JennyWhiteley's US Immigration Timeline
Immigration Checklist for Daniel & Jennifer:
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USCIS I-130 Petition:
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Dept of State IR-1/CR-1 Visa:
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USCIS I-751 Petition:
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USCIS N-400 Petition:
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IR-1/CR-1 Visa
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| Event |
Date |
| Service Center : |
National Benefits Center |
| Transferred? |
No |
| Consulate : |
London, United Kingdom |
| Marriage (if applicable): |
2012-10-10 |
| I-130 Sent : |
2013-02-05 |
| I-130 NOA1 : |
2013-02-08 |
| I-130 RFE : |
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| I-130 RFE Sent : |
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| I-130 Approved : |
2013-05-14 |
| NVC Received : |
2013-06-10 |
| Received DS-261 / AOS Bill : |
2013-06-27 |
| Pay AOS Bill : |
2013-06-27 |
| Receive I-864 Package : |
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| Send AOS Package : |
2013-06-29 |
| Submit DS-261 : |
2013-06-21 |
| Receive IV Bill : |
2013-07-02 |
| Pay IV Bill : |
2013-07-02 |
| Send IV Package : |
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| Receive Instruction and Interview appointment letter : |
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| Case Completed at NVC : |
2013-07-26 |
| NVC Left : |
2013-08-08 |
| Consulate Received : |
2013-08-12 |
| Packet 3 Received : |
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| Packet 3 Sent : |
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| Packet 4 Received : |
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| Interview Date : |
2013-09-10 |
| Interview Result : |
Approved
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Second Interview
(If Required): |
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| Second Interview Result: |
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| Visa Received : |
2013-09-13 |
| US Entry : |
2013-09-16 |
| Comments : |
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Processing
Estimates/Stats : |
Your I-130 was approved in 95 days from your NOA1 date.
Your interview took 214 days from your I-130 NOA1 date. |
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Port of Entry Review
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| Event |
Date |
| Port of Entry : |
JFK |
| POE Date : |
2013-09-16 |
| Got EAD Stamp : |
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| Biometrics Taken : |
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| Harassment Level : |
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| Comments : |
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Member Reviews:
Consulate Review: London, United Kingdom
Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
September 13, 2013 |
| Embassy Review : |
London CR1 interview
I left my friends flat at 7:00am after triple checking all my paperwork. I arrived at marble arch just before 7:30, and I picked up a chai latte and dropped off my cellphone and key fob at Goulds Pharmacy before waking to the embassy. I had assumed there would be a really long queue, but I just walked straight up to the desk and showed the woman my interview letter and I was directed to the security booth, where I out my bag through the scanner and was told to take a sip of my drink to prove it wasn't dangerous. I walked round the right had side of the building to a set of doors and walked up to a reception type desk where I handed over my interview letter again and the lady stuck a strip of stickers on it all with barcoded and the number I908. Now my interview was only at 9:00am, but I think that when you arrive at the embassy, irrespective of the time of your "actual" interview, you're given the next number along in your visa category and you essentially form a new queue with your assigned numbers. So if you want to get out of there early, get there early  And don't listened to the "don't arrive over an hour before your interview" because I did and no one seemed to care in the slightest!
Right back to the interview: you walk into a really long rectangular room with rows and rows of seats facing a bank of television screens up high on the opposite wall to where you came in. The left hand screen was black at the time but as soon a the interviews started at 8:00am it was turned on and flicked through the N(non immigrant) I(immigrant) visas and various other letters and numbers to indicate other visas (I also saw L & V). I have no idea how long it took for me to be called up finally, but I chatted to naive guy there for a tourist visa for probably an hour and a half before I was called up to window 14.
A really nice friendly American guy greeted me and took my fingerprints from both hands and had a look through all my paperwork. He took my passport and interview letter, made me sign the back of my photos I had brought (just incase, even though I sent some to the NVC too, good thing I did!!). He also asked when I wanted to fly, and even though I wanted to leave on the Monday or Tuesday the next week, I told him I wanted to leave on the weekend. I wold very strongly advise that even if you want to fly in a month, tell them you want to fly asap, or you get put on the bottom of the pile! My interview was Tuesday, my visa was issued 24 hours later and is available for pick up today(Friday) from my local depot. I have seen too many people waiting weeks for their passports and it really stresses them out, so unless you need to delay the return of your passport for as long as possible I would just say you are flying within a few days to get it back asap and take that stress off yourself! After he had asked me a few further questions about where I lived and had a look through everything, he handed back my interview letter and told me to go and sit down and listen out for my number again.
After chatting to more people (it's really good at cal ing you down!) I was called up again to window 16 this time and was greeted by a very stoned faced, brown haired American man called Michael. After checking my fingerprints to see if it was still me, and making me raise my right hand and swear the information in the documents before him and that I was about to give was correct, he asked me:
Where my husband and I met
How he proposed
What our degrees were
What Dan wants to do for a job
What first attracted me to my husband
Where we are going to live when I get there
How long it had been since I last saw him
What did we do for our first date
He hardly smiled at all though the interview and didn't do much to settle my nerves, unlike the man I had before who put me at ease! What was worse was that after asking me this question he just got up and walked away!! No "excuse me a moment" or "I'll be right back" he just buggered off down the row of desks behind him and went to talk to someone there. It really terrified me that I was about to be denied!! Thankfully when he came back he said "I'm going to approve your visa" to which I squealed yay!! He then told me about how I would get my passport back (courier) and that I shouldn't open the envelope that comes with my passport as that's only for the immigration officers at the POE. I also told him about my imminent travel plans to reiterate the need for a quick issuance before hugging my paperwork to my chest and dancing my way out of there!!! Needless to say a lot of skyping ensued between my husband, his parents, my parents, my friends and I!! We are all so thrilled :D
A quick summary of some pointers:
Take extra passport photos, it can't hurt
Get the early to get out early
Tell them you plan to travel within a few days to get your passport back ASAP and not stress about where it might be.
Good luck on your interview day :D
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| Rating : |
Very Good |
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Timeline Comments: None yet, be the first!
*Notice about estimates: The estimates are based off averages of other members recent experiences
(documented in their timelines) for the same benefit/petition/application at the same filing location.
Individual results may vary as every case is not always 'average'. Past performance does not necessarily
predict future results. The 'as early as date' may change over time based on current reported processing
times from members. There have historically been cases where a benefit/petition/application processing
briefly slows down or stops and this can not be predicted. Use these dates as reference only and do not
rely on them for planning. As always you should check the
USCIS processing times to see if your application
is past due.
** Not all cases are transfered
ver 5.0
