Consulate Review: Jamaica
Review Topic: K1 Visa
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
July 31, 2008 |
| Embassy Review : |
My fiances Visa was scheduled for 1pm on Tuesday, July 29th, 2008. We arrived at the embassy a little after noon, after the 4 hour trek from Montego Bay and joined a short line outside the door. Luckily we got a spot in the shade cause it was HOT!! We waited in that line for about a half an hour before they let us in. The first room you enter is security. There you put your things through a screener and you walk through a metal detector. Easy. Then we went out into an open air courtyard with benches where we only waited for about 10 minutes before we were called into the main building.
Once inside the building we arrived at what is like a reception desk. There the Officer checked our appointment letter and passport, gave us a pink slip to write his passport number on (to be used later), and gave us our number, U102, to wait with.
We then entered another room where there were rows of seats and a row of windows where the Officers sat behind glass. We sat down and waited about a half an hour before our number was called the first time. At the first window the Officer asked for our names, all our forms (2 copies of DS 156, 156K, 157, and DS230), my I-134, my employment letters, bank letter, W2's, and tax return forms. I asked if she wanted any other documentation like paystubs or proof of ongoing relationship and she laughed and said that we had plenty. She then asked my fiance, Oneil, to do some fingerprints and we sat down. Total time at the window was about 5 minutes. She told us to go wait in section C to be called again. About ten minutes later we were called up to a different window to do some more fingerprints, for like 2 minutes, and then we sat down again.
This was the long part. We waited for almost 2 hours. While we were waiting we were watching everyone else at the windows. We saw at least 10 people whose family members were sponsoring them get approved and we saw 4 Fiance Visas get blue slipped. Blue slipped is bad. That means they are asking for more information and schedule you another date to come back and show the evidence. These other fiance visa cases did not have their finace(e) with them, which I think hurts your chances right off the bat unless you have a well documented case. So we keep waiting, laughing, running jokes, and playing around the whole time. My fiance was convinced we were going to get called to a certain window, but I was watching an Officer in window 22 going through a file for at least a half an hour, and I figured that was our file and that he was sorting through all the paperwork before calling us.
Sure enough that was our window! When went up to the window (I was so nervous) the Officer asked my finace his name and who I was. He then asked us when we were getting married and what plans we had made so far. We told him we are planning on getting married on October 25 and told him about where we are having the cermony and reception. He then said he needed to talk to us separately and asked who wanted to go first. I let my fiance go first and I went and sat back down. While I was sitting I couldn't hear what questions the Officer was asking since they were talking through the phones but afterwards my fiance said he asked him, where and when we met, how many times I have come to visit him, how many times I visited in 2006, when I arrived in Jamaica this trip, what I wore to bed Monday night, what we had for breakfast Monday morning, and is his family was going to attend the wedding. He was there for maybe 10 minutes answering questions. Then it was my turn. The Officer asked me where and when we met, when our relationship became romantic, how many times I visited him in 2006, what he gave me for my birthday, what I wore to bed Monday night, what we ate for breakfast Monday morning, if I have met his family, have I ever cooked for him, and is his family coming to the wedding. I was only up for like 7 minutes. While you are answering the questions the Office is typing your answers into a computer, which I am sure they use to then make sure our answers matched.
When I was done he asked me to call my fiance back over. I turned around and couldn't find him. Now by that time there was only like 4 other people in the room so I was like where is he?!? He was over in the corner making friends with the security guard!!  So he came back to the window and the Officer said he had a few more questions. I thought it was going to be bad, like that our answers didn't match or something, but it wasn't. The Officer asked if he had ever traveled outside of Jamaica (NO), if he ever had any trouble with the police (NO), and if he had any health problems (NO). Then he took a pink ticket stapled it to our forms and his passport and stapled another one to the directions to Airpack which he gave to us and said "Go over across the street to Airpack and pay to have your Visa delivered, you should have it within 2 weeks, congratulations and welcome to the US". I started crying right there at the window. I couldn't help it. It was like 10 months worth of stress and frustration came pouring out. So we left the embassy went across the street to Airpack, which only cost JA$660 (US $10) and headed back home to Montego Bay to celebrate.
Let me just say that without all the advice and information I have gotten from everyone on this site, I never would have been so prepared. I don't think I would have made it without VJ. Thanks again to everyone. And if anyone going through this process ever has a question feel free to ask.  |
| Rating : |
Very Good |
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ver 5.0