I have corrected all the links in James Shortcuts (below) and highlighted them for easier use. Any links that you do find still broken can you let me know please.
Posted: May 14 2005, 05:34 AM James
Version 1.1 -- I've amended the shortcut instructions slightly to accomodate suggestions and the like.
James's NVC ShortcutsThe following NVC shortcuts are obviously not sanctioned by NVC but they have been proven to work without fail if you follow them to the "tee." If you are not good at comprehending instructions and/or English, you are probably better off not using these shortcuts.
A Bit of BackgroundAnywhere from a week to two weeks after your NOA2 from the USCIS service center (and, on those occasions where NVC has gotten quite backed up, perhaps a week or so more), NVC will assign you a case number. Approximately two weeks after NVC assigns you a case number, it will generate the DS-3032 Choice of Agent form and a $70 bill for the AOS (I-864) fee. You will be able to find out that it has generated the DS-3032 and the AOS fee bill by calling the automated recording (IVR)at NVC first thing on a Tuesday morning. (Updates to the IVR for the generation of forms and fee bills always occurs early Tuesday mornings.)
The DS-3032 and AOS fee bill represent two separate document/fee "tracks" through the NVC that ultimately come together at the end. The first, shorter track involves the AOS/I-864 and can be summed up as follows: you returning the AOS fee bill with the AOS fee to NVC, and NVC generates the AOS/I-864, which you then return to NVC. The second, somewhat longer track involves the immigrant visa application itself. Returning the DS-3032 Choice of Agent form to NVC leads to the generation of the IV (immigrant visa) fee bill. Returning the IV fee bill with the IV fee to NVC leads to the generation of the DS-230 IV application, which you then return to the NVC. Once NVC has completed reviewing both your DS-230 and your I-864, it deems your case processing completed and forwards the case to the embassy.
Because its "track" has one fewer step, the review of the AOS/I-864 is often completed long before the DS-230 has even arrived at the NVC. Thus, using the AOS fee bill and I-864 shortcuts below will, more often than not, not save you any time at all. However, if you anticipate a complicated I-864 situtation and/or if you are RFE prone, it won't hurt to get your I-864 in early. (The early completion of its review will, however, generate an odd kind of RFE -- you will hear the IVR tell you that "some documents are missing or incomplete" and that a "checklist" has been sent. This just means that they still haven't received your DS-230.)
Now let's get back to the meat of the matter and then on to the individual shortcuts.
Once NVC has generated the DS-3032 and the AOS fee bill, the NVC system is immediately ready to accept both of these from you -- that very day, in fact. Therefore, when you find out on that Tuesday morning that the DS-3032 and AOS fee bill have been generated, you can generate both of these on your own and send both of them to NVC that day. The same holds true for the other forms that NVC generates -- the IVR is updated on Tueday mornings if a form has been generated the previous day.
DS-3032 As soon as you receive your NOA2, you should have your spouse download and sign the downloadable version of the DS-3032 (available by clicking
HERE) and send it to you. Then, when you find out that NVC has generated your DS-3032, write the case number in the horizontal box that says "Place Case Barcode Strip Here Before Mailing to the National Visa Center." (Whenever you are asked for your case number, ALWAYS put in the three letters with which your case number begins, not just the numbers.) Use dark ink -- a black felt-tip pen would be ideal -- so the case number is legible.
Alternatively -- and this can prove to be excellent practice for the other shortcuts to come -- you can generate a barcode on your own and paste it in the horizontal box that asks for the barcode strip. Go to
http://www.idautomation.com/java/linearservlet.html. Type in the case number under "Data to encode." Under "Barcode symbology," select CODE 39. Select "No" for "Add check digit" and for "Add check digit to text" and select "Yes" for "Show text below barcode." Change the "X dimension" (bar width) to 0.05 and the "Barcode bar height" to 0.5. Click on "Create Barcode." Print out the result from the resulting pop-up window, cut out the barcode and case number below it, and paste it in the horizontal box on the DS-3032.
Send the completed DS-3032 to:
National Visa Center
Attention ACL
32 Rochester Ave.
Portsmouth, NH 03801-2909
AOS fee bill Because your AOS fee bill is generated at the same time as the DS-3032, you can also create your own AOS fee bill and send it in with the required fee. Download the MS Word copy of the AOS fee bill (available by clicking
HERE). Under "Bill date," type in the date the AOS fee bill was generated. Underneath the date, change "XXX2005123456" to your case number. (If you are applying for an IR1 instead of a CR1 make sure to change "CR1" to "IR1" whereever you see it.) Next to "Petioner's Name," type in your last name, first name, and middle name.
You will need to replace the barcode at the bottom of the page. Again, go to
http://www.idautomation.com/java/linearservlet.html. Select CODE 39. Select "No" for the "Add check digit," "Add check digit to text," and "Show text below barcode" options. Change the X dimension to 0.07 and the Barcode bar height to 0.85. Click on Create Barcode.
In the resulting window, right click on the generated barcode and left click on Copy. Go to the Word copy of the AOS fee bill, select the original barcode, and hit the Delete key. Then click on Paste under the Edit menu (or hit Ctrl + V on the keyboard). The barcode you generated should be in the exact same place as the original one you deleted.
Detach the fee bill at the dotted line (getting rid of the blank top two-thirds of the page). Get a money order or cashier's check payable to Department of State for $70.00, indicate next to "Amount enclosed" on the bill that you are enclosing $70.00, and send the bill and fee to:
National Visa Center
P.O. Box 790135
St. Louis, MO 63179-0135
Don't worry that you are not using the "envelope provided" as indicated on the fee bill. Presumably you are in a hurry here, so you should be sending the bill and money order off in a US Postal Service Express Mail flat mailer (the USPS is the only service that will deliver overnight to a P.O. Box).
I-864 Once the NVC system shows that it has received your AOS fee, it will generate the AOS/I-864 itself. (This may take anywhere from up to a month after you send the fee in.) Note, however, that neither the processing of the AOS fee nor the generation of the I-864 is reflected on the IVR -- you actually have to ask an operator. (An operator can be reached by pressing 1 and then 5 after dialing NVC.) The I-864 is almost always generated the Monday after the AOS fee has been processed. So if it is, for example, a Wednesday, and the operator tells you that your AOS fee was processed that same day, you know that your I-864 will almost assuredly be generated on the following Monday. Check that Monday to make sure that it has in fact been generated (again, talking to an operator), and then go ahead and send in the I-864 package you have already prepared.
You should have already completed the downloadable version of Form I-864 (available by clicking
HERE) and accumulated the supporting documents pursuant to the instructions that come with the I-864 and the NVC-generated I-864 instructions (available by clicking
HERE).
(Note that what you send to the NVC with the I-864 depends upon your financial situation. Also, you may need to send in an additional I-864 from a joint sponsor, and/or an I-864A contract from a household member. We're assuming here that for the past three years, you have had -- and still have -- a regular job making over 125% of the poverty level and can prove it. Those who also need an I-864 from a joint sponsor and or a I-864A from a household member should amend the instructions here accordingly.)
In addition to the I-864, you must generate and fill out an
Authorization for Release of Federal Tax Data. Download the MS Word copy of the Authorization for Release of Federal Tax Data (available by clicking
HERE). Under the barcode, type in your case number. At the bottom of the page, replace the entire phrase "XXX City" with the name of the city in which the embassy interview will take place (i.e., the "post" in Department of State parlance). So if the embassy interview is to take place in Caracas, Venezuela, delete "XXX City" and type in "CARACAS" (all caps).
Next, replace the sample barcode in the Authorization with one generated at
http://www.idautomation.com/java/linearservlet.html. Under "Barcode symbology," select CODE 39. Select "No" for the "Add check digit," "Add check digit to text," and "Show text below barcode" options. Change the "X dimension" (bar width) to 0.05 and the "Barcode bar height" to 0.5. Click on "Create Barcode." In the resulting window, right click on the generated barcode and left click on Copy. Go to the Word copy of the Authorization, select the original barcode, and hit the Delete key. Then click on Paste under the Edit menu (or hit Ctrl + V on the keyboard). The barcode you generated should be in the exact same place as the original one you deleted.
Finally, you will need the
I-864 coversheet. Download the MS Word copy of the I-864 coversheet (available by clicking
HERE). Change the XXX1234567890 at the bottom to your case number, then go generate the barcode at
http://www.idautomation.com/java/linearservlet.html.
To generate the barcode and put it in the sample coversheet, type in the case number under "Data to encode." Under "Barcode symbology," select CODE 39. Select "No" for the "Add check digit," "Add check digit to text," and "Show text below barcode" options. Change the "X dimension" (bar width) to 0.07 and the "Barcode bar height" to 0.7. Click on "Create Barcode."
In the resulting window, right click on the barcode and click on Copy. Then go to the MS Word copy of the I-864 coversheet, select the old barcode that's already there and hit the Delete key. Then click on Paste under the Edit menu (or hit Ctrl + V on the keyboard). You then need to further adjust the size of the barcode by right-clicking on it and clicking on "Format Picture." Then click on the "Size" tab. De-select "Lock aspect ratio" and change the height to 0.4" and the width to 3.45". Click on "OK."
You should include a cover letter with the I-864 package. With the cover letter, the order recommended by the NVC for the documents in the I-864 package is:
* Cover letter
* Barcoded cover sheet
* I-864
* Authorization for Release of Federal Tax Data
* Copy of tax returns from last three years along with copies of W2s
* Letter of employment
* Last three pay stubs
Write your case number in the upper right-hand corner of each page. Send the package to the NVC address listed on the barcoded coversheet.
DS-230 After your DS-3032 is received by NVC, the IV (Immigrant Visa) fee bill will be generated. Unfortunately, because NVC generates an apparently random transaction number and puts it after the case number in the barcode on the IV fee bill, it is not possible to send in the IV fee bill as soon as NVC generates it -- you will have to use the one NVC sends you. Once you do receive it and send in the fee, NVC will eventually generate the DS-230 -- the actual immigrant visa application itself. As soon as you find out that the DS-230 has been generated, you should send in the copy you already have prepared.
Well before your DS-230 is generated, your spouse should download, fill out, and sign the downloadable version of the DS-230 (available by clicking
HERE). (Generally, your spouse will only need to fill out and sign part I because he or she will be sent part II by the embassy when the interview appointment is given. However, if your spouse is from Canada, the Philippines, China, an African country, or two or three other countries for which NVC arranges the interview, your spouse may have to fill out -- but not sign -- part II. This DS-230 shortcut is primarily designed for those who only have to send in a DS-230 Part I.
You should find out from a VJ member whose spouse is from the same country as yours exactly what is required.)
You will need to attach the coversheet to the completed DS-230 Part I before sending it in. Download the MS Word copy of the DS-230 Part I coversheet (available by clicking
HERE ). Change the XXX1234567890 at the bottom to your case number, then go generate the barcode at
http://www.idautomation.com/java/linearservlet.html.
To generate the barcode and put it in the sample coversheet, type in the case number under "Data to encode." Under "Barcode symbology," select CODE 39. Select "No" for the "Add check digit," "Add check digit to text," and "Show text below barcode" options. Change the "X dimension" (bar width) to 0.07 and the "Barcode bar height" to 0.7. Click on "Create Barcode."
In the resulting window, right click on the barcode and click on Copy. Then go to the MS Word copy of the DS-230 Part I coversheet, select the old barcode that's already there and hit the Delete key. Then click on Paste under the Edit menu (or hit Ctrl + V on the keyboard). You then need to further adjust the size of the barcode by right-clicking on it and clicking on "Format Picture." Then click on the "Size" tab. De-select "Lock aspect ratio" and change the height to 0.4" and the width to 3.45". Click on "OK."
Generally, the only thing you will have to include beyond the DS-230 Part I and the cover sheet is a simple (i.e., not notarized) photocopy of the biographical information page from your spouse's passport. If your spouse is from Canada, a country in Africa, China, and those two or three other countries, more is generally required.
(Again, you should find out from a VJ member whose spouse is from the same country as yours exactly what you have to send in with the DS-230 Part I.) Send all of these things to the NVC address listed on the barcoded DS-230 Part I cover sheet.
Can you help me get to the AOS fee bill form? I am having a very difficult time accessing this link. I can't seem to find where I can just find the AOS fee bill or is there another name for it?
Thank you for your help. The shortcut really seems to a good way to go and I want to try it.
Thank you.
x 5!