register for cfo / slec physical in advance of visa

[An D 27]

after DQ, still waiting for further instructions/information, how do you schedule cfo / slec physical? would like to get them out of the way if possible.

 

CFO: registered, and got an email now which is asking us to send some documents including the visa - should we, in lieu of the actual visa, submit an explanation that our case is heading to the embassy now and hope that will suffice? i've seen it said multiple times that some people have gotten the cfo done prior to visa on hand but not sure how to get around the visa document requirement. 

 

SLEC: seems to let us register and book an appointment, but again, no visa on hand. don't want to get to manila just to be turned away by the guard...website says visa is a required document too...

 

[IWander 589]

45 minutes ago, An D said:

after DQ, still waiting for further instructions/information, how do you schedule cfo / slec physical? would like to get them out of the way if possible.

 

CFO: registered, and got an email now which is asking us to send some documents including the visa - should we, in lieu of the actual visa, submit an explanation that our case is heading to the embassy now and hope that will suffice? i've seen it said multiple times that some people have gotten the cfo done prior to visa on hand but not sure how to get around the visa document requirement. 

 

SLEC: seems to let us register and book an appointment, but again, no visa on hand. don't want to get to manila just to be turned away by the guard...website says visa is a required document too...

 

You can't get the visa before the medical is done.  A visa appointment letter is a requirement.

[An D 27]

2 minutes ago, IWander said:

You can't get the visa before the medical is done.  A visa appointment letter is a requirement.

Yeah, it lists that as a requirement but I've read of people getting in without having the visa appointment letter or the visa itself. That's where the confusion is. Only thing people say is to be careful since the medical expires if you do it in advance like this, but still, definitely have seen reports of people getting in before having either of those. Such as in below:

 

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/750960-st-luke-medical-without-an-interview/

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

52 minutes ago, An D said:

CFO: registered, and got an email now which is asking us to send some documents including the visa - should we, in lieu of the actual visa, submit an explanation that our case is heading to the embassy now and hope that will suffice? i've seen it said multiple times that some people have gotten the cfo done prior to visa on hand but not sure how to get around the visa document requirement. 

 

Best to speak directly to your assigned counselor. We are one of the couples who did the CFO process well before our visa. They required us to go through the CFO process for us to meet for the first time in Costa Rica back in 2021. The certificate we received then is still valid for our visa today. Prior to May 1st, we were told that we would need to visit a CFO office with our certificate & visa in hand to get them to affix the CFO sticker to it. Since May 1st they were supposed to do away with the sticker process in favor of a digital certificate, however my fiancé just went for her interview yesterday & was with a friend who had her CR1 visa. Her friend went to the CFO to get a sticker for her visa so I'm not sure how it works now. The CFO doesn't seem to be following the new protocol they just put out. 

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

6 minutes ago, An D said:

Yeah, it lists that as a requirement but I've read of people getting in without having the visa appointment letter or the visa itself. That's where the confusion is. Only thing people say is to be careful since the medical expires if you do it in advance like this, but still, definitely have seen reports of people getting in before having either of those. Such as in below:

 

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/750960-st-luke-medical-without-an-interview/

 

In our case we simply printed out the letter you get from the NVC indicating that your visa petition was approved & was on its way to the embassy. We received ours via email from the NVC. My fiancé completed her medical exam before the embassy even received the physical files from the NVC (which happened 2-3 days later). 

[IWander 589]

4 minutes ago, An D said:

Yeah, it lists that as a requirement but I've read of people getting in without having the visa appointment letter or the visa itself. That's where the confusion is. Only thing people say is to be careful since the medical expires if you do it in advance like this, but still, definitely have seen reports of people getting in before having either of those. Such as in below:

 

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/750960-st-luke-medical-without-an-interview/

Medical and visa will expire on the same day which is 6 months from the first day of the medical (unless you get caught up in sputum testing).  It is advisable not to do it too far in advance of the interview 

 

BTW, Everyone gets in before having visa in hand.

[An D 27]

4 minutes ago, IWander said:

Medical and visa will expire on the same day which is 6 months from the first day of the medical (unless you get caught up in sputum testing).  It is advisable not to do it too far in advance of the interview 

 

BTW, Everyone gets in before having visa in hand.

Understandable, so the question becomes how long it takes from DQ to having the visa interview. If the medical is valid for 6 months, and it would only take 2 or even 3 months to schedule and complete the visa interview, that's perfectly fine. That's still a 3 month buffer to get to the US. 

8 minutes ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

 

In our case we simply printed out the letter you get from the NVC indicating that your visa petition was approved & was on its way to the embassy. We received ours via email from the NVC. My fiancé completed her medical exam before the embassy even received the physical files from the NVC (which happened 2-3 days later). 

Thanks for the information!

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

I'm pretty sure that the medical exam & the VISA are on two separate timelines. They typically tell you to get the medical exam no more than two weeks before your scheduled interview appointment. In our case when we were able to schedule our appointment back in March (after completing the DS-160 & paying the MRV fee), the earliest appointment we could get was in June. At the time we were going to wait another month or two to get our medical exam done. I kept checking for earlier appointments & sure enough, an appointment was available in March...unfortunately we were not ready since we had not completed our medical exam. That motivated us to get the medical exam done right away just in case we had another shot at an earlier appointment in case anyone else canceled or rescheduled. We completed our medical exam by the end of March & was able to move up to an earlier appointment in May (yesterday).

 

The way I understood it is that the medical exam is only valid for 6 months from the time it is completed. In our case, we had it done at the end of March so we knew we needed to get her to the US by the end of September at the latest. The K1 visa has the same 6 month validity from the time the visa is approved (not when you have it in hand).

[An D 27]

3 minutes ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

I'm pretty sure that the medical exam & the VISA are on two separate timelines. They typically tell you to get the medical exam no more than two weeks before your scheduled interview appointment. In our case when we were able to schedule our appointment back in March (after completing the DS-160 & paying the MRV fee), the earliest appointment we could get was in June. At the time we were going to wait another month or two to get our medical exam done. I kept checking for earlier appointments & sure enough, an appointment was available in March...unfortunately we were not ready since we had not completed our medical exam. That motivated us to get the medical exam done right away just in case we had another shot at an earlier appointment in case anyone else canceled or rescheduled. We completed our medical exam by the end of March & was able to move up to an earlier appointment in May (yesterday).

 

The way I understood it is that the medical exam is only valid for 6 months from the time it is completed. In our case, we had it done at the end of March so we knew we needed to get her to the US by the end of September at the latest. The K1 visa has the same 6 month validity from the time the visa is approved (not when you have it in hand).

Cool. Definitely seems like getting the medical out of the way is really the way to go especially in case sputum testing ends up being required. And six months is a pretty big window to get the rest of the stuff done and enter the US before it expires.

[Crazy Cat 41,837]

1 hour ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

I'm pretty sure that the medical exam & the VISA are on two separate timelines.

No, they are not.  The visa expiration date is tied directly to the medical exam date as @IWander stated.  The visa will expire no later than 6 months after the medical exam. 

Edited May 4, 2023 by Crazy Cat

[IWander 589]

1 hour ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

I'm pretty sure that the medical exam & the VISA are on two separate timelines. They typically tell you to get the medical exam no more than two weeks before your scheduled interview appointment. In our case when we were able to schedule our appointment back in March (after completing the DS-160 & paying the MRV fee), the earliest appointment we could get was in June. At the time we were going to wait another month or two to get our medical exam done. I kept checking for earlier appointments & sure enough, an appointment was available in March...unfortunately we were not ready since we had not completed our medical exam. That motivated us to get the medical exam done right away just in case we had another shot at an earlier appointment in case anyone else canceled or rescheduled. We completed our medical exam by the end of March & was able to move up to an earlier appointment in May (yesterday).

 

The way I understood it is that the medical exam is only valid for 6 months from the time it is completed. In our case, we had it done at the end of March so we knew we needed to get her to the US by the end of September at the latest. The K1 visa has the same 6 month validity from the time the visa is approved (not when you have it in hand).

You will become educated when the visa arrives and the visa expiration is the end of September not early November like you might be thinking 

[top_secret 2,417]

2 hours ago, An D said:

CFO: registered, and got an email now which is asking us to send some documents including the visa - should we, in lieu of the actual visa, submit an explanation that our case is heading to the embassy now and hope that will suffice? i've seen it said multiple times that some people have gotten the cfo done prior to visa on hand but not sure how to get around the visa document requirement. 

 

SLEC: seems to let us register and book an appointment, but again, no visa on hand. don't want to get to manila just to be turned away by the guard...website says visa is a required document too...

 

 

Some recent reports on CFO is that they will evaluate whatever documents you submit and schedule you accordingly.  Those with issued visas and eminent travel plans they will at least make a token effort to accommodate.  As of last week there were some people who did not yet have visas saying they were being scheduled in July.

 

A number of people have reported Saint Luke's let them get their physicals early by signing a waiver acknowledging they know it may possibly expire.

 

 

Edited May 4, 2023 by top_secret

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

1 hour ago, Crazy Cat said:

No, they are not.  The visa expiration date is tied directly to the medical exam date as @IWander stated.  The visa will expire no later than 6 months after the medical exam. 

 

Seems like an odd way to do things. People could potentially get issued a visa that is only valid for a month, a week or even days if they have to reschedule their interview and end up getting approved towards the back end of the medical exam's 6 month validity period.

[An D 27]

42 minutes ago, top_secret said:

 

Some recent reports on CFO is that they will evaluate whatever documents you submit and schedule you accordingly.  Those with issued visas and eminent travel plans they will at least make a token effort to accommodate.  As of last week there were some people who did not yet have visas saying they were being scheduled in July.

 

A number of people have reported Saint Luke's let them get their physicals early by signing a waiver acknowledging they know it may possibly expire.

 

 

July? Yikes.

[An D 27]

1 minute ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

 

Seems like an odd way to do things. People could potentially get issued a visa that is only valid for a month, a week or even days if they have to reschedule their interview and end up getting approved towards the back end of the medical exam's 6 month validity period.

I believe they're tied together since if the medical is expired you can't enter the US anyway. So they kind of have to be the same I suppose.