administrative processing and diversity visa (green card lottery)

[nakaria 0]

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Hi everyone,

I am writing this post to help people that has win the diversity lottery / green card lottery but has been place in administrative processing. I am writing this because i wish i could have read and email like this when i pass through this situation. I hope this note helps you out.

Me and my husband were pre-selected a the DV2011. We had our interview at the US embassy in May 2011 and everything went really well. The vice consul told us we were approved and that we will receive our visas in 3 weeks aprox. We were very happy that day and we patiently waited for 1 months for the visas to arrived but our visas never arrived.

We emailed the embassy and where informed that our case was place in administrative processing. At that time we ignore what administrative processing was.

Well, administrative processing in when someone (we never now who, so we cannot blame anyone!!!) places a note in your case saying that they have to investigate your background further at the US Department of State (in Washington DC) before they issue a visa. This can be because you have a very common name that can match the name of someone that has done something really bad (that was our case) or because you come from a country that they might consider of risk or because they have seen something in the documents that you presented that they want to confirm or further investigate. Bottom line is that they wont issue the visa immediately and the time for them to review you case can take months. (important: not all DV lottery cases end in administrative processing, most visas are given inmediatelly. In this matter we had bad luck)

Bad news: there is not a time limit (deadline) for them to investigate your case. They are not obligated to respond you on time (before the visa lottery due date SEPTEMBER 30th) however they always say they now about your situation and would try to finish the investigation on time. But heyyyy THEY ARE NOT OBLIGATED BY LAW TO DO SO, something that i fine quite unfair. If you win the visa they should be obligated to replay to you on time. Well, they are not.

Reviewing a case can take aprox 2 to 3 months. In our case it took 4 moth but at least this story had a happy end : ) WE GOT OUR VISAS.

This are our suggestions:

1) call often to the Department of the State (001-202-663-1225)and give them your case number explaining there it is a Diversity visa case number so they can find it on their computer system. In this number they can only tell you if you case is still en process our has clear and it is ready for the visa to be issue. In our case they told us our case had clear aprox on Sept 15. five teen days before Sept 30th. ufffff to tie. Ahh don´t try to get more information from the US department of State about you case (why is in administrative processing, how long the process will take, can you talk to anyone to explain the situation) they won´t give you more details that "the case has cleared or is still in process".

2) visit the US embassy our email them often explaining them your situation. They are the only ones that can request to the US department of State that the investigation is resolve on quickly. they are not obligated to do so, but if you maintain a good relation with them they can help you out. In our case they email the US embassy about 3 time to request a expedite/quick resolution of our case. Talking to the embassy regularly so they don´t forget your situation is the best thing you can do to improve your chances of getting your visa on time.

3) if you don´t get help from the embassy try talking to a congressmen in the US to help you out. For this you must have someone that lives in the US and can request help from the congressmen in your name. What the congressmen will do is try to force people at the department of state to reply to your case on time.

If nothing of this works and you are traveling with other relatives (my case) you can always ask the US Embassy to issue your visa (if you are the winner and is one of your relatives the one that is been checked) and them apply for him/her when you become a permanent resident in the States.

Well, we wish you GOOD LUCK in your case and hope it has a happy end : ) just as ours : )

Hola a todos,

Escribo este post para ayudar a quienes como nosotros hayan ganados la DV lottery (loteria de la diversidad o loteria de la green card) y sus casos hayan sido puestos en proceso administrativo. Lo escribo porque a mi me hubiese encantado poder leer un email como este cuando pase por esta situación. Por eso espero que les sirva de ayuda.

Mi esposo y yo fuimos preseleccionados para la DV2011. Tuvimos nuestras entrevistas en la embajada americana de nuestra ciudad el 11 de mayo de 2011. En la entrevista todo fue genial y se nos dijo que nos habian aprovado la visa y que en un plazo de 3 semanas la recibiriamos por correo en casa. Esperamos pacientemente 1 mes completito pero las visas nunca nos llegaron.

Contactamos por email a la embajada para ver que habia sucedido y nos informaron que nuestro caso habia sido puesto en un tramite administrativo un proceso que nosotros desconociamos que existia.

Para que todos los sepan un proceso administrativo ocurre cuando alguien (nunca sabras quien, por lo que no le puedes echar la culpa a nadie) pone una nota en tu caso diciendo que antes de que te den la visa el Departamento de Estado Americano en washington te debe investigar mas. Las rasones para que te investigen pueden se varias: puede que tu nombre sea muy comun y que por lo tanto coincida con algun delincuente, puede que vengas de un pais que ellos consideren peligroso, o simplemente tienen que revisar mejor o comprobar la veracidad de algun docuemento que presentaste. El resultado de todo esto es que la embajada no te podra dar tu visa inmediatamente y que el proceso de revision de tu caso puede durar meses !!! (importante: no todos los casos terminan en proceso administrativo, a casi todo el mundo le dan la visa inmediatamente. Nosotros en ese aspecto tuvimos mala suerte).

Malas noticias: no existe un limite de tiempo para que investigen tu caso. El Departamento de Estado no está obligado a responderte a tiempo (antes de que el tiempo para emitir la visa expire y esto sucede cada 30 de Septiemrbe). Sin embargo ellos siempre dicen que son concientes de la situación del aplicante y que trataran de resolver tu caso a tiempo. Pero heyyy NO ESTAN OBLIGADOS POR LEY, algo que a mi me parece totalmente injusto. Si tu ganas la visa ellos deberian estar obligados a responderte a tiempo. Bueno, desgraciadamente no lo estan.

Revisar un caso puede tomarles aprox. unos 2 o 3 meses. En nuestro caso les llevo 4 meses pero por lo menos nuestra historia tuvo un final feliz y OBTUVIMOS NUESTRAS VISAS : )

Estas son nuestras sugerencias para las personas que se encuentren en nuestra misma situación:

1) Llama regularmente al Departamento de Estado (001-202-663-1225)y dales tu numero de caso explicandoles que es un caso de la loteria de la diversidad para que te encuentren en sus sitemas informaticos. Realmente en este numero de telefono ellos solo te podran decir si tu caso sigue en proceso administrativo o esta aprovado o denegado. En nuestro caso nuestra visa fue aprovada aprox. el 15 de sept. a solo 15 dias de que se nos acabara el plazo para que se emitira. Ufff super ajustado. No intentes dialogar mucho con el agente que te atienda, ellos solo te pueden decir en que proceso esta, no te diran nada mas.

2) Visit regularmente la embajada o enviales emails explicandoles tu situación, ellos son los unicos que puede solicitarle al departamento de estado que acelere la resolucion de tu caso para que la rspuesta te llegue a tiempo. Tampoco estan obligados a hacerlo, pero si mantienes una buena relacion con ellos te podran ayudar. Este es de todos los pasos el mas importante. Hablando con ellos es la mejor forma de mejorar tus chances de que obtengas una respuesta a tiempo.

3) Si la embajada no te ayuda trata de contactar a un congresista de los Estados Unidos. Para ello necesitaras de la ayuda de alguien que viva en los estados unidos y lo contacte en tu nombre. Lo que hara el congresista es intentar hablar con sus contactos en el Departamento de Estado para que le ayuden en la pronta resolucion de tu caso.

Si nada de esto funcion y tu estas viajando con otro familiar, tu siempre podras pedirle a la embajada que te de tu visa a ti como ganador de la visa (si la persona que esta siendo investigada es tu familiar: tu esposo o tu hijo) y una vez que estes en los Estados Unidos de America como residente permanente lo pides.

Bueno, les deseamos BUENA SUERTE a todos y que su caso tenga un final feliz : ) como el nuestro : )

[Velociraptor 0]

Your post is an enlightment.

My brother in law is in the same situation and now I'm afraid it's too late to help him out because everything finishes on September 30th and he hasn't receive his visa yet and at his last attempt to contact the embassy they told him not to call but to send an email.

So unfortunate.

[nakaria 0]

ohhhhhh. I am so sad to heard that. The visa can be issue quite fast. There is still 3 days left. tell them to ask the embassy by email with and URGENT subject and to call the phone number that appears in my email. Who know maybe by now he is out of administrative processing and he doesn´t knot it yet.

I wish you brother TONS of luck. It is such a difficult situation to pass through this.

Your post is an enlightment.

My brother in law is in the same situation and now I'm afraid it's too late to help him out because everything finishes on September 30th and he hasn't receive his visa yet and at his last attempt to contact the embassy they told him not to call but to send an email.

So unfortunate.

[Velociraptor 0]

Will try.

Cheers^^