P3ACHY

You never know how it could go. And wait times for i-130 approval have gone down from 16 months to 14 months this year, maybe it'll keep trending in that direction. Search for "track my visa now" and you can find current wait times and trends.

Russians don't seem to have different wait times than average. Wait times can also change than what you're seeing now. For example, when we applied, it was looking like 11 months for IR1/CR1 i-130 approval (and about the same for K1), but then it turned into 16 months for us. Still, we don't regret doing IR1/CR1. Yes we waited a bit longer, but it's been a smooth process adjusting here, within 2-3 weeks, my husband basically had all the documents he needed to live normally here in the US (driver's license, ssn, temporary green card in passport which everyone has accepted, bank account, credit card). There's no barriers and long waiting periods for things like there can be for K1. No extra paperwork. Plus our clock for citizenship is already running, and we want to get that as soon as possible. You have to make the choice that's best for you guys. My husband didn't want to be a burden and I know with K1, he would be super restless and uncomfortable not being able to look for a job, drive, contribute as much, etc. I wouldn't go crazy over thinking it with the trips to France. People are getting denied for Schengen visas who've had them in the past, so it's no guarantee. Currently I've seen cases that get transferred to Kazakhstan the most, but in a year when you're approved, it could be different. But it seems like embassies are more lenient with the situation, and if she gets denied for a Schengen visa, I'm sure she can transfer to Kazakhstan or another embassy without a huge fuss.

For us, Telegram still works for text and voice memos. And Google Meet works for voice calls.

Just wanted to write a little update for this: We passed through Frankfurt without a problem!

Thanks Dashinka. I think for France he would need a transit visa (though it says if a Russian has a valid US visa, then the transit visa isn't required). I just hope airport officials know their rules and don't give us a hard time! (As an aside, I just checked and Americans don't need a visa for Turkey anymore since last year. 🤐) Though the Istanbul options are still expensive. Unfortunate that Armenia and Turkey don't get along.

We're flying from Armenia and Istanbul is a poor option - only self-transfer options, I would need a visa as an American to self-transfer. It would be more expensive. I understand Istanbul if we're flying from Russia. But we're flying from Armenia and the best options are through Europe.

Hey group! Has anyone recently transited through the international zone of a European airport without a Schengen visa? We'll be flying from outside Europe to the US on a single ticket and won’t be exiting the international transit zone. From what I’ve read on most websites, this should generally be fine at most airports (like Frankfurt, Vienna, etc.), but I’ve also heard of people being denied boarding, especially on Polish airlines transiting through Warsaw. Still, I read one case of someone being denied boarding because of a transit in Vienna. Just wanted to hear anyone's experiences!

I'll share this google spreadsheet another user posted a while ago which might give you an idea of how long it could be. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RN8wHEdL4OsvYLSd2pYcEBa3kNR_VRPYBKcGkGkJt5A/edit?gid=0#gid=0 Definitely being a Russian citizen with a profession on the TAL list is a contributing factor.

@PGA@TBoneTX Thank you guys! I will do that.

Hey guys! I'm looking for a little advice and encouragement. We received the pre-interview document checklist from the Yerevan embassy. And there's a few things that have me worried. First, the letter says: "IMPORTANT REMINDER: If you do not follow these instructions, your visa appointment will be canceled." 😰 ---- "Military book: Missing. Upload the full copy of your military book and its English translation (if applicable)." We already uploaded the military book and translation and it was approved by NVC. Should I just reupload it? It was in 2 parts because of the file size (part 1 plus part 1 translation and then, part 2 and part 2 translation). Should I upload it a different way? ---- "Tax Transcripts: Upload your petitioner's and joint sponsor's (if applicable) tax transcripts from the most recent tax year." I had a problem with the IRS this week. They couldn't process my return, because they needed to verify my identity. I was able to verify my identity, but they told me it could take 9-weeks to process my return. It's possible I won't have my transcripts by the time of the interview. What do you guys advise I do in this situation? And how expeditiously do you think they want these documents considering they are saying the appointment will be canceled? Thank you guys!

I (the petitioner) did all of the paperwork for NVC. I had it all organized on my computer so it was the best choice. So when I uploaded the financial documents, I logged in as the "petitioner". When I uploaded the civil documents, I logged in as the "applicant". And we sat down together to do the DS-260, and we logged in as the applicant for that. I think I logged in as the petitioner to pay the fees. Honestly it didn't seem like it mattered that much, but we were DQ'ed in any case.

I submitted unsolicited evidence a couple times and we were approved on time, along with other applicants around our priority date! Don't worry, it won't effect your progress.

The most reliable way this can be done currently is for your wife to live temporarily out of Russia when you file the i-130 petition. If your wife's physical address, when you file the petition, is in a different country, then they will send the petition to that embassy. Recommended countries are FSU countries, such as Kazakhstan, Armenia, Georgia, perhaps Serbia. Only countries that can handle Russian documents. This is how we accidentally ended up in Armenia. We didn't plan for it, we just got lucky it worked out that way, all we had for proof of living in Armenia was our apartment lease. However, I've seen in some Russian language visa groups, that some notaries try to set this up for clients to avoid the Warsaw interview. I'm not sure how they do it exactly. I will say if you haven't done your petition yet, the situation could still change until you're actually at the interview stage. As of now, they're still issuing Schengen visas to Russians. Maybe it will be easier to transfer to a different embassy in the future, or maybe they'll be more strict. Maybe the Moscow embassy will reopen. No one knows.

I'm sorry what you're going through OP. You have good advice; though it's hard for those in love to hear it. But without a doubt everyone's expectations should be nailed down early in any relationship. Especially when your spouse is from a vastly different culture. And if possible, spend a significant amount of time living together, experiencing health, life, work, financial challenges in person. I've been living in Russia for almost a year now with my husband (and we lived together a year+ in other countries). And adjusting is super hard, all new family and friends. No one speaks English. Food, holidays, lifestyle is all totally different. I have no means of working here or even accessing my own earned income. It's given me a lot of perspective about how hard it's gonna be for my husband to adjust to the US (but also how amazing of a husband he is). You lose a bit of yourself living outside of your own culture. And it takes time to bridge that cultural gap together.

That's good to know, thank you!