ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Australia and New ZealandAussies - which airlines do you use?
We have always flown with Qantas from Brisbane to LAX and American Airlines (their partner) through the states. We usually book directly through the Qantas website. I doubt they are cheapest but they have excellent customer service on the flight and great in-flight entertainment. I worked in the Brisbane International airport when I was living in Australia and I've heard that V Australia's LA flight is good as well though and when we first started looking it was several hundred dollars cheaper. We still ended up going with Qantas however because my fiance is a frequent flier and you earn a lot of miles on the Aus to US flights lol

Good luck finding a reasonable flight!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-28 10:42:00
Australia and New Zealandnew letter of intent?
Yeah, we took one as well but they didn't look at it. Good luck with your interview!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-12 08:19:00
Australia and New ZealandVaccinations incomplete
Yeah, my fiance's was the same way. It shouldn't be a problem at all.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-12 08:23:00
Australia and New ZealandMy worst fear just came true
I'm pretty much the same way as Amanda and Josh. I read this thread when it first came up but I didn't really know what to say. I hope that things work out somehow for you guys and for your health as well. =/ Have there been any new updates on your case yet?
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-12 08:23:00
Australia and New ZealandSomething i just thought of.....
Yeah, you shouldn't have any problems at all. I brought over three or four months worth of birth control because it was so much cheaper in Australia and I carried it in my carry on (because I was afraid of the airport losing my luggage and not having it lol). No problems at all with any of the security screenings.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-13 10:03:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Every case is different on how long it takes to actually get the visa in hand. It took my fiance only three days (his interview was on the Tuesday and he had his visa on Friday afternoon) but I'm sure there are a lot of different factors that affect how long each person has to wait to get theirs. I think the official statement says something like five to ten business days or so. If you haven't heard anything in two weeks after the interview, I would definitely email the consulate about it. Hopefully it will get there in a couple of days!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-19 08:29:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations on your approval!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-13 10:07:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Try not to stress too much about it; it will go fine! We all build up the interview as this major last hurdle but usually, from my personal experience and what I've seen and read of others, it's one of the easier steps for most couples. Good luck all the same though. :)
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-12 08:21:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations! Hope you have a wonderful flight over and a smooth time going through customs at your POE!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-09 09:20:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
We used Grace Removals from Brisbane to West Virginia. I can't remember the exact price but they were the cheapest of everywhere we checked and they were great with customer service. They helped us fill out all the custom forms and things to make sure that we wouldn't have any problems and they were willing to store the items for free while we were waiting to get his visa information from Sydney (he left a week after his interview so tying off loose ends was a bit hectic lol). But I'd recommend looking into them; we were happy with their prices and more than pleased with their customer service.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-02 09:21:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
You will most likely get your interview date through your email. I hope it gets here soon!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-09-01 06:37:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congrats on the interview date and getting the visa in hand! It's great to see so many people at the end of this first part of the visa journey!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-29 09:05:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Awesome! I'm so happy for you guys! It's a great feeling isn't it? I was so nervous sitting here when Ben was in Sydney because he had to turn his phone off. I was practically bouncing and driving my parents nuts as I waited for the text from him lol

Best of luck on the remainder of the waiting and wedding planning! Congratulations again!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-23 12:28:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations on getting your approval!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-11 07:18:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Thanks for the support everyone. We're so excited to be able to properly make wedding plans and know that we'll be together really soon.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-02 19:05:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Yay! He passed his interview today! It won't be much longer until we are together again!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-01 21:05:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
My fiance's interview is tonight (for me)! So excited and hoping everything goes well and all of this can be behind us!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-01 06:13:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
I hope you get it soon! I'm pretty sure it comes via email.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-28 08:16:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
haha I totally agree about the police certificate. I was expecting something cool looking at the very least and was quite disappointed with the simple blue paper lol In the end though it just means you're that much closer!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-26 06:42:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations on your interview date!

GC - If you are looking for an earlier interview date, you can attach a letter to your packet three asking for the earliest possible interview date. But Sydney doesn't seem too backed up though so it probably won't make too much of a difference either way. Best of luck!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-25 19:57:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Aw, she is beautiful! Congratulations again!

Every case is different on how long it takes to get your Packet Three. My fiance and I were pretty lucky as we got our case number and packet three email from Sydney in about three weeks after receiving our NOA2. As for the NVC, I believe they send a letter out. Ironically, we got it a week after we sent our Packet Three to Sydney so it wasn't very helpful for us lol I was living in Australia as the time and had my mother calling the NVC pretty much daily to check on the case status after a week or so of the NOA2 but I never got a case number from them. I don't know if ours was just lucky to get through so quickly or if that's the way things are going there now.

I would just keep an eye on your email as well for a confirmation from Sydney as well as watching the mail box for a letter from the NVC. I hope it comes quickly for you!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-25 07:10:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations on your little girl! Wishing you all the best!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-23 17:27:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Glad you got it working!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-21 17:56:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
lol yeah our interview date came really quickly. I think there is usually a bit more of a wait time but we requested the earliest possible interview as everything is ready to go.

I just checked and the DS-156 is working fine for me as far as getting to the form. I didn't go through and complete it again, obviously, but it seems to be working. This form is a bit different from other ones. When you click on the link for the DS-156, you'll get a notice about the browser security then you need to go to the bottom and click on DS-156 again and that should take you to the form.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-20 12:50:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Yay, we have our interview date now! My fiance will be heading down to Sydney on August 2nd. We are getting so close!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-19 05:11:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Good luck to you as well! It will all work out okay. Just think about how close to the end of this part of the journey you are!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-18 05:54:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
That is definitely what we are hoping for! We attached a letter to the packet three letting the consulate know that he was ready for the first available interview date. Hopefully we'll get something soon. But we were one of the lucky couples who spent the majority of our visa journey together rather than apart. Knowing that we're in the final steps of it makes being apart right now so much easier. As does having this wonderful site with so many encouraging people. :)
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-17 20:52:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations to everyone who has been getting interview dates and moving their cases along. Almost there!

I arrived back in the U.S. without my man on Friday. We've sent off packet three now we're just waiting on his interview date; fingers crossed that it's soon!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-17 05:28:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Congratulations on passing the medical and getting the Packet 3!

Finally got our police certificate today and our Packet 3 is now on its way to Sydney! Not much longer now!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-12 22:12:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Thanks for the advice. I emailed them today and they got back to me in literally five minutes that our police certificate was put in the mail yesterday!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-11 22:16:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Thanks! If I don't get it today, I might try emailing them to see what is going on. We've already written a letter to go with my fiance's Packet 3 requesting the earliest interview date available. The express envelope is already sitting in my floor ready to go lol all it needs is the police certificate. Still hoping it might show up today sometime. We'll be living in WV when we are in the states.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-11 21:02:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Thanks! It's been about two weeks now so every day I'm eagerly waiting on the mail lol just getting anxious as I would love to have his interview date before I leave Australia so I know how long we'll have to be apart this time. But at least we're in the final stretch. :)
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-08 07:27:00
Australia and New ZealandLAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Has anyone recently gotten a police certificate in Queensland? My fiance and I are just waiting on that last piece of information before our packet three is ready to go back to the consulate! I wish we had realized they were valid long enough to do them in advance. Ah well. We're just trying to figure out roughly when to expect it as I'm heading back to the U.S. next week and would love to have some kind of idea when the interview will be. Patiently waiting though, I guess that's all you can do. Congratulations to all those that have gotten approved recently!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-07-07 15:27:00
Australia and New ZealandCan I schedual interview before I have Medical done?
Sydney is usually pretty helpful. You could try emailing them and explaining your situation to see what they would suggest doing since you are having to fly back to Australia for the interview. At least that way you'd know for sure. If you fly back to do the medical (and already have everything else together) you can hopefully send the packet three back to the consulate within the next week. Attach a letter to it asking for the earliest possible interview date. It will take longer than if you can do the interview and medical the same day though but if you can't do them the same day, just make sure everything is ready to go as soon as you get into Australia. But I would definitely contact the embassy and ask what they suggest. They may be able to arrange something like SDuke is talking about. So it would take longer to get the actual visa in hand but it would be less time overall.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-10-06 08:42:00
Australia and New ZealandWhere about is everyone moving to in the US? Just curious!
We're in West Virginia
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-23 12:21:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
It should be fine to have it sent to you and then send it in with the Packet 3. That's what we did. The packet 3 asks for the police certificate and a copy of it so it's probably best to just have it sent to you and then send it to the consulate with all the other paperwork for your visa. As far as I know, the only exception to it would be a certificate from another country. My fiance is a Kiwi so we had to get a police certificate from NZ and that was sent straight to the consulate. But the Australian one should come to you and then go to Sydney in the Packet 3 I believe.
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-29 09:07:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
That is good news. I hope the rest of the process goes smoothly and quickly for you guys!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-27 22:20:00
Australia and New ZealandAustralian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date
Wow, it sucks that you guys haven't heard anything yet. My advice is pretty much what everyone else has suggested and what you are already doing. Hopefully contacting the USCIS and the senator will get things moving forward for you. About five months into ours, I had my mom call the USCIS (I was in Australia and the time zones were a pain) and they took the case number and told us that it would be at least another month or so before it was done but it was approved and forwarded within a week. I think that the call just got it moving again so hopefully the same thing will happen in your case. Good luck! Keep us updated!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2011-08-23 12:37:00
Australia and New ZealandNew 2011 LAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
Thanks guys! I'm glad to know we're not alone! Ben wasn't able to get his Driver's License in West Virginia on a EAD. Unfortunately we have to wait until we're approved. Your best bet is to go to your local DMV with all the information you have (NoA, proofs of residence, passport, etc) and see if they will let you take it. The worst they can do is say no!
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2012-04-05 15:05:00
Australia and New ZealandNew 2011 LAND DOWNUNDER, Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi
It's been a long while since I've been back on VJ life has been so hectic leading up and since the wedding that it seems I haven't had a moment to myself to do anything. I finally got around to updating our timeline today but now I'm starting to wonder a bit about our AoS. We sent off the AoS packet on November 7th, had an RFE soon after (forgot to sign something, go figure lol), and sent the signed paperwork right back. We then got a letter that our case had been transferred to California and it hasn't been touched at all since December 19th. I've noticed that several people who got married around the same have already been approved. We haven't had any updates, additional RFEs, or an interview date yet. Should I be worried? It seems like it's taking longer than usual. Should I try to get in contact with someone about our case or just keep waiting and see what happens?
Ashton & BenFemaleAustralia2012-04-05 09:57:00