Frank y Janeth's US Immigration Timeline
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Petitioner's Name: Frank
Beneficiary's Name: Janeth
VJ Member: Frank y Janeth
Country: Colombia
Last Updated: 2011-07-01
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Immigration Checklist for Frank & Janeth:
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USCIS I-129F Petition:
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Dept of State K1 Visa:
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USCIS I-485 Petition:
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USCIS I-765 Petition:
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USCIS I-131 Petition:
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USCIS I-751 Petition:
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USCIS N-400 Petition:
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K1 Visa
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| Event |
Date |
| Service Center : |
Vermont Service Center |
| Transferred? |
No |
| Consulate : |
Bogota, Colombia |
| I-129F Sent : |
2011-01-11 |
| I-129F NOA1 : |
2011-01-14 |
| I-129F RFE(s) : |
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| RFE Reply(s) : |
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| I-129F NOA2 : |
2011-05-16 |
| NVC Received : |
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| Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : |
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| NVC Left : |
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| Consulate Received : |
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| Packet 3 Received : |
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| Packet 3 Sent : |
2011-06-08 |
| Packet 4 Received : |
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| Interview Date : |
2011-07-29 |
| Interview Result : |
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Second Interview
(If Required): |
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| Second Interview Result: |
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| Visa Received : |
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| US Entry : |
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| Marriage : |
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| Comments : |
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Processing
Estimates/Stats : |
Your I-129f was approved in 122 days from your NOA1 date.
Your interview took 196 days from your I-129F NOA1 date. |
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Member Reviews:
Consulate Review: Bogota, Colombia
Review Topic: K1 Visa
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
August 1, 2011 |
| Embassy Review : |
Janeth and I arrived at the embassy around 6:30 AM. There were a few lines formed outside, each in front of a numbered sign – since we were a K1 visa, we got into line number 3. When we got to the front, Janeth's documentation was checked (passport, and I believe they asked for the DS-156 as well but I don't recall 100%) and we were sent inside and through a metal detector, and then into the main waiting area. This area is very large and mostly uncovered, but there are several covered waiting areas with chairs. I recommend bringing an umbrella, but you'll be covered most of the time.
We were sent to a sign labeled with the number 40, when you enter it's on the left and all the way in the back. There, the promotora gave us a big folder labelled K which included instructions on how to organize the paperwork being asked of us. One of the supposed requirements is a letter declaring the applicant is single, basically an updated version of the intent to marry letter sent with the i-129f. The thing is, this is covered at the bottom of the DS-156K form, and when we asked about it (since we didn't bring any such letter), the promotora told us not to worry about it.
Then we were asked to have a seat and after a 30-minute wait or so, Janeth was called to one of the windows and spoke briefly with a lady who asked her several simple yes-or-no questions, including what my name was and things like that. Here, Janeth was asked to write my name on the DS-156. She then asked us to have a seat again. No more than 5 minutes later, she was called to window 2 to get her fingerprints taken.
After that, we were asked to wait again, and this is where we started to go a little crazy. We were already aware that we wouldn't be called in order of arrival, so we weren't bothered by seeing people who got there after us getting called, but I believe that we waited for every bit of 5 hours from start to finish. We were lucky to have someone to talk to, because the wait is nerve-wracking.
Finally, Janeth was called to speak to a consular officer at window 7. The officer was an American gentleman who spoke Spanish with a very thick American accent, and he asked Janeth one or two questions like where we met, if she spoke Engish or I Spanish, but he seemed more interested in speaking to me when she told him I had come with her. I spoke in Spanish with him for just a minute to prove I spoke it, and then we ended up conducting the rest of the interview in English. He asked me similar questions, as well as what I liked about her when we met, where I learned Spanish and for how long. Finally, he congratulated us, we paid Domesa (no delivery to San Andrés – why the embassy wouldn't use Deprisa or someone who had service to the entire country, I have no idea), and we were on our way.
Some notes:
1. I'm still not comfortable stating anything in absolute terms, but there was never so much as a PEEP about me, the US Citizen, needing a DAS certificate. Get one if you must for your own peace of mind, but I didn't need it.
2. No one ever asked for any of the evidence we had put together... guys, I really think that the US citizen being there does a world of good. Ours was probably a relatively normal, cookie-cutter case, but I do think the US citizen's presence is a great help in getting approval.
3. The questions aren't designed to trick you, and as long as you tell the truth, you have nothing to worry about. Their job isn't to find a way to deny as many visas as possible – their job is to weed out fraudulent applications and approve good ones. |
| 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
