Back again. . .
Carolyn Anne's Criminal Background Check from CA DOJ will be redone this coming Monday. Last Friday the 12th we received an email from Anthony from State of California DOJ saying that the fingerprints were of poor quality. We knew that going into the submission from our licensed fingerprint roller lady they day she took the Live Scan, and now it's official.
Monday September 15th, CA DOJ mailed out the papers via USPS to us to allow us to redo the Live Scan fingerprinting for free, received yesterday the 18th. Other than a computer generated letter with all the usual identification numbers, notification of why the letter was sent - unable to process due to poor fingerprint quality - and how to resubmit (no extra cost due to using the same Original Applicant Tracking Identifier - ATI - number code) it includes a preprinted Request for Live Scan Service (Visa/Immigration) form. The ATI code is handwritten, and The first section is already filled out (Contributing Agency Information - Department of Justice). The Applicant Information section and The Live Scan Transaction Completed By section are left blank but will of course be filled in upon submission.
Fran, our Live Scan licensed fingerprint lady, left instructions with me to ensure Carolyn Anne put lotion on her fingers every night for four nights before coming to her appointment for the fingerprint retake this coming Monday the 22nd. She will also get papers instructing her on what to do if this Live Scan redo doesn't produce recognizable fingerprints, and how to go about getting a clear Criminal Background Check upon the second failure to process. You can ensure I will safeguard those papers. . . (smile) So a bit of good news, that there is a way around the fingerprint problem she is having.
We're probably a week away from the electronic submission from getting a clear Criminal Background Check report from CA DOJ if the prints turn out readable/recognizable. If not, then. . . we shall see.
#### ### ### ####
Meanwhile, the timeline on the sale of the house here is taking its time, longer than expected. The appraisal report hasn't hit my real estate agent's inbox just yet, or the escrow company's, which is not what he was expecting. Without knowing if the appraisal is approved, the escrow company cannot proceed, of course.
The termite repair - minor work with the patio siding and a small part of the exposed frame - is done. I remember doing this same kind of repair with my Dad decades ago when we were younger. Didn't cost a lot in terms of present day dollars. Back then it would have been the classic do it yourself project using the radial arm saw and hammers and nails. Paint will have to wait until the painter returns from "down below" in Los Angeles from a current job. Should be completed by probably midweek next week.
I discussed with a staffer at our main recipient nonprofit organization, Grace Thrift Store in Lancaster, this past Wednesday the possibility of picking up our last large items. The good thing about them is they don't turn items away if they are saleable - Salvation Army wants to ensure the items are in very good to excellent condition, and two items we have are a bit on the used side. A little refurbishing would be doable and be worthwhile. They would also be providing the truck and the manpower to move these heavy, bulky items. . . very helpful, and a moneysaver from our aspect of things. They pick up in the area outside of the store on Wednesdays, and Monday is the day you need to contact them to ensure they will put you on their schedule. I was thinking that we were possibly at the point of having it done this coming Wednesday the 24th, but according to our real estate agent, that would be too soon. Possibly the Wednesday after that, October 1st. October is coming up on us sooner than we had hoped. . . wow. Gotta adjust to what the pace of getting these disparate tasks done is proving to be.
Getting towards discussion on how we pack things for our trip to Ecuador with my wife. We haven't done this before, and she wants to help, of course, and do what is best. We agree on the overall plan, but the tactics part is producing "sparks," shall we say. Please pray for us that the process of the move and the logistics of how to do all the moving of what we take will be centered on unity, agreement, full and fair discussion, and most of all, love. May God be abundantly in each of our efforts, large and small, and may His name be made great through it all.
Friday, September 19, 2014
Monday, September 15, 2014
Updates. . and Making Some Progress
Back again, by the Grace of God that we have through Jesus Christ, or Lord. Still at it, making some headway, which is heartening news for us these days.
The Criminal Background Check from the State of California Department of Justice - CA DOJ for short - has been completed for me, but not my wife. I submitted Live Scan fingerprints to CA DOJ through our friendly local licensed fingerprint roller on August 29th, and the results declared "mailed" - was known to me via my calling the CA DOJ's automated message line for self submitted criminal background checks on September 1, Labor Day holiday. The actual mailing took until September 4th for CA DOJ to mail, and I got it that Monday September 8th. Not too bad. . .
That Wednesday, September 10th I emailed my request to CA DOJ *after* I had already received my clear or negative criminal background check record. (They require you to wait first, for obvious reasons. . . they are authenticating a document they already sent you and have on file, right?) Once the official at the other end, Anthony, and I ironed out which address they would mail the CA DOJ's Apostille letter to (I kept it simple and told them to use the address they already had on file, and not to complicate matters by using our new temporary mailing address) , the CA DOJ Apostille letter mailing was done (September 10th). Received the Apostille letter on Friday, September 12th! How's that for swift state government service, eh? (smile) Sweet! Thank God for good government service, eh?
A couple of things to keep in mind with CA DOJ: they don't apparently have a live telephone number for citizens or other individuals to contact them. A recorded automated system with multiple telephone numbers, yes. . . but not a live one from what I encountered so far. The email that you send to CA DOJ has to state your request for the Apostille letter (authentication letter for non Hague Convention countries) with the same address they have on file. So when you make that request at the Live Scan licensed fingerprint roller vendor of your choice, you need to ensure the address is one where you will get your mail, or in the event of a move, like in our case due to escrow closing, where you have a forwarding address order on file with the United States Postal Service (USPS). You don't want to miss getting this letter. Without it and the negative/clear criminal background check report, it would be very difficult to obtain an indefinite residency in a foreign country like Ecuador.
On the other hand, my lovely wife, who submitted her fingerprints on the Live Scan system with the same licensed fingerprint roller I used at the same time, has repeatedly been listed by the CA DOJ automated phone system as "in process." That has continued to the present time, although since last Wednesday September 10th their automated system has not been working well. . . been getting busy signals or the line doesn't answer like previously. So on that Wednesday I sent out an email to CA DOJ requesting an update on her submission. Speedily answered once again Friday the 12th by the CA DOJ's Anthony, who stated he would be sending out - through USPS by inference - a form to resubmit the fingerprints for the criminal background check. No extra cost for us, and we will be getting a code from him stating such. So we're waiting on that to come for her.
Another angle to this part of the process is what to do if or when the fingerprints just don't read via the Live Scan system, which is technologically quite excellent in obtaining fingerprints (it did mine, and I have historically been hard to get prints from). My wife, who has spent her working years in nursing, has essentially no easily identifiable prints to obtain anymore. Our Real Estate Broker/Agent happened to hear of our situation, and thought we should have our California State Senator's personal cellular telephone number to call should the situation present itself at an impasse. Good move. I already heard from Sen. Steve Knight in a return call Friday, but since I received the email from CA DOJ saying they will do a free redo of the prints, will hold off on that for now. Good to know there's help out there for us, or at least that's how we perceive it.
In other news. . .
On the birth certificate front, we have sent off for new birth certificates for ourselves due to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills not accepting our years old original documents. These were done Friday, September 5th. Mine will be done here within Los Angeles County by the LA County Registrar Recorder County Clerk's office in Norwalk within 20 working days, and hers will be done by Wayne County Clerk, Michigan. We had to know whether or not she was born in the City of Detroit or in Wayne County outside of the City of Detroit. Since we had a previous birth certificate for my wife on hand, we ascertained it was for a birth within the City of Detroit. This is important to the Wayne County Clerk as their records are apparently divided up into these two groupings. I discussed processing times with the Wayne County Clerk's office in a phone call, and the woman who responded said that if the documents came via UPS, the processing time in their office would be within 2 to 3 days. !!! I find that hard to believe, but given the state of affairs in Detroit these days, might as well go with this tidbit of potentially good news. God only knows what would happen to such a request sent via USPS regular mail. So we sent our request via UPS Ground for a reasonable $10 cost. After not getting a delivery signature this past Thursday the 11th, and finding the office closed the 12th - !?! - today the 15th our UPS Ground parcel was delivered midday. Great! Now let's see if the Wayne County Clerk's office really delivers like they said. I'm not holding my breath, though. . . (sigh)
UPDATE 9/22/2014: Just got off the telephone with the Wayne County Clerk's office, and they checked their log of birth certificate requests received, and they state my wife's request was mailed back via USPS on Thursday the 18th. We are eagerly expecting that document in the mail now. If this proves true, really great service from them.
The Apostille letter to be obtained from the Secretary of State's office presumably in Lansing, MI will follow upon receiving the newly printed birth certificate. We have to send off for it, of course.
As you can see, with my Criminal Background Check and Apostille letter already in my hands safely here, and with my birth certificate request in process locally in county - the check for payment hasn't yet cleared, which likely means they haven't processed it yet - debiting my account via check would give an indication it is being processed - I am anticipating my documents on these matters to come out completed before my wife's, sad to say. We sent our requests for them the same day, but what happens after that is many times out of our hands. We have to remain patient despite the hurdles and obstacles that come our way, and remain steadfast in God's care and wisdom and beneficience. He will provide. . . at the right time for us.
We rightly decided that we will travel together to Ecuador, despite one of us having all their documents together before the other. Wise move! I would not have it any other way. Never leave your partner! We need to work together as we make the big move.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Yesterday, we shared a wonderful time with our longtime good friend Pastor Rob Brooks, his wife Becky and their four sons as we were with them in the worship of God together at the church he pastors in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles near UCLA, University Bible Church. He has been doing a good bit of traveling to Myanmar in Southeast Asia on a missions trip and to his parents place in Virginia where he was raised - and was present to celebrate his brother's wedding there! Having been to UBC several times before, we knew to come early, stay afterwards, and catch up on each other as time permitted.
Rob was extremely gracious in recognizing us to the congregation as retirees ready to go and serve the Lord in whatever manner is best in our new home in Ecuador. Becky told Carolyn Anne that we are missionaries. . . well, that's true, but we're not formally supported financially by any local church. Rob led the congregation in prayer for us as he concluded the morning's worship service, giving a travel/missions update on his travels as it pertained to the Scripture passage found in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9. Yes, the Corinthians were materially and financially well off, and could afford to assist fellow believers in other churches that were not as well off. The church in the USA is analogous to the Corinthian church that way, as is the church in Myanmar - Burma - analogous to the church in Jerusalem. It was gratifying to hear how so little money could make such a substantial difference in several different ways by willing donors to freely give what was so valuable to recipients in the work and the spread of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
We also were able to spend time at lunch together one last time, despite Rob being somewhat tired after all his travels and not seeing Becky too much of late. We told Becky we wouldn't keep him too long. . . (smile) and we didn't. Rob, like our other close and good friends in the larger ekklesia which is the universal church around the world, was thrilled that we are getting so close to starting our journey to Ecuador, a foreign - to us - country, and being willing to let the Lord use us in whatever way seems good. He sees so many opportunities for believers to make a real difference by being overseas in missions that he basically came out and said these indigenous peoples many times were more hungry for the truth of the Gospel than North Americans are. Ouch. . . and quite true, methinks. So it's well worth our while to be where we are going to with the attitude we have towards Christ's Kingdom and Eternal things that matter.
Rob officiated at our wedding, by the way. He and I used to be rather informal years ago when he was locally pastoring here and we would meet together several times a week discussing and planning local evangelism outreaches, and got to be rather close. I still miss those times, but this is a new season of life. Retirement. Some extra steps, hurdles, setbacks, surprises, twists and turns, and in the end, reaching the finish line for all who "run the race" with all diligence who follow after Jesus Christ without reservation and without apology. By his power, not our own, of course. Rob - and Becky too, I found out this visit - enjoy my lengthly emails in detailed story form, and are thrilled to hear how God is at work in our lives. Some very nice words spoken, too. I'll leave it for the Lord to affirm them, though. . . (grin) I will miss these folks quite a bit, but the Calling of Ecuador awaits us still. And we shall go.
The Criminal Background Check from the State of California Department of Justice - CA DOJ for short - has been completed for me, but not my wife. I submitted Live Scan fingerprints to CA DOJ through our friendly local licensed fingerprint roller on August 29th, and the results declared "mailed" - was known to me via my calling the CA DOJ's automated message line for self submitted criminal background checks on September 1, Labor Day holiday. The actual mailing took until September 4th for CA DOJ to mail, and I got it that Monday September 8th. Not too bad. . .
That Wednesday, September 10th I emailed my request to CA DOJ *after* I had already received my clear or negative criminal background check record. (They require you to wait first, for obvious reasons. . . they are authenticating a document they already sent you and have on file, right?) Once the official at the other end, Anthony, and I ironed out which address they would mail the CA DOJ's Apostille letter to (I kept it simple and told them to use the address they already had on file, and not to complicate matters by using our new temporary mailing address) , the CA DOJ Apostille letter mailing was done (September 10th). Received the Apostille letter on Friday, September 12th! How's that for swift state government service, eh? (smile) Sweet! Thank God for good government service, eh?
A couple of things to keep in mind with CA DOJ: they don't apparently have a live telephone number for citizens or other individuals to contact them. A recorded automated system with multiple telephone numbers, yes. . . but not a live one from what I encountered so far. The email that you send to CA DOJ has to state your request for the Apostille letter (authentication letter for non Hague Convention countries) with the same address they have on file. So when you make that request at the Live Scan licensed fingerprint roller vendor of your choice, you need to ensure the address is one where you will get your mail, or in the event of a move, like in our case due to escrow closing, where you have a forwarding address order on file with the United States Postal Service (USPS). You don't want to miss getting this letter. Without it and the negative/clear criminal background check report, it would be very difficult to obtain an indefinite residency in a foreign country like Ecuador.
On the other hand, my lovely wife, who submitted her fingerprints on the Live Scan system with the same licensed fingerprint roller I used at the same time, has repeatedly been listed by the CA DOJ automated phone system as "in process." That has continued to the present time, although since last Wednesday September 10th their automated system has not been working well. . . been getting busy signals or the line doesn't answer like previously. So on that Wednesday I sent out an email to CA DOJ requesting an update on her submission. Speedily answered once again Friday the 12th by the CA DOJ's Anthony, who stated he would be sending out - through USPS by inference - a form to resubmit the fingerprints for the criminal background check. No extra cost for us, and we will be getting a code from him stating such. So we're waiting on that to come for her.
Another angle to this part of the process is what to do if or when the fingerprints just don't read via the Live Scan system, which is technologically quite excellent in obtaining fingerprints (it did mine, and I have historically been hard to get prints from). My wife, who has spent her working years in nursing, has essentially no easily identifiable prints to obtain anymore. Our Real Estate Broker/Agent happened to hear of our situation, and thought we should have our California State Senator's personal cellular telephone number to call should the situation present itself at an impasse. Good move. I already heard from Sen. Steve Knight in a return call Friday, but since I received the email from CA DOJ saying they will do a free redo of the prints, will hold off on that for now. Good to know there's help out there for us, or at least that's how we perceive it.
In other news. . .
On the birth certificate front, we have sent off for new birth certificates for ourselves due to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills not accepting our years old original documents. These were done Friday, September 5th. Mine will be done here within Los Angeles County by the LA County Registrar Recorder County Clerk's office in Norwalk within 20 working days, and hers will be done by Wayne County Clerk, Michigan. We had to know whether or not she was born in the City of Detroit or in Wayne County outside of the City of Detroit. Since we had a previous birth certificate for my wife on hand, we ascertained it was for a birth within the City of Detroit. This is important to the Wayne County Clerk as their records are apparently divided up into these two groupings. I discussed processing times with the Wayne County Clerk's office in a phone call, and the woman who responded said that if the documents came via UPS, the processing time in their office would be within 2 to 3 days. !!! I find that hard to believe, but given the state of affairs in Detroit these days, might as well go with this tidbit of potentially good news. God only knows what would happen to such a request sent via USPS regular mail. So we sent our request via UPS Ground for a reasonable $10 cost. After not getting a delivery signature this past Thursday the 11th, and finding the office closed the 12th - !?! - today the 15th our UPS Ground parcel was delivered midday. Great! Now let's see if the Wayne County Clerk's office really delivers like they said. I'm not holding my breath, though. . . (sigh)
UPDATE 9/22/2014: Just got off the telephone with the Wayne County Clerk's office, and they checked their log of birth certificate requests received, and they state my wife's request was mailed back via USPS on Thursday the 18th. We are eagerly expecting that document in the mail now. If this proves true, really great service from them.
The Apostille letter to be obtained from the Secretary of State's office presumably in Lansing, MI will follow upon receiving the newly printed birth certificate. We have to send off for it, of course.
As you can see, with my Criminal Background Check and Apostille letter already in my hands safely here, and with my birth certificate request in process locally in county - the check for payment hasn't yet cleared, which likely means they haven't processed it yet - debiting my account via check would give an indication it is being processed - I am anticipating my documents on these matters to come out completed before my wife's, sad to say. We sent our requests for them the same day, but what happens after that is many times out of our hands. We have to remain patient despite the hurdles and obstacles that come our way, and remain steadfast in God's care and wisdom and beneficience. He will provide. . . at the right time for us.
We rightly decided that we will travel together to Ecuador, despite one of us having all their documents together before the other. Wise move! I would not have it any other way. Never leave your partner! We need to work together as we make the big move.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
Yesterday, we shared a wonderful time with our longtime good friend Pastor Rob Brooks, his wife Becky and their four sons as we were with them in the worship of God together at the church he pastors in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles near UCLA, University Bible Church. He has been doing a good bit of traveling to Myanmar in Southeast Asia on a missions trip and to his parents place in Virginia where he was raised - and was present to celebrate his brother's wedding there! Having been to UBC several times before, we knew to come early, stay afterwards, and catch up on each other as time permitted.
Rob was extremely gracious in recognizing us to the congregation as retirees ready to go and serve the Lord in whatever manner is best in our new home in Ecuador. Becky told Carolyn Anne that we are missionaries. . . well, that's true, but we're not formally supported financially by any local church. Rob led the congregation in prayer for us as he concluded the morning's worship service, giving a travel/missions update on his travels as it pertained to the Scripture passage found in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9. Yes, the Corinthians were materially and financially well off, and could afford to assist fellow believers in other churches that were not as well off. The church in the USA is analogous to the Corinthian church that way, as is the church in Myanmar - Burma - analogous to the church in Jerusalem. It was gratifying to hear how so little money could make such a substantial difference in several different ways by willing donors to freely give what was so valuable to recipients in the work and the spread of the Good News of Jesus Christ.
We also were able to spend time at lunch together one last time, despite Rob being somewhat tired after all his travels and not seeing Becky too much of late. We told Becky we wouldn't keep him too long. . . (smile) and we didn't. Rob, like our other close and good friends in the larger ekklesia which is the universal church around the world, was thrilled that we are getting so close to starting our journey to Ecuador, a foreign - to us - country, and being willing to let the Lord use us in whatever way seems good. He sees so many opportunities for believers to make a real difference by being overseas in missions that he basically came out and said these indigenous peoples many times were more hungry for the truth of the Gospel than North Americans are. Ouch. . . and quite true, methinks. So it's well worth our while to be where we are going to with the attitude we have towards Christ's Kingdom and Eternal things that matter.
Rob officiated at our wedding, by the way. He and I used to be rather informal years ago when he was locally pastoring here and we would meet together several times a week discussing and planning local evangelism outreaches, and got to be rather close. I still miss those times, but this is a new season of life. Retirement. Some extra steps, hurdles, setbacks, surprises, twists and turns, and in the end, reaching the finish line for all who "run the race" with all diligence who follow after Jesus Christ without reservation and without apology. By his power, not our own, of course. Rob - and Becky too, I found out this visit - enjoy my lengthly emails in detailed story form, and are thrilled to hear how God is at work in our lives. Some very nice words spoken, too. I'll leave it for the Lord to affirm them, though. . . (grin) I will miss these folks quite a bit, but the Calling of Ecuador awaits us still. And we shall go.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Marriage License and Criminal Background Check
Whoops. . . I somehow didn't mention in my first post of the day about the status of getting our Marriage License approved and our Criminal Background Check completed and approved.
Direction from my Skype session with our legal counsel in Ecuador is to have the Marriage License notarized by a USA licensed notary public only. Do not submit the document to the EC Consulate in the USA.
This is remarkably easy to do. I obtained a newly printed out Marriage License - with two copies (I'm doing that with the Birth Certificates mentioned earlier today, too) from the Los Angeles County Registrar Recorder/County Clerk's office here locally, complete in color, full size 8 and a half by 11 inches in size, and with the county's three dimensional embossed seal in the lower left corner. I can then take it to any number of (State of California) licensed Notary Public individuals and get the license notarized. Easy to get done.
The Criminal Background Check has been more of a difficulty than first thought. We submitted our inked fingerprints on the official FBI 258 form and sent them off to a "channeler" in Ohio who is one of several authorized FBI intermediaries who have a letter on file stating they submit individual's fingerprints on a regular basis. After a number of days - around two weeks - I called back to the channeler and asked them the status of our fingerprints. "They couldn't read them," was the reply. Sigh.
I have had a history of having a harder time than many on getting readable fingerprints, and knew there might be a hitch in the process. But it was my wife's prints too that didn't read either. . . and her prints are even harder to take than mine! Years of nursing does that to one's hands. Yes, the FBI approved channeler we used in Ohio offers a free second take on the sending of new inked fingerprint cards (which we would have to pay for again locally), but we declined based on our prior knowledge of how our prints usually turn out. Where to go. . .
I contacted our legal counsel in Ecuador once again and got a Skype session after several tries and talks on Skype with the office staff there during the Wednesday before Labor Day. My lawyer said that it was good under the circumstances to use the "Live Scan" electronic fingerprint submission process to the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) and from there, with them checking our criminal background with the FBI while identifying us from the fingerprints submitted on glass electronically - CA DOJ does this with all applicants, btw - we should be able to then go to the USA Federal Secretary of State's office in Washington, DC for the official apostille of our Criminal Background checks, and then submit them to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills, CA. Whew! But that's the process.
We used the retired, but working from her own home as a fingerprint roller, lady who we've used before that takes fingerprints for our church staff and volunteers. She sent them on to CA DOJ in Sacramento.
My results were accepted, and are supposed to be mailed to me and received here any day now. My wife's results are still in process, according to the automated telephone service number the CA DOJ has set up for us to call in for this info. Hmmm. . . Hope all goes well in the end for us on this matter. We are at the end of our rope, as after this method, there are no more ways to give us a clean Criminal Background check, as far as I know. Maybe it will have to be done through US Federal channels. . . dunno.
After we receive our results in the USPS mail, we are told to get these results apostilled by the CA Secretary of State's office. That's right! I'll bet we can use the Ronald Reagan State office building's offices for that as we are told to use for our other documents. Will have to check for certain on that detail. Lots of details in the paperwork process Ecuador requires. If we have to send them to Sacramento instead, we will do so, of course.
So we have to be patient, resourceful, wise, discerning, and patient. Oh, I said that already. You get the drift. . .
Selah.
Direction from my Skype session with our legal counsel in Ecuador is to have the Marriage License notarized by a USA licensed notary public only. Do not submit the document to the EC Consulate in the USA.
This is remarkably easy to do. I obtained a newly printed out Marriage License - with two copies (I'm doing that with the Birth Certificates mentioned earlier today, too) from the Los Angeles County Registrar Recorder/County Clerk's office here locally, complete in color, full size 8 and a half by 11 inches in size, and with the county's three dimensional embossed seal in the lower left corner. I can then take it to any number of (State of California) licensed Notary Public individuals and get the license notarized. Easy to get done.
The Criminal Background Check has been more of a difficulty than first thought. We submitted our inked fingerprints on the official FBI 258 form and sent them off to a "channeler" in Ohio who is one of several authorized FBI intermediaries who have a letter on file stating they submit individual's fingerprints on a regular basis. After a number of days - around two weeks - I called back to the channeler and asked them the status of our fingerprints. "They couldn't read them," was the reply. Sigh.
I have had a history of having a harder time than many on getting readable fingerprints, and knew there might be a hitch in the process. But it was my wife's prints too that didn't read either. . . and her prints are even harder to take than mine! Years of nursing does that to one's hands. Yes, the FBI approved channeler we used in Ohio offers a free second take on the sending of new inked fingerprint cards (which we would have to pay for again locally), but we declined based on our prior knowledge of how our prints usually turn out. Where to go. . .
I contacted our legal counsel in Ecuador once again and got a Skype session after several tries and talks on Skype with the office staff there during the Wednesday before Labor Day. My lawyer said that it was good under the circumstances to use the "Live Scan" electronic fingerprint submission process to the California Department of Justice (CA DOJ) and from there, with them checking our criminal background with the FBI while identifying us from the fingerprints submitted on glass electronically - CA DOJ does this with all applicants, btw - we should be able to then go to the USA Federal Secretary of State's office in Washington, DC for the official apostille of our Criminal Background checks, and then submit them to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills, CA. Whew! But that's the process.
We used the retired, but working from her own home as a fingerprint roller, lady who we've used before that takes fingerprints for our church staff and volunteers. She sent them on to CA DOJ in Sacramento.
My results were accepted, and are supposed to be mailed to me and received here any day now. My wife's results are still in process, according to the automated telephone service number the CA DOJ has set up for us to call in for this info. Hmmm. . . Hope all goes well in the end for us on this matter. We are at the end of our rope, as after this method, there are no more ways to give us a clean Criminal Background check, as far as I know. Maybe it will have to be done through US Federal channels. . . dunno.
After we receive our results in the USPS mail, we are told to get these results apostilled by the CA Secretary of State's office. That's right! I'll bet we can use the Ronald Reagan State office building's offices for that as we are told to use for our other documents. Will have to check for certain on that detail. Lots of details in the paperwork process Ecuador requires. If we have to send them to Sacramento instead, we will do so, of course.
So we have to be patient, resourceful, wise, discerning, and patient. Oh, I said that already. You get the drift. . .
Selah.
Rationale for Submitting Official Papers as the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA Directs
Back again. . . with a separate post on this topic, as I think it's not one discussed much out there in public on the 'Net or anywhere else I'm aware of.
I had a very invigorating discussion with my Real Estate Escrow officer - who of course is no immigration official or diplomat - on this topic. Some thoughts follow.
Getting a US Passport necessitates documents that the US Federal Government requires: Birth Certificate, Driver's License, Social Security Card, Marriage License (if married), and the like. These are all in most cases US based documents. Their validity is not usually in question, despite them being several or many years old, not current, without imprinted seal of authenticity, etc. There is a level of trust within the government of one's native country and its citizens. It's often implied, but in the case of granting a US Passport, it's stated upon receiving the passport: your papers are validated. . . for travel outside the USA. The US, of course, has no legal jurisdiction outside of its borders. It merely vouches you are who you say you are. . . from the standpoint of a US resident backed by that citizen's government.
When you travel to live in that foreign country, like Ecuador, you are basing that ability to reside there for an indefinite period on what the Ecuadorian government allows and proscribes, not what the USA states in its own laws. So it's like starting over. Who are you? How do we know you are who you say you are? Where were you born? What date? What are your previous name(s) if any? What is your source of income while living in the foreign country? What guarantee is there that it will continue? How much do you receive per month from this income? Are you married? Do you have proof of your marriage, including marriage date? Are all these documents authentic and original, and current documents you have provided from your various sources?
When you look at it that way, the way the Ecuadorian government most likely does, it makes sense. Everything about you has to be established and proven to their own standards of proof, not your own or your native country's.
I will say that our legal counsel in Ecuador didn't tell us that we would be going through these extra steps, but then again, they don't live here in the USA. They speak to what they are expert on, and working with the Ecuadorian Consulate in a USA location is not one of them. So time to realize that, give them some slack, and be flexible and above all, patient.
One other thing: in my dealings with others in this whole process of immigrating to Ecuador, I have found a relative of the President of Ecuador. . .right under my nose! He works at my ever friendly and resourceful Credit Union. Maybe an ace up the sleeve when things get sticky down the road. . . Dunno for sure. All I can tell you is that the process of moving from one country to another, especially a country in Latin America where there is a certain amount of corruption and less stability, is not as certain as moving from one state in the United States to another. In that I have experience in. The present process of moving internationally I am learning. . . one step at a time, one day at a time.
BTW, the next time I may be able to update here, it will most likely be around the time of us moving out of the residence here, and in a motel locally. So I will be without my trusty desktop computer, and using the laptop, which takes longer to type on. With that in mind, please understand my posts will most likely be shorter due to the effort involved. Thanks for your kind understanding in all of this!
I had a very invigorating discussion with my Real Estate Escrow officer - who of course is no immigration official or diplomat - on this topic. Some thoughts follow.
Getting a US Passport necessitates documents that the US Federal Government requires: Birth Certificate, Driver's License, Social Security Card, Marriage License (if married), and the like. These are all in most cases US based documents. Their validity is not usually in question, despite them being several or many years old, not current, without imprinted seal of authenticity, etc. There is a level of trust within the government of one's native country and its citizens. It's often implied, but in the case of granting a US Passport, it's stated upon receiving the passport: your papers are validated. . . for travel outside the USA. The US, of course, has no legal jurisdiction outside of its borders. It merely vouches you are who you say you are. . . from the standpoint of a US resident backed by that citizen's government.
When you travel to live in that foreign country, like Ecuador, you are basing that ability to reside there for an indefinite period on what the Ecuadorian government allows and proscribes, not what the USA states in its own laws. So it's like starting over. Who are you? How do we know you are who you say you are? Where were you born? What date? What are your previous name(s) if any? What is your source of income while living in the foreign country? What guarantee is there that it will continue? How much do you receive per month from this income? Are you married? Do you have proof of your marriage, including marriage date? Are all these documents authentic and original, and current documents you have provided from your various sources?
When you look at it that way, the way the Ecuadorian government most likely does, it makes sense. Everything about you has to be established and proven to their own standards of proof, not your own or your native country's.
I will say that our legal counsel in Ecuador didn't tell us that we would be going through these extra steps, but then again, they don't live here in the USA. They speak to what they are expert on, and working with the Ecuadorian Consulate in a USA location is not one of them. So time to realize that, give them some slack, and be flexible and above all, patient.
One other thing: in my dealings with others in this whole process of immigrating to Ecuador, I have found a relative of the President of Ecuador. . .right under my nose! He works at my ever friendly and resourceful Credit Union. Maybe an ace up the sleeve when things get sticky down the road. . . Dunno for sure. All I can tell you is that the process of moving from one country to another, especially a country in Latin America where there is a certain amount of corruption and less stability, is not as certain as moving from one state in the United States to another. In that I have experience in. The present process of moving internationally I am learning. . . one step at a time, one day at a time.
BTW, the next time I may be able to update here, it will most likely be around the time of us moving out of the residence here, and in a motel locally. So I will be without my trusty desktop computer, and using the laptop, which takes longer to type on. With that in mind, please understand my posts will most likely be shorter due to the effort involved. Thanks for your kind understanding in all of this!
Making Progress. . . and Yet Another Set of Hoops to Go Through
All the latest from your humble scribe. . .
Pilgrim's Rest, our humble abode, is still on track to getting the escrow closed and sold to the second buyer that made an offer for us. Our Real Estate agent made it back from vacation in Australia, and he is on board with helping things get done and followed through the escrow process. This is welcome news for us, and as a result, yesterday much was accomplished.
The termite inspection was done, I had a meeting with the escrow company to sign the necessary paperwork for the sale to go through, and the home inspection was done later in the afternoon. Tuesday the appraisal will take place, and that is all I know needs to be done except for the lender approving the loan. They will of course want to see the appraisal and perhaps other documents mentioned above, and then the loan should be formally approved, and a date set for our move out and giving over the keys to the new owner. We're getting much closer to getting that part of the process of moving to Ecuador done, which is great and exciting news.
BTW, our (second) buyer, who I was able to meet in person that past Sunday, has $42k cash to put down and has a preapproved mortgage already made out. That is what should have happened with the first buyer. You live and learn. I have a good sense this buyer is gonna be following through and not flake off like the first one did.
After talking on Skype again with our legal firm in Cuenca, Ecuador, we have direction on what papers to present to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills, CA. Birth Certificates for my wife and I, and the Social Security proof of earnings letter in my name (since I am the one currently receiving the SSDI pension monies).
We made the visit again to the Ecuadorian (EC for short) Consulate - our second visit - and focused on just these three documents. We were refused authentication on all three from the Consular official present and given direction on what to do to get her to authenticate the documents, namely: get current birth certificates with a recent stamp date - our documents were 31 and 16 years old, get a full 8 and a half by 11 inches birth certificate for me - my document was older and not the size they are used to seeing, and get my document in color, not black and white like the one I present her with. Likewise get a recent up to date birth certificate for my wife, who was born out of state. That means in her case using the mail, or UPS. We chose UPS after hearing from the state government office involved back east would turn around the document in a 2 to 3 days processing time if it were shipped to them via UPS. Amazing if true, and might as well go for it that way. Then, get both birth certificates apostilled. Mine at the State of California Secretary of State's office - the consular official mentioned the Ronald Reagan State office building in Downtown Los Angeles. Hers would have to be sent by her from here to her state's Secretary of State office for the apostille. Once that is all done, then authenticate the documents at the Ecuadorian Consulate. OK.
And that's just for the birth certificates. Processsing times for hers, supposedly 2 to 3 days in that office, and a week to send it by regular UPS mail. Return mail takes maybe a 5 or 7 day period max, so three weeks for hers. Mine was submitted in person here where I was born, and the processing time is stated to be 20 working days (it could be less, of course).
Social Security proof of earnings letter has to go to the Ronald Reagan office building in DTLA to the State of California Secretary of State's office to be apostilled, according to the Ecuadorian Consulate. That sounds a bit strange, as it is a Federal document, not a State of California one. Nevertheless, they will get what they specified. . . I asked about that particular detail to the EC Consular official, and she reiterated in English that it was the State of California Secretary of State, not the US Federal Secretary of State. Sigh. Then the EC Consulate will authenticate the letter, and issue a Certificate Letter stating they agree with the perception of such income is as stated. OK.
Easy enough to get this letter apostilled at the Ronald Reagan state office building office. . . I hope. What if the CA Secretary of State's office doesn't do that? I need to place a call to them before I drive down there and spend that kind of time doing that. Sigh.
Timeline now looks as follows:
Good thing I heard from the Lord that the paperwork should be looked at now at the EC Consulate. What if I had waited until later when we would get the "pet visa" (discussed below) for our dog? You can never be too early to do documents and paperwork. Always something new to learn everyday.
By the way, the reason why we are submitting Birth Certificates, which was not discussed a couple of posts earlier in what to submit for paperwork, is from the advice of our legal counsel in Ecuador. FYI. Your mileage may vary. . . and probably will. Things change all the time in international immigration issues between nations, and USA to Ecuador has 'em too.
Now on to some hopefully good news: the last item we need to deal with documentwise is our dog and his papers as he travels with us to Ecuador. I have been doing quite a bit of research on the whole topic, and it seems to boil down to this: Rabies shot has to be performed by our local vet 60 days (or more) before he lands in Ecuador. Other shots need to be given within 30 days (or more). We've done these already about 10 days ago. This gives us a potential airplane landing date in Ecuador of no earlier than October 25, based on the date of the rabies inoculation given.
Parasite check (inside and outside) is to be done within 21 days of landing in Ecuador. . . this will start a clock of sorts. First off, we have to do this at the local vet, who will have the USDA 7001 form to fill out. They have it on their computer software system. . . I checked. Then we go to the USDA APHIS VS vet office in El Segundo (they recently changed addresses from Hawthorne to El Segundo (closer to LAX, btw) to get their VS 7001 form signed off from the USDA. So far, so good. And the clock doesn't start ticking. . . yet. It starts ticking when the EC Consular official who gets the USDA Form 7001 that by now is all (correctly and completely) filled out, approves it and issues what could be called a "pet visa." Very official looking document from what I saw on the 'Net.
Here's a link to a site I found most helpful. It seems to be from one who has performed the transport of pets from the USA to Ecuador a number of times recently, so I find that useful, though it's not from an official source. http://www.casadecuenca.biz/Bringing_your_pets_to_Ecuador.pdf
As you can see, lots of hoops to go through, and lots of loose ends to take care of as we progress ever closer to our goal of traveling to Cuenca, Ecuador for the purposes of retirement there. Getting this residence sold is now becoming an achievable goal. Now the paperwork issues are front and center. Others have done them, and we will get it done, too. By the help, wisdom, and the Grace of God it will! Your prayers for us in all of this are coveted and appreciated so very much. Selah.
Pilgrim's Rest, our humble abode, is still on track to getting the escrow closed and sold to the second buyer that made an offer for us. Our Real Estate agent made it back from vacation in Australia, and he is on board with helping things get done and followed through the escrow process. This is welcome news for us, and as a result, yesterday much was accomplished.
The termite inspection was done, I had a meeting with the escrow company to sign the necessary paperwork for the sale to go through, and the home inspection was done later in the afternoon. Tuesday the appraisal will take place, and that is all I know needs to be done except for the lender approving the loan. They will of course want to see the appraisal and perhaps other documents mentioned above, and then the loan should be formally approved, and a date set for our move out and giving over the keys to the new owner. We're getting much closer to getting that part of the process of moving to Ecuador done, which is great and exciting news.
BTW, our (second) buyer, who I was able to meet in person that past Sunday, has $42k cash to put down and has a preapproved mortgage already made out. That is what should have happened with the first buyer. You live and learn. I have a good sense this buyer is gonna be following through and not flake off like the first one did.
After talking on Skype again with our legal firm in Cuenca, Ecuador, we have direction on what papers to present to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills, CA. Birth Certificates for my wife and I, and the Social Security proof of earnings letter in my name (since I am the one currently receiving the SSDI pension monies).
We made the visit again to the Ecuadorian (EC for short) Consulate - our second visit - and focused on just these three documents. We were refused authentication on all three from the Consular official present and given direction on what to do to get her to authenticate the documents, namely: get current birth certificates with a recent stamp date - our documents were 31 and 16 years old, get a full 8 and a half by 11 inches birth certificate for me - my document was older and not the size they are used to seeing, and get my document in color, not black and white like the one I present her with. Likewise get a recent up to date birth certificate for my wife, who was born out of state. That means in her case using the mail, or UPS. We chose UPS after hearing from the state government office involved back east would turn around the document in a 2 to 3 days processing time if it were shipped to them via UPS. Amazing if true, and might as well go for it that way. Then, get both birth certificates apostilled. Mine at the State of California Secretary of State's office - the consular official mentioned the Ronald Reagan State office building in Downtown Los Angeles. Hers would have to be sent by her from here to her state's Secretary of State office for the apostille. Once that is all done, then authenticate the documents at the Ecuadorian Consulate. OK.
And that's just for the birth certificates. Processsing times for hers, supposedly 2 to 3 days in that office, and a week to send it by regular UPS mail. Return mail takes maybe a 5 or 7 day period max, so three weeks for hers. Mine was submitted in person here where I was born, and the processing time is stated to be 20 working days (it could be less, of course).
Social Security proof of earnings letter has to go to the Ronald Reagan office building in DTLA to the State of California Secretary of State's office to be apostilled, according to the Ecuadorian Consulate. That sounds a bit strange, as it is a Federal document, not a State of California one. Nevertheless, they will get what they specified. . . I asked about that particular detail to the EC Consular official, and she reiterated in English that it was the State of California Secretary of State, not the US Federal Secretary of State. Sigh. Then the EC Consulate will authenticate the letter, and issue a Certificate Letter stating they agree with the perception of such income is as stated. OK.
Easy enough to get this letter apostilled at the Ronald Reagan state office building office. . . I hope. What if the CA Secretary of State's office doesn't do that? I need to place a call to them before I drive down there and spend that kind of time doing that. Sigh.
Timeline now looks as follows:
- SSDI Proof of Income letter - two working days (I hope)
- My Birth Certificate - 20 working days plus a day at RR State Office Bldg. plus a day at EC Consulate
- Wife's Birth Certificate - ~17 days total for mailing via UPS/USPS? and the 2 to 3 days processing time included. . if all goes well as stated to me on the telephone. I am frankly anticipating around 20 days processing time like LA County stated. I just hope they don't lose the Birth Certificate request. Then around 5 days to mail to her state once again for the apostille, ~5 days to, ??days processing for apostille, and 5 days back to get the document apostilled in her state.
Good thing I heard from the Lord that the paperwork should be looked at now at the EC Consulate. What if I had waited until later when we would get the "pet visa" (discussed below) for our dog? You can never be too early to do documents and paperwork. Always something new to learn everyday.
By the way, the reason why we are submitting Birth Certificates, which was not discussed a couple of posts earlier in what to submit for paperwork, is from the advice of our legal counsel in Ecuador. FYI. Your mileage may vary. . . and probably will. Things change all the time in international immigration issues between nations, and USA to Ecuador has 'em too.
Now on to some hopefully good news: the last item we need to deal with documentwise is our dog and his papers as he travels with us to Ecuador. I have been doing quite a bit of research on the whole topic, and it seems to boil down to this: Rabies shot has to be performed by our local vet 60 days (or more) before he lands in Ecuador. Other shots need to be given within 30 days (or more). We've done these already about 10 days ago. This gives us a potential airplane landing date in Ecuador of no earlier than October 25, based on the date of the rabies inoculation given.
Parasite check (inside and outside) is to be done within 21 days of landing in Ecuador. . . this will start a clock of sorts. First off, we have to do this at the local vet, who will have the USDA 7001 form to fill out. They have it on their computer software system. . . I checked. Then we go to the USDA APHIS VS vet office in El Segundo (they recently changed addresses from Hawthorne to El Segundo (closer to LAX, btw) to get their VS 7001 form signed off from the USDA. So far, so good. And the clock doesn't start ticking. . . yet. It starts ticking when the EC Consular official who gets the USDA Form 7001 that by now is all (correctly and completely) filled out, approves it and issues what could be called a "pet visa." Very official looking document from what I saw on the 'Net.
Here's a link to a site I found most helpful. It seems to be from one who has performed the transport of pets from the USA to Ecuador a number of times recently, so I find that useful, though it's not from an official source. http://www.casadecuenca.biz/Bringing_your_pets_to_Ecuador.pdf
As you can see, lots of hoops to go through, and lots of loose ends to take care of as we progress ever closer to our goal of traveling to Cuenca, Ecuador for the purposes of retirement there. Getting this residence sold is now becoming an achievable goal. Now the paperwork issues are front and center. Others have done them, and we will get it done, too. By the help, wisdom, and the Grace of God it will! Your prayers for us in all of this are coveted and appreciated so very much. Selah.
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Setback. . . and towards Resolution
We received an unexpected word last week. The purchase offer on Pilgrim's Rest, our humble abode here, fell through. Turns out they were mortgage lender shopping. . . and even at the best available terms, they truly were never qualified to make an offer and buy this residence. Grrrr. . . waste of our time when the market is moving and people are making plans on what to buy. Unexpected, but not unforeseen, as it's simply more difficult to qualify for a mortgage loan in the US these days post 2008 Great Recession real estate bubble pricing and lending.
We ourselves would not qualify with our current income for this house! That says a lot right there, so I have empathy for those who are struggling with the mortgage loan process these days. We had a Spanish speaking real estate agent and Spanish speaking buyers who made the offer. Probably on the low income end of things. Common around here, and I understand the desire to own versus rent. Lots of income and housing price disparity in Southern California of late, especially around the Los Angeles metro area here. Affordable housing is getting harder and harder to find, to buy or even rent.
Combined with a death of a former friend from our previous church, a tremendously regrettable action on the part of one who was employed at our current church's school - when one hurts, we all hurt - and the death by suicide by actor and comedian Robin Williams, it has not been an upbeat week here. We have frankly been in mourning about these things, and the work we have been diligently been about in getting ourselves ready for traveling to Ecuador seemed to be for nothing - at least that was the feeling. At least I had the knowledge that the deal could go awry if the maker of the offer to buy did not qualify for the loan. . . my Sweet Polly Purebred acted like it was a done deal, and was a larger shock to her as a result. We have talked. . . (smile) She knows better now for the next round.
Speaking of the next round, now that the house has been relisted for sale, we once again ended up getting quite a few looks on the Internet for this place - understandable as it's very reasonable in price - and like clockwork, like before, a prospective buyer wanted to come and see the residence Sunday morning like the last offer maker. Leaving our adult Sunday School class that I hate to miss, I gave the tour myself with the real estate agent present, and they seemed to like what they saw. Sure enough, I got a phone call from that real estate agency in Granada Hills (Los Angeles) last afternoon, wanting to know where to submit the offer in writing as my Broker/Realtor was in Australia with his wife! I checked on Facebook and it was true. . . my agent the world traveler once again! I said to submit it to the Real Estate agency I am with via email. OK. Will check up on that later today. . .
A (not chance, was truly serendipitously provided by God) chance running in with the pastor who teaches our adult Sunday School class Sunday mornings - who I never see at the local Costco store. . . what are the odds. . . was very useful. Finish what you've started. You need people to help you? Come and talk to us! (slaps side of head) Don't take on too much in terms of things to do and be involved in, especially the wife. Duh. Very useful time and thanks to God for putting people in the right places at the right time. . . I need that more than ever. . .
Because of what has transpired in the life of our church in the last week or so that has been so very hurtful to two minor children at the hands of one adult - draw your own conclusions, but it is not worth repeating here - our Senior Pastor Chris Johnson gave a great exposition of Psalm 42 and 43, which really flow together as one Psalm. It fits. In time of discouragement, feeling apart from God, like the world is not working the way it should, when others let you down. . . Hope in God, and act in faith in what is unseen, instead of what is seen. He rewards those who act in that kind of believing faith that sees beyond one's own temporal circumstance. Time to be a doer of the Word, as James put it in James 1. By His Grace, not by my human power. Thanks again Lord, for picking us up. . .
So, time to press on and reconnect, get answers, and get 'er done. One of the frustrating things I have noticed is that the procedural requirements, especially for the importation of pets (we plan on bringing our dog with us), are not terribly precise in wording. I can't say if it's due to my learning difference and language pragmatics, or if it really is that ambiguous. Within 60 days, or longer than 60 days? How hard can it be to be that clear? Government speak has always been unclear, especially when you get a foreign government involved that speaks a different language. Sigh.
We ourselves would not qualify with our current income for this house! That says a lot right there, so I have empathy for those who are struggling with the mortgage loan process these days. We had a Spanish speaking real estate agent and Spanish speaking buyers who made the offer. Probably on the low income end of things. Common around here, and I understand the desire to own versus rent. Lots of income and housing price disparity in Southern California of late, especially around the Los Angeles metro area here. Affordable housing is getting harder and harder to find, to buy or even rent.
Combined with a death of a former friend from our previous church, a tremendously regrettable action on the part of one who was employed at our current church's school - when one hurts, we all hurt - and the death by suicide by actor and comedian Robin Williams, it has not been an upbeat week here. We have frankly been in mourning about these things, and the work we have been diligently been about in getting ourselves ready for traveling to Ecuador seemed to be for nothing - at least that was the feeling. At least I had the knowledge that the deal could go awry if the maker of the offer to buy did not qualify for the loan. . . my Sweet Polly Purebred acted like it was a done deal, and was a larger shock to her as a result. We have talked. . . (smile) She knows better now for the next round.
Speaking of the next round, now that the house has been relisted for sale, we once again ended up getting quite a few looks on the Internet for this place - understandable as it's very reasonable in price - and like clockwork, like before, a prospective buyer wanted to come and see the residence Sunday morning like the last offer maker. Leaving our adult Sunday School class that I hate to miss, I gave the tour myself with the real estate agent present, and they seemed to like what they saw. Sure enough, I got a phone call from that real estate agency in Granada Hills (Los Angeles) last afternoon, wanting to know where to submit the offer in writing as my Broker/Realtor was in Australia with his wife! I checked on Facebook and it was true. . . my agent the world traveler once again! I said to submit it to the Real Estate agency I am with via email. OK. Will check up on that later today. . .
A (not chance, was truly serendipitously provided by God) chance running in with the pastor who teaches our adult Sunday School class Sunday mornings - who I never see at the local Costco store. . . what are the odds. . . was very useful. Finish what you've started. You need people to help you? Come and talk to us! (slaps side of head) Don't take on too much in terms of things to do and be involved in, especially the wife. Duh. Very useful time and thanks to God for putting people in the right places at the right time. . . I need that more than ever. . .
Because of what has transpired in the life of our church in the last week or so that has been so very hurtful to two minor children at the hands of one adult - draw your own conclusions, but it is not worth repeating here - our Senior Pastor Chris Johnson gave a great exposition of Psalm 42 and 43, which really flow together as one Psalm. It fits. In time of discouragement, feeling apart from God, like the world is not working the way it should, when others let you down. . . Hope in God, and act in faith in what is unseen, instead of what is seen. He rewards those who act in that kind of believing faith that sees beyond one's own temporal circumstance. Time to be a doer of the Word, as James put it in James 1. By His Grace, not by my human power. Thanks again Lord, for picking us up. . .
So, time to press on and reconnect, get answers, and get 'er done. One of the frustrating things I have noticed is that the procedural requirements, especially for the importation of pets (we plan on bringing our dog with us), are not terribly precise in wording. I can't say if it's due to my learning difference and language pragmatics, or if it really is that ambiguous. Within 60 days, or longer than 60 days? How hard can it be to be that clear? Government speak has always been unclear, especially when you get a foreign government involved that speaks a different language. Sigh.
Friday, August 1, 2014
The End Game is in Sight
Time for some good news! All of our diligent researching, asking around, exploring, and asking questions has once again paid off. We're in a better situation than we first thought. . . fabulous news! Much rejoicing and praise to our always wise Father in Heaven for the recent developments.
I had my first experience using Skype this morning, which was fairly intuitive to use for a first timer. I also had the opportunity to contact and discuss - on Skype's famous camera system with audio, of course - our visa situation with one of the lawyers from the Coloaustro law firm in Cuenca, who came recommended to us by folks we met from our church in Cuenca, Iglesia Verbo Cristiana.
Our legal counsel advised us to *not* be bothered with paying the $230 visa fee plus $30 application fee at the Ecuadorian Consulate here. . . a waste of money and of time and effort. Instead, simply use the existing tourist visa from our US Passport documents we already possess, and let the remaining 51 days (out of the 90 allowed per year - we already used 39 days from our previous visit) be used to apply for the Cedula, or indefinite term visa which has no expiration once granted. Once the application for the Cedula is received by the Immigration office, the "clock stops" so to speak and we are legally good to stay in Ecuador to the time we get our Cedulas. . . which allow us to stay, of course. Our law firm would provide expert assistance to expedite that application for us, we heard today. It's doable in the 51 days we will be in Ecuador.
--->> In other words, my last post of two days ago does not apply to us getting to Ecuador this time around. <<--- Feel free to ignore it in our case.
Since we are retirees, with documents from Social Security stating such, what we need to focus on according to our legal counsel is getting those statements apostilled at the Ecuadorian Consulate, along with our FBI background check reports, which should show up as "nothing to report." Those reports likewise need to be apostilled at the Ecuadorian Consulate.
We have the Social Security earning statement letters already. By the way, as of August 1st, 2014, you can no longer walk in to an Social Security office and get that kind of statement in person. You have to get it through the mail, and using the telephone to request it is the way to go, despite the 45 or so minute waiting time that usually takes place. We lack the FBI docs, which require a fingerprint card, which we've done for our previous employment in education and nursing. Turn around time for the FBI docs is 30 days in house in West Virginia where the FBI holds its records, and realistically it works out to be a six week period allowing for mail delivery time from start to finish. So we need to move on this muy pronto, as it is the longest time item to obtain as far as we know.
As my brother in the faith Robert Brady said tonight, "our ducks are lining up all in a row." That's true, and time for praise and thanks to our great God who has gotten us thus far. Still a bit left here to get out of Pilgrim's Rest, which is looking easier and easier day by day as our belongings just. . . disappear. (We're giving them to groups that we believe may best benefit from them, especially my old book library and educational and devotional books - The Master's College in Santa Clarita gets them, and they look to be a wonderful place to have them if they want to keep them).
Furniture. . . looking easier to do all the time. Two moves, and most of it will be gone. Then it's time to put things into temporary storage to sort them out for our traveling - do we really need them, or just want to hang onto them? We have to be fairly ruthless on this most likely, as we haven't found a way to ship them via UPS or some other way without using a costly cargo container - and the hassle of documenting all of it in English and Spanish and paying all the fees. We will seek good advice and work it out in a timely way before leaving.
Looking at my main weblog, Wandering Pilgrim's Progress, at my April 30, 2014 post, it contains all of the items necessary for the Cedula process. Let's go down that list once again, and I'll bring to the attention of legal counsel any concerns we may have in terms of documents to bring and legalize before we hop on that airplane to Ecuador.
1. Written Request. Easy enough. Check.
2. Visa Application Form. Wonder where those original color passport size photos of us went to. We can always replace them, if needed. Check.
3. Notarized (in Cuenca) color copy of the passport, valid for at least six months, notarized copy of the current regular visa at the time the person starts the process, and a notarized copy of the registry of the visa. Three variations on the same theme, methinks. The first two items are the same thing I believe in our case, using our US Passports as our entry visas, and the registry part is probably the page that holds the passport number from the US State Department. Will check this out further with legal counsel. . . but looks good. Check.
4. Updated criminal record for the last five years (we have continuously lived in the United States all that time). Legalized (non Hague Convention country) by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA. Check.
5. Updated Migratory Movement certificate issued by the Ecuadorian Immigration Police. (Valid through 30 days) Have to get this once we're in Cuenca. Check.
6. Document issued by the institution that pays or provides for retirement pension from foreign country. Authenticated by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA (the country where documents are issued from) Not less than $800 a month to the recipient, and increases by $100 a month for each dependent.
Need to determine if the $800 figure is the gross amount before Medicare deductions. . . probably true, but would be wise to check. If not. . . will need to go the route of the $25,000 presented in secured monies for the visa. . . I'm right on the line on this particular point. Also, my wife will not be getting her first Social Security payment until the third Wednesday in October, but we already have the letter stating such. Need clarification on if that fact means we can't leave until she gets her first Social Security pension payment. With all that said, sin embargo. . . Check.
7. Certificate issued and legalized by the Ecuadorian Foreign Service Officer, in the country of origin, determining the perception of such pension or permanent income. Check.
8. This is about translation of documents from a foreign language (English) into Ecuador's native tongue (Spanish). Reading the instructions pertaining to this item, it's unclear to me if the translation must be done in the USA in our case before leaving for Ecuador, or is it alright to have it translated in Ecuador.
On second reading: oh. . . I get it. If the document is in English in the USA, it must first be (1) translated into Spanish, (2) have translator's signature before a notary public. Then (3) apostilled or legalized by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA. I think that's the safe way to go. Need to consult with legal counsel. Kind of confusing language with this section of the instructions. . . but Check.
#6 Retirement pay documents from Social Security. Have them in possession for self and wife. Need to get them apostilled at Ecuadorian Consulate.
#7 Certificate determining validation of Social Security pension by Ecuadorian Foreign Service Officer in the USA. Obtain.
#8 All English language documents must be translated into Spanish and have translator's signature before a notary public. These documents must be apostilled or legalized before the Ecuadorian Consulate. Translate, have translator sign with notary public present, and have Ecuadorian Consulate apostille these documents.
Not too hard, I hope. . . looking like a doable list. Who could I use to translate documents and sign before a notary? Thank you Lord for making the impossible possible. . . one step at a time, one task at a time.
Oh. . . by the way, I got a bit of help getting our MagicJack VOIP phone working with our desktop computer a few days back. Got smart and went to Fry's Electronics in Burbank, where they serendipitously had three (3) MagicJack Plus units left. Every where else you go, there's this new MagicJack Go, which I couldn't (we couldn't) figure out how to get running, as it did not provide the necessary wiring to get it to operate. MagicJack Plus, on the other hand, did have everything necessary to operate the system. So we took that good advice from the Fry's sales rep, who really did know his stuff, and saved a few dollars in price of the item in the process as well. It works just fine. . . and it will be a godsend when we are in Ecuador calling friends and family Stateside for free. You have to establish your MagicJack account in the USA **first** before you can make those free calls from Ecuador to the USA. . . procrastinating doesn't work, and you lose out. So glad that task is done. So many IT technology related tasks to be able to get this move working as it should and be able to communicate with those we love. Worth it all, of course.
I had my first experience using Skype this morning, which was fairly intuitive to use for a first timer. I also had the opportunity to contact and discuss - on Skype's famous camera system with audio, of course - our visa situation with one of the lawyers from the Coloaustro law firm in Cuenca, who came recommended to us by folks we met from our church in Cuenca, Iglesia Verbo Cristiana.
Our legal counsel advised us to *not* be bothered with paying the $230 visa fee plus $30 application fee at the Ecuadorian Consulate here. . . a waste of money and of time and effort. Instead, simply use the existing tourist visa from our US Passport documents we already possess, and let the remaining 51 days (out of the 90 allowed per year - we already used 39 days from our previous visit) be used to apply for the Cedula, or indefinite term visa which has no expiration once granted. Once the application for the Cedula is received by the Immigration office, the "clock stops" so to speak and we are legally good to stay in Ecuador to the time we get our Cedulas. . . which allow us to stay, of course. Our law firm would provide expert assistance to expedite that application for us, we heard today. It's doable in the 51 days we will be in Ecuador.
--->> In other words, my last post of two days ago does not apply to us getting to Ecuador this time around. <<--- Feel free to ignore it in our case.
Since we are retirees, with documents from Social Security stating such, what we need to focus on according to our legal counsel is getting those statements apostilled at the Ecuadorian Consulate, along with our FBI background check reports, which should show up as "nothing to report." Those reports likewise need to be apostilled at the Ecuadorian Consulate.
We have the Social Security earning statement letters already. By the way, as of August 1st, 2014, you can no longer walk in to an Social Security office and get that kind of statement in person. You have to get it through the mail, and using the telephone to request it is the way to go, despite the 45 or so minute waiting time that usually takes place. We lack the FBI docs, which require a fingerprint card, which we've done for our previous employment in education and nursing. Turn around time for the FBI docs is 30 days in house in West Virginia where the FBI holds its records, and realistically it works out to be a six week period allowing for mail delivery time from start to finish. So we need to move on this muy pronto, as it is the longest time item to obtain as far as we know.
As my brother in the faith Robert Brady said tonight, "our ducks are lining up all in a row." That's true, and time for praise and thanks to our great God who has gotten us thus far. Still a bit left here to get out of Pilgrim's Rest, which is looking easier and easier day by day as our belongings just. . . disappear. (We're giving them to groups that we believe may best benefit from them, especially my old book library and educational and devotional books - The Master's College in Santa Clarita gets them, and they look to be a wonderful place to have them if they want to keep them).
Furniture. . . looking easier to do all the time. Two moves, and most of it will be gone. Then it's time to put things into temporary storage to sort them out for our traveling - do we really need them, or just want to hang onto them? We have to be fairly ruthless on this most likely, as we haven't found a way to ship them via UPS or some other way without using a costly cargo container - and the hassle of documenting all of it in English and Spanish and paying all the fees. We will seek good advice and work it out in a timely way before leaving.
Looking at my main weblog, Wandering Pilgrim's Progress, at my April 30, 2014 post, it contains all of the items necessary for the Cedula process. Let's go down that list once again, and I'll bring to the attention of legal counsel any concerns we may have in terms of documents to bring and legalize before we hop on that airplane to Ecuador.
1. Written Request. Easy enough. Check.
2. Visa Application Form. Wonder where those original color passport size photos of us went to. We can always replace them, if needed. Check.
3. Notarized (in Cuenca) color copy of the passport, valid for at least six months, notarized copy of the current regular visa at the time the person starts the process, and a notarized copy of the registry of the visa. Three variations on the same theme, methinks. The first two items are the same thing I believe in our case, using our US Passports as our entry visas, and the registry part is probably the page that holds the passport number from the US State Department. Will check this out further with legal counsel. . . but looks good. Check.
4. Updated criminal record for the last five years (we have continuously lived in the United States all that time). Legalized (non Hague Convention country) by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA. Check.
5. Updated Migratory Movement certificate issued by the Ecuadorian Immigration Police. (Valid through 30 days) Have to get this once we're in Cuenca. Check.
6. Document issued by the institution that pays or provides for retirement pension from foreign country. Authenticated by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA (the country where documents are issued from) Not less than $800 a month to the recipient, and increases by $100 a month for each dependent.
Need to determine if the $800 figure is the gross amount before Medicare deductions. . . probably true, but would be wise to check. If not. . . will need to go the route of the $25,000 presented in secured monies for the visa. . . I'm right on the line on this particular point. Also, my wife will not be getting her first Social Security payment until the third Wednesday in October, but we already have the letter stating such. Need clarification on if that fact means we can't leave until she gets her first Social Security pension payment. With all that said, sin embargo. . . Check.
7. Certificate issued and legalized by the Ecuadorian Foreign Service Officer, in the country of origin, determining the perception of such pension or permanent income. Check.
8. This is about translation of documents from a foreign language (English) into Ecuador's native tongue (Spanish). Reading the instructions pertaining to this item, it's unclear to me if the translation must be done in the USA in our case before leaving for Ecuador, or is it alright to have it translated in Ecuador.
On second reading: oh. . . I get it. If the document is in English in the USA, it must first be (1) translated into Spanish, (2) have translator's signature before a notary public. Then (3) apostilled or legalized by the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA. I think that's the safe way to go. Need to consult with legal counsel. Kind of confusing language with this section of the instructions. . . but Check.
## ## ##
Recapping the above, as I understand it, the action items to do before leaving for Ecuador are these:
#4 Updated Criminal Record/FBI Background clearance check. Fingerprint cards, applications, and payments for self and wife. ASAP. Upon receiving them, need to have them apostilled by Ecuadorian Consulate. #6 Retirement pay documents from Social Security. Have them in possession for self and wife. Need to get them apostilled at Ecuadorian Consulate.
#7 Certificate determining validation of Social Security pension by Ecuadorian Foreign Service Officer in the USA. Obtain.
#8 All English language documents must be translated into Spanish and have translator's signature before a notary public. These documents must be apostilled or legalized before the Ecuadorian Consulate. Translate, have translator sign with notary public present, and have Ecuadorian Consulate apostille these documents.
Not too hard, I hope. . . looking like a doable list. Who could I use to translate documents and sign before a notary? Thank you Lord for making the impossible possible. . . one step at a time, one task at a time.
Oh. . . by the way, I got a bit of help getting our MagicJack VOIP phone working with our desktop computer a few days back. Got smart and went to Fry's Electronics in Burbank, where they serendipitously had three (3) MagicJack Plus units left. Every where else you go, there's this new MagicJack Go, which I couldn't (we couldn't) figure out how to get running, as it did not provide the necessary wiring to get it to operate. MagicJack Plus, on the other hand, did have everything necessary to operate the system. So we took that good advice from the Fry's sales rep, who really did know his stuff, and saved a few dollars in price of the item in the process as well. It works just fine. . . and it will be a godsend when we are in Ecuador calling friends and family Stateside for free. You have to establish your MagicJack account in the USA **first** before you can make those free calls from Ecuador to the USA. . . procrastinating doesn't work, and you lose out. So glad that task is done. So many IT technology related tasks to be able to get this move working as it should and be able to communicate with those we love. Worth it all, of course.
&& && && && &&
UPDATE: For those who are like us, using our USA Passports which function as Ecuadorian tourist visas seeking to obtain the Cedula - unlimited time Ecuadorian Visa from the retired pensioner residency standpoint in Ecuadorian immigration law, here's what you need according to our Cuenca law firm, Coloaustro:
1) Marriage Certificate (my wife and I) both apostilled by either a Notary Public in the USA or at the US Secretary of State (US State Department). Notary Public is by far much easier for us to do versus sending these documents to the US State Department in Washington, D.C. Notary Publics can be found all over the United States, too. . . easy to find one right at our own Credit Union, even.
2) Birth Certificate (my wife and I) both apostilled by the USA based Ecuadorian Consulate. The closest one to us is based in Beverly Hills, CA within commuting distance to us. We've been there before, and know the location, 8484 Wilshire Blvd., parking (underground onsite) and hours - 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM Monday through Thursday if I remember correctly, and closing at 12:00 Noon on Friday.
3) Criminal Records/FBI background check needs to be apostilled by the US State Department in Washington, D.C. Yep, you have to literally mail it in once you get it in your mailbox. We are in the midst of having the FBI do its check on us, and so we are ahead of the game that way at the moment on this item. When I was contacting the FBI approved channeler for departmental submission of our background check requests, they were very emphatic on their Internet site that the only way to get a background check apostilled was by mailing it in to the US State Department in Washington, D.C. So this information is in sync with one of the preapproved providers of this kind of document.
4) Certification of my certificate of pension - Social Security Award Letter - is done at the Ecuadorian Consulate in the USA.
So. . . two types of documents to bring to the Ecuadorian Consulate in Beverly Hills, CA, one type by a Notary Public, and one type by the US State Department. I wondered where the Birth Certificate and the Marriage License would enter into the picture. Our law firm answered it. Getting easier and much clearer. This is doable! Now it's time to get it all done. Our papers are all organized and easily findable, so it's not a chore. Feeling very good about all this now!
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