Colombia - are you waiting for scheduling of interview in Bogota?

[jxpm 2]

Anyone got any recent medical stories to share? My wife is a little nervous about the appointment after reading some of the complaints on this forum.

Well i havent had my medical appointment itself yet i have it on monday so ill let you know how that goes but i did go already for chest xray and the blood test so ill tell you about that.... is a small lab place so eveyrone has to wait outside and they will pass people by groups of 7 or 10 , they open from 7 -10 only so i arrived at 715 and by that time there was already around 25 people in front of me and it was a somewhat slow, so i ended up going inside around 9:20 they call you to fill out the information (Very important before you go to the lab you already have to have a doctors appointment since they will ask you for the name of the doctor so they can send the results to him/her) after that they will draw your blood and then you have to wait to get called for the chest xray.... i got out at 10:30. I hope this help i dont know if your spouse had already done this or not. lol

Edited October 1, 2015 by jxpm

[kristinaa 2]

For labs, definitely arrive before 7.

My husband had Dr. Jairo Roa. In the lobby, they tried to say that I couldn't accompany him, but then they agreed to let me go. I waited in the waiting room. In the appointment, they just asked some basic questions about who was petitioning, etc (similar to interview-type questions). Make sure to bring your interview letter and all other requested documents. He said the exam was fine, no complaints, except that he needed 4 vaccines since he didn't have a vaccine record to show.

Our CEAC status changed to the coveted 'Issued' yesterday; now, we're anxiously waiting for the tracking number or some kind of status update. I know that I just have to wait and be patient, though. (Sept 22 - 24 Administrative Processing, with two updates; Sept 25 - 28 Ready; Sept 29 Issued)

[tiko1426 17]

For labs, definitely arrive before 7.

My husband had Dr. Jairo Roa. In the lobby, they tried to say that I couldn't accompany him, but then they agreed to let me go. I waited in the waiting room. In the appointment, they just asked some basic questions about who was petitioning, etc (similar to interview-type questions). Make sure to bring your interview letter and all other requested documents. He said the exam was fine, no complaints, except that he needed 4 vaccines since he didn't have a vaccine record to show.

Our CEAC status changed to the coveted 'Issued' yesterday; now, we're anxiously waiting for the tracking number or some kind of status update. I know that I just have to wait and be patient, though. (Sept 22 - 24 Administrative Processing, with two updates; Sept 25 - 28 Ready; Sept 29 Issued)

Congrats...Im up in 12 days.. Please let us know when you actually get the passport back in your hands...Where in Colombia are they sending it to ?

[kristinaa 2]

I mixed up the dates - Issued was on September 30.

I just got the notification that the visa is in the DHL office now. (!!) We had it sent to Bogota. It took only a day in the mail.

[Bogota Rocks 8]

Hey Kristinaa,

Could you shed some light on what you had to do for the 221g process? It seems like it didn't really delay your case very much. Was it just sending an email with attachments and that's it?

[kristinaa 2]

Yes, just the email attachments.

[jxpm 2]

Well i had my interview today and I GOT APPROVED!! We are very excited. Recommendation for any of you who have an interview soon arrive early the earlier you get the faster they will call you i had my appointment at 8:30 and i arrived an hour earlier and there was already 25 people before me some of them even had their interview at 9 am so the time doesnt really matter. As soon as you get there tell the security that you are there for a resident visa and they will let you in if you dont tell them that they will assume is a tourist visa and will ask you to wait outside until the time of the appointment. After that you will go in through security check you can keep your cellphone and turn it on when you are inside.

After you go in they will take your name and cross you out from a list they have and give you a number to get called for the first time. When they call you to the first window is to confirm your information like name email birth date and if you had any entrance to the USA before (at least thats what they asked me). After that they will call you again by your name and the consul will then do the interview ( with me he only asked me one question about my stay in the usa, nothing about my husband and i) so i guess for every case that could be different i saw some people had to show all their papers in their folder, pictures and some like me that didnt have to show anything. They told me congratulation your visa has been approved and they gave me a paper that is an immigration fee you have to pay online before you travel. They will send me the package and the passport with the visa through DHL the one you chose. I got out at 12 so you might be there for a while since they only had 2 windows open for interviews. Hope this helps you guys and good luck.

PS: YOUR PETITIONER IS ALLOWED TO GO WITH YOU. Any other companion isnt. The consul and everyone at the embassy was very nice and respectful.

Edited October 20, 2015 by jxpm

[TaniaG 0]

Hi guys, I just got my case complete at NVC, and waiting to have an interview scheduled. I was hoping someone who has gone through this process can give me the run down of in what order the various appointments need to happen and how far in advance? My husband lives in Cartagena and I'm in New York so we'll both be flying to Bogota and trying to figure out about how long we should plan to spend in Bogota. He doesn't have a vaccination record so I know he's also going to need to get vaccines. Thank you!!

[Russ&Caro 1,549]

Hi guys, I just got my case complete at NVC, and waiting to have an interview scheduled. I was hoping someone who has gone through this process can give me the run down of in what order the various appointments need to happen and how far in advance? My husband lives in Cartagena and I'm in New York so we'll both be flying to Bogota and trying to figure out about how long we should plan to spend in Bogota. He doesn't have a vaccination record so I know he's also going to need to get vaccines. Thank you!!

If you read through this thread from beginning to end you'll get a pretty good idea on best practices for navigating the entire Bogota consulate process. With your husband in Cartagena, I would recommend a week stay in Bogota, if possible to get through all of the appointments. My wife's week went like this, with a twist at the end:

Arrival in Bogota - Saturday morning

Fingerprints & photos appt - Saturday afternoon (yes, they're open on Saturdays)

Laboratory appt - Monday

Medical appt - Tuesday morning (the doctor referred her to a specialist for further evaluation)

Referral medical appt - Tuesday late afternoon

Consulate interview - Wednesday morning

Flight back to Cali - Wednesday evening

She then had to return on Thursday because the doctor who did the medical forgot to have her sign some papers, even though she asked the doctor twice, on two different calls, whether she needed anything else from my wife before departure.

Anyway, good luck. You might want to build in some cushion in case your appointments don't go like clockwork. As soon as you receive the Consulate interview date, immediately make the fingerprints & photos appointment. Then follow up with lab and medical appts.

[Bogota Rocks 8]

I live in Bogota but my wife had a schedule almost similar to Russ and Caro's

Laboratory appt - Friday

Fingerprints & photos appt - Saturday morning

Medical appt - Monday afternoon

Consulate interview - Wednesday morning

My wife was not referred to a specialist or anything like that. The process went pretty smoothly.

[TaniaG 0]

@Russ&Caro and @Bogota Rocks thank you so much! super helpful!

[Galeano Gómez 0]

Yes, that's my baby. Thanks.

Galeano Gomez, are you doing DCF? It should be much faster than the average for you.

As I understood, DCF was impossible for Colombia since 2011. But the good news is that I just received NOA2 on October 30th!

[TaniaG 0]

Hi all I have a few questions about registering my husband's interview appointment. It asks for the "numero de expediente" and the "DS-260 number". Do those refer to the NVC case number and the DS-260 confirmation number???

Thanks!

[Russ&Caro 1,549]

1. Go back into your online DS260 application form: https://ceac.state.gov/IV/Login.aspx

2. Open the form and keep clicking next until you hit the last page - or using the categories on the left side margin and skipping ahead until the last page.

3. On the very final page they'll have a summary of your DS260 information including your case # and another # called the confirmation #. This confirmation # is a 10 digit mixed alphanumeric number. Ours began with AA. That's the # that the DHL application wants.

Not sure what the "expediente" number is. You might need to call the embassy to get further clarification.

[tiko1426 17]

Finally picked up the Visa in Bogota today 1-20-16 .....Flying into the USA on 1-22-16....... Wow was this a long wait..... 14 months to be exact..