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| Amsterdam, Netherlands |  Review on December 9, 2014: |
Mariniertje
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
Today, I (J) had my interview at the Amsterdam Consulate General.
It was a very quick and good experience for me.
If you come by car; park in the "Q-park Museumplein" parking garage under the Museumplein, the entrance is right across the "Concertgebouw" and under the Albert Heijn. This way you don't have to worry about getting back to your car on time or getting a parking ticket.
There is no need to be at the Consulate General any earlier than 13:15. This is just the line for getting in and going through security; not the order in which people are being served by the CO. The security guard will line people up outside first. Immigrants (including K1) line up at the front of the line and go in first, all Non-Immigrants have to wait and go in later.
OK. You have made it inside of the Consulate. Have your passport and original interview confirmation letter in hand, since you will need to show this to the security guard inside, before going through the security scan process (similar to airport security).
Try to bring as less as possible!!! Since you will need to empty ALL your pockets, from both your jacket as your pants. You will only be allowed to take inside whatever you need for the Visa interview. So, try to bring nothing more than your paperwork, your wallet and your (car) keys. You bag/purse will stay with the security guards until you leave the Consulate again.
Once you are cleared by security, you pull open a really heavy door to go into the main part of the Consulate. Go right immediately to enter the room for Immigrant Visas. Just sit down and get comfortable. There is no need to form a line, since the CO has a pre-defined list with names, defining the order in which everyone will be served. They will call out your name when it's your turn. When you hear your name the first time, walk up to window 5 and greet the CO. In my case the CO behind window 5 spoke Dutch.
They will need (in my case):
* Passport
* 2 (two) U.S.-style passport pictures
* Original + Copy Birth Certificate
* Original + Copy Police Report (VOG)
* Original I-134 + all related proof
Then the CO will ask you to provide your finger prints:
1. the four fingers of your left hand
2. the four fingers of your right hand
3. both your thumbs (left and right) at the same time
After that you will be asked to sit down, and wait for the other CO to call you at window 6.
In my case this took only 2 minutes. So, even though I was the last one to get through security, I was the first one to be served. Overall, I was in and out in less than 20 minutes.
This second officer will ask you to raise your right hand and swear that all the information and documents you have provided are true. You just need to answer with "I do" or "I swear" or something like that. Once you have done so, he will browse through your documentation set (not just what you just provided to his colleague, but the complete file they received from USCIS). The CO asked me the following questions:
1. What is the name of the person who sponsored your visa?
2. Where does he/she live?
3. Where did you meet?
4. How often have you seen each other in person?
5. Have you met each others parents?
6. What does he/she do for work?
7. What do you do for work?
8. When do you plan to get married?
And after that, he went through the paperwork once more, and said that everything looked good and that my visa would be approved, and I would receive it in the mail within 5 days.
After that, you are done, and can go back to the security guard to collect your belongings.
Overall a really great and quick experience.
(updated on May 13, 2019)
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #15762