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| United Arab Emirates |  Review on August 16, 2013: |
Love's JAA
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
I as the sponsor attended the interviews with my fiancée. We stayed overnight at a nearby Holiday Inn, so we could be ready first thing in the morning. The interview date/time was August 12th at 8:00AM. We arrived around 7:30AM. They start letting people in at 7:45AM, but only 2-3 at a time to go through the security checkpoint. We actually entered the security facility at about 8:10AM. Be prepared for standing outside and sweating even first thing in the morning (especially for you US petitioners not used to the heat). Once you are cleared through security, you go out a backdoor and down a short pathway to the actual embassy-consulate facility. The applicant is given a call# and you take a seat in a waiting area. My fiancée got #19. So it took about an hour before she received her first calling. The facility is a large room with several bank teller bullet proof glass type windows with a narrow slot to slide papers under. At the first calling she was asked for her forms, including all the DS forms, plus my I-134 form. I went to the window with her, and the CO told me to go take a seat. So they allow petitioners in the embassy, but not actually at the window. Anyway, they only took the I-134 plus the 2012 income tax return. All of my 2 inches of attachments, bank statements, even my employer letter the CO did not take. After that, my fiancée was directed to the cashier to pay two fees totaling $240 (yes, in US dollars not Dirhams), and then to another window for electronic fingerprinting. After that, she was directed to sit down and wait to be called for interview. About another hour later, about 4-5 applicants were called up to the same window, including my fiancée. They were told that due to "a technical problem" they would not get to their interviews today, and that they could come back on Wednesday. They were given a small green slip of paper with the date and time of the new interview date. That was bit of a curveball. As my fiancée already used up her days off for the week on Sunday and Monday, she had to scramble to figure out how to get the time off on Wednesday morning. She managed to change to a double shift on Tuesday (worked until 2:00AM!) and we hired a hotel taxi for 5:00AM Wednesday morning to get back to the embassy by 7:00AM. We actually arrived at 6:45AM, first in line! We entered the security facility at 7:45AM, and admitted to the Consulate at 8:00AM. She was called up (#001) a few minutes later, for a sort of check-in, so that the CO could get the proper files ready. By 9:00AM, my fiancée was called up for her interview. I tried again to go up there, as it was a different CO this time, and again, I was asked to take a seat. The CO went over the application forms, had my fiancée sign one of them, and fill in my name (so be sure your fiancée knows how to properly write your name) and then asked several questions including:
What does your fiancé do for a living?
What do you do for a living?
How did you meet your fiancé?
How did your fiancé find your profile on facebook?
Where does your fiancé live?
How many years have you lived in UAE?
Are you divorced...your fiancé is divorced?
The CO then said that my fiancée was approved. The CO never asked to see any of the proof of fiancée relationship documentation (photos, letters, email/chats, chat pics, etc). Maybe because we frontloaded the petition, I am not sure. She then asked if she registered online and my fiancée said no, so she was told that she needed to register today and was given an instruction sheet for how to do that. This is for courier service so that the passport, visa, and envelope will be sent for pick up at the main Dubai branch of Emirates Post, I believe it's near the airport. I guess it takes a few days to be released, so we are waiting for that now. After the interview was over, I think it was barely after 9:00AM.
The requirement to return was a big inconvenience, but overall it was not a bad experience in the interview. I wish I knew that I didn't actually need to spend hours and dollars producing 20 pounds of proof. Oh well, better to be over prepared than underprepared. I think perhaps, if they see that you are well prepared, they grill you less. As an added bonus, sitting right next to us we discovered, was another VJ couple. So it was kinda like sitting with friends.
(updated on August 17, 2013)
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #12561