Ciudad Juárez & Interview appointment

[HavenevaH 2]

Hi, 

 

I have just joined VJ, although my fiancé and I are nearly through the visa process. She is from Mexico and I'm in the US.

 

To fill you in on where we are currently in this process:

 

We submitted our application in April, received approval in September without any RFEs, received our NVC letter, and finally received the letter from the consulate with instructions from Ciudad Juarez. 

 

We are to the point now where we have completed the DS-160 online and we are attempting to pay the $265 fee and schedule an interview appointment. 

 

On the fee/appointment page, it states that the fee needs to be paid, but also states that there are no appointments available, "Please check back in a few days."

 

My questions revolve around the different things I have read online about the fee and appointment. 

 

As as it looks right now, we cannot actually pay the fee until an appointment is available. Is this correct?

 

I see no option of actually paying the fee on that page. Even though it is the actual "pay fee" page, it only shows appointment availability, which as I said, there are none currently. Does the payment option become available once I can actually choose an appointment date? 

 

Also, I read somewhere else online that the fee could not be paid online, and of one actual instance of the consulate not accepting a receipt from payment made online and that person had to pay again at the consulate. Is this true?

 

This is confusing, and I would like to know exactly what to do. 

 

Lastly, how long does it take for an appointment to become available? 

 

I know all of you can imagine how much we just want to be together. 

 

Thank you for your time in responding. I really appreciate any and all info. 

 

P.S.   i will be sure to update my timeline this weekend 

 

[Jorge V 195]

My wife and I applied for a CR1 visa so I can't answer your DS-160 or fee questions. I can tell you, however, that they only open up appointments for a single month at a time, typically 2-3 months in the future. In my case I noticed that September appointments became available in late June (around the 25th) and October appointments became available in late July. The appointments go quickly, within a few days, as I imagine many people are waiting for them to open up.

 

You should still check back constantly to see if anyone cancels their appointment and their slot opens up, even after you schedule your appointment (that is if you are allowed to change it online). We were first only able to find an appointment for Sept 21, but after a few days of checking one for Sept 11 came available. After a few more days of checking one for Aug 15 came available and we took it. This was all in July.

[HavenevaH 2]

Thanks so much for the information. That gives me an idea about when we might expect to get an appointment. We have been checking repeatedly everyday for over a week, but nothing yet. 

 

Fingers crossed, we'll get one soon. 

 

Thanks again.