TSC JULY 2014 FILERS - NOA2 APPROVALS

[KASH2011 382]

Speak of the devil and he walks in the room - just heard from Dublin interview is 31st!!!!! So happy.

Good luck to you!

[Goodness 1]

Wow!.. that part must be so exciting.

Yes it is...

[Goodness 1]

YAY!!!! Great News!

@ LoveinGhana: Yes it is great news...our case arrived Nigeria today and now shows Ready.

[LoveinGhana! 55]

I feel you and AddisAbeba! NOA 2 January 15th and no interview date yet. Boo hoo hoo. Thinking of you both and wishing you luck.

I see you finally got your interview date!!!! Wow! I wish you the best, we will be thinking of you too. Best wishes on the interview coming up!

[renatesol 13]

I spent another 40 minutes on the phone with NVC today to get my invoice id and beneficiary id, but I'm glad that I did, because just an hour after I got off the phone with them I got packet 3 from the embassy! Everything is happening lightning fast now, it seems!

[Lorvin 45]

That's awesome, congrats!

That's great... almost there!!

wow! That's awesome! only two weeks from now!

now more than ever is closer to the end. feels good huh?

Good luck!!!!

Good luck to you!

Thanks everyone! We are not there yet but we sure are one big step closer to being so. All of you have helped get me through what at times seemed unbearable. Wishing nothing but fast fast fast processing of each of your applications. Thanks again.

[Vicky&Fritz 33]

For anyone newly approved and wondering what the next steps are, Megan & Luke did these awesome posts some pages back with some really helpful info. Also, like Lorvin said, you can start checking the embassy/consulate pages for your specific location, and the regional forums and be a huge help too.
Best of luck everyone!

Information needed when you call NVC:

*You can't use the self-help feature to see if your case number has been assigned. The K-1 is a hybrid/Immigrant visa, depending who is handling it, and only Non-Immigrant visas can use this phone feature.*

1. Dial 1-603-334-0700

2. If you get a message saying "Due to the high call volume", just hang up. It will disconnect you in a few minutes anyway.

3. Keep calling back until you hear a different message. Ignore the message as long as it isn't "Due to high call volume"

4. Press 2

5. At this point you should be in the queue - you can have a significant wait time here (both times I got someone it was after 45 minute waits). There is no callback feature like there was for USCIS.

6. When you get the agent, you may be able to tell right off the bat if they have your case. Once they ask you your USCIS case number "SRCxxxxxxxxxx" they may ask you one of two things..

a. Did you receive an approval letter? What is the notice date of that letter? (This tends to mean they don't have your case yet, they will tell you to give them 35 days. There is no point arguing it since they really don't have the case yet)

b. They will ask you to verify details - this seems to mean that they have your case and most likely have a case number assigned!

7. The information they will want:

a. Petitioner name (beneficiary cannot call) and they will ask if you are the applicant

b. Beneficiary's name

c. Beneficiary's birthdate

d. Petitioner's email address, possibly also phone number and address. They will ask you if the beneficiary would like an email address on file.

e. Possibly the beneficiaries passport number - have it in case

8. At this point they will tell you when they received your case and then you can ask if a case number was assigned.

9. They may give you only the case number - if they do also ask if they can provide you with the invoice number. The invoice number can/will be used when your fiance must make their visa payment. It's a good number to have on file.

10. Your case number will begin with three letters - this identifies the embassy it is going to. In our case it was LND = London. If you are unsure, ask the agent where it is going and ask them to explain the letter code.

Notes:

Your mileage may vary by agent that you get. They were quite helpful. My first experience was so-so, the second agent who gave me my case number was very pleasant and it was a great experience. They actually seemed happy to help... nothing like the calls to USCIS!

Reports have been that the best time to call NVC is later at night - after 8:00pm EST. The worst time is lunchtime - 11:00am - 1:00pm EST and even early mornings seem bad for a lot of people. Don't be discouraged - I had to call 25 times before I got a message other than high call volume the first time I called. They are open from 7:00am - 12:00am EST. Please note if you are calling during these winter/bad storm hours they may close early or be closed due to weather. NVC is not always prompt in putting up a "closed due to weather" message.

So you got a case number - Great! Now...

This is where you want to start tracking - CEAC Status - https://ceac.state.gov/ceacstattracker/status.aspx

(Make sure you choose Immigrant Visa) Our government sees the K-1 as a hybrid, but the embassies consider it Immigrant.

Until your case is completed on the embassy level and your fiance's visa has been approved, you will need to watch this space. Your USCIS tracking days are over for now until you begin the AOS process.

Some guides say you can call DOS (Department of State) to check for your case number, but as far as I know you cannot get information out of DOS until after your case has reached the embassy.

Hope this helps!

You're welcome! If there's any changes to that I will need to make a new one, as I can no longer edit it

CEAC Statuses (Pre-Visa issuance/interview)

1. At NVC - Pretty self-explanatory.. the case is still at NVC awaiting shipment to your fiance's consulate/embassy.

2. In Transit - Again, straightforward. This means it is on it's way to the scheduled consulate/embassy.

3. Ready - This means the case has arrived at the consulate/embassy and is now awaiting your fiance's next steps - medical results, DS-160, visa payment, interview, etc..

Once the status has switched to Ready your fiance should be expecting Packet 3 - for some embassies this can be received through their consular website, for others they have to wait. This will vary as well, depending on consulate. Packet 3 is typically a set of instructions from the embassy or consulate that tells your fiance what their next steps are and what documents will be required for their interview. Many people have reported not receiving this packet until after their process was done - if at all. Check the embassy's website for a digital version of this.

For many of you, you can probably begin your processes before the case reaches the embassy. Verify with your fiance's specific consulate before proceeding, but many can have their medical exams completed and DS-160 completed ahead of time but not submitted.

DS-160

https://ceac.state.gov/GenNIV/Default.aspx

As mentioned above, check with your embassy's specific instructions prior to filling this out.

The good thing about the DS-160 is that you can actually begin the application ahead of time and save it to submit later. This way you and your fiance can be prepared way in advance as this application (for the visa!) requires a lot of information. If you need to fill it out for your fiance, this is acceptable per DOS, however your fiance MUST be the one to digitally sign off and submit it. Once you have completed the application - if it is prior to the embassy receiving your case, choose the option to save for later and do not submit. You can load this application when it is needed later on and submit it.

[daphnee1286 1]

I called NVC today they told me that my case is still being processing and they gave me an invoice number what does that mean please?...

[Andie 147]

I called NVC today they told me that my case is still being processing and they gave me an invoice number what does that mean please?...

You need that when you make the payment to your embassy and I think it is used later in the process as well for any payment to Immigration... you pay online with a credit card and you have to put your Invoice number somewhere on that payment advice so they can match it up with your file.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Andie

[Chalandrae 32]

Vicky&Fritz, I have a question for you.

Have you ever received packet 3 or 4? I'm still waiting on 3, been 3 weeks yet haha. I am glad I decided to get my things done.

And I called medisys last week. The lady on the phone told me I need the interview letter (or interview confirmation). Do you know if it's the email confirming your Interview date of it is something they will send to you?

[TabeaK 517]

The German embassy doesn't do a package 4 as far as I am aware. Once they are satisfied with pack 3 you send back, they email you to schedule an interview online.

[Chalandrae 32]

Their interview will be in Montréal too. Hence why I ask

[Vicky&Fritz 33]

Vicky&Fritz, I have a question for you.

Have you ever received packet 3 or 4? I'm still waiting on 3, been 3 weeks yet haha. I am glad I decided to get my things done.

And I called medisys last week. The lady on the phone told me I need the interview letter (or interview confirmation). Do you know if it's the email confirming your Interview date of it is something they will send to you?

No, he never received anything in the mail. Soooo glad we didn't wait either.

He is going to Dr. Mascarenhas(sp?) in Toronto. He said he only had to give them dates, so I'm not sure if Medisys is different?

[Chalandrae 32]

Best way to explain, the lady on the phone was a creepy lady. She told me I need the appointment letter, but I have no clue if it's the email I received OR a letter I will receive. So I asked her.. She just told me it's an appointement letter. I still have a month to figure out, but I'd rather add it to my (already completed) k-1 interview file.

I live in the north shore of montreal. Soo my medical is in montreal.

[thelahouars 4]

We received our NOA2 on March 16, 2015!! I'm excited to move on with this process now!