brooce

Thanks for making the distinction on visa types.

Just to clarify the eligibility to file in Sydney, my USC wife will need to have an Australian visa with at least 6 months validity, not have been resident in Oz for 6 months, correct?

This is how I interpreted the information on the Oz-US consulate website, though it did refer to 3rd Country Nationals...

ian-mstm

She *must* be in Oz (regardless of status) for 6 months to qualify to DCF... if she's not, she's ineligible to file.


Sadly, no.


Completely understandable. That said, be prepared to be out of work for at least 4 months once you arrive in the US... longer if you're not moving to a large urban area.

Ian

snowbunny

God bless the Amsterdam Consulate. If we hadn't had the option open then I would have gone nuts. USCIS is heartless....

brooce: it usually takes some time to find employment here unless you already have something lined up. Bear that in mind.

brooce

Sorry if I sound like a broken record, but you say *must* be in Oz for 6 months.

Do you mean:

a) Have been in Oz for 6 continuous months prior to DCF to be eligible to file.

or

b) Be legally allowed to stay in Oz for at least 6 continuous months to be eligible to file.

I fear you mean the a), but can I ask where you got the information?

I've been 'round and around the consulate site to find this in writing, but all I've found was information regarding 3rd country applicants.

Other forums (visajourney.com) indicate that there is no residency requirement at all for USC to DCF and they can in fact leave the country once they've filed the I-130.

So forgive me for the repetitive nature of my questioning, but I am keen to find the official source of this information.

Regarding employment, I'm and engineer and already have a SSN and business contacts in my previous travels in the US, so we're covered, so long as I have legal right to work. The eagerness is merely to minimize expenditure of our collective savings.

brooce

Don't worry, I found it finally...

It's a) and we don't meet the residency requirement.

How the hell does anyone get to actually live with the USC spouse in a timely fashion IN the US?????

Thanks for your help guys,

Steven

ian-mstm

This one... she can be a resident or a non-resident... it doesn't really matter... but she must have been *in* the country for 6 months in order to be eligible to file. Once DCF is filed, she can leave. This info comes from a USCIS memo circulated earlier this year, and reflects a change in process. I don't have the link handy, but I'm sure someone else will provide it.

Ian

snowbunny

They don't.

It won't help you to know that until what, a year ago? there wasn't a residency requirement and your wife could have flown in and applied via DCF the day she set foot in Australia. (The residency requirements were different for different countries based upon that embassy/consulate's decisions.) That's what you're hearing on visajourney.com. I flew to Amsterdam to DCF for my husband about two years ago because they also had no residency requirement. It was still expensive and we were still separated, but "only" for 4.5 months.

Unless your wife can live with you in Australia long enough to satisfy the residency period, then essentially you choose between being together and working.

PS: I'm a native-born American and I detest this system. Bad enough as it is, but the decision to end the last remaining shortcut (DCF by non-resident) really pissed me off.

brooce

Well, at least we know now...

Another scenario: If my USC wife came to live with me in the UK, where I currently reside, can she still file the I-130 in the US, (being that you can mail the form to the US service centres, and not have to appear in person) and reside with me till approved?

PS: To keep her legal, she'd be here on a student visa, myself a HSMP visa.

Noorah101

Yes, your wife is allowed to remain in whatever country with you, in some kind of legal status, while the process is ongoing. She should have someone checking her mail in the USA, because along the way she will receive important documents to fill out and return to NVC in the USA, before the case gets transferred to your country.

Be aware that she will still need to qualify for the Affidavit of Support (form I-864) or have a joint sponsor in mind if her income doesn't qualify (or your joint incomes or assets don't qualify).

Rene

marcsred

Ian,

You are absolutely incorrect on this one. She MUST be a RESIDENT for 6 months PRIOR to filing the DCF. It DOES matter, as if she is here for 6 months on a student, holiday, or working holiday visa, she is not allowed to submit the application. It states this clearly on the website, and it was stated clearly to our faces about 2 hours ago when we were told to get stuffed by the US Consulate General in Perth. So if you have the USCIS Memo handy, you would be our personal saviour. But the status of permanent resident being a requirement is current as of 8:30 a.m. in Perth.

I have been living in Australia for 7 months on a student visa. My husband and I were married in Perth. NONE OF THAT MATTERS, as the first thing they say is, "And you've been an Australian permanent resident for at least 6 months?" To which, unless you are, you must answer, "No," and they slide your paperwork back to you and with a big, disgusting grin say, "I'm sorry, your status MUST have been that of a permanent resident for at least the past 6 months."

We actually went to the Consulate and tried our hand because you had said to just give it a shot, as it's a case by case basis. I can directly tell anyone on here that there IS no shot, nor a case by case basis unless you have an emergency. Being a newly married couple and not wanting to be apart for 12 months does not constitute an emergency to the US Consulate. We were there for another hour pleading our case, and the answer was still no.

SO, unless your spouse has been an Australian RESIDENT for at least 6 months prior to lodging the DCF, there is NO point in even going to the Consulate in Perth, unless you feel like wasting 4 hours of your day. Perth doesn't even have any say in anything, they just forward applications to Sydney, and Sydney makes the decisions. So if you feel like pleading your case, you need to convince the Perth office to forward copies to Sydney, and then try to contact Sydney and get them to bend the rules for you.

If you have a copy of that memo, or the link to the official site stating that being a resident is neither here nor there, you would make me and my new husband the happiest people in the entire universe.

marcsred

Are there any countries where my husband (a British citizen and Australian permanent resident - soon to be citizen) and I (an American citizen), who were married in Australia, can go to submit the DCF? If we submitted it in that country, does that mean he'd also have to return there to do his interview? Would we have to stay there for any length of time, or just for a day to lodge the application?

Noorah101

Not to my knowledge, not anymore. It seems to me it became a universal requirement for the USC to be resident for at least 6 months in that country, in order to qualify for DCF there. Whatever country that might be. DCF worldwide went through a few changes this year, and the end result was that decision...USC must be resident in that country for 6+ months to qualify for DCF.

Rene

snowbunny

There's an exception allowed for "humanitarian purposes" and Amsterdam used to consider *ALL* DCFs for family reunification a "humanitarian purpose." However, different countries have differing rules on what constistutes "residency" to start that 6-month clock ticking. In general, it's having a non-tourist visa all the way through permanent residency/indefinite leave to remain.

brooce

Here is the link, I'm so sorry you're having so much trouble, it really is heart breaking. My partner and I are in the exact same boat. Nearly seems like we have less rights as a married couple, at least in the eyes of USCIS.

I-130 filing abroad

ian-mstm

I'm sorry to hear you had troubles... but this is the bit I remembered from the link posted that seems on point: "The Department of State will generally consider a U.S. citizen who has been living outside the United States for at least six months as "residing overseas" for purposes of accepting Form I-130."

Good luck to you.

Ian