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DV 2022 OC Selectees

Hello, Anyone here who interviewed at Sydney embassy that could answer a few questions?
1) Did you need to get your copies certified by a JP? Or can it litterally be a photocopy of your your documents?
2) My birth certificate is laminated, could this cause an issue at the embassy interview?
 
I am sorry if this may have been asked before, I wondered for those of you who went through O Level and then went to foundation year at a college, especially the Australian foundation programs (Eg. MUFY, UFS, ANU) before eventually going to University and did successfully obtained the bachelor’s degree (4 Years). How was the verdict ? I found that The Australian foundation programme is equivalent to Year 12 when I googled it up but not sure for the purpose of DV Visa.

If anyone especially from OC who has gone through the Australian foundation programme and did have university degree obtained, who have gone through the DV Visa process, I Would love to hear your experience so that we can all learn from each other... I do believe there are other people who went through this route. 　

Thank You.
Your response is greatly appreciated.
 
Shezza85 said:
Hi @Geelong22 I'm sorta in similar boat to yourself as I arrived in the US on the same day as yourself having had the visa approved in July 2022. I then got my PR card and SSN a few weeks after I arrived. I then went back to Australia in Feb 2023 due to me finding out my mum being diagnosed with cancer. I'm planning on staying in Australia until Jan 2024 and then going back.

Prior to me leaving to go back to Australia, I did message Britsimon and emailed the US Sydney Embassy. The US embassy emailed and said I can be out of the country so long as its less than a year though its still up to the discretion of the CBP officer when I arrive back in the US. So I really hope they don't revoke my GC. I'm thinking before I return to the US on getting some documentation regarding my mum's cancer diagnosis just so I have proof of this. I can't imagine them being heartless and disallowing me to come back, though when they said its up to the discretion of the CBP officer make me a little nervous.

Hopefully you'll be ok
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Sorry to hear about your mother's health.
You may already be back in the US but if not I can confirm I successfully re-entered the US after being away for exactly 11 months after activating my visa. I had a lot to sort out and was slightly weary of being confronted about being away for so long. But I felt confident as I had documentation of my reasons for taking so long as well as evidence of establishing a life in the US - namely documentation of shipping of my personal belongings to the US. At the airport I was processed and welcomed back in one minute flat with no questions asked at all. This was Austin TX. I'm sure evidence of the situation you faced would be indisputable. Hope it all goes well for you if not already there.
 
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Groovy times said:
Sorry to hear about your mother's health.
You may already be back in the US but if not I can confirm I successfully re-entered the US after being away for exactly 11 months after activating my visa. I had a lot to sort out and was slightly weary of being confronted about being away for so long. But I felt confident as I had documentation of my reasons for taking so long as well as evidence of establishing a life in the US - namely documentation of shipping of my personal belongings to the US. At the airport I was processed and welcomed back in one minute flat with no questions asked at all. This was Austin TX. I'm sure evidence of the situation you faced would be indisputable. Hope it all goes well for you if not already there.
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I’ll be re-entering almost 6 months after activation trip. So this gives me some reassurance. Technically we can stay away for a year so it seems unfair they apply that rule so strictly.
I wonder if CBP officers at certain airports are better than others. Was planning on arriving at LAX, found they were pretty friendly on first entry although have heard mixed experiences.
 
I re-entered after 8 months of being away after the initial activation. In that time, I maintained a US address, and had an American bank account (Bank of America is immigrant friendly). No issues at POE (LAX) when we re-entered. Other than 'Welcome home' which made me ugly cry (pray for that border official who is not paid enough to deal with that).
 
Has anyone encountered issues with their green card if they filed as a non US tax resident for the first year?

A bit of background: did the activation trip early Dec 2022 and left a week later back to NZ to sort affairs. Moving permanently to the US at end of this month (cutting it close, I know). I've since been advised that I needed to file a US return for 2022 (even if it was for a month) but one way to potentially avoid penalties is to file a non-resident return. Question is will it complicate me entering the US on the green card?
 
Going abroad said:
Has anyone encountered issues with their green card if they filed as a non US tax resident for the first year?

A bit of background: did the activation trip early Dec 2022 and left a week later back to NZ to sort affairs. Moving permanently to the US at end of this month (cutting it close, I know). I've since been advised that I needed to file a US return for 2022 (even if it was for a month) but one way to potentially avoid penalties is to file a non-resident return. Question is will it complicate me entering the US on the green card?
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Claiming to be a non-resident on a tax form can be interpreted as an abandonment of LPR status. While I doubt CBP will analyze your tax returns, so it might not matter for admission, there are questions about that in N-400. You will be asked about the reason you did that during your interview. "I wanted to avoid fines" is not a great comeback...
 
I activated my greencard in September this year and won't be going back to the US until March. Do I need to file a 2023 US Tax return as i'm technically now a permanent resident even though I'm not present there? I'll consult with a tax accountant nut any advice here would also be appreciated. Will I need to pay tax to the IRS in addition to the tax I pay in New Zealand?
 
CTNZ said:
I activated my greencard in September this year and won't be going back to the US until March. Do I need to file a 2023 US Tax return as i'm technically now a permanent resident even though I'm not present there? I'll consult with a tax accountant nut any advice here would also be appreciated. Will I need to pay tax to the IRS in addition to the tax I pay in New Zealand?
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Yes, you must file a tax return
 
Groovy times said:
Sorry to hear about your mother's health.
You may already be back in the US but if not I can confirm I successfully re-entered the US after being away for exactly 11 months after activating my visa. I had a lot to sort out and was slightly weary of being confronted about being away for so long. But I felt confident as I had documentation of my reasons for taking so long as well as evidence of establishing a life in the US - namely documentation of shipping of my personal belongings to the US. At the airport I was processed and welcomed back in one minute flat with no questions asked at all. This was Austin TX. I'm sure evidence of the situation you faced would be indisputable. Hope it all goes well for you if not already there.
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Hey just saw these posts from a few months ago. Yes hopefully will be ok for me. Will be reentering in just over a week. Will be entering through NY this time so hopefully goes all well.
 
Groovy times said:
Sorry to hear about your mother's health.
You may already be back in the US but if not I can confirm I successfully re-entered the US after being away for exactly 11 months after activating my visa. I had a lot to sort out and was slightly weary of being confronted about being away for so long. But I felt confident as I had documentation of my reasons for taking so long as well as evidence of establishing a life in the US - namely documentation of shipping of my personal belongings to the US. At the airport I was processed and welcomed back in one minute flat with no questions asked at all. This was Austin TX. I'm sure evidence of the situation you faced would be indisputable. Hope it all goes well for you if not already there.
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Thanks mate, its a tough one being away from family during this difficult time. So I re-entered just under 2 weeks ago. I was about 8 days away from the 1 year deadline I had to be back by. I entered through NYC (JFK), prepared a whole lot of documents in case I got asked any questions, such as bank account statements, letter from my mum's oncologist and evidence of some upcoming job interviews I had scheduled for the week. Showed my passport and greencard, she swiped and stamped the passport and not a single word was uttered or asked other than "NEXT"
 
Hey yo DV'22 Gang!
It's been almost 2 years since that mess we encountered!
Let's hear some success stories, everyone happy and going well stateside? Who misses the Oceanic region?
 
Maximum said:
Hey yo DV'22 Gang!
It's been almost 2 years since that mess we encountered!
Let's hear some success stories, everyone happy and going well stateside? Who misses the Oceanic region?
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Yeh tell me about it hey, I was just thinking about the whole journey from the time I got selected to being here now. It was this time 2 years ago some us were thinking about joining the lawsuit. I didn't end up doing that, and like a whole heap of Aussies from here ended up transferring the case to Fiji. Glad it worked out for the majority of us. I'm living in NYC, I got offered a job with a high school in Queens, 2 days after I arrived which was quite lucky. How about yourself? I definitely do miss being back in Australia.
 
Oh that's awesome! I'm glad to hear it worked out in NYC Shezza!
I was offered work in Beverly Hills, CA, pretty soon after arrival (which I did for a year) then got offered an opportunity out in San Francisco, CA, where I am currently.
There were so many frustrating teething issues in the beginning, mostly attributed to not having a Credit Score, which I'm sure most of us encountered, but now everything has smoothed out, I am very happy! I haven't looked back once.
I miss Aus too, but am really happy here :)
 
Maximum said:
Oh that's awesome! I'm glad to hear it worked out in NYC Shezza!
I was offered work in Beverly Hills, CA, pretty soon after arrival (which I did for a year) then got offered an opportunity out in San Francisco, CA, where I am currently.
There were so many frustrating teething issues in the beginning, mostly attributed to not having a Credit Score, which I'm sure most of us encountered, but now everything has smoothed out, I am very happy! I haven't looked back once.
I miss Aus too, but am really happy here :)
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Yep i would have that same issue too as I don't have a credit score, since I never owned a credit card back home. I ordered my first one today, as maybe after a couple of years of living here I'd like to rent my own place here, hence why I need a credit card for a credit score as I've been told thats what landlords and real estate companies look for here when leasing out properties to tenants. Good to hear that it worked out for you too. San Fran is a beautiful place.
 
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