Hey Captain,

I'm getting a lot more interested in Administrative Process/Administrative Review -- since that seems to be where I've landed.

As I understand it, people can get aware that their cases are in AP/AR (are these really completely synonomous?) at the Service Centers, at NVC, and at the embassy, before or after the interview. I suppose some people slip into and out of AP/AR without ever knowing it.

But it would be informative, seems to me, if we could somehow enter into timelines when we get aware of when we slip into AP/AR (and at what stage) and when we exit. Ideally, we could do timeline searches and find out how long people stay here, and who we are, and be able to compare notes (and maybe only complain to each other, since there doesn't seem to be much one can do to affect that most untransparent part of the process). It would also be interesting to know, at any given time, how long (and the probability distribution) of those who are in AP/AR at that specific time.

Could a feature like this be implemented?

Am I the only person who would be interested in it?

Novotul,

I just spent 1/2 writing a response and lost it all! Sheesh... ok I start again:

I found out Friday that NVC had my case for ONE day and sent my case already to Washington, DC for "Administrative Review." Check out my sig file.

I bring this up because MAYBE I jumped the gun and called too early. I have contacted other people who were put in the same A/R at the NVC phase and about 2 out of 3 were cleared in 1-3 weeks and everything went to the embassy.

I have also searched for anyone that has ever been denied after the NOA2 phase during A/R and I have found none.

Here is my theory and guess as to what has happened: I believe it is POSSIBLE - I have no strong evidence yet - but POSSIBLE nonetheless that there are many more files that go through A/R than we know. If most A/R's take one to three weeks then most people would not know unless they call the NVC earlier than the four weeks they tell us to wait.

My NOA2 is valid from 06/04/2007 to 10/04/2007. I don't think they will sit on many cases based on only 4 months of the approval validation dates. If they did then it would create even more work down the road.

I do know that some people get stuck in A/R for months and sometimes longer. Of course we all hope we are not one of those cases.

In my instance... I do have some criminal background from many years ago. No felonies and no jail time. For me I am guessing they are going to check my name against other databases to make sure I divulged all of my record. The more I think about this the more I am at peace with it although I don't like the delay. I'm at peace because I was totally honest on all of my papers and the I129F is approved. The only way they could send it back with a problem is if they found something extraordinary about the case beyond what they already know. There is nothing else. They know everything. So... once they verify everything I believe the case will move forward.

My point to this post is that I believe there MAY be many more people that go through A/R without even knowing it. Do they send you a notice that you are in A/R at all? Is the only way to find out is to call? If so then many people may not know because they are more patient and don't call unless they don't see activity for a month.

I quote from our NAO2:

**snip**
The NVC processing should be complete within two to four weeks after receiving the petition from USCIS.
**snip**
**snip**
If it has been more than four weeks since you received this approval notice and you have not received notification from NVC that you petition has been forwarded overseas, please call the NVC at 603-334-0700.
**snip**

There are people that have been in A/R for as little as 6 days.

Anyone that was in A/R for a short time should post a quick reply to this and let us know.

From my understanding, our petition has been at NVC since May 21st. They even sent me a letter dated May24th saying that WITHIN that week, our petition would be forewarded to the Embassy. But after calling NVC on Friday, I discover it is slated to go to DC, i.e., it has not even been sent to DC yet , and it is still sitting at NVC.
I cannot think why more checks are being ordered , unless it is because I petitioned last year for the same beneficiary. Other than that, we dont have a criminal record.
Im trying to not let this control me. God is in control, and has power over all circumstance.
David, NVC and DOS has no power to deny petitions.

David,

As far as the time limit according to your NOA-2...once you are in checks, the time limit does not apply . It only kicks in once the Embassy receives you petition.

I am unsure if the above statement is 100% correct. I am unsure of what background checks are actually done at USCIS before the approval.

For instance.... someone the NVC could find REAL incriminating evidence while doing their A/R that may cause a cancellation of a petition. If they have no power to cancel maybe this is why in some extreme cases the petition just sits for years because this is THEIR only legal recourse to stop the petition. Not sure... only conjecture at this point.

I think we're both very early in the A/R process. I am researching more today. I have only found one case being denied but it was after the interview and it was a male beneficiary from Pakistan.

Her profile says K-3 cancelled. I will PM her to find out more, but her petition did make it to the interview stage.

BUT... I have not found one single case where the NVC has cancelled or denied a petition. And... for the record I have found that about 2 out of 3 A/R's at NVC level take about a month or less time. Most of the rest of them take about three months. The ones that take longer than three months are rare but do exist.

I talked to two members of this forum via telephone about this topic today. We agree that one bad thing about this process is that the petitioner has NO LEGAL RECOURSE to find out information or communicate with the parties doing the investigation and/or review.

At best , this is about all that we can do:

II. ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW
"Administrative Review" refers to a Consular Official placing the case "on hold" because the Visa Petitioner or Beneficiary FAILED TO PASS the security name check or background check, or because the Consulate or State Department or Homeland Security NEEDS TO INVESTIGATE some issue or matter in the case more closely. Cases placed into Administrative Review can ADD WEEKS OR EVEN MONTHS to processing time and final decision on visa issuance, typically in most cases AT LEAST 4 to 8 weeks additional time. Under current regulation, there is no right of appeal within State Department or Homeland Security for administrative review status. It is suggested that visa petitioners and beneficiaries keep track of the status of their case as best as possible, and secure, if possible, the reason or reasons their case has been placed into administrative review, which at least helps to relieve some anxiety during the waiting time.

**STATUS CHECK OF CASES IN ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW: Status Checks of cases in administrative review should first be addressed to the Consulate in question. Click Here for List of Consulates. The State Department's Office of Visa Services can also assist in status checking of cases which are unusually delayed. Tel: 202-663-1225 (Punch 1, Then 0, Avg. Wait Time Approx. 15 minutes to Speak with a Live "Visa Specialist", ET 8:30 AM to 5:00PM). E-Mail: usvisa@state.gov Click Here for More Information. For people who want to be active during the painful waiting period, especially if it becomes protracted, here are two suggestions: 1. Request in Writing Information from Immigration Service and the State Department under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regarding the reason for the Administrative Delay. See: USCIS Freedom of Information Act Request. and State Department Freedom of Information Request. 2. Order the Visa Applicant's FBI record directly from the FBI and have it ready in case the Embassy requests same. See: FBI Criminal History Record.

Nagishkaw is correct. If a denial is to come it will come from the consulate or the USCIS service center. NVC and DOS are kinda like information processors.

Thank you for posting.

I have added you to the list of posters here that have experienced A/R.

Do you have any idea of why you went through your A/R? If you prefer to PM me that information I will keep it confidential if you like.

- David

as a requirement for all arab men from certain countries between ages of 18-45 must go through a security clearance. we had a name hit at the interview and were on AR for 7 months. nothing to hide here - standard procedure.

I hope it passes quickly for all of you at NVC. 7 months was a long time, glad it worked out for you lal brandow.

Naggie, a FOIA takes 12 month or longer according to the DOS agent I talked to.

Back to the site related idea from the OP, I think it is a great idea and I would like to see a country specific AP/AR timeline here on VJ. It would maybe be a little comforting because we feel so helpless in this.
I don't know how well it would work because each case is so very different but it would be great to do so and to find a pattern, maybe a country pattern.
DOS agents have called our case both being on AP and AR. Even the people emailing at the embassy have interchanged AP and AR.( Signed by varies assistents, the fraud prevention unit and the eligibility unit.) For the CO and their investigation teams it may be different.

Waiting 6 month after the interview and still in AP.

Omoba,

I think it would be very good to have a country specific A/R A/P tracking of some sort. That would be ideal but very difficult to track.

From what I have researched the only way people find out about A/R is the petitioner needs to request status. I suspect may more files go to A/R without people ever even knowing their case was in A/R.

At a minimum there should be a sticky in the some sections concerning A/R and A/P so people can post their results.

From what I have researched A/R is the term more commonly used at the NVC level before the interview. A/P is the terminology more used after the interview.

Similar to an RFE at the USCIS stage, there are very few denials.

With an RFE they give a specific date of the RFE and also a specific date the RFE has been submitted. With an A/R or A/P there is no way to know when it really starts or stops other than calling daily. This causes a problem with the tracking of A/R and A/P tracking in timelines.

If admin adds this information to the timelines there should be a notice stating this.

I am at the embassy stage so my interest is in AP timeline AFTER the interview
where you will know you are in AP/AR.
At the NVC level it seems too difficult to track.

Guys, I would like to reassure you a little bit. I used to call NVC every day since they received our file. I was told by an NVC operator that my file was under AR in Washington due to 9/11 blah blah. I asked them if ALL files undergo AR, and they said yes, ALL. Ours cleared in 7 days. I spoke to different operators and they told me different words - AR, background check, 9/11, Washington agencies, etc etc, but basically there was always a standard reply - the case is under review, no predictions.
Long AR are not typical, most cases clear through NVC in 2-30 days.

Thank you very much, Keisha.

Since mine is stuck at the NVC level it is more the area of concern for me. I had thought about doing a post in the NVC topic something like "Administrative Review Timelines" and adding data from any members who would keep me posted of their timelines. Something like this.

Administrative review at NVC

Turboguy, Ray & Irina, Country Russia. Entered A/R 1/24/07 Exited A/R: Not yet. Notes Second K-1 both

Volcano (not real) Joe and Tanya, Country Ukraine, In AR 7/23/06 Exited 3/22/07, Notes None

Tornado, (not real, Sam & Ann, Country Egypt, In AR 11.13/06, Exited not yet, Notes 4th K-1

Administrative Processing at Embassy.

---------------------------------- as above.

If I kept it in a Datebase and everytime someone added info posted an update it would not be a lot of work and could be helpful. It seems to me a lot of us are very curious about timelines. Any comments.

Turboguy,

That sounds good to me. Any others have a take on this suggestion?

I think it could be a nice addition, but part of me thinks we are getting away from the original intent of the timelines. So much emphasis is placed on them, and I do not see that as necessarily a good thing.

Regardless, my suggestion for implementation would be for it to mirror the RFE category. (as in, a delay)

lal_brandow,

What was the original intent of the timelines? I thought they were to help people understand how long different portions of the process take.

That's what I am asking for. Without the timelines, each step of the process would look indeterminate. With this tool, we have a rough'n'ready guide for when our experience is close to or far from the norm.

One big problem with tracking AR/AP, especially at a Service Center or NVC, is that petitioner may not be aware that this has become current status. After the interview, it gets clearer. So the data will be rather messy. But then again, timeline data is inherently messy, because lots of people don't fill them in. This new dataset will be messier, but it may be better than nothing for those who follow us.

As I understand it (I never got one) RFE's have very specified time windows where response is required. Then processing resumes and, anecdotally, rapid action on the petition follows. For AR, no response is possible and the government claims that results are unpredictable. But if we can average across lots of people, we can get idea of what sort of delay is "normal" and what is "unusual".

Turboguy's offer is a good and generous one, but addresses the issue in an ad-hoc fashion. And, I sincerely hope that Turboguy will get bored with this issue soon and move on (because that would mean that he and his sweetie have exited AR)!

An addition to the timelines, and an ability to search on it, would take away most of the need for human management of these data, except for purposes of inquiry and analysis.

My A/R lasted 4 business days.

It's outta there as of yesterday - on the way to moscow.

I was worried about nothing.

I am still concerned about the A/R delays that others face after doing research this weekend. I wish you all the best and you will be in my prayers.

Nice David! that was fast!

I am very happy for you David and I'm wishing you all the best !

Glad you got out of A/R quickly. Good luck to the rest

I applied for the K3 visa last year in May. As of now it has been a year and we sill have not recived an approval for the I130 or I129F. Every time we do an inquery we get a bull ###### reply saying that we are stuck in AP or futher review or security checks. bla blah blah im on the brink of going nuts. How canit be that we are in this black whole in the USCIS level????

I am sorry to hear about your delay. I am also wondering what would cause such a delay.

Did you have a lot of evidence of meeting in person? Do either one of you have criminal history? Did you use an attorney to make sure all of your papers are in order for the petition?

I see you posted wondering about immigration reform... I'm not sure any new laws would help with your petition.

I found out supposedly that security checks are done on the petitioner at the USCIS and then on the beneficiary at the NVC. Not sure if this is 100% accurate but based on this information it seems that for some reason you are delayed and it might be your background.

I know of others with criminal history that got approved - including myself. What do you think might be cause of additional investigation?

I wish you the best.

I have no clue what is going on. I have no criminal background and neither does my husband. I have gotten speeding tickets but thats about it. Currently Im planning of gettig a packet together that shows that my husband and I have an existing relationship or what is that they call it "evidence". Im planning on sending in a copy of our birth certificats, pictures, bills, medical insurance, our univeristy degrees, and a few affidavits of support from friends and family. I will send it to my senator so that he can forward this to USCIS with hopes that this additional information gets attached to the correct pettition. Maybe this additional evidence will help to clarify things on their end. Does any one have any additional suggestions of what I should or should not send?

I am not sure exactly how this will help other than getting them to physically pick up your file (depending on where you send the info and where your actual file sits). Administrative Review has nothing to do with the legitimacy of a relationship. It is just an unfortunate situation many of find ourselves in for a horrific amount of time.

I don't mean to discourage you from sending in additional bonafide evidence, however I just wanted to clarify that the sticking point is not your relationship evidence.

Laura is correct that they are not asking for information so this could delay your case since it means they would have to add information that they do not need at this point. I am sorry to hear that your case is still stuck.

I read your concern over how long AR takes after the interview, and wondered if you got any info since I have not been on here for awhile. The letter given says up to 6 months, but is there any info as to how long they are taking at the embassy level? Thanks for any info you have obtained!!

Are people told when they are in this status? It might be useful to at least have a check mark to tick that would keep the admin review timelines seperate. Let me know . Thanks!

jms, no further information is forthcoming from the embassy. There was never a timeframe given.
Still waiting. 7 months now ! Senators and congressman are unable to help.