IN a previous article, I discussed some items, which could be viewed by the Embassy or USCIS as being suspicious, trigger delays, and could possibly result in investigation or administrative review. Here are more items, which could help you avoid problems and pitfalls:

When children are born, births are ordinarily promptly registered with the Local Civil Registrar and the National Statistics Office. If you submit a late-registered birth certificate (especially if registered many years after a child’s birth) the Embassy or USCIS may require an explanation as to why the birth certificate was registered Alate.@ Sometimes, people submit late registered birth certificates when they want to hide a marriage of the parents (as birth certificates include information on the parents’ date of marriage), or the true date of a child’s birth (i.e. over 21 years old). Other times, people in the provinces or barrios just don’t have the time or money to go to the cities or towns where the Local Civil Registrars are located, to register the birth.