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| Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam |  Review on September 4, 2018: |
ESZiarko
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
The day of the interview was a very smooth experience overall, but in Vietnam it is all the many steps leading up to that event which are challenging, so here I will attempt to document and provide some advice on the entire process before discussing the interview itself...
Step 1: Get your Case number from the NVC. Once you have this you can do a lot of the preparatory stuff for the interview. The fastest way to get this is by calling the NVC at (603) 334-0700. Anyone who knows your USCIS case #, and the full names and dates of birth of both the petitioner and beneficiary can call to get this info. Don't be put off if they say it will take weeks, as that is a boilerplate response. Just try again the next day.
Step 2: Once you have the case number you should complete the DS-160 form. You will then have to pay the visa fee in cash at any Vietnam Post location. The K-1 visa costs 6,300,000 VND right now, but different categories have different fees. A day or so later you will get an e-mail saying that your payment has been processed. Once that is done you will be able to schedule an interview, but you should not do so yet.
Step 3: Wait until your case status (at https://ceac.state.gov/ceacstattracker/status.aspx) is "Ready" at the consulate, then mail them the Packet 3 stuff ASAP. This consists of the DS-160 confirmation page, two visa photos, and a copy of the beneficiary's passport bio page. You *do not* need to send them the instruction letter.
Step 4: Make your visa interview appointment. Contrary to what the consulate's K-visa instructions say, you do not need to wait for the instruction letter to do this. The instruction letter is literally only needed for the medical. Try to leave at least two weeks until your interview to complete the next step.
Step 5: Once you have made your appointment (and ideally received the instruction letter from the consulate), you'll need to go for vaccinations and a medical exam. This is where things get a bit messy. Contrary to what the consulate's instructions say, you can and *should* go to the vaccination place *before* having your medical exam. They actually can't complete the medical until you have been to the Quarantine Service, and doing the vaccinations after will necessitate multiple trips. At the HCMC Quarantine Service they only asked for the case number, and did not even look at the instruction letter, appointment confirmation, or passport. It is possible to drop in there without an appointment (contrary to what they tell you), but it's better to make one if you can as the process will go a lot faster and you will avoid complaints from grouchy staff members. The cost for all of the required vaccinations is ~1.5 million VND. In HCM I'd recommend doing the medical at Cho Ray hospital, as they are much more flexible than the IOM. It's possible to drop in there without an appointment, but having one will make the process go faster (and it's not a fast process). At the medical they *will* check your instruction letter, appointment confirmation, and passport so be sure to bring them along with the vaccination record if you did that first. Cost is ~5 million VND, cash only. Results take about a week, and you can pick them up at the hospital or have them posted to you.
Step 6: Finally, it's time for your interview! This is by far the easiest part of the process. Put together the gigantic pile of documents they require, plus any further evidence you want to add, and head over to the consulate. The earlier you get there the earlier you will be interviewed, but you won't save that much time by arriving at 6 or something for a 7:30 appointment. You'll have to go through security, and then the beneficiary will have to wait in a long line to be fingerprinted, where they will get a number. You'll then be called to a window to submit your documents, and they'll only take the absolutely required stuff here (they returned my birth certificate and all the evidence we put together at this stage, as well as a co-sponsor's i-134 form). The numbers at this point are called in random sequence, so pay attention.
Once they've collected everyone's documents (there were about 50 groups there on our interview day) then the interviews will start. I'd say about 50% of people were rejected (blue slip), but don't let that get to you -- all the K-visa applicants there were accepted as far as I could tell. I (the petitioner) went up to the window with my fiancee and was asked a few questions (Are you the petitioner? How long have you been in a romantic relationship? Where did you meet? How long have you been in Vietnam?) and then asked to sit. They then asked my fiancee about her previous trips to the US and other travel, and then a few questions about me and my field of work. Nothing particularly demanding. They then congratulated her and approved the visa without even so much as asking for our additional evidence, or the co-sponsor's i-134, which makes me suspect that they make decisions on cases before the interviews even start. Still, it is likely better to be over-prepared than lacking in documentation. You will then have to go to the EMS desk to arrange for postal delivery of your passport and other documents.
And there you have it. I hope others applying for a K-visa in Vietnam find this useful.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #24555