CSC - Five-Month Hold???

[SuperDuper! 230]

CSC gets a DOUBLE BOING! for keeping loved ones far from us this Christmas!

Edited November 12, 2010 by Boing!

[gap1 21]

gap1 hasn't come along yet, so i will correct you. London is taking just short of 3 months to process from NVC to interview. I wouldn't call that fast.

If i were going through Bucharest, then i would be overjoyed. Just short of 1 month to process from NVC to interview.

And VSC is catching CSC up. The latest approval taking 4 months.

That's not true at all! I've seen VJers on here go through London much faster than 3 months recently. Please don't scare me. It takes on average about 2 between NVC and interview. That's ok though, since I'm trying REAL HARD to be positive, if we get our NoA2 in the next few weeks that still puts us on our schedule (we're hoping he's moving in by late Feb).

[gap1 21]

Yeah it would suck if you got put in AP or they took a long time to print your visa (Montreal is famous for that). I'm lucky that way, between here (where my parents live) and A's city is less than 2 hours by car. The rest of my family lives 2-2.5hrs from here but that still isn't very far, it's like a 4 or 5 hour drive for them.

What the balls is AP?

[JlovesA 109]

What the balls is AP?

Additional (or administrative) processing. If you never see other Londoners mention it, don't worry about it. It's either when they approve you but then take a lonnngggg time to print your visa (happens often at Montreal) or they want to think about a visa decision after you do the interview. Sometimes you have to send more documents in.

AKA indefinite length hell.

[ameribrit 37]

That's not true at all! I've seen VJers on here go through London much faster than 3 months recently. Please don't scare me. It takes on average about 2 between NVC and interview. That's ok though, since I'm trying REAL HARD to be positive, if we get our NoA2 in the next few weeks that still puts us on our schedule (we're hoping he's moving in by late Feb).

All but one VJ member, who have filled in their timeline correctly, with either upcoming or that have recently gone through interview, have been more towards the three month mark. That is taking into account the delay in getting packet3 back to the embassy. Even VJ member Dodi, who got approved in 22 days, then had to wait just short of 3 months to get to interview.

If USCIS are backed up enough to be taking as long as they are to process petitions, then it makes sense that it is going to have a knock on affect at the consulates.

I really hope i am wrong, especially in your case, where you have been made to wait long enough for the petition approval.

Good luck, and i hope your NOA2 is just around the corner

[gap1 21]

All but one VJ member, who have filled in their timeline correctly, with either upcoming or that have recently gone through interview, have been more towards the three month mark. That is taking into account the delay in getting packet3 back to the embassy. Even VJ member Dodi, who got approved in 22 days, then had to wait just short of 3 months to get to interview.

If USCIS are backed up enough to be taking as long as they are to process petitions, then it makes sense that it is going to have a knock on affect at the consulates.

I really hope i am wrong, especially in your case, where you have been made to wait long enough for the petition approval.

Good luck, and i hope your NOA2 is just around the corner

Exactly. I think most of those delays were due to the delay in returning the packets to the embassy and we are prepared to drop it in the post the next day.

In any case, thanks a lot for ruining my day. Maybe he'll move in by 2014.

[JlovesA 109]

Exactly. I think most of those delays were due to the delay in returning the packets to the embassy and we are prepared to drop it in the post the next day.

In any case, thanks a lot for ruining my day. Maybe he'll move in by 2014.

I saw a psychic last summer (before A and I met online) who told me I'd get married in 2012. I was like WHAT, SO SOON?! Now it's entirely possible and I'm actually annoyed it may take so long. Haha my how things change.

[thelastpetitioner 218]

I saw a psychic last summer (before A and I met online) who told me I'd get married in 2012. I was like WHAT, SO SOON?! Now it's entirely possible and I'm actually annoyed it may take so long. Haha my how things change.

actually my psychic did tell me that it would take a while for what me and my " partner " have started to finish,now i see she was telling the truth

[JlovesA 109]

actually my psychic did tell me that it would take a while for what me and my " partner " have started to finish,now i see she was telling the truth

Haha that's funny. The one I went to said, "You're planning to move...but it will take 3 months longer than expected." HELLO.

Thinking about going back to see her again but I'm afraid she's going to say something bothersome. It's hard to forget the things they tell you.

[thelastpetitioner 218]

well my moms friend does fortune telling,the one who told us it will take a while was the one my aunt went to see,its funny my moms friend was like so optimistic,telling me it will take me ten days to get good news,blah blah blah,yeah obviously not.i think i am going to see this other one,maybe consult her about my packet 3,since it seems like NO ONE understands it

[gap1 21]

Well I'm not spiritual or religious, and I certainly don't see a fortune teller....BUT even if we do have a 3 month wait at the UK embassy it still puts him here in Feb/early Mar as long as the STUPID NOA2 arrives soon. All along we had been planning things for the worst case scenario. Sadly it looks like the worst case scenario is reality. We're still planning the wedding for April and I think that's do-able as long as we don't get caught up in any paperwork snags. If the NOA2 arrives in late November or early December that gives us all of December-January-February for embassy stuff.

[thelastpetitioner 218]

i think the worst thing about all this,even worse than being kept in the dark for five months is the uncertainty.after the noa 2 we will get more certain answers which will be divine

[CBM 14]

Well I'm not spiritual or religious, and I certainly don't see a fortune teller....BUT even if we do have a 3 month wait at the UK embassy it still puts him here in Feb/early Mar as long as the STUPID NOA2 arrives soon. All along we had been planning things for the worst case scenario. Sadly it looks like the worst case scenario is reality. We're still planning the wedding for April and I think that's do-able as long as we don't get caught up in any paperwork snags. If the NOA2 arrives in late November or early December that gives us all of December-January-February for embassy stuff.

I also have never been to a fortune teller, nor do I ever plan to go.... my fiance and I are semi-religious, we go to church once in a while and say grace and count our blessing and all the rest. We are not fanatics or anything, but we enjoy our faith.

I think your attitude is really good, because I doubt it would take more than 3 months from NOA2 to interview. If it helps, you are probably more prepared than most when they get Packet 3, and won't have any delays sending it back. And, 3 months on peoples' timelines includes the time it takes to get to NVC, then embassy, and get P3 to the beneficiary... it's not like it's 3 months from sending back Packet 3.

In case you didn't know, here's a semi-short cut (I figured it out too late). Wait until you get the letter from NVC with the new London case number.. then wait a day or two, and call DOS. They will tell you if Packet 3 has been sent yet. If it has, you can send the information back to the embassy, because (at least for Montreal), there is NOTHING in Packet 3 you actually need to send back. You actually have to download all the forms online. I didn't realize that, and we wasted 11 days. It was sent on the 1st, and I only got it on Tuesday and sent it back yesterday. I know it's not a HUGE time saver, but 12 days is still 12 days.

Don't let other people bring you down. A positive attitude carries you far in life and will definitely continue to help with immigration!!

For what it's worth, I think an April wedding is still 100% feasible.

[JlovesA 109]

Haha now I feel like this new age freak with her own personal psychic. I've only been to 2 in my life and I just go for fun.

[Jun&Scheillo 6]

Today I called the National Customer Service Center (NCSC) for a question about my i-129F application, unrelated to timelines.

Before I could ask my question, the staff member said, your application is on a "five-month hold." Although this could change, she said currently, CSC is not scheduled to start processing the application until February 2011.

She added other applications with receipts (NOA1s) from September 2010 are also on hold until February 2011. She said that the hold was necessary because of a significant backlog.

I continued to ask some questions:

- Was this unique to my application or to those of us with receipts (NOA1s) from September 2010?

- More specifically, was the hold applicable to applications from July, August, October, and November?

- How does the hold affect CSC's official goal of five months for these applications?

She said the five-month hold applied to all I-129Fs (and perhaps some others, but I did not absorb what she said about other types of applications). She explained that July 2010 applications were on hold until December 2010; August 2010 were on hold until January 2011; etc. She again stressed that this was the current information, and it could change.

With regard to the official goal of five months, she really did not say much, other than repeating that the September applications would be processed in February 2011.

I am somewhat hopeful that her information is out-of-date, for example, the transfer of marriage applications to Texas might be an indication that this supposed backlog is already well on the way to being cleared. While I am trying to remain optimistic, I was disappointed with this potential news.

Has anybody received similar information about a supposed "five-month hold" at CSC? Does anybody have some perspective about this?

Based on the recent posts and timelines info, YES there seems to be some kind of hold. Some have waited beyond the five months.I find the hold unfair, because this is not a lottery, it's rather expensive for just a visa. If they have too much to handle, then they should get help by hiring more people to do the work. Overwhelming case loads from us means overwhelming amount of $$$$$$$ for the department, it means growth, opportunity, it means jobs, Gov't jobs for those who are actually unemployed. I dont understand, what the problem is, I'm begining to feel that maybe we are a nuissance to them, but we're not, we are $$$$$$ to boost the economy and more. There are those entering the U.S as we speak illegally without the wait and cost the gov't lots of $$$$$$ guess what? they get treated better than us for free. It's unprofessional I expect better service, 5- 8 months is not acceptable, not by me anyway!!