AFTER 2 MONTHS OF BROWSING THE WEBSITE I GOT THE APPOINTMENT!!!

[Rhiel 4]

As of today 3/10/25 at 10 AM, Manila time I got a slot for my mothers biometric and interview after 2 months of non-stop browsing the website YAYYYYYY!! This procedure caused me a lot of stress to fear of not getting an interview. Thank you Lord!

[Renz and Pat 1]

What do you recommend to book the slots? My fiance is trying to book her slots and is having trouble getting the slots. She has been trying for a month now.

[Rhiel 4]

I'm just lucky to get a slot today at 10 in the morning. I did a lot of tricks but no luck to get a slot before. Like what the costumer service said, keep checking the site because there is no exact day and time they will post the availability of the appointment. I keep checking every 2 hours, sometimes every hour and it didn't give me a warning that I reach the maximum time, keep going I know it is frustrating. Goodluck.

Edited March 10 by Rhiel

[Edward and Jaycel 1,037]

9 hours ago, Rhiel said:

I keep checking every 2 hours, sometimes every hour and it didn't give me a warning that I reach the maximum time, keep going I know it is frustrating.

This is the best strategy.... If you keep it no more often to once an hour, you should not get locked out. This is how we were able to get Jaycel's appointment. We were checking about once every 65 minutes to be sure we didn't get a lockout. We just happened to come across an appointment that someone else must have canceled because it was the only one available for the whole month when the calendar popped up on that attempt. Just keep at it.

[Rhiel 4]

if the screen shows you reach the maximum time just log out. I never been blocked while checking an appointment multiple times. Do not refresh backward the page. And 1 thing I noticed when we don't have the medical results the website didn't show any availability. But right after we have the results of our medical, all the  available appointment pop out!

Edited March 10 by Rhiel

[Edward and Jaycel 1,037]

21 minutes ago, Rhiel said:

And 1 thing I noticed when we don't have the medical results the website didn't show any availability. But right after we have the results of our medical, all the  available appointment pop out!

 

This is coincidental.... the systems are not linked  

[Ryanmaria2018 195]

12 hours ago, Rhiel said:

As of today 3/10/25 at 10 AM, Manila time I got a slot for my mothers biometric and interview after 2 months of non-stop browsing the website YAYYYYYY!! This procedure caused me a lot of stress to fear of not getting an interview. Thank you Lord!

Congratulations and finally right? Now the biggest thing she would need is her NBI clearance, a copy of her cenomar and birth  certificate. Here's a link for you to review to pay for fees and documnets you'll need. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-10-prepare-for-the-interview.html. Hope this helps and again congrats!!!

[Rhiel 4]

who knows 😊

[Rhiel 4]

2 minutes ago, Ryanmaria2018 said:

Congratulations and finally right? Now the biggest thing she would need is her NBI clearance, a copy of her cenomar and birth  certificate. Here's a link for you to review to pay for fees and documnets you'll need. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/the-immigrant-visa-process/step-10-prepare-for-the-interview.html. Hope this helps and again congrats!!!

everything was uploaded already,,, all the recent documents,,,

[clemente 0]

One month and eight days no slot yet. I have been checking every 1 to two hours and also near 10am and midnight Manila time as suggested by some applicants. No slot continues to appear. As pertaining to the slots opening after medical screening was completed, it was just a coincidence as commented already. St. Luke's scheduling is not connected to the VAC. They run their own system. My fiancé's medical was completed Feb 13, 2025. There were slots opened around that time. My concern is I hope she will get an interview appointment before the medical expires. It expires in 4 months. If it does we will have to obtain a new medical and pay again. If anyone here has had to redo their medical please share your experience. Will there be another payment for the exam? I am not clear about this. They made her sign a waiver concerning the medical expiring before the interview.

 

As I think of this, why are we burdened to accept the failure of a visa processing system that is clearly not working efficiently? Why should we absorb the problem created by them? Yes we could have cancelled the medical appointment knowing now that it has an expiration date. However, the next appointment might not be available soon. They seem to be filling quite fast. I thought getting the interview was going to be a short wait as it seemed at the time. Little did I know. This information on the medical expiring should have been provided beforehand. It wasn’t.

 

On February 11, I was able to get a biometric appointment only to discover there was no appointment. My fiancé traveled from Lubao, Pampanga to make the 8:30 a.m. appointment. She showed  a screenshot of the appointment saying under status “Scheduled”. The system did not have the schedule. How did this no appointment happen?

 

A conflicting information was provided to me from a call to the Visa Service Center when I was inquiring how to make an appointment for the interview. I was told by the person who answered that interviews were made at the VSC following the completion of the biometrics. What I should have been told is that both biometrics and interview must be made together on the appointment portal otherwise, the system will cancel out the biometric appointment in 20 minutes. Also, was this ever mentioned in the system when I was scheduling ? No!  Nor was I directed to another calendar to make the interview appointment.  These errors has caused unnecessary inconvenience and wasted out time and money when it could have been avoided. 

 

The NVC welcome letter we received was the beginning of the problem that we are facing. It should have been accurate with information. It was a formed letter that was out of date as per the instructions it provided. . The letter stated that NVC will soon be sending the I-129F approval and documents to Manila. Once the embassy is ready for processing , they will contact my fiancé. In the meantime it suggested we look over the K1 visa application to be ready to process. Part of the letter was right except the part about the embassy contacting her. This must have been the process before September of 2024 before the creation of this current appointment system. The letter should should have  provided a clear SOP (standard operating procedure) outlining the scheduling process. I also learned that information on the web and on their websites can also be misleading and can’t be relied as accurate information. Even personals on staff at the service center are not accurate with the information needed. They lack the communication skills to assist applicants with simple questions. Eighteen cases I filed as inquiries through the portal were never answered directly. The answers were not even related to the question. It was clear to me I was wasting my time and it was prolonging the process. At the end of each case, they included a survey of how well they did, I smiled grimly.  Do I believe it will be read with results?

 

It seems like its a dead end bureaucratic mess that is left to us to endure. Nothing has changed since the beginning of my application.  It’s like waiting for the approval of my I-129F. I filed January 23, 2023 approved August 24, 2024. There was a hiccup along the way with an RFE (request for evidence. That was alarming. The approval was one of the happiest day of my life. I felt relieved that there was hope.  A tennis friend of mine who works for homeland security pointed out to me that it would take two years. I was in denial then and it’s proven it was longer than what I hoped to be at least a year. I am at the very end of the rainbow praying each night that this nightmare and stress of waiting will be a thing of the pass. I pray for those who are just at the beginning of this journey and to those who have not started.

Also, I didn’t realize during this process that I would have a committee of friends affected with anticipation asking me details when she will be arriving. Friends who I’ve shared my experience, and frustration. They are all eager to meet her and anxious to plan our wedding. I have these people to help me cope each day. We will overcome. I pray for all that yours will come soon.