I-130 Petition delay due to "Adam Walsh Act"

[Darryl 0]

Hello all,

Just wanted to post an update...we have been waiting for 3 months for our interview in Montreal and we received the following letter today:

Your immigrant visa petition (I-130) was previously approved at a US consulate. Congress recently pass the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, a law requiring that all I-130 petitions undergo a further screening to determine if the US Citizen petitioner has ever been convicted for certain types of crimes. Because of this new requirement, the Department of state has instructed embassies and Consulates worldwide to suspend processing on any I-130 petitions that were filed through a US Consulate after the effective date of this act and to forward these petitions to the Department of Homeland Security's Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for further processing. To meet the requirements of the Adam Walsh Act, every I-130 petition filed since its effective date (July 27, 2006) must undergo an additional law enforcement check to determine whether the petitioner has a criminal record relevant to the act. Consular officers do not have access to and by law are not authorized to obtain petitioners criminal history records, which must be reviewed to establish eligibility under the Adam Walsh Act. Consular officers, therefore cannot run the checks now necessary to approve a petition,

You are waiting for an interview but we are required to send the petition to USCIS for their review and approval. Unfortunately, we have no idea right now how long this action will delay your case. As soon as we receive additional guidance on handling these petitions, we will inform you. Please do NOT submit any documents to us at this time because we cannot proceed with processing your case and any documents submitted may be outdated by the time your case is eligible for processing. We understand that this change may cause significant delays for some families, but it is based on legal requirements that we cannot disregard. We sincerely regret the additional delay and inconvenience this will cause you.

Sincerely,

Immigrant Visa Unit Chief

So there it is....

I guess the only thing I can say is that I'm deflated and very disappointed. I was so excited to finally get this mystical letter from the US Consulate - tearing it open to see that big fat interview date....this was what I was let down with instead. "No idea how long this will delay you case" Days??? Weeks??? Months??? Years??? No estimate...no indication of how long this may continue to keep new wife and myself in limbo....

Sorry if this same thing is happening to you, we sympathize. Lets just hope for a quick resolution to this issue and get things back on track.

Darryl

[YuAndDan 153]

Yes this has essentially ended all DCF filings.

On the Department of State website.

Filing I-130 for an Immediate Relative to Immigrate to the United States

All Petitions Must Now be Filed with USCIS

Important Notice:

Recent legislation has led to changes in the procedures American citizens resident abroad will follow if they wish to sponsor an immediate relative (spouse, parent or minor child) for an immigrant visa. Effective immediately, the immediate relative petition (I-130) must be filed with the USCIS office responsible for the petitioner's place of residence (that is, the place of residence of the American citizen who is filing the petition). Consular offices at U.S. embassies and consulates are no longer authorized to accept I-130s, although they will continue to provide guidance to American citizen petitioners and their family members. Responsibility for acceptance and approval of immigrant visa petitions rests solely with USCIS. American citizens with a U.S. address should submit their I-130 at the CIS office responsible for their place of residence. As soon as we have more information about the filing of new I-130 petitions, we will post it.

This procedural change may result in a processing delay for some applicants. The Department of State recognizes and sincerely regrets the inconvenience this may cause.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/immigrants_3121.html

[lynnmatic 0]

Hello all,

Just wanted to post an update...we have been waiting for 3 months for our interview in Montreal and we received the following letter today:

Your immigrant visa petition (I-130) was previously approved at a US consulate. Congress recently pass the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, a law requiring that all I-130 petitions undergo a further screening to determine if the US Citizen petitioner has ever been convicted for certain types of crimes. Because of this new requirement, the Department of state has instructed embassies and Consulates worldwide to suspend processing on any I-130 petitions that were filed through a US Consulate after the effective date of this act and to forward these petitions to the Department of Homeland Security's Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) for further processing. To meet the requirements of the Adam Walsh Act, every I-130 petition filed since its effective date (July 27, 2006) must undergo an additional law enforcement check to determine whether the petitioner has a criminal record relevant to the act. Consular officers do not have access to and by law are not authorized to obtain petitioners criminal history records, which must be reviewed to establish eligibility under the Adam Walsh Act. Consular officers, therefore cannot run the checks now necessary to approve a petition,

You are waiting for an interview but we are required to send the petition to USCIS for their review and approval. Unfortunately, we have no idea right now how long this action will delay your case. As soon as we receive additional guidance on handling these petitions, we will inform you. Please do NOT submit any documents to us at this time because we cannot proceed with processing your case and any documents submitted may be outdated by the time your case is eligible for processing. We understand that this change may cause significant delays for some families, but it is based on legal requirements that we cannot disregard. We sincerely regret the additional delay and inconvenience this will cause you.

Sincerely,

Immigrant Visa Unit Chief

So there it is....

I guess the only thing I can say is that I'm deflated and very disappointed. I was so excited to finally get this mystical letter from the US Consulate - tearing it open to see that big fat interview date....this was what I was let down with instead. "No idea how long this will delay you case" Days??? Weeks??? Months??? Years??? No estimate...no indication of how long this may continue to keep new wife and myself in limbo....

Sorry if this same thing is happening to you, we sympathize. Lets just hope for a quick resolution to this issue and get things back on track.

Darryl

[Chica Yeyé 41]

DCF in Canada is back. Check other posts for more information.

As per us, we called MTL and they told us we are clear to proceed - hence our checklist is on its way (it was on standy-by since AW thingy).

L.