thonati

I wonder if they "bucket" interviews based on visa category? K1s this week, HB-1 next 2 weeks etc. I am happy just to get a time slot. We applied 13JUn24 so it has been a long wait. I have seen others get NOA2 and Approved in 6 months. There does not seem to be any rhyme or reason. I am going to the Phils on Sunday for 3 weeks. I originally thought we could get an appointed within a few weeks of "ready" status. But that is ok. I will return in May for her interview and (hopefully) bring her home. Festival is 09/10MAY so I will be there for that. I plan to retire 01MAY so I will have plenty of time.

You are 2 weeks ahead of us for NOA2 and "Ready" Did you get the same dates as me? BIO=15APR and USEM=13MAY?

When was your NOA2 and "ready" status? We scheduled medical without the interview appointment. Others on this forum said St Lukes will make her sign a waiver that the medical is good for only 6 months. Her medical is in 2 hours so she is now printing the interview appointment page at the hotel as I write this.

I just logged into the system again and their were a few openings for both Bio (15APR) and Interview (13MAY)

As I was typing my post, I logged into CEAC and it now says "Ready". This is about 36 hours from the K1-FTP. I was able to pay the visa fee with credit card. But when I went to schedule the bio, it shows no slots open. This is disappointing because we all have waited so long only to be put on hold again. I guess I will keep trying to schedule the bio and interview on any hourly basis.

Hi All, My K1 case is in transit this week. I have seen where others say it will take Manila Embassy a few days to be "ready". I tried to pay for the interview but the system says "case not found" so I guess it has to be "ready" in order to pay and schedule. My fiance is doing her medical today at St Luke's. Has anyone recently made an appointment for Bio & Interview? How many days out are the Bio & Interview appointments? I would like to make some flight arrangements.

I have a question regarding the surname of my fiance. On my USCIS petition, I put her mothers surname and fathers surname (Ortiz Hernandez). However the K1-FTP does not list her mother's name anywhere. We filled out the DS-160 and used her mother's name and her passport has her mother's name. We started the visa application and used her mother's name as well. 1) Is this something I should be concerned about? I know dual last names are common in the Philippines. 2) Is the visa appointment letter required to perform the medical exam at St Lukes?

Here is my timeline: NOA2=07JAN25 Case sent to NVC=30JAN25 Case number assigned=26FEB25 I had to submit the public inquiry to received the case number. The problem is that I cannot create a profile without the case ID number that is sent with the email from NVC. Someone else on this forum said the NVC will provide an attachment letter with the email notifying you of the case number and ID number.

OK. Thanks again for the quick reply. You are the man.

Thanks for the quick reply. I received my Case number today from a Public Inquiry. How much longer can you estimate that I will get that email?

What is needed to schedule the medical at St Lukes? On their website it asks for the "Letter with Case Number / K1FTP Letter (K Visa) - one (1) photocopy" Is the K1FTP letter the same as the email?

Great question. I hope someone answers. However, the Mods on this board are not very helpful and sometimes provide false information.

NOA2=07JAN25 Sent to NVC=30JAN25 Case Number via Public Inquiry=26FEB25 When can we schedule the medical? Does anyone know? Do we need to have the "welcome letter" in hand?

Another interesting tidbit. The State Police know where you were before they pull you over. After 9/11, the US Dept of Transportation in conjunction with each state's DOT have installed cameras along the inter-state. These cameras have video capability to see traffic trends etc. However, did you know these cameras have IR capability and read EVERY SINGLE license plate in real time and logs each entry? I was pulled over by my State Police last summer. I was traveling to several different areas. The Trooper asked me "where are you coming from?" I told him, "from all over, here and there. You will have to look it up to see exactly. I cannot remember every place". He smirked at me and said, "Oh so you know about the license plate readers. Were you in the Military?" I told him "No but I know all about them. You probably can compute my average speed from camera to camera." He said "Yes I can and I can see you were averaging about 85 MPH. You know the speed limit is 70, right? I told him, "Yes sir but I was going slightly faster than that so the cameras must be out of time". He chuckled, handed me my D/L back and asked me if I could please keep it under 80 for him.

Let me lay some heavy advice on you. The US Federal Government knows way more about you and your habits than you do. During my trip to SE Asia with my Filipina fiance'; we traveled to may places. It was her first time out of the Phills. After our travels, We parted ways and took different flights to our respective homes. When I returned, the CBP asked me what countries I traveled to. I was exhausted and I could not remember everything. I just told him "I can't remember them all, you will just have to look it up". He smiled and said, "Oh you knew I already had the answer to the question as soon as you stepped off the plane?" I said, "are you kidding me, I should ask you if my fiance made it home safely". He said "hold on." Click click on the keyboard. "Yup, she made it to Cebu safely" I was not surprised in the least. I said, "thanks for letting me know." He said, "no problem and welcome home" So, yes they ARE going to check your travel records. They know everything. The US Treasury trades information real time with CBP. As soon as you hit the purchase button on the American Airlines website, CBP knows all about your plans. How did the CBP know who my fiance was? Easy, I purchased the plane tickets in the Phills with my US credit card with me and my fiances name. I purchased the ticket for her to get to Cebu, under her name. I should have asked him if she took a p!$$ on the plane too, he probably knew the answer. CBP uses algos (AI). So while your fiance may not have technically broken the law, she violated the spirit of the law. The visa is not for her to live in the USA with an American boyfriend, playing house for months at a time. An education visa is for formal education and not sex education. Also, even if you are lucky to get a K1 visa, the CBP is the sole arbitrator whether she gets in or not. If they are having a bad day, you are $h!t out of luck. So if a CBP was upset with you or your fiance, take heed. Say "I'm sorry, may I have another. It will not happen again.". They hold your happiness in their hands. I agree with the others here. She needs to stay away for a very long time to "clear the deck". Most of us wait over a year for our fiance's to get here. You need to stand in line like the rest of us. Good luck. Please do not play with fire.

According to the NVC website, as of Monday 10FEB they are processing cases sent to them on 31JAN. I received NOA2 07JAN and it was sent to NVC 30JAN. I submitted a public inquiring and they responded on 11FEB. "Your case is not in our system". So something is not adding up. We need DOGE to investigate and fix this mess.

The visit within 2 years has no bearing on whether it was a romantic visit or not. The purpose is that you met her face to face and there is no fraud. The US government could care less if you remarry the very next day after divorce. There is no requirement to wait to remarry K1 or not. Do not take any societal advice from anyone on this board. Follow the law, regulations, and rules in that order and you will be fine. If you are rushing into a marriage is no one's business but yours. I plan to bring my fiance over and wait for the last possible day to marry so that she can get accustomed to American life. I live in Michigan and my fiance is from the Philippines. She has never seen snow, hot water, a dishwasher etc. I was criticized my many people including a Mod. It just shows you that people are very judgemental; even in this day and age. The laws allow me to wait 90 days to get married and I am going to take 89 days to make sure we are doing the right thing for both of us.

"Seriously?" He!! yes. I cannot speak to the 1-800 # as I have not used it. Bringing the K1 fiance here before the interview is subject to fraud. So I have no problem with the K1 interview at the embassy. Something so simple as a I-129F application should not take 159 days while others take only 21 days. If it can be approved in 21 days for some, why not everyone? DOGE needs to attack USCIS on 20JAN noon and have it solved by 6pm. I do not trust any government worker to be efficient and that is why I support outsourcing it. Now if the outsource company fails in their mission, pull the contract and give it to someone else. If the next company fails, repeat. We HAVE to hold our government accountable to us, The People. I trust Elon and Vivek can get this done.

This is exactly my point. It should ALWAYS be first come, first serve. Anything else should be criminal. I can understand putting our Active Duty Service Members ahead of the line, no problem. But in my case, they lose my wife's death certificate? I cannot accept mediocrity. I cannot accept poor performance from my government. There was a man that got approved in 21 days.....TWENTY ONE days. This whole process stinks of inefficiency, bloated government. Trump's DOGE should attack USCIS processing on the first day. Hell they are working on a way to pay Federal Taxes with an phone app. Why not a simple USCIS application? The I-129F petition basically confirms the petitioner 1) is not an axe murderer, 2) Is he/she a terrorist, 3) Does he/she pay taxes on time, 4) does he/she pay student loans (and other Federal loans) on time. That is all. Fairly simple. The more important questions occur with the fiance at the embassy to confirm the marriage is not a fraud. I understand the first two question is the most difficult and a background check is needed. The I-129F petition should be approved in less than 30 days.

That may be true but the approval times increased dramatically the month they were fired. So while they may not have adjudicated cases, they offered some case management that improved efficiency. I paid for a USCIS service where they tracked approvals on a daily basis and it was very clear, direct cause & effect. The fired workers slowed down the approval process.

I had an RFE from USCIS. They wanted proof of my 1st marriage ending. My wife died in DEC22 and I sent them an original from the Records Office. Somehow they lost it. I have copies of that record but I went back and purchased another official copy and sent it in. The $20 is not the problem. The problem is the lost time. There has already been a complete halt to USCIS processing since they fired the 400 people in APR/MAY this year. People who filed in APR and MAY received approvals in under 60 days. I am on day 150 and counting. This is ridiculous. I am so happy that Trump has a Dept of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and I certainly hope they attack the USCIS and get them straight. It should not take this long to process these forms. I understand these are government employees and they work at a snail's pace. Maybe they should outsource this to a company that can be more efficient. I will have my approval soon after they review my RFER but hopefully others will benefit from Trump's new policies.

I had a few skirmishes with the law when I was under 18. In my state, these court records are sealed and then destroyed after 10 years (this was 30 years ago). I did a background check on myself before I filed my I-129f. I did not disclose these items and USCIS did not question me. I am not suggesting anyone do what I did as YMMV.

Fair point. I see where the USCIS has skipped over an entire week of cases back in Feb. They are now processing those cases now. I will not buy any airplane tickets etc until we get approved. Thanks for the advice.

I had a DUI in college and I had to submit the documents. It took heaven and earth to get the courts to 1) find the documents from 35 years ago and 2) provide me with a certified copy. The requirements did not say to provide "notarized or certified" copies but I did anyway. My case will be adjudicated any day now as they have processed about 50% of the cases with the same NOA1 date as me. Right. That is why I asked people to provide details on their specific case. Others will read this and know what to do when they apply.

WHICH required document please?