Australian Beneficiaries - Packet 3 to Interview date

[alex and astrid 38]

Don'tWhateverMe, if you get an email back, can you post the response on here? I'm a queenslander and just as confused!

As for me...after all those touches at the start of the week, no approval yet! Grrrr.....

[alex and astrid 38]

Why is the edit button not showing on my posts...?

I just found out that A LOT of people who filed at the same time as Alex and I have gotten approvals....people from the end of august, the middle of august and the start of August. I'm starting to freak out and get upset a little. What if something is wrong? We had two touches at the start of the week, I was sure an approval was imminent. But, nothing

[Giggles 1]

The consulate's website says you will get a notification from Queensland Police when the police check is sent to them. I'm waiting until I get my case number before getting the police report.....I don't want to have it sent to the consulate in case they don't have my documents from NVC by that time. It's such a pain because it would speed up the process when we get Packet 3.

Omnivore, the info about getting the police report is all on the consulate's website.

Astrid, I wouldn't be too worried at this stage. It sucks when you're playing the waiting game. I know it's stressful......I've been going out of my mind for the last month. I'm sure you'll probably get some good news soon.

[NewYorkSydney 0]

Hey Guys

Good news just received my interview date from the Sydney Consulate.. My interview is now set for the 17th of Nov..

Almost there..

Hope everyone is doing well..

Carol

[Deb+Steve 13]

Hey Guys

Good news just received my interview date from the Sydney Consulate.. My interview is now set for the 17th of Nov..

Almost there..

Hope everyone is doing well..

Carol

Congrats ...

For the Qld police clearance - best to wait for a case number. I rang Qld Police and on the application it asks if you want it to be sent directly to a Consulate - you tick yes and specify which Consulate. Apparently they have a register of all the Consulates and they will notify you once it is sent. So there goes getting it done now, I will be waiting until we have the NVC number too ...

[Miss Natalie 0]

CONGRATULATIONS NATALIE.. WHEN ARE YOU PLANNING ON LEAVING FOR THE US???

Thanks everyone!

I just booked my flight I am heading to the States on December 26th (perfect! I get to spend Christmas with my family and New Years with my honey - this will be our first New Years kiss!!)

I got a GREAT flight through V Australia - Adelaide to LAX for $936 tax included! Check them out if you are looking for flights around that time, they have some amazing deals! Still need to book a flight to New Orleans, but am still researching those.

I was expecting the visa today, but there was some delay apparently and it got sent from the consulate this afternoon ( thats according to the consulate woman I spoke to, it's not showing up on Australia Post yet ), so I SHOULD get it on Monday. I was going to hold off on booking the flight, but this was too good a deal!

Hope everyone's journey is going well

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

[lyekka 5]

CONGRATULATIONS NATALIE.. WHEN ARE YOU PLANNING ON LEAVING FOR THE US???

Thanks everyone!

I just booked my flight I am heading to the States on December 26th (perfect! I get to spend Christmas with my family and New Years with my honey - this will be our first New Years kiss!!)

I got a GREAT flight through V Australia - Adelaide to LAX for $936 tax included! Check them out if you are looking for flights around that time, they have some amazing deals! Still need to book a flight to New Orleans, but am still researching those.

I was expecting the visa today, but there was some delay apparently and it got sent from the consulate this afternoon ( thats according to the consulate woman I spoke to, it's not showing up on Australia Post yet ), so I SHOULD get it on Monday. I was going to hold off on booking the flight, but this was too good a deal!

Hope everyone's journey is going well

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Yay! Grats! I'm flying over to aus December 25th, spending the morning with my kids, dropping them off at their dads and heading to the airport. Yeah V australia has amazing deals right now, hoping to buy my ticket in the next few weeks, right now they are running 1700 round trip all the way from seattle and back. Ill be there until jan 8, so I get to spend new years with Damo and super excited about it. Will be our first as well.

Hopefully our interview will fall sometime while I'm there. Cant believe its already halloween, and ofcourse it is raining here lol. Why am I not surprise

[kaffy 2]

To all the QLD VJers you don't necessarily have to have your police report sent directly to the consulate. On the form you fill out when you get fingerprinted you can specify where you would like it sent - either your own address, the consulate's address or somewhere else even. There are no rules where you have it sent so technically you can have it done now, sent to your own address then you can forward it to the consulate with the rest of your packet 3 stuff.

Oh and although I had mine sent directly to the Consulate (my process went very quickly so I didn't have spare time sitting around waiting) they (the police) didn't notify me when it was processed.. I had to ring up the police HQ myself and only then was I told that it was completed and sent off on such and such a date

[kaffy 2]

but yeah my advice is to get fingerprinted now.. it's valid for 6 months (or 1 year? I forget) and would certainly make the process go a lot quicker once you reach Packet 3 stage

[kaffy 2]

Today I decided to go down to the police station to do the police check and finger prints. I spoke with the lady at the counter about having the police check sent directly to me instead of the consulate (just thought I'd double check) and she said it was fine. I filled out the form, payed the fee of $158.45 and was about to do the finger prints when another lady told me that the finger prints are supposed to be sent directly to the consulate. So anyway, I decided not to take the risk and asked for my money back. Argh!! What a waste of time! This visa is taking long enough as it is and I'd be even more annoyed if the consulate wouldn't accept the police report and finger prints if they were sent to me. I'm just going to wait until the consulate has received our documents before doing the police check just to be on the safe side.

sorry but i think that lady (the second one) is wrong.

your fingerprints dont get sent to the consulate, only the report and as long as the envelope is still sealed there shouldnt be a problem with where it came from. In fact I hand delivered them my Japanese police report on the day of my interview and there wasnt any issue there

[alex and astrid 38]

Today I decided to go down to the police station to do the police check and finger prints. I spoke with the lady at the counter about having the police check sent directly to me instead of the consulate (just thought I'd double check) and she said it was fine. I filled out the form, payed the fee of $158.45 and was about to do the finger prints when another lady told me that the finger prints are supposed to be sent directly to the consulate. So anyway, I decided not to take the risk and asked for my money back. Argh!! What a waste of time! This visa is taking long enough as it is and I'd be even more annoyed if the consulate wouldn't accept the police report and finger prints if they were sent to me. I'm just going to wait until the consulate has received our documents before doing the police check just to be on the safe side.

sorry but i think that lady (the second one) is wrong.

your fingerprints dont get sent to the consulate, only the report and as long as the envelope is still sealed there shouldnt be a problem with where it came from. In fact I hand delivered them my Japanese police report on the day of my interview and there wasnt any issue there

Yeah, I thought the woman who spoke to giggles may have been wrong. what brought me to that conclusion was that on the second page of the form, it asks if you want your fingerprints kept on file, or have them destroyed after they have been used for the check. And, people from other states just have the police cert saying what convictions they do or do not have. It wouldn't make any sense for QLD to be different. I think I am going to chance it and have my police check done this week coming. As it is, I am down to less than three months til my planned return to the states, I don't want to muck around waiting for a police check and potentially hold up my interview.

Giggles, I will be having my prints done at Indooroopilly station, so I will let you know what they say there, yeah?

[Giggles 1]

Well I'm just going by what the lady at the police station told me. I didn't mean the actual fingerprints were sent to the consulate....I guess I should have worded my post better. Anyway she did mention a reason why they are sent directly to the Consulate, which was to prevent fraud.

Astrid, I think they may have given me a different form to you. The one I got is QP 0349B 03/09. Page 1 is for all my details and page 2 is for police use only. It doesn't make sense to me either why Queensland would be different...maybe that's just Queensland Police's procedure. Let me know what they say at Indooroopilly Police. I might also try calling the Police Information Centre to see if someone can clarify this.

Edited October 31, 2009 by Giggles

[kaffy 2]

Yeah, I thought the woman who spoke to giggles may have been wrong. what brought me to that conclusion was that on the second page of the form, it asks if you want your fingerprints kept on file, or have them destroyed after they have been used for the check. And, people from other states just have the police cert saying what convictions they do or do not have. It wouldn't make any sense for QLD to be different. I think I am going to chance it and have my police check done this week coming. As it is, I am down to less than three months til my planned return to the states, I don't want to muck around waiting for a police check and potentially hold up my interview.

It doesnt make sense to me either why QLD would be different. The consular officer will return your police certificate at your interview. I have mine in front of me and it is a two page document.. the first page is a letter which says "Dear Sir/Madam. Application has been made by the abovenamed to this service for a National Police certificate for visa purposes. As requested, the certificate is forward to you for your consideration. Yours faithfully,"

The second page is the actual certificate (printed on fancy blue paper, haha) and says you have no convictions and is signed.

I think you're fine to get it done now.. but if you want to wait that's fine too because it doesnt take them that long to process it - I was fingerprinted on July 3 2007 and the police check was finalized on July 11 2007.. so about a week for processing

[alex and astrid 38]

Well I'm just going by what the lady at the police station told me. I didn't mean the actual fingerprints were sent to the consulate....I guess I should have worded my post better. Anyway she did mention a reason why they are sent directly to the Consulate, which was to prevent fraud.

Astrid, I think they may have given me a different form to you. The one I got is QP 0349B 03/09. Page 1 is for all my details and page 2 is for police use only. It doesn't make sense to me either why Queensland would be different...maybe that's just Queensland Police's procedure. Let me know what they say at Indooroopilly Police. I might also try calling the Police Information Centre to see if someone can clarify this.

Sorry, I wasn't suggesting that you were in the wrong at all! Yeah, I did get the same form as you, but just a different year and month on it.

I was also thinking, we are supposed to give them the original and a photocopy of the police check, so don't we need to get it anyway? So damn confusing, it would be nice if there was just the one procedure for everyone. plus, I am guessing that some police stations, or even most of them, don't deal with out specific situation all the time.

[alex and astrid 38]

WE GOT APPROVED!!!!!!!!!!! Alex just called me and I can't stop crying!!!!!

Tell you what, the buggers at CSC had me worried. The last touch we received on the 27th was our approval, but they didn't update the system to reflect that, it just looked like another touch! Alex got the NOA2 in the mail today. I'M SO HAPPY!