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Dave
I am from the UK and am going through the exact same thing myself - in 2 months my wife and I are going to stay in Poltava!
On paper it shouldn't be a problem but I am anxious as to how it will go myself as there is a lot of beauracracy over there and even if you think you have ticked all the boxes the authorities can always find new criteria. This can be frustrating I've heard. But as I say there is always more than one way of doing things over there and sometimes potential problems can be solved with a fly pay off!
I'm not sure about US way but I think it's quite similar to UK way so here is some things I've found -
1 - You can apply for residency either in a Ukrainian Consultate in UK / US before you leave. The process can take up to a year and it is my understanding that you would have to go out there on a private VISA (6 months validity) and also you would have to come back to pick up the residency permit in the US (meaning the Ukrainian Consultate wouldnt just post it out to their couterparts in Ukraine) - does this make sense?
For this reason my understanding is that it is better to apply while you are actually in Ukraine. You did this as the local govt office in Poltava district. It still takes a year to process but I have been told they issue something in your passport to say that your application is being processed and this enables you to stay until a decision on your application has been made. (I have someone triple checking this as we speak!)
2 - The application itself - You will need to have all documents legalised before you go (if you need more info on this let me know) and then you will have to have them translated into Ukrainian. Docs will be a) - Marriage certificate - NB you must have been married for 2 years or more, b)document confirming your previous place of residence in the States (I got his from the Electoral Register in UK) - they call this SPRAVKA c) Police criminal record check d) doctors report confiming you have no STD's, not an alcholic or drug user e) legalised copy of your passport data page
If you are married to a Ukrainian citizen for more than 2 years I understand that you fall out of the immigration normal quota and therefore do not need c) and d) - I am getting them done (just in case!)
Hope this helps.
Oh, I have also been told that things would go much easier with your application if your wife had any contacts within the relevant govt departments. Apparently there are lawyers that will do it all for you for a fee (the reality is they just hand over the docs to the govt as you yourself would do, although they do manage to speed things up apparently)
If anyone has any more info on this or thinks that I am wrong please let me know because getting such info has been really hard and my life depends on it being correct!
Cheers
PS if you have and babies / kids - it is better to have put them on your wifes passport as well as making them US citizens
PPS has your wife changed her surname to yours? If she has they might get a bit funny as her surname on her passport will be different to that on your marriage certificate. We have a friend out there at the moment who is having much problem with this at the moment!
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