Noorah101

Hi All,



The instructions in Packet 3 say to send the beneficiary's Original
birth certificate, plus one Certified Copy of the birth certificate
along with all the other documents to Ankara, in order to get an
interview date set.



We are extremely hesitant to send the Original birth certificate, even
though it's going via trackable UPS.



Iranian birth certificates are very hard to get replaced, very costly
and time consuming (not as simple as here in the states), and we simply
can't risk having it get lost. Their birth certificates are more than
one sheet, it's like a whole booklet of information about the bearer,
and would be devestating to lose. That document is like an ID for him,
besides his passport.



My lawyer suggested sending one or two of the Certified Copies, with a
note saying original will be supplied at the interview.



Just wondering if anyone else has done this successfully? Did you guys
have to send in your original birth certificates? Did some of you not
do that and were OK anyway? This issue is weighing on me (and I'm
heavy enough as it is!! LOL).



Thanks for your input!



Rene



p.s. Since Sadegh only has 5 documents to provide on his side, and I
have all the rest of the packet done, he's going to Fed Ex me his
docs, and I'll send the whole thing via International UPS from
the states.

Katie

Hi Rene,



Have you tried emailing or telephoning the consulate to find out whether
two certified copies are acceptable? Perhaps they make exceptions for
Iranian nationals but didn't bother to note that in the form letter that
was sent to you.



I can understand why you are reluctant to send the original birth
certificate, but if you don't send what they want, you will only delay
the process. My husband's case was delayed because of a similar issue,
but because he is not seeking a K-1 visa through Ankara, I wont bore you
with the details.



Again, I would contact the consulate directly before sending anything.



Best wishes,

Katie

Sibsie

Is there any way he can deliver it by hand and get it signed for?

Noorah101

Originally posted by sibsie

    > Is there any way he can deliver it by hand and get it signed for?
    >

Sibsie - Ankara is 4 hours away by bus, and if he takes it separately
from the P3 materials, I'm not sure they can match it up when the time
comes. I'd rather either send it ahead with all the other documents, or
else bring it on the interview day and not let it out of our hands for
long. Thanks for the suggestion :-)



Katie - I know, when all else fails, email the consulate. LOL They're
close this week for holidays, but on Dec. 1 I will email and ask them.
Thanks :-)



Best Wishes,

Rene

Sibsie

Sorry you've had so many probs Rene. Any news on the consulates being
open for business after the recent problems?

Hypertweeky

Originally posted by Noorah101

    > Hi All,


    > The instructions in Packet 3 say to send the beneficiary's Original
    > birth certificate, plus one Certified Copy of the birth certificate
    > along with all the other documents to Ankara, in order to get an
    > interview date set.


    > We are extremely hesitant to send the Original birth certificate, even
    > though it's going via trackable UPS.


    > Iranian birth certificates are very hard to get replaced, very costly
    > and time consuming (not as simple as here in the states), and we
    > simply can't risk having it get lost. Their birth certificates are
    > more than one sheet, it's like a whole booklet of information about
    > the bearer, and would be devestating to lose. That document is like
    > an ID for him, besides his passport.


    > My lawyer suggested sending one or two of the Certified Copies, with a
    > note saying original will be supplied at the interview.


    > Just wondering if anyone else has done this successfully? Did you
    > guys have to send in your original birth certificates? Did some of
    > you not do that and were OK anyway? This issue is weighing on me
    > (and I'm heavy enough as it is!! LOL).


    > Thanks for your input!


    > Rene


    > p.s. Since Sadegh only has 5 documents to provide on his side, and I
    > have all the rest of the packet done, he's going to Fed Ex me
    > his docs, and I'll send the whole thing via International UPS
    > from the states.





Hi Rene!!



What your lawyer suggested seems the best option

When are you going to send Packet 3?, Keep us posted!

Noorah101

Originally posted by sibsie

    > Sorry you've had so many probs Rene. Any news on the consulates being
    > open for business after the recent problems?

Hi Sibsie



Thanks, I knew this wasn't going to be easy when I started, but I'm up
for the challenge :-)



The Ankara embassy is open for business after the holidays. :-)



Rene

Tmushen

Originally posted by Noorah101

    > Hi Sibsie


    > Thanks, I knew this wasn't going to be easy when I started, but I'm up
    > for the challenge :-)


    > The Ankara embassy is open for business after the holidays. :-)


    > Rene



Just email them and ask them. They usually answer back within one day
but I believe they might be closed this whole week for Turkish Holidays.

Noorah101

Originally posted by tmushen

    > Just email them and ask them. They usually answer back within one day
    > but I believe they might be closed this whole week for Turkish
    > Holidays.

Thanks, T!



Sometimes they get right back in a couple of days, sometimes I have to
send a second request. With people sending them emails this week while
they're close, my guess is they'll be a little backlogged next week.



And yes, they are closed this whole week for Eid and Thanksgiving (lucky
them, celebrating both holidays) :-)



Hyper - my goal is to get P3 back to the embassy by December 5. But
since I still have questions, December 12 might be more realistic. I
believe they schedule interviews about a month later, so I'm hoping for
a mid-January interview.

Noorah101

Just an update on this thread....



To my surprise, Sadegh is fine with sending out his original birth
certificate to the embassy. And any other originals, for that matter.
So that solves that problem! :-) He's learning....he said "just give
them whatever they ask for!" LOL



Rene