The 'OMG this is happening fast' thread

[PDXDD 28]

Really?? Just went in to check and when I look at it, it says California... gremlins in the system, maybe? Eh, technology. Makes our lives sooo much easier.

really happy for you guys! wish our noa2 can be a bit faster too. fingers crossed.

[FLAussie 5]

Were in the same boat! We thought that it would be around xmas when we moved (thinking that would be quick) Our interview is the same day as yours!

Application to interview in around 70 days.

We have decided to go over in September and have a small ceremony in the second week we get there and do the legal stuff with our close friends and family. We are also wanted a wedding around V day (The day we became 'official'!!)

Its a nice problem to have but still a problem, there is so much to do, so much to organise, I totally understand your stress with this.

I guess you will just have to wait and see if your medical is 3 or 6 months and then go from there?

Its such a big life change and Im trying hard to pre plan as much as I can but its so hard when you have no real timeline.

Good luck with the rest of the process and maybe we will bump into each other at the interview!!!

Yes, nice problem to have... but still a huge, life-changing move.

I finally found the right part of the CDC manual, and it looks like 3 month validity on health checks is only for people who have TB or HIV. So fingers crossed my health check is good for 6 months and we can stick with our original plans. My health check is this week, so hopefully the doc will tell me then.

I think I read somewhere that health check only has to be under a year old when we file AOS, so hopefully we won't have to do it a second time.

Completely agree that it's hard planning until you know the timeline. We can't even confirm our wedding date til we have the visa... makes it so tough on friends and family, too; asking them to travel to the opposite side of the world on short notice. Wedding will be 95% his family and friends, with maybe a dozen of 'my' people if we're incredibly lucky. Even my American friends all live hours away from his home town.

Still, I'm crossing fingers that by the end of July, we'll have the visa in hand and five months to use it; then we can book flights, start selling my stuff, get quotes for the things I want to ship, and start organising the wedding. And bank accounts, buying a house, my partner getting a job back at his old work (we hope; they have said there's a job waiting for him).... So much to do!!

But I'll worry about that later, medical exam, police certificate, financial details and all the rest in time are plenty to worry about for now...

Good luck for your interview, and if you see us there, come say hi! I'm still working out how to add photos here, but I'll try to put one up before then.

PS: I looked at all the K1 timelines on here for the last decade, and we're both in the fastest 1% out of 19,000-odd complete timelines. Either we had extremely compelling, well-presented cases, or got extremely lucky, or both.

really happy for you guys! wish our noa2 can be a bit faster too. fingers crossed.

Thank you!

Good luck, hope yours comes through soon!

[FLAussie 5]

You should probably change your timeline if it was processed at California Service Centre as it currently says Texas

OK, found the right spot; updated now. Sorry about that, still learning my way around.

[lilsadie 50]

Yes, nice problem to have... but still a huge, life-changing move.

I finally found the right part of the CDC manual, and it looks like 3 month validity on health checks is only for people who have TB or HIV. So fingers crossed my health check is good for 6 months and we can stick with our original plans. My health check is this week, so hopefully the doc will tell me then.

I think I read somewhere that health check only has to be under a year old when we file AOS, so hopefully we won't have to do it a second time.

Completely agree that it's hard planning until you know the timeline. We can't even confirm our wedding date til we have the visa... makes it so tough on friends and family, too; asking them to travel to the opposite side of the world on short notice. Wedding will be 95% his family and friends, with maybe a dozen of 'my' people if we're incredibly lucky. Even my American friends all live hours away from his home town.

Still, I'm crossing fingers that by the end of July, we'll have the visa in hand and five months to use it; then we can book flights, start selling my stuff, get quotes for the things I want to ship, and start organising the wedding. And bank accounts, buying a house, my partner getting a job back at his old work (we hope; they have said there's a job waiting for him).... So much to do!!

But I'll worry about that later, medical exam, police certificate, financial details and all the rest in time are plenty to worry about for now...

Good luck for your interview, and if you see us there, come say hi! I'm still working out how to add photos here, but I'll try to put one up before then.

PS: I looked at all the K1 timelines on here for the last decade, and we're both in the fastest 1% out of 19,000-odd complete timelines. Either we had extremely compelling, well-presented cases, or got extremely lucky, or both.

Thank you!

Good luck, hope yours comes through soon!

I think we got really lucky!

I also think that maybe it is because we have our partners living with us?

Mine has been here with me in Aus for 5 years, its going to be a huge adjustment for all of us!!!

Weve decided to just sell everything we own. Were been in contact with a local charity that provides furniture and household stuff to refugees who have been released from detention with nothing and have asked for them to help us coordinate giving all of our stuff to them so that will help with the process too!

I have my medical on Wednesday. I'm so nervous. I also have a medical condition so im interested about the outcome!

Well if you see 2 females, one who is covered in tattoo's (I might wear a long sleeve top on the day to look 'presentable' lol then its us!!!

Ill just smile and wave at everyone, there are a few of us on here with the same interview day! Eeep!!!

How soon after visa in hand are you guys thinking of leaving? Were looking at September 8th maybe... Wedding the month after. Were just doing court house and a weekend away with the family and close friends in Down town San Diego (Not really interesting for anyone other than me!) and then a fancy dinner somewhere! Very low key!!

[FLAussie 5]

I think we got really lucky!

I also think that maybe it is because we have our partners living with us?

Mine has been here with me in Aus for 5 years, its going to be a huge adjustment for all of us!!!

Weve decided to just sell everything we own. Were been in contact with a local charity that provides furniture and household stuff to refugees who have been released from detention with nothing and have asked for them to help us coordinate giving all of our stuff to them so that will help with the process too!

I have my medical on Wednesday. I'm so nervous. I also have a medical condition so im interested about the outcome!

Well if you see 2 females, one who is covered in tattoo's (I might wear a long sleeve top on the day to look 'presentable' lol then its us!!!

Ill just smile and wave at everyone, there are a few of us on here with the same interview day! Eeep!!!

How soon after visa in hand are you guys thinking of leaving? Were looking at September 8th maybe... Wedding the month after. Were just doing court house and a weekend away with the family and close friends in Down town San Diego (Not really interesting for anyone other than me!) and then a fancy dinner somewhere! Very low key!!

Sorry, meant to reply a few days ago but got really busy.

You're right, we did get really lucky, getting such fast processing. It's been quite a scramble getting everything ready in time for the interview on Tuesday, but now that all the difficult stuff is done (police check, medical exam, documents sent over from USA, DS160 etc), it will be really good to hopefully have some certainty while we're packing everything up to move, by already having the visa (fingers crossed!)

Yes, it is possibly because we're living with our partners. Five years together is a long way from the 'mail order bride' scenario they seem to be worried about, and it's a long time to put up with someone if you were really just after a green card - so I guess they're satisfied you're a genuine couple. My partner and I haven't been together quite as long, but we've lived together here in Australia for over a year, and in the US for a few months before that. Plus we're already in a civil partnership (registered de facto relationship), so we're sorta almost married already. After five years living together, your marital status would be pretty similar; even if it's not registered I think it's considered a common law marriage after however long living together? Still, good that you can actually get married over there; Australia is so behind-the-times as far as equal recognition of same-sex relationships goes!

We're not planning to move any furniture over either (well, maybe one mosaic table that I made myself) but there's enough sentimental personal items that I'll be shipping a few boxes over. I also have a business here to close out, stock to try to sell at somewhere near what I paid for them, a cat to transport with us, plus all my other ####### to sell or Freecycle.

We're going to try to stick to our original plans if we can and move back in December (so he's home for Christmas), get married on Valentines Day next year. (Not for the romance of it, but because there's half a chance I'll actually remember my own anniversary if it's on VD Day, as we both call it.) We'll also be having a pretty low key wedding; more like a backyard party with a short Jewish ceremony at the start. But his family is huge and some of my friends want to come over from Australia for it, so the more notice we can give everyone, the better.

Our interview's at 10:30 so we'll look out for you; my partner's a tall lanky half-Hispanic guy, I'm ridiculously pale with reddish hair. Come say hi if you spot us, and I'll do the same if I see you!

[FLAussie 5]

Also, I asked the doctor at the medical exam whether my medical clearance would be good for 3 months or 6 due to Class B medical stuff, and she said it's up to the Consulate. They look at what's in the medical report and decide how long to clear you for. But if they do say it's only valid for 3 months but you want to travel later, there's a reassessment process they can do that's much faster and cheaper than the original assessment, and then gives you another 3 months to travel. So if they say my medical is only valid for 3 months, I'll see about getting the reassessment so I can still go in December.

[Pitaya 2,577]

~Moved from K1 Process to K1 Progress Forum~

[BFP XX 62]

We got NOA2 approval in 13 days! Outrageous considering some people have waited up to 12 months... But none the less, that was the situation.

Like you, I was unprepared, with an estimated time frame of 5 months. I was already booked for an 88 day visit to the States to visit my then fiancee. I came out to the US for the visit, on the advice that the NOA2 had to be sent to Sydney, and still could take a few weeks - It did take a while, but then they were quick off the mark to schedule me an interview for April! I wasn't due to leave the US until the end of May. I emailed them to explain this, and re-scheduled my interview for the last Tuesday in May, and we emailed a request for NOA2 extension to them, just in case the visa wasn't approved by the expiry date of mid June.

We got approval, and I am now in the US and married to my love, working on the equally confusing AOS lol

Everyone's journey is different - If things move faster than you planned for, then you can ask for an extension of the NOA2 (Instructions and template for this are in the form guides section) - I'm not sure however, how that would affect the medical side of things... But it's something to think about.

Organization is going to be the key for you now! Good luck!