Nigeria (Lagos) NOA2 and interview appointment

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

We are eagerly awaiting our NOA2 this month and I’m wondering how our other Nigeria k-1-ers are doing for appointment times and such. Has anyone out there recently been denied their K-1 visa? Has anyone had to wait beyond 7 months for their NOA2? How soon after your NOA2 were you able to schedule an interview? 
 

TIA!

[SalishSea 18,159]

6 hours ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

We are eagerly awaiting our NOA2 this month and I’m wondering how our other Nigeria k-1-ers are doing for appointment times and such. Has anyone out there recently been denied their K-1 visa? Has anyone had to wait beyond 7 months for their NOA2? How soon after your NOA2 were you able to schedule an interview? 
 

TIA!

What does the Lagos US embassy website say?  I didn't think they had resumed routine K-1 visa interviews.

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

15 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

What does the Lagos US embassy website say?  I didn't think they had resumed routine K-1 visa interviews.

It says they aren’t processing other visa types yet, but I’ve been seeing posts here about people who, like us, got their NOA1 in September, got their NOA2 in March, and got an interview in May 2021. I’m so confused. 

[SalishSea 18,159]

People with March of 2021 NOA2 have gotten non-expedited K-1 interview dates already?  If so, that is a miracle and they've managed to get through a year's backlog in record time!

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

2 hours ago, Jorgedig said:

People with March of 2021 NOA2 have gotten non-expedited K-1 interview dates already?  If so, that is a miracle and they've managed to get through a year's backlog in record time!

Well let’s say I’m wrong..what should we be expecting at this point? I feel like every time I think I finally understand what’s going on I find out I’m completely wrong. If we don’t receive our NOA2 this month then I planned to begin sending case status inquiries, but if it will be yet another year of waiting I have to wonder if it would be faster to just go there, get married, and file anew for a CR-1 since those are being processed and prioritized. There’s so much conflicting information it’s exhausting.

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

34 minutes ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

Well let’s say I’m wrong..what should we be expecting at this point? I feel like every time I think I finally understand what’s going on I find out I’m completely wrong. If we don’t receive our NOA2 this month then I planned to begin sending case status inquiries, but if it will be yet another year of waiting I have to wonder if it would be faster to just go there, get married, and file anew for a CR-1 since those are being processed and prioritized. There’s so much conflicting information it’s exhausting.

Thank you for your input, I really do appreciate it.

[J&D1008 376]

6 hours ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

It says they aren’t processing other visa types yet, but I’ve been seeing posts here about people who, like us, got their NOA1 in September, got their NOA2 in March, and got an interview in May 2021. I’m so confused. 

According to USCIS processing times, you should receive your NOA-2 sometime this month or early next month. I'm not sure how Lagos is going about the interviews. My best bet would be to directly message someone on here who recently had there interview in Lagos.  

[S&Pro 29]

7 hours ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

It says they aren’t processing other visa types yet, but I’ve been seeing posts here about people who, like us, got their NOA1 in September, got their NOA2 in March, and got an interview in May 2021. I’m so confused. 

Hi you are right, however although K-1 is an "nonimmigrant visa" it is processed at many consulates as immigrant and if you look under the immigrant section in the Nigeria website it states:

 

For Immigrant Visa Applicants: The Immigrant Visa Unit is interviewing immigrant visa applicants in all visa categories.  While the appointment availability remains restricted by public health conditions, the Immigrant Visa Unit is currently scheduling visa appointments while prioritizing the following:

• Adoptions: appointments for adopted children of U.S. Citizens.
• Spouses and children of U.S. citizens.
• Applicants petitioned by U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (LPR), to include fiancées of U.S. citizens, whose immigrant visa interviews were scheduled between March 22, 2020 and June 30, 2020, and subsequently canceled due to the closure of routine visa services on March 22, 2020.  All affected applicants should have been contacted with a new interview date.

So they actually have resumed k-1 interviews but are doing all those who's appointments were cancelled first looks like

[SalishSea 18,159]

3 hours ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

if it will be yet another year of waiting I have to wonder if it would be faster to just go there, get married, and file anew for a CR-1 since those are being processed and prioritized.

Unfortunately, all of that would also take at least a year.  The advantage is that after that year and barring any issues, he would have a green card immediately upon entry to the US, rather than having to wait a year or more for that part of the process.

 

The COVID-related backups are unprecedented, so there is nothing we can really compare it to in terms of historical processing times.  What we do know is that all processing times fluctuate significantly.    

 

The year we filed (2018) application approvals ("NOA2") were taking around 6 months without RFE.  Prior to us filing, they had taken longer.  After we filed, and right before COVID, they were taking like 3 months.

 

The bit after approval (USCIS - NVC - Consulate - interview) took only two months for us.  That part of the process has always been a bit of a crapshoot, because of the huge variations in consulate 'traffic.'  My husband is from NZ, which is not an especially busy consulate, so it was quite fast.  Others in my Feb 2018 board here at VJ waited much longer for interviews at other consulates.  Similarly, we waited 14 months for an AOS interview here in Seattle, while folks who live in less busy jurisdictions had their AOS interviews in 6 months.

 

Now with the backups, all bets are off, and it is probably impossible to anticipate a reasonable timeline, as it had been in the past.

 

Good luck, and hang in there!

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

Thank you everyone!! 

[PatLuvO 284]

16 hours ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

It says they aren’t processing other visa types yet, but I’ve been seeing posts here about people who, like us, got their NOA1 in September, got their NOA2 in March, and got an interview in May 2021. I’m so confused. 

People who cases were at Lagos consulate prior to the shutdown in March 2020 have interviews for April and May. Those at NVC have been there since March 2020 no K1 cases have shipped to Lagos since then unless it was a lawsuit or expedite. 

[CoriandPhilemon 9]

5 hours ago, PatLuvO said:

People who cases were at Lagos consulate prior to the shutdown in March 2020 have interviews for April and May. Those at NVC have been there since March 2020 no K1 cases have shipped to Lagos since then unless it was a lawsuit or expedite. 

So, i just want to make sure I’m clear on everything here: when our application is approved (NOA2) it is then forwarded to the NVC and beneficiary receives packet of interview and medical requirements and it is then that he arranges an interview. The NVC is where our application is further “processed” and then sent on to the embassy in the country of beneficiary... do I have that all correct?

[PatLuvO 284]

11 minutes ago, CoriandPhilemon said:

So, i just want to make sure I’m clear on everything here: when our application is approved (NOA2) it is then forwarded to the NVC and beneficiary receives packet of interview and medical requirements and it is then that he arranges an interview. The NVC is where our application is further “processed” and then sent on to the embassy in the country of beneficiary... do I have that all correct?

Currently once your case moves from USCIS to NVC you will be assigned a case number then your case will sit at NVC until Lagos requests more files. This is due to Covid and the phased resumption of services in Lagos.

 

Under normal circumstances after your case gets to NVC and is processed it would be automatically sent to Lagos.

 

Your beneficiary will get the packet with interview information once it leaves NVC and arrives to the embassy.