South African K1 Visa applicants

[pretendthisisfun 107]

9 minutes ago, pretendthisisfun said:

I just had the startling realization that we have a vault birth certificate for her, not an unabridged.  We got the vault because that is what is required for the UK passport.  Can anyone tell me with any certainty that a vault copy will work?  It actually takes longer to get and is more official than the unabridged, but I know how particular they can be for things being a certain type of way.  Or should we send for the unabridged with a service straight away?

 

The NVC states:

You and each family member immigrating with you must obtain an original birth certificate or certified copy.

• Send a photocopy of each birth certificate to NVC.
• Bring the original birth certificate plus a photocopy to your visa interview at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

 

So surely the vault copy is considered an original birth certificate.  

I think I freaked out for nothing, I found this on the NVC specific to South Africa:  

Birth Certificates

Available. Applicants should submit their requests directly to the Department of Home Affairs, Private Bag X114, Pretoria 0001, and should request a "long-form" birth certificate, which lists the details on the parents. Applicants should also provide their full name given at birth, their date and place of birth, and both parents' names, including the mother's maiden name. The request should specify that an English language copy is desired. In cases of illegitimacy or adoption, the long-form birth certificate will not be sent directly to the applicant (for reasons of confidentiality), but will be sent to the appropriate consular post. In cases where a search reveals that the applicant's birth was never registered, a form letter to this effect will be issued.

 

The dangers of posting quickly when you freak out.  The vault copy has all of this information and will be fine.  Sorry for not doing my research, but after seeing these posts and the delays you are facing I imagined being denied at the interview because we had the improper birth certificate.

[LuFlolady 881]

On 11/29/2018 at 10:27 PM, Mozam said:

 

Nope. I check all. the. time. About to hit 2 weeks of it saying no appointment time available. I'm afraid I'm going to log on one day and not realize appointments are actually available since I've been seeing the same screen for so long. 

 

However, I definitely plan to share the news if I see some open up. I'd want someone to do the same for me! Surely since it is the end of the month and about to be a new month some will open up soon? To me that makes the most sense, but I know this process doesn't always go like we think it should. 

Me too will post when I see any available dates.....I'm hoping dates open up soon

[JS5220 67]

Any luck with new dates now that the new month has started? 😁

 

Does it just say no more dates on the website? What happens if you call the consulate and ask about there being no dates?

[Mozam 147]

5 minutes ago, JS5220 said:

Any luck with new dates now that the new month has started? 😁

 

Does it just say no more dates on the website? What happens if you call the consulate and ask about there being no dates?

Still no dates, but I'm hopeful for this week. 

 

It just says "No Appointments Available". I called about a week ago or so and they just said check back later. They won't even say when they plan to release more dates.

Edited December 3, 2018 by Mozam

[JS5220 67]

I can confirm with my own eyes now. Fiance got Packet 3 today, finished DS160, logged in to the website and got the infamous message of "There are no available appointments at the selected location. Please try again later". Her and I both a little upset, it doesn't make sense to me how there can't be anything.... 😥

 

We made it this far just to get that? What do we all do now? I guess just keep checking every day? Let each other know when dates come up?

[madameMaison 204]

5 minutes ago, JS5220 said:

I can confirm with my own eyes now. Fiance got Packet 3 today, finished DS160, logged in to the website and got the infamous message of "There are no available appointments at the selected location. Please try again later". Her and I both a little upset, it doesn't make sense to me how there can't be anything.... 😥

 

We made it this far just to get that? What do we all do now? I guess just keep checking every day? Let each other know when dates come up?

Tragic I tell ya.. I watch other countries book their interviews as SOON as only getting the case number. . It's truly tragic. 

 

I am assuming dates and interview schedules will only be available after Dec 27th. (But still check everyday incase the universe changes its mind)

 

 

Otherwise, I'm afraid we've hurried just to wait. 

[LuFlolady 881]

23 hours ago, JS5220 said:

I can confirm with my own eyes now. Fiance got Packet 3 today, finished DS160, logged in to the website and got the infamous message of "There are no available appointments at the selected location. Please try again later". Her and I both a little upset, it doesn't make sense to me how there can't be anything.... 😥

 

We made it this far just to get that? What do we all do now? I guess just keep checking every day? Let each other know when dates come up?

Welcome to the wait for dates club...it is very sad and frustrating that we now have to sit and wait for interview dates

[Mozam 147]

19 hours ago, LuFlolady said:

Welcome to the wait for dates club...it is very sad and frustrating that we now have to sit and wait for interview dates

..and once dates [finally] arrive they'll likely be a month or two later. Which means....more waiting!

 

Has anyone called them about this? Just curious... I know they aren't much help in giving information about interview. 

[LuFlolady 881]

45 minutes ago, Mozam said:

..and once dates [finally] arrive they'll likely be a month or two later. Which means....more waiting!

 

Has anyone called them about this? Just curious... I know they aren't much help in giving information about interview. 

right! I have not tried calling them

[Mozam 147]

17 minutes ago, LuFlolady said:

right! I have not tried calling them

If it comes to next week and dates are not released I might try calling them. Though, I don't know if it'll be much help. I know I'm nearing 3 weeks of waiting. Also, we only have 4 months to get this process tied up. 

 

I am beginning to get nervous that documents we started pulling in October and our co-sponsors AOS will expire. 

 

Also, no hard feelings towards lurkers....I'm afraid people that haven't been waiting as long/those outside VJ are going to snatch up the dates once they become available and I'll miss them. I'll be so mad at myself if this happens. I know I'm starting to think of the worst situations that could happen.

[madameMaison 204]

On 2/22/2018 at 11:41 PM, HOORAY7 said:

Hi everyone in South Africa!  My fiancé and I are almost done in our process, she lives in South Africa and I live in the Seattle Washington area.  It took us 5 months to get our NOA2, so be prepared for a wait and don't lose the faith!!  Go on this and search for your month and K1 visa and you will probably pop into a forum, we had one for us in the May 2017 forum.  Help me out a lot to know we were not alone.  We have a lawyer, so I wasn't too concerned about the process, but the waiting is to die for!

Best thing for you all to do is get your police certificates BUT they cannot be older than 6 months.  If you were 16 and older and lived in another country besides S.A., then you will need a police certificate from there as well, so be prepared. 

Start gathering documents, originals of birth certificates, divorce decree's, pictures and other evidence of your relationship that was not included in your original package (since it will take some time, they still want to see you are still an active couple).  Any passport photo's cannot be older than 6 months old. 

When you get your NOA2, give it about 10 days before you call NVC and asking status of your case.  You can always call USCIS for your status, but they are not the friendliest and I wouldn't even but them until at least 90 days minimum, I highly doubt they have caught up with the backlog, especially with all the immigration and DACA stuff going on.  The NVC is much friendlier, when you get there and will help you with no problem with any update you are asking.  But normally when you get your NOA2, like I said give it at least 10 days before you call them.  They didn't get our package for at least 14 days.

After you get your NOA2 and your package goes to NVC, it goes pretty quick, so use this time wisely to gather all your documents.  The petitioner needs to provide pay stubs (3 months), I-134 Aff. of Support, Employment verification letter, VA eligibility letter, if applicable, to show as part of income and last 3 years of tax records.

Then once NVC processes your package, a medical appointment can be made, you only have 2 options, one in Joburg and one in Cape Town.  My fiancé went to Joburg.   It's a 2 day process, but spread between 3 days.  You go one day for bloodwork and xrays and the next for shots and discussion with the dr., so plan on that.

Your finance, not the petitioner, will need to fill out the Visa app online, DS-160 and pay the fee.

Make sure you set up your online account correctly and schedule the interview, she finished her phyicals (her and her boys) in November, but we missed the interview's for Dec/Jan/Feb, due to holiday schedules.  They only do K1 visa interviews there at the consulate the last 2 weeks of the month and only on Tues and Thursdays.  So our interview is 20 March, we scheduled it 26 Dec, because they kept telling her there were no appointments, then we call and it jumped 3 months!  So plan wisely.

Hope this helps some.  Any questions let me know, i'll try to help.

 

Good luck to you all!!

I keep reading this post over.. and over again hoping our scenario pans out differently.

Edited December 6, 2018 by madameMaison
Forgot to highlight and bold the relevant section

[madameMaison 204]

So there's basically a limit of interviews per day available? YIKES! 

[Mozam 147]

4 minutes ago, madameMaison said:

So there's basically a limit of interviews per day available? YIKES! 

Yep! Only a set amount per day. 

[madameMaison 204]

1 minute ago, Mozam said:

Yep! Only a set amount per day. 

Maybe we should set a private messenger group on visa journey for those of us who have been waiting here. . So that dates are not snatched up. We'll message each other as soon as dates appear so that we make ourselves priority ✍💡💡 I devote myself to checking regularly and religiously since I am a stay at home fiancée. 

[madameMaison 204]

Oh well, tried creating the PM but it keeps saying y'all can't be messaged ? ... So I guess I'll just send private messages to each of you when dates pop up

Edited December 6, 2018 by madameMaison