London interview - be VERY afraid!!!!!

[~*Maria*~ 1]

Congrats Alan at least the interview is over an done with

[Lizzy 0]

Quote: I was quiet taken a back as I am not used to being told to shut up by anyone I am not married to.: Quote

ROFLMAO! Thats the funnest thing i have heard all week!

Congrats on the visa and sorry that old ###### was not so nice to you.

[rebeccajo 14]

Sounds like they were annoyed you had a REAL appointment letter. I bet they had peeps like you all day long with TWO interview dates.

Oh well.....at least soon it will be over!

Congrats Alan!

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Alan -- mega-congrats. I know EXACTLY which woman you're talking about -- she took us through the initial half of the interview (i.e. taking the docs off us) and she was as sour as 3-week-old milk. She scared the bejeebus out of me when she asked where Bruce's Russian police certificate was -- even though he hadn't lived in Russia long enough to warrant one -- and then gave me a little attitude about my domicile. Luckily we had a nicer chap for the second part, or Bruce might've had a coronary.

Anyway, very cool. I look forward to further tales of your journey, but make 'em happy ones from now on, okay?

[Mags 112]

Alan ~ With your visa will come your wonderful brown/yellow/ick coloured envelope. Inside that are all your forms to do with your petition. If they're with you the embassy can't write anything on them when the 8th November date comes and passes...so I'm sure that you're pretty safe on that front. It may be an idea that once you have your visa in hand to email the embassy and just confirm that you have had your interview date and could they ensure that the 8th November date IS cancelled.

Anyhoo, congrats on finally getting approved.

[Captain Oates 911]

Thanks for the support folks - I have had it with immigration stuff - if Carolyn ever leaves me there is no way I will get my credit card out and order a Thai lady----

I will just get a nice cat and buy a garden hut and get some rabbits and live like a hermit until my three score and ten is up

I am now worrying about the visa; the first guy said 'are you sure you won't be going until you have been married 2 years' and I said yes 5th November, and he entered something on the screen. At first I thought - hey he is going to issue an IR1 post dated to 5 November, that will be great as it might help the green card office to issue a 10 year card.

Now I am thinking that might happen, but instead of the post dating it, they might actually issue it 5 November and send it out then.

We are booked to fly 5th November - hire car-U haul-apartment-motels....

So it will be too late

Haven't told Carolyn this as she would freak out... but looking forward to getting the text message from the couriers all the same.

My advice to those following on ? ASSUME nothing. ANYTHING can go wrong. You could not invent the stuff that actually goes wrong.

In the Embassy letter it says don't book anything until your visa is in your hand - I always thought that was bull - now I don't

POE ? I haven't heard of a VJayer with a visa turned back yet - I will look up the number for the Guinness book of records just in case

Got horrible chest infection from low resistance brought on by 'visa depression' and 2 days packed face to face with people on the London underground - might have to buy some Jack Daniels for medicinal purposes....

To those following - remember the tombstone insciption----

As I am now so ye shall be

prepare yourselves to follow me...

alan

Edited October 22, 2007 by saywhat

[Captain Oates 911]

Just got a scratching noise at the door and it was the courier with my visa pack !

I said 'I thought you sent a text the night before' and he said 'dont know anything about that'

He said 'are you going for a holiday' and I said ' nope I am going to live there..'

He said 'rather you than me mate - I cant stand yanks !' Carolyn was upstairs otherwise he would have been dead meat and I would have got blood on my visa

ANYWAY - FINALLY GOT THE VISA

and guess what, my suspicion that they might issue a IR1 was right

It's an IR1 with last Friday's date - even though we haven't been married 2 years yet !

That means there is now a chance they wont screw up and issue a conditional 2 year green card as long as we enter after november 4

I GOT IT !!!!!

The special wine we have been saving since January 9th can now be opened...

A big thanks to my VJ buddies and a big poop to the others haha ! I may go a bit quiet for 3 weeks then return to the madhouse to see what you guys are getting hit with and see if I can help

thanks again everyone

alan

[RosemarieL 0]

Just got a scratching noise at the door and it was the courier with my visa pack !

I said 'I thought you sent a text the night before' and he said 'dont know anything about that'

He said 'are you going for a holiday' and I said ' nope I am going to live there..'

He said 'rather you than me mate - I cant stand yanks !' Carolyn was upstairs otherwise he would have been dead meat and I would have got blood on my visa

ANYWAY - FINALLY GOT THE VISA

and guess what, my suspicion that they might issue a IR1 was right

It's an IR1 with last Friday's date - even though we haven't been married 2 years yet !

That means there is now a chance they wont screw up and issue a conditional 2 year green card as long as we enter after november 4

I GOT IT !!!!!

The special wine we have been saving since January 9th can now be opened...

A big thanks to my VJ buddies and a big poop to the others haha ! I may go a bit quiet for 3 weeks then return to the madhouse to see what you guys are getting hit with and see if I can help

thanks again everyone

alan

Great news :dance:

[Mags 112]

Congrats, Alan! Now you can start to relax a little!

[Silas 0]

That's fantastic news!! Congratulations! About time they managed to get something right with your case.

[Lansbury 19]

Alan glad they showed you that they can be nice and helpful and sent you an IR-1 visa. Hope your last few days in the UK are stress free for you and Carolyn and that you have a safe and uneventful trip back to the US.

[Captain Oates 911]

Alan glad they showed you that they can be nice and helpful and sent you an IR-1 visa. Hope your last few days in the UK are stress free for you and Carolyn and that you have a safe and uneventful trip back to the US.

Many thanks Lansbury - you were there for me through this horror show and I appreciate it. I think it's because I am a professional administrator by trade that I found this so hard - normally the harder you work at something, it eventually gives and so it's just a question of applying time and effort and money and knowledge.

With this lot you hit barriers that NOTHING can shift and the frustration builds up to a point where you are tearing your hair out for what to do to make things happen - the answer is 'nothing' most times.

Without VJ, a lot of people would have their personal lives and their financial lives and their mental and physical health wrecked by this visa thing and it's comedy of errors. I am not exagerrating...

If I want to do something for the human race, I don't need to go to Africa, I just need to hang around in VJ and help some suffering people out.

Well I started this visa journey in December 2004 and after 2 (yes 2) K1 petitions and extra medical in the US and one Adjustment of Status and one biometrics in Milwaukee and now a 10 month saga of errors getting an IR1, you can be sure I have retired from all this stuff and visa applications are just something that happens to other people.

When we change address I will send in our 2 forms and then call the uscis 3 weeks later to make sure they have actioned them - apart from that I am free at last, free at last.

alan

[paulinespens 3]

Interesting reading and congratulations its fianally all over.

[trailmix 77]

Congratulations on getting your visa and happy trails to you - look forward to reading your postings when you arrive!! (you always give me a laugh)

Cheers!

Edited October 22, 2007 by trailmix

[Lansbury 19]

Many thanks Lansbury - you were there for me through this horror show and I appreciate it. I think it's because I am a professional administrator by trade that I found this so hard - normally the harder you work at something, it eventually gives and so it's just a question of applying time and effort and money and knowledge.

With this lot you hit barriers that NOTHING can shift and the frustration builds up to a point where you are tearing your hair out for what to do to make things happen - the answer is 'nothing' most times.

Glad to have helped in anyway I could.

In the years I spent in Special Branch I found my postings to Heathrow Airport working alongside the immigration service very enlightening. Having met immigration officers from other parts of the world as well they all have one thing in common. It is their aim in life to prevent people getting into a country they seem quite happy if they manage to achieve that.

Edited October 22, 2007 by Lansbury