Consular Interview - contract notarized?

suzanne4, RN · May 14, 2006

Where are you currently located? If in the US, any bank can usually do it for you.

If in your country, the US Embassy can do it for you.

And what your attorney told you is correct. You can only have an item notarized if they watch you sign it.

Have not heard of the contract needign to be notarized, almost impossible, since both of you are not usually in the same country.

anniputski · May 15, 2006

Thanks suzanne.

I'm in the Philippines and the employer is in the US. I know it seems impossible. But I called the US Embassy hotline in Manila today and at first they said, yes, the contract has to be notarized. Then I argued with them, and then they said "just make it as genuine as possible... only the Affidavit of Support needs to be notarized"

I am so confused. Can anyone who's had experience help out, please? What about a job offer letter? Doesn't it only need the employer's signature... and therefore notarization is possible?

kingof heart · May 30, 2006

Where are you currently located? If in the US, any bank can usually do it for you.
If in your country, the US Embassy can do it for you.
And what your attorney told you is correct. You can only have an item notarized if they watch you sign it.
Have not heard of the contract needign to be notarized, almost impossible, since both of you are not usually in the same country.

hi suzanne4. since my case still at the P3 stage yet, i will take this opportunity to ask from you regarding my contract. what is in my position right now is just a photocopy of our contract with the administrator of the facility and myself but not notarized yet. my question now is this, is it possible to have this contract notarize here with a local lawyer & after that, let the US embassy in Manila notarize it? otherwise, if that is not possible, i have to ask my lawyer in the States to send another contract with fully subscribed or notarized already. thanks! It's me KING!

suzanne4, RN · May 30, 2006

hi suzanne4. since my case still at the P3 stage, i will take this oppurtunity to ask from you regarding my contract. what is in my position right now is just a photocopy of our contract with the adminisrator of the facility and my self but not notarized yet. my question now is this is it possible to have this contract notarize here with a local lawyer & after that, let the US embassy in Manila notarize it? otherwise, if that is not possible, i have to ask my lawyer in the States to send another contract with fully subscribed or notarized. thanks! It's me KING!

You cannot have it notarized, it has already been signed. And the parties are in two different countries. The embassy in Manila cannot notarize a document, if it is not seeing the other party that signed it. That is what a notary does. They verify that the signature belongs to the person that is signing it. How can they do that.

Check with the Embassy as far as what they want you to bring.

anniputski · May 30, 2006

Hi King.

I am also facing the same dilemma. I'm having my interview on June 7. Instead of a job offer, I have contract (2 signatures), and it is NOT notarized. The lawyer insists it cannot be done legally. I will let you know after my interview if the consular officer accepts it.

As for you, since you are in the P3 stage, I think you have no choice but to ask your agency/lawyer to send an updated contract or job offer once you're scheduled for interview. Firstly, I think it it has to be original (not photocopied), and secondly, it has to be updated (current date, not more than a year ago).

kingof heart · May 30, 2006

thank you,suzzane! that's the reason why i asked this question considering that i have been wondering if notarization can be possible if two parties are in defferent countries. lawyers are very strict in executing notarization of document(s) if parties are not present. I don't think so embassy is so strict on this notarization matters considering that the mere fact that our papers has been approved already through USCIS then to NVC, it goes to show that transactions are all ligitimate in nature. Secondly, in form ds230 (part 11) sworn statement- in item #29 it clearly states the name & address of the petitioner & of course we have to place the name of the said petitioner.In this case, i happened to secure photocopy of our contract prior to reaching USCIS & I also signed the ETA form 9089 (with 10 pages) for labor cert.

to anniputski, thank you for your concern! i will just keep following your post knowing what transpired on your incoming interview. God bless!

It's me KING!

hael171972 · Jun 1, 2006

my contract is not notarized too...

but they sent me a notarized job offer(its a form ??? cant remember), notarized affidavit of support and forgot the other one..they are all originals with letterhead of the company and with a stamp from an attorney.

will post the other name of the document later...

my interview is set on june 21...still undergoing medicals at st. luke's..

hael

gwapo · Jun 1, 2006

my contract is not notarized too...
but they sent me a notarized job offer(its a form ??? cant remember), notarized affidavit of support and forgot the other one..they are all originals with letterhead of the company and with a stamp from an attorney.
will post the other name of the document later...
my interview is set on june 21...still undergoing medicals at st. luke's..
hael

my contact was not notarized either.it was even just a photocopy! the embassy did not ask for it. when asked for a supporting document, i gave them a letter from the employer. my agent gave me a notarized letter from the employer, with the signature of its representative. it was printed on a paper with their letterhead. it stated that the employment offer for mr. xxxx is still available and his pre and post nclex rate is $$$$.. signed by the employer's rep and a notary public. that's it!

anniputski, try to ask ur agent if they could give u something like this. it does not need your signature so its ok to have it notarized in the us.

anniputski · Jun 1, 2006

thanks so much, gwapo.

unfortunately, I'm out of time as my interview is already next week. I mentioned this to the lawyer (give me a notarized job offer instead of a contract), but again, he insists that the employer would prefer a contract. It is more binding and has 2 signatures, and therefore a better legal document. My contract is also on letterhead, but NOT notarized.

Does anyone know anybody who got into trouble because their job offer or contract was not notarized? Perhaps it's just common practice, but not really necessary.

hael171972 · Jun 4, 2006

my contract is not notarized too...
but they sent me a notarized job offer(its a form ??? cant remember), notarized affidavit of support and forgot the other one..they are all originals with letterhead of the company and with a stamp from an attorney.
will post the other name of the document later...
my interview is set on june 21...still undergoing medicals at st. luke's..
hael

its the omb-56 (department of state job offer), job offer from employer stating that the vacancy is still open and the affidavit of support..

my friend who has gone interview last june 2 said that he was given a pink slip and white paper (its a checklist of documents you need to submit--tho its written there "wait for mail for further instructions, we will review you case") no additional docs needed, but a further review of the case is needed..

my friend and i were hoping that there would be no problems...

gwapo: all of his original documents were returned...

hael

anniputski · Jun 7, 2006

Hi everyone. I just got back from the US embassy interview and all seems ok.

As you may know, my contract is NOT notarized, only on letterhead. The Filipino pre-interviewer mentioned that sometimes consular officers want to see notarizations, but it's up for them to decide. I explained what the lawyer said, and he said just explain to the consular officer if he asks. I was interviewed by a nice, male consular officer and I don't even think he took look at the notarization part. He said "everything looks fine." No other document was required of me, and I was asked to pay Delbros.

Job offers / Contracts should be original though, not photocopies. I saw a fellow nurse who was asked to secure an original copy after the interview.

When you present the original documents, submit a photocopy along with it. I gave copies of my VisaScreen, Nclex result and even my contract. The releasing section gave me back all the originals after the interview. Thanks for your help, everyone. I sure feel relieved that all seems fine.