Approved in London - Our Experience

[BrentR 0]

My fiancée had her interview at the US Embassy in London this morning and was approved. Because I've gotten so much useful information from this site to get us to the point of today's approval, I wanted to share what I could about her experience. Obviously your experience may differ based on innumerable factors, so I'll start with a bit of background for comparison.

Background:

My fiancée is English. We have known each other for more than three years, and we met at a time when neither of us was looking for anything close to a relationship. We spent about a year communicating fairly (and increasingly) frequently via Facebook and email as friends, then talking daily via Skype for several months (and ever since, whenever she's not here). Her first visit to the US was in December 2009 and since then she has spent about equal time in the US and the UK. (Being back in school with the Open University is what made this possible.) We became engaged in September 2010 and filed our I-129F paperwork shortly thereafter.

We are both of European ancestry with no criminal records, with adequate finances, of similar age, and so on -- in other words, nothing to raise a red flag. I have traveled to England and spent time with her family, and obviously she's been here and spent TONS of time with mine. We've both been married previously. She has no children; I have three who live with me full-time. We have tons of photos, have vacationed as a family, and generally have more legitimate documentation of our three-year relationship than I did of my previous eleven-year marriage.

In short, we're a "normal" couple with lots of documentation of a relatively long and well-developed relationship. To be honest, we couldn't have made it any easier for USCIS and the Embassy to give us their blessing, and that's why I offer the caveat that your experience may vary.

The Interview:

The interview was scheduled for 9:00 AM and she arrived at the US Embassy in London at about 8:35. It's undoubtedly said elsewhere, but I'll mention these things here for the sake of completeness:

• The Embassy specifically told her that she shouldn't arrive more than 30 minutes before her interview. On arrival, they also told her to expect a 2-4 hour wait. (This was a surprise, and she wished at that point she hadn't told her mum, who accompanied her, that she'd probably be out in about an hour. Live and learn!)
  
• When you arrive at the Embassy, you queue outside with hundreds of other people. It doesn't matter that you have an appointment, and it doesn't matter if it's sunny, raining or hailing. Dress appropriately in terms of both outerwear and footwear.
  
• No electronic devices or bags are allowed in. That means no watches, cell phones, iPods, purses, rucksacks or satchels. There's a pharmacy (chemist) down the street where you can leave things for a fee if you don't have someone along with whom you can leave your stuff.

She stood in line for about 15 minutes and got inside the Embassy around 8:50, whereafter she took a number and waited. And waited. And waited some more.

About an hour later, at 9:50 AM, they called her number and she went to the appropriate cubicle. There are many, and you need to pay attention because if you're in the loo or daydreaming when they call your number, you're out of luck and you can go back to the end of the line. At this first cubicle they asked for originals and two additional copies of her birth certificate, decree absolute (divorce paperwork), affidavit of support, and passport photos. (This should come as no surprise to anyone, since it's all spelled out in the materials provided in the packet they provide.) They also asked her for my name, so be sure that you know the name of your fiancé(e) when you go for your interview, even though it isn't on the list of things they say they'll want from you. In return for all this, they provided her with a copy of her chest x-ray from her medical exam on CD, which apparently she will have to provide to the Customs agent when she arrives back in the US in a few days.

She then waited for another 15 minutes before her number was called once again, this time to head for the interview. Now, she had been preparing for this moment for months, diligently printing numerous photos marked with date/time/location; a year's log of Skype calls; numerous emails between her, myself, my kids, my parents, my sister, etc. to demonstrate the family bond; and so on. The gentleman at Desk #2, therefore, caught her by surprise when he struck up a very casual conversation with her. "How did you meet? Oh, that's really great." "When did you first go to visit? What? Your first visit to America was to Minnesota in the winter? Are you kidding?" "You seem like a really nice, genuine person." Eventually she asked if he wanted to see any of the photos or paperwork she'd painstakingly assembled. His reply? "Nope, don't need to see any of that. I'm just getting ready to approve your visa." He looked at NONE of her supplemental evidence but simply returned her original papers that she had turned over at Desk #1, took her fingerprints, had her swear an oath that she was telling the truth, and sent her on her way to the DX Secure (courier) counter, where she arranged to have her visa/passport returned to her.

Once upon a time in the not-too-distant past, the courier service would return your stuff in a day or two, which is what we had been expecting until last week when we looked into it again and discovered that the Embassy website had changed. Now it's several days. You can pay the base fee of £14.80 (incl. VAT) and they'll deliver the stuff sometime on a designated day, but at no set time and you must be there to provide proof of your identity. She opted to spend an additional £11.20 (for a total of £26) to ensure delivery before 10 AM so she didn't have to sit around all day. They provided a tracking number.

At 10:35 AM, precisely two hours after arriving at the Embassy, she was on her way to a black cab. Ten minutes later, at 4:46 AM local time, I got the good-news call I'd been restlessly awaiting.

So ... that's our experience. Your mileage may vary. Void where prohibited. Batteries not included. Don't take the brown acid.

Edited May 19, 2011 by B.Rossow

[jkelly07 120]

congratulations, thanks for shering your interview,good luck

[MelandDavid 0]

Thank you so much for posting your experience in London. My fiance has been wondering what that experience will be like! Congratulations to both of you and best of luck!

[Mal and Meg 12]

Hey Just thought id say hi, I think i spoke to the same guy as he laughed thinking i was crazy wanting to come to Minnesota to live at the end of february!

Congrats on the approval!

I am based in the twin cities though my mother in law is based in Waseca and we also have some friends in Mankato.

Hope your Visa arrives quickly, my interview was the wednesday and the visa arrived the following thursday

[uklover 1]

Great story! thanks!

love the bit at the end!

[Debbie&Dave 0]

Congratulations, good story and thanks for sharing. Very similar to our life's journey. Best of luck!

[rallybug 17]

...At this first cubicle they asked for originals and two additional copies of her birth certificate, decree absolute (divorce paperwork), affidavit of support, and passport photos. (This should come as no surprise to anyone, since it's all spelled out in the materials provided in the packet they provide.) They also asked her for my name, so be sure that you know the name of your fiancé(e) when you go for your interview, even though it isn't on the list of things they say they'll want from you. In return for all this, they provided her with a copy of her chest x-ray from her medical exam on CD, which apparently she will have to provide to the Customs agent when she arrives back in the US in a few days....

Two additional copies? Does it mention that in the interview appointment letter, as it only says one original and one copy on the embassy website!

[BrentR 0]

Two additional copies? Does it mention that in the interview appointment letter, as it only says one original and one copy on the embassy website!

You're right -- I believe it was just one copy, plus the original. I was typing that at midnight having been fully awake since 4:46 AM and not sleeping well before then. (I had two copies in my mind because I was thinking of the original plus the photocopy of each document.) Can't edit the post to correct it now. Sorry about that!

[Daniel321 0]

Def a great story and good advice! Thank You for your post!!!! Congrats!!!!

[aimeevsgarnette 4]

congrats on the approval!

[OBX 51]

Great review! Congratulations.

[BrentR 0]

Follow-up:

According to the tracking info from DX Secure, she will receive her passport / visa paperwork before 10 AM on Monday. Given that, she's booked her flight back to the US for Wednesday and should be home in time to celebrate my youngest's birthday that evening. Of course they advise you to not make any travel plans until your paperwork has been received from the courier, but prices certainly aren't going down and we decided it was worth the minimal risk to get locked in. At the very worst it will be a £90 fee to change the flight, but considering DX Secure has all day Monday and Tuesday to deliver it even if they miss their promised deadline, we're really not concerned.

After that, it's just five and a half weeks of massive house cleaning and other prep for the small civil ceremony at home on July 4 with immediate family and one of my best friends. And yes, we're well aware of the irony of my losing my independence to a Brit on the day our nation celebrates its independence from the British.

[BrentR 0]

Addendum the Second: Visa/passport were delivered Monday, May 23 as expected. She boarded a plane yesterday morning and was home before I was done with work yesterday afternoon. (My dad met her at the airport.) On to wedding planning!