Progress thread for TSC filers now between NVC and Interview Stage

[TLSR2014 9]

I'm sure yours will change soon!! Only one package from NVC going to London for our date and it is scheduled to arrive on Monday. I wish we could've done a sooner medical but oh well. WE can show ready next week then that way as soon as they do medical results we will be good to schedule interview. WOohoo!

We aren't worried. Just me being impatient. and yes everything is going to move along now.

My brother, is married to an american and he had his CR1 visa interview in London. His mind completely blanked and he couldn't remember his in-laws' names, but could remember where they were born. I think he found it pretty embarrassing/ stressful. So the interviewer asked about her other family members and he mentioned some cousins, but got the names completely wrong. I don't think the interviewer actually had information on her cousins there though, so I'm not sure he knew he got them wrong. Anyway, he passed and the interviewer said "Surprisingly...you passed! You'll have plenty of time to get to know your new family ;)"

Also, this thread is very useful! We're waiting for our NOA2 (hopefully any day now) so it's good to see the experiences/ confusion/ questions we can expect to go through in the next stage. Good luck everyone!

Oops, that would have been nerve-wracking for your brother. Good to know that he still passed. I hope your NOA2 gets here fast.

[CheekyMonkeys154 27]

Good luck! Hoping all goes smoothly ??

Awesome!! That means ours isn't far behind ? One step closer! ??

I'm sure it is! Yes one step closer for us all every day! Moving fast it seems finally. Just hope they are scheduling appointments quickly.

[wbeem 568]

Hello all

I'm back after our long-winded journey for our medicals. It's good to see all the progress on here. I was trying to keep up on my phone on the train but I'm terrible at typing and reading on the small screen, as you will see from the typo's and auto correct nonsense in some of my posts from yesterday.

I'm going to write up a detailed review on the medical. I'm feeling tired and a bit crappy today and although the medical itself seems to have gone well, Knightsbridge has screwed up on a few counts, so I will need to call them in the morning.

Just wanted to pop in and say hello and see how you are all doing. Please don't panic about your medicals. Yesterday they seemed to be over booked and there was an air of chaos in the atmosphere. They will be hearing from me at 9 am, sharp

[JamesRenee 47]

Quick question- on my finances medical records it does not have on there that he had the chicken pox when he was 2. Do they need to be on his medical record or dies he just need to tell the nurse at Knightsbridhe and have her check the box?

[wbeem 568]

Quick question- on my finances medical records it does not have on there that he had the chicken pox when he was 2. Do they need to be on his medical record or dies he just need to tell the nurse at Knightsbridhe and have her check the box?

No, apparently they are supposed to ask. I was there yesterday and they didn't ask so I did and both the nurse and receptionist insisted that they waived it based on the fact that it's not available here. But since myself and daughter have both had it, it should have been on the forms so I need to call them tomorrow. The lesson here is, make sure they complete the medical history field for chicken pox so that your blanket waiver is complete.

You don't need documentation to prove it.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Quick question- on my finances medical records it does not have on there that he had the chicken pox when he was 2. Do they need to be on his medical record or dies he just need to tell the nurse at Knightsbridhe and have her check the box?

Chickenpox is the only thing both panel physicians and civil surgeons are allowed to take a verbal account on. All others require written proof. --

"My mum said I had chickenpox when I was two" ACCEPTABLE

"My mum said I had all my childhood shots," NOT ACCEPTABLE

If you want to make sure your form is acceptable for AOS, then know what the requirements are and make sure it's on your sheet before you leave. The Knightsbridge people know visas. They have not studied AOS. otherwise they wouldn't tell people the things they do.

A spouse visa gets a waiver on varicella because it is not routinely available. TRUE. They must be complete by their visa interview or no visa. They will not go through AOS so must meet the greencard requirements in London.

A fiancé does not have to meet the requirements until their AOS. They will be in the US where Varicella shots are available. They could go get a shot before AOS. Having Varicella History ticked is a guaranteed waiver that you are immune. If you have had chickenpox, then get the waiver that is good for anywhere/anytime. Tell them when they start talking about immunization. Don't wait for them to ask.

[JamesRenee 47]

Thank you- I'm going to forward James that whole reply so he can be sure he gets everything checked off- definitely do not want to be paying civil surgeon for anything once he gets here

[CheekyMonkeys154 27]

No, apparently they are supposed to ask. I was there yesterday and they didn't ask so I did and both the nurse and receptionist insisted that they waived it based on the fact that it's not available here. But since myself and daughter have both had it, it should have been on the forms so I need to call them tomorrow. The lesson here is, make sure they complete the medical history field for chicken pox so that your blanket waiver is complete.

You don't need documentation to prove it.

Dang you already got packet 3 sent to you! That's pretty quick. Does it say on the website when they send it? I mean is that how you knew? They are on the ball! I think they will have ours tomorrow at London so I'm going to attempt to contact them tomorrow to update his address before packet 3 gets sent. If not then no biggie, they will get it off DS160 but I'm going to attempt to. lol Then I'll submit our forms and readiness hopefully this week then we will be good to go I hope once they get medical results. I will make sure he makes them check off the waiver showing he had the chicken pox. Hate that your experience was like that. I hope they are super fast at scheduling appointments. Anyone know about the average they are scheduling them out right now?

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Dang you already got packet 3 sent to you! That's pretty quick.

She sent packet 3 today, not received it.

Anyone know about the average they are scheduling them out right now?

Look at the Immigration Timelines page...menu bar at top of page ^

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=0&op1=3&op2=d&op3=1&op4=1&op5=5,6,8,10,11,13,14,15,16,17,18,20,21,22,25,26,27,28,108,110,111,208,210,211&op6=All&op66=All&op7=United%20Kingdom&dfile=No&adv=

[CheekyMonkeys154 27]

She sent packet 3 today, not received it.

Look at the Immigration Timelines page...menu bar at top of page ^

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=0&op1=3&op2=d&op3=1&op4=1&op5=5,6,8,10,11,13,14,15,16,17,18,20,21,22,25,26,27,28,108,110,111,208,210,211&op6=All&op66=All&op7=United%20Kingdom&dfile=No&adv=

Huh? I thought Packet 3 is the letter from London telling us what to do? That's why I said sent to her. lol Am I confused as to what Packet 3 is ? Or did she mean she submitted the information online without receiving the letter yet? I'm not sure I'm understanding what you meant? But I think I get what you are saying. lol

And I did look at the timelines but they are very vague for k-1 for london interviews as the time frame so that's why I was asking just out of curiosity lol

Edited April 13, 2015 by DeborahNeil

[wbeem 568]

Huh? I thought Packet 3 is the letter from London telling us what to do? That's why I said sent to her. lol Am I confused as to what Packet 3 is ? Or did she mean she submitted the information online without receiving the letter yet? I'm not sure I'm understanding what you meant? But I think I get what you are saying. lol

And I did look at the timelines but they are very vague for k-1 for london interviews as the time frame so that's why I was asking just out of curiosity lol

Yes, I submitted Packet 3 without receiving it. It is the applicant's readiness form. I won't receive the letter from the embassy because USCIS completely ignored our letter to them a few months ago notifying them of my change of address and as the embassy mail is returned, not redirected, I will never get it so I used the link in the sticky to get the instructions online.

Regarding time frame for interviews, they seem to have been recently scheduled for around 4 weeks, give or take, from the time of the medical. It varies and some have been sooner, some later. It is probably also affected by holidays, time of year and all those good things so we sit in yet another phase of the unknown. There has not been a single part of this application process where we have been able to plan around a date, has there?! Anyway, they won't assign an interview until they have my medical results which won't be in until the end of this week so there is nothing for me to check or watch in the meantime. Now it's just a waiting game.

On another topic, I contacted Knightsbridge this morning and they are going to amend our DS3025 forms to reflect our chicken pox history and email me the new ones by the end of the day. OK, so there's something I can check every hour The receptionist seemed unconvinced that we needed this but I was very insistent that after paying what I did over the weekend, I am not going to be paying for another medical in a few months because someone left a box blank. She was very nice, but I will keep an eye on the emails this afternoon and make sure I get it before I cross it off my checklist.

[CheekyMonkeys154 27]

Yes, I submitted Packet 3 without receiving it. It is the applicant's readiness form. I won't receive the letter from the embassy because USCIS completely ignored our letter to them a few months ago notifying them of my change of address and as the embassy mail is returned, not redirected, I will never get it so I used the link in the sticky to get the instructions online.

Regarding time frame for interviews, they seem to have been recently scheduled for around 4 weeks, give or take, from the time of the medical. It varies and some have been sooner, some later. It is probably also affected by holidays, time of year and all those good things so we sit in yet another phase of the unknown. There has not been a single part of this application process where we have been able to plan around a date, has there?! Anyway, they won't assign an interview until they have my medical results which won't be in until the end of this week so there is nothing for me to check or watch in the meantime. Now it's just a waiting game.

On another topic, I contacted Knightsbridge this morning and they are going to amend our DS3025 forms to reflect our chicken pox history and email me the new ones by the end of the day. OK, so there's something I can check every hour The receptionist seemed unconvinced that we needed this but I was very insistent that after paying what I did over the weekend, I am not going to be paying for another medical in a few months because someone left a box blank. She was very nice, but I will keep an eye on the emails this afternoon and make sure I get it before I cross it off my checklist.

Ahh ok gotcha, I thought maybe after I pondered it a few mins that was what Nich meant but I wasn't sure. We are in the same boat most likely, I will attempt to change the address online but it's doubtful I'll get it done in time. So we will submit ours when able to online as well. And you are unfortunately right about the date stuff. Just sit and wait and cross your fingers they are moving quickly since it's spring time or something. lol And I don't blame you one bit about the medical stuff. I wouldn't want to pay for another either over one unchecked box. So I told Neil about what happened to you and said to make sure that he made them check the box that he has had the chicken box and if they argue tell them that we have to have it that way for AOS later etc..etc... He's not good at conflict or stuff like that like I am. haha So hopefully he'll make it through ok.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Deborah--

The VJ timelines are kinda ancient. It says received packet 3 and sent packet 3.

When we did this, we actually received a packet of about 18 pieces of paper with instructions from London.

We completed paper forms DS-156, DS-156K, DS-157, and DS-230 Part 1, as well as a paper checklist where you checked off all the documents you had in hand to show you were ready to interview. We mailed in that "packet" of papers. That date was "sent" packet 3. That's all it took to get the appointment.

Now I suppose the day your letter arrives, is "received" and the day you submit DS-160 online is "sent". Today there is that variable of when the medical was done so VJ timelines don't tell the whole story. You could submit your DS-160 weeks ahead of the medical exam.

I wasn't sure what you were asking about recent timelines. How far out? As in they already have assigned some May 7? Or how long between the interview letter and the actual appointment? Clicking on their timelines shows 28, 27, 35, 34, 21, 27 days between receiving the interview letter and the date of interview. Sounds unlikely that interview day is going to be 4 weeks after the medical. There's 3 days just for the results to reach the embassy, then the weeks it takes for them to assign an interview and you receive it in the mail. Then the days those people reported after the letter arrives.

[CheekyMonkeys154 27]

Yeah I figured it was because they are done different now than use to.lol

[chrismorrison 96]

Deborah--

The VJ timelines are kinda ancient. It says received packet 3 and sent packet 3.

When we did this, we actually received a packet of about 18 pieces of paper with instructions from London.

We completed paper forms DS-156, DS-156K, DS-157, and DS-230 Part 1, as well as a paper checklist where you checked off all the documents you had in hand to show you were ready to interview. We mailed in that "packet" of papers. That date was "sent" packet 3. That's all it took to get the appointment.

Now I suppose the day your letter arrives, is "received" and the day you submit DS-160 online is "sent". Today there is that variable of when the medical was done so VJ timelines don't tell the whole story. You could submit your DS-160 weeks ahead of the medical exam.

I wasn't sure what you were asking about recent timelines. How far out? As in they already have assigned some May 7? Or how long between the interview letter and the actual appointment? Clicking on their timelines shows 28, 27, 35, 34, 21, 27 days between receiving the interview letter and the date of interview. Sounds unlikely that interview day is going to be 4 weeks after the medical. There's 3 days just for the results to reach the embassy, then the weeks it takes for them to assign an interview and you receive it in the mail. Then the days those people reported after the letter arrives.

I considered Packet 3 sent to be the day you completed all your tasks prior to interview: DS160, readiness, and medical. Our medical was 6 weeks prior to our interview. We received packet 4 two weeks after our medical exam.