JoannaV's US Immigration Timeline

Petitioner's Name: Joshua Beneficiary's Name: Joanna VJ Member: JoannaV Country: United Kingdom Last Updated: 2017-07-11 Add Comment to Timeline Register or log in to follow this timeline

Immigration Checklist for Joshua & Joanna:

USCIS 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 : London, United Kingdom Marriage (if applicable): 2009-07-11 I-130 Sent : 2009-08-26 I-130 NOA1 : 2009-09-01 I-130 RFE : I-130 RFE Sent : I-130 Approved : 2009-09-21 NVC Received : Received DS-261 / AOS Bill : 2009-10-05 Pay AOS Bill : 2009-10-14 Receive I-864 Package : Send AOS Package : Submit DS-261 : Receive IV Bill : 2009-10-28 Pay IV Bill : 2009-11-03 Send IV Package : Receive Instruction and Interview appointment letter : Case Completed at NVC : NVC Left : Consulate Received : Packet 3 Received : Packet 3 Sent : Packet 4 Received : 2009-12-11 Interview Date : 2010-02-11 Interview Result : Approved Second Interview (If Required): Second Interview Result: Visa Received : 2010-02-15 US Entry : 2010-02-23 Comments : My first interview appointment was for 2010-01-05, but I was in America so rescheduled it for a month later. Processing Estimates/Stats : Your I-130 was approved in 20 days from your NOA1 date. Your interview took 163 days from your I-130 NOA1 date.

Port of Entry Review Event Date Port of Entry : JFK POE Date : 2010-02-23 Got EAD Stamp : Biometrics Taken : Yes Harassment Level : 0 Comments :

Lifting Conditions Event Date CIS Office : Vermont Service Center Date Filed : 2011-11-28 NOA Date : 2011-12-05 RFE(s) : Bio. Appt. : 2012-01-30 Interview Date : Approval / Denial Date : 2012-08-28 Approved : Yes Got I551 Stamp : Green Card Received : 2012-09-14 Comments :

Citizenship Event Date Service Center : Lewisville TX Lockbox CIS Office : Norfolk VA Date Filed : 2016-12-20 NOA Date : 2016-12-28 Bio. Appt. : 2017-01-30 Interview Date : 2017-05-10 Approved : Yes Oath Ceremony : 2017-08-02 Comments :

Member Reviews:

Consulate Review: London, United Kingdom Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Event Description Review Date : September 28, 2010 Embassy Review : I arranged to stay in London for a few days with a friend. My interview time was 9am. I left my friend's house at maybe just after 7:30 to leisurely walk the ~45 minutes to the Embassy. I arrived at Grosvenor Square and slowly walked around the garden in the Square towards the Embassy. I observed the scene and at first it was a little confusing, as it looked like there were two different queues. But of course the second queue was just those who'd gone through the first queue. So I got in line and waited. At this time the line wasn't too long. At some point I got to a notice that said electronic devices were not permitted inside the Embassy. I was already aware of this, and had taken great care to leave my mobile etc. behind. (Which wasn't nice as my friend and her roommates didn't get home until late, so I had to hang out in the British Library for a while and wander back and forth in the cold with no way of contacting them to find out when someone would be back. But hey haha.) However this notice alerted me to the fact that flash drives were among the electrical devices that were banned! Unfortunately I keep a flash drive in my wallet. So ensued several minutes of panicking. Should I try to burrow it in the ground? (One has crazy thoughts when one is dealing with immigration haha.) I wasn't going to throw it away. I wasn't entirely sure of the capabilities of those scanning machines, so I didn't know if it was an issue. The main problem was that I didn't want to lose my place in the queue. It had now gotten rather long. I noticed that one woman who didn't get through security was allowed to run to the pharmacy and then go right back into security when she returned. So I decided that it would be best to wait and do that. I got up to the women with the checklists, they found my name and sent me on to the security line. In security my flash drive was of course noticed so I ran down the road to the pharmacy and paid my £2 to have it stored. I ran back and the man guarding the security line let me back in. So finally I was walking up the steps to the Embassy. There were several other people at the check-in desk, so I had to wait a few minutes. Then I was issued my ticket, entered the hall, and took a seat. I had a book with me, but it was kind of hard to concentrate because whenever a number was announced I would jump. I think there were only a couple of immigrant visas ahead of me, but plenty of non-immigrant visas. Eventually, maybe an hour, hour&half later I was called up. Gave him the documents I had to bring. He then sent me back to my seat, I think he gave me the envelope with my X-ray to hold. He also gave me the courier form to fill out. I had to borrow a pen from the person beside me :-) An hour later I was called up again. Very nice man. He asked me where it was I was going in America. Then he joked, saying of course he knew this, he had looked through my file. He then asked me a couple of questions, about when I had gone to America and when we had met each others families. I was really nervous inside. Then he said that I was approved! And that he had only asked any questions at all to, well, make conversation and make me feel I had at least been asked something haha. He said I would receive my passport and visa within a week. I then went to join the queue for the courier. They didn't really leave much space for people to queue, and there were a lot of people. Eventually I got there and paid and left. The courier didn't seem to accept many forms of payment, which seemed a little silly but anyway. My interview was on a Thursday and the visa was delivered on the Monday. (Before I myself returned actually!) Eight days later I moved to America. Rating : Very Good

POE Review: JFK Event Description Entry Date : 2010-02-23 Embassy Review : I arrived into JFK at lunchtime. I had arranged my connecting flight to Richmond for 6 hours later so as not to risk missing it if the process was drawn out. However, I was through within the hour. The queue was pretty short because our flight was half empty. The officer at the desk made a remark about it being nice to see someone who wasn't from a Third World country. He didn't exactly sound mean, but it was an odd comment. I wanted to point out that they would probably appreciate living in the US more than I would, but didn't want to antagonise him so remained silent. He glanced over my paperwork then took me into another room, leaving my suitcase outside. There I sat and waited for a while. (Quite a while.) Several officials were wandering around, but I guess there was only person who was working lol. She was dealing with two other people who were visiting, additional questioning or something. Eventually she called me over to the desk and took my inky fingerprints. Then I was good to go. It was a while ago so my memory of more details is vague. However it was a pretty straightforward experience. I think I had expected a bit more interrogation. Harassment Level : Low

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