Colombia Club

[Juan Carlos 0]

Hello, Harold!

I am sorry to hear you are struggling with approval at the VSC. My case went to the CSC in a very similar situation to yours, meaning it took for ever to get approved due to the spike in applications.

I submitted my I-130 in June, 07; my I-129F in August. They both got approved in March, 08. In other words, it took 7 months after submitting my I-129F that my papers got approved. A couple of things I learned:

- What counted was the date when I submitted the I-129F, not the I-130. Reason? They get bundled together as soon as you send the I-129F

- Calling the VSC (in my case the CSC) via the RFE trick does help. The only advice is not to call too often. They do write notes on your file and they do know if you call too often.

- Contacting my Senator also helped, or at least made me feel better.

Hope this helps.

Juan Carlos.

[Harold08 0]

Hello, Harold!

I am sorry to hear you are struggling with approval at the VSC. My case went to the CSC in a very similar situation to yours, meaning it took for ever to get approved due to the spike in applications.

I submitted my I-130 in June, 07; my I-129F in August. They both got approved in March, 08. In other words, it took 7 months after submitting my I-129F that my papers got approved. A couple of things I learned:

- What counted was the date when I submitted the I-129F, not the I-130. Reason? They get bundled together as soon as you send the I-129F

- Calling the VSC (in my case the CSC) via the RFE trick does help. The only advice is not to call too often. They do write notes on your file and they do know if you call too often.

- Contacting my Senator also helped, or at least made me feel better.

Hope this helps.

Juan Carlos.

Thanks a lot for that information. It makes me feel better to know that i am not the only one that is waiting such a long time for approval. Juan Carlos, did the date when they approve it match up with the processing times they post every month in the USCIS website?

Hopefully after the approval it won't take that long for the consulate to receive the information so that she can send the documents and get an interview.

Thank you for the help.

[HAL 9000 96]

Best wishes for all the newcomers to our Club. Hope that those of you with ongoing delays in your cases get through in a speedy manner.

Harold-

"Juan Carlos, did the date when they approve it match up with the processing times they post every month in the USCIS website?"

In my case it did not. The approval for the 129f came a bit before (a few weeks).

[Juan Carlos 0]

Guys... I don't know what to think anymore.

Last Wednesday I called the NVC and they told me: "we received you case last week, it is under Admin review. Please keep checking with us for the status of your case".

Today I called again... nothing! "There are no notes in the system. We know nothing about your case. Must've been sent to Bogota".

Do you think I should request to speak with a supervisor?

[HAL 9000 96]

Guys... I don't know what to think anymore.

Last Wednesday I called the NVC and they told me: "we received you case last week, it is under Admin review. Please keep checking with us for the status of your case".

Today I called again... nothing! "There are no notes in the system. We know nothing about your case. Must've been sent to Bogota".

Do you think I should request to speak with a supervisor?

Did you take names down when you got a positive confirmation? They usually know when they send stuff out. If you have to request a supervisor, make sure you do so with the sweetest, nicest voice available.

[Mononoke28 134]

Harold,

With the US embassy in Bogotá, CR1 and K3 visas take the same amount of time to process. Back in the day (a few years ago) the CR1 visa took forever and a day, but that's not the case anymore. The Service Centers are processing I-130 and I-130/I-129Fs in the same amount of time and they get to the embassy in the same amount of time as well. So no, the fact that you filed the I-129F for the K3 visa should not matter at all.

Diana

[Harold08 0]

Harold,

With the US embassy in Bogotá, CR1 and K3 visas take the same amount of time to process. Back in the day (a few years ago) the CR1 visa took forever and a day, but that's not the case anymore. The Service Centers are processing I-130 and I-130/I-129Fs in the same amount of time and they get to the embassy in the same amount of time as well. So no, the fact that you filed the I-129F for the K3 visa should not matter at all.

Diana

Hmmm, what do you suggest i should do Diana? I will contact the VSC again to see where my case is and to see if it is on schedule with the programmed processing dates and hopefully the approval will not take much longer. Do you think it is possible for my wife to enter the United States before the end of this year?

Thanks

[Mononoke28 134]

Well let's see. If the I-130 alone is approved you can pay and print everything online which means it'll be at the NVC for about 1½ months. If both, I-130 and I-129F are approved for the K3 visa, it'll take just as long to get an interview date at the embassy. But let's assume the whole thing for either visa takes about 2 months. If you want your wife here by December, the petitions need to be approved no later than mid October. So you have about two more months. If they're not approved by then, then there's a big chance she won't be here until next year.

I would start calling your congressman or senator's office for help and also call the USCIS to find out what is going on. If they say the same thing, that it's all because of the extra petitions they received last summer, then make an infopass appointment with your local office to see if they can get you more info. If you still get the same schpill, then your representative's office is your only hope.

Diana

[Harold08 0]

Well let's see. If the I-130 alone is approved you can pay and print everything online which means it'll be at the NVC for about 1½ months. If both, I-130 and I-129F are approved for the K3 visa, it'll take just as long to get an interview date at the embassy. But let's assume the whole thing for either visa takes about 2 months. If you want your wife here by December, the petitions need to be approved no later than mid October. So you have about two more months. If they're not approved by then, then there's a big chance she won't be here until next year.

I would start calling your congressman or senator's office for help and also call the USCIS to find out what is going on. If they say the same thing, that it's all because of the extra petitions they received last summer, then make an infopass appointment with your local office to see if they can get you more info. If you still get the same schpill, then your representative's office is your only hope.

Diana

Ufff gotta get on that. Thanks Diana so much for all your help. At least i am going to see my wife tomorrow and i will be there for around a month and a half so as soon as i get back i hope to get everything ready and send it to her so that she can send the packet to the embassy. Hopefully everything works out and by then it will be around the time when they send it to the embassy.

Thanks

[Osita 0]

Hello,

I received the Employment Authorization Card last week. I would like to know if I just have to go to the Social Security Office now and apply for the SSN.

[Mononoke28 134]

Harold,

I found this in another forum. It looks like there's hope for you case.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...p;#entry2106133

Diana

[Mononoke28 134]

Hello,

I received the Employment Authorization Card last week. I would like to know if I just have to go to the Social Security Office now and apply for the SSN.

Yes, you can now go to the SSA office and get a SS #. You can download the application from their online site, fill it out at home and bring it with you to their office.

http://www.ssa.gov/online/ss-5sp.html

Diana

[don miguel 0]

Visa Approved today!

My wife went to her interview today. I did not go with her. and I was a little worried because this is not my first time bringing somone form Colombia, and there is a 25 year age differance between us. so i thought that this might be a problem. My first time i brought a girl as my fiance on a K 1 Visa. but that marriage ended after about 4 year. My first time i did not go to the interview ether. My first wife i met in Colombia when i was visiting my brother who lives there. it was a blind date that his friend set me up with, and nether one of us was looking for a relationship at the time, but this time i met my wife on the internet. We met before my divorced was final, and i married her 3 months after it was, so agian i thought that this might be a "red" flag or something but i guess I was wrong because my wife had no problems today and she was not asked any real questions, only for a copy of her birth cert. and to show photos of us (she had about 40).

[Mononoke28 134]

Oh wow, that's awesome. Congratulations!!!

Diana

[jimmynuetron 0]

trying to find someone that had the interview in Bogota with a young child. My wife just left Bogota and the baby didnt go to the medical, so she got conditionally approved and has to come back with the baby for the medical and to pick up the visas. Trying to find out if I need to get vaccinations for the baby and how much those were? Also trying to find out if I have to pay for a seperate visa fee for the baby at the same bank?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.