Case Approved, yet stuck in AP for 9 months?

[Justin.y.Karem 0]

Hello to all the Visa Journey community! This is my first post, but I have been reading and following many other topics since we embarked on our Visa Journey.

 

 My wife and I have been stuck in Administrative Processing for 9 months and we need guidance as our situation is causing our family much distress. So we come to you as many here have gained wisdom through their own experiences.

 

Our interview was at the Embassy in Lima, Peru on May 25th, 2016. Our CO told us our case was approved, yet we were given a yellow document for 221(g) requesting additional documentation. This was caused by a tear in one of our documents (my son Joaquin got his hands on it the morning of our interview) and we could not retrieve another one prior to our appointment. 

 

After two days we retrieved the document (Policiales Antecedentes) and returned it to the Embassy directly. They allowed us inside with the yellow paper, because our CO gave us very confusing instructions. While inside, they took the replacement document and my wife's passport, and told us to wait 6 weeks for the visa. We are now passing 9 months in waiting.

 

I have sent emails each month inquiring about the status of our case. Most emails are met with a 'copy & paste' response, except for one. As of January 19th, 2017 I contacted my Senator's office, which returned the same 'copy & paste' response about AP taking weeks to months.

 

Is there anything we can do? I am at the point of leaving my job and selling all of our worldly belongings (in the U.S.A) in order to be with my family. Maintaining two households has caused much stress, but the alternative sets us back by years financially if when we do return to the U.S.A. 

 

I appreciate any help or advice.

 

Thank you, 

 

Justin 

Edited February 23, 2017 by Justin.y.Karem
clarification

[Hypnos 6,576]

Unfortunately there is absolutely nothing you can do with regards to AP; it simply takes as long as it takes. 

[Justin.y.Karem 0]

Hello Hypnos,

 

 

5 minutes ago, Hypnos said:

Unfortunately there is absolutely nothing you can do with regards to AP; it simply takes as long as it takes. 

This something we have heard, but if we are already approved, would a Writ of Mandamus be of any help? Has anyone contacted another Senator or Congressman with success after the first attempt came up lame? Or is it suggested to just sit back and wait... Can we cause delay from our persistence?

 

Maintaining two households is a difficult task, not to mention the heartache caused by separation from my 3 year old son, and two year old daughter.

[geowrian 22,335]

9 minutes ago, Justin.y.Karem said:

This something we have heard, but if we are already approved, would a Writ of Mandamus be of any help? Has anyone contacted another Senator or Congressman with success after the first attempt came up lame? Or is it suggested to just sit back and wait... Can we cause delay from our persistence?

 

Maintaining two households is a difficult task, not to mention the heartache caused by separation from my 3 year old son, and two year old daughter.

 

WoM, if approved, is only to force them to make a decision within 30 days. It does not force them to make the decision you want. If they are still waiting on anything, then the decision will be a denial. People have been in AP for over 2 years and a WoM would still likely not be the best decision.

 

Unfortunately, sitting back and waiting is generally the best option. It's not a satisfying option. Checking up on the case should not cause any delays in the process.

 

Do you know why you're still in AP? Is it background checks?

[Justin.y.Karem 0]

6 hours ago, geowrian said:

Do you know why you're still in AP? Is it background checks?

 

We do not know. I have sent multiple emails, and they have mostly responded with 'copy & paste'. I ask them to elaborate or to answer my questions, yet they only 'copy & paste' a similar response this:

 

Dear Mr. Maron,

 

Thank you for contacting us.

 

Unfortunately, we cannot give an estimate of how long the administrative processing will take on this case.   We strive to complete this processing as quickly as possible, understanding the desire for families to reunite.  However, administrative processing can take weeks and sometimes months.   We will complete processing of this case as soon as possible.

 

Sincerely,

 

Immigrant Visa Unit

Consular Section

U.S. Embassy, Lima – Peru

 

Once in all of my emails, someone alluded to having all documents. 

 

Dear Mr. Justin Ray Maron:

 

Thank you for contacting us.

 

We received the last additional documentation and it is being reviewed by a consular officer to try to complete processing as soon as possible.

 

Sincerely,

 

Immigrant Visa Unit

Consular Section

U.S. Embassy, Lima – Peru

 

 

 

If the case is approved, or at the very least proclaimed so by our Consular Officer, and marked approved on Official Visa site, shouldn't this be simple? Both of our children are with her in Lima. I feel like a lost soul without my family. 

[agripa 100]

10 hours ago, Justin.y.Karem said:

If the case is approved, or at the very least proclaimed so by our Consular Officer, and marked approved on Official Visa site, shouldn't this be simple? Both of our children are with her in Lima. I feel like a lost soul without my family. 

I understand this whole process must be heart breaking, however, there is very little you can do. A Writ of Mandamus will do very little here, since BY LAW consular officers are under no obligation to issue a visa. More over, consular officer's decisions are generally immune from court/judicial review. You can talk to a lawyer if you wish, but I strongly suspect you'll hear the same thing. The reason you often hear that AP takes as long as it's going to take is because it's true. The only real course of action you have is --

1. Continue to email the embassy. Maybe even consider visiting the embassy in person. Since you are a US citizen you will be allowed in and may get to talk to someone in person.
2. Continue to email your Senators/US Representatives. 

I'm sorry there are no better options, but this is the reality.

[Jenilyn and Awal 22]

Ours is back ground checks so I assume it takes over a year now from what I hear from people 

[Ebunoluwa 6,136]

It should be a simple process to review the missing document that you send and not take 9 months I agree.
I wonder if the document review was completed and somehow they needed to do a security / background check

which would explain the long time.
I would email the embassy with a very specific question : Is my case at an outside agency or in internal checks ?
Security checks or document review ? You must be specific and let them know that the blanket paste and copy

job is not helpful. Have a senator do the specific inquiry. Not just : Are we out of AP or when will we AP be completed.

Try that if you haven't already. Writ of mandamus can backfire with a denial, I would not risk it.

Visiting the embassy yourself is also an option.
 

[Joanna_Keyvan 5]

On 2/22/2017 at 9:05 PM, geowrian said:

WoM, if approved, is only to force them to make a decision within 30 days. It does not force them to make the decision you want. If they are still waiting on anything, then the decision will be a denial. People have been in AP for over 2 years and a WoM would still likely not be the best decision.

 

Unfortunately, sitting back and waiting is generally the best option. It's not a satisfying option. Checking up on the case should not cause any delays in the process.

 

Do you know why you're still in AP? Is it background checks?

Did an attorney tell you that? I have spoken to 2 attorneys so far (we are at 8 months) and they both said it would be acceptable to file at 10 months.

Edited September 24, 2017 by Joanna_Keyvan

[Jenilyn and Awal 22]

2 hours ago, Joanna_Keyvan said:

Did an attorney tell you that? I have spoken to 2 attorneys so far (we are at 8 months) and they both said it would be acceptable to file at 10 months.

Do not do a writ of mandamus it just piss them off and they deny you

[geowrian 22,335]

3 hours ago, Joanna_Keyvan said:

Did an attorney tell you that? I have spoken to 2 attorneys so far (we are at 8 months) and they both said it would be acceptable to file at 10 months.

No, but it's still the way things work. A WoM only forces a decision...it cannot force an approval. In some cases it does result in an approval. If the cause is something outside of their control (i.e. security checks), then the only decision they can make is a denial. Since it sounds like they are fine with the documents, background checks would be my guess for the delay. Secondly, a CO's decision is subject to consular non-reviewavailability anyway.

 

Not to be too cynical, but an attorney gets paid whether it results in an approval or not.

[Joanna_Keyvan 5]

I'm not sure why those on this particular forum are so fearful of a writ. I was honestly trying to find out if anyone had any experience not what they *think* a consular officer would do. I'm very familiar with the process and the concept of consular nonreviewabiliy. I work in an immigration law firm so my attorney won't be getting paid. They are my friends. One thing we notice is that people who should be filing writs (more than 1.5 years of waiting) are afraid too. A consular officer can't get "pissed off" and deny an immigration visa arbitrarily. At our firm we file them all the time for status adjustment, but more rarely for admin process. We have filed about half a dozen over the years for admin processing and all of them were approved. But they had been waiting approximately 14 months average. There's no rule about how soon is too soon so I am trying to find people with experience filing sooner.

[geowrian 22,335]

Without knowing all the details of the case or the cause for extended AP, suggesting a WoM seems premature. It's a last-ditch effort to force a decision, not to make the process faster. If the cause for delay is out of the hands of the officer (i.e. background checks), then the only decision they can make under the INA is to refuse the visa - not assume that the checks will come back clear. If the information they need to determine eligibility is within their possession and they're just delaying the decision in the individual's case (i.e. not just backlogs everybody sees), then it's another story. It's usually safer to wait than to force a decision and potentially have to start completely over (and wait through AP again).

 

I agree that they won't just deny for being "pissed off" or whatever...they are compelled by law to have a valid reason for ineligibility for the visa. They can also be compelled to make a decision.

WoMs against DOS are a completely different beast than against USCIS. There are certainly success cases, but it's few and far between that it is granted and results in an approval.

[Jenilyn and Awal 22]

Well you can call it what you want the ghana post is very difficult and many have been denyed  for trivial things , yes they can get "upset" teach you a lesson and make you wait till your old as methuselah they just tack a legal reason valid or not and then your stuck so if you want to do mandimus writ that's your choice but really it's extra cost that's not needed. Call ombudsman and they will get your case moving at no extra expense

[Joanna_Keyvan 5]

On 9/24/2017 at 6:27 PM, Jenilyn and Awal said:

Well you can call it what you want the ghana post is very difficult and many have been denyed  for trivial things , yes they can get "upset" teach you a lesson and make you wait till your old as methuselah they just tack a legal reason valid or not and then your stuck so if you want to do mandimus writ that's your choice but really it's extra cost that's not needed. Call ombudsman and they will get your case moving at no extra expense

 

So, we filed the writ of mandamus 2 weeks ago, and my husband got his visa today!