I sent an email to the Mumbai consulate:



I got this answer:

Forgot to mention that preparing and sending in Packet 3 as soon as Mumbai receives the approved petition can save you a decent amount of time. For example, mail can take up to a week to arrive from Mumbai to where my wife lives.

Good info for others thanks!

As soon as you see (through DHL tracking) that your petition has reached Mumbai, try emailing them to confirm, then you can send in your packet immediately, saving weeks of time. Chennai answered me immediately confirming what day they received my packet.

I emailed Mumbai couple of times but never heard back from them. Finally called DOS number and they confirmed that Mumbai has the case in their system. My fiancee handed over the Packet3 at the Mumbai counter.

Yes, considering it took them 22 days to respond to me, I think I'll call them next time I have heard that the hold times can be long.

I did try their number a couple of times during the day and in the eve to inquire, but their lines are completerly blocked & could not get through.

Once you submit the Packet 3 does the embassy send you a confirmation letter or a receipt that the Packet 3 was received and processing or they just send you a Packet 4 when they get Packet 3?

No there is no confirmation letter or receipt. You can call/email to find out the status or wait for the packet4. Also 15/16th of every month they post the interview list for the next month.

guys what papers should i start to prepare? my i129f and 130 were just approved. what happens next? please i need some guide
thanks

hey guys,

I noticed that in the packet-3 instructions it says to send in the the enclosed DS-230. Is this the same form that we previously send to the NVC? why would we have to send it again?

If it is a different DS-230, is it available for download online?

thanks

Yes, it is the same DS-230 form, available for download online. And why would they want it again? Some things just don't make sense during this process. We just gotta keep sending in all the paperwork to make them happy so we get the approval!

The DS-230 that goes to the NVC does not require a photo right?

but the one that goes to the embassy does?

We applied for K1 visa and a photo was NOT required when sending the DS-230 to the Embassy. Two photos were however required with the two DS-156 forms we sent to the Embassy.

I have a couple of quick questions in regards with this Post-NVC topic:

Q.1) As you can see from my sig below, I am currently waiting for my wife's K3 case to be received by Mumbai Consulate, whats the best way to check and track to see if and when did Mumbai received her case. I was told by NVC that my wife's K3 case is enroute to Mumbai as of today(11/15/07) and the CSR also informed me that they will be doing an electronic transmission as well as DHL. Is there a way to find out this DHL tracking number? Because that would kind of confirm that my wife's K3 petition is in Mumbai. Any thoughts, suggestions.

Q.2) Just to confirm once more, for Mumbai, is it still okay to mail in packet3 as soon as I can confirm that my wife's K3 case has arrived in Mumbai? OR Does my wife needs to wait to receive her packet3 at home and ONLY after then she can mail her packet3 out to Mumbai Consulate. She checked locally(NOT with embassy) with some visa/travel agent and she was told that she HAS to wait to receive her packet3 in the mail but I have heard so much of post troubles in India (from other friends' and families' NVC cases) that I really get anxious about this. Once I can confirm that the case is indeed at Mumbai consulate, can my wife pick up and drop off her packet3 in person? If not pick up, then can she atleast drop off in person? Does the Mumbai embassy will allow her to do so? Because that would certainly take out the post office snafu variable and not to mention we will also shave some of the waiting time.

Any other tips/info is most welcome too. Thanks a lot to all for your great deal of time and help.

Bump for some good followup questions by last post. I will be filing the biographic DS230 portion to NVC soon.
What would be the best way of tracking the "transfer" of my case to the Mumbai Consulate. Would greatly appreciate your input.

To find out if my wife's approved K3 had been delivered in Mumbia, I called DHL. There are threads about this, however, they deal with using DHL's online tracker. That no longer works (or it didn't a few months ago anyway). So, call them and they will help you out.

You can also just email Mumbai Consulate and they will tell you if they received the package or not. Read their auto-reply to your email CAREFULLY as it contains instructions on how to REALLY send email that will reach a real person and not their automated system. In the past, it said you have to use specific text in the subject line. As always, include your BMB number (you can get that from NVC).

Vikasp,
Thanks for sharing the above info.

Mumbai consulate has replied to my email telling me that they have mailed out packet 3 on Nov 19th but my wife still hasn't received it as of 11/27/07. They also added in the email that we can print a "duplicate" off their website. So, my wife and I have decided that we will give it another day or two but then we will print one off their website and mail it to them proactively, esp since they state in their email to me that they are awaiting OUR response to their packet 3 mailed out to us. Anyways, my papers will be with my wife in a day or two so we are going to wait for that to happen and if we still haven't received their "official" packet 3 then my wife will just proactively mail it out from her side with all the necessary forms in it.

Hope this helps others going thru Mumbai. Good Luck.

There is no need to wait for the Packet3 from Mumbai Consulate. Just download the packet3 from the website and submit ASAP. I had received my packet3 and packet4 on the same day!!!

Thanks for sharing. We will submit the packet 3 ASAP. Thanks again.

Where exactly at the consulate do you submit the Packet 3? is there a particular office/department we go?
Also please clarify what exactly consists of the Packet 3, is the following correct? is there any thing else to add to this list that makes up the Packet 3?

PACKET 3 CONSISTS OF: (Please add to this list if you know of anymore)
1) The Packet 3 PDF Checklist/ Applicant's Statement Sign-off (From mumbai consulate site pdf)
2) DS-230 Part 1 + Photographs (2)
3) Passport Copies (Biographic Data/Parent Names) First/Last Pages

Also whats the best way to track the NVC case transfer to the consulate?
And is emailing the best way to find out if the case was received by Mumbai Consulate?

You mail or courier it to the address given in Packet 3.

As previous posts mention, the point is to avoid the mail based delivery. Is there a reputible courier that you can recommend? DHL? or is delivery by hand/yourself best?

Still hoping to get confirmation on what the packet 3 consists of exactly, is it what i pointed out in my last post?

Your P3 list is complete.

While mail delivery may be slow, it did not cause us any delays. I do not see how you can go to the consulate to turn in your documents, though. There are guards outside and no entry is allowed unless you have an interview letter (or, I guess, if you are a USC with proof). We used regular registered mail which got to Mumbai from Surat in about 3 days.

Folks,

What docs should I include when I mail them the Packet 3? Do I have to send the police certificate, birth certificate, evidence of engagement that DS 156 mentions?

Can you please let me know.

Thanks much.

Hey guys,
DO NOT wait for packet3 to arrive in the mail... there is a chance it might never come. Ours never did. We proactively downloaded the forms and gave them to Mumbai Consulate and I think I probably saved atleast a few weeks. This has a direct impact on your interview date since the consulate needs DS-230 filled out to assign an interview date for your case. I would also say that - once you give packet3 to Mumbai Consulate, call DOS and find out if Mumbai Consulate has processed it and then go pick up packet4 from them as well instead of waiting for it in the mail.


Regards.

What is the best way to verify the case has been transfered/received by the Mumbai consulate (email/phone... etc)? My case was just updated on NVC Automated System as being completed. Hope someone can fill me in please as I've seen some posts that seem like they had access to DHL tracking of some sort.

Also ras001 where did you go exactly to pickup the Packet 4 and how did you know it was ready for pickup?

The link below explains very well how you can track when your case reaches the Consulate -> http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=72919

When you call DOS they can tell you if your Packet3 was logged in the system. Once it is, I'd wait 2-3 days (if you go next day they might say we have mailed it to you and ask you to wait) and then go pick up Packet4 from Mumbai Consulate's Information Window any working day between 9:30am-11am. Just tell them that you have not received Packet4 and they will give you another copy (including your interview letter).

Thanks so much ras001! thats a big help, didnt know about the Department of State number.

For Packet 3 (K1 visa), do you have to submit DS-15k or DS-156K?

Are there any other forms to be submitted?