to the people working in the INS processing center in Los Angeles. They were about the most inefficient, unhelpful and downright rudest government workers I've ever met. And that's saying something!

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-09 03:34:00

QUOTE (World Citizen @ Nov 8 2008, 02:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What's up with the fact that if you're married to a USC for certain amount of time you get the GC without even having to live in the US??

Yeah, I know what you're saying.

I have a military record with an honorable discharge, I don't have any convictions, no bankruptcies, I've been nothing but an honourable citizen, you would think there would be some kind of pay off, especially after being married for 13 years.

I mean, if you are married more than 10 years, there should be some kind of default status that kicks in, so that spouses can just walk right in and not have to fill in these ridiculous frickin forms!!!

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-08 15:39:00

QUOTE (lsma @ Nov 8 2008, 01:51 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

If you are both living in the UK though you will be able to do DCF which is MUCH quicker than applying though the service centers. People seem to get through in a few months (3-6) rather than the 10-12 it takes the other way. Also - it won't be a K3 - that's for when the USC is already in the US - you would get an IR1 as you have been married for ages already.

Cheers, for that, I'm thinking that a DCF is the way to go.

However, I'm struggling to find anything about an IR1 on either the USCIS website or the US Embassy/London website. In fact, the Embassy website simply has IR1 as just a classification symbol, not an actual form

Could you let me know more about what an IR1 is?

Cheers!

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-08 14:18:00

QUOTE (SwanTiger @ Nov 8 2008, 10:33 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hi

It sounds like you might qualify for Direct Consular Filing. That usually goes faster.

Good luck!

Yea, I'm thinking that that might be the best route, cheers for your help!

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-08 14:09:00

Hello everyone, I'm a new member here, and I look forward to any help my wife and I can get!

I am a USC, my wife is British. We met in the UK in 1993, applied for a fiancee visa in June of 1994, got visa in Aug 1995 and got married in Sept 1995 in the US. We lived in the US (Los Angeles) from Aug 1995 to Jan 2002.

During that time my wife applied for her GC. As part of that process she received her SSN and her work permit.

After several years, my wife finally received a stamp in her passport "Processed for I-551 Temporary evidence of lawful admission for permanent residence valid until Feb 10 2001. Employment authorized." We were told that this would do until she received her physical GC. However, her physical GC never arrived. After Feb 10, 2001 came and went, we went back to the INS office, where she received and got an extension of the I-551 stamp until Feb 09, 2002, and again we were told that a physical GC would be issued to us. That never arrived either.

During our seven years in the states, we had 2 children, so they are both USC. However, during that time as well, my wife's grandmother, mother and then sister all died within a short space of time. In January 2002, we made a decision to move back to the UK to help her ailing father, the only person left alive in her family.

Well, after being in the UK for seven years, now my mother and father are extremely ill and we are starting to make plans to move back to the US to help them in their last few years of their life.

Myself and our two children are all USCs, I'm assuming that we will have no trouble just walking back into the US after being away, we all have current US passports. Am I wrong to just assume this?

Now, after doing some initial research I'm extremely frustrated that it seems that we are going to have to go through ALL THAT HASSLE AGAIN that we had to endure for YEARS just to get my wife back into the US. We have been married for 13 years, we have a valid US marriage certificate, my wife has a valid SSN, do we really need to apply for the K3 (or similar) Visa for my wife to re-enter the US and stay?

Many thanks in advance for anyone's help and advice!

Edited by ponyespresso, 08 November 2008 - 03:42 AM.

ponyespresso

Male

United Kingdom

2008-11-08 03:39:00