b_n_l's US Immigration Timeline

Petitioner's Name: Ben Beneficiary's Name: Luis VJ Member: b_n_l Country: Portugal Last Updated: 2016-09-22 Add Comment to Timeline Register or log in to follow this timeline

Immigration Checklist for Ben & Luis:

USCIS DCF I-130 Petition:       Dept of State IR-1/CR-1 Visa:     USCIS I-751 Petition:   USCIS N-400 Petition:

IR-1/CR-1 Visa Event Date Service Center : California Service Center Transferred? No Consulate : Armenia Marriage (if applicable): 2012-11-30 I-130 Sent : 2015-07-03 I-130 NOA1 : 2015-07-09 I-130 RFE : 2015-08-06 I-130 RFE Sent : I-130 Approved : 2015-10-13 NVC Received : Received DS-261 / AOS Bill : Pay AOS Bill : 2015-11-21 Receive I-864 Package : Send AOS Package : Submit DS-261 : 2015-11-21 Receive IV Bill : Pay IV Bill : 2015-11-21 Send IV Package : 2016-04-08 Receive Instruction and Interview appointment letter : Case Completed at NVC : 2016-06-16 NVC Left : Consulate Received : Packet 3 Received : Packet 3 Sent : Packet 4 Received : Interview Date : 2016-09-21 Interview Result : Approved Second Interview (If Required): Second Interview Result: Visa Received : US Entry : 2016-10-11 Comments : Interview in EUA’s Embassy in Madrid - Immigrant Visa (married for 3 years and 10 months) We took a number and were called maybe 15 mins after we had taken a number. The person working was nice and requested my (the beneficiary’s) passport. She proceeded to fetch our file. She then asked for 1 picture and for the medical exam results and to see the originals of my birth certificate and marriage certificate which she compared with the copies she had on file. She returned the originals. She asked for the police records which she again compared with the copies, keeping the originals this time. She then requested the 2015 tax returns of my husband and of our co-sponsor, only keeping the first 4 pages. She then explained that we should take a seat and that we would be called by the same number to do the interview with a consular agent. We waited for another 10/15 mins. Again, a very nice agent greeted us. He noticed a ring my husband wears (not a wedding ring) and asked about it, more out of personal curiosity I think. My husband told him it was his great grandfather’s ring and the agent asked were he was from. The agent asked my husband to sit down and explained that he was going to ask me a few questions. He asked the following: - Which were the countries where you lived for more than 3 months? I replied according to the correspondent criminal records I turned in. - When and where did you guys get married? - How did you two meet? And you have been together ever since? - So you are both artists? What kind of artists? - Where did your husband study? - Can you show me some pictures of your wedding? - Where are you going in the USA? What are your parents-in-law names. - Why do you want to move to the USA? And that was it. After that last question he said “Congratulations your Visa has been approved. You will receive your passport in approximately 7 days”. Processing Estimates/Stats : Your I-130 was approved in 96 days from your NOA1 date. Your interview took 440 days from your I-130 NOA1 date.

Member Reviews:

Consulate Review: Madrid, Spain Review Topic: General Review Event Description Review Date : September 22, 2016 Embassy Review : Interview in EUA’s Embassy in Madrid - Immigrant Visa (married for 3 years and 10 months) We took a number and were called maybe 15 mins after we had taken a number. The person working was nice and requested my (the beneficiary’s) passport. She proceeded to fetch our file. She then asked for 1 picture and for the medical exam results and to see the originals of my birth certificate and marriage certificate which she compared with the copies she had on file. She returned the originals. She asked for the police records which she again compared with the copies, keeping the originals this time. She then requested the 2015 tax returns of my husband and of our co-sponsor, only keeping the first 4 pages. She then explained that we should take a seat and that we would be called by the same number to do the interview with a consular agent. We waited for another 10/15 mins. Again, a very nice agent greeted us. He noticed a ring my husband wears (not a wedding ring) and asked about it, more out of personal curiosity I think. My husband told him it was his great grandfather’s ring and the agent asked were he was from. The agent asked my husband to sit down and explained that he was going to ask me a few questions. He asked the following: - Which were the countries where you lived for more than 3 months? I replied according to the correspondent criminal records I turned in. - When and where did you guys get married? - How did you two meet? And you have been together ever since? - So you are both artists? What kind of artists? - Where did your husband study? - Can you show me some pictures of your wedding? - Where are you going in the USA? What are your parents-in-law names. - Why do you want to move to the USA? And that was it. After that last question he said “Congratulations your Visa has been approved. You will receive your passport in approximately 7 days”. They send it via MRW (they confirmed the address to send the package is in Spain). ------------- In general, the embassy is not very crowded, so the process goes fairly quickly. The agents are friendly, not at all intimidating. The security to enter is run by a Spanish company, so it isn't until you get into the embassy itself that English starts to be spoken. At security they will take everything except the paperwork you need for the interview (they keep mobile phones and anything else you bring besides your wallet and the paperwork - not even the bag we carried the paperwork in was allowed). Inside, there are a few books to read while you wait, but no clock (a few people were asking the time, but nobody knew!) -- all in all a pleasant experience and very efficient. Rating : Very Good

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*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.

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