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| Sydney, Australia |  Review on February 6, 2013: |
rubberducky
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
My interview was conducted on the 6th of February, 2013 at 8 AM and it was a painless, enjoyable experience. The staff was professional, friendly and courteous, and while they were thorough with their procedure at no point in the interview was I made to feel scrutinized or uncomfortable.
I live in Sydney, so it was no problem getting to the consulate at the MLC center around 7:15. As the elevators to the 10th floor do not operate for public access until after 7:30, I sat in the lobby and waited for fifteen minutes with some other interviewees. After we got up to the tenth floor, the consulate doors opened and I was the first one through.
We lined up single file in front of reception, where a lovely lady checked my passport and placed a tick next to my name in her list. I then was told to place all of my things on the security screening belt. Here I had to take any electronic devices out of my bag. I passed through security with no trouble and deposited my things, taking out only my thick stack of paperwork with me.
At this point I had in my hand:
My passport
My wallet
The Platinum express envelope
The forms (D-156 and I-134)
Supporting documents
My visa fee receipt (this is very important, you must pay for your visa fee which is $240 at the post office before the interview date then bring your receipt.)
2 US sized visa photographs 5x5 cm
We sat in some chairs waiting until we were called to take the lift up to the 59th floor to have our interviews conducted. After exiting the elevator, I turned right and went to a small window where a lady asked for my passport again and asked me if I had my mobile phone. I said no and she waved me through.
I took an immigrant visa ticket from the ticket machine and once again I was the first one there. The room had only me and one other person in it at that point. My number was called after 2 minutes and I went up to window number 4. A lovely brunette took my passport, the platinum envelope, my receipt and my visa photographs. I was then asked to place my left fingers, my right fingers and two thumbs on a fingerprint device. After that was recorded, she looked through my file and asked me to fill in a bit of missing info (a phone number), and then told me to sit down and wait while she takes my file to the consular officer in preparation for my final interview.
Sitting at the waiting area I could see everyone there was antsy. A nice Indian couple next to me talked hurriedly and gestured nervously while an asian/white couple tapped their feet and pursed their lips. I took a battered National Geographic from the shelf and flipped without reading the contents. When my number was called I realized I was staring at a page about livestock markets in Iran.
I lugged all my paperwork up to the interview window and the consular officer inside was a pretty young woman about my age. She smiled genuinely and it was in her eyes, not the kind of fake smile you usually see in bureaucratic environments.
She said:"So today I'm going to ask you a few administrative questions first then move onto information about your relationship, if everything goes well you will have your visa approval. Now please raise your right hand."
I did so and she asked me to swear an oath that everything I say is true.
She then proceeded to ask me these questions while looking through my file:
Have you been to the USA before? How many times?
How long was your longest stay?
Have you ever had any issues with USA immigration?
Have you ever been arrested?
She looked through my proof of no criminal record carefully, then asked:
Have you ever resided in another country for longer than 6 months?
Were you born in Australia? When did you immigrate here?
Have you ever been married? Any children?
Has your fiance ever been married?
She looked at my proof of no criminal record overseas and my citizenship certificate, flipped through my file again.
Then she smiled and said "Now I will ask you some questions about your relationship."
How did you and your fiance meet and when?
When did you get engaged?
Have you met his parents?
What are his parents like? Can you describe them?
Is there any cultural difference between you and his parents?
Has your fiance met your parents? What do they think about him?
Where was your fiance born?
What does your fiance do for work?
When will you get married? Where and how?
What will you do after you arrive in USA?
During these questions, I felt very comfortable as the officer was smiling the whole time. This made me comfortable enough to supply a lot of extra information and I talked freely about how our first date was, how much I liked my fiance's parents and their background, my fiance's work and what I do for a living. It felt like a chat and she was very sweet.
As we had already provided the affidavit and supporting documents in our petition, She looked again at the petition files, compared them to the information in my file and said after a while "Everything looks fine here."
I felt a happy rush as she handed me a small white slip that said "Congratulations your visa has been approved!"
She then told me that the following steps are:
I will receive a sealed envelope with my visa, which I will have to hand carry with my chest X-ray to customs when I arrive in America. I will be taken aside to a waiting room and the officers will open the documents there.
I will go and apply for a social security number when I get there, then get married asap.
I will then lodge my documents for a PR.
She was very thorough and informative. When I walked out of the building I felt great. My fiance called me to receive the good news and I tricked him into thinking I didn't pass. When I told him the truth he almost cried of happiness. It was a wonderful morning.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #11424