What exactly goes down in the Administrative Processing procedure?

[meowmeowmeow 1]

what do they really do in general....does anyone have an idea?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

They investigate. They do it very very slowly.

[meowmeowmeow 1]

right, but how, and what exactly...is there some kind of worldwide database they look at? i'm just curious because i'm anticipating that happening to my case and i'd like to be able to provide enough info for my hubby at his interview so that they don't go overboard with being nitpicky and annoying lol...if that's even possible

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

There's an entire sub-forum dedicated to AP. Have you tried reading there?

[meowmeowmeow 1]

There's an entire sub-forum dedicated to AP. Have you tried reading there?

lol, i didn't even realize that there was this....thanks. will take a look, but i wanted to hear from people also who have gone through this and know what was being checked out. hubby and i aren't criminals or anything, worst i've done is gotten a speeding ticket, and made an illegal u-turn once, etc...stupid stuff. hubby is boring. lol

thanks.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Moved from Off Topic Forum

[atk_721 0]

At ur interview CO determines if ur case needs AP.

99.99% muslim males gets put on AP and there is no way to avoid it.CO determines what he needs to investigate during ur interview.It can be name check,FBI background ,finger print check,criminal n court records,relationship n residential/work history investigation or what ever u can possibly think of.Each of these are assigned to private investigation firms,case is sent to Washington and after getting an Ok( which can take from weeks to years),u can get called for a second interview or can get ur visa.

[th3mo 6]

am totally agreed with atk we was the same everything looks fine but had to go through AP alhamdulilallah it wasn`t that long but it makes you feel down because when it gets to AP you dont know what exactly going on or where is the wrong at , but what am sure from as long as you or your husband telling the truth through the paperwork and the interview it will help so much , and when we called the Cairo embassy and asked what AP is about the answered back literally ( NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS ) and when my wife called the DOS they told her its not about you it about Mr.Mohamed lol Good luck and as am always says its a game of time

[KDOR 1]

Do they go for educational history too when doing AP?

[meowmeowmeow 1]

At ur interview CO determines if ur case needs AP.

99.99% muslim males gets put on AP and there is no way to avoid it.CO determines what he needs to investigate during ur interview.It can be name check,FBI background ,finger print check,criminal n court records,relationship n residential/work history investigation or what ever u can possibly think of.Each of these are assigned to private investigation firms,case is sent to Washington and after getting an Ok( which can take from weeks to years),u can get called for a second interview or can get ur visa.

so if he was a christian or an atheist, it'd be different? or is it just the fact that he'd be coming from a middle eastern country that would automatically put him in AP? that really sucks. i guess i should prepare mentally for a wait too, i had hoped he'd be here to celebrate our second wedding anniversary together

damn.

thanks.

[WhidbeyGirl 1]

At ur interview CO determines if ur case needs AP.

99.99% muslim males gets put on AP and there is no way to avoid it.CO determines what he needs to investigate during ur interview.It can be name check,FBI background ,finger print check,criminal n court records,relationship n residential/work history investigation or what ever u can possibly think of.Each of these are assigned to private investigation firms,case is sent to Washington and after getting an Ok( which can take from weeks to years),u can get called for a second interview or can get ur visa.

so if he was a christian or an atheist, it'd be different? or is it just the fact that he'd be coming from a middle eastern country that would automatically put him in AP? that really sucks. i guess i should prepare mentally for a wait too, i had hoped he'd be here to celebrate our second wedding anniversary together

damn.

thanks.

My husband is Christian in a Muslim country and we are on AP. Not sure if that's the reason or if it's because he's Nigerian or if it's because he's 43 and this is his first marriage and he has no children. But SOMETHING triggered a red flag because we haven't been questioned even once with our paperwork thus far. Frustrating as heck! But what can I do? Well other than bugging the heck outta DOS every single day and emailing the embassy at least once or twice a week.

[L179 1]

My husband has a friend working at the USEM. Everybody goes through AP. Just AP for males from the MENA is longer and slower. For others it could be only a day or two/till visa is printed.

what it is...I would agree with what atk defined it as.

[WhidbeyGirl 1]

well I beg to differ, not EVERYONE goes on AP. If you look at my spreadsheet you'll see that EVERYONE other than me and one other were approved on their interview date got their visas within a few days (averaging 2.4 days right now). AP is done VERY discriminatory and very stereotypically.

Edited August 12, 2009 by WhidbeyGirl

[paciencia 0]

I had a really nice consular officer talk to me at our last visit to the embassy (just to say "hi..we're on month 13 of AP + it is tough"), and he confirmed what folks have been saying at the DOS and my congressman's office: it's a name check, in many different databases. The USCIS-name-check-units are distributed in different agencies (fbi, homeland security, dea international etc), and are not well-coordinated, are poorly organized internally, and are overburdened with requests. Paper files, outdated algorithms for transliterating names combinations from different alphabets, and staff without language abilities are widespread.

Common names are more likely to get sent for a check. My fiance is christian, but has a last name which apparently like 5 million people share! Hypothetically, unusual names (or super-common last names) are less likely to be sent into AP - they would be impossible to check, or 'too' easy.

But there are many exceptions to the rule. A friend of my fiance (also christian, by chance), with an extraordinarily common name (same last and first!) got put on AP for two years.. So it's hard to find a rhyme or reason. Obama's team noted this 'gap in bureaucracy' for the name-check process in december, and they've been given new deadlines and more staff. But they are prioritizing the name-check system for domestic checks first. And when do the new employees actually start working is anybody's guess.

I think one of the aspects of AP which has bothered me the most is its incongruence with the rest of the government systems and transparency I'm spoiled by as a US citizen. The offices which are doing this have very little accountability, and as nobody claims the final responsibility for oversight, there is nobody to complain to if there is a serious issue. While much of the immigration system is similar - works ok, but incredibly hard for non-citizens to have any recourse in case of a mistake or extraordinary delays, inhuman treatment, etc - for me AP is up there. It is also unusual that, to date, it has not received very much attention from traditional advocacy groups (ACLU, or the American Association of Immigration Lawyers) as have other 'lost' zones of immigration procedures (such as minors in detention, or patriot-act 'special registration'. This may be due to the fact that there aren't that many of us, and also that it is very hard to go after something so ephemeral and 'security' related. Nobody wants to appear against national security. I don't either, but I think that the system could be made much more efficient and humane. I'm not sure how that will happen though, as in the end there is no real constiuent group which could pressure lawmakers into making change. My only hope is that - combined with the little nudge from the Administration earlier this year - the agencies will themselves see that a more effective and coordinated process is in their own interest. Who knows.

[MARM 7]

well I beg to differ, not EVERYONE goes on AP. If you look at my spreadsheet you'll see that EVERYONE other than me and one other were approved on their interview date got their visas within a few days (averaging 2.4 days right now). AP is done VERY discriminatory and very stereotypically.

I could not agree more.

My fiance has interviewed in London. He has lived in London for the past 5 years as a resident, but he is a Pakistani citizen, I guess this is the reason he is on AP, because he is Pakistani. And I know of another member of VJ, but she was just born in India but is a citizen of the United Kingdom, of a Muslim family background and female: she was put on AP as well. So you can see a very noticeable pattern of stereotyping and racial profiling.

I know they do it for national security reasons, but they need to make the process more efficient and organized...it is really really unfair that most people get through AP and with the visa in a matter of two-three days whereas others have to wait months and years....