Travel Ban Support Group

[JessM28 62]

7 minutes ago, Cm3957 said:

My fiance went to Madrid embassy, they ask by email for the extreme vetting information and forward the information along. They may take the information at the interview if it's complete with all information needed. I summit new information to them by email and they add it to her file. 

Thanks for the information! When you say they asked for the extreme vetting information- was that like the ds-5535 supplemental questions or something else? How long ago was your fiancé at the Madrid embassy? Thanks again!

 

-Jess 

[JessM28 62]

1 hour ago, salhasl said:

This wont be the first time embassy staff are clueless about how to process the waiver. Spain is not an embassy that usually handles travel ban cases so I am not surprised they seem to give you what clearly is incorrect information. The beneficiary cannot file a waiver. Waiver is not applied with the USCIS. Its submitted by the consular officer to the department of state. 

 

The most probable outcome here is the same what hundreds of other couples are experiencing. An indefinite long AP. Feb visa numbers just came out. Iranian numbers are horrendous. Its great you are being a lot more proactive than most others. Maybe it will help. Keep us posted how it goes. Best wishes.

 

 

Yes I am starting to wonder if that is the case- that the staff is just clueless. However if that is the truth then perhaps it can be used as further evidence as to how this whole process is a sham. We shall see- Senator Van Hollen’s Rep, Eve is going to investigate about the email with the embassy because she said it was very odd. 

 

Thank you for the compliment. I am doing everything I can think of to get my husband a visa but I know the odds are not in our favor. Please keep him in your thoughts/prayers on Wednesday. I will post an update when I hear how it goes. 

[Cm3957 3]

2 minutes ago, JessM28 said:

Thanks for the information! When you say they asked for the extreme vetting information- was that like the ds-5535 supplemental questions or something else? How long ago was your fiancé at the Madrid embassy? Thanks again!

 

-Jess 

Yes the same information as the dd-5535, interview was no more then 15mins after they figured out what info was needed for the wavier process.

[mado1983 79]

i want to ask you how often you send an inqurey to the embassy ???

[Anibunny 9]

8 hours ago, mado1983 said:

i want to ask you how often you send an inqurey to the embassy ???

Per an immigration lawyer's  advice, keep in contact about every 6 weeks and keep track of your interactions so if they later need to be used to defend your case, you can show you were in frequent contact with them about your case status and were in admin processing for a long time. Helpful if you want to file a writ of mandamus case after a year of AP or more

[JessM28 62]

Wanted to share our experience- it went pretty much as expected- except they focused more on his education/work history instead of our relationship. 

 

My Iranian husband went for his interview at the embassy in Madrid this morning. He had taken his phone for navigation and turned it in at the door and received a ticket. He said he waited about an hour to be called and turned in his documents to a woman- including our marriage certificate, his police certificate from Spain and his birth certificate and translations. He waited about a half hour to be called back by a man to do the interview with. The man asked how we met but then continually asked my husband about field of education and his masters. He was in the interview for about a half hour- he said the man kept circling back to questions about his masters, education and work experience. He also asked if Pouya had worked for the government or in the Iranian military. Pouya tried to show the photos of us but the man refused. He said that we were refused because of the travel ban (221) and that we should email his CV (resume) and the 5535 (supplemental questions) to them. Pouya mentioned that we had several letters of support- including one from Senator Van Hollen. The officer said he was aware of the letter of support from the Senator and (said/implied) that he could send the other letters to the email address they provided. They kept the police certificate and medical but returned the other documents to Pouya. The man said that they (the embassy) would need to apply for a waiver for us and that it would take many months.

[salhasl 113]

3 hours ago, JessM28 said:

Wanted to share our experience- it went pretty much as expected- except they focused more on his education/work history instead of our relationship. 

 

My Iranian husband went for his interview at the embassy in Madrid this morning. He had taken his phone for navigation and turned it in at the door and received a ticket. He said he waited about an hour to be called and turned in his documents to a woman- including our marriage certificate, his police certificate from Spain and his birth certificate and translations. He waited about a half hour to be called back by a man to do the interview with. The man asked how we met but then continually asked my husband about field of education and his masters. He was in the interview for about a half hour- he said the man kept circling back to questions about his masters, education and work experience. He also asked if Pouya had worked for the government or in the Iranian military. Pouya tried to show the photos of us but the man refused. He said that we were refused because of the travel ban (221) and that we should email his CV (resume) and the 5535 (supplemental questions) to them. Pouya mentioned that we had several letters of support- including one from Senator Van Hollen. The officer said he was aware of the letter of support from the Senator and (said/implied) that he could send the other letters to the email address they provided. They kept the police certificate and medical but returned the other documents to Pouya. The man said that they (the embassy) would need to apply for a waiver for us and that it would take many months.

As expected. If you dont mind sharing, what is your husbands masters education in? I hear Iranians with advanced STEM education have an especially tough time. 

 

[JessM28 62]

4 hours ago, salhasl said:

As expected. If you dont mind sharing, what is your husbands masters education in? I hear Iranians with advanced STEM education have an especially tough time. 

 

Yes his master’s is in computer engineering. Hopefully one good point is that he got it in Spain and not in Iran- but I am not sure that it will make a difference. 

[salhasl 113]

37 minutes ago, JessM28 said:

Yes his master’s is in computer engineering. Hopefully one good point is that he got it in Spain and not in Iran- but I am not sure that it will make a difference. 

Well honestly its very hard to say. Either way 1 year plus is the norm so it won't matter much. I know someone who is an art history teacher,  a female beneficiary waiting over a year so god knows. The fact is that feb numbers for Iranians were dismal so we know majority who interviewed in dec 17 jan 18 are still waiting. So average AP is atleast 1 yr and 2 months but likely longer. 

[mado1983 79]

1 minute ago, salhasl said:

Well honestly its very hard to say. Either way 1 year plus is the norm so it won't matter much. I know someone who is an art history teacher,  a female beneficiary waiting over a year so god knows. The fact is that feb numbers for Iranians were dismal so we know majority who interviewed in dec 17 jan 18 are still waiting. So average AP is atleast 1 yr and 2 months but likely longer. 

Coooommmonnnn man say something nice or we dont want to hear your opinion.... Keep it to your self... By the way answer one question whay date your interview was and where something from your side

[salhasl 113]

8 minutes ago, mado1983 said:

Coooommmonnnn man say something nice or we dont want to hear your opinion.... Keep it to your self... By the way answer one question whay date your interview was and where something from your side

I post what is the hard reality. I dont intend to dishearten anyone. But this is the reality we live in. I dont want people to have false hope. I rarely post my opinion. I usually post facts including the post you responded to.

Edited April 3, 2019 by salhasl

[Unlockable 7,314]

Friendly reminder.... do NOT tell other members not to post or to keep opinions to themselves. This is an open forum and unless it is threatening, explicit, or derogatory, everyone is free to posts their advice, thoughts, or opinions.

 

First warning. 

 

VJ Moderation

Edited April 3, 2019 by Unlockable

[mado1983 79]

3 minutes ago, salhasl said:

I post what is the hard reality. I dont intend to dishearten anyone. But this is the reality we live in. I dont want people to have false hope. I rarely post my opinion. I usually post facts including the post you responded to.

I seen people got thier visas after 3 months some 6 some 8 nine so the .... Thats much better to hear..

[salhasl 113]

55 minutes ago, mado1983 said:

I seen people got thier visas after 3 months some 6 some 8 nine so the .... Thats much better to hear..

You are refering to Yemen. Yemenis are getting visas significantly more than others impacted. I have also seen a few Iranians but hard numbers released by the state department reveal barely 1 or 2 visas a month. It used to be between 30 to 50.

[NJ515 73]

12 hours ago, salhasl said:

You are refering to Yemen. Yemenis are getting visas significantly more than others impacted. I have also seen a few Iranians but hard numbers released by the state department reveal barely 1 or 2 visas a month. It used to be between 30 to 50.

@salhasl yeah I noticed about Yemenis also. I wonder why? Maybe they have a better relationship now with the gov there and can vet the applicants. Good for them. Just passed 5 months in AP for us.