ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Hi Anne! Glad to hear you arrived safely & are settling in well. I can't believe it's still in the 30s there.. brrr. Spring's finally here in western Washington so we are having nice 60 degree-ish days. I was down in Portland/Vancouver a few times last month and it'####### 70 there already.. yay bring on summer biggrin.gif

Good luck with the wedding planning!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-04-24 18:41:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Welcome to the forum!

Start by having a read through the guide here:
http://www.visajourn...mp;page=k1guide
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-04-20 11:52:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
ahhhh FFS my saga with DIAC (department of immi & citizenship in Australia) continues. If you think USCIS/NVC is bad.. DIAC is SO MUCH worse

We are at the second stage removing conditions stage of my husband's visa and they (in Canberra) have set me around in circles since I first contacted them in early February. It takes them ages to respond to an email (much longer than their 5 business day target time) and every time they give incorrect information or neglect to respond to all my questions. I still have unreplied emails from over 3 weeks ago - this is from both the general email line and from the Manager of the branch (who sent me an apology from when I made an official complaint about them sending my documents to Western Australia instead of Washington, USA!). I still haven't received those documents yet by the way. My last email was to ask how I can have my case transferred to Washington DC .. I guess they don't know so they are just going to ignore it?

But basically since the first stage of our visa was lodged outside of Australia, the rules say the second stage can also be processed outside of Australia (Canberra has confirmed this also - they just haven't told me how). Since it's taken Canberra so long to respond a few days ago I sent an email to the Embassy in DC and pretty much begged them to take the case so that I don't have to deal with Canberra anymore. Long story short they got back to me today, again with incorrect information and said they can't process it for us.

WHY are you people sooo stupid!? headbonk.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-04-03 18:31:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
We did the half-way-in between Hawaii thing also. If you decide to get married on Kauai I am happy to offer suggestions tongue.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-04-02 18:45:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
hurrrah! Congratulations biggrin.gif

ps- does ANYONE get asked ANYTHING at the Consulate: rofl.gif doesn't seem so! laughing.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-30 20:08:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
It's still pretty cold sad.gif C'mon summmerrr!!!!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-30 00:42:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
QUOTE (AnnexoxShay @ Mar 30 2009, 03:55 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Ummm since its an early morning wedding were having a brunch .... and were having crossants, meat platter, fruit platter, other types of brunch style nibbles and champaigne fruit cocktails .... Our cake is going to be a 2 layer marble mudcake with chocolate and white chocolate curls *drool* ... the gardens have a gazebo and a picnic area but were going to need to hire some chairs for the people who are there to witness the wedding ... although I have been to a wedding in a park and they didnt have chairs ... What do you guys think? Chairs or no chairs?


We had an early morning wedding too.. no chairs either but the ceremony itself was pretty short.. only about 20 mins, then we did photos and were done within an hour total. Depends how many guests you are having and how long it will be. Also if you have some older guests it may be better if you did

your cake sounds yummmmmy.. can I come? I'll bring a gift laughing.gif

Here's a photo I took today. The cherry blossoms are blooming!! yaay.. spring's around the corner kicking.gif

kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-30 00:11:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
QUOTE (AnnexoxShay @ Mar 30 2009, 02:00 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (kaffy @ Mar 30 2009, 01:12 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
forgot to ask, how are the wedding plans going? biggrin.gif



Wedding plans are ok ... were not planning a big wedding, just friends and family in the gardens ... Shay has to contact the pastor to schedule the pre wedding meetings, the pastor wants to do 3 ... we got our rings and have pretty much decided on the food .... we still need to get chairs thou .... I still have to go pick up the blouse that Im intending to wear of laybye but I still havent found any shoes .... Gawd Im glad its not going to be a big spectacular wedding LOL


Sounds lovely. We had a small wedding too and it was perfect. What kind of food are you having? I like food tongue.gif

Don't worry about the rip.. the edges on my envelope were a bit frayed too but that wasn't a problem with the officer at POE.

MzMo1102- YAAAYYYY!!! a baby boy biggrin.gif This is soo exciting! Has he been very active lately?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-29 23:43:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
forgot to ask, how are the wedding plans going? biggrin.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-29 22:12:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations!!! Check & double check they have all your details correct in the visa and on the cover of the brown envelope biggrin.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-29 21:59:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
QUOTE (Matt-and-Annie @ Mar 28 2009, 05:40 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Update: It's three days since Matt will be going in for his interview! and I am exicited and yet so nervous.. I am getting worried over petty things, like the affidavit of support, I am currently only studying (don't work) my parents are the sole providers for the affidavit (I hope this is OKAY) they make well above the amount required so that is good so I don't think I should be worried... I am getting so antsy!! kicking.gif


You'll be fine good.gif My husband had no income when we did ours either (he had already quit his job and was waiting to begin grad school) so we used his parents as our joint sponsors and the Consulate had no problems with it (though we did put our assets down there too but I don't think it had any affect on the approval)
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-27 20:38:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
QUOTE (AnnexoxShay @ Mar 25 2009, 09:02 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Seriously thou, the interview is nowhere as scary as we work ourselves up to believe ... The people are really nice and they just get to it, no fluffing around...


I totally agree. This Consulate knows what it's doing and they aren't there to waste people's time good.gif

You better get packing girl! the 14th is going to roll around in no time
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-24 18:40:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
yay congratulations!!

and welcome to the pacific northwest biggrin.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-24 08:31:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
I just tried and it says "Bad Request (Invalid Hostname)"
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-22 19:18:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Hi Dee and welcome to the forum smile.gif

My real name's actually Kathy but I had some friends in highschool who couldnt pronounce the "th" properly and would call me Kaffy instead:p Is your mom's name short for anything?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-20 08:21:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Welcome to the forum biggrin.gif

Cham- just adding.. I think 13th is cutting it too close. If the interview is on the 7th, they should issue the visa on either the 8th or the 9th. Add overnight delivery and he shouldn't get it until the 9th or the 10th.. but then the 10th (Friday) is a public holiday as is the 13th (Monday).

Does Kai live in Sydney? I wonder if he can negotiate with them to issue it to him on the 8th and have him go pick it up. Don't know if they do it but it's worth asking.

ps - the 2 working day thing is their usual rule but look at my timeline to see how delayed mine was.. I had a very panicky time waiting for it to arrive!

Susan - thank you for sharing ur story about Georgia. How did she handle the flight? My Lagotto does well in a crate and would probably just sleep the whole way (she sleeps at least 18hrs a day, if not more!).. but I still worry since I'm sure it's a stressful thing.. first time flying for a pet. I would book her on a direct Brisbane to LA flight (about 12hrs). Not sure if we'll get them to fly her onto Portland for us, or if we'll drive/fly down to collect her. but it's still early days and we're still deciding if it is even best to bring her over or not so I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much just yet
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-19 21:28:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
They used to issue visas on the day but not anymore. The rule now is that it'll be issued within 2 working days of the interview
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-19 18:03:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Welcome back!!! Hawaii and New York.. you lucky girl biggrin.gif Good luck with your ultrasound and hope bubs isn't a stubborn thing and keeps it's legs crossed (as I have heard can happen sometimes laughing.gif )

densusan- Can I ask who you used to transport your dog from Aus to here? Our dog is still living with my parents but we're moving out of our apartment in a few months and will be able to have pets after we do. I have quotes from Dogtainers, Jetpets and Petcarriers and they vary in price a little but all provide the same thing. Do you have a rec between those companies? thanks!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-18 08:27:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Ooh that's less than a month away biggrin.gif Better start packing girl!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-17 22:49:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Aww Susan, I'm so sorry for your loss sad.gif

Anne- Would it be easier for you to fly directly into Portland and go through POE there? You can fly Brisbane to Tokyo on JAL/Qantas, then Tokyo direct to Portland on Northwest Airlines (it's bought on one ticket). It does add a few hours transiting in Tokyo but Portland POE is a cinch and it's a nicer airport compared to LAX.

Edited by kaffy, 17 March 2009 - 08:46 PM.

kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-17 20:45:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Whooo hooo!! Congrats on the interview guys!! biggrin.gif Looks like you'll be home in time for your weddings, right? biggrin.gif

Re: mysterious brown envelope.. yeh it was a bit of a disappointment when they opened mine at POE. There was nothing new inside, just the same forms and papers I filed for the visa laughing.gif

The visa is supposed to be issued within 2 working days of your visa.. add one day for overnight delivery and you should have it by the 4th day. Keep on top of this because for whatever reason they got really busy after my interview and I almost had a panic attack when it didn't arrive on time (I had already booked my ticket for the following Friday) thinking that Australia Post had lost it, etc. I tried calling the Consulate but the receptionist couldn't help me. All she said was to email, send a fax or write a letter. They finally issued it & sent it out on the 19th and I received it 2 days before my departure (I did a quick stopover in Asia before I flew to the States). Talk about close timing!

Edited by kaffy, 16 March 2009 - 11:19 AM.

kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-16 11:18:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Hope you feel better soon smile.gif

Anyway I'm off to bed... yep 10pm is my bedtime jest.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-11 23:59:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
it's standard wording smile.gif

this is the email I got from them last year when I was between the Packet 3 / Interview notice stage

QUOTE
Our records indicate your documents have been received. This process may take up to 14 working days. Once a full review has been completed, we will contact you for scheduling.


A week after that email I got my interview date. Yours will come soon I promise

Do you have family you can stay with between now and when you move?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-11 23:10:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
hang in there! Just takes them time to review that's all
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-11 22:24:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Any news guys?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-11 18:22:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Email is the best & quickest way to contact them.

Did they provide you with one to contact them on?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-10 18:56:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
QUOTE (Cham @ Mar 11 2009, 12:51 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I loved it. My gramma lived in washougal..right next door.


LOL that's where my in-laws live. Small world huh

hope ur interview date comes soon. do u have ur tix booked?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-10 17:23:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Hey Cham - just read u used to live in Camas. That's where my husband grew up (both there and Vancouver) and where we are likely to be moving later this year

how did u like it?
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-09 00:22:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Hi Kath!

Yes it would be awesome if we could get our own subforum
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-03-08 11:17:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date

I emailed the Consulate to ask about the maiden v married name thing. Our petition was filed in my married name but because my passport is in my maiden name, that is the name they have used. By the time my file reaches the Consulate I will have legally changed my name and a new passport issued. For anyone else who is wondering - as long as ALL your Police Clearances are done in both your maiden and married names, they will do all the changes at interview time because the visa will be issued in the name that is in the passport.


Serious? Because when I filed my passport was (and still is) in my maiden name and they (the consulate) didn't have a problem processing my visa in my married name. They simply put an annotation "AKA: <maiden name>" on my visa which acted as a link back to my passport name

This was back in 2008 though so I guess the rules could have changed
kaffyFemaleAustralia2010-04-03 11:39:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date

anyone know the timeframe on getting the visa delivered threw the mail? they said it only be a couple of days but not here yet and been more than a couple of days


The instructions say that they are supposed to issue the visa within 2 business days of the interview BUT they do get busy and delays occur sometimes. I too had my interview on a Tuesday and I didn't receive my visa until the following Wednesday.

If you don't see anything by Monday I'd send them an email
kaffyFemaleAustralia2010-01-16 21:48:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
We avoided all the stresses and family drama and did a small wedding with the parents and siblings only on the beach on Kauai :D Then we did an informal at-home-reception with the extended family afterwards. Highly recommend this option!!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2010-01-10 12:53:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
Hi Lyekka there is a meat pie shop in Seattle called The Australian Pie Co http://www.australianpieco.com/ I have no idea how authentic they are though. Let me know where you end up setting up at and I'll stop by biggrin.gif

And for anyone in Portland that may be interested we have the Pacific Pie Co which is off Burnside http://www.pacificpieco.com/
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-24 17:30:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
QUOTE (Omnivore @ Dec 21 2009, 04:41 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Did anyone get a reciept notice of DS-230I or not? Just want to make sure, probably should email them and ask.


No they don't send out a confirmation. What I did was submit that ASAP then roughly 10 days after submitting Packet 3 I emailed them to confirm that both had arrived.
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-21 09:47:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
What happened Vanessa? I think I must have missed what you wrote earlier.

I flew down in the morning both times for my interviews (once to file I-130, and a second time for the proper interview). I was coming from Brisbane and took the earliest flight out at 6am, arrived in Sydney around 7:30am, hopped on a train and was at the Consulate with time to spare. No dramas

Edited by kaffy, 19 December 2009 - 09:39 PM.

kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-19 21:38:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
QUOTE (alex and astrid @ Dec 15 2009, 09:06 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
APPROVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll write a longer review for the consular review section, but in a nutshell it was all pretty smooth. First one in, first one out, very friendly CO, though she did ask me a fair few questions and kept calling Alex my boyfriend....did not even get asked to show my evidence (darn it, it was so good!) and I should have my visa by Friday!!!



Congrats!!! told ya it was easy biggrin.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-14 20:49:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
Good luck with your interview! I'm sure you'll realize that it is no big deal and that it wasn't worth stressing over at all laughing.gif laughing.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-14 09:44:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
QUOTE (Giggles @ Dec 10 2009, 02:21 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I'm interested to know what the ladies wore to their interviews too. I wasn't going to wear anything too dressy like a work or job interview outfit. I was most likely going to wear a nice summer dress I've got (goes just above the knee) with a 3/4 sleeve cardigan. It's not real casual, I guess you would call it smart casual. Is smart casual appropriate or something more dressy like a pencil skirt, blouse and pumps?


first interview (to submit our I-130 since we did DCF) I wore jeans and a crewneck sweater and a hoodie - pretty casual
second interview (actual visa interview) I wore black dress pants and a nicer top

I "passed" both times... so yeah.. it doesnt matter what you wear tongue.gif
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-09 22:58:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
QUOTE (Giggles @ Dec 8 2009, 11:45 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (Don'tWhateverMe @ Dec 8 2009, 06:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (Omnivore @ Dec 8 2009, 02:30 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Saw my GP today, getting a blood test for MMR & Hep B also checking for diabetes & my cholesterol (family history) while I'm there. We've also done a general query on immunity so that should show up that I've had all my immunisations smile.gif

Nice way to find a work around!


Do they charge in NSW? I received a bill for $177 from Qld Pathology. Would have been nice for my GP to let me know this before hand!


I didn't have to pay for mine at QML Pathology. It was all bulk billed.


They're technically not supposed to bulk bill for lab work / x-rays done that are ordered for immigration purposes. If you got away with it then you're lucky.. but it's not the norm
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-09 22:55:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
Snowing in Seattle? Was up there this weekend and there was no snow.. glad I missed it because it makes driving a mess laughing.gif

It's fricking freeezing right now though so stay warm!
kaffyFemaleAustralia2009-12-07 22:03:00