Scandinavians Part 2

[Locito 85]

Thank you for your informative post, @Paul & Mallory 😊

 

Browsing VJ has at least given me more confidence in the whole process; especially having read the embassy reviews and medical exam stuff in this thread. I used to stress so much as to if I will be prepared enough for my interview and I have got still some fears.

But at least now it’s mostly anxiety about when everything’s gonna happen getting close(r) as we are and how on Earth can I get rid of all of my stuff... I am probably trying to sublet my apartment for a year or two, but then of course I have come back at some point and sort out the rest in my basement storage unit.

 

The process has been a tad more complicated for us since I wasn’t

born in Sweden, so I have had to chase birth certificates and police certificates in two countries (moved to Sweden when I was 20). 

 

As for Radisson Blu Royal Viking I cannot say much...they used to be one of our main competitors when I was working in downtown Stockholm 😁

 

One thing I am going to have to get used in the States is the different attitude to public transportation. Here everyone does it, over there you see (more of) quite some characters on local buses 🤓 Here I am just happy to get train to T-Centralen and then hop on the #69 bus to the Embassy.

 

Wife will be coming to see me during her thanksgiving break so we shall see if the interview will be taking place around that time (hopefully before, though). Although what I’ve read in this thread, they don’t really allow for outsiders in the Embassy premises (even if the petitioner is a USC).

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

15 hours ago, Locito said:

Thank you for your informative post, @Paul & Mallory 😊

 

Browsing VJ has at least given me more confidence in the whole process; especially having read the embassy reviews and medical exam stuff in this thread. I used to stress so much as to if I will be prepared enough for my interview and I have got still some fears.

But at least now it’s mostly anxiety about when everything’s gonna happen getting close(r) as we are and how on Earth can I get rid of all of my stuff... I am probably trying to sublet my apartment for a year or two, but then of course I have come back at some point and sort out the rest in my basement storage unit.

 

The process has been a tad more complicated for us since I wasn’t

born in Sweden, so I have had to chase birth certificates and police certificates in two countries (moved to Sweden when I was 20). 

 

As for Radisson Blu Royal Viking I cannot say much...they used to be one of our main competitors when I was working in downtown Stockholm 😁

 

One thing I am going to have to get used in the States is the different attitude to public transportation. Here everyone does it, over there you see (more of) quite some characters on local buses 🤓 Here I am just happy to get train to T-Centralen and then hop on the #69 bus to the Embassy.

 

Wife will be coming to see me during her thanksgiving break so we shall see if the interview will be taking place around that time (hopefully before, though). Although what I’ve read in this thread, they don’t really allow for outsiders in the Embassy premises (even if the petitioner is a USC).

You are right about that! I live in a small town in the south, so my husband coming here from a city like Gothenburg was a big culture change for him. Fortunately, we are right by the major city here (Charlotte NC), so we get a little bit of the best of both worlds. He does miss being able to just take public transportation anywhere from the house; that's really the only thing I've heard him mention enough times. But I'm hoping once he gets his license and can get out and about on his own without being so dependent on me, that will go away a little. It would go both ways, if we were to move to Sweden - I'm so dependent on my car and driving everywhere, but over there it just isn't necessary all the time. There's a lot cultural differences, and being able to have visited GBG myself I can see that more. Sweden is a wonderful, beautiful place, and I can understand how much of a change, and how tough of a change, it can be!

 

You are correct about the embassy - they did not allow me inside. I had to take a cab back to the hotel and wait for him (this was in February, so no waiting outside! At least not for my southern bones! lol). The officer mentioned something about a list though, which we knew nothing about, so perhaps there is a list the petitioner can be added to ahead of time...? Worth giving a call and looking into beforehand, if your partner may possibly be there with you. If not - it was still worthwhile to me to at least be in the same city with him. Instead of waiting for him to call me and tell me about it (not to mention it would've been 2am my time if he had), I was able to see him in person immediately after and hear all about it, which was great!

 

The process can be overwhelming, and I don't think we ever felt like we had it 100% along the way. I've learned not to take anything for granted and just being as prepared as possible is the best you can do. This site is one of the best resources - if not THE best - that we have ever come across!

[Reverie 10]

Hey guys, quick question. I just scheduled my interview and when filling out the address for them to mail back the original documents (and hopefully passport with a visa!) it said it had to be a Swedish address. Of course, I just did my Danish address. Do I have to talk to them to make sure I get my documents back? 

[K.and.R 77]

3 hours ago, Reverie said:

Hey guys, quick question. I just scheduled my interview and when filling out the address for them to mail back the original documents (and hopefully passport with a visa!) it said it had to be a Swedish address. Of course, I just did my Danish address. Do I have to talk to them to make sure I get my documents back? 

At the interview they have you write your address on the envelope they’re going to send 

Edited September 24, 2018 by K.and.R

[Reverie 10]

2 hours ago, K.and.R said:

At the interview they have you write your address on the envelope they’re going to send 

Thanks for the quick answer!  

[Locito 85]

YAYYY!! Got my interview appointment for end of October. Now CEAC shows at Stockholm instead of NVC, too. The wait has been excruciating but at least after becoming documentarily qualified it took them less than four weeks to find me an interview appointment 😊

 

Got my medical scheduled, too. They didn’t offer me any alternatives so good thing I am off work that day. I specifically asked for a ballpark figure as to how much the medical costs but they completely ignored my question 🤷🏼‍♂️

[Scandi 4,166]

50 minutes ago, Locito said:

YAYYY!! Got my interview appointment for end of October. Now CEAC shows at Stockholm instead of NVC, too. The wait has been excruciating but at least after becoming documentarily qualified it took them less than four weeks to find me an interview appointment 😊

 

Got my medical scheduled, too. They didn’t offer me any alternatives so good thing I am off work that day. I specifically asked for a ballpark figure as to how much the medical costs but they completely ignored my question 🤷🏼‍♂️

Depends on which clinic you go to and what kinds of "extras" you need (like shots you're missing). 

 

Generally speaking, Göteborg is cheaper than Sthlm.

When I went to schedule an appointment for my medical in 2016, Stockholm told me 3200kr for the medical and an additional 500kr for the x-rays.

 

In Göteborg I only paid 2800kr for everything. I didn't need any extra shots.

[Locito 85]

Got this by e-mail from the clinic per general vaccination requirements:

 

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

14 hours ago, Locito said:

YAYYY!! Got my interview appointment for end of October. Now CEAC shows at Stockholm instead of NVC, too. The wait has been excruciating but at least after becoming documentarily qualified it took them less than four weeks to find me an interview appointment 😊

 

Got my medical scheduled, too. They didn’t offer me any alternatives so good thing I am off work that day. I specifically asked for a ballpark figure as to how much the medical costs but they completely ignored my question 🤷🏼‍♂️

Congrats! Things really feel like they start moving fast once you get to this point

 

Similar to Scandi - my husband had his physical in Gothenburg and it was around $300USD, give or take, for everything. But yeah, it depends on what you need as far as vaccinations and tests.

 

Good luck!!!

[Tylosand 8]

Hej everyone!

 

 

Glad to join the group of knowledgeable Swedish/American couples discussing the K1 visa process  We got our petition approved on the 14th of September, and we are now starting to figure out what to do next. I've got a few questions about the various steps and forms that we are gonna deal with in the near future:

 

• We have a co-sponsor, the petitioner's mom. She makes several times the minimum requirement. Is it enough to state the income and leave the assets/property fields blank?
• How many years of the sponsor's tax returns do we need?
• Will we need proof of the sponsor's citizenship? If yes, will a copy of the birth certificate and/or passport bio page be enough, or are originals required?
• Should I (the beneficiary) wait until I receive packet 3 to schedule my medical? Or should I do it when I've got our case number from the NVC (we're gonna start calling next week)?
• We live together in Sweden and have done so for 2 years. We don't have both our names on the apartment contract, but could a "folkbokföringsutdrag" for each of us, showing that we are registered on the same address, be used as proof of that we live together?
• Should I bring a copy of our approved I-129f? Or is that redundant?
• Is it a bad idea to book the interview before I actually have all the required documents? I'm waiting to receive a police certificate from Taiwan where I lived for a year. But, I'm not sure I will have it when I can book an interview appointment. I might get it in the time between the booking and the interview, or shortly after. But I've also read that someone could not get ahold of police certificates from Timor Leste and that was OK. So I was thinking maybe I can get approved directly or I will have to send it in later. Would you chance it and book an interview slot, or wait for the certificate to arrive?

 

Grateful for any input!

[SpidersWeb 16]

Does anyone have experience with umlauts and the Green Card?

 

In DS-260 I converted the Ä's in my last name into A's, and used Ä's where the name was asked to be typed in native alphabet. However, my interview letter was generated with Ä's converted into AE. My passport biographic data page has this AE form in the machine readable code section, so I wasn't surprised. But I'm wondering, will my GC be issued with AE's (awkward) or A's (preferred)? Should I address this at the exit interview?

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

I just had to share with folks who may possibly understand...

 

We had our traditional wedding reception on the 6th, and Paul's parents came from Sweden for the week. I fell IN. LOVE. with semlas/semlor while I was in Sweden. Like. you don't understand. I felt like I was coming off of withdrawals when I came back home. LOL. It's a problem.

 

Anyway - his mom brought TWO BAGS of the semla bunsssss and I am DYING. We found the marzipan you need for them at Ikea and made some last night and it's like being in Sweden again! I would never think about bringing bread back from Sweden, but now.... I think this is a whole game changer whenever we go back to visit. Like, an extra suitcase situation.

 

[Reverie 10]

22 hours ago, Paul & Mallory said:

I just had to share with folks who may possibly understand...

 

We had our traditional wedding reception on the 6th, and Paul's parents came from Sweden for the week. I fell IN. LOVE. with semlas/semlor while I was in Sweden. Like. you don't understand. I felt like I was coming off of withdrawals when I came back home. LOL. It's a problem.

 

Anyway - his mom brought TWO BAGS of the semla bunsssss and I am DYING. We found the marzipan you need for them at Ikea and made some last night and it's like being in Sweden again! I would never think about bringing bread back from Sweden, but now.... I think this is a whole game changer whenever we go back to visit. Like, an extra suitcase situation.

 

I'm Danish but I know those buns, and out of anything I wouldn't think that's what a foreigner would miss lol!! My fiance hates marzipan! 😜

And I honestly thought bread was a prohibited item, but if it's not I may as well stuff my suitcase with rye bread instead of clothes when I leave!

 

On a side note, I have my interview on Thursday, going to Stockholm tomorrow. And I'm already feeling really nervous 😓 Does anyone know what the absolute easiest way to get from Arlanda Airport to Östermalm is? Is Uber a thing in Sweden? 

Edited October 23, 2018 by Reverie

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

1 hour ago, Reverie said:

I'm Danish but I know those buns, and out of anything I wouldn't think that's what a foreigner would miss lol!! My fiance hates marzipan! 😜

And I honestly thought bread was a prohibited item, but if it's not I may as well stuff my suitcase with rye bread instead of clothes when I leave!

 

On a side note, I have my interview on Thursday, going to Stockholm tomorrow. And I'm already feeling really nervous 😓 Does anyone know what the absolute easiest way to get from Arlanda Airport to Östermalm is? Is Uber a thing in Sweden? 

Lol! I LOVE marzipan!! It definitely surprised my husband that those were the thing I latched onto the most in Sweden, haha. And yes, apparently bread is okay! I know it was in their checked luggage, not the carry on of course. They brought two bags of those buns and had no problems!

 

Congratulations on the upcoming interview! It is nerve racking, but also exciting! Things really start to move along at this point  

 

Uber exists in Sweden as far as I know. We took the train to Stockholm (he lived in Gothenburg) so I'm not much help airport wise, but we got to and from the embassy by taxi with no problem. We stayed overnight at a hotel right beside the train station, which was about 20 minutes from the embassy.

[Locito 85]

On 9/29/2018 at 2:46 AM, SpidersWeb said:

Does anyone have experience with umlauts and the Green Card?

 

In DS-260 I converted the Ä's in my last name into A's, and used Ä's where the name was asked to be typed in native alphabet. However, my interview letter was generated with Ä's converted into AE. My passport biographic data page has this AE form in the machine readable code section, so I wasn't surprised. But I'm wondering, will my GC be issued with AE's (awkward) or A's (preferred)? Should I address this at the exit interview?

I was told at the Embassy that my green card will be with AE’s (all three of them...) even though we filled the original USCIS petition with A’s. I actually didn’t even ask about it, but they just told me.