When to buy plane tickets through K1 process

[neodragon0l 6]

hi! caryh my situation now is same as yours. My fiance already bought ticket 30 days before my interview on the 29th. I just want to ask what did your fiance answered in Q#18 in DS 157 "Have you made specific travel arrangements?"...if i answer yes will this affect my visa approval? Im really confuse now what to answer coz in the K1 packet there's a reminder not to make any travel arrangements until visa approval thanks in advance... Good day!

I hate Q#18 like they can magically accommodate you. The truth is they won't make it go faster unless your case is an emergency, aging out case, etc. These forms are not very helpful because they don't give a lot of guidance. Thanks to VJ'rs for their patience in helping fill out the forms.

Regarding the plane ticket, don't buy it until you have the visa on hand. Saving a few bucks may cost you more. Not worth the risk.

[newbster 4]

Is this legit? I just want to confirm with another VJ'r. No offense Calibob. There are many fake travel agents in the PHL. I am just wondering. I am planning ahead . How wonder much December tickets will cost? I hope it's not an arm and a leg. I still have a wedding to plan.

I'm sure it's legit. MNL to SFO is a pretty cheap flight for trans-pacific. You can search on kayak and find similar fares. If you buy now a ticket for December I'm sure it would be very cheap. Once you get under 3 weeks away from your trip the price goes up very quickly as do your options (flight times, airline choices, layovers get longer, etc). I went from over a hundred choices to about 4 good ones between 5 weeks before the flight and 3 weeks before the flight. Prices also went up by hundreds of dollars in that time for many flights (but not all).

FYI I just searched on Kayak and found a fare for $569 MNL-SFO on Dec 5.

Edited October 4, 2012 by newbster

[Hank_ 9,174]

hi! caryh my situation now is same as yours. My fiance already bought ticket 30 days before my interview on the 29th. I just want to ask what did your fiance answered in Q#18 in DS 157 "Have you made specific travel arrangements?"...if i answer yes will this affect my visa approval? Im really confuse now what to answer coz in the K1 packet there's a reminder not to make any travel arrangements until visa approval thanks in advance... Good day!

If you read through the question they are more so asking about additional travels BEFORE getting your visa approved.

[southcalhog 43]

Never buy the plane tickets until the visa is in hand. A lot of things can happen that might delay the issuance of the visa.

I Agree with that, If you are flying right after Visa issuance it is better to be safe than sorry, but Good Luck!

[neodragon0l 6]

I'm sure it's legit. MNL to SFO is a pretty cheap flight for trans-pacific. You can search on kayak and find similar fares. If you buy now a ticket for December I'm sure it would be very cheap. Once you get under 3 weeks away from your trip the price goes up very quickly as do your options (flight times, airline choices, layovers get longer, etc). I went from over a hundred choices to about 4 good ones between 5 weeks before the flight and 3 weeks before the flight. Prices also went up by hundreds of dollars in that time for many flights (but not all).

FYI I just searched on Kayak and found a fare for $569 MNL-SFO on Dec 5.

Thanks! This is so helpful.