A few questions in regards to prepping for the interview

[Teto00]

I started prepping for the interview and gathering stuff into a binder s i have two questions that came up .

1. When I take screenshots of all our conversations since we started dating, since all our conversations are in spanish, do you think it would be helpful for me to translate our messages or should I assume they have an officer who will do that

2. Hoe early should i get the affidavits ready before the interview? Would it make more sense to get them ready a month before the interview or now?

3. My wife is currently enrolled in english classes as her first language is spanish so I was thinking that it would be best to use a translator if she doesnt feel ready for the interview? any concerns in doing this?

Thanks for the feedback in advance.

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

I started prepping for the interview and gathering stuff into a binder s i have two questions that came up .

1. When I take screenshots of all our conversations since we started dating, since all our conversations are in spanish, do you think it would be helpful for me to translate our messages or should I assume they have an officer who will do that

2. Hoe early should i get the affidavits ready before the interview? Would it make more sense to get them ready a month before the interview or now?

3. My wife is currently enrolled in english classes as her first language is spanish so I was thinking that it would be best to use a translator if she doesnt feel ready for the interview? any concerns in doing this?

Thanks for the feedback in advance.

Teto00,

1. They will not translate for you or assign your case to an officer who speaks Spanish because your text messagess are in Spanish. I would translate SOME but not ALL. I would probably print as many as you can but would translate a few conversations for everything. I would also focus on messages that you can tie to an outing, a celebration, and most importantly, a receipt. By showing a receipt you are giving your evidence more weight.

You would need to double check on this. I THINK USCIS prefers that someone other than the petitioner or beneficiary do the translations. It does not have to be a certified translator. The person just has to attest in writing that they are fluent in both languages, etc.

2. Affidavits carry the least weight. To add value to them folks should reference specific times that they spent time with you two as a couple. If there are pictures of the occasion, text messages and receipts, all the better. I would probably give folks the heads up and provide them with good examples of what they can reference and as soon as USCIS schedules your interview, then they can provide them. It's up to you. There are plenty of articulate examples online. *You can google those.

3. I would strongly recommend that you hire an interpreter that is familiar with marriage based immigration interviews. The Yes/No questions are complex and that may throw off your wife. Hiring an interpreter does not cast doubts upon the bona fide nature of your relationship. Perhaps you two communicate well because you speak Spanish, etc. It is best to have an interpreter if your wife does not comfortably function at the native speaker level YET. To be clear, they will not allow a spouse petitioner to translate. It has to be someone other than the petitioner. If you opt to bring an attorney, I am also not sure IF the attorney may interpret for your wife. You would have to double check on that.

All the best,

USCFFS

[Teto00]

Teto00,

1. They will not translate for you or assign your case to an officer who speaks Spanish because your text messagess are in Spanish. I would translate SOME but not ALL. I would probably print as many as you can but would translate a few conversations for everything. I would also focus on messages that you can tie to an outing, a celebration, and most importantly, a receipt. By showing a receipt you are giving your evidence more weight.

You would need to double check on this. I THINK USCIS prefers that someone other than the petitioner or beneficiary do the translations. It does not have to be a certified translator. The person just has to attest in writing that they are fluent in both languages, etc.

2. Affidavits carry the least weight. To add value to them folks should reference specific times that they spent time with you two as a couple. If there are pictures of the occasion, text messages and receipts, all the better. I would probably give folks the heads up and provide them with good examples of what they can reference and as soon as USCIS schedules your interview, then they can provide them. It's up to you. There are plenty of articulate examples online. *You can google those.

3. I would strongly recommend that you hire an interpreter that is familiar with marriage based immigration interviews. The Yes/No questions are complex and that may throw off your wife. Hiring an interpreter does not cast doubts upon the bona fide nature of your relationship. Perhaps you two communicate well because you speak Spanish, etc. It is best to have an interpreter if your wife does not comfortably function at the native speaker level YET. To be clear, they will not allow a spouse petitioner to translate. It has to be someone other than the petitioner. If you opt to bring an attorney, I am also not sure IF the attorney may interpret for your wife. You would have to double check on that.

we didnt up marrying a little close to 4 months after the stay tho so not sure what counts for the 60/90 rule.

All the best,

USCFFS

First of all -

I apologize for the comment in the other thread. You're not bad and sorry for taking that message in a negative way!

and thank you for your inputs. I'll make sure to include the screenshots and perhaps the translation next to each message for some of the screenshots.

I want to show receipts for the rings i purchased but i'm a little worry they will speculate something since i purchased the rings roughly 40 days after she was visiting. Again - our marriage was something we had no plans to do as she had visited the states multiple times on her B2 visa(before we were dating) and when she came to stay during her university vacations we just decided we wanted to be together! and totally something we had not forseen. Really would like to show this purchase since this was a pretty big purchase hehe. Like too big it took me 6 months to pay off.

Thanks for your inputs.

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

First of all -

I apologize for the comment in the other thread. You're not bad and sorry for taking that message in a negative way!

and thank you for your inputs. I'll make sure to include the screenshots and perhaps the translation next to each message for some of the screenshots.

I want to show receipts for the rings i purchased but i'm a little worry they will speculate something since i purchased the rings roughly 40 days after she was visiting. Again - our marriage was something we had no plans to do as she had visited the states multiple times on her B2 visa(before we were dating) and when she came to stay during her university vacations we just decided we wanted to be together! and totally something we had not forseen. Really would like to show this purchase since this was a pretty big purchase hehe. Like too big it took me 6 months to pay off.

Thanks for your inputs.

Apology accepted! It was not necessary but thank you for it. It is water under the bridge!

Regarding the ring, I do not think there is anything that they can speculate out of your purchase. You had plans to propose. That does not translate into her lying to a CBP officer at the Port of Entry. She entered the US with the intention to visit. That is where that ends. She had no way of knowing that you were going to propose! Put a positive spin on it. Choosing AOS was an after-thought! Does that make sense? So I would definitely show the purchase and how it took you 6 months to pay for it. I think that speaks volumes. And when it comes up at the interview, your wife should show the ring to the officer, smile and say something nice about it. That will seal the deal.

Her intent at the Port of Entry is a snapshop of her intentions AT THAT TIME. If plans change later, well, that's life. No one can corner you and accuse you two of fraud. Besides, here is the thing with that... they can accuse you all they want BUT you have to break and declare/admit to intentionally committing fraud. So there's that. They actually have people sign a statement admitting to fraud. That makes me laugh.

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

I think I just read of someone in Baltimore getting scheduled quickly. You are doing the right thing by preparing early. Focus on showing the longevity of your relationship AND on concrete evidence of bona fide marriage.

You may have already seen this thread, but here it goes again. https://www.immihelp.com/forum/showt...480#post591480

[polkaparty]

I started prepping for the interview and gathering stuff into a binder s i have two questions that came up .

1. When I take screenshots of all our conversations since we started dating, since all our conversations are in spanish, do you think it would be helpful for me to translate our messages or should I assume they have an officer who will do that

2. Hoe early should i get the affidavits ready before the interview? Would it make more sense to get them ready a month before the interview or now?

3. My wife is currently enrolled in english classes as her first language is spanish so I was thinking that it would be best to use a translator if she doesnt feel ready for the interview? any concerns in doing this?

Thanks for the feedback in advance.

We too had the same question re: translation of conversations and the consensus on the forum was to have some of them translated. Like you, all of our text conversations were in Spanish (over a 5 year period)--well over 1,000 pages of texts. I simply chose a page from each year of our relationship, translated them, and had a bilingual friend certify the translation. Perhaps we should have sent more, but we have so much other documentation plus we can bring print outs of the whole conversations with us to the interview, whenever that may be. We just sent our package 10 days ago, so we'll see. Best of luck to you!

[Teto00]

We too had the same question re: translation of conversations and the consensus on the forum was to have some of them translated. Like you, all of our text conversations were in Spanish (over a 5 year period)--well over 1,000 pages of texts. I simply chose a page from each year of our relationship, translated them, and had a bilingual friend certify the translation. Perhaps we should have sent more, but we have so much other documentation plus we can bring print outs of the whole conversations with us to the interview, whenever that may be. We just sent our package 10 days ago, so we'll see. Best of luck to you!

Interesting. Thanks for the info.


How do you certify a translation?

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Apology accepted! It was not necessary but thank you for it. It is water under the bridge!

Regarding the ring, I do not think there is anything that they can speculate out of your purchase. You had plans to propose. That does not translate into her lying to a CBP officer at the Port of Entry. She entered the US with the intention to visit. That is where that ends. She had no way of knowing that you were going to propose! Put a positive spin on it. Choosing AOS was an after-thought! Does that make sense? So I would definitely show the purchase and how it took you 6 months to pay for it. I think that speaks volumes. And when it comes up at the interview, your wife should show the ring to the officer, smile and say something nice about it. That will seal the deal.

Her intent at the Port of Entry is a snapshop of her intentions AT THAT TIME. If plans change later, well, that's life. No one can corner you and accuse you two of fraud. Besides, here is the thing with that... they can accuse you all they want BUT you have to break and declare/admit to intentionally committing fraud. So there's that. They actually have people sign a statement admitting to fraud. That makes me laugh.

Yeah I agree it wasn’t necessary. Thanks let’s leave that under the bridge !

All the input is appreciated it. I get better answers from you and this forum than my lawyer.

Hopefully I’ll hear soon about the combo card or interview being scheduled !

[polkaparty]

Interesting. Thanks for the info.


How do you certify a translation?

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This is what I found online and assume it's valid:

Certification of Translator
I, YYYY ZZZ, certify that I am fluent in English and Spanish, and that this document is an accurate translation of the documents attached entitled YYYY YYYY X.

Signature_________
Typed Name
Date
Address

[UScitizenFilingforspouse]

This is what I found online and assume it's valid:

Certification of Translator
I, YYYY ZZZ, certify that I am fluent in English and Spanish, and that this document is an accurate translation of the documents attached entitled YYYY YYYY X.

Signature_________
Typed Name
Date
Address

Yup, it can be as simple as that. You do not need to pay.

[Teto00]

Yup, it can be as simple as that. You do not need to pay.

Thank you both.