Process for DCF under Exceptional Circumstances (London)

[saksnoot 31]

I (USC) just filed an I-130 petition for my spouse at the US Embassy in London yesterday in a case with exceptional circumstances. For anyone curious, here’s the process I’ve done so far.

 

- filled out contact form on embassy website explaining our circumstances

 

- received email next day saying they had given me an appointment to file with a checklist of documents needed and instructions

 

- went to embassy, cleared security, got a ticket, got called up to window to submit documents, then paid the fee, and theb got called up to window to review the case and fix any errors in filling out the forms (luckily there were none)

 

- officer said filing was ok and we would be contacted via email “within weeks” about next steps (he said he couldn’t be more specific about time)

 

 

For those who have been through a similar process, I have a few questions.

 

1. The officer said they would contact USCIS to approve the I-130. I know this was the case when USCIS had a field office in London, but I thought that this was closed last year so the State Department adjudicates I-130s filed locally under exceptional circumstances. Was he just mistaken or was he likely referring to forwarding our case to a USCIS facility stateside because the State Dept can only adjudicate cases that are “clearly approvable” and he thought ours wasn’t?

 

2. Form G-1145 for eNotification of Petition Acceptance was an optional document on the checklist. The form says it’s only for filing at a USCIS lockbox, but we prepared it anyway. At the embassy, they did not want the form even though we had it. Will this mean all correspondence from now on is via physical mail? I was told we would be updated on our case by email.

 

Any experience or wisdom anyone could share would be much appreciated. 

Edited April 27, 2021 by saksnoot
Formatting to make easier to read

[payxibka 10,045]

4 hours ago, saksnoot said:

I (USC) just filed an I-130 petition for my spouse at the US Embassy in London yesterday in a case with exceptional circumstances. For anyone curious, here’s the process I’ve done so far.

 

- filled out contact form on embassy website explaining our circumstances

 

- received email next day saying they had given me an appointment to file with a checklist of documents needed and instructions

 

- went to embassy, cleared security, got a ticket, got called up to window to submit documents, then paid the fee, and theb got called up to window to review the case and fix any errors in filling out the forms (luckily there were none)

 

- officer said filing was ok and we would be contacted via email “within weeks” about next steps (he said he couldn’t be more specific about time)

 

 

For those who have been through a similar process, I have a few questions.

 

1. The officer said they would contact USCIS to approve the I-130. I know this was the case when USCIS had a field office in London, but I thought that this was closed last year so the State Department adjudicates I-130s filed locally under exceptional circumstances. Was he just mistaken or was he likely referring to forwarding our case to a USCIS facility stateside because the State Dept can only adjudicate cases that are “clearly approvable” and he thought ours wasn’t?

 

2. Form G-1145 for eNotification of Petition Acceptance was an optional document on the checklist. The form says it’s only for filing at a USCIS lockbox, but we prepared it anyway. At the embassy, they did not want the form even though we had it. Will this mean all correspondence from now on is via physical mail? I was told we would be updated on our case by email.

 

Any experience or wisdom anyone could share would be much appreciated. 

1.  I think the approval in question is the approval of tbe exceptional circumstances 

 

2.  The G1145 is a USCIS thing not used by the consulate.   Might be checklist hangover from when the USCIS office was open

[saksnoot 31]

28 minutes ago, payxibka said:

1.  I think the approval in question is the approval of tbe exceptional circumstances

I considered this, but it says the following on State Department guidelines:

 

Adjudicating Exceptional Circumstance I-130 Cases:

(1)  (U) If a consular section encounters a case they believe meets the exceptional circumstance criteria outlined below, then the Consular Chief or another designated consular officer may exercise discretion to accept and adjudicate the filing.

 

I think I read on another thread that this change came in at some point in 2020. So whereas before  the embassy would have asked USCIS, now it simple has discretion to make the decision.

 

Also, the I-130 was filed yesterday, so it seems that my exceptional circumstances request to file was accepted. 
 

Just really confused by what the officer was referring to.  

[Just Paul 4,595]

1 hour ago, saksnoot said:

it seems that my exceptional circumstances request to file was accepted

It was accepted for filing.  Next they determine if it can be adjudicated.  If it can be adjudicated then an interview will be set.

[saksnoot 31]

20 minutes ago, Paul & Mary said:

Next they determine if it can be adjudicated

Can you clarify what you mean by this point? Is it that they will see if they can make a decision on the I-130 (to approve or not)? Or they will see if they can approve the I-130?

[Just Paul 4,595]

The Consular Chief will review the I-130 to make sure that it is valid and complete and meets the requirements.  You will receive an email or snail mail with your London Case number.   If they find that the petition isn't eligible to be adjudicated you will be told to file stateside.   A third possibility is that they request more information. Based on your email the consulate believes that you are eligible. The appointment you had was simply to receive the I-130 and collect the fee. They review that everything is complete and send it to the section chief. Getting the appointment is (often) the hardest part.

 

It will take a few weeks but then expect a letter stating you need to set an appointment.    In DCF you need to stay on top of everything as it is a manual process at the consulate and not automated like stateside.

 

[igoyougoduke 1,656]

2 hours ago, saksnoot said:

Can you clarify what you mean by this point? Is it that they will see if they can make a decision on the I-130 (to approve or not)? Or they will see if they can approve the I-130?

 there are several steps when you apply:

 

1) Step 1 they accept your application

2) Step 2 they accepted your expedited request

3) Step 3 they will review your expedited request

4) Step 4 if expedited request is approved they will assign your application to an officer

5) Step 5 an officer will determine your i-130 and either approve or deny 

 

Once step 5 is complete than you move on to get the immigrant visa.  You are at Step 2 in the list 

[SalishSea 17,829]

15 hours ago, igoyougoduke said:

 there are several steps when you apply:

 

1) Step 1 they accept your application

2) Step 2 they accepted your expedited request

3) Step 3 they will review your expedited request

4) Step 4 if expedited request is approved they will assign your application to an officer

5) Step 5 an officer will determine your i-130 and either approve or deny 

 

Once step 5 is complete than you move on to get the immigrant visa.  You are at Step 2 in the list 

Except that OP hasn't asked for an expedite.  OP is requesting DCF, which is an entirely different process.  See Paul and Mary's explanation of this process.

Edited April 28, 2021 by Jorgedig