Forum	Title	Content	Member	Sex	Country	Date/Time
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	weird situation	I don't know if any of you will be able to help me but here goes... July 2007 My I-130 was approved and sent to the NVC. September 2007 I asked NVC to put it on hold for AOS (Adjustment of Status) when my husband entered the country on a K3 visa. ... K3 was murdered by USCIS because I-130 was approved already... that's another story Last Tuesday - I asked the USCIS to pull my case out of storage and start processing for the CR1 again. They said DO NOT send in the AOS (Aff. of Supp) fee bill or the Choice of Agent form. They said they had to generate a new bill and choice of agent form. This led me to question if they are going to change my case number. They said no. Then I wondered, can I just send it in anyway using James' shortcuts? I thought I better wait until I get confirmation that they have pulled my file out of storage and are generating the new bill. I got an email today saying they have pulled my case, they are generating a new bill and I should expect it to arrive in 2-4 weeks. Here's the question (finally) would it be ok to use James' shortcuts now? Not by generating a barcode or anything like that, I already have a bill. What would you do?	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2007-12-07 19:03:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Congressional Inquiry	I admit I skipped over the majority of the mudslinging posts in this thread. But someone mentioned that having the congressman flood them with calls takes their time away from adjudicating.. this is true. It will only clog a process that is already the equivalent of a vacuum cleaner hose that sucked up a mack truck. Secondly, the Congressmen.. although they are there to help their constituents.. are also getting flooded with calls. Yes, I understand that NOT getting receipts are very bad and frustrating.. so is a case that's severely problematic that actually NEEDS congressional assistance. Please free up the congressmen to work on complex cases or cases in which the wait is actually outside the process times. I will tell you from experience, if you call the congressmen to check on/speed up your process, they will contact VSC or CSC and they will be told the same thing we are told.. just wait. They will relay that message right back to you. That's really all they can do. It is a waste of everyone's time. Things right now are bad in terms of getting receipts, and I hate to say this but (hopefully for the majority of applicants this will not be true) things only GET WORSE in this visa journey. As for media coverage, it has already gotten some. See the thread I posted before. http://www.visajourn...p;#entry1365729 As for the K1 being faster than the K3 and CR1/IR1 cases.. we all know that's a crappy deal. I take responsibility in the fact that I went ahead and married him before applying but it's still crappy all the same. Says a lot about the value of marriage and family in this country. Temporary workers are getting priority over all of us. Let's point the finger at the USCIS rather than at one another.	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2007-12-07 17:45:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Chicago Lockbox	QUOTE (Delicia @ Dec 8 2007, 03:54 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is revising the locations for filing Form I-130 that are currently listed in the form’s instructions posted on this website. Until new instructions are posted, the following information applies: Effective December 3, 2007, all petitioners filing stand-alone Form I-130 are encouraged to submit their petitions to the Chicago Lockbox instead of a USCIS Service Center. I-130 petitions filed with the Chicago Lockbox will be routed to, and adjudicated at, the appropriate USCIS Service Center. This routing will be based on the petitioner’s place of residence in the United States. Petitioners who reside in AK, AZ, CA, CO, Guam, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, MI, MN, MS, MT, Nebraska, NV, ND, OH, OR, SD, UT, WA, WI, or WY are encouraged to file their stand-alone Form I-130s with the Lockbox using the following address: USCIS P.O. Box 804625 Chicago, IL 60680-1029 Petitioners who reside in AL, AR, CT, DL, FL, GA, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OK, PA, Puerto Rico, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, U.S. Virgin Islands, WV, or District of Columbia are encouraged to file their stand-alone Form I-130 with the Lockbox using the following address: USCIS P.O. Box 804616 Chicago, IL 60680-1029 While the changes are effective December 3, 2007, any Form I-130 filed with the Service Center will not be rejected; it will be forwarded to the designated Chicago Lockbox. Petitioners are encouraged, however, to begin using the designated Lockbox filing address on the effective date in order to avoid processing delays. The revised form and filing instructions will be posted online as soon as they are available. Here. VSC is handling cases for people who live in the VSC covered states. Everyone else TSC NSC included go to CSC. CSC is handling all cases from all centers that no longer do processing except for VSC because they do still do the processing. Once in a while someone from the VSC vicinity will also be sent to CSC or vice versa for no explainable reason. It has happened on VJ in the past.	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2007-12-08 19:53:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	preinterview jitters	QUOTE (kcmetzy @ Feb 12 2008, 05:29 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Jigi @ Feb 12 2008, 04:01 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> hi, I dont think any other fees is remaining for you.check out the candaian local forums fo rmore help Jigi Good call..the Canadian forum is quite helpful. Just out of curiousity, when was your case completed? The $131 Fee is for the K3 applicants. Your interview fee was covered in the IV Fee so you already paid it. Good luck on your interview btw! Edited by Divine Mercy, 12 February 2008 - 11:03 PM.	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2008-02-12 23:02:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	AP after AP	QUOTE (tammy2688 @ Feb 12 2008, 10:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> My husband's case has been under AP since september of 2007. I finally got through to a woman in DOS who talks, not redirects you to a place such as the embassy that gives no answers As I prayed for some answers, I recieved them through her. I asked why there was such a long wait for AP, for one check...she told me that the cases that go to Washington don't actually go there only once, but several times, going back and forth from the embassy to Washington for checks, after one name/security check is cleared, there comes another one, until and until all are cleared. That is when they can issue the visa. To all those who are waiting, it is good to understand what is happenning. Let us pray, and keep our Iman strong, put faith at its best and seek answers through patience. I wish for all of us from the 2006/07 generation to recieve the visas in hand. I wish our husbands (and wives) who are waiting on the other side to know Allah is watching always and that there will come our news of visa issuances in the right time Tammy That seems like such a waste of time and money .. oh right, this is the US Gov't we're talking about. Nevermind.	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2008-02-12 22:59:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NVC timeline on IR-1/CR1 visas	QUOTE (rjp44 @ Dec 1 2007, 07:49 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> QUOTE (Divine Mercy @ Nov 30 2007, 11:05 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> One more question (for now). Packet four, is that going to be sent to my husband in Nigeria from the Lagos Nigeria consulate? If so, can't he take something there to prove he's got the interview and pick it up from them? Mail in nigeria is unreliable at best. The DS-3032 "Choice of Agent" will determine where future mailings to the beneficiary will go. Once it's filled out and entered into the system (assuming you will be the agent) a bill for the visa will be generated. You will also have to fill out the I-864 Affidavit of Support and return that. This form can be downloaded from www.uscis.com (it's best to download in Adobe format and fill it out on the computer then print). The DS-230 packet doesn't contain any forms (those will have to either downloaded and filled out by hand or they can be downloaded in Adobe format, filled out on the computer and printed) but it does have a list of supporting documents required and the bar code sheet that has to go with the returned paperwork. You can save some time by having your husband get the form filled out and the documents that are needed and send it to you so that it's ready as soon as you recieve the packet. With everything you send into the NVC, be sure to write you NVC case # on each sheet. The document requirements vary by country, so google US embassy nairobi and there you can get specific info on the required paperwork. Thanks!	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2007-12-01 10:12:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	NVC timeline on IR-1/CR1 visas	One more question (for now). Packet four, is that going to be sent to my husband in Nigeria from the Lagos Nigeria consulate? If so, can't he take something there to prove he's got the interview and pick it up from them? Mail in nigeria is unreliable at best.	Divine Mercy	Female	Nigeria	2007-11-30 23:05:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Re-newed visa journey	Thanks for the input aussiewench. the reasons for the hold on my fiance/husband's petition had to do with the embassy always deciding at the last minute that they were not satisfied with the lengthy amount of information that my husband gave to prove his relationship to his child--we went through the declarations, the custody issues and then finally, they wanted a DNA test and then promptly lost the kit that was sent by the agency in the US for collection. in the meantime, police certificates and medicals expire and have to be redone given the 4-8 month wait between scheduled appointments.... i've filed complaints with all the available offices (inspector general, congressional reps,etc) but they are met with nothing but repeat statements that we are merely under adminstrative review. my family planned a vacation to ghana for the new year and with that, we decided to get married since his family and my family would have an opportunity to meet one another. even though folks suggest getting a lawyer, im not really sure what that person could do for me beyond the limits of what i have done already and it seems like it would just be more money spend for a problem unsolved.....	All4Kweku	Female	Ghana	2007-03-27 19:30:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Re-newed visa journey	no thoughts? no suggestions....come on, help me out	All4Kweku	Female	Ghana	2007-03-27 16:34:00
IR-1 / CR-1 Spouse Visa Process & Procedures	Re-newed visa journey	Greetings everyone. I am in the process of re-starting my visa journey. I filed a K1/K2 in 2004 and that case is still pending for various reasons at the Embassy in Ghana. Due to some family considerations (both in the US and abroad) my fiance and I decided to get married in Ghana in January of this year. Now that I am back in the states, I am charting unfamiliar territory with new visas and expectations. I am not new to the visa journey per se (given my experiences with the K1) but now that Im married, situation and paperwork has obviously changed. I called the state department today and was told me that when I file a CR1 for my husband, I have to file a separate I-130 petition for my stepson. Is that true? I know the state department is notorious for misinformation, so I wanted to throw that out there for your consideration. Also in terms of timeliness and fees, do you think there are advantages to filing a K3/K4 and have them adjust status in the US as opposed to filing two I-130 petitions? I know K3/K4s a "generally" faster, but given the 6-8 month delay at the Embassy in Ghana for scheduling interviews, it might come out to about the same amount of time once you consider that my I-130 petition will be going through VSC which seems to have had a hugeeee slow down in processing lately. Although it would be a huge hit to our collective purses, do you think I should file the two I-130s as well as the K-3? Constructive suggestions and opinions are welcomed! Thanks gang	All4Kweku	Female	Ghana	2007-03-26 12:05:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	NO NOA2 :(	Finally got approved today...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-28 21:32:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	NO NOA2 :(	You have already filed a service request? What did they say the first time? Nothing pretty much. My fiance (the beneficiary) called and was able to get the service request put in (after many failed attempts from me). The answer to the request was that "only the petitioner can put in a service request" That I already knew which is why I was very surprised that they let him filed in the first place. And because you can only file 1 every 30 days, I have to wait half a month to get any type on information on our application... I just don't understand why they couldn't tell him on the phone "have your fiancee call us instead"...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-24 14:13:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	NO NOA2 :(	I called again today and was told that the only way to get specific information about my case is to file form G639 found on www.uscis.gov Has anyone been told this before? The lady I spoke to said it is different from a service request (which I have to wait 17 more days to file another one) in that I am mailing it directly to the service center where my case is...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-23 15:01:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	NO NOA2 :(	I am still waiting too...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-21 12:51:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	Visa Approved!	Congrats. We mailed our packet 3 to the London Embassy over the week end. Now waiting for the interview date. I'm praying for May 2nd!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-04-04 15:16:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	k1 visa approved this morning!	How were you able to get an interview that quickly in London? We've mailed our packed 3 since early April and we still don't have an interview!!! Congrats btw	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-04-26 18:28:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	Visa approved!!	Congratulations!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-05-12 14:42:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Our visa was approved today!!! Our 10 month journey finaly ends... finaly!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-02 07:48:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Hey Tanoushka, Have you heard from the London embassy about your interview date? I've been calling DOS everyday now for a week and 1/2 and still nothing. I was really hoping for a May interview but now it looks like it may be June...argh!!! Congratulations!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-04-21 12:56:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	CONGRATULATIONS!!! Another PINK! We got approved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She woke me up around 1am my time to tell me her interview went well! She got her visa!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-04-14 09:58:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Congratulations!!! Chip+Susanne: My expected wedding is the same day as yours... Still waiting for our interview date though!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-03-24 12:57:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Really? You think police records? I've never really been involved with the police. The police records is not for the RFE but for the next phase after NOA2. I kinda wish my fiance had done those as we were waiting for NOA2. You need police records from all countries you've lived in (for more than 1 year I think?) and my fiance has 3 all together to do before we can even schedule the intervew... Thankfully you can expedite it but it cost more, so as you wait you may gain time by getting them done now. I think most of them expire after 6months.	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-03-02 22:45:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	That's got to be so annoying! I'm sure you won't have to wait long once they receive whatever was missing. If I were you I'll start working on getting police records ready...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-03-02 16:47:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Congratulations!!! Hope it's my turn soon... I got a text a few hours ago telling me to check my account on USCIS and YES it is an approval!!! All this waiting drained energy from me (a few days shy of 7months!!!) I couldn't even do a happy dance, my fiance did one for the both of us	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-28 20:06:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	I have been waiting 7 months to say this and finally I can say WE ARE APPROVED !!!!!! thank you lord Congratulations!!! Hope it's my turn soon...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-28 12:51:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Still nothing for me either...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-26 16:20:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Coming up close to 7 months and still no word I feel you... I think they forgot about us	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-18 15:08:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Still waiting... I am now past the six months mark!!! I really didn't think it was going to take this long. I feel the most bad for my fiance whose life has been pretty much on hold since we applied. I'll hate to start thinking about a plan B after having waisted half a year waiting	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-07 10:52:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Congratulations PrettySunshine and all the others!!! I'm still waiting	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-02-02 21:30:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Where is mine I'm tired of calling USCIS!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-01-26 14:37:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	I got my NOA1 in the mail today!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2010-08-10 01:28:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Today I can finally see the back of my check that was cashed but there are sooo many numbers!!! Which one do I use to make an account and track my application?	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2010-08-07 09:06:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	Thanks Amyyduck... My bank account says the check was cashed today!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2010-08-06 09:35:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	I most certainly will... My package was signed by "A. Stanley"!?!? Anyways, does anybody knows the duration of the visa? I mean is it 3-,6-,12-months? I know once you enter the USA you have 3months but we are trying to figure out the max time we have between visa in passport and POE	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2010-08-05 23:03:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	K-1 August 2010 VSC filer	I sent out my application on July 31st and it was received on Aug 2nd!!! Since then I've been checking my for the cleared check	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2010-08-05 16:56:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	VICTORY!!!!	Congratulations. My fiance has his interview tomorrow in London and was denied a tourist visa a couple years ago for the USA (he's originally from Cameroon). Thanks for posting your story!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-01 13:14:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	10 months wait	Congrats! Must be a relief this part is done!! Oh yes for sure!!! Whatever comes afterward, we'll face it together (in the same continent )!!! Thanks...	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-06 13:44:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	10 months wait	Thank you all!!! So excited to see my hubby-to-be in a few weeks!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-05 19:15:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	10 months wait	I am so pleased for you both my wait has been 11 months so my mail will be same .... Blessings to you both on the move to the USA I am not far behind you both now.... God has it all in control so expect the great !!! Thank you! In a few years, we'll look back at this process and laugh... wondering why we were so impatient lol!!!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-02 16:01:00
K-1 Fiance(e) Visa Case Filing and Progress Reports	10 months wait	Thanks!	A&F	Female	United Kingdom	2011-06-02 11:21:00