Approved but didnt keep passport

[JeniLovesMarwan 0]

Does anyone know why the CO told my husband he was approved for his visa in Cairo Egypt but they gave him his passport back and said they would call him within 1 week to send back his passport to Embassy? This confuses me very much if he was approved why wouldnt they keep his passport. Anyone know why? Thanks

[mounir and suzie 0]

Does anyone know why the CO told my husband he was approved for his visa in Cairo Egypt but they gave him his passport back and said they would call him within 1 week to send back his passport to Embassy? This confuses me very much if he was approved why wouldnt they keep his passport. Anyone know why? Thanks

first i wish with all my heart they call him soon asking for his passport then give him his visa shortly ,, well about your question i dont know for sure excatly why they didnt keep his passport but for what i hear when they didnt keep it they put the case on AP or AR but dont worry i dont think it will take longer also call the DOS they will tell you excatly what the statue of the case , they kept my passport on my interview but even like that they put me under AP but really didnt take longer time then they issue me the visa also i missed one paper work which was my wife divorce certificate i believe it cause the AP for me but i think more on your case they put it on AR thats why they didnt keep his passport but inshallah it won't take longer and soon they will call him asking to send his passport to them , best of luck to both of you , have a good one .

[Resha 1]

I dont know anything about the consulate in Cairo.. But I can send prayers your way.. Inshallah they will call soo soon

Edited December 24, 2009 by Resha~Adnan

[tenderheartusa79 14]

Does anyone know why the CO told my husband he was approved for his visa in Cairo Egypt but they gave him his passport back and said they would call him within 1 week to send back his passport to Embassy? This confuses me very much if he was approved why wouldnt they keep his passport. Anyone know why? Thanks

They did not keep his passport cause probably they put him under AP .and once they done with that they will call him to send in his passport .

I don't want to put you down but i guess it might take long time not just one week .

Cause if its going to take one week as the CO told him so why they did not keep his passport '' its just one week you know '' .

The CO told me its going to take 2 weeks .it has been 9 months and still no visa .

I hope it wont take long for you guys .

Mohamed

[illnevergetthis 5]

I am pretty sure your husband has been put on AP.

Call DOS Monday and ask for your status. Have them clarify if your administrative processing is name checks or if the embassy doing their own verifications.

There is no time limit to AP. I hope the embassy calls you in a week, but there is no way to know the tome it'll take. A week is tough. Thursday and Friday are holidays and Saturday is part of the weekend...that's three days being closed in one week.

Try to keep yourself busy, so that you don't go crazy.

[JeniLovesMarwan 0]

I am pretty sure your husband has been put on AP.

Call DOS Monday and ask for your status. Have them clarify if your administrative processing is name checks or if the embassy doing their own verifications.

There is no time limit to AP. I hope the embassy calls you in a week, but there is no way to know the tome it'll take. A week is tough. Thursday and Friday are holidays and Saturday is part of the weekend...that's three days being closed in one week.

Try to keep yourself busy, so that you don't go crazy.

I hope its not going to take a long time for his visa. I just dont even know where to begin to look for status on my husband's visa case. We filed our petition DCF because I lived with him in Egypt for over 6 months would I still contact DOS for his status or would I just contact the US embassy in Cairo? I have emailed the embassy but no response yet I guess because of the holiday. But if I contact DOS even though we filed the petition through DCF does anyone have the number that I would call or the email for them. Because I really dont know what to do or who to contact about his status for his visa. Thanks

[tenderheartusa79 14]

I hope its not going to take a long time for his visa. I just dont even know where to begin to look for status on my husband's visa case. We filed our petition DCF because I lived with him in Egypt for over 6 months would I still contact DOS for his status or would I just contact the US embassy in Cairo? I have emailed the embassy but no response yet I guess because of the holiday. But if I contact DOS even though we filed the petition through DCF does anyone have the number that I would call or the email for them. Because I really dont know what to do or who to contact about his status for his visa. Thanks

I hope it wont take long time till he get the visa in hand .

Yeah you still can call DOS and ask them about your case status .

DOS number : 1-202-6631-225 then press 1 and then press 0 to talk to an agent .

And you still can Email the embassy .Don't forget to include your name and your case number '' put the case number in the subject line ''

The USA embassy Email : consularcairoiv@state.gov

Good luck and my best wishes for you .

Mohamed

[tenderheartusa79 14]

Here are some info about the AP

• What is Administrative Processing?

AP is also called Additional Administrative Processing and is when the applicant is being checked more closely. It can be for security checks which encompass fingerprints and/or name checks or for document verification.

• When does Administrative Processing Happen?

AP can happen at any time during your processing. It can happen at a service center, at the NVC level, or at the embassy level. It mainly is discussed here in the forums at the embassy level.

• Who can get Administrative Processing and Why?

AP usually affects men and women from certain countries but anyone can get AP. Persons coming from T countries (Terrorist Countries) seem to have more security checks and have to endure AP at the embassy level after their interview. Common names, your nationality, religion, education, relationship of applicant, travels and job can all be factors for AP. Having incomplete or missing documents will also cause a case to be put in AP. In some cases if the embassy does not believe in the validity of the relationship they can investigate it further with a field investigation.

• What are the T-Countries?

Although it is classified, the list of countries reportedly affected by these restrictions includes, but is not limited to, Afghanistan,

Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Djibouti, Egypt,

Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya,

Malaysia, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia,

Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates,

and Yemen.

• Can I check the status of my case?

The embassy will not in many cases respond to emails until a certain amount of time has elapsed. The best bet is to contact Department of State aka: DOS and ask them for an update bi-weekly. They will not be able to give you details but they can tell you if the case is still pending in AP or cleared.

• Can I expedite this process?

The simple answer is NO. No one can expedite the checks since they are considered a matter of National security. An elected official can only make a congressional inquiry on your behalf. They cannot get the checks finished any faster.

• Does AP have any time frame for completion?

NO AP can last anywhere from days, weeks, months and in a few cases years.

Anyone that happens to be given a 221(g) or Administrative Processing letter must be patient and let them do their work. Do not call constantly and ask about your case. Remember each time your case is moved it can then end up at the bottom of the stack and your time can be extended. Each case is different so you cannot judge your case by any other and each consulate/embassy may have a different average time for completion of AP.

And here is a compare or the different between Administrative process and the administrative review :-

Administrative Review: Is when your case is being looked at more closely for accuracy and to make sure all security name and fingerprint checks have cleared and your visa can be adjudicated.

Administrative Processing: Means once you have interviewed it is in security checks for any of these situations: you have had a name hit in one of the many data bases, background checks for fraud, or has missing and incomplete information that must be submitted and the rechecked. Processing is more in depth and than the review process and there is no time limit for this processing to complete. Administrative processing can last a few days or months and in some cases it has endured for years.

Good luck and my best wishes for you .

Mohamed

[JeanneVictoria 55]

Here are some info about the AP

• What is Administrative Processing?

AP is also called Additional Administrative Processing and is when the applicant is being checked more closely. It can be for security checks which encompass fingerprints and/or name checks or for document verification.

• When does Administrative Processing Happen?

AP can happen at any time during your processing. It can happen at a service center, at the NVC level, or at the embassy level. It mainly is discussed here in the forums at the embassy level.

• Who can get Administrative Processing and Why?

AP usually affects men and women from certain countries but anyone can get AP. Persons coming from T countries (Terrorist Countries) seem to have more security checks and have to endure AP at the embassy level after their interview. Common names, your nationality, religion, education, relationship of applicant, travels and job can all be factors for AP. Having incomplete or missing documents will also cause a case to be put in AP. In some cases if the embassy does not believe in the validity of the relationship they can investigate it further with a field investigation.

• What are the T-Countries?

Although it is classified, the list of countries reportedly affected by these restrictions includes, but is not limited to, Afghanistan,

Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Djibouti, Egypt,

Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya,

Malaysia, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia,

Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates,

and Yemen.

• Can I check the status of my case?

The embassy will not in many cases respond to emails until a certain amount of time has elapsed. The best bet is to contact Department of State aka: DOS and ask them for an update bi-weekly. They will not be able to give you details but they can tell you if the case is still pending in AP or cleared.

• Can I expedite this process?

The simple answer is NO. No one can expedite the checks since they are considered a matter of National security. An elected official can only make a congressional inquiry on your behalf. They cannot get the checks finished any faster.

• Does AP have any time frame for completion?

NO AP can last anywhere from days, weeks, months and in a few cases years.

Anyone that happens to be given a 221(g) or Administrative Processing letter must be patient and let them do their work. Do not call constantly and ask about your case. Remember each time your case is moved it can then end up at the bottom of the stack and your time can be extended. Each case is different so you cannot judge your case by any other and each consulate/embassy may have a different average time for completion of AP.

And here is a compare or the different between Administrative process and the administrative review :-

Administrative Review: Is when your case is being looked at more closely for accuracy and to make sure all security name and fingerprint checks have cleared and your visa can be adjudicated.

Administrative Processing: Means once you have interviewed it is in security checks for any of these situations: you have had a name hit in one of the many data bases, background checks for fraud, or has missing and incomplete information that must be submitted and the rechecked. Processing is more in depth and than the review process and there is no time limit for this processing to complete. Administrative processing can last a few days or months and in some cases it has endured for years.

Good luck and my best wishes for you .

Mohamed

Great post Mohamed!

[~PalmTreeGurl~ 154]

When my husband was interviewed in Cairo in May 2007, he was approved and they didnt keep his passport. After the AP and another issue, December he was called by the Embassy to send his passport to them. Jan 1st 2008 he had his visa in hand. Each situation is completely different with Cairo though.

[JeniLovesMarwan 0]

When my husband was interviewed in Cairo in May 2007, he was approved and they didnt keep his passport. After the AP and another issue, December he was called by the Embassy to send his passport to them. Jan 1st 2008 he had his visa in hand. Each situation is completely different with Cairo though.

When your husband had his interview in Cairo do you know how long they told him it would take until they contacted him to send his passport back? The CO that interviewed him was so nice to him and he answered all her questions correctly and in the end she said he was approved but he was in AP but she told him not to worry because this is very normal and they will contact my husband in 1 week to send back his passport. I just dont understand why they say you are approved but then they put you through AP anyway. I hope and pray the embassy will contact him with in a week like she said but I am starting to have my doubts.

[~PalmTreeGurl~ 154]

I honestly dont remember if its was said "weeks or months" Either way, his interview was May 2007, approved, he was told to keep his passport, 4 months of told AP, I went back end of Aug/ beginning of Sept and the Embassy sent him a letter while I was with him stating to go get his movement cert then send passport... was supposed to take 2-3 weeks for movement cert, never was received ... so from Sept -Dec tried to get movement cert, called by Embassy 2 times in Dec... Visa in hand Jan 1st 2008.

[~PalmTreeGurl~ 154]

ok I went back and found my first topics ... The CO told him back then he was Approved and would be called in 1-2 months *which of course didnt happen...

But... remember every situation is different... some Egyptian guys get the visa with very quick AP and some wait forever! Just be patient and every day is a day closer til hes with you.

[tenderheartusa79 14]

Great post Mohamed!

Thank you so much Jeanne . I really appreciate it !

[JeanneVictoria 55]

Thank you so much Jeanne . I really appreciate it !

You're welcome! Best wishes to you and Trina. Hope you receive your visa soon!!

Edited December 26, 2009 by JeanneVictoria