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| Tokyo, Japan |  Review on September 28, 2009: |
Anonymous 57
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
The embassy got our case in the beginning of July and took their time sending us our packet 3. I called to ask about whether or not they had actually received our case since they were taking so long and was forced to talk to that $20 phone line person who speaks poor Japanese and poor English, making communication nearly impossible. When I refused to get off the phone unless she did something, she finally offered to send in an inquiry. They finally sent out our packet 3 after receiving my inquiry... and an RFE for evidence of relationship and a timeline of events. My fiance already had all of the documents pertaining to the case so he sent a reply the next day. We waited a week and then I sent a $20 e-mail complaint asking them to send packet 4 so that he could at least get an interview and they replied that they just happened to have finished processing our packet 3 and were sending packet 4. He got his interview date and we waited.
My fiance went in for his interview on September 8. He watched other people go through 5 minute interviews and get approved immediately and thought, "This is going to be easy!" Yeah... WRONG. When they called him up, the brought over a translator and grilled him for over an hour about pretty much everything under the sun. Granted, our case was not as cut and dry as others because he had worked and lived in America before (LEGALLY - E2 visa), but they were very accusationary. Apparently he was questioned interrogation style, they asked him the same questions over and over again. He said that it was really, really stressful and that they weren't very nice. Since he really hadn't done anything wrong and he brought all of the documents pertaining to topics that we thought the consular might be suspicious about, they told him that he had passed the interview. The said that he was probably approved.
Wait... probably? When he asked them for clarification, they repeated that he was probably approved. But they weren't sure. They collected his passport and told him that his visa (if really approved) would be sent out within a week. And we waited. At the end of a week, I sent another $20 e-mail asking them what was going on. And I waited another week. I told my local Congresswoman what was happening too and asked for her help. I waited a day and finally, I called the embassy main line and was like, "Look, you're not answering my e-mail, I paid $20, what is going on?" And then I find out that they had apparently replied to my e-mail last week... and sent it to the wrong address. How is that even possible? At least they agreed to check the current status of my case since they had made a mistake and they told me that it was still being processed. Two and a half weeks after the interview. I reminded them that they had told us that it would be sent within a week, but they just replied, "I don't know how long it will take."
The next day, the Congresswoman make HER inquiry, to which they answered, "There is no problem with the case, we'll send the visa right away." It was sent out on the 28th, one business day after that. Whew.
This whole process has been ridiculous. I had to complain for them to do literally ANYTHING pertaining to our case. Had I not started complaining, we would probably still be waiting for our packet 3. And 20 days to send us our visa after the interview?! After not even telling us whether or not we were approved?! Inexcusable. That's really the last straw. My fiance and I are thoroughly sick of this embassy and are glad that we won't be dealing with them again anytime in the near future. 
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #5026