gstern has left 65 comments

gstern comments on How long for the Green Card

bbatiste Hi-

It took us 15 months from first filing to conditional residency visa. Our I-130 and I-129 got approved within weeks of eachother.

Our case would have taken just under a year except that we hit an FBI name check hit where someone on the FBI list had the same or similar name and age as my stepson.

Greg

gstern comments on establishing proof of relationship

There are 2 kinds of people This is my $.02 on why some applications get rejected...

When my wife and I went to the consulate for our interview, there was a couple there that seemed totally clueless. She was digging through her bag of papers, none of which were organized in any manner, was bugging everyone with stupid questions about things that were clearly spelled out in the papers sent by the consulate, and in general was totally unorganized. Not surprisingly, they were turned away quickly.

Then there are people that hang out on boards like visajourney, compare notes, agonize over every detail and small issue, post questions and in general are in the drivers seat.

My guess is that while being thorough and organized is no guarantee of a visa, the probability is substantially higher that those that take the uniquely-American attitude of "I am an American and my government works for me!" which is incidentally a fatal error to make when dealing with immigration at any point along the path. I think this may explain why it does seem that virtually everyone on visajourney gets the visa while we hear of so many others that do not.

Greg

gstern comments on K-3 Visa Interview (UC and Anybody Else Who Has Been Through This)

Chances are This questions seems to get asked a lot and I find myself always posting a response. If you have never been married before, if your income is well above the guidelines, if you have not changed a job in the last 3-5 years, if your tax returns are straight-forward, then you are probably OK. If not, you should be there.

Heck, you should be there anyway. It has to have been nearly 9 months since you were married, so you have waited this long. If something goes wrong at the interview, it could be a much longer wait.

My $.02.

Greg

gstern comments on Travel visa

I am sure your co-worker means well, but his opinion is based on the false assumption that our immigration laws are based on compassion and logic. Those of us who have actually had to deal with immigration issues know all to well that your biggest enemy in comprehending the immigration process is to assume that there is anything approaching logic to it.

If there is any logic at all, it is that the entire objective of US immigration law is to PREVENT immigration. Don't laugh, that is the way that it is.

To more specifically address your question, there are various visa categories and the immigration service is pretty much sticklers on wanting people in the proper categories. I was once told by an experineced immigration attorney that the consulates are rated based on how many visas holders do not leave the US and how many visa holders "jump" from one status to another. The odds-on bet is that the consulate would view your wife as already being in the right category, petitioning for a spousal visa since she is married to an American. They would figure that she would have no incentive to return to Colombia if granted a visitor visa as she could easily jump status and petition for residency once in the US.

There is some consolation here (thin, I would admit). Up until a couple years ago, spousal visas took around 2 years to process, which is why most chose instead to marry in the US so they could go with the fiancee visa. These days the spousal visas seem to take around 9 months on average. All things considered, September 11, included, 9 months is not too bad.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on VISA SUPPORTING LETTER

not enough information What are you trying to do? Get her a tourist or a fiancee visa? Typically the consulate is not interested in non-binding letters. I am not sure how tourist visas go and what you need to do to "co-sign" for a tourist. Have you looked on the consulate's website? There is lots of information there:
http://bogota.usembassy.gov/wwwsnive.shtml

I would venture a guess that a letter from you would not help her to be granted a visa. The reason is that she must prove compelling reasons to return to Colombia such as property a business or an established career. Having a boyfriend in the US would have the opposite effect you intend as it would prove a strong reason NOT to return to Colombia.

If you are filing for a fiancee visa, there is no letter, just various financial forms (amongst other forms) that are first submitted to the immigration service in the USA. You cannot go direct to the consulate unless you have been living in Colombia for the last 6 months or more. There is also more information on that at the consulate's website.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on Colombian Family Members Visiting California

Parents of novia Hi-

I have seen LOTS of postings over the years on visa boards where parents and even grandparents are denied visas. I do not believe the rules are substantially different than for anyone else, they still have to prove strong ties to their home country, though if they have a job and have had a job or are on a pension, then at least the CO will think there is a higher probability of their return.

Greg

gstern comments on Colombian Family Members Visiting California

It is a matter of economics and.. I am not making a political statement, here is the policy of the US government: unless someone wants to visit the US from a rich country (western Europe, Japan, Singapore, etc.) they will need a visa. This has nothing to do with 9/11, it has to do with economic migration and the fact that the US has since its inception had far more people immigrating than emigrating.

The US government runs under the assumption that EVERYONE from a non-rich country wants to come to the USA and get a job and never return to their country. And it is not like they don't have proof that hundreds of thousand, maybe millions are in the US illegally.

Whatever your personal views on immigration policy, this is the reality you will face. You cannot even get on a plane to come to the US without a visa or residency card. The airlines won't even put you on the plane as they will get fined by the US goverment if they do.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on Visa appeal process questions? Banco Colpatria?

It is time contact you congressman Hi-

I found that my congresswoman's office was very helpful when our case ran into some problems. If you were turned down based on not meeting the financial requirements which you actually did meet, then they essentially turned down your application without cause. Contact your congressperson. They will require a written letter signed by you outlining what happened along with your permission to investigate the case in your behalf.

People are constantly posting the question as to whether the American spouse/fiancee needs to be at the interview. Yours is a prime example of where your presence *could* have made a difference. It would have been a lot harder for the CO to look an American in the face while denying a visa for no valid reason.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on HOW DO I OBTAIN A VISA FOR A NEW WIFE IN COLUMBIA

3 months? Hi-

It would take an act of God to get a spousal visa processed in 3 months. You can't even get a tourist visa processed in Colombia in 3 months. Spousal visas seem to vary widely depending on where YOU live as the processing centers in the US (where you must make the petition) vary in their backlogs. These backlogs shift and change all the time, so there is no way to say definitively.

A good rule of thumb would be 6-12 months, with 9 months being about average. The best site that I have found which includes a lot of people with Colombian fiancees and spouses is visajourney.com.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on Time frame for response from FBI

not enough information You were talking to a consular officer in Washington, DC? At the office of visa services? Are you asking for a visa for a spouse/fiancee or are you going through the naturalization process?

If it is a visa, I had never heard of a time-frame being imposed. And what do you mean by an "affirmative response" anyway? Does that mean that they affirm that the person you are petitioning IS in their criminal database?

My wife went through this and for us it took 3.5 months to clear a "name-check hit" which essentially means that someone with the same or similar name and similar age was a match and they needed to do additional processing to clear them. In our case a follow-up full-set of fingerprints was required to assure the FBI that it was not a match.

I did a ton of research during this process including talking to a number of immigration attorney's who both said the same thing. Typically these are cleared in 6-8 weeks though there are cases that drag on for 18 months. The reason is simple: if the FBI has a lot of information on the criminal in their system, then it is easier for them to match fingerprints or other data and clear the match. If not, if they simply have a name of a known criminal and maybe a photo, or if much of the data resides in paper files spread across FBI offices around the country, then it is a very time-intensive, labor-intensive process to clear.

The following links contain some great information you will want to review:

http://www.usaimmigrationattorney.com/SecurityNameChecksAndAdministrativeReview.html
http://www.wolfsdorf.com/articles/Consular_Processing_20050524.htm
http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress03/garrity071003.htm

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on Colombian Family Members Visiting California

need a tourist visa Your family member will need a tourist visa to enter the US. There is lots of information on how to get on the US Consulate in Bogota's website.

There are a lot of requirements for papers and such, the most important being that the family member must be able to prove strong ties to Colombia and convince the consular officer that they plan to return to Colombia. Typically this translates to a good job, money in the bank and home ownership, though this can vary depending on the age of the applicant (i.e. elderly grandparents usually have an easier time of it).

I think the turnaround time from application to interview is between 4 and 4 months.

Greg

gstern comments on What are my options?

it is illegal Entering the US with the intent to marry on a tourist visa is illegal because it is visa fraud. Overstaying ones tourist visa, if she does that, would also be illegal.

From a practical standpoint, changing status seems to be a straightforward process. People in the US on student or H1 visas get married to Americans and change their status all the time.

My guess would be that the bigger issues would be:
1) Would the US Government decide you had committed visa fraud and prosecute as such (10 year ban). Was her application completely truthful for her tourist visa? Did the CO ask her whom she knew in the US and who she was going to visit and the nature of that relationship? Was she honest about those answers?
2) Would the US Government believe that the marriage is a sham marriage? Not too many people enter the US on a tourist visa and suddenly meet someone and get married.

My suggestion: if you intend to marry, get a fiancee visa. It does not take that long, you will run less of a risk of big problems and you will know that you did the right thing. People seem to be getting these in under 6 months time.

If you do insist on going the route you are suggesting, pick up the phone and contact several immigration attornies (most will do a 15 min consult for free). Get a range of opinions. If they all agree it is easy and low-risk, then you can probably get away with it. If opinions are negative or all over the place, be careful.

Finally, I encourage you again to take the correct path. Many of us who have married Colombians have paid a heavy price for people who have done things like you are suggesting you might do. Your actions affect the rest of us by making the road for the rest of us much harder as the immigration service DOES maintain stats on visa fraud and visa switching on a country-by-country basis and the consulates are held accountable. This just makes them even more hard-nosed for legit cases like ours.

Greg

gstern comments on Background Check after final interview?

This happened to us Hi-

This is a fairly common occurance with Latin names. It happened to my wife too (well, actually with my stepson). All told it was 14 weeks after the interview until our visas were in hand (Jan 2005 - May 2005)

There is nothing that the consulate can do about this. They are legally bound to hold issuance of your visa until the clearance comes from the FBI. And the FBI will not tell you anything as it is considered an "active" investigation.

The good news is that this is so common that there is an FBI agent situated at the NVC just to handle these cases. In our case, my stepson was called back 6 weeks after the interview for a full set of fingerprints. It was another 8 weeks until those were cleared. A lot of that time is delays in the consulate getting your application back in line once it has cleared.

The vast majority of cases clear within 12 weeks. Some have been known to go on for years. However, do NOT let the postings on visa boards scare you. Most of the long delays related to name check hits are for naturalization clearances. For some reason either those undergo more scrutiny or the FBI places them at a low priority. Visa applications typically go much faster.

Here are some useful resources I found when investigating this, each has a lot of great information:
http://www.usaimmigrationattorney.com/SecurityNameChecksAndAdministrativeReview.html
http://www.wolfsdorf.com/articles/Consular_Processing_20050524.htm
http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress03/hardy102303.htm

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on suggestions

You cannot petition a cousin Your residency status will do nothing for your cousin as she is not considered an immediate relative. Even if you were a US Citizen, you cannot bring a cousin into the US. For more information you can download for I-130 and look at its instructions:
http://uscis.gov/graphics/formsfee/forms/i-130.htm

Greg

gstern comments on unauthorized employment and green card

there are times you should use an attorney Hi-

I don't think anyone that is on this board has a license to practice immigration law. We all have our opinions and can share our own experiences, but when it comes to something like the repercussions of having broken immigration law and how that will affect a spousal visa, you need more than opinion, you need qualified legal advice.

Most lawyers will offer a free phone consulatation. Make sure that you get that consult with several to make sure that they all agree.

Were it me, I would NEVER fudge the facts or lie on anything related to immigration. The penalties are severe.

That is my opinion anyway...

Good luck --

Greg

gstern comments on First Time

where are you from? It is impossible to answer your question without knowing which passport you hold. If it is a US passport, the information provided by others in this thread is correct. If not, check with the Colombian consulate in your country or reference this site:

http://www.delta.com/travel/trav_serv/intl_travel/timatic/index.jsp

Geg

gstern comments on wait time between Package 3 and 4

depends The consulate seems to schedule its appointments around the 20th of each month for the following month, so you may have missed the May window. Generally you are looking at 4-6 weeks. The consulate posts its appointments here (it is a PDF file you download): http://usembassy.state.gov/colombia/wwwfivad.pdf

The instructions for the medical exam should be in packet 4. Not for love or money can you get the visa same-day. They will only promise "within 10 working days." You will need to pay for courier service for the visas which are delivered by Domesa. Our visa was in hand 4 days after, but my wife lives in Bogota, so your mileage may vary.

BTW - your fiancee/wife must be available to sign for the visa when it arrives. She will need to sign receipt papers and be fingerprinted to prove that the visa was delivered only to her.

Greg

gstern comments on Name on visa different from name on her passport

what we did... My wife got a new passport and cedula with her married name. We had a very good immigration attorney who was adamant that they must match up. Luckily, your wife can get this done in Colombia in 1-2 days, it is pretty easy. My in-laws went to get their passports today and were given them the same day.

If at all possible, go this route. If not, you can always try sending an email to the US consulate and ask them what the requirement is(they always answered my emails, though it sometimes took a week) at ivbogota at state.gov. Make sure to put your wife's name and case number in the email.

Greg

gstern comments on Medical exams

Medicals From the consular procedural manual:

The examination must include: (1) A medical history; (2) An immunization history (immigrant visa applicants only); (3) A physical examination; (4) A mental examination; (5) A full-size chest radiograph; (6) A serologic test for syphilis; (7) A serologic test for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV); (8) A sputum smear examination; (9) Administration of immunizations (immigrant visa applicants only);


So they are testing for communicable diseases and mental health and they are given a large number of immunizations unless they have their immunization records.

The children will need the same regardless of age.

The exam can only be given at the clinic approved by the US Consulate. You cannot choose your own doctor. This is done so as to prevent fraud and also because the consulate requires very specific paperwork and procedures. The exams are done and results are sealed and can only be opened by the consular officer.

Greg

gstern comments on embassy interview

Seems odd I find it surprising that I see this question constantly on visa discussion boards. To attain a spousal visa we go through a huge amount of paperwork, agonizing waits, costly fees and so forth to get to the point of the interview, and then question whether or not to attend that interview.

By the letter of the law, no, you do not need to attend. But ask yourself these things before you make the final decision:
1) is your spouse able to accurately answer all questions about you, especially financial details on your tax returns, employment, bank statements, divorce decrees or any of the other papers that you are required to submit should they come up?
2) if the CO is finding some issues with the application, do you feel that they will adequately instruct your spouse about what those issues are and would you want to be there in that case to ask additional questions of the CO?

In my situation, I attended the interview and the petition had a name check hit and was going to need to be sent to administrative review. The CO then asked my wife whether I was her husband and then asked that she talk to me. She then thoroughly explained to me what was going on. Had I not been there I would have really been concerned. At that point we had waited 9 months for the interview.

We have since been granted the visa so it all worked out, but I would always recommend that spouses attend. Since it is not required, it is your call. A lot of spousal visas are granted without the USC attending.

Greg

gstern comments on DCF Timing

Just got one It is 6 months, yes.

gstern comments on U.S. Visa Interview process question-investigation by U.S. Embassy

there is a difference Don't you think there is a difference between saying that Colombia is a major narcotics trafficking country and all Colombians are narcotics traffickers? Dude, I am just trying to help you out by explaining how I think that the COs think. And as sure as the sun rises in the morning, they are thinking about this.

Go to the consulate yourself. Look at all the posters about not being a "mula." See similar posters at the airports and on billboards. Three of the times that I have traveled back from Bogota I was detained by the Colombian police at the airport so my stomach could be x-rayed (and I am an executive in the high-tech industry). Drug trafficking is a fact of life.

I never said all Colombians are traffickers. I have been to Colombia 9 times in the last 2 years, never saw any drugs anywhere and met what I consider to be the most wonderful race of people in all my travels around the world.

But denying that narcotics trafficking would be high on the list in the mind of the CO is just plain silly. Of course that is just my opinion.

I do wish you the best of luck though!

Greg

gstern comments on Dealing with Col. consulates, specifically NYC and Chicago

SF FWIW I found the consulate in San Francisco exceptionally good, professional and responsive. They answered my emails within 24 hours, answered the phone and addressed questions and issued my visa same day. Nothing but excellent service in SF.

Greg

gstern comments on What can I expect after being informed by USCIS that my packet is being sent?

sent where Your packet has been approved by the NVC and sent on to Bogota? If so, within a couple weeks your wife will recieve Packet 3 from the Consulate with a number of forms that she is required to complete and return to the consulate. It also contains a long list of documents that are going to be required at the consulate. She needs to sign a form that says she has all the documents ready before they will accept the package back and sachedule an appointment.

After that she will recieve Packet 4 which contains an interview date. This is typically 4-6 weeks after the letter is sent. More details can be found here:
http://www.visajourney.com/consulates/Bogota-Colombia.htm

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on U.S. Visa Interview process question-investigation by U.S. Embassy

my guess Imagine you are a consular officer charged with making critical decisions on who gets visas from a country notoroius for trafficking narcotics to the US. You are charged with two things primarily: do not grant visas to drug traffickers and do not grant visas to anyone you suspect will not return home to Colombia.

Someone comes to your window to renew their visa, that person is recently unemployed, has lots of money in the bank, more than makes sense to you and also has a US bank account. Hmmmmm, sounds like some drug trafficking is going on there. Best to investigate before granting a visa.

Then her boyfriend starts calling and emailing the consulate or shows up wanting to vouch for her. OK, he is an American, but what do we know about him? He could be a trafficker too. And anyway, now that she has admitted to having a love interest in the US, you no longer have confidence that even if her funds are legit that she will return to Colombia. You think she wants to go to the US to circumvent the K1 or K3 visa.

Bottom-line: I think you should let their investigation run its course. Even if it turns up clean, they may still not grant a visa given her employment status. And telling them you are her boyfriend/fiancee is doubly certain to get any visa rejected.

That is my opinion anyway.

At least Colombia is a short plane ride from Miami and reasonably priced. You can visit her.

Best-

Greg

gstern comments on Irritated! (a Colombian reply)

Hysterical I love this thread! And I agree with about all of it (and I am an American).

HOWEVER, I have to take issue with the comments about drivers and driving. How a Colombian could find drivers in the USA bad is unfathomable to me. After 8 trips to Colombia over the last 2 years, about the ONLY thing I hate about Colombia is the driving.

- Turning right from the left hand lane
- Turning left from the right hand lane
- Trying to run over pedestrians desperately trying to cross the street (hey, you don't want want to be delayed another 3 seconds by letting someone cross, after all, everyone is SO punctual in Colombia, you can't afford to lose the time)
- Buses swerving in and out of traffic
- Passing around blind curves in the mountains, if someone is coming the other way, everyone is dead
- No apparent rules whatsoever except for the rule of the jungle: "survival of the fittest"

On one recent trip my wife and I were in a taxi on a pretty open avenue on a Sunday, the only day in Bogota where there is very little traffic. Of course the taxi driver was driving like a madman going down the empty streets at high speeds. Anyway, there was a family with small children trying to cross the road on their bicycles far up the road. What did the taxi driver do? He sped up of course! More points if you can kill small children!!! And kept going faster and faster and I am thinking, OK, when is he going to slow or brake, but he keeps speeding up. The father puts his hand up to the taxi driver to tell him to slow, but he continues until I was sure this family was going to be on our windshield and I just lost it and started screaming profanities at him at which time he SLAMMED on the brakes and narrowly missed killing them.

Why? Open road, no traffic other lane he could have moved to. But he was determined to wipe them out. Bizarre. And this is only the worst of the situations I have seen, there are a myriad of other smaller ones.

gstern comments on i need some help from anyone who is willing to answer some questions about Colombia

My input... You really should do more research, but here would be the short form on what I would say. You can use my items as a basis for more research...

Q: What do you like most about Colombia?
A: The vast majority of Colombians are warm, friendly and loving. I have traveled all over the world and like Colombians the best.

Q: How are traditions different in Colombia than in the U.S.?
A: Colombians are much more family and community oriented. People know their neighbors and know them well. Families are a central fixure of social life. For instance it is not unusual for children to wait until they are married to leave their parents house even if they remain unmarried into their 30s.


Q: What is the music like?
A: Wonderful and varied. There are a number of styles unique to Colombia. See the Wikipedia link for a full list.


Q: What kinds of foods have the Colombians made that has passed on their tradition to others?
A: Don't know. The food is great but I don't see it here in California.


Q: What do you like least about Colombia?
A: I struggle with seeing the poverty, especially children who scrape out a living on the streets at a very young age. I also find the traffic insufferable (and I grew up in LA!) and the driving rules completely inscrutable.


Q: What is Colombia best known for?
A: Well, it should be best known for coffee, fashion, flowers, tropical fruit, vallenato, cumbia, emeralds, Shakira and Juanes, but unfortunately ask 100 people on the streets what their impression of Colombia is and 100 will tell you cocaine. The problems with narcotics trafficking seem to eclipse everything else. It is really unfortunate.


Q: What is a typical day like in Colombia?
A: I have never lived there.


Q: What kinds of things can you do in Colombia?
A: The major cities have much the same features as those in any industrialized country. Movies, clubs, swimming, gyms, parks, shopping centers, etc. There are also beaches, lakes, islands, mountains, etc. In fact the countryside is quite beautiful and were it not problems related to nartcotics trafficking and the civil war, I would venture that Colombia would be a very popular tourist destination.


Q: Why would people want to visit Colombia?
A: See above


Q: Is living in Colombia hard? Why or why not?
A: It is a developing country with all of the economic challenges that go with that. Finding work can be very difficult, even for the well-educated. However, food and shelter is relatively inexpensive as is transportation. Net-net I would say that it is harder to live in Colombia than in the USA, HOWEVER, if you do have a good-paying job in Colombia, you live much better than you do in the USA.


Q: What are some good qualities of Colombia?
A: see above


Q: What are the bad qualities of Colombia?
A: see above


Q: How have other countries had and effect on Colombia?
A: Worldwide demand for drugs has damaged her.


Q: How has Colombia had effects on other countries?
A: Again, I would say that the most profound impact that Colombia has on the world relates to narcotics trafficking. It would be great to say that music or coffee has a more profound impact on the world, but that would be a hard argument to make given all the problems with illicit drugs.


Q: What type of government is Colombia run by?
A: see wikipedia


Q: Is Colombia very sport orientated?
A: Yes, they are nuts about sports. see wikipedia


Q: What is main transportation in Colombia?
A: see wikipedia


Q: Is there a lot of poverty?
A: yes, there is.


Q: What is the currency in Colombia?
A: see wikipedia

gstern comments on i need some help from anyone who is willing to answer some questions about Colombia

Here is a good resource Wikipedia has a weath of information on Colombia that can help you:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colombia

gstern comments on Question about Visa Packets. K-3

Some addl fees Since I used an attorney, I did not personally receive all of the papers, but I certainly remember needing to send the State Department $400 per visa and also needing to fill out an I-864 and some other papers.

So give them your address in the US and you will recieve further instructions. Once those are reviewed for completeness then they are forwarded on to the consulate.

Greg

gstern comments on Tourist Visa Pending for Professional Study Tour??

If you are really interested... You can read this testimony on the subject given by the FBI to Congress. It is actually very easy to read:

http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress03/hardy102303.htm

-Greg

gstern comments on Tourist Visa Pending for Professional Study Tour??

Name check hit Hi-

I have done a lot of research on these-type situations. 99% probability that his name and birthdate are the same or similar to someone on the FBI's criminal list. Typical turnound time to clear him is 1-2 weeks, though it can go a lot longer.

Greg

gstern comments on Marriage and tax (wife in Col, husband in US)

I have a f**ked up situation We had our interview on Jan 26, but my stepson's name came up in an FBI name-check hit. Not too unusual with so many common names in Colombia, but he had to have follow-up fingerprinting so we are awaiting clearance of those.

It is now almost 3 months after the interview and no news yet. I have done a TON of research about this on the Web, incuding State Dept files, Congressional testimony and immigration law documents. It is kind of a no-mans land, unfortunately.

The State Department (and by extension the Consulate) is required by law to hold visa issuance until cleared by the FBI. Not being a law enforcement agency, they are prohibited from getting any details about the case from the FBI. Either it clears or it doesn't.

On the FBI side, there is apparently a way to get at the files through a Freedom Of Information request, but that requires signature of the person investigating and that they be at a US address (my stepson is obviously still in Colombia). From what I have heard, neither my congressperson nor my senator can help either, they cannot receive police data either.

The only thing to do is wait, and then if that takes too long a time there is some ombudsman in Washington that could theoretically help. The thing is, even if I could get at the files of the criminal that the FBI is investigating, there is no process for proactively proving that the person isn't the same person. The FBI has to make that determination and then after that there is some sort of appeals process.

My best hope is that the FBI has a copy of the criminal's fingerprints so that it will be obvious that there is no match.

It sucks, but it seems there is nothing that can be done at this point. Even the consulate can't help.

My attorney told me that he runs into this occassionally and that most cases are cleared in 4-8 weeks (it has been 4 weeks since the follow-up fingerprinting) but that his worst case ever took 13 months to clear.

Wish me luck! (thank God for VoIP and webcams, at least...)

gstern comments on Marriage and tax (wife in Col, husband in US)

Thanks! Great idea, I will have her sign the tax return the next time I am in Colombia. There is no way that I would even send such a document via Fed Ex as Colombia customs seems to open nearly every package that I send her for inspection. Too much information on there like social security numbers and income.

gstern comments on Marriage and tax (wife in Col, husband in US)

re: process Hi-

I filed for both and both have been approved (CR-1 & K-3) and are at the consulat. We were married in a civil ceremony and filed within about a month of the wedding. We are using a lawyer, yes.

Greg

gstern comments on How best to present my fiance's name (two last names)

Make it identical Her cedula, birth certificate, baptismal papers, and passport should all be identical. Make sure you use her name exactly as it is on those documents. That is the only was to be truly safe.

If those documents aren't all the same, you have another problem.

gstern comments on Steps to bring Relatives to US

It is hard It is very hard to get tourist visas for Colombians, though who gets them is often hard to fathom. The fact that your husband is here likely only makes the situation more difficult.

The consulate's job is to distinguish who is likely to return to Colombia after their visit and who is not. If there is any doubt at all that they will return, a visa is not granted. The burden of proof is on the individual seeking the visa.

You don't say anything about their economic situation. That is the most important factor they consider.

The process to apply is not particularly onerous and you have nothing to lose by trying. Just don't get your hopes up too much unless the family is very wealthy.

Information on applying is on the Bogota consulate's website.

gstern comments on Travel visa

Information can be found here As Gator mentioned, there are some high hurdles to pass in order to have any chance of getting a visa. Assuming that the person who wants the visa qualifies by owning real estate, having a good paying and steady job and lots of money in the bank, the waiting time for appointments is about three months according to the consulate. More information can be found straight from the horse's mouth here:

http://bogota.usembassy.gov/wwwsnive.shtml

gstern comments on Married to a Colombiana

You need 5x the poverty guideline Folks, be careful here. The law is VERY specific. If you have a job you fall into the 125% category, and even then they can probably give you a hard time if you just got a job and your past income tax returns are under the 125% rule. If you DON'T have a job, the 125% rule totally changes. In that case you need to show that you have 5X the 125% poverty guideline. In other words, if the 125% guideline in your case (depending on how many dependents) is $15,000, you need $75,000 in cash, stock, or real estate equity.

See form I-864 instructions for the specific wording on this, "evidence of assets" section.

Bufalo - were you working and over the 125% guideline or were you not working and only had assets over the 125% guideline? Just curious.

Greg

gstern comments on Where can a Colombian travel without a visa?

Things have chenged The rules on visas seem to be dramatically changing over the last couple years, so what worked just 2 years ago may very well not work today. I remember going on this site some 6 months ago since my parents want to go to Spain with me and my Colombian wife. When I looked up EU countries, as long as a Colombian had US residency, no visa was required. Now all of them require it (well, that is how I remember the results of my search going, I could have read the infoe wrong...)

Delta Airlines maintains a really cool application where you plug in your nationality and residency and where you want to go and it tells you the requirements.

Aruba now requires a visa for Colombians.

http://www.delta.com/travel/trav_serv/intl_travel/timatic/index.jsp

Greg

gstern comments on

tambien Que hubo? (sp?) Que mas? A donde anda?

gstern comments on Is she too smiley for the I-129F petition?

gamble? You can take your chances and risk having the file sent back to you or rejected at some point, or you can direct your girlfriend to have an official photo taken at a place that makes these professionally and have the photos mailed to you. Photos & FedEx cost combined would be about $40.

Given that any hiccup in the visa issuance process is time-consuming, I would recommend you have a pro take care of this.

gstern comments on

13 weeks? That would not be optimistic, I think it would qualify for a new world record. Has anyone ever gotten through this in less than 6 months?

I would say from the visa discussion boards I frequent that K1 is typically about 9 months, give or take a couple and K3 is 9-12 months.

Personally, I am at 10 months on a K-3 right now.

Greg

gstern comments on Poorer and Very Unhappy

But can't you fix the problem? As I understand the regulations, you have 1 year to fix any paperwork problems and have the visa process reinstated. What documentation and/or instructions did the consulate give you?

gstern comments on K1 process APPROVED

Biggest hurdle? Congratulations! That is great news.

However... having been through this and monitoring lots of immigration boards, I would not agree that this is the hardest step. By far the hardest step is clearing the consular interview.

Also, you realize that this is just the first step, right? You are still anywhere from 4-12 months away from having a visa.

Good luck!

Greg

gstern comments on Interesting interaction with US Consulate

Figured it out... I figured it out! The Internet is truly a wonderful thing. I found a PDF on the department of state website that has instructions to consular officers.

In essence, my son's name has come up as a name match on the FBI's list. For this reason they need to take a more extensive set of fingerprints and do more fingerprint matching and charge $85 for that.

The good news is that now I know what is going on and that their investigation will turn up negative since the kid has never left Colombia and never had any trouble with police.

The bad news is more wait time...

gstern comments on Interesting interaction with US Consulate

At some point... Hi Jeff-

I would (and will) get my congressman involved when there is a reason to. At this point, all I would do is frustrate the system and create ill will towards my petition. The consulate is doing their job exactly as they are supposed to: checking up on any names that come up as flagged or suspicious. There is nothing my congressman can do about that. In fact I am sure my congressman would agree that the investigation needs to run its course.

Now if we are rejected at some point because of mistaken identity, then at that point it would be time to get my congressman involved. Or if it stretches out many more months...

Thanks!

Greg

gstern comments on Interesting interaction with US Consulate

Wow! Interesting. That sort of confirms what I thought. Well, at least now (since July) the Bogota consulate has electronic fingerprinting systems. So someone could steal his identity but not his fingerprints, so I would imagine it will get cleared all get cleared up. The only question is how long will it take...

gstern comments on Interesting interaction with US Consulate

nope That is a really interesting list! Thanks!

No one with his name is on that list.

While I am bummed out that this keeps going on and on, there is one thing I know: when the consulate wants to say "no visa" they don't normally take a long time to say it. They would normally just reject the visa petition at the first interview. They didn't do that. Our interrview was in mid-January so they have had 6 weeks to reject it already.

Thanks!

Greg

gstern comments on Bogota Band "Skampida" in Today's Miami Herald and the Story of their "American Journey"

Well that is funny While I certainly concur with the depiction of immigrant life in the US, I have to say that it is a little odd given that my wife (a Bogatana) is a first cousin the the lead singer in this band. She has been talking to him several times in the last couple weeks. He says he loves the US and is really enjoying his time.

The big excitement of the moment is that they have been invited to perform at the huge Calle 8 music festival next month.

Of course he could just be telling her he is loving it which isn't the truth...

Greg

gstern comments on Marriage in Col: new info from Houston consulate

Since when did you need a tourist visa? Hi-

I was married in Colombia about a year ago. At the time you needed a special visa to get married in Colombia because in essence you are entering into a contractual agreement with your spouse and when you enter without a visa you are essentially a "tourist" and prohibited from entering into contracts. The visa they gave me wasn't a tourist visa, it was a visa specifically for this purpose.

Are you sure you asked the right question? Did the consulate specifically say you need no visa at all? Another source you should check is to ask your spouse to go to the notary you will use in Colombia for the marriage license and ask them what you need for them to be able to process the certificate.

It'd be a real drag to go there without the proper visa and then not be able to get the license.

Greg