Switching interview from Moscow to Kiev

[hayesdaniel 0]

Hello All,

 

We are currently waiting for any k1 interview slots to become available in Moscow. It's been 3 weeks now with no luck.

 

I've read on this forum a few times that it's possible to do the interview at a different consulate and save a lot of time. Kiev, for example.

 

However, when we dug into the possibility with our lawyer, we discovered that unlike Russia, you cannot pay the visa fee for the Ukraine on ustraveldocs.com except in cash, in person at a bank branch.

 

Is anyone aware of any alternative to paying the fee this way?

 

Or, is anyone aware of a service that would pay the bank fee locally and send the receipt number via email?

 

Thanks very much!

 

Daniel

[GP1977 288]

On 9/6/2018 at 4:14 PM, hayesdaniel said:

Hello All,

 

We are currently waiting for any k1 interview slots to become available in Moscow. It's been 3 weeks now with no luck.

 

I've read on this forum a few times that it's possible to do the interview at a different consulate and save a lot of time. Kiev, for example.

 

However, when we dug into the possibility with our lawyer, we discovered that unlike Russia, you cannot pay the visa fee for the Ukraine on ustraveldocs.com except in cash, in person at a bank branch.

 

Is anyone aware of any alternative to paying the fee this way?

 

Or, is anyone aware of a service that would pay the bank fee locally and send the receipt number via email?

 

Thanks very much!

 

Daniel

I dont know of a service that does yes, but yes you have to pay in person at the bank and get a receipt number to schedule your interview.  You could have your fiance make the journey to Kiev, go to the bank, pay the embassy fee, wait a few hours and then schedule her interview.  Earliest appointments are usually available within a few days. She could be in Kiev for less than a week and have the entire process completed.

 

[RS77 5]

On 9/6/2018 at 4:14 PM, hayesdaniel said:

Hello All,

 

We are currently waiting for any k1 interview slots to become available in Moscow. It's been 3 weeks now with no luck.

 

I've read on this forum a few times that it's possible to do the interview at a different consulate and save a lot of time. Kiev, for example.

 

However, when we dug into the possibility with our lawyer, we discovered that unlike Russia, you cannot pay the visa fee for the Ukraine on ustraveldocs.com except in cash, in person at a bank branch.

 

Is anyone aware of any alternative to paying the fee this way?

 

Or, is anyone aware of a service that would pay the bank fee locally and send the receipt number via email?

 

Thanks very much!

 

Daniel

We moved ours from Moscow to Kyiv.  Send your girl the funds and have her pay the fee in person at bank, she has to be there for medicals and interview anyways.

[Lars & Sasha 17]

On 9/11/2018 at 5:39 AM, RS77 said:

We moved ours from Moscow to Kyiv.  Send your girl the funds and have her pay the fee in person at bank, she has to be there for medicals and interview anyways.

Did you wait for your NOA2 before moving from Moscow to Kiev? We still have a few months before we expect to get NOA2. Estimated for end of December. When should we start thinking of switching to Ukraine?

 

Thanks!

[hayesdaniel 0]

On 9/11/2018 at 3:39 PM, RS77 said:

We moved ours from Moscow to Kyiv.  Send your girl the funds and have her pay the fee in person at bank, she has to be there for medicals and interview anyways.

 

Sorry I’m apparently still unclear how this whole process works. So you requested for the interview to get transferred via email to the Kiev embassy? And then followed the normal procedure from there? How long did it take?

[nekotakacho 60]

On 9/17/2018 at 11:28 AM, hayesdaniel said:

 

Sorry I’m apparently still unclear how this whole process works. So you requested for the interview to get transferred via email to the Kiev embassy? And then followed the normal procedure from there? How long did it take?

There are a few different ways to transfer your NVC case to Kiev (from Moscow or anywhere else). It really depends on where you are at in your timeline and journey.

 

If NVC does not have your case yet (I am currently in this situation)...you must wait for NOA2 approval, and call them immediately upon them receiving it. There's no real way to do this fool proof, you just have to call them every single frickin' day after NOA2 is approved with USCIS. I just got off the phone with the very unhelpful guy at NVC about this and he wouldn't give me the instructions to transfer our case because we don't have NOA2, yet. He kept repeating that I need to have NOA2 approval to get that information from him.

 

If NVC already sends your case on to Moscow (or wherever you applied for)....(and you were unable to intercept it at NVC)...you must contact the Kiev US Embassy and they will initiate the transfer for you. THIS TRANSFER WILL TAKE UP TO SIX WEEKS. Once  the US Embassy in Kiev receives your NVC case, it will be one month for your interview. You must contact Kiev US Embassy to transfer your case. They will want to know your NVC number. This is for people who are currently waiting for interviews in Moscow (which is a 5-6 months waiting period now, it's peaking).

 

Also, like others have said, your Russian fiance(e) will have to go to Ukraine to have the medical exam, interview and to pay the Ukraine bank. When I emailed the US Embassy in Kiev, they specifically mentioned this.  You cannot avoid it.

 

If you don't want to do Kiev, I suggest Tbilisi Georgia. The US Embassy in Georgia will also accept K1 transfers from Moscow. Good luck.

Edited September 20, 2018 by nekotakacho
typo

[TBoneTX 45,303]

Someone rather recently (with a Siberian beneficiary, perhaps?) went to Mongolia, which would probably also be quick for an interview.  Geography matters, of course.

[Lars & Sasha 17]

On 9/20/2018 at 1:30 PM, nekotakacho said:

There are a few different ways to transfer your NVC case to Kiev (from Moscow or anywhere else). It really depends on where you are at in your timeline and journey.

 

If NVC does not have your case yet (I am currently in this situation)...you must wait for NOA2 approval, and call them immediately upon them receiving it. There's no real way to do this fool proof, you just have to call them every single frickin' day after NOA2 is approved with USCIS. I just got off the phone with the very unhelpful guy at NVC about this and he wouldn't give me the instructions to transfer our case because we don't have NOA2, yet. He kept repeating that I need to have NOA2 approval to get that information from him.

 

If NVC already sends your case on to Moscow (or wherever you applied for)....(and you were unable to intercept it at NVC)...you must contact the Kiev US Embassy and they will initiate the transfer for you. THIS TRANSFER WILL TAKE UP TO SIX WEEKS. Once  the US Embassy in Kiev receives your NVC case, it will be one month for your interview. You must contact Kiev US Embassy to transfer your case. They will want to know your NVC number. This is for people who are currently waiting for interviews in Moscow (which is a 5-6 months waiting period now, it's peaking).

 

Also, like others have said, your Russian fiance(e) will have to go to Ukraine to have the medical exam, interview and to pay the Ukraine bank. When I emailed the US Embassy in Kiev, they specifically mentioned this.  You cannot avoid it.

 

If you don't want to do Kiev, I suggest Tbilisi Georgia. The US Embassy in Georgia will also accept K1 transfers from Moscow. Good luck.

How do we find out the wait time for interviews in Moscow? I still have at least 3 months before NOA2 so perhaps it will be better then...but curious to know how I can see how long the wait time is.

[Aanastasiia 22]

17 hours ago, Lars & Sasha said:

How do we find out the wait time for interviews in Moscow? I still have at least 3 months before NOA2 so perhaps it will be better then...but curious to know how I can see how long the wait time is.

Hello!

I really wouldn’t hope things “will get better”😂

As for the wait time, there is no way to know. That’s the worst part. If you at least were granted to get your interview in a several months that still would be much better than blind waiting. I check Russian VJ timelines to see how much time it takes people to complete the process in general, also I check Russian forum (tutnetam). There is really not a lot of info though...

[nekotakacho 60]

On 9/22/2018 at 7:59 AM, Lars & Sasha said:

How do we find out the wait time for interviews in Moscow? I still have at least 3 months before NOA2 so perhaps it will be better then...but curious to know how I can see how long the wait time is.

Hello! You have to use the features of this website, to see the waiting periods. It's really guess work and estimation, based on data from the timelines people update on this website.

 

You can see the "K1 Fiance Visa Timelines" records at this url (it shows all countries):

https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?op1=3&op2=&op3=1&op4=1&op5=&op6=All

 

Using the "filter" at the bottom, you can manipulate the data in the order you want to see.

 

You can see the "K1 Fiance Visa Timelines" for all Russian beneficiaries, with the California service center, with an NOA2 date (order descending), like so:

https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?op6=California+Service+Center&op66=All&op7=Russia&op1=5&op2=&op3=1&op4=1&op5=5%2C6%2C8%2C10%2C11%2C13%2C14%2C15%2C16%2C17%2C18%2C20%2C21%2C22%2C25%2C26%2C27%2C28%2C108%2C110%2C111%2C208%2C210%2C211&cfl=

 

I can see that someone who received an NOA1 on March 12, 2018....has the newest NOA2 approval date,  of September 18, 2018.

 

My NOA2 was March 20, 2018, so I expect next week to get my NOA2,  just like S & G did, and Liudmila & Marcio did, at the top of that list.

 

If you want to see it ordered by "Interview Date", you simply change that in the filter.

 

I hope that helps, let me know if you have more questions? Cheers!

 

Edited September 24, 2018 by nekotakacho
added instructions for changing order by

[Masha_777 53]

On 9/16/2018 at 6:15 PM, Lars & Sasha said:

Did you wait for your NOA2 before moving from Moscow to Kiev? We still have a few months before we expect to get NOA2. Estimated for end of December. When should we start thinking of switching to Ukraine?

 

Thanks!

you get your NOA2, and uscis will send your case to nvc and nvc will give your new case number, then you can contact with nvc about moving your case to different embassy. just you should know how long you need to live in other country so you can go to local embassy. just contact with call center of embassy 

[Masha_777 53]

"Before you request a transfer the beneficiary must have lived in that country for at least 6 months prior to the interview."

that is why you need to ask embassy if you can  get your interview in another country  

[Aanastasiia 22]

10 minutes ago, Masha_777 said:

"Before you request a transfer the beneficiary must have lived in that country for at least 6 months prior to the interview."

that is why you need to ask embassy if you can  get your interview in another country  

Moscow permits to transfer your case to any country which will be willing to take it. So it really depends on the country. From my research and experience, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Georgia are ready to take Russian citizens even if they never worked or lived in these countries.

[Masha_777 53]

10 minutes ago, Aanastasiia said:

Moscow permits to transfer your case to any country which will be willing to take it. So it really depends on the country. From my research and experience, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Georgia are ready to take Russian citizens even if they never worked or lived in these countries.

probably. I just found this answer and thought it should be useful for someone. anyways it is necessary to ask embassy before move a case 

[nekotakacho 60]

Warsaw Poland too will also accept the US migrant visas for Russian citizens, I believe.