End of the road

[JohnB]

Gerry,
best of all in life with you & Fiona. I was looking at "End of the road (Read 22773 times)" and I think your China journey most interesting. Maybe longer than Marco Polo! (He ended up marrying an Italian woman when he returned to Italy. He must of been one ugly dude not to have captivated a China woman.)
Hope your grand journey continues the course.
John

[Pineau]

If it weren't for bad luck Id have no luck at all..  Got the visa packet in my hand.
There is a letter in the packet saying if we have not reached our 2 year anniversary then we need to file for adjustment of status.

well guess what? we are short by one day. we were married in China on December 10th.  when we arrive in Los Angeles it will December 9th  Los Angeles time. If we had waited ONE MORE DAY we would not need to file the AOS at al and she would receive her green card immediately.

Does anyone know...Does this mean we need to wait another 2 years to get here green card? 
Or does she receive the green card on our 2 year anniversary (the day after we arrive)?

Here is an interest thought but I dont know if i will take the chance and get her deported.
We were married December 10th 2010 China time). We arrive in Los Angeles on December 10th 2012 (china time). Our two year anniversary.


I just checked the arrival time in LA.. It's 4.5 hours too early.

[Pineau]

well I got lucky for a change.  I was able to change the reservation one day for $50 per ticket. So a $100 insures we arrive in the USA on our 2 year anniversary.
 

[Robertt S]

That will be a close call, because the arrival time at the POE AND the CBP agent will both figure into that equation. The agent can actually go either way when deciding which stamp to use CR/1 or IR/1. They will use arrival time/date in the USA when making the decision though!   Good Luck, Robert

P.S. It will take about 45 days for her greencard to arrive in the mail, they will stamp her passport with her visa type that serves as the greencard until the actual card arrives.

[Arnold]

Here I thought, the Perm. Green Card only is approved being "Here" in the States 2 years and after applying for it 90 days before her Temp. is to expire?

[Pineau]

Robertt,
 We arrive in LA at 7"30 in the evening (only 4.5 hours for midnight) .  I hope the decision falls my way.

Arnold, That is true if you have been married less than 2 years when she first arrives in America.

[Willy The Londoner]

Gerry, It is just one more river to cross!

The final hurdle to lifelong happiness in the place you call home.

You have gone too far to worry about a minor hiccup that may not or may not happen, (I thought that I was the forum pessimist).  But what if it does, you will still be together in the USA while it sorts itself out. The Green Card is not the signal for true love to continue to flow. The green card will come when the time is right. 

But do not get too excited about the 10th arriving, I mean, like me you are not getting any younger. Enjoy these last couple of weeks in China.

Willy

[Pineau]

The Road leads home.
Leaving and returning home with my wife.
Thank god that is over.


Saying goodbye to China !

TAXI !

[Pineau]

It was a harrowing experience but Fiona's feet are firmly planted on USA soil. 
bags overweight and extra bag...$200
airport security finding my brass knuckles in  her carry on....a hundred more gray hairs.
Being interrogated for an hour by US immigration "secondary inspection" at LAX. ... One missed flight and a near heart attack.

Fiona's face when they finally released us from immigration control and she stepped onto the sidewalk at LAX....Priceless.

[Pineau]

Let me share a little of the trip home. Just the ending....
We Finally get to LAX and head to go through passport/immigration control.
She was allowed to go with me through the US citizens queue.
The man checked our passports a couple of times and just when it looked like he was going to stamp them and send us on our way he asked to see my passport again. Then he gathered up everything and told us to follow him to another room.  Its called "secondary inspection" and I have never noticed it before. He handed our stuff over to a clerk there and we were told to sit down and wait to be called.  I could see one of the officers reading through our file and checking the computer and counting on his fingers. I had no idea what he was doing and this entire process was a total surprise to me.  After about 20 minutes he cam over and got my wife and took her back to his desk and started to interrogate her.  After another 30 minutes I got up and walked over and asked is there anything I can do to help. I was told ominously that I would have my turen and to go back and sit down until they were finished with her ( another officer had joined in the interrogation).
Finally he brought here back and she was made to sit while they interrogated me. I was asked how we met, how may wives I had before, how many children and on and on . All were the same questions they had asked her both in Guangzhou and during this surprise interrogation here. I cant imagine what was going on with all the questioning and cross checking after all Guangzhou had already approved her and issued her a immigrant VISA.  And what would they have done if she had come alone and I was not here to crosscheck. I think they were verifying her answers to the questions with the answers she had given in Guangzhou.  And since I was here might as well cross check my answers to the same question.

I was very frightened and was imagining that they were going to put her back on the plane and send her home to China.  Afterwards he brought our passports back  and said we were free to go.  Just before I left I asked him what was that all about. H replied it was just business as usual and they do it with all new marriages.  I am not sure I believe him but I don't have a choice. 

At any rate it caused us to miss our connecting flight and we are hang out in a dark secluded part of Thomas Bradly terminal and wont be home until about 1:pm tomorrow.

oh yes.. If her case is class CR1 then she will only get a 2 year green card regardless.

[maxx]

Gerry glad to hear that you and your wife made it threw immigration.No that was not business as usual.They were taking another shot at you and your wife.My guess is that they are still mad about the letter you sent to the congressman.The good news is she is in country now.And it will take a act of congress for them to deport your wife.They can still mess with you for a couple of years.But it isn't to bad.They mite make a couple of home inspections.and at the biometric exam.But that is about all they can do.

Some things you mite want to do to make this go easier for the both of you.Create a history for your wife in the states.A bank account in both your names.A couple of bills in her name.Maybe a subscription to a magazine.A cable bill for Chinese TV.What you are after is.Mail going to you and Fiona's house.In her name.

Gerry in case you don't know Fiona cannot leave the U.S. without the permission to travel form.Or a green card.If she do's you will have to start all over again.The application for the permission to travel will come with the adjustment of status.Make sure that your wife takes both copies if she is going to travel abroad.

Good luck and best wishes.On the rest of your Journey.I heard that Denver may get some snow in a couple of days.So that will be a nice suprise.

[Rhonald]

Gerry welcome to the NOT End of the road but to a new FORK in the road, and welcome to America Fiona. Just wondering, however, since Chinese eat with chop sticks, can they ever reach their own fork in the road? I just hope it is happy trails for the two of you. And Gerry, I hope we can see a picture of you carrying her across that threshold into the home that was waiting a lifetime for the two of you.

[RobertBfrom aust]

Gerry , congratulations to you and Fiona , after many twists and turns you have finally made it to home turf , now once you catch that other plane you can both relax , regards Sujuan and Robert .

[Arnold]

Boy, I could imagine you sweating in that Room. Even I had to go through this "Secondary Inspection" the last time I arrived back from Shanghai (by myself that is), for a reason I don't know? I also went through it in Frankfurt.. and who knows why all of this? Maybe my four trips to China looked suspicious?

Anyway, like Maxx said.. (during the two years) get as much as you can with both your names on it. It made it so much easier with Qing to receive her Perm. Green Card. As you know, I didn't even "Try" to travel back to China and take the risk of anything going wrong... just wait out the two years (I'm sure your not in the mood anyway to rush back soon) for the 10 year Card.

Best wishes for a wonderful Life from here on in!

[David K]

Hey Gerry and Fiona....
Congrats on a job well done. Its not everyone who is prepared to take on
the immigration bureaucracy of ANY country and prevail. Kudos

I remember when Yan passed through Immigration in NZ and was walking
across the hall to the gates to NZ , only to be grilled by a 'floating' INZ
checking officer. She of course spoke little english, so i was very nervous.
But it all worked out, and has continued to work out :-)

You probably already know this, but I took a digital camera camera with us wherever we
went and built up a WEEKLY portfolio of photos, which helped immensely.
There have been a lot of instances here of people seeking residency on the basis
of a relationship, that is not genuine, so INZ are pretty good at picking scams

The best
David and Yan