Police Background Check And Medical Exam For Wife

[scottydel]

Hello,

37-year-old American here. Starting the application for a CR-1 Visa for my partner. I believe there is a police background check and medical exam required by the U.S. Embassy prior to her eventual interview. As I'm sure we all know the Immigrant Visa process takes months, and her interview won't be for months. But in the mean time, can we get the police background check and medical exam done ahead of time? Or do we have to wait until the Embassy contacts her and they provide more details then.

If we can get those done early, are there any guidelines as to how to get them done? i.e. Is there a specific document or form that must be filled out by the police department or a doctor? Does it then have to be translated into English? Authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? Any parameters as to what's acceptable vs. not acceptable? Sorry that's too many questions in a row

Any help would be appreciated. I leave for America in 6 weeks, and getting these done while I'm here would be a big help, rather than having my partner do it herself while I'm gone. She's from a small village that doesn't even have a police department or full-service hospital.

Thanks,

Scott

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Scott

Do hope you have someone lined up to help her out with the paperwork that'll follow when she gets the pre-package from the U.S. Embassy, lots of forms to be filled in, I believe, bio and such. All in English, of course. Reckon this'll be more of a problem than the medical check and police clearance.

Mac

[tripplejjj]

Scott,

I have just completed the IR1 for my wife. I started with the I-130 (Immigrant Visa Petition) in late April and received the Imm Visa today (September). The whole process took less than 6 months. See the links below for every thing that you need to know about the process. There are lots of reading and you must pay close attention to the instructions and follow them. My advice is to do one form at a time. If the forms ask for supporting documents (tax, marriage, birth, divorce certificates, etc., then get them). The process is fairly simple but it has many forms to fill out that asked about historic data of both my wife and me. I completed all the forms because they were in English.

http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/immigrant_visas/packets.html
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.5af9bb95919f35e66f614176543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=c67c7f9ded54d010VgnVCM10000048f3d6a1RCRD&vgnextchannel=db029c7755cb9010VgnVCM10000045f3d6a1RCRD

Q. Can we get the police background check and medical exam done ahead of time?

A. The exam and background check are good for one year. It took my wife one day to do the medical checkup. It took 5 days before my wife got her police background check letter. You can do the medical early but not the police background check. The police background check requires a letter from the Embassy.

Q. If we can get those done early, are there any guidelines as to how to get them done? i.e. Is there a specific document or form that must be filled out by the police department or a doctor? Any parameters as to what's acceptable vs. not acceptable?

A. Yes

For Police background check, please see Instruction Package for "IV" Visa Applicants (IV Packet 3)

http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/root/pdfs/thaipoliceapr09.pdf

For Medical check, please see Appointment Package for "IV" Visa Applicants (IV Packet 4)

http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/root/pdfs/med_instructions_apr11.pdf
http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/root/pdfs/medexamforms_apr11.pdf

Q. Does it then have to be translated into English?

A. No. The US Embassy does not require any documents that are in Thai to be translated into English. However, any documents not in English would need to be translated into English. And when doing the I-130, all documents not in English would also need to be translated into English.

Q. Authorized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?

A. No (just the Thai marriage paper and certificate for translation into English)

Note: If you do not reside in Thailand, then you can not submit the I-130 at the US Embassy.

WASHINGTON - Effective Aug. 15, 2011, petitioners residing in countries without USCIS offices must file their Form I-130, Petition for an Alien Relative, with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) lockbox facility in Chicago. This change makes the filing process more efficient and gives USCIS greater flexibility in managing its workload. Petitioners residing in a country with a USCIS office may send their petitions to the USCIS Chicago lockbox, or file at the USCIS office in that country.

BTW, start taking lots of picture of you and the wife together every where to show evidence of bona fides marriage (legitimate relationship). Also, since you two are married, you need to get her the Tax ID and do the taxes. I don't know your background so I'm going blind. If you need further help, just message me.

Differences Between IR1 and CR1 Visas

• IR1 (IR stands for "Immediate Relative") Visas entitle their holder to receive Permanent Residency within the United States for a period of 10 years (may be renewed)
• CR1 (CR stands for "Conditional Residency") Visas entitle their holder to receive "Conditional" Permanent Residency within the United States for a period of 2 years

The deciding factor on which visa an applicant is issued (IR1 versus CR1 visa) is the amount of time that they have been married at the time the visa is issued. If an applicant has been married to their US Citizen spouse for a period of two years or greater they will be issued an IR1 Visa. If they have been married less than two years vending machines they will be issued a CR1 Visa. A CR1 Visa will result in the applicant obtaining "conditional" permanent residency within the US and after a period of two years the applicant can apply to "Remove Conditions" 90 days before the conditional permanent resident card expires and they will be issued a regular 10 year green card.

Evidence of bona fides marriage

(include as many as apply to you)

• Affidavit from petitioner and beneficiary verifying the marriage or relationship
• Affidavit from witnesses to the relationship/marriage (parents, siblings, other relatives, close friends)
• Wedding announcements
• Church certificate
• Wedding pictures
• Joint bank account letter (when opened and balance) and recent statements
• Joint credit card statement - including receipts from charges made by both of you
• Joint federal and state tax returns
• Evidence of joint life and cohabitation: monthly bills, insurance, assets etc.
• A deed showing co-ownership of your property or a lease agreement with both of your names on the lease
• Phone bills showing your conversations
• Transcripts of IM chats or Skype calls
• Copies of letters and/or e-mails
• Copies of holiday cards addressed to you both
• Birth certificate of any child that has been born to your marriage
• Airline ticket receipts showing trips taken together or to visit each other -- including boarding passes
• Copies of the passport stamps from any visits to your spouse's country
• Pictures of you together on vacation and/or with family and friends. It's best to include a range of times, not just a bunch of photos from a short period of time

Edited September 7, 2011 by tripplejjj

[tripplejjj]

Q. Does it then have to be translated into English?

A. No. The US Embassy does not require any documents that are in Thai to be translated into English. However, any documents not in English would need to be translated into English. And when doing the I-130, all documents not in English would also need to be translated into English.

Correction:

Q. Does it then have to be translated into English?

A. No. The US Embassy does not require any documents that are in Thai to be translated into English. However, any documents not in Thai would need to be translated into English. And when doing the I-130, all documents not in English would also need to be translated into English.

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Scott,

The deciding factor on which visa an applicant is issued (IR1 versus CR1 visa) is the amount of time that they have been married at the time the visa is issued. If an applicant has been married to their US Citizen spouse for a period of two years or greater they will be issued an IR1 Visa. If they have been married less than two years vending machines they will be issued a CR1 Visa. A CR1 Visa will result in the applicant obtaining "conditional" permanent residency within the US and after a period of two years the applicant can apply to "Remove Conditions" 90 days before the conditional permanent resident card expires and they will be issued a regular 10 year green card.

One Q here, how, pray tell, did "vending machines" get into your comment???

Mac

[PoorSucker]

http://pcscenter.sb.police.go.th/eprint.html

[scottydel]

Mac - I planned on having her mail the package to me in the states, filling it out for her and mailing it back to her leaving only the places for her signature. Someone else recommended this approach. What do you think?

Tripplejjj - Thanks for the detailed reply and links! Very helpful indeed. I will PM you if I think of something else. Congratulations on completing yours in under six months!

PoorSucker - thanks for the link.

Vending Machines !!!!

[tripplejjj]

Mac - I planned on having her mail the package to me in the states, filling it out for her and mailing it back to her leaving only the places for her signature. Someone else recommended this approach. What do you think?

In reality, after you have submitted the I-130 and the biographical data forms, you would get just 2 letters stating that you may proceed with the Imm Visa. The letter from the US Embassy would direct you to download package 3 and send in the forms.

Therefor, a better idea would be to download the packages (3 & 4) now, by using the links I mentioned above, complete the forms, have your wife sign them, and when appropriate, have your wife send them to the US Embassy.

This is how it went in my case. I submitted the I-130 and the biographical forms across the street from the US Embassy on April 26. I then left to the States. On 15 May, I instructed my wife to do the medical check thinking that it would take several weeks when in fact it only took one day. By the end of May, my wife got a letter telling her to proceed with package 3. With the letter, she was able to get the police background check. Five days later, we received the police background check letter. (Prior to sending in the I-130, I have already completed the I-864 (Affidavit of Support). The I-864 requires me to submit my 2010 tax that I got from the IRS.)

http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=232168,00.html

Within days, my wife sent in the required documents in Package 3. By the end of June, we got an email from the US Embassy to complete Package 4. Two days later, my wife completed the requirements in Package 4 and sent a letter to the US Embassy notifying them that she was ready for an interview. By 14 July, my wife and I received an email from the US Embassy informing her of the appointment for the interview. I then returned to Thailand. And you know the rest.

Total Day: 135 days.

Edited September 8, 2011 by tripplejjj

[tripplejjj]

Scott,

The deciding factor on which visa an applicant is issued (IR1 versus CR1 visa) is the amount of time that they have been married at the time the visa is issued. If an applicant has been married to their US Citizen spouse for a period of two years or greater they will be issued an IR1 Visa. If they have been married less than two years vending machines they will be issued a CR1 Visa. A CR1 Visa will result in the applicant obtaining "conditional" permanent residency within the US and after a period of two years the applicant can apply to "Remove Conditions" 90 days before the conditional permanent resident card expires and they will be issued a regular 10 year green card.

One Q here, how, pray tell, did "vending machines" get into your comment???

Mac

I quoted text came from another source. I did not want to link it here since the US Embassy website should be the only source so not to add to the confusion.

I suppose "vending machines" was in reference to "bride to order" type arrangement.

Edited September 8, 2011 by tripplejjj

[gpdjohn]

Wife and I just completed her AOS here in the States. ( Pretty darn easy too.. )

Great website for all your US Immigration needs is visa journey dot com. A do it your self-er.

Good luck to you.

[wildoates]

I am in the process now, we did the Police check before the letter form the embassy, just tell them you forgot it, they will let her do it....

[JRinPDX]

If I'd only known, I could have simply used a vending machine! :-)

Seriously, congratulations on doing this in less than 6 months. We started filing with Homeland Security for a US Fiancee visa in early Feb. Police records took forever, not the promised 7-10 days and we submitted paperwork to the embassy in July. We are just now getting an interview date in mid-Oct. I recommend patience. My understanding it that the embassy is swamped with requests, is likely understaffed. I'm not sure if your situation is similar but we've submitted something like 4 lbs. of photos, email and chat transcripts, etc. And I think there are only a couple of doctors in the whole country who are okayed to do the medical exam. Not a light undertaking. We are using a local (BKK) attorney who has been amazingly helpful.. With this amount of time and effort, I thought it better than doing it myself and risking having to start over due to an oversight.

[scottydel]

Tripplejjj,

Thanks again for the sound advice. I will download packets 3 and 4 aheaad of time and we will fill them out and wait until they are requested.

Thanks!

-Scott