Jason and May

And, as I mentioned above is now happening: The cases just auto expedited are able to schedule their own interview dates, and so they are scheduling interviews before the cases who were scheduled by NVC on 08/01. Good for them that they can, but ridiculous nonetheless. For example, one case timeline is: DQ: 09/23/23 Auto expedite: 08/20/24 Interview scheduled for 09/16/24 My wife’s timeline: DQ: 08/24/23 IL: 08/01/24 Interview scheduled by NVC for 09/23/24 Absolutely ridiculous.

I've read a lot of stories about beneficiaries having overstays in other countries, and it almost always ends with things working out just fine. As long as she obtains her police clearance certificate from Japan, I imagine she will be just fine. Since she is not applying from within the United States and since the arrest did not occur within the United States, police reports and other documents are not required. (My wife is going through something similar, and I had to check into this because we were both concerned she might need police reports for her overstay in another country.)

We were DQ on August 24, 2023. We got my wife's interview letter on August 1, 2024. Her interview is scheduled for September 23, 2024. None of those dates you see in CGI are dates that can be scheduled, at least so far as I'm aware, unless someone receives an expedite or there is an auto expedite that comes along. I know the calendar will say the first available date for an IR1/CR1 is like August 15 or something absurdly just around the corner, but.... No. Also, until Manila gets the file, when you try to book an interview in CGI, it will tell you the beneficiary's case can't be found. Additionally, if you were to book an interview successfully and Manila didn't have the file, then the interview would be canceled. There really is no way to make the process go faster, unless you're lucky enough to have an expedite approved. Expect about 27 months from petition to "she's in the United States." That seems to be the most quoted timeline I've seen in the groups I'm in for IR1 finally arriving in the U.S. right now.

Thank you for answering. I found the rule for documents after pushbrk answered this for me. It was bothering me, and I was ruminating on it. The rule is: "If you’re applying from abroad, you must submit to the National Visa Center (NVC) certified court and prison records for each conviction — even if you were later pardoned or granted amnesty or some other act of clemency. (You are not required to provide records for an arrest that did not lead to a conviction.) The records must reflect the following information: The full and complete circumstances of the crime for which you were convicted The final outcome of your case, including the sentence or other penalty/fine" The thread I found where the person had an RFE was an RFE from USCIS for their beneficiary who had been arrested for and convicted of shoplifting as a minor. I'm assuming they were applying for AoS from within the U.S., because the rules go on to indicate that if you are applying from within the United States, you are required to submit to USCIS all relevant documents, including police reports, even if the offense occurred as a juvenile and/or was expunged from your record. And if a police report or court records are unavailable, you must submit evidence that they are unavailable. So, I think this might be why I haven't heard of people reporting back these 221g issues at interviews for police reports for arrests without charges and court action. And all these other Pilipinas who had overstays as OFWs but just submitted PCCs and NCRCs. But after my wife started worrying, I started thinking about it, and then I was searching around and saw that thread and started wondering and getting a bit anxious myself. I'm still encouraging her to go to the Jordanian Consulate and ask for assistance with obtaining a police report or a short statement that one is unavailable. As you stated, I'd rather be overprepared than underprepared, just in case.

Thank you. When she did her NCRC she asked them to assist with the police report, and they told her the Amman police will not issue that. So she’s going to go back to the Jordanian Consulate in Manila and ask them write a short statement to that effect and sign it for her interview. I think it’s a good idea to just be prepared. Hopefully they will do that for her. Thanks again for helping!

Hopefully that is the case. Thank you for answering. I’ve been reading some things and saw some old posts that said because they answered on the DS260 that they were arrested, they were required to submit either a police report or evidence that a police report or record of the arrest is not available. I saw (an older) post in here that said they got a 221g for additional evidence for this. So between my wife getting nervous and me seeing that, it made me start wondering and I thought I should ask.

My wife was arrested for an expired resident card while working in Amman, Jordan. She was not charged with a crime. There was no court action. She did have to stay in jail until she paid her resident card up to date or left the country. She decided to go back to her country. We obtained her No Criminal Record Certificate. We were unsuccessful in obtaining any reports associated with the incident. She is DQ and received her interview letter. Will the IO require additional records at the interview, or is the NCRC sufficient? Any thoughts, experiences, or advice is welcome. TIA

We were never able to get any of those sites to work for us either. My wife obtained her NCRC thru the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Embassy in Japan, as you referenced.

Thank you for answering! Turns out she did contact her old counselor (my wife is smarter than me) and learned that as long as your GCP need is for the same partner as a prior CFO and there was no expiration for your prior CFO, then you can walk in and get the GCP stamp. No need to make an appointment or do the seminar. Thank you for the help. I appreciate it!

I’ve never heard of this before, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a thing, I guess. She says the girl who advised her said her sister had the same situation as my wife and just had to do a walk in to get a new stamp. 🤷🏽‍♂️ If we don’t get an answer here, hopefully she can get the answer on Monday from someone at the CFO. I would just like to be prepared for after she gets her visa in hand.

No. She recalls them explaining and also checked when I asked that. There is no expiration noted.

Thank you for the help thus far! My wife has a CFO from when we met in Thailand in 2021. She is under the impression that because she has a CFO, she is not required to book a GCP seminar online (or do the GCP seminar) and can walk into the CFO and get a stamp and be good to go…? I’ve not found anything on the CFO site that indicates this or found any other resources that do. She said “a girl” told her this. She is going to call the CFO office to inquire, but I thought I would ask here. Anyone have experience with this?

Excellent information to know! Thank you!

For those who have completed this fairly recently, my understanding is the GCP completion is obtained immediately following the seminar completion. Is this accurate? Last, what is the timeframe for booking? Was booking a few days out? A couple weeks? Or was booking pretty easily obtained? TIA

I agree with others who advise not to share it: One IO might think very little of it or understand the circumstances, and another might say the marriage was bought or manipulated or the petitioner is being used, et cetera. There's no way to predict the temperament or moral quandaries of whatever IO conducts the interview. I would not chance that.

I've seen people posting NVC replies that USEM is "currently processing cases documentarily qualified on or after [insert date]. Cases are processed on a first in, first out basis..." etc. Basically, "wait your turn." Very standard replies we see all the time. Telling us all the things we for the most part already know, while not answering any of our relevant questions.

I think that’s all absolutely valid. All the “pros” for the CR/IR route were some of the reasons we decided to go that route. It just made sense. And we wanted to be married. And I was in a position where I could go visit my wife every 4 to 6 months for a few weeks at a crack while we waited it out, figuring on a 2-year wait. Then our county administrator retired, we got a replacement, and she refuses all leave without pay requests, without exception. So, I haven’t seen my wife in 7 months, and I won’t see her until she is here. After she was robbed and sexually assaulted, my department head finagled FMLA for me, or I wouldn’t have been able to go there at that point either…because no unpaid leave, period. Fortunately, whenever USEM issues the next round of interview letters, unless they issue for only 1 day in August, she will be included, as her DQ date is August 24. At the end of the day, given everything that happened and all the uncertainty, I do often reply that I really don’t care about work permits, advance parole, or the cost to adjust status. We are plenty financially stable for that. I would rather be together. But, here we are. And so we wait. Along with everyone else.

I agree. When, globally, there are 1, 3, or 5 K3s issued in a year and the average time to adjudicate a petition is about 10 months, there is really no argument for it being a viable option. Though, if I were to file again, I’d still file the 129, because maybe she’d be one of the 3 issued a K3. 🤷🏽‍♂️☺️

That’s true. In 2023 the State Department issued 10.4 million nonimmigrant visas and 562,976 immigrant visas.

Our 129 just sat for 10.5 months until USCIS adjudicated my wife’s 130 petition and then died.

On July 5th they sent out interview letters for cases DQ thru August 22, 2023. So, they are still in August, but nearing the end…after 3 months of parceling a few days at a time. They are now moving into month 4 of holding out on August 2023, unless they finish out August this Friday, which is anyone’s guess.

I can't help but think this is at least in part due to the State Department's worldwide directive to prioritize nonimmigrant visas. USEM's historical data suggests the Philippines is in the top five countries for total immigrant visa issuances yearly, and certainly in 2023. So, it appears they are processing adequate numbers of immigrant visas yearly based on data. And those numbers are statistically consistent year to year, at least since 2014, if I recall correctly. What has changed is the number of nonimmigrant visas issued yearly, which have spiked dramatically. So, partly, I have difficulty understanding the stagnation of interviews, unless it's just a hiccup. And, partly, I have a really difficult time accepting the State Department's shift in policy. I agree, though: As you suggested, make a fairly insubstantial cut in the number of nonimmigrant interviews, and bring immigrant visas current and back to a 6- to 9-month wait. Even though uncomfortable, having experienced nearly 11 months of waiting since DQ, I can only imagine having a pretty solid base that you're going to be waiting 6 to 9 months versus indefinitely (tongue-in-cheek) would be much easier to digest.

You're not wrong. 10 and 12,000 tourist visas monthly, more or less. The new priority, it seems, is transit visas. In May, USEM issued something like 7,000 transit visas, if I recall correctly. And less than 400 IR visas, and double-digit CR visas (twenty-something). In 2023, the Department of State issued 10.4 million tourist visas worldwide and, wait for it...563,000 immigrant visas. And they issued a bulletin proudly proclaiming they are prioritizing worldwide nonimmigrant visas. That's how little anyone really cares about immigration. At least legal immigration.

That's accurate. It seems last Friday, July 5th, CR/IR DQs up through August 22, 2023, received interview letters. I was just coming here to complain because my wife's DQ date is 08/24/23, and USEM has been issuing ILs for August DQs at a painstakingly (ridiculously) slow rate over the course of 3 months (June was skipped altogether, with no ILs sent out at all). I'm typically not optimistic in this process, but I do think based on historical IL issuance trends, next Friday another round of ILs should go out, covering at least the remainder of August. Hopefully, anyway. Anything is possible. Including another 5 months of radio silence. So, we'll see.

Hey, hey! How about USEM, eh? Milking August 2023 DQs for 3 months now. Tease a few more letters out but not quite all of August. The Department of State's dedication to making this process as lengthy as possible is incredibly impressive. Infuriating when you're in the process. But impressive, nonetheless.