ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Removing Conditions on Residency General DiscussionCRI89 transferred to local field office from VSC

We never heard anything about adjudication from Vermont, nor that the case got transferred.  However, our approval letter came from the field director in  Atlanta.


DaveEMalePhilippines2013-08-23 08:55:00
PhilippinesPhilippine Police Certificates
She will need a police clearance from South Korea. Use this link to find the procedure http://travel.state....1.html?cid=3599


Most countries allow the K1 applicant to go to the local Consulate/Embassy and request the police clearance. My wife had to get a Japanese police clearance as she lived there when she was younger. All it involved was a trip to the Japanese consulate in Manila, pay the fee, and wait about a month. The Japanese consulate however, would not even begin the process until they had a letter from the US Embassy in Manila saying it was necessary and providing her case number. She had to pick up the letter from US Embassy and carry it to the Japanese consulate. In about a month the Japanese consulate called her to pick up the sealed Police Clearance. She then carried it with her to the interview and provided it to the CO during the interview.

While it seemed a hassle at the time, and waiting a month seemed forever, we laugh about it now.

I just read the South Korean procedures and they seem to indicate that a Police Clearance cannot be obtained oustide the country. This indicates to me that their must be some sort of "waiver" procedure. Best bet is to call the US Embassy in Manila and ask them how to go about it.

Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-01-31 09:28:00
PhilippinesPhilippine Police Certificates
But they will play name games with you. My wife's middle name was misspelled on her birth certifictate. Her parents had it corrected years ago. US Embassy made her get an NBI clearance for both the correct and misspelled version of her name.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-01-30 04:29:00
PhilippinesWe got our petition approved but........cenomar
Wow deja-vu. My wife and I had much the same issue. My wife's former husband was a married man, (of course she didn't know at the time). After three months he left for parts unknown. After he had left she obtained a CENOMAR on him, and it showed his other marriage. Although she knew about it she could not afford to do anything about it. When our relationship started four years ago she was up front about it.

Well I started to pursue how we could get this thing taken care of. First off, how long it takes depends on where the wife is living. Annulment proceedings in Manila seem to take much longer than in the "Province". Many folks try to file in the province to speed things up.

However, the first thing that the court does, is have the "fiscal" (filipino name for prosecutor) certify that you are not forum shopping to expedite or make your annulment easier. Bottom line is that ours took about 9 months, much of it mandatory wait times. She will go through the normal annulment process: pretrial, judge, court date etc.

Things that slow the process down.

1. Mandatory certified letter from the court to the last known address of the bigamist husband informing him that he is being accused. I think he has thirty days to reply

2. If no reply, then publish the impending court case in a filipino newspaper of general circulation for two consecutive weeks.

3. File the certified copies of the newspaper article with the court at the end of the wait period.

4. The court will then schedule your "pre trial". There you present evidence to the court showing why you should be annuled. The fiscal will agreee or disagree with what you present, and certify that there is no evidence of collusion between the parties.

5. Wait, wait, and wait longer to get your case on the court calendar.

6. Finally your court date arrives and all the evidence is heard formally.

7. Wait, wait, wait again for the formal decision. Ours took more than six weeks after the case.

8. Again publish the findings in the newspaper. This time only for one week. This is to provide time for appeals

9. If no appeal then after 15 days the court will render its final decision

8. After the final decision you must register the decision with the Civil Registrar where you live, and the Civil Registrar where the marriage took place. Both of those entities must send you formal letters stating that this has been done.

After all of this, the court will issue the Decree of Annulment stating that the marriage was null and void from the beginning.

Then you can start the process of registering with NSO to get a clean CENOMAR.

Best of luck to you

Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-07 12:00:00
PhilippinesIs middle name suppose to change with marriage?
The AOS interviewer arbitrarily changed my wifes middle name. Upon marriage, her maiden name became her middle name. In Georgia, when you apply for your marriage license they ask you to specify what middle name you want. My wife chose her old maiden name as her middle name. Her EAD, Social Security, and Military Dependant ID card all have the correct middle name. However when we had our AOS interview, the interviewer changed her middle name back to the middle name on her birth certificate, (we were not aware of this).

When we got the approval letter, we noticed that the middle name had been changed and immediately called the 800 number on the form. We finally got in touch with a real human being who said she would try to change it. However, she couldn't get it done.

The day the green card arrived, we submitted an I90 (no fee), to have it corrrected. They accepted the form last month, but we haven't heard anything since. The NOA for the change however was addressed with the correct middle name.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-01-31 22:23:00
PhilippinesPlease HELP!
If it is a failed TB test issue, they (USCIS), will send you a letter with instructions. My step daughter had a failed TB test (no active TB, just exposure sometime in the past). USCIS sent me a letter to take to the local health department. Local health department ordered new chest XRay to verify no active TB. After the chest XRay came back they put my daughter on a regimen of medicines and vitamins that she must take every day for nine months. Once a month she goes to the health department for a blood test and new supply of meds. No cost to us.

BTW: It took over a month for the inital letter from USCIS to arrive directing us to take my step daughter to the health department.


HTH

Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-02 15:26:00
PhilippinesDelta flight issue
Wow that is bad. I flew my wife and daughter from Manila in July and they had no problem. I purchased the tickets on-line with my credit card. The only issue was that she was charged an additional "fee" because the tickets were purchased outside the Philippines. She was never asked to show the credit card, nor was I.

Edited by DaveE, 28 January 2011 - 10:39 PM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-01-28 22:38:00
PhilippinesManila embassy question
Ours took about three weeks after she delivered the missing form in person. When the clerk accepts the form, it goes into the stack of visa applications that were missing forms. When they get to it, they will approve it and print the visa. At least thats what they told my wife seven months ago. She was missing an NBI clearance from a misspelled middle name on her birth certificate. After about three weeks the visa showed up by courier.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-10 07:14:00
PhilippinesTHIS OLD MAN NEEDS HELP!

You won't hear anything. The next action will be the delivery of the visa. My wife was missing one document, and it took about three weeks after the missing document was delivered to the Embassy that the visa was delivered by courier. The only way we knew is that the Embassy had given her a 2Go tracking number and I keep checking on line. Magically one day it said out for delivery.


No coffee yet. I meant Air21 or whomever the Embassy is using as a courier now. If they kept her Passport they will have given Donette a tracking number as part of the interview process. We just kept checking the tracking numb on line.

HTH

Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-14 08:23:00
PhilippinesTHIS OLD MAN NEEDS HELP!
You won't hear anything. The next action will be the delivery of the visa. My wife was missing one document, and it took about three weeks after the missing document was delivered to the Embassy that the visa was delivered by courier. The only way we knew is that the Embassy had given her a 2Go tracking number and I keep checking on line. Magically one day it said out for delivery.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-14 06:43:00
PhilippinesYellow envelope from Embassy
Yep, my wife had the same questions. She actually called the Embassy and asked where the Visa was. The lady laughed at her and told her to look in the middle of the passport book, she had only looked at the first few pages.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-14 13:14:00
PhilippinesAnyone from Georgia?

Have you contacted them for an appointment or something?


We called but got the "voicemail",and asked for a call back. Probably will be there early and wait in line, then visit the asian market on Buford highway.

About a 110 mile drive for us.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-03-01 17:55:00
PhilippinesAnyone from Georgia?
We are going to register our marriage and update passport. Details here at this website: http://www.philippin...rgia/d,phildet/

Edited by DaveE, 01 March 2011 - 05:26 PM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-03-01 17:24:00
PhilippinesSchedual flight layover for poe
That should be more than enough. I scheduled 3 hours at Detroit before the final flight to Atlanta and it was more than enough. We even had a visa problem they had to fix at Detroit, and they still made it with time to spare. (Embassy at Manila has issued my 14 year old step daughter a K1 visa instead of K2).
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-03-03 20:24:00
Philippineswhat are the fees to pay after noa2??
He paid for the petition, which allows you to apply for a K1 visa. You still have to pay the Visa fee ($350.00), and medical fee, ($213.35), prior to your interview. As others have said, once you get to the states and marry, you then have to adjust status to get your green card. This will cost another thousand or so dollars. I know, because we just did it a few months ago.


Information here: http://photos.state....3__rtf2_001.pdf


Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-03-31 08:20:00
PhilippinesTravelling with an infant
My daughter was three weeks old when we took her back to the states. You have to notify the airlines, and ask they assign you a bulkhead seat. The bulkhead (Boeing 747), had provisions for a bassinet that attached to the bulkhead. My daughter slept all the way except take off and and landing. The airlines provided the bassinet. Call and let them know about the baby and ask if they still have something like that.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-04-06 12:49:00
PhilippinesRequest Letter for a Japan Police Clearance in USEM
My wife had to have the actual MNL number before the US Embassy in Manila would give her the letter. Once she got the letter and carrried it to the Japanese Embassy to request the clearance, it took about a month to receive. It is provided in a sealed envelope that you are not permitted to open. My wife actually asked for a copy for her records and they said no. Whatever was inside must have been ok because she said they barely looked at it.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-04-27 19:03:00
PhilippinesK-1 . YuAndDan,JimVaPhuong,pushbrk. Income, I don't think I'll be safe. I know it.
Hey guy - make sure your numbers are correct. If you meet the 125% guideline go for it. If not, paint like hell this summer and go marry the girl. Bottom line - find a way.


Really hope it works out for you

Dave
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-02-24 12:51:00
PhilippinesDealing with the parents
Some non judgemental advide. Learn more about the filipino culture before you commit to something as serious as marriage. You are in many cases marrying the family. You cannot impose your values or norms on another culture. My wife does not have to tell me if she sends something home. She does not have to tell me if she uses her debit card for anything she wants. She will tell me that cousin X needs help with college books and all the family would like to give a little.

Filipino's value education, if anything more than the american culture. An entire extened family will assist if necessary to get the kids through college. They will work harder than most americans can imagine to put their kids in a good school.

Do some families try to take advantage? Of course because they are human and have the same failings as the rest of us. The average middle class american family is RICH and very well off by comparison to the average filipino family.

Filipino's are much more extended family oriented than americans. My wife knows cousins so far removed that I laugh when I think about it. They are real family people and will help each other as much as possible. Do not try to turn your wife into an American. It is not fair to her, and in most cases will lead you both to lots of misery.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-05-19 05:56:00
PhilippinesBeware if you travel alone to the Philippines

To add also I had one of my old cell phone unlocked and bought Smart SIM card on Ebay so when I arrived I was able to call with no problems and also able to call to the states to let them know I arrived safe.


Never had a problem. Love Manila, and love Negros Occidental. You have to learn how to say "no" and mean it. I don't know about others, but I use Verizon, and when I turned my phone on at the Manila airport, I immediately got a txt message fom Verizon saying "Welcome to the Phlippines". Additionally, the txt message told me how to make local calls, and calls back to the states on my cell phone. Called my wife (fiancee at the time), and she was 100 ft from me.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-05-03 12:20:00
PhilippinesYou Might Be Filipino If Thread
You might be filipina if your first time to Walmart you are looking for the whitening soap and lotion.

You might be filipina if you look at an american broom, and make your husband find a walis tambo, and walis ting-ting.

Edited by DaveE, 17 July 2011 - 04:24 PM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-07-17 16:24:00
PhilippinesBest way to book flights
I just booked on-line. Me round trip, and one way for fiancee and daughter.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-07-22 16:18:00
PhilippinesDocs ids and more docs
Don't know if it will affect you or not. My wife had a spelling error on her birth certificate. At the US Embassy interview, they made her get another NBI clearance; for the incorrect spelling, (aka). She had the correct NBI clearance with her, but they delayed her visa until she obtained a clearance under the incorrect spelling also.

Might want to get both if your case is anything like this.

Edited by DaveE, 09 September 2011 - 07:41 AM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-09-09 07:40:00
PhilippinesCan my fiance ( Petitioner) purchase an airline ticket for me?
Bought my wife and stepdaughter e-ticket on Delta. They were never asked for a copy of the credit card. However after reading of some people's problems with that issue, I would now send them a copy.

Also, because I purchased the tickets online, both my wife and step daughter were charged an additional fee of 1650php at the airport, because the tickets were purchased outside the Philippines. That was in addition to the normal departure fees.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-09-17 10:47:00
PhilippinesReporting marriage to the Phil Consulate
Should only apply if the citizen of the Philippines has been previously annulled. We got out requirements here


Marriage registration
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-04-19 17:53:00
PhilippinesAnother tragic story of a Filipina
Actually, the Embassies are in an untenable position. If they disapprove a visa for age differences, (which I don't even think is legal), they are discriminating. If they do approve the visa, and something bad happens, they are incompetent. How many posts do we see where the USC is almost foaming at the mouth in rage because a consular official dared mention age difference.

In my opinion that big an age difference more times than not won't work. In this case, two people are dead and it is just sad.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-09-21 08:11:00
PhilippinesI-751 FEE

Thanks Kizmet of all the views you're the only one who replied Posted Image



I hope someone who has done this will chime in.
Are you filing for your removal of conditions also? The way you asked the question it sounds like you may be removing conditions for your children only, and not yourself.

As I read the instructions, you pay $590 for yourself ($505 + $85). Then you only pay only the $85 biometrics fee for any dependent listed in section (5) on the form.

For example. As I read it, I will pay $590 for my wife, and only $85 for my step daughter listed in section (5).
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-09-28 08:53:00
PhilippinesMystery of the Day
One thing about the Philippines, they kept a little of everyone who has been there. I found it hilarious that when using the ATM machines at SM Southmall, they had three languages listed; Engish-Tagalog-Taglish. My wife had lived there her entire life and never noticed the Taglish option. In fact, she told me I was nuts until I showed her.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-10-04 10:46:00
Philippineshelp with mama
She is mine now?
I control you?
Who wears the pants and dresses?

Purpose of your post? You have a fiancee not property.

Edited by DaveE, 20 September 2011 - 07:22 AM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-09-20 07:19:00
PhilippinesBooking plane ticket from Philippines
I booked the flights for my wife and step daughter through the Delta web site. MNL-NRT-DTW-ATL. There were absolutely no issues. They did have to pay a tax of PHP 1650 each, as the tickets were purchased outside of the Philippines. This is in addition to the normal departure fees that everyone must pay.

Edited by DaveE, 18 October 2011 - 07:18 AM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2011-10-18 07:18:00
PhilippinesRegistering the marriage to philippine consolate

Yes, I believe a letter is required. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong.

Kev



We waited 18 months before we went to the Washington DC consulate. We didn't know about the letter, and no one ever asked for it. No where on the Washington DC Embassy of the Philippines website do they mention a letter. However, I know that each consulate has their own flavor of the month.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-29 21:41:00
PhilippinesRegistering the marriage to philippine consolate

thanks for the quick reply.. i read some blog,just need is additional statement why we filed late on our marriage and need notarized. and i thought need attorney to signed it. some of member said its ok in the bank if you have account there sometimes its free to notarized. i just worried coz according to my husband its very expensive to go to attorney for that..i hope in chicago its the same with washington dc.



Here is a link to the Filipino consulate in Chicago. It tells you what you need to register your marriage, (three sets of the documents listed). We also had to pay $25 fee.


Filipino Consulate Chicago
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-28 09:19:00
PhilippinesRegistering the marriage to philippine consolate
My wife and I have been married for 18 months and we just registered the marriage with the Emabassy of the Philippines in Washington, DC. There is no problem or consequence in waiting. The only reason we went is because my wife wanted her filipino passport in her married name, and the Embassy would not do that until we registered the marriage. We were going to my mom's house in Maryland for Thanksgiving, so we spent a day in Washington DC and took care of all of the requirements.

I never heard anything about a 30 day time limit.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-28 08:57:00
PhilippinesHow to report marriage in the Philippines

So do I have to leave my passport with them for a couple of weeks? I feel uncomfortable doing it! lol Can't I just wait for it while they do that? My passport is valid for 4 more years anyway.



My wife's passport was only 2 years old. However, she wanted a new one in her married name so that it matched her green card.

Yes they keep the old passport, and it comes back to you in the same envelope as the new one. They just punched holes in the old one to show it is no longer valid. As a note, that is the same system we use in the states. When I renew my US passport they keep the old one while they process the new one, and then send it back with the new one.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-29 11:00:00
PhilippinesHow to report marriage in the Philippines

Yes, you can do both at the same time. I'm not sure how long it would take. I imagine it would take all day at the Embassy/Consulate. It would probably take two days at an outreach, if the outreach is as busy as the one in Seattle.

I don't know how long it takes the Embassy/Consulate to return your passport.

@Steph...Thanks...that's good to know. :star:



My wife and I arrived at the Consulate at 9:30AM and finished at 4PM. I had to make two taxi rides to get additional copies of documents (above what was listed on the web site). Another taxi ride to get a self addressed paid mailer from the post office, (priority or express). That said, the report of marriage is done on the spot and you are given a copy. The E-passport application was completed at the same time and they said it would take about eight weeks to arrive in the mail. Actually it arrived in about three weeks. My wife took care of her voter stuff also while we were there.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-29 09:53:00
PhilippinesHow to report marriage in the Philippines
Actually we did it so that my wife's Philippine Passport would have the same name as her green card. Unless we registered the marriage, the Consulate in Washington DC would not let her change the name on the passport.
DaveEMalePhilippines2011-12-28 18:40:00
Vietnamdo most people (K1 Visa) receive Green Card in the mail without an interview?
We were interviewed. It was fun and we spent the day in Atlanta. Interview, maybe all of ten minutes.
DaveEMalePhilippines2012-03-02 12:11:00
USCIS Service CentersWhen does the USCIS close for christmas break?
USCIS does not close for Christmas break. They like all Federal agencies will get Tuesay Dec, 25th 1012, and Tuesday Jan 1st 2013, off as Federal holidays.
DaveEMalePhilippines2012-09-17 06:59:00
USCIS Service CentersCase Status not Found on USCIS Website?
When you receive your biometrics letter, it will have a completely different case/receipt number. Then you will be able to check online.

Our NOA1 stated as much: "Upon receipt of your ASC (biometrics) appointment notice, you can find the status of your case on-line at www.uscis.gov. To view the status of you of your case, enter the application number found at the top of the ASC appointment notice."

Edited by DaveE, 30 November 2012 - 07:11 AM.

DaveEMalePhilippines2012-11-30 07:02:00
Waivers (I-601 and I-212) and Administrative Processes (221g)Need help writing to congress person to inquire about AP status
Congress people really can't do anything except ask the same questions as you. The only difference is that it will be answered right away. If you are due to come out of AP anyway, the congressman will gladly take credit for it, even though he made no difference.
DaveEMalePhilippines2012-02-20 17:01:00