Any ideas on what next?

[TLSJJ 0]

Hi

We filed our notice for an I129F which was received on the 3rd May. We received a notice of approval on the 30 September. We've not heard anything. We're doing this via an attorney in the States. They don't know anything. I've called the premium rate number and they haven't got a record of our case. I don't know what to do. It's bad enough that our lives are up in the air but I don't know where our paperwork is or where we are at.

Any ideas?

[Inky 1,111]

Do you have your case number?

Then call DOS and ask if the case is at the USEM.

If you don't have the case number you need to call USCIS and find out whats going on with your case and get a case number from them.

[N&S 32]

Just to give you a little more detail than the post above as you have handed the process to your lawyer:

If you have received a copy of your NOA 1 or 2 it should have your case number on it (starting with EAC). You can use this number to call the NVC on 1-603-334-0700 to check if your case file has already passed on to the London embassy and while you are there you can ask them for your London case number (starting with LND) - depending on how busy the NVC is they might take a little while to process incoming files - when it was my turn I was told to wait 15 business days but they were faster than that. If they have already sent your file to London the beneficiary should hear from the embassy relatively shortly - although the documents aren't logged straight away, so again it depends on the current workload.

With the London case number you can also go ahead and book the doctor's appointment at Knightbridge 020 7486 7822 but make sure your case is logged in London before your medical results come in (about 4-5 days after the appointment) as otherwise the results might get lost. The UK fiance should also already start gathering the other documents required for the interview (I'm not sure how it works with a lawyer but as the documents will have to be presented at the interview I would hope the lawyer doesn't make you send them to their office first.). A list of the required docs can be found from the London embassy page:

http://london.usembassy.gov/kprocessing.html

You or your lawyer will be sending "packet 3" (consisting of all the DS documents on the above page) and again it will take London a little while to log those documents - mine took about 2 weeks if I remember correctly. Once London confirms receipt of those documents and your medical results you will be marked "interview ready" and should receive a letter with the appointment date shortly. Only in extreme circumstances I would call the London embassy on the premium rate number - DOS 1-202-663-1225 (option 1 then 0) has access to the same database and can tell you at much cheaper rate, where you are up to but you will need your London case number first.

Good luck with your VJ!

[GringoD 33]

I'm not aiming to be mean or cruel, but... if you used and attorney, then I think I'd be asking her/him, rather than the people on this forum, since it's almost unanimous opinion of the people on this site that it is mostly a waste to use an attorney for this, unless you have some VERY UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES.

[TLSJJ 0]

There are no UNUSUAl CIRCUMSTANCES to our case as you put it GringoD. I turned to this forum before we even filed in the hope of some answers. Our attorney is a big law firm and they are proving not very helpful. Where my fiancé lives however we did not have a lot of choice in terms of appointing someone. We are being fobbed off by them by being told to wait and be patient and I don't believe that is the answer, which is why I am asking others for their advice. if you do not have anything to useful to contribute then please don't bother adding a reply as it's most UNHELPFUL.

N&S this is most helpful and thank you so much, I will call the number as we have the EAC number and see if I can get some results. I'm at a loss the attorney just tells us to wait a month, which we have and we've not heard anything back. I just want to know what is a normal and acceptable time frame to wait without starting to worry.

[Inky 1,111]

There are no UNUSUAl CIRCUMSTANCES to our case as you put it GringoD. I turned to this forum before we even filed in the hope of some answers. Our attorney is a big law firm and they are proving not very helpful. Where my fiancé lives however we did not have a lot of choice in terms of appointing someone. We are being fobbed off by them by being told to wait and be patient and I don't believe that is the answer, which is why I am asking others for their advice. if you do not have anything to useful to contribute then please don't bother adding a reply as it's most UNHELPFUL.

N&S this is most helpful and thank you so much, I will call the number as we have the EAC number and see if I can get some results. I'm at a loss the attorney just tells us to wait a month, which we have and we've not heard anything back. I just want to know what is a normal and acceptable time frame to wait without starting to worry.

From what you said you don't seem to even need a lawyer but you should be using an immigration lawyer not a law firm.

When you get the NOA1 then you wait 5-6 months after that for any kind of approval. This whole process is a giant waiting game.

[N&S 32]

PS: If you doubt your lawyers regarding the approval you can check your case status for the I.129F petition on

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis

with the EAC number - this should tell you if you're still under initial review or approved or anything but if approved it would go to NVC first even if it states that the petition has been forwarded to the local embassy.

[dukeandduchess 141]

Hi

We filed our notice for an I129F which was received on the 3rd May. We received a notice of approval on the 30 September. We've not heard anything. We're doing this via an attorney in the States. They don't know anything. I've called the premium rate number and they haven't got a record of our case. I don't know what to do. It's bad enough that our lives are up in the air but I don't know where our paperwork is or where we are at.

Any ideas?

Was the NOA you received on September 30th your NOA1 or NOA2? NOA2 would say that your petition was approved/denied. NOA1 pretty much says they received your application. It is really weird if you filed May 3rd to only have a NOA1 in September.

If you received NOA2 on Sept. 30th (and approved) your case is being forwarded to the Embassy you selected.

[GringoD 33]

I'm still wondering, why ... if you checked on this site for help before filing, then... WHY DIDN'T YOU TAKE THE ADVICE of the forum, and DO IT YOURSELF, rather than hiring legal help, which as I said before, it's the opinion of almost everyone here, to do it yourself and not use a lawyer.

[Philwithlove 17]

We received our approval via email from USCIS and now waiting for the hardcopy in the mail.

As far as i know USCIS will forward the approved petition to NVC. So, I guess yours is in the NVC.

Although I read that it takes 2-3 weeks or more to know the status in NVC, i still tried my luck and send them an email.

I suggest you send NVC an email inquiring about your case.

f you have specific questions about a case, please contact the NVC.

By E-mail

The NVC’s e-mail address is NVCINQUIRY@state.gov.

E-mail is the NVC’s preferred method of communication.

Note: Use your personal e-mail account to contact the NVC. If you click on the email address above and your computer does not automatically connect to your personal email, copy and paste the above e-mail address into an e-mail using your personal e-mail account.

In order to ensure a prompt response:

* Enter your NVC Case Number in the Subject Line of the e-mail.

* Provide the applicant’s name and date of birth and the petitioner’s name and date of birth.

* If you are an attorney, include the name of the law office requesting the information.

* If the petition is employment-based, include the employer's company/organization name.

* Ask about only one case per e-mail.

In my case, NVC replied like this:

Dear Sir/Madam:

Your inquiry has been received at the National Visa Center (NVC).

Please be advised that the National Visa Center (NVC) has received your

inquiry. Unfortunately, we do not have any record of receiving your

petition. If your petition was approved more than 15 days ago, please

email a scanned copy of your I-797 or I-171 Notice of Action - Approval

Notice to NVCResearch@state.gov. Please type the receipt number in the

subject line of your email and include one attachment/case per email. We

will contact U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on your

behalf to locate your petition.

If you received the form I-797 or I-171 Notice of Action - Approval

Notice indicating that your petition has been retained by USCIS, or

another type of the Notice of Action that is not an Approval notice,

please contact USCIS at 800-375-5283 or visit their web site at

www.uscis.gov for additional information.

Sincerely,

Lola

National Visa Center

Written Inquiry Unit

Serco Inc.

Support Contractor

NVCInquiry@state.gov

Hope this helps.

[Philwithlove 17]

btw, my fiance hired a lawyer too since he is not confident enough to do the paperworks. im not in favor for it since this site is very helpful but do not want to argue with him and he is the one who is paying for it so i have to agree getting a lawyer.

[TLSJJ 0]

We filed in May and were approved In September (NOA2). 5 months to the day. Now I don't know where the paper work is. It's been a month and we've not heard anything. I am assuming it's on it's way to London but when I've called the premium number as given by the lawyer, who deals with immigration law, then they have no record of it. How long before we hear something for the next stage.

I have a child from a previous marriage which is why we used a lawyer. My ex is hardly a standing citizen and rather than miss anything we wanted to go down the professional for that reason only. Hopefully that will not appear to be UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCES. As for any other reason why we used a lawyer I don't think that is relevant to my question.

[GringoD 33]

"if you do not have anything to useful to contribute then please don't bother adding a reply as it's most UNHELPFUL."

You may not think it's helpful, but I and maybe some others do, in that it might alter your way of thinking about these things in the future. So, open your mind, ... don't be so closed, okay?

To Philwithlove, thanks for that NVC email address.

That is the first time I've seen it posted here: NVCINQUIRY@state.gov.

[TLSJJ 0]

We received our approval via email from USCIS and now waiting for the hardcopy in the mail.

As far as i know USCIS will forward the approved petition to NVC. So, I guess yours is in the NVC.

Although I read that it takes 2-3 weeks or more to know the status in NVC, i still tried my luck and send them an email.

I suggest you send NVC an email inquiring about your case.

f you have specific questions about a case, please contact the NVC.

By E-mail

The NVC’s e-mail address is NVCINQUIRY@state.gov.

E-mail is the NVC’s preferred method of communication.

Note: Use your personal e-mail account to contact the NVC. If you click on the email address above and your computer does not automatically connect to your personal email, copy and paste the above e-mail address into an e-mail using your personal e-mail account.

In order to ensure a prompt response:

* Enter your NVC Case Number in the Subject Line of the e-mail.

* Provide the applicant’s name and date of birth and the petitioner’s name and date of birth.

* If you are an attorney, include the name of the law office requesting the information.

* If the petition is employment-based, include the employer's company/organization name.

* Ask about only one case per e-mail.

In my case, NVC replied like this:

Dear Sir/Madam:

Your inquiry has been received at the National Visa Center (NVC).

Please be advised that the National Visa Center (NVC) has received your

inquiry. Unfortunately, we do not have any record of receiving your

petition. If your petition was approved more than 15 days ago, please

email a scanned copy of your I-797 or I-171 Notice of Action - Approval

Notice to NVCResearch@state.gov. Please type the receipt number in the

subject line of your email and include one attachment/case per email. We

will contact U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on your

behalf to locate your petition.

If you received the form I-797 or I-171 Notice of Action - Approval

Notice indicating that your petition has been retained by USCIS, or

another type of the Notice of Action that is not an Approval notice,

please contact USCIS at 800-375-5283 or visit their web site at

www.uscis.gov for additional information.

Sincerely,

Lola

National Visa Center

Written Inquiry Unit

Serco Inc.

Support Contractor

NVCInquiry@state.gov

Hope this helps.

Thank you this helps

[GringoD 33]

"I have a child from a previous marriage which is why we used a lawyer."

I don't think that is UNUSUAL CIRCUMSTANCE, neither.

Hence,... I think you should have filed it yourself.

Half the people in America have a 'child from previous marriage'.

At any rate,.. it's all probably going to work out just fine, very soon for you.

As others here say, .. it's a waiting game! and, then some.