Australians Waiting For Interview at US Consulate Sydney

[zochu 255]

Entered the US yesterday! After 261 days my daughter and I have been finally reunited with my husband/her dad 🎉  

 

LAX was a little busier than expected. So was secondary but I was processed quickly (probably due to having a screaming child 🙃) 

 

Air NZ was great to fly with too. We flew Melbourne to Auckland and then Auckland to LAX! 
 

No problems leaving Australia for you’ve for the exemption too! 
 

I wish everyone well on this journey and to all

Those Victorians waiting, I hope the wait ends soon and reunited with your loved ones 💕🥰

[John0990 23]

2 minutes ago, zochu said:

Entered the US yesterday! After 261 days my daughter and I have been finally reunited with my husband/her dad 🎉  

 

LAX was a little busier than expected. So was secondary but I was processed quickly (probably due to having a screaming child 🙃) 

 

Air NZ was great to fly with too. We flew Melbourne to Auckland and then Auckland to LAX! 
 

No problems leaving Australia for you’ve for the exemption too! 
 

I wish everyone well on this journey and to all

Those Victorians waiting, I hope the wait ends soon and reunited with your loved ones 💕🥰

Congrats and happy wishes for your family. Thank you for the good wishes for us in Victoria. 🙏

[Sharni 27]

45 minutes ago, zochu said:

Entered the US yesterday! After 261 days my daughter and I have been finally reunited with my husband/her dad 🎉  

 

LAX was a little busier than expected. So was secondary but I was processed quickly (probably due to having a screaming child 🙃) 

 

Air NZ was great to fly with too. We flew Melbourne to Auckland and then Auckland to LAX! 
 

No problems leaving Australia for you’ve for the exemption too! 
 

I wish everyone well on this journey and to all

Those Victorians waiting, I hope the wait ends soon and reunited with your loved ones 💕🥰

Congratulations Zochu.  I'm glad to hear that you're finally there.  Thank you also for originally starting this thread because all the messages on it have been so helpful.

[Sharni 27]

On 10/8/2020 at 1:29 PM, twentyone21 said:

For anyone who has had their interview at the Sydney consulate - do we need to bring a hard paper copy of all the original evidence of bona fide marriage submitted at the beginning of the process? Or do they have all that original evidence stored digitally on their computer to review?

 

We submitted about five inches worth of documents with the original I-130 to the USCIS, including hundreds of photos of us over the years, emails, messages, shared financial documents, etc. Do I need to reprint all this and bring it with me to the interview?

 

Thank you

Hi twentyone21,

I recently had my interview and I took all the original documents of birth certificates, prior marriage and divorce certificates and current marriage certificate, as well as copies of those.  I also took just one copy of what I call our love story (a 12 page word document of pictures and a timeline of our relationship).   I also took our financial documents, such as tax returns, bank statements, superannuation statements etc.  They took all the documents and reviewed them, then handed back everything including the originals of the main documents and kept only the copies of those key documents.  Mine were certified copies, but didn't need to be.

 

I really don't think you will need to take all of the initial stuff that you submitted, but a bank statement or utilities in both names would be good as proof of a bona fide relationship.  There is document coversheet that they will send with the interview notification that has a list of all the things you need to bring.  I brought more than what was on the list, and i took copies of the key originals.

[Sharni 27]

On 10/8/2020 at 8:46 PM, PriscillaQOTD said:

Looks like prices of flights have gone back up  just missed out on the half price flights! Probably unlikely they will go back down again hey? They said my Visa will be issued in 22 days so I'm wondering if I should just book it now. 

It's hard to know, but I think you're right.  It's unlikely.   We didn't book before the visa was issued, but now kicking myself for not getting in earlier.  

[PriscillaQOTD 23]

Just now, Sharni said:

It's hard to know, but I think you're right.  It's unlikely.   We didn't book before the visa was issued, but now kicking myself for not getting in earlier.  

I know! And they had no change fees as well so could have just moved the dates if the visa didn't come in time what day are you planning to fly out? 

[Sharni 27]

15 hours ago, PriscillaQOTD said:

I know! And they had no change fees as well so could have just moved the dates if the visa didn't come in time what day are you planning to fly out? 

We just booked for the 12th of November.  I don't think it's going to get any cheaper.  We got ours for around AU$940 each, one way of course

Flying United - Sydney to LAX.

[ErinB 17]

Hi everyone!

Long time VJ lurker and thanks to some lovely people, I finally found this thread after many months looking through the rest of the forums and not finding much if anything for Aussies. 

I figured I should let everyone know our situation because I'm super sure that I'll be asking for advice in the near future and that's always easier to give with some context 🙂

My husband and I got married in May 2018 and submitted our I130 shortly afterwards. Our case was received by NVC towards the end of Jan this year. We've watched on anxiously as the COVID situation developed, not really knowing when or if we'd get to see each other for a very long time. Thankfully, after fighting for it tooth and nail, we got him here a couple of months ago. He was due to leave yesterday but his flight actually got cancelled so he's still here for the time being. We've been waiting to hear about our interview, which has been pretty darn difficult given everything that's going on and the general lack of information available. It's been a guessing game. 

After finding this thread, we've decided we should probably give expediting a try. My husband runs his own business, and as such, we just don't have the income for either of us to be continually going into quarantines in order to see each other. My father-in-law's health is not great - he's in a high risk category, so during a pandemic that's also been incredibly stressful. We're certainly not old - we're both in our early 30's - but we have fertility hurdles to overcome when starting a family and, as such, that window is closing. I have severe anxiety, whilst he has depression, and though my anxiety isn't usually an unmanageable problem, I also don't have a support network here. My only family in the country is my mum, who lives in Queensland, and as I live in Melbourne I obviously do not have access to that support network. 

We're a bit on the fence about applying for an expedite. We're not sure whether our reasons are substantial enough to be considered. I'm also not sure exactly how it works, and therefore whether it will even have much of an effect given I live in Melbourne: if we get granted an expedite, does that mean that when borders open up our case will be closer in the queue than those who did not expedite? 

If anyone has any insight, that would be greatly appreciated. We're not really sure exactly when my husband will be going back home, but I would just LOVE for us to have some sort of indication that this separation won't be indefinite before I put him back on a plane. 

Does anyone have any advice about writing an expedite request based on humanitarian/compassionate grounds where the reasons aren't exactly life and death?

[sydnekins 7]

5 hours ago, ErinB said:

Hi everyone!

Long time VJ lurker and thanks to some lovely people, I finally found this thread after many months looking through the rest of the forums and not finding much if anything for Aussies. 

I figured I should let everyone know our situation because I'm super sure that I'll be asking for advice in the near future and that's always easier to give with some context 🙂

My husband and I got married in May 2018 and submitted our I130 shortly afterwards. Our case was received by NVC towards the end of Jan this year. We've watched on anxiously as the COVID situation developed, not really knowing when or if we'd get to see each other for a very long time. Thankfully, after fighting for it tooth and nail, we got him here a couple of months ago. He was due to leave yesterday but his flight actually got cancelled so he's still here for the time being. We've been waiting to hear about our interview, which has been pretty darn difficult given everything that's going on and the general lack of information available. It's been a guessing game. 

After finding this thread, we've decided we should probably give expediting a try. My husband runs his own business, and as such, we just don't have the income for either of us to be continually going into quarantines in order to see each other. My father-in-law's health is not great - he's in a high risk category, so during a pandemic that's also been incredibly stressful. We're certainly not old - we're both in our early 30's - but we have fertility hurdles to overcome when starting a family and, as such, that window is closing. I have severe anxiety, whilst he has depression, and though my anxiety isn't usually an unmanageable problem, I also don't have a support network here. My only family in the country is my mum, who lives in Queensland, and as I live in Melbourne I obviously do not have access to that support network. 

We're a bit on the fence about applying for an expedite. We're not sure whether our reasons are substantial enough to be considered. I'm also not sure exactly how it works, and therefore whether it will even have much of an effect given I live in Melbourne: if we get granted an expedite, does that mean that when borders open up our case will be closer in the queue than those who did not expedite? 

If anyone has any insight, that would be greatly appreciated. We're not really sure exactly when my husband will be going back home, but I would just LOVE for us to have some sort of indication that this separation won't be indefinite before I put him back on a plane. 

Does anyone have any advice about writing an expedite request based on humanitarian/compassionate grounds where the reasons aren't exactly life and death?

I recommend expediting! My Husband and I also applied at the end of Jan and just had my interview this past week thanks to expediting.
We had expedited our i130 and then expedited again from NVC straight to the US Consulate. 

I cant give you much advice on writing an expedite request as ours was very specific - my husband is in the military and has received military orders to move base. But please try the expedite and get your name on that list so at least will have a spot in the queue with all the other Victorians are waiting for their interview.

[PriscillaQOTD 23]

On 10/6/2020 at 9:47 PM, Botoole said:

Thanks! It's quite the journey -hang in there everyone who is still working through it! Looking at flying 3rd November but that will depend on whether we're able to arrange for our cat to be relocated around the same time

Congrats botoole! Glad to hear they didn’t end up needing a joint sponsor! I’ve booked my flight for the 4th so hopefully we end up on the same flight. I was a little apprehensive about booking my flight before the visa is issued but the officer did say 24 days so I’m assuming that’s worst case scenario. Has your visa issued yet and how long did it take them to receive your medical results? 

[PriscillaQOTD 23]

On 9/18/2020 at 12:22 PM, Jade.gard said:

Hey patient people!!

I had my interview 8th September, Medical also the 8th September, Consulate received medical on the 14th September, Moved to Administrative Processing on the 15th and nothing since. How long should I expect to be in AP for?

 

 

Hey! Did your visa end up being issued? If so, when did you receive it in the mail and did you have to call them? I booked my flights for 28 days after my interview so hoping the visa is received by then!

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

12 hours ago, ErinB said:

Hi everyone!

Long time VJ lurker and thanks to some lovely people, I finally found this thread after many months looking through the rest of the forums and not finding much if anything for Aussies. 

I figured I should let everyone know our situation because I'm super sure that I'll be asking for advice in the near future and that's always easier to give with some context 🙂

My husband and I got married in May 2018 and submitted our I130 shortly afterwards. Our case was received by NVC towards the end of Jan this year. We've watched on anxiously as the COVID situation developed, not really knowing when or if we'd get to see each other for a very long time. Thankfully, after fighting for it tooth and nail, we got him here a couple of months ago. He was due to leave yesterday but his flight actually got cancelled so he's still here for the time being. We've been waiting to hear about our interview, which has been pretty darn difficult given everything that's going on and the general lack of information available. It's been a guessing game. 

After finding this thread, we've decided we should probably give expediting a try. My husband runs his own business, and as such, we just don't have the income for either of us to be continually going into quarantines in order to see each other. My father-in-law's health is not great - he's in a high risk category, so during a pandemic that's also been incredibly stressful. We're certainly not old - we're both in our early 30's - but we have fertility hurdles to overcome when starting a family and, as such, that window is closing. I have severe anxiety, whilst he has depression, and though my anxiety isn't usually an unmanageable problem, I also don't have a support network here. My only family in the country is my mum, who lives in Queensland, and as I live in Melbourne I obviously do not have access to that support network. 

We're a bit on the fence about applying for an expedite. We're not sure whether our reasons are substantial enough to be considered. I'm also not sure exactly how it works, and therefore whether it will even have much of an effect given I live in Melbourne: if we get granted an expedite, does that mean that when borders open up our case will be closer in the queue than those who did not expedite? 

If anyone has any insight, that would be greatly appreciated. We're not really sure exactly when my husband will be going back home, but I would just LOVE for us to have some sort of indication that this separation won't be indefinite before I put him back on a plane. 

Does anyone have any advice about writing an expedite request based on humanitarian/compassionate grounds where the reasons aren't exactly life and death?

I’d try Expidite... it’s a simple process basically just an email to them explaining your situation and attaching evidance if you have it.. 

 

‘’one other thing I might recommend is, since you’re at NVC stage is your need to consider packing up etc..

 

now I know it’s not recommended that you quit your job sell the home just yet BUT it might be worth while seriously considering relocation to qld if it’s financially possible for you... 2 reasons.. Expidite moves pretty fast.. and getting out of Vic due to covid is hard, plus quarantine etc getting out of qld however is pretty easy.. so it will make attending your interview a lot easier.. secondly, it’ll be nice to spend time with your mom before leaving for overseas.. 

[Mayflower girl 6]

1 hour ago, Duke & Marie said:

I’d try Expidite... it’s a simple process basically just an email to them explaining your situation and attaching evidance if you have it.. 

 

‘’one other thing I might recommend is, since you’re at NVC stage is your need to consider packing up etc..

 

now I know it’s not recommended that you quit your job sell the home just yet BUT it might be worth while seriously considering relocation to qld if it’s financially possible for you... 2 reasons.. Expidite moves pretty fast.. and getting out of Vic due to covid is hard, plus quarantine etc getting out of qld however is pretty easy.. so it will make attending your interview a lot easier.. secondly, it’ll be nice to spend time with your mom before leaving for overseas.. 

Hi Duke,

 

Is it possible for a Victorian to fly to Queensland? I thought it wasn't. 

[Duke & Marie 1,389]

2 hours ago, Mayflower girl said:

Hi Duke,

 

Is it possible for a Victorian to fly to Queensland? I thought it wasn't. 

If your relocating yes I believe so.. and then your free to travel qld/nsw... but travel Vic/nsw for interview isn’t easy.

 

 

[ErinB 17]

6 hours ago, Duke & Marie said:

I’d try Expidite... it’s a simple process basically just an email to them explaining your situation and attaching evidance if you have it.. 

 

‘’one other thing I might recommend is, since you’re at NVC stage is your need to consider packing up etc..

 

now I know it’s not recommended that you quit your job sell the home just yet BUT it might be worth while seriously considering relocation to qld if it’s financially possible for you... 2 reasons.. Expidite moves pretty fast.. and getting out of Vic due to covid is hard, plus quarantine etc getting out of qld however is pretty easy.. so it will make attending your interview a lot easier.. secondly, it’ll be nice to spend time with your mom before leaving for overseas.. 

yep, that’s definitely on our list of considerations. I have six months of my lease left here, so I can’t relocate to qld just yet. But, if the nsw/vic borders aren’t open by jan/feb, I’ll be moving in with my mum in qld while we wait for the interview. We haven’t seen each other in a long time. I’m not too concerned with rushing to the interview within the next month or so, we still have a lot to organise before we’re ready to move: I have two dogs and a cat to organise moving, for a start, and my husband needs to move into the house we’ll be sharing with my animals plus his two dogs 😅. It’s not so much that we’re in a huge rush as it is that we’re at an awkward time stage: with six months left on my lease, I’d really like to not be in a position of having to sign another one, I’d like to have some time with my mum before I go etc. I don’t want to sit around twiddling my thumbs and leave us on this indefinite time period, and not have some sort of semi-reliable timeframe for us to work within. My thinking is that if we have an approved expedite, then I at least have a modicum of control - if the borders look to be opening up, we can start to get ready, and if they’re not looking to be opening up in time I can relocate.