|
|
| Guayaquil, Ecuador |  Review on September 19, 2015: |
Boodaloo1
Rating:  | Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa
We arrived at the consulate around 6:45am for a 7:40 appointment. My husband and I stood in a line, which already had about fifteen people in it. I was glad we got there early though, because twenty to thirty more people joined the line before the doors were even opened. The officials came out and told the residence visas to form a new line and for the tourist visas to stay in the line they were already in. We were first in the residence line. The officials checked that my husband's (the beneficiary) name was on the list and then asked who I was. I said the spouse. They never asked for evidence before entry of my identity. I was very surprised about this as every time I had been at this consulate, they had requested my passport and the reason why I was there.
We went through security twice (once in the entry building and once in the building where our interview was held). We were told to sit in the green chairs as we were there for residence visas, while the tourists were told to sit in the yellow chairs. There were tons of individuals there requesting tourist visas. The consulate started processing their applications first, which I was a little annoyed about, as we were there for a resident visa (in my opinion, citizens should get first priority within the process). We asked people around us what time their appointment had been scheduled for. The majority said 7:40. So I am convinced that the consulate schedules most cases in the same time slot.
We were called up to the window at about 11:00 to give a stern lady our documents. She took my husband's passport, my I-864, the sponsor's I-864, pictures we had taken throughout our relationship, a migratory certificate that we had gotten showing all the times I had come to visit Ecuador, our marriage certificate, and a paper showing that my husband had added my signature onto his bank account. I was pulling out all the evidence we had and attempted to slip it under the window for her to see, but she told me that was enough. She then asked my husband some questions in Spanish: How did you meet? When did you meet? When did you get married? She wrote all the answers that he gave in her notes on her computer. Then she told us to sit down.
We were then called up to the window at about 11:30 to have our next interview with a gray-haired gentleman. He was really nice and friendly, not stern like a lot of the members of the consulate are. He glanced at the notes in the computer and at the file the lady from the other window had given him. He asked what I studied, where I worked, and then made a comment that he went to law school with a lady that had the same name as my mom. (points for us!) I told him I had went to school in Kirkland. He asked if the city had to do with why Costco sold Kirkland brand food? We laughed and I confirmed that the first Costco was built there. He then said "tell me something important about your wife, like her birth date." My husband said my birthdate. He then asked me and I replied as well. That was the only question he asked us to confirm about one another. Then he finally said, "congratulations, your visa has been approved!"
Our experience was a very long one. It took about six hours from start to finish. Make sure you eat breakfast before you come, because you will be hungry when it's over! Overall though, I am pleased with our experience at the consulate. We were never treated poorly by any employee.
| |
|
Consulate / USCIS Member Review #17818