Police Certificates and more

My husband has posted this message on Dive Into America, but no one has replied, so I thought I'd repeat it here.  Anyone who can help, it would be much appriciated.

"Hi everyone,

My wife is USC I am UKC. We were married in June 2006 in the UK and 1st child is due end of June 2008. We have decided to move back to Houston to be closer to her (huge) family.

As usual, government administration has me confused and stressed from the outset. I have a few questions and forgive me if they've been addressed before.

My wife's US passport is still in her maiden name (couldn't change it because all visas to stay in UK were glued into it and we were told if we wanted them transferred to a new passport, we'd have to pay again!). So,

1. On I-130, in B-1, do we put her maiden name (as appears on her passport) in the family name section, or her married name, as is on our marriage certificate, and then put the maiden name in B-7 Other names used?


Secondly, I was convicted of possession almost 12 years ago when 17 years old. Went to court, was fined. So,

2. Do you think this old conviction will be a problem with the visa? and, if so,

3. Could you offer some advice on what to do?

Frankly I find it odd that they ask for all convictions since 16, especially as I understand that you're not considered an adult until 18 in the US police's eyes.


Finally,

4. Can anyone offer some advice on photograph standards to submit with the biographic information form?

I had initially thought that using a standard photo-booth that does passport photos would be fine but then I read the guidelines on:

travel.state.gov/passport/guide/composition/composition_874.html

which isn't the same thing. The head size in a UK photo is larger and the eyes are closer to the bottom of the photo.



Thanks in advance for any advice. I'm so glad I found this website, it's exactly what we need."

I went and 'bumped' the topic on DIA for you. That site is really best for that type of info, but it is a much less busy site than UKY!

That said, I *think* that you might find answers to those questions on there already... did you try a search? I could be wrong but they all do ring bells. I'd answer you if I could but we aren't even starting the process until February/March.

I used my married name on the I-130 application (as the USC) although my previous name is in my US passport along with all my visas to live in the UK are in my prior name.  You have to submit any proof of different names so I included my marriage license.

I cannot answer as to convictions as I haven't any experience with that side of things. We haven't received my husband's police certificate back yet so I don't know what is returned.

There is a link to the photo sizes you must submit and I followed those. The photographer we went to in the UK used a really fancy digital camera and he snapped normal pics and then resized them to match what was required.

The info on the bottom of my pdf says:

For more information on photo standards, visit the Department of State
website at http://www.travel.state.gov/passport/pptphotos/index.html,
or contact the USCIS National Customer Service Center at 1 800 375 5283.

It will tell you how many photos you need for what type of application, etc.