Visa Woes

So I'm in Perth at the moment trying to apply for a student dependant visa (F-2) so I can be with Vinny while he goes to school in Hawaii. Its been such a long and drawn out process I would never wish it upon anyone! Vinny and I were told by the school (no names this world is too small to pin-point the person but lets just say they are ligit) ANYWAY we were told for me to come in to Hawaii on a tourist visa and get married and the school would help me change my status to an F-2 visa so I was able to stay for the whole year that vinny has left of school. So thats wat we do, although key word here was 'tourist visa'. See, there are two ways you can enter the U.S, a proper 'tourist visa' (B-2) OR a 'waiver' where you can enter the country for 90 days as a tourist but you have to leave, you need to provide documents to show that you have a return ticket out of the country. So here's me thinking well ofcourse they must surely know that Im entering in on a 'waiver', and this will give me 90 days to change my status to F-2, Im also thinking well I know I have to have a return ticket back to Australia but its all good cos I wont need to use it (you can't put a price on love). My worst nightmare was for me having to actually use that return ticket and leave my husband of only 3 months!!

Well 2 months into our marriage we were told that I was not able to change my status to an F-2 visa because I entered in on a Waiver and you cannot change status if you enter in on a Waiver. If I had've gone thru the process, filled out the proper forms and went to the US consulate in Perth and applied for a B-2 (tourist Visa) It wouldve been a totally different story!..so anyway I guess my worst nightmare was actually coming true, I had to leave my husband and return back to auzzie. Honestly when I first found out the news I cried, if only you knew mine and vinny's history in leading up to our wedding you would understand. We had been apart for 20 months before the wedding and I came to Hawaii only 2 days before the actual wedding so there wasn't any time for catching up it was just straight planning and doing last minute errands, then on the plane to Kona to get married. Inside I promised myself never did I want to leave Vinny ever again. When the news came it felt like something in my chest pulling me down, like something caught in the back of my throat and my eyes stinging from tears that wanted to come out. At night it was the worst, I remember one night we were laying there facing each other and I couldnt help it I curled up and he put his arms around me and I just cried...urghhhhhh! Why did things have to be so friggen hard and complicated!!!

I had two weeks to get use to the idea of leaving, plus it wasn't like I was going forever...I knew that I would only be in Auzzie for 2-3 weeks sorting out my proper visa that would allow me to enter the country for the WHOLE time vinny is at school and not just for 90 days. But still!! I felt like I couldnt even keep that promise to myself that I wished sooooooo much that I didnt have to break (never to leave vinny again) man I felt so helpless! Cos as soon as I was told I had to go I just knew.... I had to go and do it the right way..back in Auzzie.

My date was set for monday 29th March at 9.20am and I had all my documents ready, or so I thought I did! I had this checklist that I had printed just to make sure I had everything,

• filled out the DS-120 form online and printed the confirmation page with an uploaded photo, (which sounded technical but totally wasnt!!) check
• did I pay the non-refundable application fee at auzzie post and have the original reciept,check
• do I have my I-20 signed by the school and my husband,check
• have I the correct size photograph taken,check
• have I scheduled an appointment through the VisaPoint service (which gave me the biggest headache trying to accomplish!!) and printed out the confirmation page,check
• have I remembered to bring all of my required supporting documentation (marriage certificate and nz passport with old student visa in it) check
• have I prepared a registered return envelope for the Consulate to return my passport by registered mail,check
• have I read the Consulate's Security Notice,check

I was sooooo ready to go! So how it works is, I get to the Consulate building, I go to the 4th floor where security is waiting to screen me (just like going through security at an airport), I put my phone and bag in a locker, holding all my documents and passport the security guard escorts me to the elevator and inserts his security key to allow me to go to the top floor where the interviews being held. I get to the top floor and another security check is held, the security guard then swipes his key at the entrance door and he opens it and lets me go inside where I sit and wait for my turn to be interviewed. There were about 10 people in the room all together and about 4 people ahead of me in the line, only 2 windows were open. Window 1 is where the actual interview is held by a man, and window 2 is where you first get called to show all your documents to a lady and she tells you if you have all the documents required for the interview or if you are missing some. The girl right before me only got as far as Window 2 and she had to leave because she hadn't filled out a certain form required for the visa that she was applying for, once that happened I really got nervous...what if I didn't realise that I was missing a document? or what if there was a form I didn't know I had to fill out?? I just wasn't sure at all. I had been praying so hard to help me get through okay and to help me not be so nervous. I had fasted Sunday and was going onto my second day of fasting (monday morning)..it was only the morning so I wasn't really feeling the effects of only one meal for the past day and a half so it was fine.

My number gets called up and I approach the lady in window 2. I hand her my VisaPoint confirmation page, then my I-20, then my DS-120 confirmation page, then my auzzie post reciept, then my auzzie passport. I wait......She then asks for my SEVIS fee reciept...my mind is blank...I'm like "my what?" she is like "its a fee you needed to pay online, you would know if you paid it because you need to fill out a form to go along with it" my mind is still blank!! She then goes to a shelf on her side of the window and comes back with a form, by then my face is hot, my heart is pounding and I feel my body go weak I wanted to faint, no..I wanted to cry. She then circles 2 fees I had to pay before I have my interview...I had only paid 1 because I was only aware of 1 fee NOT 2!!! I try to speak but i couldn't, there was no explanation...well there was...but it hurt too much to say the words 'i didnt know' because I knew that those words weren't going to change a thing! So I didnt say anything, she didn't appear to want an explanation anyway she just told me to go have a seat and wait.

I waited, it seemed like forever but I just sat there trying not to cry...im such a big baby! But seriously I had my heart set on getting this visa!! I had to look at the ground and then up at the ceiling to stop the tears from wanting to come out, I also tried to keep my mind occupied so that I didnt have to think about my situation. The man at window 1 calls out my name and I approach him. He looks over my documents that the lady at window 2 had taken from me and prepared them in an orderly way for him to quickly look over and see why I was standing before him. He goes 'oh so you got married, when did you get married?' in a chirpy voice and I'm like "um december, 19th" with a little smile, when people are happy you cant help but get a bit happy yourself. I then show him my marriage certificate. He then goes "I see that you also studied in Hawaii and graduated?", I was then like "yep, in Political science...would you like to see my visa??" he thinks for a second then is like "sure" so I get out my nz passport and show him my old student visa. He then goes "so what are your plans after your husband graduates?" he seemed genuinly interested, it didn't seem like a test at all, and I go "well we want to come back here for sure, I'm not sure about zimbabwe just yet...but we will see" he is then like "yeah" (agreeing and smiling) he then ends "your visa will come in the mail and I will just get you to step aside to the next window to pay your fee" Im like yayyyyyy! I did it!! Huge sigh of relief!! Although I was a little sceptical about getting my visa in the mail knowing that the man didnt ask me about the SEVIS fee I forgot to pay online......I thought...maybe he will come accross the error while doing my paper work and call me back for another interview or something....So i couldn't exactly feel relieved.

It wasn't until that night where I searched online to find out how to pay my SEVIS fee that I found out everything I needed to know, Firstly it costs $200USD!!!! I was like oh my goodness...yeahh now I understand why the lady at the window said 'you would know if you paid this online fee or not' and secondly there are people who are exempt from paying the fee including spouses and children applying for an F-2 visa which was me!!!! Its funny cos that was the point where I was just totally relieved, my guard was down and I just felt like all this weight lifted from my shoulders! I was honestly soooooooooooo relieved to know that I did everything right and I didn't have to worry anymore! I guess the lady at the window saw my application and thought I was applying for an F-1 visa (in which case I would've definitely been screwd at the interview if I hadn't paid!)

In saying all of this the worst is over, I now just have to be patient and enjoy my last days here in Perth before I fly back to my poor husband who is in much need of a good home cooked meal and heaps of hugs and kisses!!! Although he never asks for the hugs and kisses I know he loves them just as much as I love giving them :P Thank you to our friends who have invited him over for a meal and some company he tells me he appreciates them! And thank you for all the prayers and concern for me at this time, it has truly been a long process and as I say I would NEVER wish it upon anyone!!!!

until next time... :)

Distance makes the heart grow fonder

So this is my first time "blogging" and it was much easier than I expected! Im not sure exactly what blog posts are for but it seems to be a good way to keep up with friends and family, and for others to see what kind of shenanigans your getting up to.

My husband Vincent and I only just got married 3 months ago, actually it was our 3 month anniversary on the 19th of March which was two days ago (or one day ago if you are in the US). So I'm in Brisbane right now just chilling at my older sisters house, she lives with her husband, brother in law and his wife and their two children. Im in the middle of a retreat over here in Auzzie to get my visa to enable me to enter back into the US so I can be with my husband again. Im hoping I'll only be here another 2 weeks (I fly to Perth in 2 days).

Anyway! I have no idea how my husband would feel about me creating a blog for the both of us...maybe if I promise him I won't spill any juicy secrets he will be okay with it hehe... I quite like the idea of the two of us sharing something like this, he said he needed a twitter account the other week... I said if he gets a twitter account it has to be something like 'bianca and vincent" hahahaha... I don't feel it should be wrong to share profile pages since now the world legally recognizes us as a couple now, its even written on paper in black and white!

Well Im not sure what else to say except thats us in a nutshell, well not really but I don't want to ramble on, just keep it short and sweet :) Until next time....

Bee and Vinny