Comments on: I-600 Filing Changes: A Step In the Right Direction?

By: USCIS: Change - 60 Days Longer ’til we meet you, Lulu! « Bring Home Lulu - our Vietnam adoption

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:14:58 +0000

[...] she lists some links to reputable sites who say it is so: Adoption Integrity on the I-600 Change Joint Council on international children’s services (Check out the October 22, 2007 [...]

By: Karen

Karen — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 16:47:08 +0000

I feel that filing stateside would lead to infants being institutionalized for longer periods of time. In many states it would take months to obtain an I-600. I checked with my state, and it would take 3-5 months.

By: Nicki

Nicki — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 16:16:16 +0000

JennyB and Amy - I think this would be a sound way of handling things. I600 is filed, sent to Vietnam for investigation and given 60 days for approval or denial. That way the same team who has always worked on I600s would continue, it would not increase the workload for stateside USCIS offices that much, etc. I hope this is how its done.

By: Amy

Amy — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 15:50:38 +0000

I think I’m wondering what JennB is wondering… couldn’t the USCIS officials in VN could process the I-600 (instead of having it done in the US)? That would keep it in the hands of those that better know how to investigate, and would keep a dedicated team on the VN I-600s rather than them getting lost in the stack of all of the other I-600as and I-600s being processed in the US. I really like the idea of having the I-600 cleared/approved before travel to Vietnam, but am not confident in USCIS ability to process these in a timely manner while families are waiting to travel. If they DO move to this as a standard, and the I-600’s are processed in by the US offices, then they need to commit to a set timeframe in which they will complete their I-600 clearances so that families are not kept in limbo.

By: Hayley

Hayley — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 15:20:47 +0000

My family has just gotten home from Vietnam with our daughter and while we were there three families were issued NOIDs and had to leave their children in foster care while they come home to appeal the NOID. They are devastated and I am sure that they would have much rather waited longer in the States than to go through this heartbreak.

By: JennyB.

JennyB. — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 19:42:00 +0000

I think I’m totally missing something here. I guess I thought that the investigation part and approval of the I-600 was all still going to take place in Vietnam, by the people employed at the US Embassy and US Consulate in Vietnam. Logistically how would it work for someone at USCIS in Ohio or Kansas or any other state to investigate the paperwork?? Again, I probably don’t understand enough of the process to see how this would work.

By: Nicki

Nicki — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 13:48:08 +0000

This is how I understand it as well, Ben. I’m unclear how this might affect adoptions, though. Does this mean some families will have a separate I-604 interview (as is current the norm) or will that be done as part of the visa interview? Or will it be done sometime between I600 and travel? I think if the Embassy is calling for a mandatory 60 day investigation that the *intent* will be to complete all I-604 interviews prior to travel but I guess it remains to be seen.

By: Ben Chronister

Ben Chronister — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 06:46:59 +0000

I think you may be mistaken about one point. According to the instructions, the I604 investigation/interview always occurs in the foreign country, and it is required for every case. So even if a stateside agency decides to approve an I600 without checking the paperwork or submitting I604 to the foreign embassy, the embassy will still have to complete I604 before a visa can be issued.

By: Elizabeth

Elizabeth — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 04:08:46 +0000

This comment really doesn’t have to do with ethics, but more the the “workings” of our own government. At the Chicago USCIS office, all I600 applications submitted to them are processed with the child receiving an IR-4 visa, regardless of whether all the other IR-3 visa stipulations have been met or not. It’s why we processed our I600 in country before it was our agency’s policy to do so. Consequently, if this comes to pass and the Chicago USCIS doesn’t change its procedure, it leaves large families in Illinois between a rock and a hard place. In the great state of Illinois (said with my tongue firmly in my cheek), a family must qualify for a foster care license if an internationaly adopted child comes home on an IR-4 visa. But, the state also says that the maximum number of children living in a home is 6, with 8 being a possibility with a waiver. So, any more children than 6 (or 8, if you went through the waiver process) and those children must come home on an IR-3 visa or the state will not approve it. Vietnam is one of the few countries without a family size restriction, but for those of us in Illinois, the new I600 requirements sound as though yet another country will be unavailable to larger families.

By: Jena

Jena — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 02:16:55 +0000

Hmmmmm….
As much as I want to say that this will make the situation better, I am inclined to think otherwise. I am concerned that by moving this process around USCIS is simply making their job easier, and the agencies who have been doing a good job and being as ethical as possible will continue to do so, but the agencies that are shady will be able to get away with it much easier.
To my mind, the best way to get rid of corruption in Vietnamese adoption is to get rid of corrupt agencies. If the corrupt agencies are the ones who are being issued the NOIDS(which at this point seems to be the case) then they will get bad publicity and not be able to continue in business.
Where are the checks and balances with the new way of filing?