We may not be bringing Romi home in the "traditional" way, but that doesn't mean we haven't had our fair share of stress, discomfort and anxiety. Our pain isn't physical, it's mental, and it has to do with the mounds of paperwork it takes to get a 15 pound, 24-inch person from Asia to Tucson, AZ.
You'd think that the hard part was through; after all, the adoption itself is final. Romi is ours, legally and forever. It's just getting him into this country that's so darn difficult. Months and months ago, we filed an I-600A with Homeland Security, the Advance Petition to Classify and Orphan as an Immediate Relative. For the privilege of filling out this form, we paid the government close to $700. Now that we are going to act on this form, we have to file the I-600 itself. (Luckily, there is no fee!) We also need to complete the DS-230, an application for an immigrant visa and alien registration for our six-month old baby. This form, which Romi technically fills out, seems straight forward, until you think about it too much. For example, they want to know Romi's current address; if we had that, we would have gone to get him months ago! They also want to know "Mother's family name at birth." I still haven't figured this one out; I know I'm his mother, but do they mean my family name at the time of Romi's birth or at mine?! On top of these forms, we filled out the I-864, the Affidavit of Support, providing proof the Romi won't become dependent on government assistance. For some reason, this form had to be filled out in all capital letters, which is much harder than you'd think.
Add to all of this the copies of income tax, paycheck stubs, employment verification letters, all notarized, of course. And then there's the travel issues: do we get Romi's airplane seat in his Taiwanese name or his English name? I assume you're beginning to get the unpretty picture. No, we won't be feeling contractions a few minutes apart, but it certainly doesn't mean that this process is painless!
You'd think that the hard part was through; after all, the adoption itself is final. Romi is ours, legally and forever. It's just getting him into this country that's so darn difficult. Months and months ago, we filed an I-600A with Homeland Security, the Advance Petition to Classify and Orphan as an Immediate Relative. For the privilege of filling out this form, we paid the government close to $700. Now that we are going to act on this form, we have to file the I-600 itself. (Luckily, there is no fee!) We also need to complete the DS-230, an application for an immigrant visa and alien registration for our six-month old baby. This form, which Romi technically fills out, seems straight forward, until you think about it too much. For example, they want to know Romi's current address; if we had that, we would have gone to get him months ago! They also want to know "Mother's family name at birth." I still haven't figured this one out; I know I'm his mother, but do they mean my family name at the time of Romi's birth or at mine?! On top of these forms, we filled out the I-864, the Affidavit of Support, providing proof the Romi won't become dependent on government assistance. For some reason, this form had to be filled out in all capital letters, which is much harder than you'd think.
Add to all of this the copies of income tax, paycheck stubs, employment verification letters, all notarized, of course. And then there's the travel issues: do we get Romi's airplane seat in his Taiwanese name or his English name? I assume you're beginning to get the unpretty picture. No, we won't be feeling contractions a few minutes apart, but it certainly doesn't mean that this process is painless!
1 comment:
Kelly!!!!
Ohmygod-First of all, I miss you! Second of all, Shana Tova!
Third, I'm soooooooo ridiculously happy for you!!! My mom told me the beautiful big news about two weeks ago and I have been wanting to email you, but I dont think I have your email. Today, Alli Abraham gave me the link to your blog (which I clearly took advantage of).
Anyway, I just wanted to wish you and Rob a gigantic MAZEL TOV! Have a wonderful time on your trip. If you get a quick minute to email me, my email is Sharkbite90@gmail.com
Miss you!
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