2018 J1 WAIVER TIMELINE

[Rafa2018 0]

My timeline up until favorable rec for the no objection waiver looks like this:

 

All docs received by DOS: September 25

Favorable rec: Nov 2nd.

 

28 USA business days!

(5 weeks and 3 days)

[Yuki81 0]

Finally after 12 weeks I got my recommendation (not the waiver yet)!!

[MarianG 0]

Guys,

 

I just checked my status and now it shows "Favorable Recommendation". However, there is no update in the item & action sections as I see from all of your screenshots (for the approved ones) that Recommendation----Sent---Date. Does DOS take time to send the recommendation to USCIS after its favorable recommendation? 

 

Awaiting your replies!

 

Thanks

 

[NIWjunkie 11]

3 hours ago, MarianG said:

Guys,

 

I just checked my status and now it shows "Favorable Recommendation". However, there is no update in the item & action sections as I see from all of your screenshots (for the approved ones) that Recommendation----Sent---Date. Does DOS take time to send the recommendation to USCIS after its favorable recommendation? 

 

Awaiting your replies!

 

Thanks

 

Congrats!!! Would you mind sharing your timeline table as well?

[MarianG 0]

1 hour ago, NIWjunkie said:

5 hours ago, MarianG said:

Guys,

 

I just checked my status and now it shows "Favorable Recommendation". However, there is no update in the item & action sections as I see from all of your screenshots (for the approved ones) that Recommendation----Sent---Date. Does DOS take time to send the recommendation to USCIS after its favorable recommendation? 

 

Awaiting your replies!

 

Thanks

 

Congrats!!! Would you mind sharing your timeline table as well?

 

All forms received by DOS: Sep 10

NOS received by DOS: Sep 19

DOS recommendation: Nov 8 (but doesn't showing sent)

 

 

[Moraesm 42]

I received my I-797 today!

 

Weirdly, the website still shows "Case Was Received At Another USCIS Office" even if the notice date for my I-797 was Oct/11.

Anyways, I'm glad that this is over, even if I don't actually need the waiver anymore. I'll be happy to answer any questions.

[OldDog84 0]

An old timer here. Have been on F1 for close to 9 yrs, lived and worked in Canada for two yrs and now first time on J1 visa and recently applied for waiver based on NOC. Today I received favorable recommendation from DOS. I am now waiting for the USCIS final waiver! Here is my timeline- 

 

I am from India and had started collecting all required documents from early this year. I had received letters from MHRD and Passport office in India within three weeks. The letter from my state's home dept. took about three months! 

Sent NORI letters to SFO India consulate: Sep 6, 2018

Sent J1 waiver packet to DOS: Sep 6, 2018

For a while neither the consulate or the DOS updated my case. I sent a email on Sep 11 about my case not showing up on the waiver website! On Sep 18 DOS, updated my case and also replied the same via email. Same time consulate forwarded the final No Objection letter to Indian Embassy in DC. Again, there was no update on NOS received on DOS website and I sent embassy am email to which they informed, it was already sent to DOS on Sep 24, 2018. Again, I sent an email to DOS informing about the NOS being sent to their office and on Oct 1, the replied that they haven't received and asked me to inform embassy to fax! Although I did not contact embassy, DOS updated the status the very same day! 

 

I know that unlike many here, since I work for a national lab, DOS needs sponsor view. I again emailed DOS sometime in the third week of Oct asking if they had requested for sponsor view. They almost took 10 business days to reply and on Nov 1, they emailed me saying they had already requested on the previous day! The very next day, my immigration officer (one who signed my DS-2019) emailed me with set of questions which was required for their internal reference. I replied to those questions on Nov 5 and they emailed me on Nov 6 informing me that they have replied 'favorable' to DOS. On Nov 7th, DOS updated that they had received the sponsor view.  In the meantime, on Oct 30, I had emailed DOS  again asking if they had sent for sponsor request since they hadn't replied to my previous email till then. They replied to my Oct 30th email today morning and informed me that, they are working on expediting (which I never requested for!) my J1 waiver and I should have an answer by end of next week or earlier! In few hours, DOS update my case to "Favorable Recommendation". 

 

Here is my two cents: If you work for a national/federal lab or organization, know that your case may have one extra step, which is getting your sponsors view. If you're not able to see any updates on waiver website, send DOS email requesting update on your case. Mention your name, DOB, case#, nationality in all your emails. I have never had problem getting a reply (they will take 8-10 business days to reply). I believe that, I received favorable recommendation in a short time mainly due to my persistent emails. Be polite and you don't have to explain why you need the waiver quickly. Just ask for updates. With the waiver experience of me and my friend, I conclude that being persistent with DOS will get the work done. But don't email them every other day, let it be reasonable. Email for each step. 

If you're from India, do email the consulate and embassy if you need help. I have sent multiple emails to SFO Indian consulate while preparing for NORI certificates as well as after submitting the documents. Both the consulate and embassy have been great in terms of replying. Key here is, your email should be polite and respectful. Try calling your passport office in your city, I had made couple of calls and they were very helpful. Same with my state home dept. They were all courteous over phone as well as when my dad met them personally to submit documents.  I hope this helps all of you out there who are waiting or going to apply for waiver soon. 

 

Best of luck. 

 

 

[NIWjunkie 11]

14 hours ago, Moraesm said:

I received my I-797 today!

 

Weirdly, the website still shows "Case Was Received At Another USCIS Office" even if the notice date for my I-797 was Oct/11.

Anyways, I'm glad that this is over, even if I don't actually need the waiver anymore. I'll be happy to answer any questions.

Would you mind sharing your timeline? I mean, I would appreciate if you could let me know how long it takes to have the whole process done (including USCIS part).

 

Just wondering because I am also from Brazil, and currently undergoing Consular Processing after having my EB-2 NIW approval. NVC received my documents a couple of days ago and I am expecting them to schedule an interview at Rio Consulate in a couple of weeks.

 

Therefore, I am really concerned whether I will have enough time to have my I-797 handy by the interview's date.

 

Thank you very much and best of luck with your future endeavors.

[Moraesm 42]

22 hours ago, NIWjunkie said:

Would you mind sharing your timeline? I mean, I would appreciate if you could let me know how long it takes to have the whole process done (including USCIS part).

 

Just wondering because I am also from Brazil, and currently undergoing Consular Processing after having my EB-2 NIW approval. NVC received my documents a couple of days ago and I am expecting them to schedule an interview at Rio Consulate in a couple of weeks.

 

Therefore, I am really concerned whether I will have enough time to have my I-797 handy by the interview's date.

 

Thank you very much and best of luck with your future endeavors.

Sure, here's my timeline:

Form I-797C Notice Date (USCIS): Sep/18/2018

Form I-797 Notice Date (Approval Notice): Oct/11/2018.

 

I only received it by mail this week though, but I live in Alagoas so who knows what turns it took before arriving...

 

Best of luck to you too!

[Royalpalla 0]

Hey folks,

 

I have read the entire topic. I will post my timeline. I'm from Brazil.

 

Oct 29: Embassy sent NOS

Oct 30: FEDEX Tracking show they received my packet (ds3035, etc etc).

Nov 01: Fee has been cashed! (I sent a Cashier's check).

Nov 13: documents are shown as received on the website

 

Currently I am waiting for the NOS to appear as "received". I found that some people had the same issue (i.e., NOS arriving BEFORE the other documents). These people claimed they did not have any problem. Also, I e-mailed public inquiries about this. They told me: "The No Objection Statement is placed in a holding file, as we anticipate other documents will be forthcoming."

 

 

 

 

Department of State Decision: Pending

Item	Action	Date
Fee	Received	November, 13 2018
Form DS-3035	Received	November, 13 2018
Form DS-2019	Received	November, 13 2018
Passport Data Page	Received	November, 13 2018
Statement Of Reason	Received	November, 13 2018

[gopichow84 0]

Hi Guys,

I am in the process of getting J1 visa waiver. I already received NORI clearances form all the three departments from India. Now I am filling the online J1 waiver application of US department of state. Once I entered all the information and submit it I am getting a case number but when I click the display packet it is showing application error> This happened several times and  from last 10 days I am trying to fill the application. If some one had same issue please give some suggestions. 

 

Thanks

Govardhan

[NIWjunkie 11]

On 11/5/2018 at 12:46 AM, plasma said:

Hi,

 

Just posting my timeline here as well to help future people.

 

 

For the fine people that already got their waiver from USCIS - how long did it take?

 

Cheers,

Hi Plasma,

 

Congrats on your favorable recommendation. It was actually super fast... lucky you. I read your older posts and noticed you are also from Brazil. Just wondering if you're in Brazil currently and which kinda service you used to provide them with the self-addressed envelopes. Did you email them or request anything regarding expediting your case? Thanks in advance.

[plasma 3]

Hey NWIJunkie,

 

Yes, I was impressed on how fast it was. I did not do anything after I sent the documents package - I guess I was just lucky it got processed that fast. I was in the US for the entire process and used USPS for the packages.

 

Updated timeline:

28-Aug-2018 - Package shipped to DOS 

30-Aug-2018 - Package delivered

12-Sep-2018 - Documents received on DOS website

25-Sep-2018 - No Objection Statement received on DOS website

02-November-2018 - Recommendation Sent

 

7-November-2018 - USCIS received the package

[MarianG 0]

22 hours ago, plasma said:

Hey NWIJunkie,

 

Yes, I was impressed on how fast it was. I did not do anything after I sent the documents package - I guess I was just lucky it got processed that fast. I was in the US for the entire process and used USPS for the packages.

 

Updated timeline:

28-Aug-2018 - Package shipped to DOS 

30-Aug-2018 - Package delivered

12-Sep-2018 - Documents received on DOS website

25-Sep-2018 - No Objection Statement received on DOS website

02-November-2018 - Recommendation Sent

 

7-November-2018 - USCIS received the package

 

When did you receive mail (I-797c notice) from USICS? Did you also receive any mail from DOS for recommendation of they just only send their recommendation to USCIS?

 

 

[plasma 3]

1 hour ago, MarianG said:

 

When did you receive mail (I-797c notice) from USICS? Did you also receive any mail from DOS for recommendation of they just only send their recommendation to USCIS?

 

 

I am not sure when I got the mail with the notice. I figured it was here on the 16th but I didn't open my mail box for several days so it could have arrived much earlier. I got an mail from DOS - they used one of the 2 envelops we send as part of the application.