BuckyBob's Blog - Technical Considerations for NVC Electronic Processing

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 23:44:08 +0000

So you gots an I-130 in play, it's made it's way into NVC, and you've been considering NVC electronic processing.

MOSTLY, yer gonna have to play a hit-and-miss game with NVC, to get the casefile switched over to electronic processing.

Sure, there's an email address to use.

Sure, there's a phone number you can call, to request electronic processing.

But - you have to be pro-active.

Historically, NVC would NOT assign a Consulate Case Number (GUZ/GZO) without having a DS-3032 in their hands.

For the first few months of the the pilot program, it was enough to simply call. Now, it's not 'simply enough' .

What to do ? Here's my recommendations for OPT-IN :

1. call NVC, get a human, find out your GUZ case number.
2. prep your OPT IN Email - see http://travel.state.gov/visa/visa_4410.html
2. get the PDF fillable version of the DS-3032 at http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/80023.pdf
3. fill it out, print it, sign it, rescan it back in, convert to pdf , then email to NVCGuangzhou@state.gov

There's some confusion about signing the form, but since it has a signature block, I'm a fan of signing and re-scanning and converting to PDF.

There's a 'text email version' of a DS-3032 , viewable over at VJ, that a lot of folk (no no, not so many GUZ filers) have used in the past. Alas, that's not what I'm talking about.

There's a 'fillable PDF' version of the DS-3032 - and it's possible to EMAIL it, but...

Unless you have the right version of Adobe Acrobat Reader, anything you save to it will be lost.

BUT !!!!

There's another option, useful not ONLY for the DS-3032......

and that is - to PRINT the filled out form (in a PDF reader PGM) to YET ANOTHER PDF file.

What is this, you ask ?

You'll need to install, on your computer, a PDF print driver, that will capture any PRINTER OUTPUT to 'yet another' PDF file. I like CutePDF.

If you don't have scanning software that scans to PDF format, you have a workaround...

1. Scan to low-res TIFF, even multipage TIFF.
2. Open with irfanview ( http://www.irfanview.com ) and PRINT to PDF output using cutepdf (see http://www.cutepdf.com )

I don't use Adobe for anything - its bloatware on most of my systems, so I use Foxit, instead ( see http://www.foxitsoftware.com )

Now - the other forms, DS-230 and I-864, require signatures. The easiest way to 'get it done' is to fill out the 'fillable form', print it out, then rescan it with a scanner or Multi-Function Unit that can scan.

Scanning is tedious - especially if you don't know what you're doing.

Most Email packages have limitations to 'file attachments' - somewhere between 2 megabytes, 10 megabytes, and 50 megabytes. That Inbox at NVC can handle about 30 megabytes per email - so you need to plan ahead a bit....

First - when scanning - each scanning software package has OPTIONS for 'type of scan' , 'resolution', and 'depth'. If you're lucky, you have an option to scan directly INTO PDF format, multi-page, at a lower resolution (75 to 100 dpi)

If it's a signature'd form - I suggest that you scan it in as a B/W photograph, at 150 DPI, with a depth of 2 (a depth of 2 is totally binary, 0 or 1, no gradients at all... who needs gradients on a form, after all? It's either black or white, not need that other stuff).

If it's evidence for the I-864 - scan it in around 100 DPI, as a photo, save as TIFF MULTI=PAGE initially. Once you have the TIFF file format, open it with IRFAN view, and then print it out with your PDF printer driver to a multi-page pdf file.

The I-864 is a 19 page document, but you will only need to handle pages 12-19 of the form- the first 11 pages are instructions.

The DS-230 is a 4 page document, requires signatures and chinese characters - see http://travel.state.gov/pdf/DS-0230.pdf for the download.
Ideally, you've handled this form whilst you were in China - and your spouse has filled in the Chinese Characters section. If that's the case, simply SCAN it back in, email it to your personal email , save it for later.

If that's NOT the case -
I suggest you fill out as much as possible, print it out, and then take the chinese portions (from another word document file, print it out, cut it out from the paper), use some glue stick and glue it in. Sign the form where YOU need to sign it. Scan it in again. Email it to your spouse , ask her to print it out, sign her name, and rescan it, then email it back to you.

'Original Documents' Otherwise known as 'White Books' - there are 3 -
1. Police Report
2. Birth Certificate
3. Marriage Certificate

Scan those in - I suggest multi-page TIFF unless your scanner software supports PDF output. If you use multi-page TIFF, convert to PDF using the steps above (see DS-3032 section ).

BuckyBob's Blog - Proving up a BonaFide Relationship for I-130

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:02:07 +0000

So - you've married your Chinese lass, and you're filing an I-130.
IMO, you need to front-load your initial petition filing with as much
relationship evidence as you can - as the USCIS people will see this evidence, the evidence gets bundled up at NVC and sent to GUZ, and the GUZ personnel SEE this relationship evidence prior to interview day.

Personally, I can't imagine WHY one would not 'front-load' the relationship evidence. If you're using a lawyer and ask about this - and they have NO CLUE - then it's a red flag about that lawyer's 'current knowledge' on the I-130.

I had used the instructions from the I-130 - which contain this:

Quote

1. Documentation showing joint ownership or property; or
2. A lease showing joint tenancy of a common residence; or
3. Documentation showing co-mingling of financial resources; or
4. Birth certificate(s) of child(ren) born to you, the petitioner, and your spouse together; or
5. Affidavits sworn to or affirmed by third parties having personal knowledge of the bona fides of the marital relationship (Each affidavit must contain the full name and address, date and place of birth of the person making the affidavit, his or her relationship to the petitioner or beneficiary, if any, and complete information and details explaining how the person acquired his or herknowledge of your marriage); or
6. Any other relevant documentation to establish that there is an ongoing marital union.

So that was my basis of info.

For me, I redid the lease on The Rustic Cracker Farm™ for both of our names, got all the utilities in both of our names. When I tried to get a joint bank account in the USA - I found it d@mned near impossible because of the Patriot Act. Others have been able to do it, though; seems to depend on your personal relationship with your banker OR that bank's ability and willingness to handle a signature card from yer lass.

I got her a paypal debit card in her name, tied into my paypal business account.

I had her added in as a beneficiary on any 'Payable On Death' Instructions for various accounts.

I have a photo stack, about 80 photos, in a glassine portfolio (20 sheets, so is 40 viewable sheets, 20 of wedding photos, 60 of us and her family). It's about 1/2 inch thick.

I have all the phone logs going back to day 0, in the form of telephone bills - That stack is about 3 inches thick now.

I printed out a chat log history and the chat logs - I pared it back to 2 inches o chat logs, the history file was about 22 pages. (single line per day)

I had 10 affadavits prepared, 5 by her friends in Wuhan, 5 by my friends in Houston.

I made color scans and color printouts of my passport, then took it in to my bank who notarized each set for free.

Of course, I've kept all the receipts of all money transfers, copies of these were included as well.

Anyway, that's my stuff, feel free to use it as any example.

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BuckyBob's Blog - Technical Considerations for NVC Electronic Processing

BuckyBob's Blog - Proving up a BonaFide Relationship for I-130