Waiting for Interview in Manila

[Joe & Jer 7]

On 9/21/2021 at 1:45 PM, top_secret said:

There is a number attributed to discovery in the Milligan v. Pompeo K-1 lawsuit being being thrown around of 6,000 to 8,000 approved K-1 petitions for the Philippines, documentarily qualified and stuck at NVC.  I have not found the actual source of that number though so it remains hearsay, but it is a backlog entirely consistent with actual number of K-1 visas issued since the pandemic began vs the average number of K-1 visas issued monthly before the pandemic.  It is also entirely consistent with yours and other couples wait times for K-1 interviews here and elsewhere.

Not rumor. This is from the State Dept's  Motion to Dismiss in Ramirez v. Blinken, filed back at the end of June: 

 (Civil Action No. 21-01099, "MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANTS’ MOTION TO DISMISS" doc 6-1, p7)

Quote

At present, the U.S. Embassy in Manila has suspended routine visa processing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Id. ¶ 10. As such, the U.S. Embassy in Manila is processing only a limited numbers of certain immigrant visa classifications and K-1 nonimmigrant visa classification. Id. ¶ 10. As of June 2021, there is a backlog of 3,912 K visa applicants located at the NVC waiting to be scheduled for an interview, and a backlog of 3,593 K fiancé visa cases at the Embassy itself. Id. ¶ 11.

 

[Chancy 6,241]

19 hours ago, top_secret said:

Mayby F-2A is the preference category, but the visa type issued is FX1 ?????.  The Visa issuance report only says FX(?).

 

"FX" are F2A cases that are exempt from country limitations.  Most F2A cases are in this group, so you see very few that are listed in the issuance report as "F2A", which are cases subject to country limitations.  "CX" would be conditional F2A cases, like how CR1 is for spouse visa cases.

 

[Bochog 10]

On 9/23/2021 at 11:22 AM, Chancy said:

 

"FX" are F2A cases that are exempt from country limitations.  Most F2A cases are in this group, so you see very few that are listed in the issuance report as "F2A", which are cases subject to country limitations.  "CX" would be conditional F2A cases, like how CR1 is for spouse visa cases.

 

So I think it's safe to assume that our F2A will be scheduled for interview then? *fingers crossed*

 

Appreciate the input!

[Chancy 6,241]

On 9/25/2021 at 7:03 AM, Bochog said:

So I think it's safe to assume that our F2A will be scheduled for interview then? *fingers crossed*

 

Eventually, yes.  But considering the almost-year-long ban that stopped F2A interviews from being scheduled, no idea how long you'll have to wait for your turn.  Hopefully not too long.

 

[Jeff&Abi 3]

On 9/21/2021 at 2:32 PM, flicks1998 said:

Thats a massive backlog.  It estimates 6,900 which makes pretty good sense.  I notice the site says now "14.7 months behind expectations" but thats processing at the expected 470 applications per month, or basically getting back to normal which we know wont happen.  July 2021 was the highest month since March 2020 at 149.  If we assumed USEM could average 200 per month, that would still be a 34.5 month backlog.  Add on top of this, the 8-11 months to get the work and travel permit once the I-485 is filed and anyone who has recently filed a K1 (from earlier this year until) now, should likely switch over to CR1.  With the Zoom marriage viable and allowing people to get around meeting in a 3rd country, plus allowing the USC to apply for a Philippine visa to consummate the marriage, a K1 makes no sense at all.

 

Even if USEM could average 275 K1s a month, that is still a 25 month backlog + 8-11 months travel/work permit timeframe AFTER applying for AOS once in the US.  

I know this is thread is a few days old but I’m trying to make sense of the numbers and I would really appreciate it if you or somebody can help me. Assuming that they issue 275 visas on average like you said above and it would take 25 months to clear the backlog, does this mean that it would take approximately 25 months for them to give us an interview after the noa2 notice or how is this calculated? For example, we received our noa1 on July 28 2020 and our noa2 on February 23 2021 and I would to have an estimate on how much longer it would take. I’m sorry if question doesn’t make that much sense, I’m just trying to make sense of all this information. 
 

Thank you!

[RO_AH 1,659]

1 hour ago, Jeff&Abi said:

I know this is thread is a few days old but I’m trying to make sense of the numbers and I would really appreciate it if you or somebody can help me. Assuming that they issue 275 visas on average like you said above and it would take 25 months to clear the backlog, does this mean that it would take approximately 25 months for them to give us an interview after the noa2 notice or how is this calculated? For example, we received our noa1 on July 28 2020 and our noa2 on February 23 2021 and I would to have an estimate on how much longer it would take. I’m sorry if question doesn’t make that much sense, I’m just trying to make sense of all this information. 
 

Thank you!

No one can really say for sure but the there is a huge backlog that have not been sent to the embassy yet, like you. Once they get there it will take a long time to be given an interview date based on the backlog. To me 25 months is a fair estimate. I personally agree that those that are it this position are better off getting married online (if they are ready for that step), getting a visa to go to see your spouse,returning home to file CR-1. She would (by current timelines) be here as fast or faster, and also have her green card when she arrives, rather than waiting through another backlog to complete the AOS in order to get a green card.

[Jeff&Abi 3]

1 hour ago, RO_AH said:

No one can really say for sure but the there is a huge backlog that have not been sent to the embassy yet, like you. Once they get there it will take a long time to be given an interview date based on the backlog. To me 25 months is a fair estimate. I personally agree that those that are it this position are better off getting married online (if they are ready for that step), getting a visa to go to see your spouse,returning home to file CR-1. She would (by current timelines) be here as fast or faster, and also have her green card when she arrives, rather than waiting through another backlog to complete the AOS in order to get a green card.

Thank you for replying. At this point, getting married and filing for a CR-1 sounds like the most reasonable thing to do. It’s a very complicated situation and hard decision to make considering that we have been waiting for so long and haven’t seen each other for close to 2 years and starting a whole new process won’t be easy. This is an incredibly frustrating situation but I understand we are not the only ones. 

[Adventine 3,196]

1 hour ago, Jeff&Abi said:

Thank you for replying. At this point, getting married and filing for a CR-1 sounds like the most reasonable thing to do. It’s a very complicated situation and hard decision to make considering that we have been waiting for so long and haven’t seen each other for close to 2 years and starting a whole new process won’t be easy. This is an incredibly frustrating situation but I understand we are not the only ones. 

If you haven't seen the threads already, look into the Utah Zoom marriage, which allows you to get married while physically separated, then use the marriage certificate to get a 9A visa at the PH embassy, meet your spouse in the Philippines, and file for the US spousal visa.

[Wendy8319 1]

Waiting for an IR5 (mother of a USC) Visa. Application was submitted 11/17/19, Approved 5/1/21, DQ’d 7/1/21. Sitting at NVC still at last check in with Manila. Very frustrating experience.

[Bochog 10]

On 9/25/2021 at 4:27 PM, Chancy said:

 

Eventually, yes.  But considering the almost-year-long ban that stopped F2A interviews from being scheduled, no idea how long you'll have to wait for your turn.  Hopefully not too long.

 

Yes, that's the hope, too!

[Bochog 10]

2 hours ago, Wendy8319 said:

Waiting for an IR5 (mother of a USC) Visa. Application was submitted 11/17/19, Approved 5/1/21, DQ’d 7/1/21. Sitting at NVC still at last check in with Manila. Very frustrating experience.

Tell me about it!

 

We've been DQ'q since August last year and we're still waiting for an interview date.

 

Luckily, my wife has an active B1/B2 visa, so she can come here every so often, but it still gets frustrating at times.

[jskibo 588]

9 hours ago, Wendy8319 said:

Waiting for an IR5 (mother of a USC) Visa. Application was submitted 11/17/19, Approved 5/1/21, DQ’d 7/1/21. Sitting at NVC still at last check in with Manila. Very frustrating experience.

IR5

PD 7/19

DQ 3/21 

still waiting as well.  Think it’ll be quite awhile still. 

[Bochog 10]

On 9/28/2021 at 4:33 PM, jskibo said:

IR5

PD 7/19

DQ 3/21 

still waiting as well.  Think it’ll be quite awhile still. 

Thank you!

 

Hopefully our time will come up next!

[NoMansLand2020 298]

On 9/26/2021 at 4:00 PM, RO_AH said:

No one can really say for sure but the there is a huge backlog that have not been sent to the embassy yet, like you. Once they get there it will take a long time to be given an interview date based on the backlog. To me 25 months is a fair estimate. I personally agree that those that are it this position are better off getting married online (if they are ready for that step), getting a visa to go to see your spouse,returning home to file CR-1. She would (by current timelines) be here as fast or faster, and also have her green card when she arrives, rather than waiting through another backlog to complete the AOS in order to get a green card.

The lawyers for the Ramirez vs Blinken are suggesting that making a switch to CR1 from the K1 at this time would be a bad idea. They are saying it would be quicker to wait. 

[RO_AH 1,659]

45 minutes ago, NoMansLand2020 said:

The lawyers for the Ramirez vs Blinken are suggesting that making a switch to CR1 from the K1 at this time would be a bad idea. They are saying it would be quicker to wait. 

I believe people switching and getting a faster outcome would make them look really foolish so I don't know if that would be an unbiased source for info. It's up to everyone to make their own choice though. I believe @top_secret is pretty happy he made the switch.