DCF question

[ISORW]

Does anyone here know if the 6 month requirement for living in Ukraine for a DCF (Direct Consular Filing) has any conditions attached, such as having  to be gainfully employed there, or needing a business visa or anything like that?  I may have an opportunity to be there for a while (not sure yet) and I'm considering that route if all goes well.

[Jet]

Maybe Muckraker or William3rd can chime in here, but I specifically recall DCF being phased out worldwide.

[ISORW]

I haven't heard of it being phased out, the only change I've heard is that they are being more strict (i.e,. people used to get away with staying in country for less than 6 months).  But then again I could be wrong...

[BC]

To demonstrate residency in a consular district, American Citizen petitioners must be able to show that they have permission to reside in the consular district and that they have been doing so continuously for at least six months before filing the petition. Individuals who are in the country on temporary status, such as students or tourists, would not be considered to meet the residency standard.

http://kiev.usembassy.gov/visa_iv_petition_eng.html

[Turboguy]

I believe it was phased out for a while last year while the instituded ways to incorporate FBI name checks and then it was opened back up.

[BillyB]

Does anyone here know if the 6 month requirement for living in Ukraine for a DCF (Direct Consular Filing) has any conditions attached, such as having  to be gainfully employed there, or needing a business visa or anything like that?  I may have an opportunity to be there for a while (not sure yet) and I'm considering that route if all goes well.

I read visajourney recently and people are still talking about doing DCF and I *think* the only condition is to prove you lived there in the last 6 months. Speak to an immigration attorney just to be sure.

[William3rd]

That was due to that change in law on I130s where they are preventing pedophiles from processing I130s. It kind of codified where they were going anyway after K3 was created. If you are a tourist or student, you are not a resident no matter how long you stay.

It was limited to filing through DHS offices abroad for a while. I believe that the Kiev website states their current requirements.

[mendeleyev]

Can you do a DCF thru Moscow Embassy for a Russian spouse?

[Admin]

Can you do a DCF thru Moscow Embassy for a Russian spouse?

As best I can tell, there are NO embassies accepting DCF applications any longer. Kyiv was one of the last, and I am not sure Moscow ever accepted DCF applications. In any case, DCF is not possible in Moscow.

- Dan

[Admin]

Correction to my previous post.

While it is accurate that DCF is not allowed at Moscow, I was plagued by knowing that I've met some expats who had, indeed, recently filed DCF there. AS I UNDERSTAND IT - if a US citizen is legally working in Russia, with a legally-issued work permit and has been resident for a minimum of 6 months, then the US Embassy in Moscow *may* process a DCF. Otherwise, they will need to file a K-3.

Also, there may still be a very few Embassies worldwide that allow processing of DCF applications for short-term US citizens. Reference Gary Bala's website, here -- http://usaimmigrationattorney.com/DCFandnoDCFcountries.html

Gary is an active member at our sister site, www.Planet-Love.com, and can be reached there by PM if more information is desired.

Hope this helps.

- Dan