Thomas Conroy

I'm looking for any advice or info.

On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American) applied for a
visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.

Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how long it will
take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that the whole
system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.

In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date, which is May
17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for the green
card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?

Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about this would
be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Tom

Hnchoksi

    >Subject: I129F Fiancee Visa question
    >From: "Thomas Conroy" [email protected]
    >Date: 3/11/03 2:15 PM Eastern Standard Time
    >Message-id:
    >I'm looking for any advice or info.
    >On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American) applied for a
    >visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    >Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how long it will
    >take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that the whole
    >system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    >In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date, which is May
    >17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for the green
    >card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    >Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about this would
    >be greatly appreciated.
    >Thanks
If you get married before the visa is approved, you will not be able to use
it. You will then have to apply for a spouse visa. Better rethink your date.

ssh

Check out the marriage based visa part of the forum. There is lots of information about the Fiance visa, waiting times, etc.

stevelisaw

as you are using usenet.....try :
alt.visa.us.marriage-based .....this newsgroup is specifically for marriage based visa......spousal & fiancé

Thomas Conroy

"ssh" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Check out the marriage based visa part of the forum. There is lots of
    > information about the Fiance visa, waiting times, etc.
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com
Thanks. I'll check this out.

Thomas Conroy

"stevelisaw" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Originally posted by Thomas Conroy
    > > I'm looking for any advice or info.
    > >
    > > On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American)
    > > applied for a
    > > visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    > >
    > > Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how
    > > long it will
    > > take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that
    > > the whole
    > > system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    > >
    > > In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date,
    > > which is May
    > > 17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for
    > > the green
    > > card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    > >
    > > Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about
    > > this would
    > > be greatly appreciated.
    > >
    > > Thanks
    > >
    > > Tom
    > as you are using usenet.....try :
    > alt.visa.us.marriage-based .....this newsgroup is specifically for
    > marriage based visa......spousal & fiancé
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Thanks for the info. I'll check this out.

Steve

See if you can do a Direct Consular Filing of I-130 at US Embassy in
Canada, and if you can, get married there and file it. She can be here
in less than 2-3 months.

stevelisaw wrote:
    > Originally posted by Thomas Conroy
    >
    >>I'm looking for any advice or info.
    >>On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American)
    >>applied for a
    >>visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    >>Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how
    >>long it will
    >>take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that
    >>the whole
    >>system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    >>In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date,
    >>which is May
    >>17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for
    >>the green
    >>card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    >>Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about
    >>this would
    >>be greatly appreciated.
    >>Thanks
    >>Tom
    >
    > as you are using usenet.....try :
    > alt.visa.us.marriage-based .....this newsgroup is specifically for
    > marriage based visa......spousal & fiancé
    >
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Steve

Sounds like you need a lot of advice. You are dreaming about May 17
date to get her here with Fiance visa. Get civily married there,
(depending on whether you can do DCF), and then have another big
ceremony here (or there) after she gets visa. Doing the DCF is your
only hope of anything soon, but you MUST check with the US embassy in
her area to see if they will do it. Also, she can come and visit with
you while you wait, so you are in much better shape than me when my WIFE
can't even get a tourist visa to come see me (I work, she doesn') while
we wait.

stevelisaw wrote:
    > Originally posted by Thomas Conroy
    >
    >>I'm looking for any advice or info.
    >>On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American)
    >>applied for a
    >>visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    >>Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how
    >>long it will
    >>take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that
    >>the whole
    >>system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    >>In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date,
    >>which is May
    >>17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for
    >>the green
    >>card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    >>Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about
    >>this would
    >>be greatly appreciated.
    >>Thanks
    >>Tom
    >
    > as you are using usenet.....try :
    > alt.visa.us.marriage-based .....this newsgroup is specifically for
    > marriage based visa......spousal & fiancé
    >
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

Sylvia Ottemoeller

DCF is not available in Canada. The I-130 must be filed at an INS Service
Center.

"Steve" wrote in message
news:[email protected]...

    > See if you can do a Direct Consular Filing of I-130 at US Embassy in
    > Canada, and if you can, get married there and file it. She can be here
    > in less than 2-3 months.
    > stevelisaw wrote:

    > > Originally posted by Thomas Conroy
    > >
    > >>I'm looking for any advice or info.
    > >>
    > >>On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American) applied for a
    > >>visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    > >>
    > >>Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how long it will
    > >>take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that the
whole
    > >>system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    > >>
    > >>In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date, which is
May
    > >>17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for the green
    > >>card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    > >>
    > >>Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about this
would
    > >>be greatly appreciated.

Karen Lore

Tom,

Where did you apply? If you had filed in Nebraska, they are totally backlogged
right now. At the end of January 2003, I was advised they were were working on
July, 2002 applications. My friend applied in August, 2002 and just received
her package (Feb/03) to get her medicals done and is now awaiting her consulate
interview which is the easy part.

If you are filing in the service centre that deals with California, they're only
backlogged 2 months, so that's pretty good.

Good luck!

Karen :-)

Thomas Conroy wrote:

    > I'm looking for any advice or info.
    > On Jan 6, 2003, my fiance (a Canadian) and I (an American) applied for a
    > visa so that we can be legally married this year in the U.S.
    > Right now, we are not getting a definite time frame for how long it will
    > take to process our application. The one thing I was told is that the whole
    > system is "backlogged" and therefore experiencing delays.
    > In the meantime, we have already invested in our wedding date, which is May
    > 17th. Can we even marry then, if we haven't been approved for the green
    > card? If so, how long can my fiancee be in the U.S.?
    > Any advice or information, or even just some encouragement, about this would
    > be greatly appreciated.
    > Thanks
    > Tom

Pete

Karen Lore wrote in message news:...
    > Where did you apply? If you had filed in Nebraska, they are totally backlogged
    > right now. At the end of January 2003, I was advised they were were working on
    > July, 2002 applications. My friend applied in August, 2002 and just received
    > her package (Feb/03) to get her medicals done and is now awaiting her consulate
    > interview which is the easy part.
    >

I've been doing a lot of searching and talking to people lately (I am
engaged to a woman outside of the US) and I am not claiming any
insider info, this is just an FYI - It seems that these "backlogs" are
not as true as you might think from what they have posted. I have
talked to a couple of people going through Nebraska who have gotten
thier I-129Fs processed in 3 months recently - at a time when the
backlog showed just over 6 months. They have not had thier inverviews
yet...is that part of the 6 months too? Of course they were both from
Canada...but I would still like to know how that is. I think Vermont
is showing about a month presently...are they transfering the work
between sites?

Pete

Karen Lore

They got lucky then. I posted what I experienced (Canadian fiancee) and what I was
told by my Canadian and US immigration attorneys.

After their I-129F is approved, their file is transferred to the local visa office
where the fiancee lives. The local office then sends the fiancee a package requesting
medicals and other info. Once the medical test is done, a consulate appointment is
scheduled, which is usually pretty quick.

BTW, the interview finally happened March 25/03 and the visa granted (8 months from
initial filing in Nebraska for a Seattle destination).

They don't transfer these applications between sites; each filing centre is
responsible for certain states. It would make our lives a lot easier if we could pick
a centre with a smaller workload that would expedite processing.

Good luck!

Karen :-)

Pete wrote:

    > Karen Lore wrote in message news:...
    > > Where did you apply? If you had filed in Nebraska, they are totally backlogged
    > > right now. At the end of January 2003, I was advised they were were working on
    > > July, 2002 applications. My friend applied in August, 2002 and just received
    > > her package (Feb/03) to get her medicals done and is now awaiting her consulate
    > > interview which is the easy part.
    > >
    > I've been doing a lot of searching and talking to people lately (I am
    > engaged to a woman outside of the US) and I am not claiming any
    > insider info, this is just an FYI - It seems that these "backlogs" are
    > not as true as you might think from what they have posted. I have
    > talked to a couple of people going through Nebraska who have gotten
    > thier I-129Fs processed in 3 months recently - at a time when the
    > backlog showed just over 6 months. They have not had thier inverviews
    > yet...is that part of the 6 months too? Of course they were both from
    > Canada...but I would still like to know how that is. I think Vermont
    > is showing about a month presently...are they transfering the work
    > between sites?
    > Pete