biggish data

Vaccinations

I know the vaccinations needed for immigration status once my fiance is here but can someone tell me what, if any, are required prior to the interview/physical for the K1 visa? Thanks

St. Lukes Medical Extension Clinic will give your fiancé the age-appropriate vaccinations as part of the medical. The vaccinations are included in the price of the medical. That way, your fiancé won't have to get any vaccinations in the U.S.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2012-04-03 11:04:00

I-134 Block 11 Specific contribution question

Intend.

"I intend to marry my fiancée and to provide for all of her needs."

Note: There was a post here on VJ by a Filipina who interviewed at the U.S. Embassy Manila. She said the consular officer questioned her about why her fiancé checked the box saying he did not intend to support her.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2012-04-10 11:36:00

Sorry for the annoyance!!

There's no need to apologize to the gago.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-16 08:47:00

I don't think the President of the United States appropriates tax dollars, but I do think that he makes decisions that causes spending that raises taxes, and I could say more about him and the economy, but I don't think I will, because you all get the point.

No, I don't get the point. What decisions are you talking about? And why did you bring politics into this thread anyway? :blink:

By the way, where is Obama's credit for supporting VA disability benefits for our disabled veterans? How about giving him some credit for supporting Medicaid disability benefits for disabled Americans? These are programs that your buddy George Bush and his cronies wanted to cut to the bone. Yup, that's the same George Bush and company who caused the economic mess that we're in now. What do you think about his decisions?!?

:ot2:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-15 10:13:00

Yes...best wishes to you and your family...I think your fiancé and his kids are very fortunate to have found you. :star:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 11:15:00

Presumably the main reason was that he was unable to meet the requirements of the affidavit of support.

That's not what it said on her 221g.

I would rather a disabled person would get some of my tax dollars than what Obama does with our tax dollars.

If you think the President of the United States appropriates tax dollars, then you are going to flunk your citizenship test.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 12:26:00

Sorry to hear what happened to you guys.

I hope your attorney gives you good advice on the rest of your journey.

Although I've read a little bit about cases like yours, I'm not very familiar with what happens when a case gets sent back to the USCIS. I think the California Service Center tends to let them expire, and the Vermont Service Center tends to send you a Notice of Intention to Deny. If you get a Notice of Intention to Deny, it's my understanding that you should respond to it, otherwise, the reason for your denial will follow you to the spousal visa process. I'm not sure how a case should be handled which is allowed to expire at the USCIS.

Best wishes. :star:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-12 18:45:00

Letter from embassy

The letter you have in your hand is probably the letter telling you that you are eligible to schedule an interview. Open it.

It's not your visa packet. Your visa packet will be a plastic bag. Inside the plastic beg will be a Manila-colored envelope marked "do not open." The manila-colored envelope will have one corner cut away. Your passport will be in the plastic bag too. You can open the plastic bag and remove your passport, but don't open the envelope.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2012-04-12 05:30:00

Interview

Here's what the U.S. Embassy Manila says: click here.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2012-04-16 19:42:00

Visa overstay advice

She came to the US in '97 and left in '03. She was a minor the entire time. When she left in 2003, she was 14 years old.

No problem. She was a minor. She's good to go.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 15:18:00

Engagement Ring at U.S. Embassy Interview

Chinook wore her engagement ring to her interview.

Interview day was a very big day in our lives. It was a day where we didn't want to take any chances.

If wearing a ring did nothing more than make a good first impression on the Consul Officer, then it was worth it. :star:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2010-08-17 13:28:00

I am in need of advice for Co-sponsorship

I don' t know whether Filipino K-1ers who interview at the U.S. Embassy Bahrain would have any luck using cosponsors. If you continue to have any doubts about it, and since you seem to be able to get a good-paying job in the U.S., you might want to get a couple of paychecks under your belt before her interview so that you can qualify on your own.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2012-05-03 20:16:00

Thanks for the reply. So, what's your experience with K2 visas and their timelines? Are they the same as K1s? We want everyone to come over at the same time (and as soon as possible), so should we file the K2s at the same time?

Also - another question for all of you here: Is it required to have a home (owned or leased) in order to sponsor a K1 and some K2s? We currently have a home in Manila - and I am staying with family in the US when I am here. I spend about 1/2 of my time in Manila. I am trying to work out the timing as to when we need to actually get a home here. I am not planning on using assets to prove support - as I am fortunate enough to have the income to support the family easily.

Thanks again for all of the support!!

You might have better luck getting answers if you start your own thread.

I think you have a choice of bringing the kids over with your fiancée, or they can follow to join. If they follow to join, I think they have one year to do so.

I don't know the domicile rules for a K-1, but it's a good question. I don't think you have to lease/own a house/apartment. You can probably satisfy the requirement by signing a rental agreement with your family.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 17:48:00

So it does seem maybe MNL is accepting schedules from the efile and not waiting for hard copy.

I hope so. That would speed things up by a couple of weeks. :thumbs:

However, there's still a lingering question in my mind about the accuracy of the information given out by the tier one people at the NVC.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 11:07:00

Four hours is what I read was the minimum time. I think as I said in my other post it was 5-6 hours after she paid that she scheduled. All I can recommend to anyone is that if you have MNL and are ready to set an appointment pay your fee and try. You have nothing to lose..

Amen to that, Scruffy! :thumbs:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 21:16:00

Around the time frame we were approved, it was well known that there was a delay, which occured with CSC getting the approved petitions to NVC.

I tend to lean on the first scenario. I called NVC and specifically asked if our approved petition was shipped yet and the answer I got was yes it was shipped
on 7/28/11. No, I did not call USEM to verify if the physical file was already there before scheduling the interview appointment online. Plenty of other K-1
couples have done the same thing we did and that is why I tend to lean on the first scenario. The trend continues today with scruffydog.

Yes, I remember the delay regarding NVC receiving petitions from the USCIS. I agree it would tend to support the first scenario.

However, on scruffydog's thread, he seemed to indicate he was unsure about the exact sequence of events because his fiancée is handling all of the details.

I'll keep my eyes open for other couples who are getting their interview appointments so soon after they receive their MNL case number because I'm too lazy to call the Embassy or the NVC to ask them if they are scheduling interview appointments for K-1ers based upon only the electronic file reaching the Embassy. I wonder how other Embassies do it.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 12:56:00

We went through this a little over 2 months ago. NOA2 6/24/11, received manila case # 7/27/11 by calling NVC. Called NVC the next day
and they were able to tell me that the package was shipped via DHL 7/28/11. Patty paid the visa fee 7/28/11 and was able to schedule
online 7/29/11 for the interview. I wen to DHL website to track and was able to because it was the only shipment going to the USEM.
It was signed for at the USEM 8/1/11. So, we were able to schedule for an interview prior to the physical file getting to the USEM.

Here is a link explaining on how to track the shipment through DHL website: http://www.visajourn...-to-us-embassy/

Here is DHL's link: http://www.dhl.com/e..._reference.html

This is solely based on our experience. I hope this helps!

Thanks for the reply and thank you for the link. I read the thread. This is an interesting issue. As far as I can tell, One of two things may have happened with your case, as well as scruffydog's case.

One possibility is that the U.S. Embassy Manila now is allowing K-1 interviews to be scheduled as soon as they receive an electronic file from the NVC, rather than waiting for the physical case file. This would be a real timesaver.

The other possibility is that your physical case file was already at the U.S. Embassy Manila and you were not aware of it.

I noticed that it was a bit over a month from the time you got your NOA2 until you got your MNL case number. Normally, this is more than enough time for a physical case file to arrive at the NVC, get assigned a case number, and be shipped to Manila. Could it be possible that your physical case file was already at the Embassy at the time you received your case number? I say this because it's my understanding that the NVC doesn't know which particular petition is in which particular shipment to the Embassy. Anyway, this is what the NVC told me.

In your case, the NVC told you that there was a shipment on 7/28, but did they verify that your petition was included in that shipment? The tier one people at the NVC may assume that if the NVC assigned a case number to a petition, and the case is no longer at the NVC, then it must have gone out on the previous shipment, when it's entirely possible that it went out earlier and already arrived at the Embassy.

On the other side of the same coin, did you verify with the Embassy exactly when they received your physical case file? If so, was it after you made the interview appointment?

I sure hope the answer lies in the first scenario where the Embassy is now allowing interview appointments to be set as soon as they receive the electronic file. I hope others chime in.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 12:11:00

Thanks for the info, I had read that you wait 4 hours after paying fee to schedule interview. The crazy thing is my friend has same Noa2 date and got same date for MNL # and says the next DAY his girl already paid the fee and scheduled interview. Hope he writes that one up here cause all I read says give it about a week. Jim.

It can take a lot longer than four hours from the time you pay the visa fee until you are able to schedule an interview. Four hours would be a minimum amount of time.

Yes i wrote it up. Got the case number and made appointment the next day. Manila still does not have our packet. At least in Manila you can shcedule the appointment as soon as you have MNL number. Still lots of early NOV appointments in Manila.

In the past, the Embassy wouldn't schedule K-1 interviews unless the physical case file was at the Embassy and it was entered into their system.

As I posted in your thread, it's not clear to me that your physical case file was not already in Manila at the Embassy when you finally got your MNL number from the NVC. If your case was still at the NVC, and you were able to make an interview appointment, it would be the first time I've ever heard of it.

Once again...I'd be curious to know...

How exactly did you know that your physical case file was still at the NVC at the time you made the interview appointment? Did you talk to a tier one rep, or a tier two rep?

How exactly did you know that your physical case file was not at the Embassy at the time you made the interview appointment? Did you talk to someone at the Embassy call center, or did you call the IV Unit directly?

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 10:00:00

Thanks for the info, thats pretty much my plan. Last week when I called NVC they said allow 15 - 20 days so I just finished putting the 134 and docs together to send to my fiance and I hear it's about 2 weeks from NVC to manila so timing should be about right then my fiance can do the DS forms, med registration, appt schedule and visa fees at her end. Someone told me I can go online and make the interview appt for her but I haven't verified that yet. Advice is always appreciated. Jim.

Yup, it's about two weeks from the NVC to Manila. Manila not only has to receive your petition, but they also have to enter it into their system, which takes a bit longer. If you pay the visa fee and try to schedule an interview before they enter your case into their system, you won't be able to schedule the interview. Just try again the following day.

The medical can be completed using only the NOA2 petition approval and the MNL case number. You can roll on that now.

Once your approved petition arrives in Manila, don't wait around for the Embassy to send you anything because it can take quite a while. Instead, if you want to read the letter the Embassy is going to send you, you can read it right here.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-12 17:26:00

POSTAL SERVICE UNRELIABLE

Hey Dan...Welcome to the Philippines Postal system. Don't give up on that letter yet. It's only been a month. If your fiancée doesn't get it in two more months, then you can kiss it goodbye.

Don't send anything to the Philippines through the U.S. Postal Service either. When it arrives in the Philippines, they turn it over to the Philippines Postal Service.

I sent everything by FedEx three-day Express with no problems. Got there in three days every time. Yup, it costs.

Her visa will be delivered by 2GO. The visa delivery cost is already included in the visa fee she will pay at BPI. No problems there.

Don't wait around for the letter or the email (what they call "packet 3") from the U.S. Embassy Manila. It notifies your sweetheart that she's eligible to schedule an interview and it gives her some other info that both of you should read. However, it takes them forever to send it, if at all. Instead, you can read it right here.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-12 16:21:00

As long as your cenomar in Phil is clear thats what they go by.

^^^ Bingo !!! ^^^

No marriage license + no civil registry + no NSO + clean CENOMAR = K-1 approval.

Hey people...enough with the horror stories...the Philippines is not in the same league as, for example, an India or a Pakistan.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-15 10:53:00

so is it ok.. to have UNoffical Sex..!? cuz its not really sex if there is not paperwork right/!

You fill out paperwork every time before you have sex?!? :wacko:

That certainly would ruin the mood.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-15 10:36:00

I don't think that is possible. They usually require marriage license in the Philippines to hold ceremonies

Maybe they are hungry and just need a "snack." :whistle:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 10:34:00

I see, bcoz I can relate on your concern MarienDavid. Im confused also bout this if we wanted to have an unofficial ceremony without any legal contract signatures esp.me, I'm a muslim woman and we are planning to file for k1 visa and we will have our engagement party and planning to have our traditional muslim wedding, just to have the blessings of my family, then once inshaallah we'll be approved, after marrying in US, we will return to Phils to do the big wedding. Is it not a problem VJ members? Need help too.. Thank you

It's no problem if you get legally married in the U.S. and then have an unofficial wedding ceremony in 'Pinas. :thumbs:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 21:19:00

married is married.. is there really a differnce.. why take the chance.. you know how the K1 works..

They aren't getting married in 'Pinas. Yes, there is a difference. What chance? Yes, I know how a K-1 works.

Yes yes that's right! unofficial wedding ceremony that's it no paper works just the ceremony and reception...

You'll be fine. Your family will enjoy it and have an opportunity to give you their blessing. It's a great way to celebrate sending you and your sweetheart off to the U.S. :thumbs:

If you have the celebration before your interview at the Embassy, just remember not to refer to your fiancé as your husband.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 12:42:00

HI everyone,

Does any of you guys thought about having a wedding ceremony with your fiance at your own country first before leaving, after getting your K1 visa? Is that possible? Me and my beloved Fiance thought about doing it...

Are you talking about getting legally married in 'Pinas?

Or, are you talking about an unofficial wedding ceremony where there is no paperwork involved and where you are not getting legally married?

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 11:03:00

ASK ABOUT AOS

As long as you got married within the 90 day period, you are fine. It's best to submit the AOS paperwork as soon as possible and get it out of the way, but it does not matter if you didn't file the papers within 90 days. That requirement is only about marriage - not filing AOS.

You also don't need the SSN for AOS.

^^^

@OP...You are allowed to get a SS number up until two weeks before your I-94 expires. After that, I believe you have to wait for your conditional green card to arrive. If you tried to apply for a SS card more than two weeks before your I-94 expired and you were turned down, you should go back and talk to a supervisor, or go to another office.

Edited by Tahoma, 17 October 2011 - 07:14 PM.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 19:14:00

NOA2

Congratz !!! :star:

Now your rolling! :thumbs:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 19:35:00

Mental Health Psychiatrist said at St. Lukes

yes I can say he is mean bcuz he never smile at me,he said words that has nothing to do with the evaluation like "i can call the mental hospital and ask them to pick u up bcuz it was written on ur annulment " i tried to explain to him the passive-aggressive is not insane and he insist"no! u have mental problem. When i tell this story to my fiancee he was very mad that the psychiatrist should not say that,its sounds like he threaten u thats what my fiancee told me,yes the psychiatrist told me "I dont think the embassy will allow someone who has mental problem to go to their country.It sounds like the denial of my visa.That made me cry. Anyway i will try to have interview and we'll whether the embassy deny or approve my visa...Thank u for sharing something.

Don't pay any attention to that psychiatrist. He was just trying to yank your chain. He wanted to see what kind of reaction he would get from you. He must think it's his job to scare you. The best way to deal with the issue is to remain calm and professional and hold your ground. Don't allow anybody to intimidate you.

Always remember, annulments are common in 'Pinas, and they are the only way to "divorce" someone. Many people use psychological incapacitation as the reason for their annulment. You know it, I know it, the psychiatrist knows it, and the consular officer knows it. That doesn't mean you're crazy, it simply means you wanted an annulment. I'm certain you felt much better after you were annulled from your ex. I wonder if the consular officers have ever gone through a divorce, or had any of their loved ones go through a divorce. If they have, they will understand why you got an annulment.

Shame on that psychiatrist! :bonk:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 17:00:00

Mental Health Psychiatrist said at St. Lukes

Right T!!!

Thanks for you response, Tina.

I don't think the OP has anything to worry about (unless she's really :girlwerewolf2xn:

...

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 15:59:00

Mental Health Psychiatrist said at St. Lukes

I could be wrong, but I have never seen anyone on VJ denied a visa in Manila because they were psychologically incapacitated on their annulment. However, they will have to undergo both a psych evaluation and a psych test...and pay extra for it.

Tina...what do you think?

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 14:18:00

what is going to happen...

I'm a K-1er too. The I-129F I sent in to the USCIS didn't have even one single box checked. I filled it out completely on my computer but, when I printed it, none of the boxes were checked. My bad for not double-checking the printed version. :bonk:

Anyway...

...I never received an RFE. My petition was approved by the USCIS and sent along to the NVC and to the U.S. Embassy Manila. At Chinook's interview, the consular officer approved Chinook's K-1 visa on the condition that she submit a new, original page 3 of the I-129F-- with the box for question C-2 checked. You know the box-- the one that asks if you were ever convicted of the following crimes...

The consular officer only wanted an answer to that particular question. Apparently, she didn't care about all of the other boxes which were left unchecked on the rest of my I-129F-- male or female-- married or single-- born in the U.S. or naturalized-- have you ever filed before-- is your fiancée related to you. She just wanted to know about that one question.

So, I spent $40 to Fed Ex a single piece of paper to Chinook, she submitted it to the Embassy, and she had the visa in her hand six days later.

True story, except for the part about the single piece of paper. I actually sent her all three pages of the new I-129F. And I made sure to tick all of the appropriate boxes. :whistle:

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-17 15:51:00

Your experience is certainly different. Patty also applied for a name change after we were married and her SSN card still has the restriction.
Something tells me that an SSA employee may have inadvertantly pushed the wrong button or entered incorrect information to receive an
unrestricted SSN card.

Maybe some other K-1ers will see this thread and post their experience on getting employment without an EAD. Has anyone read or seen
any thread with which a K-1er was able to get employment without EAD?

I hope some other K-1ers will chime in also.

I would be interested to know which box they checked on their SS application form - "work authorized" or "not work authorized" - and which card they received.

I would like to hear from those K-1ers who filed for a name change after they got married, and before their I-94 expired. Did any of them receive an unrestricted card like Chinook did?

I would also like to hear from the K-1ers who used the Self-Check E-Verify, especially if their card appeared to be unrestricted. And did those with an unrestricted card get a job. And did they get a job with an employer who uses E-Verify.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 10:53:00

When a K-1 visa holder applies for a SSN they do check off 'authorized to work'. They are listed in that category. However, when they receive their SSN card it will have a stamp on the back of it 'Not authorized to work without USCIS/DHS authority" or words that that effect. They get a restricted SSN. When they get their actual green card they are allowed to apply for a non-restricted SSN, so again they would not have a satisfactory document from List 3 until they have an unrestricted SSN.

When Chinook applied for her SSN one week after she arrived in the U.S., she did not check the "authorized to work" box on the application form. Contrary to your assertion, I doubt that many K-1ers would check the "authorized to work" box on their SSN application. Like Chinook and I, other K-1ers on this site likely were influenced to check the "not authorized to work" box because they were told by VJers that they are not eligible to work until they received their EAD. I imagine it's unlikely that a K-1 SSN applicant who checks the "not authorized to work" box would receive an unrestricted card.

Also, if there was a choice of "work authorized" or "not work authorized" when Chinook filed for a name change on her SS card, she would have chosen "not work authorized." Neither of us can remember if the application form asked that question but, if it did, that's what we would have chosen. Regardless, her new card appeared to be unrestricted and, as I pointed out previously, she received that unrestricted card at least one month before her I-94 expired.

By the way, Chinook's first SS card was stamped on the front, not the back. The stamp said "Valid for work only with DHS authorization."

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-14 10:12:00

When a K-1 visa holder applies for a SSN they do check off 'authorized to work'. They are listed in that category. However, when they receive their SSN card it will have a stamp on the back of it 'Not authorized to work without USCIS/DHS authority" or words that that effect. They get a restricted SSN. When they get their actual green card they are allowed to apply for a non-restricted SSN, so again they would not have a satisfactory document from List 3 until they have an unrestricted SSN.

While the employer cannot request what type of document the individual supplies to verify their employability, they do have the right to see the document the potential employee provides to satisfy that requirement. Since the only possible other document a K-1 might have is the SSN card, once they show the card the employer then sees that it states not eligible for work without DHS authorization. That is the catch 22. If the K-1 had another type of document that would satisfy List 3 then they would not be required to submit their SSN card to satisfy that requirement.

They are, however, required by the IRS to provide the SSN to any employer if they wish to be paid in order for taxes and other withholds to be made and forwarded to the IRS. The restricted SSN does come up as not eligible to work when you search for it on e-verify ( mine did at any rate).

If you wish to take this discussion much further you will be entering a slippery slope of appearing to suggest that someone tries to find a way to work when they fail to satisfy the requirements of the I-9 form. Any employer who hires a K-1 visa holder is basically hiring an alien who is not legally eligible to be employed in the US under the existing regulations. Trying to find a way around this is not a useful exercise and comes dangerously close to violating the TOS for Visa Journey of suggesting someone knowingly follows an illegal course of action.

My wife, Chinook, was a K-1er. She applied for a SSN a week after her POE and received a restricted card about a week later. Shortly after we were married, she filed for a name change on her SS Card. About a week later, she received an unrestricted card. She received the card about four weeks before her I-94 expired. Of course, she wouldn't have had a conditional Green Card at that time.

Since she had an unrestricted SS Card, I'm thinking that she would have been legally allowed to work if she had wanted to. She never applied for another SS Card after she received her unrestricted one. About a year later she got a job with an employer who uses E-Verify and she had no problem with her SS Card. I took it to mean that the SS Card she received during her I-94 period was a work-authorized card.

It should be noted in the second paragraph of your response that you are talking only about employers who use E-Verify. It would not apply to other employers. I do see your point though...an E-Verify employer is going to notice your SS Card doesn't authorize you to work.

Finally, it's a mystery to me why there can't be a serious discussion here on VJ about a topic about in which there are so many questions. To say that the issue is long-ago and undeniably settled is ignoring the fact that there is disagreement about it even among immigration attorneys. Also, it should be readily apparent that your personal K-1 experience has been very different than mine in regards to the SS Card issue.

Finally, I'm not advocating anything illegal and I have no intention to do so.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 22:30:00

Kathryn41...Thank you for taking the time to respond to an issue which interests me.

In response to your well-reasoned post, consider this:

I agree with you regarding the need for a document from both List B and from List C. Since establishing identity (List B) can easily be satisfied with a passport or a State ID card, lets move on to List C.

To satisfy the List C requirement, I'm suggesting that a K-1er could get an employment-authorized Social Security Card by checking the box on the SS-5 Application for a Social Security Card" which reads "Legal Alien Allowed To Work." This would establish employment authorization. The K-1er could receive their unrestricted SS card a couple of weeks or so after arriving in the U.S.

Question 1: If a K-1er applied for a Social Security Card as a "Legal Alien Allowed To Work," is there any evidence that it would be denied by the USCIS data base - which I understand the SSA routinely uses?

Question 2: If the SSA issued an unrestricted SS Card to a K-1er, is there any evidence that an employer's E-Verify check would result in finding the K-1er unauthorized for employment? This presumably would have been the second time the K-1er's info had been run through the USCIS data base.

On a side note, employers who don't use E-Verify can't require employees to give them a Social Security number. The following is from the "USCIS Handbook for Employers: Instructions for Completing Form I-9":

Providing a Social Security number on Form I-9 is voluntary for all employees unless you are an employer participating in the USCIS E-Verify program, which requires an employee’s Social Security number for employment eligibility verification.
You may not ask an employee to provide you a specific document with his or her Social Security number on it. To do so may constitute unlawful discrimination.

Q. Can an employee leave any part of Section 1 of Form I-9 blank?

A. Employees must complete every applicable field in Section 1 of Form I-9 with the exception of the field requesting the employee’s Social Security number. However, employees must enter their Social Security number in this field if you participate in E-Verify.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 20:59:00

There have been many posts from experienced people that say K1 is not work authorized. The response from experienced people is consistant. It is againt VJ regulations to suggest to present documents to trick an employeer to let someone work illegally. Why would you want to create trouble for someone just coming to the country ?

Are you saying that experienced lay people can't be wrong about such a gray area of immigration law? If the experienced VJers believe it to be illegal, I welcome them to post their evidence, just as I've posted my evidence.

What is trickery about the Social Security Administration document I posted? It says K-1ers can work. Did you even read it?

Did you miss the part of my post that said immigration lawyers disagree over this issue?

Did you also miss the part of my post where I suggested that K-1ers use the Self-Check E-Verify system to verify their eligibility to work?

Where is the TOS violation?

Personally, I believe the USCIS has the final say, and they don't allow K-1ers to work before they have a SSN and an EAD. However, they say it in such a roundabout way that it remains unclear in the face of evidence like the SS document.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 14:44:00

Her SSN will probably say it requires a DHS work authorization. (for example, the EAD or GreenCard) -- since she will not have either - the employer can't legally have her work.

When it comes to employment, it may not matter whether it says anything on the card about requiring DHS work authorization because employers don't ask to see the card. They simply require you to provide them with the Social Security number.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 13:56:00

okay...thanks again! this is very helpful. i'm going to have to call the people who just hired me and be straight with them. if it's really for me, then it'll be waiting for me.

There are many on this thread who say you are not legally allowed to work until you have an EAD or a Green Card. However, I have read elsewhere where others, including immigration attorneys, said it's legal for a K-1 to work as soon as they get their Social Security number.

The people who say you can work right away seem to rely on this document from the Social Security Administration.

Here is the relevant part of the SSA document:

G. Policy for employment authorization by Class of Admission (COA)

1. Aliens employment-authorized without specific DHS authorization

The following chart lists, by COA code, non-immigrants authorized to work in the U.S. without specific authorization from DHS. The alien’s I-94 showing one of the following COAs has employment authorization unless otherwise noted. The I-94 will not have the DHS employment authorization stamp and the alien will generally not have an EAD.

K-1
Fiancé(e) of U.S. citizen.

I realize that the SSA is not the one who sets work policy and, instead, it's the job of the USCIS, and the USCIS says different. However, if one showed this SSA document to an employer who didn't use E-Verify, the employer would almost certainly be convinced that the K-1 is allowed to work. Nevermind the J-9 the employer fills out. Employers don't send them anywhere. They just keep them on file.

I wish some of you K-1ers would settle this question once and for all. Once you get your Social Security number, and before your I-94 expires, do a self check. Just use the link Inky provided to go to the Self-Check E-Verify website. Let us know what you find out. Are you authorized to work...or not.

Tahoma

Male

Philippines

2011-10-13 13:42:00