Tamara/Junior's US Immigration Timeline
Immigration Checklist for Tamara & Junior:
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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 : |
Vermont Service Center |
| Transferred? |
No |
| Consulate : |
Dominican Republic |
| Marriage (if applicable): |
2014-01-14 |
| I-130 Sent : |
2014-02-21 |
| I-130 NOA1 : |
2014-02-25 |
| I-130 RFE : |
2014-06-05 |
| I-130 RFE Sent : |
2014-06-25 |
| I-130 Approved : |
2014-08-08 |
| NVC Received : |
2014-08-26 |
| Received DS-261 / AOS Bill : |
2014-08-27 |
| Pay AOS Bill : |
2014-08-27 |
| Receive I-864 Package : |
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| Send AOS Package : |
2014-11-06 |
| Submit DS-261 : |
2014-08-27 |
| Receive IV Bill : |
2014-09-26 |
| Pay IV Bill : |
2014-10-31 |
| Send IV Package : |
2014-11-06 |
| Receive Instruction and Interview appointment letter : |
2015-03-10 |
| Case Completed at NVC : |
2015-03-10 |
| NVC Left : |
2015-03-11 |
| Consulate Received : |
2015-03-16 |
| Packet 3 Received : |
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| Packet 3 Sent : |
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| Packet 4 Received : |
2015-03-11 |
| Interview Date : |
2015-04-01 |
| Interview Result : |
Approved
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Second Interview
(If Required): |
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| Second Interview Result: |
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| Visa Received : |
2015-04-09 |
| US Entry : |
2015-04-17 |
| Comments : |
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Processing
Estimates/Stats : |
Your I-130 was approved in 164 days from your NOA1 date.
Your interview took 400 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 : |
2015-04-17 |
| Got EAD Stamp : |
Yes,Passport Stamp |
| Biometrics Taken : |
Yes |
| Harassment Level : |
10 |
| Comments : |
The people were rude and acted like we were bothering them. The customs agent went through all of our luggage and stabbed open my bag of coffee with his pocket knife. Then he drilled us with questions more than the interview. My husband and I were so frustrated that we started arguing with each other. It was a horrible welcome to the USA. I do NOT recommend JFK for POE. |
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Member Reviews:
Consulate Review: Dominican Republic
Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
April 8, 2015 |
| Embassy Review : |
Hello everyone so here is our interview story for April 1st @9am. Sorry in advance for it being so long but hey I know that I used to appreciate all the little details. So here it goes:
I woke up at 5:30am. Junior laid in the bed a little while longer. I got up showered and got myself together then help him get ready. I wanted to be at the embassy around 8am but we were running a little late so we arrived at 8:15am. There were like 10 people total in the lines outside. I didn't see any of those famous buscones. By the way, Junior is still on crutches so we wanted to use this to our full advantage. I grabbed an officer and explained that he couldn’t stand that long outside and she rushed us in. So we skipped that line outside. Then we went through security and were not separated. All I brought with me was a sweater and all of our evidence (photos, money transfers, love letters etc.) in a huge folder. We went to the outside seating area where they make you sit down and call in people like 5 at a time. It was like 20 to 30 people waiting outside. I also approached a lady working there and explained how my husband cannot keep getting up and sitting back down it would be very difficult for him. So we were escorted in without the wait. Once inside a lady handed me #338. The whole waiting area was full there were already people standing without seats. So after walking down the aisle a bit looking for seats two nice gentlemen gave up their seats for us. We were seated at 8:30am. So we sat down by that time they were calling numbers in the 120s.
I know that the numbers don’t necessarily go in order but for some reason they kind of were. We sat there chatting with other people and Junior was trying to remember my address. We saw some people being approved and other not. One family broke down at the window really bad. They were crying profusely. At around 10:15am our number was finally called to window #27. The lady only asked for our interview letter and asked us to have a seat nearby because she would call us in a few minutes. So we sat down again and waited, we were a little nervous but mainly anxious. So at 10:35am Junior actually heard our names being called again. So we approached window #27 again. The lady asked for his medical results, our marriage certificate, his birth certificate, police certificate and his passport. She looked over everything and told us that our marriage certificate was not legalized with the sticker on the back. She made it seem like we would have to come back. I wanted to start going off but remained calm. I saw on our folder it was stamped in all caps APPROVED. She gave us back papers submitted to USCIS and NVC. She gave us the domestic violence pamphlets. She asked us to sit back down again and wait to be called. So Junior and I started bickering a little bit at this time. I asked him why would he legalize the birth certificate and not the marriage certificate. He told me that he thought everything was well prepared and was sad thinking that it was his fault and we were going to be denied. I told him it’s better to not talk like that and let’s stay positive.
At 12:15pm, we were called to window #26; there was a African-American lady behind the window with a smile. So I felt better immediately. She asked us do we prefer Spanish or English. I responded that I prefer English but both will be fine and Junior responded Spanish. So she swore us in using Spanish and then interviewed me in English.
Consulate: How do you guys communicate?
Me: Spanish 87% of the time because Junior is still learning English.
Consulate: How did you meet?
Me: Through a friend that was dating his cousin.
Consulate: So tell me more about how you guys met. What did you think about him when you first saw him? (She was flipping through the photos that we sent with the I-130 package.)
Me: My friend was pregnant by his cousin. She and I are like family because she doesn’t have any family in Virginia. She invited me to meet her family and friends in the DR. So we planned a trip. I went out there I saw Junior but he was really shy. So I didn’t think much about him. He was not my type. I am adventurous and loud and he is calm and shy.
Consulate: So how did you all end up together?
Me: During my visit, we had time to talk. He has a wonderful personality once you get passed all the shyness. He makes me laugh more than anyone else in this world. He is family oriented just like me.
Consulate: So how long have you all been together?
Me: 3 years together, 1 year married.
Consulate: How many times have you visited him?
Me: This trip makes 11.
Consulate: Where did you get married?
Me: Altamira
Consulate: Where is that? Was it in a hotel?
Me: Near Puerto Plata. No, it was like the Justice of the Peace and afterwards we celebrated with our family and friends at his house.
Consulate: I see that your mother signed the affidavit of support for you did she go the wedding?
Me: Yes, would you like to see the photos?
Consulate: Sure. (She looked through them and asked me who was who for a while.)
Consulate: Looks like you all had a pretty wedding at the hotel.
Me: No, we did not get married in a hotel. We spent the days before the wedding and our honeymoon at the RIU. (I was thinking she was trying to trick me.)
Consulate: Oh ok. So what happened to your husband’s leg?
Me: He was in a very bad motorcycle accident in November of last year.
Consulate: Wow, sorry to hear that. I guess he won’t be getting back on any more motorcycles.
Me: No, he loves them and has already been back on one since the accident. We just arguing about that the other day. (The consulate laughed and so did we.)
Consulate: ¿Junior, Ha sido usted fuera del pais?
Junior: No
Consulate: ¿Alguien ha solicitado para usted antes?
Junior: No, sólo mi esposa.
Consulate: ¿Ustedes tienen hijos juntos? O con otras personas? (To both of us)
Junior and I: No.
Me: Not yet, I wanted to wait until after he was with me.
Consulate: ¿Tiene problemas con la policía?
Junior: Gracias a dios no.
Consulate: ¿Ha sido usted fuera del pais?
Junior: No (I thought is she being tricky again?)
Consulate: Where do you work and what do you do there?
Me: I work for a major credit card company. I work in quality control so I listen to calls and make sure that the agents are doing a good job,
Consulate: Well I don’t see any problems with this case. Ustedes son aprobados. (To Junior) Buena suerte ahí fuera. Espero que te recuperes y cuidase. (To me) The visa will be sent to the pickup location you chose while scheduling the VAC appointment. It should be ready in a few weeks or so. Good Luck!
We both thanked her several times and hugged and kissed.
We were out of the embassy at 12:30pm. A taxi pulled up out front right as we were leaving so I flagged him down. We were too nervous to eat that morning so we went to his aunt’s house to eat and share the good news. POR FIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
***UPDATE: The CEAC website said that the visa was issued on April 6th. Our pickup location is in Santiago. So we are just waiting for the email that the visa is ready and checking on the CEAC website and traveldocs for any updates. We tried calling but it hasn't arrived yet or so they say. I have already returned to work but I will go back to do POE with him.*****
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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
