AOS Experience - New York
May 2nd 2006, 5:25 pm
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
AOS Experience - New York
Hi all,
I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
My wife, a US citizen) and I (Dutch) met each other at the end if 2002.
During my last visit in May 2005, we decided to get married, and at the
end of July 2005, we had our wedding in front of family and friends
with a great lunch party and a great diner party later on for family
and some close friends.
We immediately filed for AOS in August 2005. We hired an attorney to do
all the paper work and filing for us. I am sure we could have done it
eventually without an attorney, but I never regretted the money I spent
on it ($3200) as it gave me and my wife the peace of mind that
everything would be properly filed and handled. And in case something
unexpected would have come up, you know you have an expert who knows
exactly what to do. I have read too many stories about people ending up
in limbo and ending up with an attorney and a heap load of trouble
which could easily have been avoided if they would have had proper
legal counsel.
I went through all the necessary proceedings (being fingerprinting and
medical) and already by the end of September I received my AP. For some
reason the EAD got delayed. In January 2006 I contacted the USCIS as
the 3 months since the receipt notice for my EAD had passed. I got an
appointment scheduled for February 2006, turns out they were missing
biographic information (their fault), so they made an appointment for
the biographics on the same day. In March 2006 I finally received my
EAD.
The delay of my EAD wasn't that bad as financially, both my wife are
fine, but the result was that I couldn't get my SS card earlier than
March. Without any SS Nr, we couldn't open a joint account.
For some reason, USCIS has suddenly speeded up the whole AOS process.
Our lawyer expected our interview no sooner than the end of 2007 or
somewhere in 2008. So, we were quite surprised when got an interview
notice to appear for the interview on May 1st 2006!
The good thing is that my wife and I had already begun documenting our
'marital life', regardless that we didn't expect to be called so
soon.
When we went to the interview, we didn't have much proof yet of
financial intermingling. Our joint bank account was only 1 month old
(due to the delay in the EAD and consequently SS card), our lease was
up for renewal in June so the lease was still only in my wife's name,
my wife's tax filing over 2005 was done as 'Married, filing
separately' as I was regarded a Dutch fiscal resident for 2005, and
did my own filing in the Netherlands over 2005, so we couldn't file
jointly as I would be double taxed.
What we did have was:
� Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
of all family and friends in it.
� An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
correspondence, a lot of pictures, and our itineraries for our upcoming
trip to Holland in July, copies of my wife's and my YMCA membership
for the local YMCA gym and receipts for new furniture (in my name)
delivered to our address.
� A letter from my wife's accountant how he advised under the given
circumstances to file separately.
� A letter from my wife's MD confirming that she consulted him
regarding birth control methods.
� A letter from a neighbor in our apartment building confirming that
my wife and I live together in the apartment.
� A certificate of good conduct from the Dutch justice department.
What we didn't have was explicit evidence of financial intermingling
(e.g., shared assets, life/health insurance, bills) other than a joint
bank account for a month, but given the short time period that is
hardly a surprise. But the USCIS isn't predictable, so we were not
sure if this would be an issue, hence our extensive other
documentation.
Another minor point was that I had to answer 'Yes' on the 'Have
you ever been arrested, cited or fined ....' question as years ago, I
was fined for public drunkenness in Holland. While the misdemeanor
itself was minor (being totally drunk, picked off the street by the
cops, taken to the station to sober up, sent home next morning and
received a fine later by mail), technically it falls under a fine other
than for a traffic violation. If anything, I have learned from a lot of
other cases that concealing a fact, no matter how minor, can land you
up in big trouble. I doubt the fine would show up on a justice record
(as minor misdemeanors and fines will only be kept for a few years),
but there is always the chance that they might. I decided to check the
'Yes' box, and expect the USCIS officer to question me about it.
That's also why I requested for a Certificate of good conduct from
the Dutch justice department where they review your record and issue
you the certificate if you have a good record.
Our appointment was at 9:45am. We arrived at 9, me in my best suit and
the wife equally dressed up. We had all the official documents in an
organized and indexed binder, our albums and all. The surprising thing
is how a lot of people show up in jeans and sneakers, with a ragged
pile of papers and documents in hand. Our attorney arrived at 9:30.
We had to wait until 10:30 before we were called by a female USCIS
officer. She took us and another couple down to another floor, and she
took the other couple first for their interview. The other couple took
almost an hour for their interview.
Shortly before 11:30, we were taken in by the officer for our
interview. We made our oath and sat down. The first thing she wanted to
see was our wedding album, and she browsed through it without asking
any questions.
Next she asked for originals of various documents (Birth certificates,
wedding certificate, tax statements) and took our copies of my wife's
2005 tax filings.
She asked us if we had a joint lease or mortgage, shared utility bills,
bank accounts, life insurance, etc. We provided her with the statement
of the joint bank account, and the big album with all the other
'supporting evidence'. She only took the tenants letter and a view
copies of mail to our address, and said she didn't need to see the
whole album.
She asked me a few brief factual questions "When did you last enter
the US? Were you inspected by a INS officer? Where do you live now?
What is your date and place of birth?", and then turned to the I-485
questions.
When I answered 'Yes' to the 'Arrested, cited or fined'
question, she asked me if I was arrested. I told her how I got a fine
for public drunkenness. She asked me if I it was an arrest or not. I
said that I didn't know, that all I know was that I was taken to the
police station to sober up, and received a fine afterwards. She asked
if I was handcuffed to which I said I don't know (which is true) as
by the time I was as good as passed out, and only recall lying in the
back of a police car. :)
She then asked which 'state' this was in. I guess she assumed this
was in the US, so I said this occurred years ago in the Netherlands.
She then asked me if I was ever arrested or fined inside the US to
which I said 'No'. I handed her the certificate of good conduct
which she briefly looked at, and then put in the file of documents. I
think she actually marked all questions as 'No' as she drew a big
line over all 'No' boxes from all up down to the 'Polygamy'
question.
She didn't ask ANY personal question to my wife or I. Not where and
how we met, no questions about our brands of tooth paste, first names
of family in law, etc. Nothing! Personally I think our appearance (all
dressed up) and being very well prepared (or perhaps being
over-prepared ;)) and being able to swiftly hand over any document she
wanted to see helped. And maybe she was already sold after she saw our
wedding album, as nowhere during the interview I got the impression
that she questioned the bona fides of our marriage. It was all matter
of fact stuff like "Is this your signature?" "Yes". Actually,
that is the ONLY question she asked my wife. Which might be a good
thing as in contrast to me, she was rather nervous.
After about 15 minutes or so, she said that everything was fine, and
asked us to return to the waiting area while she would stamp my
passport and file the paperwork. We thought this would be a small wait,
but 20 minutes later we were still waiting. My attorney assured me that
we shouldn't worry. She gave the decision already away at the end of
the interview, and you're absolutely fine if they do that, so she
might just be doing some filing, document checks or other stuff. Of
course that didn't prevent my wife from getting nervous again, but
after almost half an hour, the officer returned with my stamped
passport, apologized for the delay, and said I should expect my GC in a
couple of weeks and wished us all the best.
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I couldn't keep it any
shorter.
As a final word, here's my brief advice:
- Be honest and upfront. If an officer ask you for something, give a
straight answer and never explain anything unless the officer asks you
to explain it.
Our officer asked me if we had a joint lease or mortgage, and I simply
said 'No'. The same for shared utility bills and insurance. She
didn't ask anything else. I guess she either realizes how in the
given short time it's only normal to have all these things only in my
wife's name, or she didn't think it was a big deal.
- Be properly prepared and keep proper files. Keep all your USCIS
documents, copies, receipts and everything else nicely filed in a
secure place. Having them piled up on a table in your bedroom is not a
'proper file'.
- Make your own checklist of what you need to bring (USCIS
requirements) and a checklist of additional evidence you are going to
bring to the interview. Get a proper binder, and make a little index of
what is where in the binder.
A USCIS officer likes it when you can dish out a document without too
much trouble when she asks for it, he or she doesn't like to hear the
words "Uhmmm, it should be somewhere, let me check" and see you
searching a chaotic pile of papers for something he or she needs to
see. Not to mention they dislike it even more if you fail to bring a
required document. Run your checklist with your husband or wife 2 days
before the interview, and run it again the evening before the interview
to make sure everything that needs to be there is in the binder.
Consider a AOS interview as severe as avoiding a plane crash. Pilots
run checklists before take-off to make sure all the bloody obvious is
as it should be. Check and double check, you don't want to crash your
interview simply because you left your birth certificate at home.
- Document as much as you can. There is no such thing as 'too much
evidence'. Make and keep copies of all mail sent to your address,
bills, cards, etc. Document all your trips including itineraries, car
rental bills, make pictures, keep copies of e-mails. Get letters
confirming your relationship, no matter how 'silly' it may seem to
you.
For example, initially I found the letter from our neighbor a silly
idea. It felt like as if I was being charged, and was just getting
'stupid' letters 'defending' the bloody obvious. You have to
realize a USCIS officer won't see any letter, no matter how silly you
might think it is as some 'admission of guilt and cover up
attempt'. They explicitly ask you to provide as much evidence as you
can to confirm your relationship. They don't mind anything, nay, they
EXPECT you to come up with as much as you an, far sought or not. If
your garbage collector can provide a letter seeing you bring out the
trash together every week, get it! :)
- Get a lawyer. I didn't need one, but still I have no single regret
of the money we spent on it. You don't know on forehand if you might
at some point need one or had wished you had taken one. In hindsight, a
lot of people will say 'we could well have done this without a
lawyer'. Just realize that the majority of people without a lawyer
who run into trouble will say 'I so wish we had taken a lawyer'.
There is no such thing as a 'sure case'. Even the most straight
forward cases can run into trouble, either by a mistake from you, or by
a mistake from the USCIS/
- When you show up for the interview, put some effort in your
appearance. Wear clean and nice clothes. If you have a suit, wear it.
Shave, bathe, use soap, brush your teeth. Appearance isn't everything
, but it can help a lot. At minimum, you're giving the officer a
clear indication that you take the interview and the USCIS serious and
worthy to dress up for. :)
I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
My wife, a US citizen) and I (Dutch) met each other at the end if 2002.
During my last visit in May 2005, we decided to get married, and at the
end of July 2005, we had our wedding in front of family and friends
with a great lunch party and a great diner party later on for family
and some close friends.
We immediately filed for AOS in August 2005. We hired an attorney to do
all the paper work and filing for us. I am sure we could have done it
eventually without an attorney, but I never regretted the money I spent
on it ($3200) as it gave me and my wife the peace of mind that
everything would be properly filed and handled. And in case something
unexpected would have come up, you know you have an expert who knows
exactly what to do. I have read too many stories about people ending up
in limbo and ending up with an attorney and a heap load of trouble
which could easily have been avoided if they would have had proper
legal counsel.
I went through all the necessary proceedings (being fingerprinting and
medical) and already by the end of September I received my AP. For some
reason the EAD got delayed. In January 2006 I contacted the USCIS as
the 3 months since the receipt notice for my EAD had passed. I got an
appointment scheduled for February 2006, turns out they were missing
biographic information (their fault), so they made an appointment for
the biographics on the same day. In March 2006 I finally received my
EAD.
The delay of my EAD wasn't that bad as financially, both my wife are
fine, but the result was that I couldn't get my SS card earlier than
March. Without any SS Nr, we couldn't open a joint account.
For some reason, USCIS has suddenly speeded up the whole AOS process.
Our lawyer expected our interview no sooner than the end of 2007 or
somewhere in 2008. So, we were quite surprised when got an interview
notice to appear for the interview on May 1st 2006!
The good thing is that my wife and I had already begun documenting our
'marital life', regardless that we didn't expect to be called so
soon.
When we went to the interview, we didn't have much proof yet of
financial intermingling. Our joint bank account was only 1 month old
(due to the delay in the EAD and consequently SS card), our lease was
up for renewal in June so the lease was still only in my wife's name,
my wife's tax filing over 2005 was done as 'Married, filing
separately' as I was regarded a Dutch fiscal resident for 2005, and
did my own filing in the Netherlands over 2005, so we couldn't file
jointly as I would be double taxed.
What we did have was:
� Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
of all family and friends in it.
� An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
correspondence, a lot of pictures, and our itineraries for our upcoming
trip to Holland in July, copies of my wife's and my YMCA membership
for the local YMCA gym and receipts for new furniture (in my name)
delivered to our address.
� A letter from my wife's accountant how he advised under the given
circumstances to file separately.
� A letter from my wife's MD confirming that she consulted him
regarding birth control methods.
� A letter from a neighbor in our apartment building confirming that
my wife and I live together in the apartment.
� A certificate of good conduct from the Dutch justice department.
What we didn't have was explicit evidence of financial intermingling
(e.g., shared assets, life/health insurance, bills) other than a joint
bank account for a month, but given the short time period that is
hardly a surprise. But the USCIS isn't predictable, so we were not
sure if this would be an issue, hence our extensive other
documentation.
Another minor point was that I had to answer 'Yes' on the 'Have
you ever been arrested, cited or fined ....' question as years ago, I
was fined for public drunkenness in Holland. While the misdemeanor
itself was minor (being totally drunk, picked off the street by the
cops, taken to the station to sober up, sent home next morning and
received a fine later by mail), technically it falls under a fine other
than for a traffic violation. If anything, I have learned from a lot of
other cases that concealing a fact, no matter how minor, can land you
up in big trouble. I doubt the fine would show up on a justice record
(as minor misdemeanors and fines will only be kept for a few years),
but there is always the chance that they might. I decided to check the
'Yes' box, and expect the USCIS officer to question me about it.
That's also why I requested for a Certificate of good conduct from
the Dutch justice department where they review your record and issue
you the certificate if you have a good record.
Our appointment was at 9:45am. We arrived at 9, me in my best suit and
the wife equally dressed up. We had all the official documents in an
organized and indexed binder, our albums and all. The surprising thing
is how a lot of people show up in jeans and sneakers, with a ragged
pile of papers and documents in hand. Our attorney arrived at 9:30.
We had to wait until 10:30 before we were called by a female USCIS
officer. She took us and another couple down to another floor, and she
took the other couple first for their interview. The other couple took
almost an hour for their interview.
Shortly before 11:30, we were taken in by the officer for our
interview. We made our oath and sat down. The first thing she wanted to
see was our wedding album, and she browsed through it without asking
any questions.
Next she asked for originals of various documents (Birth certificates,
wedding certificate, tax statements) and took our copies of my wife's
2005 tax filings.
She asked us if we had a joint lease or mortgage, shared utility bills,
bank accounts, life insurance, etc. We provided her with the statement
of the joint bank account, and the big album with all the other
'supporting evidence'. She only took the tenants letter and a view
copies of mail to our address, and said she didn't need to see the
whole album.
She asked me a few brief factual questions "When did you last enter
the US? Were you inspected by a INS officer? Where do you live now?
What is your date and place of birth?", and then turned to the I-485
questions.
When I answered 'Yes' to the 'Arrested, cited or fined'
question, she asked me if I was arrested. I told her how I got a fine
for public drunkenness. She asked me if I it was an arrest or not. I
said that I didn't know, that all I know was that I was taken to the
police station to sober up, and received a fine afterwards. She asked
if I was handcuffed to which I said I don't know (which is true) as
by the time I was as good as passed out, and only recall lying in the
back of a police car. :)
She then asked which 'state' this was in. I guess she assumed this
was in the US, so I said this occurred years ago in the Netherlands.
She then asked me if I was ever arrested or fined inside the US to
which I said 'No'. I handed her the certificate of good conduct
which she briefly looked at, and then put in the file of documents. I
think she actually marked all questions as 'No' as she drew a big
line over all 'No' boxes from all up down to the 'Polygamy'
question.
She didn't ask ANY personal question to my wife or I. Not where and
how we met, no questions about our brands of tooth paste, first names
of family in law, etc. Nothing! Personally I think our appearance (all
dressed up) and being very well prepared (or perhaps being
over-prepared ;)) and being able to swiftly hand over any document she
wanted to see helped. And maybe she was already sold after she saw our
wedding album, as nowhere during the interview I got the impression
that she questioned the bona fides of our marriage. It was all matter
of fact stuff like "Is this your signature?" "Yes". Actually,
that is the ONLY question she asked my wife. Which might be a good
thing as in contrast to me, she was rather nervous.
After about 15 minutes or so, she said that everything was fine, and
asked us to return to the waiting area while she would stamp my
passport and file the paperwork. We thought this would be a small wait,
but 20 minutes later we were still waiting. My attorney assured me that
we shouldn't worry. She gave the decision already away at the end of
the interview, and you're absolutely fine if they do that, so she
might just be doing some filing, document checks or other stuff. Of
course that didn't prevent my wife from getting nervous again, but
after almost half an hour, the officer returned with my stamped
passport, apologized for the delay, and said I should expect my GC in a
couple of weeks and wished us all the best.
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I couldn't keep it any
shorter.
As a final word, here's my brief advice:
- Be honest and upfront. If an officer ask you for something, give a
straight answer and never explain anything unless the officer asks you
to explain it.
Our officer asked me if we had a joint lease or mortgage, and I simply
said 'No'. The same for shared utility bills and insurance. She
didn't ask anything else. I guess she either realizes how in the
given short time it's only normal to have all these things only in my
wife's name, or she didn't think it was a big deal.
- Be properly prepared and keep proper files. Keep all your USCIS
documents, copies, receipts and everything else nicely filed in a
secure place. Having them piled up on a table in your bedroom is not a
'proper file'.
- Make your own checklist of what you need to bring (USCIS
requirements) and a checklist of additional evidence you are going to
bring to the interview. Get a proper binder, and make a little index of
what is where in the binder.
A USCIS officer likes it when you can dish out a document without too
much trouble when she asks for it, he or she doesn't like to hear the
words "Uhmmm, it should be somewhere, let me check" and see you
searching a chaotic pile of papers for something he or she needs to
see. Not to mention they dislike it even more if you fail to bring a
required document. Run your checklist with your husband or wife 2 days
before the interview, and run it again the evening before the interview
to make sure everything that needs to be there is in the binder.
Consider a AOS interview as severe as avoiding a plane crash. Pilots
run checklists before take-off to make sure all the bloody obvious is
as it should be. Check and double check, you don't want to crash your
interview simply because you left your birth certificate at home.
- Document as much as you can. There is no such thing as 'too much
evidence'. Make and keep copies of all mail sent to your address,
bills, cards, etc. Document all your trips including itineraries, car
rental bills, make pictures, keep copies of e-mails. Get letters
confirming your relationship, no matter how 'silly' it may seem to
you.
For example, initially I found the letter from our neighbor a silly
idea. It felt like as if I was being charged, and was just getting
'stupid' letters 'defending' the bloody obvious. You have to
realize a USCIS officer won't see any letter, no matter how silly you
might think it is as some 'admission of guilt and cover up
attempt'. They explicitly ask you to provide as much evidence as you
can to confirm your relationship. They don't mind anything, nay, they
EXPECT you to come up with as much as you an, far sought or not. If
your garbage collector can provide a letter seeing you bring out the
trash together every week, get it! :)
- Get a lawyer. I didn't need one, but still I have no single regret
of the money we spent on it. You don't know on forehand if you might
at some point need one or had wished you had taken one. In hindsight, a
lot of people will say 'we could well have done this without a
lawyer'. Just realize that the majority of people without a lawyer
who run into trouble will say 'I so wish we had taken a lawyer'.
There is no such thing as a 'sure case'. Even the most straight
forward cases can run into trouble, either by a mistake from you, or by
a mistake from the USCIS/
- When you show up for the interview, put some effort in your
appearance. Wear clean and nice clothes. If you have a suit, wear it.
Shave, bathe, use soap, brush your teeth. Appearance isn't everything
, but it can help a lot. At minimum, you're giving the officer a
clear indication that you take the interview and the USCIS serious and
worthy to dress up for. :)
May 2nd 2006, 6:49 pm
#2
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2003
Location: Phoenix AZ
Posts: 2,345
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Congratulations....
Van Harte Gefeliciteerd....
Van Harte Gefeliciteerd....
May 2nd 2006, 7:25 pm
#3
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: AOS Experience - New York
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected] oups.com...
Hi all,
>I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
<snip>
>What we did have was:
>� Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
>of all family and friends in it.
>� An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
>Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
>in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
>both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
Thanks for a great report.
Regarding these photographs, I had been lead to believe that trhe Interviwer
would
be interested only in photograpgs (wedding/trips) where the married couple
appeared
together. Was that not the case?
news:[email protected] oups.com...
Hi all,
>I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
<snip>
>What we did have was:
>� Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
>of all family and friends in it.
>� An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
>Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
>in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
>both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
Thanks for a great report.
Regarding these photographs, I had been lead to believe that trhe Interviwer
would
be interested only in photograpgs (wedding/trips) where the married couple
appeared
together. Was that not the case?
May 2nd 2006, 7:54 pm
#4
Mrs. Yank
Joined: Feb 2002
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 352
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by Martijn Vels
I'm sorry for being so long winded, but I couldn't keep it any shorter.
It doesn't matter! In here, all the details are welcome,
your experience could be of interest to someone else!
Congrats - gefeliciflapstaart!!
May 2nd 2006, 8:23 pm
#5
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,392
Re: AOS Experience - New York
No, that is not essentially true. It can be the wedding photographs but each picture does not have to have the bride and groom in it. They also want to see the family members.
Originally Posted by Musashi
<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected] oups.com...
Hi all,
>I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
<snip>
>What we did have was:
>? Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
>of all family and friends in it.
>? An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
>Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
>in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
>both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
Thanks for a great report.
Regarding these photographs, I had been lead to believe that trhe Interviwer
would
be interested only in photograpgs (wedding/trips) where the married couple
appeared
together. Was that not the case?
news:[email protected] oups.com...
Hi all,
>I thought I just share my AOS experience here.
<snip>
>What we did have was:
>? Our wedding album which is really great and has real nice pictures
>of all family and friends in it.
>? An album with all trips we made (holidays inside the US, trips to
>Florida, skiing holidays, thanksgiving at her family, Christmas holiday
>in Holland with my family, etc), mail addressed to her, me and to the
>both of us at our current address, birthday cards, email
Thanks for a great report.
Regarding these photographs, I had been lead to believe that trhe Interviwer
would
be interested only in photograpgs (wedding/trips) where the married couple
appeared
together. Was that not the case?
May 2nd 2006, 8:31 pm
#6
Lapine Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Austin, Texas in my own little world
Posts: 21,691
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by Petra
I guess that's a well known Dutch trait *lol*
We chose to DCF in Amsterdam, so the main money I was out was a week off work + flight + living expenses while in Europe. However, I did consult attorneys while I was considering doing the VWP/AOS for a grand total of $250 or so.
Welcome!
amy
Amerikaanse vrouw
May 2nd 2006, 8:41 pm
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: AOS Experience - New York
The thing with photograps is that they easily provide evidence of
having a social life together
This would generally be the pictures of the both of you on holidays,
trips or just simple fun days at a park or such.
One argument to be made her for bringing rather a gazillion than just a
few is that it is rather easy to ~stage~ just a few pictures in Central
Park together. In case your officer is paranoid, he could raise an
eyebrow if you have just a couple of pictures of the 2 of you together.
Having a shitload of pictures easily establishes that you did spent a
lot of time together. As our lawyer said: There is no such thing as
'too much evidence'.
The other thing is that it they will also easily establish trips to
your respective families and home countries. You need not to appear on
all pictures together to establish that. For example, we had a lot of
pictures of our last trip to Holland, so there's pictures of my wife
with my family, pictures of me and my wife at my mums house, pictures
of my wife in front of the Rijksmuseum (she loves Van Gogh, Rembrand,
Vermeer ;)), etc.
Having a lot of pictures is similar to a family album: Together and
combined they tell a consistent story of your life together and all the
fun stuff you do. Bringing a selection of just a few pictures from a
couple of events just because you appear in the same frame don't tell a
story. They establish simply that you are in the same picture on an
isolated event without any further context.
My wife and I didn't take all pictures we have, but from all trips and
events we deemed relevant, we took a good couple of pictures as to give
some context on the trip itself.
I guess we had overkill as the officer didn't show interest in any of
these after she had seen the wedding album, but having pictures and
making an album isn't that difficult. It just takes time (and a little
money for the prints), and especially pictures of you and your wife
with each other's family on different dates and different events are
priceless assets in any AOS interview.
Chances are that you will never need them (as in our case) as the
officer doesn't have any doubts on the bonafides of the marriage. But
they are great trump cards in case you meet the officer from hell or if
the officer might be finding your other evidence a bit lacking.
having a social life together
This would generally be the pictures of the both of you on holidays,
trips or just simple fun days at a park or such.
One argument to be made her for bringing rather a gazillion than just a
few is that it is rather easy to ~stage~ just a few pictures in Central
Park together. In case your officer is paranoid, he could raise an
eyebrow if you have just a couple of pictures of the 2 of you together.
Having a shitload of pictures easily establishes that you did spent a
lot of time together. As our lawyer said: There is no such thing as
'too much evidence'.
The other thing is that it they will also easily establish trips to
your respective families and home countries. You need not to appear on
all pictures together to establish that. For example, we had a lot of
pictures of our last trip to Holland, so there's pictures of my wife
with my family, pictures of me and my wife at my mums house, pictures
of my wife in front of the Rijksmuseum (she loves Van Gogh, Rembrand,
Vermeer ;)), etc.
Having a lot of pictures is similar to a family album: Together and
combined they tell a consistent story of your life together and all the
fun stuff you do. Bringing a selection of just a few pictures from a
couple of events just because you appear in the same frame don't tell a
story. They establish simply that you are in the same picture on an
isolated event without any further context.
My wife and I didn't take all pictures we have, but from all trips and
events we deemed relevant, we took a good couple of pictures as to give
some context on the trip itself.
I guess we had overkill as the officer didn't show interest in any of
these after she had seen the wedding album, but having pictures and
making an album isn't that difficult. It just takes time (and a little
money for the prints), and especially pictures of you and your wife
with each other's family on different dates and different events are
priceless assets in any AOS interview.
Chances are that you will never need them (as in our case) as the
officer doesn't have any doubts on the bonafides of the marriage. But
they are great trump cards in case you meet the officer from hell or if
the officer might be finding your other evidence a bit lacking.
May 2nd 2006, 8:46 pm
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Thanks for the kind words Petra and Dutchman. :)
Or, as we say in Dutch: "Bedaaahnk vor die bloemuh!" lol
Or, as we say in Dutch: "Bedaaahnk vor die bloemuh!" lol
May 2nd 2006, 9:11 pm
#9
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 327
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Congratulations and thanks for sharing your experience in details, very helpful.
May 4th 2006, 6:25 pm
#10
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Just for kicks, I looked at the process dates:
New York City District office:
I-485 (all) Jan 01, 2004
Vermont Service Center:
I-485: Employment based: April 30, 2005
Either those figures are way out of date, or my wife and I got lucky. :)
New York City District office:
I-485 (all) Jan 01, 2004
Vermont Service Center:
I-485: Employment based: April 30, 2005
Either those figures are way out of date, or my wife and I got lucky. :)
May 4th 2006, 7:59 pm
#11
Lapine Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Austin, Texas in my own little world
Posts: 21,691
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by Martijn
Just for kicks, I looked at the process dates:
New York City District office:
I-485 (all) Jan 01, 2004
Vermont Service Center:
I-485: Employment based: April 30, 2005
Either those figures are way out of date, or my wife and I got lucky.
New York City District office:
I-485 (all) Jan 01, 2004
Vermont Service Center:
I-485: Employment based: April 30, 2005
Either those figures are way out of date, or my wife and I got lucky.
I think the timelines ought to be more equitable.
May 4th 2006, 8:18 pm
#12
Concierge
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,392
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by snowbunny
You're very lucky you were based out of the VSC. I think the timelines ought to be more equitable.
I think the timelines ought to be more equitable.Don't think he had anything to do with the VSC since he married while here as a tourist, married, remained and filed directly with NYC.
May 4th 2006, 8:22 pm
#13
Lapine Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Austin, Texas in my own little world
Posts: 21,691
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by Rete
Don't think he had anything to do with the VSC since he married while here as a tourist, married, remained and filed directly with NYC.
Comment still stands though -- the regional service centres ought to be the same processing time, more or less.
May 4th 2006, 11:00 pm
#14
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: AOS Experience - New York
>Don't think he had anything to do with the VSC since he married while
>here as a tourist, married, remained and filed directly with NYC.
To be honest, I wouldn't know where we filed, as our attorney handled
all that, and I never personally touched or filed anything. :)
I have a question which I don't know if anyone can answer: Are all
applications handled in a first-in-first-out basis?
I could imagine my case would be rather 'easy'. Of course no case is
easy, but I mean that in my case, all indicators are pretty straight
forward green flags: Dutch Citizin with solid job history from a
country low on the marriage fraud scale. USC spouse with a good income,
small age difference, record of regular visits to NY, no troublesome
POE experiences (thus prolly no red marked notes or anything), marriage
well after arrival date, etc.
Now, with the danger of making a blanket racial statement (excuses on
foerhand), if I had the choice between my case, and that of a foreign
born USC (or PR) marrying someone from Nigeria (either K1 or K3), low
income needing joined sponsors, no record of previous visits by foreign
spouse or fiance, etc, I know which application I would prefer to get
out of the basket.
Is this just a silly hyperbole, or would there be a difference in
handling cases based on the initial data they have available?
>here as a tourist, married, remained and filed directly with NYC.
To be honest, I wouldn't know where we filed, as our attorney handled
all that, and I never personally touched or filed anything. :)
I have a question which I don't know if anyone can answer: Are all
applications handled in a first-in-first-out basis?
I could imagine my case would be rather 'easy'. Of course no case is
easy, but I mean that in my case, all indicators are pretty straight
forward green flags: Dutch Citizin with solid job history from a
country low on the marriage fraud scale. USC spouse with a good income,
small age difference, record of regular visits to NY, no troublesome
POE experiences (thus prolly no red marked notes or anything), marriage
well after arrival date, etc.
Now, with the danger of making a blanket racial statement (excuses on
foerhand), if I had the choice between my case, and that of a foreign
born USC (or PR) marrying someone from Nigeria (either K1 or K3), low
income needing joined sponsors, no record of previous visits by foreign
spouse or fiance, etc, I know which application I would prefer to get
out of the basket.
Is this just a silly hyperbole, or would there be a difference in
handling cases based on the initial data they have available?
May 5th 2006, 4:21 am
#15
Lapine Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Austin, Texas in my own little world
Posts: 21,691
Re: AOS Experience - New York
Originally Posted by Martijn
Is this just a silly hyperbole, or would there be a difference in
handling cases based on the initial data they have available?
handling cases based on the initial data they have available?
I am fortunate that my own new husband is Dutch and we could have either taken the route you took or filed in Amsterdam -- which is what we ultimately did.