biggish data

Money Transfers

use xoom its great. Very easy, cheap and very fast.

Plus, there is usually a monthly Xoom coupon, which reduces the charge to $3.99 or so, no matter how much cash we want to send!

Hey, every dollar counts, nowadays. Why spend $14.99 for WU and let the CEO make a big profit?! :whistle:

SuperDuper!

Male

2011-01-13 02:25:00

Money Transfers

And in case you think Xoom is some dinky altruistic company, they are funded by some of the largest and wealthiest venture capitalists in the world that would make the CEO of any large bank look poor in comparison. Grow up.

Xoom Corporation Investors

* Sequoia Capital
* New Enterprise Associates
* SVB Capital
* Fidelity Ventures

Bottom line is my wallet: Xoom is cheaper at $7.99 for a flat fee, as opposed to WU's escalating fee's for higher amounts.

It works for us much better than WU.

Go with WU if it works for you! We don't care what you do.

:star:

SuperDuper!

Male

2011-01-12 22:00:00

Money Transfers

Western Union by ffar the best option. Also, has more locations than MoneyGram. Bank wires are too expensive and wouldn't do it unless seding alot of money..

WU is a huge publically traded corporation. Each and every time you use WU, you are helping to pay for the CEO's yacht and mercedes benz! Who would want to do that! :wacko:

Xoom is a GREAT, less-expensive option!

SuperDuper!

Male

2011-01-12 21:39:00

Congressional

Everything I've read here about contacting you congressman should be done as a last resort. We have been at the NVC since june 2010. our case completed sept 3. I see the I129F's head straight to the consulate and they set-up the interview while the I130 IR/1 married set and wait for the NVC to set-up the appointment date. This is very frustrating. I called the NVC Friday nov12. still no date set. she did say that they were not finished with setting interviews for DEC. so there is still a bit of hope for a dec interview date. My question,at what point do I consider contacting my congressman ?

Do it right now to get it over with. Congress has no affect on NVC unless there is a real problem.
Find your Congressman or Senators web site. Every one of them has a staff person trained to placte you. They all require you to fill out a form & send it to them. The staff member will react to that info & get back to you. This usually takes a few weeks. The answer will be a standard cannned answer constructed to satisfy you that something was done.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2010-11-13 15:03:00

WHY USCIS isnt approving I-130 MUST READ

Its funny for some people to take the stance on what ever there thoughts wonder
But how could evenOR WHAT YOU know anything if i had or have kids or not or anything. ItS not problem for me I been there done that, if you who dont know and i understand your coment.

Well if your wonder into other countries back yeads its fine. But i dont take anybody to understand TSC, CSC, NVC, USCIS are all the government NOT Independ companies.
They are all the some inity. SAME Governemt. I dont care who issues Visa, NVC,
to who or care where who gives the Interview. Its all the same governemt.

JUST remember this if they pull from one part of governemt to work on Other I form and not I-130 I dont care if it NVC, TSC, CSC, who ever it stops all the process for
I-130's Face it you, me, nobody can change it..YOU just have to wait until they come back to working on I-130, I-129, CR-1 you can do anything and say anything your want but it all goes back to 1 place It's THE US OF A and you can't change it or the places they process it. Some are lucky some take longer

For me put water on the fire anywhere along the way and all the process changes Im just saying face the changes and live with them.
When it's time for your approval you will be notified, until than..... they are working on other claims right now also more so than I-130 AND 1-129 FOR THE PLACES OTHER THAN THE VSC.
SO IF YOUR IN OTHER THAN THE VSC THAN DONT BE SURPRISED IF THERE IS A SLOWER PROCESSIING TIME IS ALL I SAID.

JUST LETTING YOU KNOW IF YOU DONT LIKE HEARING IT THAT WAY !!! DONT READ IT

I was having trouble understanding what you were trying to say until I read this. Now its all perfectly clear. You will make a great addition to the advisers here on V J & there will be many better informed people as a result.
Especially when they read this line-- "Its funny for some people to take the stance on what ever there thoughts wonder". A true classic.

I'm going to get a bucket of water now & see if that helps.

Edited by Ning, 21 November 2010 - 05:00 PM.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2010-11-21 16:58:00

WHY USCIS isnt approving I-130 MUST READ

What do you think is USCIS ""NOBODY """

Citizen ship and immigration Services....IT's the
same......GOVERNMENT Same place ! ! ! ! ! same country ! ! ! ! ! !
INS is just now a new name the USCIS and all the agencies are the US government
not hard to figure out..but the USCIS is immigrations if your read

What does USCIS stand for..all the same place just different place they handle part of the file or case.
Same as the department of Justice, department of State..department of defense .....
all the same government.......just different agencies doing different things

The prayers you spoke of have been answered.
Oh & you left out NVC completely. I suppose they are busy with defense or justice issues.
Just different agencys doing different things.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2010-11-21 10:21:00

Did I make a mistake?

Hello,
I petitioned for a K-1 Visa July 30, 2010. I listed my fiance son (who is 11 years old)on the I-129 as well as the 325 form. Am I supposed to petition any additional paperwork for him? I sure hope I havent delayed the process even more.
Thanks

He will need a seperate 130 form & fee.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2010-11-27 14:44:00

Police certificate....Thailand

She could do it now by showing anything indicating she is getting a visa. However it might be a little early in light of how long it could be until she interviews.
Keep in mind the embassy is closed for all American & Thai holidays. This will extend interview dates & may cause a backlog. They usually see about 700 cases per month.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2010-11-06 19:19:00

Help needed please, RFE in Dec 2010 still not received hard copy

On Dec 2nd 2010, a RFE for my daughter was issued but we have still not had anything in the mail. My husband (petitioner) has called California several times to state this and request another one to be sent, he also found out it is her birthday certificate which is needed, which is fine we have it ready to send. Apart from an email 2 weeks ago stating they would send another out, we have been unable to get any answers on what the problem is. The petitioner has not moved and he has received my NOA 2 to the same address. What should I do? I feel so helpless because they will not speak with me as I am not the petitioner.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Check to make sure the childs name is in your mail box & on an address card at your post office. My daughters docs were returned because of this mistake.
Sending in the RFE document without the required letter from USCIS could result in a time delay. I would want until you get the RFE.
The USC could ame an INFO PASS appointment to clear this up. We did that & when we did they discovered the documents had been sent back several times. They suggested we check with USPS.

Ning

Female

Thailand

2011-01-17 11:00:00

Thanks to everyone ...APPROVED!!!

Congratulations to you!!!

Thanks to all visa journey members! I learned so much from all of you, the time I've been on here has informed me and helped me survive this process to get my VISA APPROVAL.

I will have a review later today as well as some fun places in Montreal to eat and stay. Also a story of the panic on the trip out there.... all is well and again a big THANK YOU!!!

It's still sinking in that its done, no more waiting for an interview

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-06 10:32:00

What is an I-797?

Will do....thanks!

Since your husband is the beneficiary, he can mail you all his original civil documents including Police Certificates with signed copies of the forms etc. to you. So, you will not lose the time when you are in the NVC stage.

Note that Police certificate has an expiry. Check with the Consulate site. Most will have 1 year validity, some will have less.

Read the guide and start collecting them in advance.

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-10 15:46:00

What is an I-797?

That's a great list Loto

I have a question....we still haven't received our NOA2, but should my husband be filling out those forms and sending them to me? The forms that go to NVC? Or does he need to wait? I don't know about timeframes, and if they matter. I'm totally clueless as to what happens after the petition is approved. I do have my transcripts for the past three years, and I can easily get a letter from my employer and pay stubs (he doesn't give them to me every week but can print them out for me). I've been waiting to do that, because again, the timefame....I don't want to have anything that's outdated, or have to get it twice. Thanks!

Tumbleweed,

If your case is a straightforward one, you "may" fire the lawyer and save some money now onwards. Entire process is here - http://www.visajourn...p/EZGuideSpouse

I would ask couple of flowers only

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-10 15:20:00

NOA2

Congrats!!!

Chatting with my wife tonight when we got the text message that our patetion is approved. On to the NVC process now. Not sure if I'll be able to sleep tonight

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-11 11:39:00

I'm sorry for what you are going through...

I know background checks are necessary, I'm just missing my husband a lot. All we can do is wait and be patient.

yea man i lost month in sleep waiting for them to respond asap!!!im hoping for all of us that everything will be fine!!!all i can say is that we are hard working people always pay our tax and we r just looking for better live!!!

ye if i understand the process and this joke i wont be posting on this web site!!!i gues they do whatever they want!!!

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-14 19:36:00

Yes I saw it. I don't really understand that part of the process though. I really hope that things will work out for you soon. Thank you.

HI LISAMARIE!!!

I GOT THE SAME DEAL LIKE U GUYS, AND THEY ASK ME TO APPERA FOR A SECOND INTERVIEW ON MAY 21,2010 ,AFTER THE INTERVIEW THE OFFICER TOLD US THAT MY BACKROUND CHECK IS NOT DONE YET AND MY FRIEN IM WAITING FOR 6 MONTH ALLREADY!!!SAME DEAL LIKE U !! AND I DID EVERYTHING POSSIBLE ALERT CONGRESSMAN ,INFOPASS,STAMPS IN MY PASSPORT AND I GOT A LETTER SAYING THAT I WILL GET AN ANSWER WITHIN 90 DAYS!!! CAN U IMAGINE THIS A BACKROUND CHECK IS GOING FOR MORE THAN 6 MONTHS AND NO ANSWER YET!!!

DID U SAW MY POST

Me too.................

Oh my gosh my heart just sank to the floor reading that. Crossing my fingers and hoping for the best for all of us stuck in background checks.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-14 15:33:00

Why did they transfer your case to Vermont?

The fun part is when they do the "extensive checks" for another 6 months, then transfer you to another center and then tell your the 180 day time frame starts all over again, see my time line

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-13 14:28:00

Oh my gosh............are you serious? I am so sorry for you. I "hope" the same thing doesn't happen to me. It's so hard waiting and not knowing the outcome. My husband is such a good person. I wish they could meet the people in person before they decide to do the extensive background checks. Seeing them in front of you versus reading about them on paper would probably make a big difference in their decisions.

The fun part is when they do the "extensive checks" for another 6 months, then transfer you to another center and then tell your the 180 day time frame starts all over again, see my time line

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-13 14:20:00

Thanks. It seemed like it was going by quickly for the first five months because we knew there was that amount of processing time, so we just waited and didn't worry about it. But since the 5-month mark passed, it seems like time is dragging and now this letter just puts everything back. I hope that the background checks were started months ago so that maybe they are almost through them.

One way or another maybe of us still waiting. Hang in there. The flies quickly!

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-13 14:17:00

Thank you! You're always so supportive, I really appreciate that

I hope you get NOA2 soon inshallah

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 22:57:00

Thank you so much:) And you are right, I just need to look this as a minor setback....that's all.

I hope you get a speedy approval! Don't worry about it to much and remember it is not a denial. I wish you the
best on your visa journey.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 22:52:00

Thank you. I hope it goes by quickly too. I appreciate the support:)

I'm really sorry to hear the delay, Lisamarie.
I do hope they complete the name check soon. You'll be in our thoughts and prayers.

Thanks. It feels like a huge setback because the letter was so undefined, but I guess it was a standard letter and it could've been worse. I just miss my husband. Thank you for the support:)

Sorry you didn't get the news you hoped for. A setback for you, but small in the big picture, I pray that it won't take much longer and that you'll receive an approval soon best of luck.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 19:27:00

I know, thank you. I just really got my hopes up when I saw those touches on the website, because we hadn't had any since May...so I thought we would be getting an answer (positive one!) soon. But now I just feel like we'll be waiting indefinitely.....I hope not, I hope we hear something soon. Thank you.

hang in there lisamarie. I know it sucks and it is unfortunate but it is necessary. Keep the faith.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 18:27:00

Thank you.....I appreciate it;)

I wish you good luck for a speedy NOA2, Lisamarie

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 17:45:00

Ok. Gosh I was hoping for an approval letter, and instead got this....

Thank you

Sometimes if a name is very common or popular. The background checks can get multipul hits for the same name in the system which means they have to go through and check it all.

I know. We've just been waiting so long already. And I was really hoping for the NOA2, we both were. I guess we are still playing the waiting game......thanks Loto

Lisamarie,

Yes, they will feed all the parts of the name (last, first, middle) including DOB and other data to the name check and background system.

I have seen so many innocent people who struggled due to this.

I wouldn't complain the USCIS too because it is part of the national security. Only thing I wish from them is to wrap up this name check in a month or so.

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 17:42:00

Loto, you mean because of his first or last name? I really don't understand...

For some case, the name check at USCIS sucks!

It looks like yours is among them, just my opinion. If yes, it will take little longer to complete this process, to be honest.

But I wish you a speedy NOA2!

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 17:29:00

But it's not what I was hoping for.....it's a letter saying they are doing extensive background checks on us and we should have a decision within six months (it's already been almost 7 months)!!!

Can anyone explain this to me? Because the guy I spoke to couldn't, I asked him why the extensive background checks?....I see people getting approved everyday that filed after us and I don't understand why we are different. He couldn't answer that, also said they wouldn't be able to put another service request through until the six months is up. So basically all we can do is wait..............

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-12 17:08:00

If you look at my other post "Got the RFE" on page 2, Samoray posted a copy of it. I couldn't copy and paste it here, and my scanner isn't working to scan it. But the whole letter is there, they got the same thing.

What was it about your RFE?

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-20 03:55:00

Thank you. Unfortunately it turned out to be something completely different than I was expecting and we have a big job on a time crunch ahead of us....

Lisamarie:

I share the hope of all other posters who say that this will be something that can be quickly resolved. From your own posts, it sounds like you have identified two possible reasons (the wrong name in the field and only sending a translated copy of the marriage certificate). Of course you won't know until you receive the RFE. However, if you prepare a quick response to the areas you have identified as a possible reason and the possible turns out to be the why, then you can quickly respond and things will move forward.

Good luck and best wishes!

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-19 03:14:00

Thank you, I hope so too! I'm driving myself crazy right now trying to think of the reasons for the RFE....maybe it will be here today, they mailed it out on the 16th.

Thank you for the wishes.....

Hopefully....you will be back on track real soon!

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-18 15:35:00

Good advice, thanks

one nice thing is you can keep busy getting everything together that you think it may be and when RFE letter arrives you will be prepared to send it out quickly also, keep those things in your file so when interview comes you will have those things in case they pull a 'surprise' "where is this?" or "we need that"

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 13:13:00

Yes I see that now, thank you. Hopefully there weren't other things that I didn't read correctly....

This is why I always say, read carefully, interpret literally and answer accurately. From the I-130 instructions. See the bold. I know it's not particularly clear but you'll get it now.

Translations. Any foreign language document must be accompanied by a full English translation that the translator has certified as complete and correct, and by the translator's certification that he or she is competent to translate the foreign language into English.

Oh goodness. I guess you never know, it could be anything. I'm going to be second guessing until I receive the letter in the mail...

I got an RFE because I sent a color copy of marriage certificate that is illegible.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 11:29:00

Thank you! I hope it's something that simple! I checked the file last night and didn't see any signatures missing, but I think I might have made a mistake on one of the forms. Not sure...I'll be wracking my brain until I get that letter;)

Lisamarie,

I got an RFE too. Ahmed and I stressed so much and tried to figure out what it was. I went over the copies of everything I sent in, I could not find anything missing... come to find out.... we got an RFE because I didn't sign the G325!!! I signed that form so fast then I ran to the post office and said send this form as fast as possible! So I say all this to you, just to show you it may be something so simple and easily fixed! I will pray for you to be back on track so soon! Good luck!

Thank you!

Sorry to hear about your RFE. Hopefully it will be something very simple and you'll be back on track asap. Good luck!

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 11:26:00

I thought I read that they wanted the English version. But I hope that's what they're asking for, that's easy and I'll send it overnight. We'll just have to wait and see. Thanks:)

That could be it, because you have to send a copy of the original Arabic version and the English translation, i hope that RFE is as simple as that inshallah

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 11:23:00

I just saw your profile. Congratulations to you and I wish you the best in your lives together:)

We had got an RFE too and they had requested the Original ARABIC marriage certificate. We had sent only the translated copy....You should get the letter in about one week.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 01:59:00

Ohhhh, I only sent the translated copy too, maybe that's what they're going to ask for. I didn't think they would want the Arabic copy. Well I guess I won't know until I get the letter. I hope everything goes quickly for you from here on out:)

We had got an RFE too and they had requested the Original ARABIC marriage certificate. We had sent only the translated copy....You should get the letter in about one week.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 01:54:00

I'm hoping so too!! Thank you, I appreciate it:)

Hopefully not a serious RFE and easy to fix, good luck and hope you get some good news soon

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-17 00:48:00

Thank you so much:)

Good luck Lisamarie and I wish it will be something simple.

Loto

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-16 23:41:00

Thank you. I just looked through our file and I think I made a mistake on the I-130, I put my name somewhere where I was supposed to put his. As many times as I looked at the file I never noticed that, but because I was looking for mistakes tonight, I saw it. Maybe it's something as simple as that....

I'm sorry to hear you're getting an RFE. It could be as simple as forgetting a signature.
You'll be in our thoughts and prayers. You'll be on track soon enough.

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-16 23:32:00

Thank you, I appreciate it:)

i'll be praying too

Lisamarie

Female

Morocco

2010-11-16 23:30:00