ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
KATHLENE HAS AN 'ALL CLEAR!'

Kathlene went in for her medical evaluation after finishing her sputum tests and the told her she was fine! She will return on the 12th to pick up here papers and get the last of her immunizations and then they will set her a new interview date!

We are so happy/relieved that we have passed this hurdle and are almost at the end of this journey, ready to start our journey together!

So, if you have enough notice about your interview, it might be a good idea to go a couple of weeks early in case there are any problems like we had!

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR YOUR ADVICE! This is a great community for help and support down this long road!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-08 10:41:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
Kathlene goes in to talk to the Doctors today, but they will not tell her the results until the samples are cultured, so she will have to go back on the 12th to find out what the outcome is.

I am praying that she is not sick, but if the results are positive, we will carry on and I will just make plans to go see my wife soon and we will face what ever comes together.

I promised her in sickness and in health and we will cross this hurdle as well!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-07 10:30:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
Kathlene goes for her last of the three days of sputum tests in the morning. Will they give her any results after she is done, or will she have to wait for the results?

We are believing this is just something minor or it was a scar from an earlier infection on the x-ray and soon she will have another interview scheduled and we will be back on track to be together again!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-06 10:48:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
I want to make it clear I am more worried about Kathlene being sick than when her interview is! It is so hard to be half a world away and feel so helpless!

Well, it is almost 3am, so I had better try and get some sleep so I can make it through work tomorrow.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-04 02:56:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
I just talked to Kathlene and they said she has to come back then next three days for sputum exams, so now she will miss her appointment. :cry:

This is what we were afraid of since we had so little notice on her appointment, there being a problem with her medical.

Hopefully the sputum exams will come back negative and we will not have to wait too long for another appointment.

If they do turn out positive, how long will we have to wait for her treatment to be completed and can she return home while she is undergoing treatment?
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-04 02:06:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions

Does the medical fee includes vaccination for children (K-2) and me (Beneficiary) or do i have to pay another fee if we get vaccination at SLEC?



Vaccinations are included in your medical fee, so you should not have another fee other than the standard exam fee for yourself ($95) and your children ($67)
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-04 01:58:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions

Only those with suspicious lung findings on their 1st CXR are requested to have another CXR done to confirm their suspicion. They will do comparison on the 1st and 2nd CXR films, if it will be negative, then she will be fine. 2nd CXR on the left lung? Maybe they did an apico-lordotic view. Does she have any history of PTB in the past? As a child? Any family history of PTB? Nowadays, some PTB patients don't look sickly, most are healthy and only through CXR that they are found to be positive for PTB. If her CXR will be positive, then they will ask her to have sputum AFB exams for 3 consecutive days.


Yes that was the x-ray she said they did. She said the only problems she has had breathing was when she was young she fell into the water and had some problems as she recovered from that. No one close in her family has PTB that she knows of.

I told her they are probably being careful as you said with the scare of the guy coming in to the US. They went ahead and gave her the immunizations, so hopefully they are not too concerned.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-01 15:17:00
PhilippinesSt Luke's Medical questions
I thought I would start this thread for people who have questions about their medical exam, so they can all be in one place and maybe help each other out.
______

I just talked to Kathlene and they said they took a second x-ray to look at her left lung. She has no symptoms of TB, so hopefully there is nothing to worry about. She has already gotten her immunizations and all of her other tests were OK.

Is this something they do fairly often just to make sure? They told her to come back Monday and they would give her the results from the second x-rays.

Her interview is Wednesday, so I hope there is no problems and they can still get the results over to the embassy in time as well.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-01 01:45:00
PhilippinesAppointment gone?
I think they are having problems with the site, several other people have reported problems as well. My wife's appointment has disappeared as well.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-19 13:07:00
PhilippinesVisa appointment system
Just checked this afternoon and it still does not show our interview anymore. Has anyone else had any better luck?
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-24 17:31:00
PhilippinesVisa appointment system

If ONLY your case has been forwarded AND received by the US embassy manila, and you have a manila case number, you may check your case appointment at this link:

http://203.177.135.1...tment/login.asp
What I did before was call the toll numbers (from the NOAs I got and from browsing the US embassy Manila website) and inquired about my case. They gave me the exact dates when NVC forwarded the case and the exact date US Emb Mla received it. Be sure to state your case number, bday and address for verification before they start telling you about your case.


The link is STILL not working, just keep trying maybe it will be back online again soon.

(It shows case not on schedule when it showed our appointment date last week, it is doing the same for a lot of people)
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-06-20 14:28:00
PhilippinesTrying to learn Visayan, any tips?
My wife is trying to teach me Visayan, she has taught me a few words and phrases, plus she gives me an assignment each time we chat.

I want to be able to know a little more than I know now by the time I return later this year (if the government doesn't drag things out too long!) I can't find many helps online, I can find some courses on Tagalog but my wife says a lot of the words are different.

Any tips, ideas to help me out? I know I can't become a master in a few months, but I would like to be able to say a few things with the members of our family who don't speak English, or don't feel comfortable enough with what English they know.

Daghang salamat!


P.S.

Is it Visayan or Bisayan? I have seen both used.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-05-20 21:22:00
PhilippinesCFO seminar before Manila interview?
It would be good to go ahead and get the seminar over with. My wife had to go before they would renew her passport and they made her bring back more information before they would complete her seminar, so it may be good to get it done now so you don't have any delays.

Now all she has to do after her interview is to take her passport with the visa back to them for the stamp and she will be ready to go!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-07-05 10:24:00
PhilippinesWARNING ST LUKES Packet 4 docs expired!!!!!!
I have read on several posts either on this or other forums, the dates on the forms is for the approval from when they were first revised. They are still good until they issue the new forms even if the date is past.

Seems like this came up when I was filling out the bio forms for the initial I-30 application.

I could be wrong, but I think there is nothing to worry about as long as you fill everything out correctly.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-07-21 13:09:00
PhilippinesWE ARE APPROVED
Congratulations!

Kathlene's interview is just a week away!

August 9th, 6:30am
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-01 13:47:00
PhilippinesCFO counseling/registration/passport

There is no reason or requirement to provide 'immigration intent' when applying for a passport. Hence, my previous posting's point that there is no reason for CFO to create a dependancy on getting a passport issued.



Warm Regards,

Samby


Yes, but when you walk in with a new marriage certificate to a foreigner and ask to change your name, they sort of get the idea what's going on. ;)
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-07-31 13:08:00
PhilippinesCFO counseling/registration/passport
If you are immigrating you HAVE to complete the CFO course before they will issue a passport, then after you receive your visa you have to go back and get the stamp.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-07-31 00:26:00
PhilippinesMoney Transfer Options
I use my PayPal business account, I requested a debit card in Kathlene's name then activated it and sent it to her. Once she got it I gave her the pin number.

The fee for withdrawals is only $1.00 a transaction, and you can transfer money into you PayPal account for free from your bank account and it shows up in about three business days.

Plus you can see all your transactions online almost as soon as she gets the money from the ATM so you can check your balance and the exchange rate is not bad at all.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-07-31 13:03:00
PhilippinesINTERVIEW TIME
COOL! Kathlene's interview is August 9th as well! She is scheduled for 6:30.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-03 11:18:00
PhilippinesDelivering requested papers to Embassy
Kathlene e-mailed me the papers, and it does say delivery by couirer is accepted. There is one form she needs to fill out so she can send it to our friend and they can take everything to the Embassy.

Our friend is a doctor, so I think we can trust her to take care of this for us if that is the way we decide to go.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-11 10:10:00
PhilippinesDelivering requested papers to Embassy
Thanks for all of the advice!

I think I will send it to our friend in Manila, since it will save three or four days than delivery to Kathlene and let her go by the Embassy and see if they will let her drop them off. If they won't accept it, I can have Kathlene fly up in the next day or so and deliver the papers.

(With all the travel she has done just GETTING her visa, she will be an old-hand by the time she flies here to the US!)

I will chat with Kathlene online tonight and she is going to scan the letter they gave her so I can read exactly what they require and then go from there.

I cannot express how much of a help this site has been this past year + of our journey!

Edited by Dogwood_Poet, 10 August 2007 - 05:25 PM.

Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-10 17:21:00
PhilippinesDelivering requested papers to Embassy
Kathlene had her interview on the 9th and she did fine, but they said we would have to submit papers for a co-sponsor (last years income was a little below requirements and they didn't accept my proof of this years income)

They need the original form, not a fax copy delivered to them at the Embassy, so this is my question.

Can someone we know in Manila deliver the papers so Kathlene doesn't have to travel back to Manila just to drop off the papers? I figure they will have to look over the co-sponsor's information, so they would not give a decision that day anyway.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-10 11:40:00
PhilippinesAirfare bargain from Mnl to lax & sfo
Sounds like a great deal! Now does anyone know a good deal on one-way tickets inside the US? I checked and one-way from LAX to Nashville was about $500!

I would really like to get a round trip to meet her in California and us both fly back a day or two later.

I looked at EVA fares before but getting Kathlene from the west coast to anywhere near Kentucky was more than the ticket from Manila.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-08-30 23:17:00
PhilippinesWhat is CFO?
They can make you go for the training before they will issue a passport, when Kathlene went to get her's renewed and her name changed, she HAD to attend CFO before she could pick up her new passport, now she only has to return to the CFO to get her stamp once she has her passport and visa back from the embassy.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-09-08 23:33:00
PhilippinesAnyone here have their Interview in Manila and barely made 125% of poverty guidelines?
If you have a willing co-sponsor and are on the line, I would let them. It says in the instructions to submit six months pay stubs to prove income and that is what I did showing I am making over the requirements for 2007, but on my 2006 return it showed a little under the requirements since a third of my income is from self-employment and after deductions, I had taxable income below the 125%. (even though I grossed several thousand over)

So Kathlene went to the interview and everything was fine, except they did not accept the six-months pay stubs and decided to go by my 2006 return, so we had to find a co-sponsor.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-09-14 11:35:00
PhilippinesAt last ! ! !
KATHLENE HAS HER VISA ! ! !


I talked to Kathlene last night and she got her visa yesterday! That is less than a week from when we turned in the papers and that is to outside of Cagayan de Oro! They must have issued her visa the same day they received the papers.

Now we both have a lot to do in the next few weeks as I get her ticket and she says goodbye to all her family and friends and prepares to join me her in October!

(Both our birthdays are in October, so what a WONDERFUL birthday present for us both!)
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-09-26 07:06:00
PhilippinesBuying Tickets - One Way, Round Trip..??
If you do not use the first leg of a round trip, the second leg is automatically void. Also, I have read that airlines are now charging a fee for not using the return leg of a ticket.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-09-25 23:46:00
PhilippinesWife is using an e-ticket in Manila
Thanks for everyone's advice! My travel agent said she didn't need my info, just the confirmation, and I wanted to be sure. When I used an e-ticket when I was there last year I had to show the card I used.

I just want to be doubly sure there are no problems when Kathlene arrives at the airport.

Her flight will leave at 7am or so, so she will have an EARLY morning that day! Maybe that will help her sleep on the plane.

We are SO excited our new life is about to begin. We will have been married 16 months by the time she arrives in the US.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-10-11 08:36:00
PhilippinesWife is using an e-ticket in Manila
Hello,

I am getting everything booked for Kathlene to join me here in the next couple of weeks, and my travel agent said they would issue an e-ticket for her to use. They will e-mail me the ticket and then Kathene will print it out in the Philippines.

If I am correct, she will need a copy of the card I used to purchase the ticket and a copy of my ID as well.

Anybody else used an e-ticket in the Philippines and did you have any problems? She will arrive in Manila the day before she leaves for the US since her flight will be early in the morning so she can arrive at her POE in time to get processed and be able to catch her next flight to Nashville where I will be waiting for her.

Can she go ahead and pay the travel tax once she gets to Manila so she will have as little as possible to get done the next morning?

Thanks for everyone's help during this LONG journey!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-10-10 17:16:00
PhilippinesMoving your cellphone from PI to US
I got Kathlene a new RAZR v3XX for free after rebate by adding her to my Cingular/AT&T/INSERT NEW COMPANY HERE account. and for about $15 got an unlock code off eBay. Sent her the phone and for some reason, it gets a good signal with the AT&T sim, but her Touch Mobile sim only picks up in the city. (TM says she is too far from the tower) but I digress . . .

That way when she leaves for the US, she can just put the AT&T sim back in and be ready to give me a call once she lands in Detroit after she gets done with immigration. That way she will feel a little more comfortable as she travels and has to change planes in Detroit to meet me in Nashville.

Do ask about reception though, I have held my cheap LG phone next to the latest Motorola and I have 3 or more bars and they have no signal with the same provider. sad.gif

Edited by Dogwood_Poet, 22 October 2007 - 12:35 PM.

Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-10-22 12:34:00
PhilippinesOh Happy Day ! ! !
At approximately 2:30pm Sunday afternoon, I watched my gwapa asawa walk out of security at Nashville airport! We spent the night in Nashville and returned home to Kentucky yesterday afternoon!

Sometime I just can't believe she is finally here! Pray for us as we start our lives together and pray for Kathlene as she adjusts to life here and deals with the homesickness of being so far away from her family.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-11-06 09:06:00
PhilippinesOh Happy Day ! ! !
I will be leaving in another hour or so to go to Nashville to pick up Kathlene! Right now she is somewhere over North America heading to Detroit, Michigan to land around 10 or so. After she goes through immigration she will board another plane to Nashville, Tennessee where I will be waiting at the airport!

Nearly fourteen months after turning in the first set of papers I can hardly believe we are going to be together! I don't think it will really set in until I hear from Kathlene that she is in the aiport at Detroit waiting for her flight to Nashville.

This forum has been a lot of help and support during this process and I thank everyone here for that.

We will be spending a couple of days in Nashville before we return to Kentucky, so it may be a while before I am back on the boards.

God Bless!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-11-04 07:29:00
Philippinesquestion about certificate to contract marriage from USEM,Manila
No waiting period on the LCTM from the embassy, just the normal 10-day waiting period after you get your marriage license before you can get married.

Also the embassy only gives the certificate out in the mornings (from 8am to 10am if I remember correctly)
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-01-21 08:45:00
PhilippinesBirth Certificate Unreadable
You could not read my wife's BC either, but they re-typed all the info on the paper that stated it was a true copy and she had no trouble at the embassy.

So if the info is attached and certified, I don't think there will be any problems, but we all know each interviewer is different and what one will accept, another will question . . .

Isn't it wonderful having your future in the hands of one person who just might be having a bad day!

Edited by Dogwood_Poet, 26 January 2008 - 10:26 AM.

Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-01-26 10:26:00
Philippinesskin test why sputum culture?
They do not do the skin test because there is a TB vaccine that can cause a false positive, so I guess that answers your second question as well, the test is not 100% accurate.

Do not worry, my wife had to take the sputum test because of her x-ray as well and they let her know at the end of the testing she should have nothing to worry about, but they still had to wait for the culture results to be sure. Just make sure you have plenty of time before your interview for the results to come in.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-02-01 11:38:00
PhilippinesLeaving for Kentucky on March 27
My wife came through Detroit on November 4th, 2007 and she did not have any problems, she bought a document tube to put the x-ray in and kept it with her.

Kathlene flew from Detroit to Nashville and I picked her up there and we spent the night in Nashville and drove back to Paducah the next day, it's only a 2 hour drive or so.

So you are coming to Paducah! We will have to get together once you are here as we live in Paducah!
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-03-26 13:38:00
Philippineswhat if the visa expires
I would check with the embassy about getting an extension. My wife had to have the sputum test and missed her first interview. Once she was cleared and had her interview, her visa expired six months from her medical, not her interview, so I would definitely check what is the proper procedure.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-04-23 16:19:00
PhilippinesI'm leaving for the Philippines soon
I don't know about doing it between flights, it is about an hour ride from the airport to the embassy depending on traffic, then a couple of hours at the embassy to get the certificate processed. Also when I was there they ONLY do 'Legal Capacity' for only about two hours in the mornings.

I hired a driver and paid him to wait until I got my paperwork finished. The only bad thing now is you cannot take your cell phone with you, so you had better be sure the driver is going to stick around! When I went, they let you check your cell phone at the guard station and pick it back up on the way out.

I had to overnight in Manila anyway before heading on to CDO so I used a driver who worked with the hotel I stayed at, so I didn't have to worry about my bags, but I felt better knowing I had my ride back to the hotel/airport already arranged.

I can't remember for sure, but I think it was around P2,000 for him to take me to the embassy, wait the couple of hours for me to get done and take me back to the hotel to grab my bags and on to the airport.

Also be sure and check on the hours the window is open at the embassy. When I went it was only open from 8:00am to 10:00am so you had better plan on getting there EARLY to get your paperwork done. And check on local holidays as well to be sure they will be open when you are there!

Edited by Dogwood_Poet, 20 May 2007 - 01:17 AM.

Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2007-05-20 01:14:00
PhilippinesFlight Deals?
But be careful buying a round-trip and only using the first half, some airlines are now charging a fee for NOT using the second half!

(of course I now hear they are charging extra if you want to sit on the INSIDE of the plane! tongue.gif )
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-06-02 14:08:00
PhilippinesGot CR-1 Visa, what's next???
With CR-1 nothing to do for two years until you file for the 10-year green card. Just be sure and keep your address up to date if you move. If you checked the box for them to issue your wife her SSN, you should get it in a couple of weeks.
Dogwood_PoetMalePhilippines2008-08-24 16:55:00