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| Frankfurt, Germany |  Review on August 4, 2012: |
Thomas and Kristi
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
Below is my husband's experience right after his Interview for his K-1. This is his real reaction and I was lucky enough to save the conversation. Enjoy! I hope it helps you.
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Well so we left at midnight for our 6 hour ride to Frankfurt. My mom drove the first 3 hours, giving me the chance to sleep a bit in the car. Then I too over for the second half and she fell asleep :D
When we arrived there it was less full than I thought it would be. I've been reading reports from other people online and they always wrote about huge waiting lines and stuff
Well there wasn't one for me outside, I could walk straight to the window to check in and get my waiting room number. At first the guy at the window wanted a DS-160 form from me and I was like "Hey but there was no mention anywhere I needed that!" and he then asked for which visa I'm applying, so I said K-1 and he said "Oh then it's okay" and let me in, lol.
So I then went through security. Officers asked me to put my bag in a box like on the airport, for screening. And of course to remove all metallic objects and stuff, and made sure I wasn't carrying a cell phone or other electronic devices.
I had nothing on me, not even a belt. I also had completely empty pockets, so the only thing to screen was my bag. Metal detector didn't give a beep either. The whole process yielded me a "If everybody was like you we'd be losing our job" comment from the security guy and we both laughed :D
So then I proceeded to the main waiting hall. It was a big one, sign on the wall said there could fit 299 people in there. Lots of chairs and 23 windows on the walls.
There were also water fountains like you know them from America, a snack bar, a photo booth to make photos in case you forgot them or the ones you brought wouldn't be accepted, and a machine where you could vend stamps.
Oh there was also lots of flags hanging from the columns, one from each American state. My face when the Californian flag has a fuggin bear on it. That's awesome.
But I'm digressing. So I got there and started to play the waiting game until my number was called. I did that a lot that day, two thirds of my time there consisted of waiting. Then after 30 minutes or so of waiting I was finally called to the first window. Lady there was nice, asking me in German for the paper that said that I paid for the visa, for photos and for my passport.
So I gave her everything and she gave me a paper in return that told me how I should arrange my papers for when I get called to the next window. Then it was back to waiting.
After another 45 minutes of waiting I was called to another window where a lady that looked like the winter miser asked me for the documents. Birth certificate, police certificate, affidavit of support.
She asked me if I had supporting documents for the affidavit, I said of course I do, pick what you want and handed her the whole bunch you sent me, lol. She took almost everything, except the W-2 forms and the older stuff, like the tax returns from 2009-2007. But she looked quite happy picking out what she wanted, lol. So she gave me the rest back and handed me an envelope I had to put the stamps and my address on.
So after I put that stuff on the envelope I gave it back and she explained what will happen when I get approved, like "envelope will come via mail, DON'T EVER OPEN IT OR YOUR SOUL WILL BE CONSUMED, have it in your hand baggage at the airport, etc." Then it was back to waiting. By now I was bored rather than nervous. Dunno what's worse.
Anyway, another 45 minutes that felt like 5 hours later I got called to the final window.
There was a real American Consulate officer in there, a nice lady that kind of reminded me of Michelle. Anyway, at first she made me raise my right hand and swear that all the information I provided is true and stuff. Funny.
Then she took my fingerprints ("You have very nice fingerprints", lol) and after that we went through all the paperwork she had on her desk. She was browsing through it while asking me some questions like have I seen you in person, have I met your family (I told her who I met and she replied "Woah, that's a big family" lol), when did we plan the wedding, (Told her we didn't know yet since it's difficult to plan when you know nothing for sure, she said she understands), how often I've been in the US and if you've ever been in Germany.
In between she said she likes how everything was in order with our documents; it makes her job very easy.
Anyway, in the end she showed me the photos you sent in of us and asked me where they were taken on each one. Except the one with the statue of liberty, there she said she knows where that one was, lol. She also said the one where we're holding those video games was really awesome. She liked that one.
So yeah, in the end I had to sign one of the forms on that space where I wasn't allowed to sign before, and then she told me I was approved and that the visa will arrive by mail in 1-2 weeks and wished us the best of luck.
And then I was finally out of there again and drove 6 hours back home. Phew :D
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #10125