Adventures in Expatriation
A summary of the China visa experience so far:
Partner of 14 years arrived back in the US after midnight on July 23. Later that day, we applied for our marriage license -- Minnesota just passed marriage equality in 2013 and, thanks to the ruling against DOMA, it's now recognized federally as well. Five days later (as prescribed by law) we submitted our signed license to the county and received a stamped and certified copy. Later that day, we mailed my passport and marriage certificate to the Chinese consulate in Boston, where professionals were on hand to guide my application through the process.
Three weeks have passed and we are still at loggerheads. For reasons unexplained, the Chinese consulate refuses to process my visa. The visa professionals in Boston seem at a loss, and advise us to try for a different type of visa - one that would only allow me to be in the country for a month or two, rather than a year. Not desirable.
In the midst of all the waiting, we had our wedding. It was a good, complicated event with about 70 friends and family arriving. When we surfaced from the happy chaos, I was informed about the difficulties. Someone from husband's school is supposed to call the consulate to clarify things. Days have passed and she hasn’t made the call. Visa professional can’t or won’t pursue any clarification about why the visa application is not accepted. Husband is frustrated and angry.
My flight is scheduled for one week tomorrow. Husband’s flight is one week today. I sit encased in amber anxiety, waiting and waiting. We knew it would not be easy to get this done. I just hoped it wouldn’t be so opaque
Partner of 14 years arrived back in the US after midnight on July 23. Later that day, we applied for our marriage license -- Minnesota just passed marriage equality in 2013 and, thanks to the ruling against DOMA, it's now recognized federally as well. Five days later (as prescribed by law) we submitted our signed license to the county and received a stamped and certified copy. Later that day, we mailed my passport and marriage certificate to the Chinese consulate in Boston, where professionals were on hand to guide my application through the process.
Three weeks have passed and we are still at loggerheads. For reasons unexplained, the Chinese consulate refuses to process my visa. The visa professionals in Boston seem at a loss, and advise us to try for a different type of visa - one that would only allow me to be in the country for a month or two, rather than a year. Not desirable.
In the midst of all the waiting, we had our wedding. It was a good, complicated event with about 70 friends and family arriving. When we surfaced from the happy chaos, I was informed about the difficulties. Someone from husband's school is supposed to call the consulate to clarify things. Days have passed and she hasn’t made the call. Visa professional can’t or won’t pursue any clarification about why the visa application is not accepted. Husband is frustrated and angry.
My flight is scheduled for one week tomorrow. Husband’s flight is one week today. I sit encased in amber anxiety, waiting and waiting. We knew it would not be easy to get this done. I just hoped it wouldn’t be so opaque