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| London, United Kingdom |  Review on May 4, 2010: |
Kristin&David
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
My interview was scheduled for 8am. I arrived to the embassy at 7:10am and there were already about 20 people ahead of me queuing. An english lady did an initial sweep down the line at about 7:30, telling people what they could and couldn't have with them. I had arranged to leave my phone and music player elsewhere, and luckily none of my keys had an electronic fob, as those also were not allowed which caught out a fair few people. The rule was anything that "has a button" is not allowed, I would advise against anything with circuitry (watches are fine).
The same lady then did an initial sort though person by person, and checked again that everyone had the correct items. For this I needed the appointment letter and passport only.
We then moved on to an american security guard, who checked the exact same paperwork. We were then ushered through the metal detectors, and had our bags scanned. I was asked to taste my water.
Once we were through the security, we walked to the visa entrance (clearly signed), and were greeted by a lady, who then checked the same paperwork and gave a ticket with a number on. Mine was I901, which seemed to indicate that I was the second in line of the Immigrant visa processing. The time now was about 7:50.
I then waited about 15 minutes for my number to be called, and went to the allocated window. Bear in mind that there are many more non-immigrant visas processed (starting with N), so try not to feel too victimised with the lack of I's called! There I had my fingerprints and photo taken, and was asked various basic questions and asked to hand over the relavant paperwork:
- 2 passport photos
- my birth certificate
- police certificate
- I-134, affidavit of support
I was asked to pay my visa fee at another window (£86), and brought the receipt back to the original window.The middle aged lady was very courteous, and put me totally at ease with her weather small talk and smiling. This part took about 10-15 minutes. I asked how long it would be until the next stage, and was told that I was first in the queue for the interview, so not long.
I was then given the form for the courier, and asked to sit back down and wait for the interview. The form should be only filled in at this stage, not given to anyone.
After a short wait, I was called to the window for the interview. A single fingerprint was taken, and I was asked to take a vow about the correctness of the information submitted. The older man (which others seem to have mentioned) was again friendly and courteous. He asked the following questions:
- when I proposed
- when I met my fiancee
- where I would be living after moving.
After a short time he said "I've checked your paperwork, and I'm going to go ahead and approve your application". This stage only took about 5 minutes. I was grinning from ear to ear, went and paid the courier fee (card only), and went on my merry way at 9:50.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #6017