HCMC Interview experience - 12/15/2009

[Twisted K 2]

congratulations

after our interview last year, we had also come to know that a lot of the decision comes before the interviews, and based on documents submitted. good luck on your wedding and have a safe trip home

[b_weeks 6]

First off - Congrats! How much did Mr Nam's services set you back? and What advice did you disagree with?

It wouldn't be appropriate to discuss the cost of his services on an open forum. Mr. Nam doesn't run a "paper mill" document prep service with one fixed price for everyone. He quotes a price according to the services you ask for, and your particular situation. Considering the quality of his service, I thought the price he quoted me was very fair.

One of the things I disagreed with was that he suggested that I should prepare also, in case I would have to talk to the CO. This means he wanted to have mock interviews with me to see if I knew as much about Phuong as she knew about me. I disagreed because I know the odds of me actually being interviewed by the CO were slim to none. Also, we had less than a week until the interview, and I didn't want to waste any of that time on a scenario that was very unlikely to happen. He described to me a couple of cases where the petitioner was questioned by the CO when they went to submit evidence in response to a blue slip. Based on what I'd read here, I know that rarely happens. He also told me about a recent case where a Stokes interview was conducted. I know that a Stokes interview is extremely rare in HCM (I've only read about two cases where this has happened), and only happens in spousal visa cases. He understood my reasons for not wanting to follow his advice on this, and accepted them.

The second time I disagreed was when he asked Phuong a question about sex during the mock interview. I stopped him and told him not to ask any more questions of that nature. I also told Phuong that if the CO asked her questions that were overly embarassing or humiliating then she should refuse to answer them. He told me about recent cases where questions like this were asked. I pressed him, and discovered these were spousal visa cases, and these questions started coming up after more than 30 minutes of intense questioning. My reasons for objecting were that this was a fiancee visa case, and there is no requirement that a petitioner and beneficiary have sex in order to prove a bona fide relationship. Also, if the CO begins asking questions like this then he is fishing for the reason to write on the denial slip - the visa has effectively already been denied, and there's no point in humiliating yourself when you've already lost.

I had a long talk with Phuong after that meeting, and explained her rights as an applicant. She has the right to refuse to answer any question she finds inappropriate, humiliating, embarrassing, or intrusively personal. The consulate does not have the authority to keep her there against her will. She has the right to terminate the interview at any time, and leave the consulate. The consulate officials are diplomatic guests in HER country, and they have absolutely no authority over her beyond approval or denial of her visa application. Until she enters the US, she is not subject to the authority of the US government. I didn't seriously think there was any chance she'd need to exercise any of these rights, but it made her feel more comfortable knowing she had them.

To his credit Mr. Nam was just trying to be thorough based on his extensive experience with cases at the consulate in HCM. I believe that you have to be proactive when dealing with any attorney or legal service. They have a very short time to become familiar with your case, and they're never going to know your particular situation as well as you do. If you do your homework, then you'll have the knowledge to help your attorney do his job, and also to correct him when he makes a mistake.

Congrats JimVaPhuong :)

We also used the services of Nam Le and Marc Ellis. Our experience was very similar to yours. I agree that they are very thorough when it comes to interview preparation. Also, I agree that they do not wish us to discuss rates that were paid, as it does differ from case to case.

I was not there when Trang went for her medical, so Nam Le took her and stayed with her through the whole process (minus the actual exam). They are great as far as document preparation and interview preparedness. I would and still do recommend their service to people who do not feel comfortable with doing it themselves or who know they have red flags in their case. There are things that can be done or presented to overcome those red flags.

Again, Congrats....

[wratran 0]

I did inquire about ME service....wind up not using him at all. His initial consultation fee was $100 (even if you dont use him)...just to go over our background.... He told me he would run a FREE background check before they would know the fees. They would not tell me about this free website unless you go and pay him the $100 first. I research the forum and found the background check website (choicepoint.com).

I thought it was outrageous for something that is free to the public. We would have use him for post-inteverview if we got a blue slip.

Our initial thought was to use his service prepping for the interviews and arranging documents. But we discovered all of the potential questions are in this forum. And by arranging the documents yourself, you would know exactly where they are when asked by the CO.

Edited December 18, 2009 by wratran

[Kevin and 10]

Congratulations!

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

I did inquire about ME service....wind up not using him at all. His initial consultation fee was $100 (even if you dont use him)...just to go over our background.... He told me he would run a FREE background check before they would know the fees. They would not tell me about this free website unless you go and pay him the $100 first. I research the forum and found the background check website (choicepoint.com).

I thought it was outrageous for something that is free to the public. We would have use him for post-inteverview if we got a blue slip.

Our initial thought was to use his service prepping for the interviews and arranging documents. But we discovered all of the potential questions are in this forum. And by arranging the documents yourself, you would know exactly where they are when asked by the CO.

I don't think he was asking you to pay for the background check. I think he was asking you to pay for his time reviewing your case. He wanted the Lexus Nexus report (from choicepoint) to determine what red flags there might be in your case before quoting a price for handling your case. The consulate has access to this report, also.

It probably depends a lot on how you phrase your request for his assistance. I made it clear that I intended to handle the petition myself, but might want some help preparing Phuong for the interview. When I met Marc in person it wasn't about the visa process. We are both guitar players, and both members of a music related forum. We hooked up in HCM to go see a guitar maker (where I ended up ordering a custom acoustic guitar) and to have lunch. We didn't talk about visas. Our discussion about visas was limited to a few brief emails after I got back to the states, and he told me about the choicepoint report.

We didn't decide to hire Mr. Nam until I arrived in Vietnam a couple of weeks ago. I called Marc, and he gave me Mr. Nam's phone number. That was the limit of his involvement. Given the outcome, we would have been just fine if we hadn't hired Mr. Nam, since only a few questions were asked. But, Phuong was very nervous about the interview, and having Mr. Nam help prepare her made her feel more confident, and gave her something to focus on for the final week. That alone was worth more than all the money I've spent in all my trips to Vietnam.

If things had gone sour at the interview, we wouldn't have hesitated to hire Marc to handle the case. I don't usually like dealing with lawyers for a whole host of reasons, but nobody knows the consulate in HCM like Marc.

[Anh map 2,098]

What's inappropriate about sharing what you paid for your specific service?

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

What's inappropriate about sharing what you paid for your specific service?

Because the price is based on the individual case, and how much work Mr. Nam and his staff are going to have to do. It's not a flat-rate document and interview prep service. Someone else might have to pay more because their case requires more work, and someone else might have to pay less. Someone who has to pay more than I did is not necessarily getting ripped off, and someone who has to pay less is not necessarily getting a bargain. The price I paid is based on the specific services I asked for, and the specific situation of our case.

I think the price range for document prep (interview documents only - not the initial petition) and interview prep ranges from less than $500 to over $1000, depending on the case.

[DansJourney 0]

CONGRATS JIM & PHUONG!

[Viking_in_Seattle 0]

Congratulations.

Well, I guess front-loading can make a big difference. My attorney had told me (just after the interview I think) that the Consulates often don't review the USCIS material or even necessarily receive all of it. I didn't discover this site until AFTER I had submitted my petition, so front-loading for the Consulate interview never really occurred to me. I think I had submitted enough evidence with the petition, but I didn't label the "Explanation of Meeting - Relationship" for USCIS as a "Timeline". It was a 2 or 3 page narrative time-ordered document made up of short paragraphs, complete with dates. I supplied a higher-level Word table "timeline" for the interview, but it wasn't signed & notarized. After my fiancee got the blue slip, I incorporated the details of the USCIS document into the timeline, and I made sure it addressed each point listed on the blue slip -- bolding all text that directly applied to each point. I didn't think to do it in a question and answer format like Jim did -- a very good idea -- but it got the job done. I went back to the Consulate a couple of days later and got my new timeline notarized. I also submitted some evidence that they didn't elect to take from Thanh (it wasn't clear to me if they had looked at it and had given it back to her, or if they never saw it). Nothing happened however until her new appointment date late in June. By then I had done a a slight improved timeline that I FEDx'd to her the week before the interview. She gave them the new timeline, they disappeared for a couple of hours, then came back and gave her pink.

Thanh arrived in Seattle on July 3rd. We were married on Sept 12th in Las Vegas. We submitted paperwork for her AOS in early October, and she got her biometrics taken last month. so we're just waiting on the Green card, work permit, and travel permit.

BTW, we didn't have a Dam Hoi, which I know is a negative. But when asked about this at the interview, Thanh told the CO that we elected to save the money for more travel to and inside Vietnam. I made 5 trips to Vietnam, plus we traveled together to Mui Ne, Dalat, Hanoi, and Halong Bay -- plus 3 trips to Cai Be to visit her family. She said that the CO seemed very satisfied with her answers.

[Dau Que 6]

I rarely ever say Congrats to anyone receiving pink. But Jim, you're the one I personally will do so, because she and you really deserve it! This gotta be the BEST Christmas present for you ever.

CONGRATS!!

Edited December 20, 2009 by Dau Que

[jasonandhien 0]

Congrats! :dance: :dance:

[vietazn 1]

I agree with Jim regarding the whirlwind type relationship. But for us, it was the opposite. We met online in March. Visit her for the first time in April and also ask her mom for marriage during my first visit. I made a 2nd visit for the interview in November. The whole process is about 9 months.

Our relationship did not have much red flags to begin with. That's the reason i brought up the time issue. Short time span was our only redflag.

1) both single

2) no relatives in the US

3) was not introduce by family members

4) both speak english and vietnamese

5) both have good paying job and held a college degree

6) no kids, no previous marriage

I think having no kids or previous marriage can only help. I'm not sure that having relatives in the US, or being introduced by family members is a red flag. I think having a college degree helps in the sense that people with college degrees tend to do better with the form-filling, document prep,

interview, and visa process.