DCF in Stockholm, Sweden

[Kensington 1]

Hi everyone,

Since I haven't seen any information about DCF in Sweden in this forum, I just wanted to start a thread to my experiences and invite others filing in Stockholm to join in (or anyone, for that matter).

My wife (USC) and I (a Swede) were at the US Embassy in Stockholm yesterday, where she filed an I-130 on my behalf. We got there just before 9 AM, when they open, and after going through security we found 25 or so people waiting. Most of them were there for either nonimmigrant visas or citizen services, though, so we were first in the immigrant visa line. After waiting about 5 minutes, a woman came to the window and took my wife's name and told us that we would be called when it was our turn.

We waited a few more minutes, and were called back to the immigrant visa window by another woman. My wife handed over our papers and was asked a bunch of questions, mostly straightforward stuff, to clarify the history of our relationship. When she had gone through all the documents, we were sent to the cashier to pay the $420 filing fee. We then had to sit down and wait for about 10 more minutes before my wife was called to talk to the consul, who asked a few questions and then approved the petition on the spot. All in all it took about an hour.

Considering how nerve-wracking it can be to be scrutinized, the overall experience at the embassy was great. Everyone was calm, friendly and professional.

We got our checklist of documents for the DS-230, some of which we have obtained already. Judging by other people's experiences, the 1-864 seems to be the biggest obstacle to overcome. We intend to use assets (savings + my yet-to-be-sold apartment), so any tips about things to keep in mind are welcome.

[EmigratingSwede 16]

Would you mind posting the checklist for the DS-230?

[Kensington 1]

Sure, here it is:

1. Passport

2. Birth Certificate

3. Police Certificate

"Utdrag ur brottsregistret"

4. Court and prison records

If applicable

5. Military Records

If you have done military service.

6. Photographs

2 identical photos

7. Evidence of Support

Form I-864 Affidavit of Support

8. Marriage Certificates

The long-form version of your Personbevis, provided that you were married in Sweden.

9. Original documents

"you must be prepared to present the originals of all civil documents which establish you claimed relationship to the petitioner"

10. Translations

All documents not in English will need to be translated

It was very similar, if not identical, to this form: http://www.wizaard.com/gkemper/phil/forms/of-169.pdf

I also got instructions for doing a medical:

Medical Examination

You will have to do this at one of the physicians listed on this page (scroll down and select Stockholm in the drop-down menu and it will open a PDF with the correct info).

http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3739.html

I wouldn't book my medical until the I-130 is approved, however, since the physician will send the results of the medical directly to the embassy. It feels safer to know that they have a file, with your name on it, to put the results in.

Getting a time for a medical was very easy though, at least here in Gothenburg, and the examination itself was quick, even if I had to go get my chest x-ray at a separate location.

Let me know of you have any more questions.

[Redkase 0]

Thanks so much for posting this! My husband and I live in Skåne and are just starting to plan our trip to Stockholm to file the i-130 and it's great to see that there's a chance that the whole thing could be processed so quickly. Our case is complicated somewhat by the fact that he is Danish, not Swedish, though we live and he's worked in Sweden. Which sort of leads into my question. Obviously most of the information on the embassy website relates to Swedes and Swedish documents, but we will need translations from Danish. For translations, did they have a list of approved translators or anything like that? Can you provide your own translations? Did they need to be notarized? - the form you linked to refers to Japanese translations requiring notarization - was this also required for Swedish?

Did the form in Stockholm also list the same forms at the end that the one you linked to includes?

Thanks again for sharing your experience!

[Kensington 1]

Thanks for your kind words -- if sharing my experience can help anyone, that's great! I will try to answer your questions as best I can.

We were actually able to get all of the explicitly required documents in English. Birth certificates, marriage certificates, police and military records were all in English, so no need for translations there. I would recommend trying to get all of the required documents in English from the Danish authorities, wherever possible.

The documents I did not manage to get English versions of were the supporting documents for the I-864 form, meaning bank statements and apartment evaluation. As those documents consisted mostly of numbers and not very much text, I decided to translate them myself. It ended up not being a problem, possibly since the case worker preparing the case before handing it to the consul was Swedish.

I have not found any list of Embassy-approved translators, but any certified translation company should do. As far as I can remember the checklist I received had the same translation requirement, but with Japanese obviously exchanged for Swedish. I was in contact with a translation company regarding my supporting documents, but since their quote for translating 4 pages--mostly consisting of numbers--was about $400, I decided to take the chance and translate them myself.

As for the forms listed at the end of the Japanese checklist, my checklist did not list the same forms. I got a separate sheet with instructions for what to send in (I think it was only the signed checklist and a filled DS-230 Part I) The fee has also changed and is now at $420, I believe.

Hope that helps, and let me know if you have more questions.

[Redkase 0]

We now have returned from our trip to Stockholm and the i-130 was approved right away. Now we're assembling everything for the checklist. My husband had his medical exam today, and we have almost everything else except the Swedish Police Certificate - didn't realize that processing time on that is two weeks! Yikes! The Danish one was sent within days. When I submitted the i-130 they said the waiting time for interviews after sending in the checklist right now is very short - could be as little as three weeks. So now we're just crossing our fingers for Polisen to be speedy, or rather holding our thumbs, especially since it's summer vacation time. I have to return to the US myself in just over a week to start my new job, so my husband will have to return to Stockholm for the second interview on his own. How was your experience of that one? Thanks again for your help.

[SweBro 1]

I had my 2nd interview just 2 weeks ago, It all was very simple. I just had to answer 3 questions.

1. Where did you met your wife?

2. Whats her parents names?

3. What is she planning to do in the US.

The interview was only 5-10 minutes long.

I got my papers from the Police only 3-5 days after I faxed and payed the fee, (have to do that in advance)

[Redkase 0]

Ah, thanks for the info SweBro - Polisen's website just says 2 weeks, but it's good to know it can be faster than that! I hope things go that quickly for us, too, and that my husband gets such easy interview questions. We've been a couple for six years so it shouldn't be a problem in any case!

[Redkase 0]

Latest, perhaps last update: DH's interview was on Tuesday, and got his visa in the mail today, one month and one day after we filed the i-130. We feel very fortunate to have been able to use the DCF option before it was discontinued! It was a real life-saver for us, and I'm sure for many others as well, and I'm sorry to learn it won't be available for future applicants.

[pretzelpretzel 0]

Latest, perhaps last update: DH's interview was on Tuesday, and got his visa in the mail today, one month and one day after we filed the i-130. We feel very fortunate to have been able to use the DCF option before it was discontinued! It was a real life-saver for us, and I'm sure for many others as well, and I'm sorry to learn it won't be available for future applicants.

Can someone please confirm that DCF has been discontinued in Sweden??

[Mrs. Diaz 1]

Can someone please confirm that DCF has been discontinued in Sweden??

Yes, that is correct.

My link

[Kimtrick 0]

hi! i was wondering if you were still willing to answer questions on this topic. i see the date of this post was in 2011, so i reckon you'll never see this, but just in case..

My fiance is Swedish, and our fiance visa has just been sent over to Stockholm.

i was wondering if you could help me answer some questions about what it will be like for him on his end of things once the embassy contacts him?

He's quite shy and i know he's terribly worried about the interview in Stocholm (he's from Gothenburg), the medical examination, and the paperwork that is required to bring to the interview. Any help is greatly appreciated if you do happen to see this! thank you!

-kimberly