Guangzhou interview process & timing

[garfield529 47]

Hello all,

I have been reading around, but have not found exactly what I am looking for, so I will just ask this fresh. We are still a while from the interview point of the journey, but my fiancee works at a job that gives little time off and thus the reason for the question. When she goes into Guangzhou how much time does she need prior to the interview for completing the medical exam portion? And then when (being optimistic) she is granted the visa, how long does it take to receive? I have heard many get it the next day, but if it will take longer can she request it be mailed to her? I will have to plan airline tickets for her and her parents to go (I will be unable to go back during the expected time frame so I am having her parents go along) down and back. Thanks for any insights that you folks have... Please, no guesses, I prefer those with experience of this part of the journey. Happy Thanksgiving all!!!

[pushbrk 12,606]

Hello all,

I have been reading around, but have not found exactly what I am looking for, so I will just ask this fresh. We are still a while from the interview point of the journey, but my fiancee works at a job that gives little time off and thus the reason for the question. When she goes into Guangzhou how much time does she need prior to the interview for completing the medical exam portion? And then when (being optimistic) she is granted the visa, how long does it take to receive? I have heard many get it the next day, but if it will take longer can she request it be mailed to her? I will have to plan airline tickets for her and her parents to go (I will be unable to go back during the expected time frame so I am having her parents go along) down and back. Thanks for any insights that you folks have... Please, no guesses, I prefer those with experience of this part of the journey. Happy Thanksgiving all!!!

I would arrive two full business days prior to the interview unless the medical is already done. Then, unless she lives in Guangdong province (or something has changed recently) they won't mail to her home. She'll need to wait at least two days and pick it up at a post office near the Consulate. See the China regional forum for recommended lodging.

[Otto 83]

** Topic may be "US Embassy and Consulate Discussion" related but may be better served in the China/Regional Discussion forum; moving thread there. Edited November 26, 2009 by Otto und Karin

[Eric & Jin 10]

If your fiancee plans on getting her medical exam while she is in Guangzhou then one thing that she can do to save time is to use one of the clinics which offers expedited results. My wife and I used the Guangzhou United Family Clinic which offers same day results as part of their standard service - we were out of the clininc with results in hand in about 3 hours. The cost of the medical exam here is 800rmb which includes the same day service.

On average, after approval, she should receive her visa in about 2 days but this is not always the case and can not be counted on. The passport/visa can be mailed to any address within Guangdong province and also to the following 9 cities which are outside of Guangdong province: Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Changle, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Tianjin, Shenyang and Changchun. The visa mailing option was expanded to include these 9 additonal cities last month:

http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/ch...hout_china.html

Good Luck!!

[garfield529 47]

I would arrive two full business days prior to the interview unless the medical is already done. Then, unless she lives in Guangdong province (or something has changed recently) they won't mail to her home. She'll need to wait at least two days and pick it up at a post office near the Consulate. See the China regional forum for recommended lodging.

pushbrk, I greatly appreciate the insight. I have the webpage for the guy who lives has the apartment in the consulate building and for that price it looks really great. We will contact him when we establish an interview date.

[garfield529 47]

If your fiancee plans on getting her medical exam while she is in Guangzhou then one thing that she can do to save time is to use one of the clinics which offers expedited results. My wife and I used the Guangzhou United Family Clinic which offers same day results as part of their standard service - we were out of the clininc with results in hand in about 3 hours. The cost of the medical exam here is 800rmb which includes the same day service.

On average, after approval, she should receive her visa in about 2 days but this is not always the case and can not be counted on. The passport/visa can be mailed to any address within Guangdong province and also to the following 9 cities which are outside of Guangdong province: Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Changle, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Tianjin, Shenyang and Changchun. The visa mailing option was expanded to include these 9 additonal cities last month:

http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/ch...hout_china.html

Good Luck!!

Wow, thanks for this information!!! I think I will still take pushbrk's advice and have her arrive two days early, but then she can get the medical out of the way and have a full day to mentally relax. She is very confident, she works for an English language teaching company, but we have both read too many stories of people being denied because of issues with the interview communication. The other information about the additional cities is actually great!! I have a cousin who lives in Shanghai (Fiancee is in Chongqing), so if it is not available within two days she can give them the address in Shanghai? Let me know what you know and I will also read the full detail of the email. Happy Turkey Day!

[garfield529 47]

On average, after approval, she should receive her visa in about 2 days but this is not always the case and can not be counted on. The passport/visa can be mailed to any address within Guangdong province and also to the following 9 cities which are outside of Guangdong province: Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Changle, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Tianjin, Shenyang and Changchun. The visa mailing option was expanded to include these 9 additonal cities last month:

http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/ch...hout_china.html

Good Luck!!

Wow, thanks for this information!!! I think I will still take pushbrk's advice and have her arrive two days early, but then she can get the medical out of the way and have a full day to mentally relax. She is very confident, she works for an English language teaching company, but we have both read too many stories of people being denied because of issues with the interview communication. The other information about the additional cities is actually great!! I have a cousin who lives in Shanghai (Fiancee is in Chongqing), so if it is not available within two days she can give them the address in Shanghai? Let me know what you know and I will also read the full detail of the email. Happy Turkey Day!

Oh...oh...I see. They say an average of three days...and that the visa can be mailed to the recepients home address, so the cousin in Shanghai is out. Okay, then we will just have to sit tight in Guangzhou. haha, the only reason I am posting this is so that pushbrk won't yell at me for not reading all the details. I prefer to smile when he does it to others

[Eric & Jin 10]

On average, after approval, she should receive her visa in about 2 days but this is not always the case and can not be counted on. The passport/visa can be mailed to any address within Guangdong province and also to the following 9 cities which are outside of Guangdong province: Beijing, Shanghai, Fuzhou, Changle, Nanjing, Wenzhou, Tianjin, Shenyang and Changchun. The visa mailing option was expanded to include these 9 additonal cities last month:

http://guangzhou.usembassy-china.org.cn/ch...hout_china.html

Good Luck!!

Wow, thanks for this information!!! I think I will still take pushbrk's advice and have her arrive two days early, but then she can get the medical out of the way and have a full day to mentally relax. She is very confident, she works for an English language teaching company, but we have both read too many stories of people being denied because of issues with the interview communication. The other information about the additional cities is actually great!! I have a cousin who lives in Shanghai (Fiancee is in Chongqing), so if it is not available within two days she can give them the address in Shanghai? Let me know what you know and I will also read the full detail of the email. Happy Turkey Day!

Oh...oh...I see. They say an average of three days...and that the visa can be mailed to the recepients home address, so the cousin in Shanghai is out. Okay, then we will just have to sit tight in Guangzhou. haha, the only reason I am posting this is so that pushbrk won't yell at me for not reading all the details. I prefer to smile when he does it to others

I am pretty sure that you could still have it mailed to the cousin if you really needed to because after the interview your fiancee will be required to fill out an EMS label to where she wants her passport/visa & immigration envelope mailed to whether that be either the post office in GUZ or another location. The consulate does not automatically mail the package out to the applicant's home address but instead to wherever the EMS label directs them to. I know that many people in the past who do not live in GUZ and could not wait around for the visa have had it mailed to a relative/friend in Guangdong province who then forwards it on to them.

In any event yes you would be wise to follow pushbrk's advice of arriving in GUZ 2 days early just in case anything with the medical happened to go wrong and she needed to have something additonal done, etc. Plus like you said, it will give her an extra day to relax. My wife had her interview on a Tuesday and so we arrived in GUZ on the Sunday before and had the medical done on Monday. We were able to pick up the passport/visa package at the post office on the following Thursday (2 days after the interview).

OH BTW - remind your fiancee to write down the tracking number on the EMS label, so that you can track the passport/visa package.

[MMarc 0]

Hello all,

I have been reading around, but have not found exactly what I am looking for, so I will just ask this fresh. We are still a while from the interview point of the journey, but my fiancee works at a job that gives little time off and thus the reason for the question. When she goes into Guangzhou how much time does she need prior to the interview for completing the medical exam portion? And then when (being optimistic) she is granted the visa, how long does it take to receive? I have heard many get it the next day, but if it will take longer can she request it be mailed to her? I will have to plan airline tickets for her and her parents to go (I will be unable to go back during the expected time frame so I am having her parents go along) down and back. Thanks for any insights that you folks have... Please, no guesses, I prefer those with experience of this part of the journey. Happy Thanksgiving all!!!

We just had are interview on Oct. 27th 2009 and my fiancee flew in on the morning before 9a.m. and received here results that afternoon 4:00p.m (United Family Clinics). She paid 800rmb for the exam. Hope this helps.

Marc