Visa Packet came in OPEN.

[Gingerspike 55]

My K-1 packet came just like that last year. I was more concerned that there was a noticeable tear at one part of the envelope, but the IO received it with no problem at LAX.

[phildinftlaudy 17]

Ours from the Dominican Republic had the same tear. Didn't cause any problems. 

[ConOfficer 167]

When I worked in Juarez we definitely cut the corners like that. I thought every consulate did it that way. As someone else mentioned, it's done so it's clear that there are only documents in the envelope.

 

I've heard of many people that had the packet open up during their flight as well - I really don't think CBP officers care about the packet being open. Not that I'm recommending exploring the packet - there's nothing interesting in there. 

[monica7777 40]

21 hours ago, jdiaz said:

Hello everyone,

 

My fiance just received her K1 package today from DHL. We were both very excited, however when we saw it closely, we found that one of the corners of the yellow packet (the one you're not supposed to open) was cut wide open. It looks like someone could've used a pair of scissors to open it since the cut is very clean. I fear that someone may have opened the packet to see her information. I am extremely concerned of this situation, not only because we may have to send it back for resealing, but it makes me worry about her safety.

 

Has anyone had a similar situation before? We will be calling the Juarez Consulate ASAP tomorrow morning.

You do not need to worry! I also received my package exactly the same way and it was no problem while entering the U.S. I was also very worried when I received it like that (and also from Cd. Juarez) and emailed my lawyer. They confirmed the Consulate cuts it and sends it like that.

 

You do not need to worry. The immigration officer will process your packet once your fiance enters the U.S.

 

Best of luck!

[-Trinity- 513]

A lot of people recommend not to return the envelope. But what about the "threat" of the consulate employee about flagging it as fraud if not returned?

 

And why is that information not available so that people know what to expect?

 

[TheSkywalkers 143]

It's normal. ☺ My visa packet's the same. 

[Scandi 4,171]

1 hour ago, Beachlover said:

A lot of people recommend not to return the envelope. But what about the "threat" of the consulate employee about flagging it as fraud if not returned?

 

And why is that information not available so that people know what to expect?

 

Calling the embassy about it was a huge mistake, s/he took a bad advice. Who knows if the embassy can do anything about it even if he doesn't send it back, have they somehow registered the issue in their system that might cause an issue if he doesn't return it? Somehow I doubt that but I would still be a little worried since none of us know for sure?

 

Hopefully the employee was just full of bs. Clearly s/he didn't even know that the package is supposed to look like that.

[Dotagirlandboy 30]

7 hours ago, jdiaz said:

 

The stress is real. 

 

I called the Juarez Consulate and was told that the envelopes should be completely sealed and have no cuts whatsoever. I decided to call my airport's Border Patrol directly. The Officer I spoke to assured me that the corner cut is completely normal and that my fiance should have no problems as long as she does not open the envelope. 

 

My fiance decided to make one last call to the Consulate mentioning what the Border Patrol officer had just told us. The operator simply said that we would have to send it in or it would be considered fraud. She also told us not call again as our multiple calls regarding the same subject are 'suspicious'. I'm done with the Consulate.

 

I've decided to send back our envelope and have them reseal it or whatever - I'm not taking any chances.

 

For those of you that have the same question in the future, ignore what the Consulate tells you, don't fill the DHL return label and just call the US Customs and Border patrol where your fiance will be entering. It will save you the stress, threats, and blatant lack of communication that the USCBP and the Consulates have. 

 

Thank you everyone and good luck on all of your visa endeavors. 

 

 

Hi jdiaz, we are also in Las Vegas and my husband had ZERO issues at the airport (POE: LAS VEGAS) and his envelope looked exactly the same (I actually didn't know that until I showed him your picture and he said, ya that's what mine looked like haha) and like I said, he had no trouble, they were super nice and fast. Good Luck!

[jdiaz 5]

Thank you everyone, This will be my last update on this thread until September when my Fiance arrives.

 

After reading every thread on here that had to do with the visa envelopes, I finally decided I would call the Consulate trying something I hadn't done before - Press "1" for English.

A lady by the name of Paulina picked up my call and I was finally able to get some clear answers:

• 1. Yes, SOME visa packets do come with a slight cut on one of the corners. This is normal.
• 2. I did NOT need to send the packet in for re-sealing. She was also very surprised when I mentioned that another agent had told me that if we did not send the packet back to the consulate, our case would be labeled as 'fraud'. 
• 3. Even though another agent had emailed us a DHL courier authorization, we did not need to complete it or notify the consulate that we are no longer going to use it. 
• 4. Las Vegas Port of Entry should not give us any problems as long as we do not open the envelope.

I want to thank everyone on this forum for being so helpful and providing all the feedback. It has been a stressful day but I'm very happy this has all been sorted out.

 

TL;DR - Press 1 for English and all your questions will be answered  

 

God bless.

 

 

 

[Shauneg 762]

13 hours ago, Beachlover said:

A lot of people recommend not to return the envelope. But what about the "threat" of the consulate employee about flagging it as fraud if not returned?

 

And why is that information not available so that people know what to expect?

 

Yea that's weird they would do that...

I'd carry on anyway though.

[Eric-Pris 1,607]

it's normal, and my wife nor I ever really even thought about it.  we just assumed it was cut on purpose.  never gave it much thought..

 

Edited August 9, 2017 by Eric-Pris