DCF in Frankfurt (2013)

[atenea26 5]

Hi everybody!

I have just found this forum and it really helps me calm down while waiting for all the paperwork is done.

Our story as follows. I'm Venezuelan, hubby is American/German. We met in Berlin in 2010 and got married in the US on July 2012. We decided to do so with me travelling under my tourist visa because we were not going to stay in the US. In August we moved to Germany so he could finish his MA. Since then I learned German and found a job with the United Nations. He's currently writing the thesis and we have bought tickets to fly back to the US on October 20.

We filed the I-130 on April 18 this year (I received my German residence card in October 2012) and we received our NOA1 on April 29. Since then, nothing else has happened. We have gathered all the other documents we need and will send them as soon as we get the NOA2. We're a little nervous because we don't want to lose the tickets we already have.

If you read this and are also filing in Frankfurt share your experience! What your times are?

[lost_at_sea 995]

Hey, welcome!

I couldn't think of any one immediately who I've seen active reporting on German DCF at Frankurt, but I had a look at the timelines and found a couple similar to yours (found via the "show similar timeline" link on your timeline):

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?cfl=&id=162358

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?cfl=&id=157040

It's always a bit tricky on here to work out which are DCF and which aren't, because it's not something folks on here seem to have the opportunity to do that often.

This one is definitely an old DCF timeline though: http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=99110 (took them 5 months)

I found these threads, too. They're a bit old, but they're German DCF people asking for help with finished timelines (click the "timeline" on their user info to see how they faired):

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/15888-dcf-frankfurt-germany/ - Their timeline was very short. 3 months!

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/353134-dcf-frankfurt/ - Another at about 4 months

Theoretically, DCF should always be quicker than regular I-130 done via the States. I'd be inclined to hassle the embassy and find out what dates they're processing. I don't know what's normal for Frankfurt, I'm afraid, but the timelines I found suggest it would be reasonable to chase them up! Sorry I don't know more about Frankfurt.

[Mark88 183]

Our DCF in Frankfurt took about 4 months. But I did hear cases of taking anywhere from 6 weeks (very short) to 1 year (very long for DCF in Frankfurt).

[atenea26 5]

Thank you for your answers!

lost_at_sea, these references are very useful! I'm gonna give them a call this week and see if we can get any information. On the NOA1 said that we shouldn't call or email them before 90 days because that would delay the process.

Mark88, I hope ours doesn't take as long as 12 months!

I'll keep the thread updated as soon as we have more information.

[veronicavonn 7]

I'm watching this thread now, because we sent our I-130 to Frankfurt and they received it at their offices on May 15, 2013. We still have yet to hear a response! VERY frustrating. At least you're ahead of me!

[droplets 2]

Hi,

I filed the I-130 in person at the Frankfurt office on March 08, 2013 and it was approved on April 12, 2013. My wife is about to receive her interview date in the mail soon. It would've been quicker, but I took an extra month to acquire all the paperwork I needed to submit to them. I encourage you to keep contact with them by email, they are helpful. Even though it states on their website that they can't give status updates, I ask anyway and they always tell me what's going on. For example, they just told me they sent out my wife's interview letter recently.

-Ron

[droplets 2]

Just found out my wife's interview is on June 27th

[lost_at_sea 995]

Just found out my wife's interview is on June 27th

Congrats! Good to hear DCF Frankfurt is performing well for you.

[droplets 2]

Congrats! Good to hear DCF Frankfurt is performing well for you.

Thanks! After they received the medical results they immediately scheduled her an interview. And the panel physician was very easy going. I'm glad everything went well thus far. Good luck to you!

[droplets 2]

Thanks! After they received the medical results they immediately scheduled her an interview. And the panel physician was very easy going. I'm glad everything went well thus far. Good luck to you!

Oops, just realized you're not the OP. Good luck anyway

[lost_at_sea 995]

Oops, just realized you're not the OP. Good luck anyway

That's okay. Good luck to everyone.

[JasMi 1]

My husband and I filed in Frankfurt last August. Unfortunately, our DCF took a long time (7 months). We are still not sure why so long, as our case was straight forward and we lived together. They misplaced the documents I sent in, never informed us about our I-130 approval, and poorly communicated over email. They eventually scheduled my interview 2.5 months after my husband's scheduled move back to the US (he was on orders). We suspect it was a mistake as they eventually re-scheduled it to a week later.

Otherwise, the interview went very smooth and we were able to pick up my visa a day later.

Good luck with your interview

[atenea26 5]

Hello everybody!

Fortitude, congratulations! We're still waiting for the NOA2. On Tuesday will be 2 months since we filed. Thanks for encouraging us to actually send them an email. I'm going to do so next Monday. By the way, where did you wife get her medical examinations? I live in Bonn and I am considering going to Dortmund eventually, it's easier and cheaper.

JasMi, I hope our case doesn't take that long.

Thanks for sharing everyone, please keep us updated!

[droplets 2]

Thanks. She had the medical examination in Frankfurt because we live nearby. The expected time for the I-130 to be approved is 60-90 days, so you still don't have much to worry about. But I still don't understand why some people are approved before others. I included our child's U.S. birth certificate, so maybe that's why it was only a month for us.

[atenea26 5]

Hi guys!

Just a quick update to say I've just received in the mail my NOA2 with the approval and I'm getting ready to send all the papers on Monday morning. It was very exciting!

So, veronicavonn, there's still hope! Considering mine took 2 months, yours shouldn't take that long

I'll keep you guys posted