biggish data

Just getting ready now, big day's tomorrow morning, kinda panicky.

It'll be fine, once your inside you'll be soon falling asleep listening to the numbers being called out zzzz lol.

We have officially moved past interview stage to waiting for courier to arrive with the visa stage! Hooray!

Whoohoo, congrats!! :dance:

What are people's experiences with shipping larger items such as furniture to the states? How did your more dear items fare, and do you have any recommendations?

http://www.visajourn...hipping-thread/

Thread may be a little out of date, though the links seem good and a wealth of information in them.

Edited by Adrian+Mike, 15 June 2010 - 06:49 PM.

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-06-15 18:49:00

You can't concentrate on reading anything as the tannoy which calls out the numbers is constant and you are always listening out for yours. It's like the one they have at the post office and it goes:- "currently serving N**** at window No. *". After 4 hours of being subjected to it, I can still hear it in my head now and my interview was a week ago! Everyone just seems to sit staring into space and twitching! It's also really hot in there, so no wearing any big jumpers!

lol so true, that stupid tannoy gave me a headache, your listening so intently for your number! Is it sad I still know the number I was given? :lol:

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-05-27 10:37:00

I'm sure that I've read about this somewhere on this forum, but forgive me that I don't have time to look through 80+ pages. How long did it take for the auto-response to an email to come back to people who've emailed?

From what I remember it was fairly quick, within an hour if I remember correctly. On both occasions ive emailed them they replied the following day.

YAY More approvals, isnt it such a relief when it over !! Congratulations

Thanks! Though I don't think its sunk in yet, totally drained at the moment lol

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-05-20 11:50:00

Star please

Approved today hooray!!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-05-20 07:43:00

I'm not sure about your price I had to pay $400x3 for a CR1 and two CR2s. It was painful to sign that credit card slip!

The website says no backpacks, but there were people there with them. I took a large purse type thing for my documents and snacks, my daughter took a fairly large purse. We all took books and sandwiches and snacks. I've heard that if you take drink in they ask you to drink some in the security booth before they let you in. We didn't want to be dealing with that (times the 4 of us), plus the extra weight on the underground, so I bought us all drinks in there. A bottle of water is £1. They have canned sodas for .80p I think. I've seen worse prices. They also have crisps and premade/prepackaged sandwiches.

Thats awesome.. least I won't be sat there twiddling my thumbs, good Tom Clancy novel to read

Thanks!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-23 13:43:00

Anyone. That being said, I had written on the ds2001 (all three of them) that I was going to be there and had written it in the email when I changed my date. My name wasn't on either of our sets of appointment letters. Supposedly there is a list that anyone not being interviewed has to have their name on to get in. The people at the first check station verified my identity and wrote my name on one of the three letters to get me in. They didn't seem bothered, and they did not consult any list. They will both need to have their US passports with them.

Ah that clears it up thanks!

Im also assuming im going to have to fork out for the new visa fee ($350) rather than the old price, even through we started before they changed it? Oh, and can I take a book in with me to read while I wait.. they didn't mention it on the website lol

Thanks again

Congrats MJM!

Edited by Adrian+Mike, 23 April 2010 - 01:32 PM.

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-23 13:30:00

Just received packet 4 / appointment date letter through the post and I was intending on taking my mum/stepdad (who's a U.S citizen) to the interview with me to keep me company, however on the letter it states - " if you need to bring a carer, translator or U.S Citizen spouse/fiance(e) to assist you during your time at the embassy, please send us their full names as soon as possible so that we may arrange their access to the embassy."

So does this apply to anyone I bring with me to the embassy, or just thoes that are involved with the visa application?

Thanks!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-23 13:00:00

Congrats to everyone who've seen some movement recently! To everyone else, hang on in there!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-22 07:27:00

Wahoo! Fiance just rang up the DOS... interview scheduled for 20th May 8:30am !!!!! sooo happy! :dance:

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-21 08:09:00

Good news all, we are finally eligible for an interview!!! ABOUT DANG TIME!!! 3mnths!!!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-04-15 22:49:00

Just an update, mike and i have yet to receive an interview date, all i get when i call the dos is your packet had been received, but no date, not sure what to do or where to go from here, we can make sense out of it

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-03-07 20:32:00

Hi - We are currently waiting for our interview date via DCF in London. I sent in our checklist first week of Feb, so I'm hoping to hear in the next week or two. Does this seem right? How long have people been waiting to hear back?

my fiance and i have been waiting since the end of january, but there are people on here that sent theirs in after ours and have already had the interview and are approved, its a sitting duck game

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-03-07 20:23:00

Have you called for an update? It's the middle of the month and so it could be that your packet 4 is in the post as we speak. They seem to assign interviews in the middle of the month, for some reason.

Yep, my fiance is pretty much calling them everyday, but getting diffrent answers depending on who you talk to - some say they have our packet but not being processed, others say we're not eligible and some just say " er what does logged mean?". Im trying to stay optimistic but seeing people who've sent theirs in after us getting interview dates really does make your mind wonder what the heck is going on.

Edited by Adrian+Mike, 18 February 2010 - 05:43 PM.

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-02-18 17:42:00

I am feeling spastic! I said to the gal on the phone are you sh!tting me? I called earlier today but the girls english wasn't great so on my lunch I called back and I got a very nice girl and she was laughing when I said it. I'm stoked! I have to book a ticket because I'll leave next Friday to be there for a few days before we actually have it....OMG!

Congratulations! Just goes to show they move in mysterious ways, seems our packet has been overlooked!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-02-17 19:03:00

Hey, you should get a date soon hopefully, your p3 was logged on the same day as mine...

Oh wait, looking at the date you sent it... is that the date they received it at the embassy or the date they actually logged it? Took them nearly a month to log mine.

Ricky and Vanessa.. when i (Adrian) call dos.. they tell us that they received the packet on that day.. but that we are logged in the system.. but we are not eligible.. we seem to be having an issue getting a straight answer or any reliable info from anyone.. it makes it harder

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-02-15 01:46:00

Russia, Ukraine and Belarus

Waiting for interview date:

moss (K1)
jkminney (K1)

You can add us to that list too please

Albeit this wait is a killer!

Adrian+Mike

Male

England

2010-02-13 19:14:00

Russian wife visiting Russia with our daughter

I imagine someone has been through this before, so I'm hoping to get some guidance on our situation. My wife is Russian, and holds a valid U.S. Green Card. This summer our oldest daughter (who will be 4) will be traveling to Russia for the first time with my wife to visit family. She was born in the U.S. so will be traveling with a U.S. passport. My primary question concerns whether our daughter needs a Russia tourist visa in her U.S. passport. My wife states the Russian Consulate told her that it's not necessary since we had our daughter's name and photo put in my wife's Russian passport when she was about a year old. She says this establishes our daughter also holds Russian citizenship, and thus she won't need a tourist visa to enter Russia.

The entire thing sounds a little shakey to me. I can't find any evidence of this sort of allowance on the Russian Consulate website. I'm thinking our daughter wouldn't be allowed in without a tourist visa or a Russian passport. Anyone else have experience on this?

Gage

Male

Russia

2014-01-06 17:35:00

Matt was approved! Going to update the timeline now!

cass_errol

Female

United Kingdom

2010-03-04 14:11:00

My fiance is in London right now, about to have his interview. Of course, we're both horribly nervous, but obviously, he is, more so than me! I'll post as soon as we have a decision!

And thanks to everyone on here who has helped us out and asked the thousands of questions we've had. You have all been an invaluable resource in this long, complicated, confusing process!

cass_errol

Female

United Kingdom

2010-03-04 02:47:00

Matt got his interview letter today!!!! His appointment is sent for March 4th at the Embassy in London! It took about 8 weeks from the time we sent the checklist to the time he actually received the appointment letter! We're so excited we can actually start planning our wedding now!

cass_errol

Female

United Kingdom

2010-02-11 16:36:00

GZ Tracking

My approved I 129F was sent to Guangzhou from NVC and absolutely drove me crazy. I sent 2 emails to Guangzhou and 2 to the NVC asking about it. The last email to Guangzhou was on the 17th of April. They said they had not received the form but had received notification from the NVC it was sent on March 6. This morning I woke up and utilizing Yahoo messenger with voice my wife called and said she had good news. She had received packet 3 from Guangzhou and wanted to know where to sign the papers I had sent her in March so she could return it. I had to scan and send her copy to reveal where to sign. She now won't remove the little orange stick on notes. LOL :help:

,,,I hope she does before she mails the package back to Guangzhou today.
So if you are communicating with the Embasy don't always believe what they tell you. My approved I 129F left the NVC on March 6 and my recieved it on April 27 China date. I had sent her several letters and packages so I knew the Embassy had to have the form. Unless of course they had shipped it by way of a slow boat :whistle:

.
Anyway we will have the package 3 in the mail back to Guangzhou when she wakes up. Now I guess the long wait is ahead!!!!!!!! I am going crazy.

Edited by Lowen/Zhang, 27 April 2006 - 08:20 PM.

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-04-27 20:18:00

GZ Interview Fee

I was told by my lawyer it can be paid anytime between the reciept of packet 3 and the interview. Just make sure she takes the reciept with her to the interview. My wife sent her packet 3 back to Guangzhou today and I am paying the money ASAP just in case.

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-04-28 08:03:00

Anyone hear of this??

I talked with my wife last night and she told me I could telephone a USA number, 1-202-663-1225, 15 days after she mailed her K-3 packet back to Guangzhou ( she mailed it April 28) and I can find out when her interview is scheduled. She told me a friend of hers did this and found out her interview date information prior to the packet 4 even being mailed to her. She also said that her friend received the pacet 4 about 20 days after the pacet 3 was returned to Guangzhou.
I told her I found it hard to believe because the Guangzhou web site says 4-5 months between packet 3 and 4. Things are going well and smoothly but is Guangzhou responding that quickly? :unsure:

Mike

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-04-29 08:55:00

Sorry for being full of questions

Can anyone tell me if when my wife completes her interview and hopefully obtains her visa, if she immediately comes to the USA can she travel back to China at any time? Does she have to file for a Chinese visa to re-enter China to visit her family or file a request for parole. I am trying to figure out when to bring her here. Immediately or wait until October. I don't know how fast Guangzhou acts on the interviews but we just returned the packet 3 to them. Is it possible as the web site says the interview will not be for 5 months which would be September or will it be 5 months from the approval of I-129F which was February making the interview in July. OF COURSE I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE HER HERE RIGHT AWAY!
The delima is that we have not had the time to have the traditional Chinese Wedding party. Now our clothes are made and ready but the time of the party can not be until October now. Just trying to come up with some ideas. Plus I want to see her and be with her to calm her at the time of the interview. Any experiences from those who have been through the complete process would help........

Mike

I will try to answer a few of your questions:

The K-3 visa is a multiple entry visa, so she would be able to leave and return for as long as the visa is valid, no need for AP to return to the states. She will have her chinese passport so she will not need a chinese visa to enter china. If she natrualizes ( a couple of years down the road), she will then get a US passport, then she will need to get a visa just like you to enter china.

Guangzhou is a mysterious place. Since you have returned the P3, you could be looking at a June/July interview. June is probably a little optimistic. Unfortunately I would not be surpized to see August either. The names checks in china can be much worse than other countries due to the fact that there is not a very high number of surnames compared to 1.3 billion people. The time to P4/interview will depend on how fast the name checks are completed.

The only disadvantage to her coming as soon as she receives the visa then returning would be the cost of airfare. She will have at least six months to enter the US (that is debated on VJ, it may be the validity of the visa). So she could wait until after the wedding ceremony to come.

I'm surprized you had to wait for your wedding clothes. We went by this taylor shop and had the traditional dress in two days for less than 300 yuan and the quality was great and a perfect fit. That was for the red dress and jacket. Her white dress she had ordered a couple of months before our wedding.

You should check out www.candleforlove.com. It is like VJ, but only for China. You will get a much better idea of what to expect from the US consulate in Guangzhou there, no disrespect to VJ, but Guangzhou makes us wait much longer and it is kinda depressing to read about others receiving their visa in less than 6 months.

I wish you luck in the rest of your journey.

Thanks for the help sorry for such a long time to answer. I infact have been in the candleforlove site learning all I can about the process. As far as the wait on the clothes we got both sets her dress and my clothes made but then she changed her mind and wanted a different material (LOVE THIS WOMAN) so we bought it and had the new dress made all for under 400 yuan tailored and all 100% silk (IMAGINE THE COST IN THE USA). She wants to have the party just before she leaves China to travel to the USA.

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-05-24 23:15:00

Sorry for being full of questions

Can anyone tell me if when my wife completes her interview and hopefully obtains her visa, if she immediately comes to the USA can she travel back to China at any time? Does she have to file for a Chinese visa to re-enter China to visit her family or file a request for parole. I am trying to figure out when to bring her here. Immediately or wait until October. I don't know how fast Guangzhou acts on the interviews but we just returned the packet 3 to them. Is it possible as the web site says the interview will not be for 5 months which would be September or will it be 5 months from the approval of I-129F which was February making the interview in July. OF COURSE I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE HER HERE RIGHT AWAY!
The delima is that we have not had the time to have the traditional Chinese Wedding party. Now our clothes are made and ready but the time of the party can not be until October now. Just trying to come up with some ideas. Plus I want to see her and be with her to calm her at the time of the interview. Any experiences from those who have been through the complete process would help........ :unsure:

Mike

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-04-30 09:00:00

Good immigration attorney around Seattle?

Hey every one I am new to this site. I am trying to bring my fiancé here on a K1 visa from Chongqing and I was wondering if anyone knows of a good immigration attorney around the Seattle area, hopefully one that specializes in China.

We used bchung@bccvisalaw.com. He is in California but telephones and emails quick response to questions you might have. Wonderful assistance. He speaks Chinese in case you need your spouse or fiancee to talk with him. Completes all info and submits promptly. We started in November of 2005 and now are on the long wait for packet 4 in Guangzhou.

Mike

Edited by Lowen/Zhang, 23 May 2006 - 11:30 AM.

Lowen/Zhang

Not Telling

China

2006-05-23 11:25:00

A bit more on addresses and mailing in Costa Rica. I mailed a package first class from the US. It did not arrive. More accurately, it was not delivered. My fiance finally asked the postal worker who delivers the daily mail to her house, and she was told the man who delivers boxes has been sick for some time and that she should go to the local post office and ask for her package. She did, and she got her package. After 6 weeks. I am sure it sat in the post office for at least 4 weeks while the gentleman was ill. Nobody stole any of the contents. In the meantime, I flew down to be there for the embassy interview, SUCCESSFUL!, replaced what was in the package that Tati had not yet learned she should "go pick up," so she got double presents.

Yeah, mail is really flaky there. My husband doesnt get daily mail & hasn't heard of daily mail from anywhere he's lived. Only government notices are generally delivered to the home. We lived in a real remote area. Now he is living in Buenos Aires and anything I send him he must pick up from the Post Office, he goes after about a week or 10 days, then just drops by daily until it arrives. Sometimes it's already there, sometimes he just keeps checkin in. Thanks for all the info. I have my fingers crossed that all the substitutions are accepted. I think the pregnancy will hopefully convince them that our marriage is bonafide, lol. It's rediculous the hoops we have to jump through, only to Proove we are Not Lying. Not exactly the "Innocent until Proven Guilty" policy when it comes to immigration. lol

CRSpouse

Female

Costa Rica

2010-02-18 22:55:00

Thanks Franc!
That's what we'll have to do I guess.
We're going to try looking up the GPS coordinates of some of the places too.
I hope it works! :blink:

CRSpouse

Female

Costa Rica

2010-01-07 13:39:00

Also, he has a precious little daughter, but was not present for the birth and is not in any sort of system or birth certificate as being her father.

Do we list her on his G-325 Bio Info, or leave her off?

Thanks for Any Advice!

Nikki

CRSpouse

Female

Costa Rica

2010-01-05 14:40:00

My husband and I are just beginning the process and gathering information for formI-130. He is in Costa Rica and I just returned to the US to begin the process. At this point I am only confused on the address format the US requires on the form. Costa Rica address format is very informal, which is probably why mail is impossible. Addresses being a distance from a land mark, such as; 50 meters N of Rubi's Super, Orange House.

Is this how we should write an address on the file?

He has lived and worked in VERY remote areas, that just plain Do Not have addresses...
How do we list those?

Thanks for the advice!

CRSpouse

Female

Costa Rica

2010-01-04 18:27:00