Post-interview problem - five weeks to get a visa!!

[lemayz 2]

Hi everyone!

Well, we finally had our interview today, and the result was not fantastic. At the end of the interview they said we were approved, but told us that the Embassy was having some kind of problem printing visas or something like that, and so we might not get my husband's passport and visa back for up to 5 weeks. FIVE WEEKS!!! We tried to ask more questions, but they would not give us any more information. We don't know what to do....we were going to buy plane tickets and quit our jobs tomorrow, but now that we don't know when we will get the visa, all of our plans are postponed.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what we might do? I am emailing the local Embassy/Consulate right now to try to get more clarity, but what else can I do? Should I call the DOS? Who can possibly help us? Five weeks is an awfully long time to wait to even have an idea of when we can leave. And they didn't even sound 100% convinced that it would be less than five weeks.

Please help!!!

Thanks

[jessicaruizw 9]

Did you interview in santiago?!

[Darnell 8,478]

call DoS Hotline every few days or so, inquire for casefile status.

When you hear 'visa packet sent'

then that's a good sign that the paper shipment arrived and the IV unit got caught up, up to yer place in the queue (there were others before you, ya know)

Be Patient, it'll happen.

DoS Hotline # in my profile, click the girls, study left panel.

[lemayz 2]

Jessica - yup!

Darnell - based on your response it almost sounds like this is semi-normal? (you dont seem surprised at all by my question). Perhaps I am not familiar enough with the process but the DOS will say "visa packet sent" in response to my specific case? I did not realize that the visas had to be sent...I thought each consulate printed them. All of the people I have spoken to that have gotten visas through the chilean consulate have gotten them in 3 days tops so the fact that it will be 5 weeks is unbelievable to me! I dont know how we are supposed to plan tickets and such with this type of wait!

Thanks, Darnell for the response and patience pep talk!

[TBoneTX 43,058]

The Guayaquil consulate also purportedly had printer problems around the time of our visa. Mechanical and technological breakdowns occur. Think about when an office computer goes on the fritz or the photocopy machine jams. It's frustrating, but hang in there, si man.

[lemayz 2]

Well but I wish they would've at least given us some kind of paper that said we were approved but they didn't. In fact the guy told us that he was giving us a paper that demonstrated we had gone to the interview, which unfortunately we didn't read in the moment. Outside of the embassy we read it and it said that we were missing papers and so ineligible....and that we have to come back with the other papers. I thought that was also very strange. I emailed the Consulate about, but we'll see what they say.

[Penguin_ie 5,985]

I don't think 5 weeks is normal for printing issues- they sometimes happen, and I had a friend in Ireland it happend to, but that should take a few days, a week at the most, not 5 weeks.

Reading your initial post, I wondered if you missunderstood and were put in AP (ie approved pending security check or them wanting more documents for bonafide marriage or the I-864 supporting docs etc), and reading your update just now that seems to be the case. Was anything in particular checked or underlined on the paper?

[pushbrk 12,106]

Hi everyone!

Well, we finally had our interview today, and the result was not fantastic. At the end of the interview they said we were approved, but told us that the Embassy was having some kind of problem printing visas or something like that, and so we might not get my husband's passport and visa back for up to 5 weeks. FIVE WEEKS!!! We tried to ask more questions, but they would not give us any more information. We don't know what to do....we were going to buy plane tickets and quit our jobs tomorrow, but now that we don't know when we will get the visa, all of our plans are postponed.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what we might do? I am emailing the local Embassy/Consulate right now to try to get more clarity, but what else can I do? Should I call the DOS? Who can possibly help us? Five weeks is an awfully long time to wait to even have an idea of when we can leave. And they didn't even sound 100% convinced that it would be less than five weeks.

Please help!!!

Thanks

You wait for the visa and then make your plans going forward. Visas are printed on a special machine and are secure (Think like printing money.) If the Embassy is having trouble printing visas, there's nothing you can do to rush them. They'll get you the visa as soon as they can print it.

[lemayz 2]

Penguin, thanks for your response but I dont think that's the case. The CO clearly told us that everything was fine with our file, but the printing issues would hold us up.

Pushbrk and Darnell - im a bit confused, ate the visas printed in the embassies or does DOS do it and send them to embassies? In any case, should the DOS have all the last minute info on the visa or is it only the Embassy? Id like to at least have some way to get updates but of course there is no way to call the consulate, so is calling DOS my only option?

[Ramey&Lo 1]

Hey I has my interview yesterday as well and we got approved and they guy didn't say anything about printing issues he told me 2 weeks at the most and that's it.

Maybe you should call in. I think 5 weeks is BS

[pushbrk 12,106]

Penguin, thanks for your response but I dont think that's the case. The CO clearly told us that everything was fine with our file, but the printing issues would hold us up.

Pushbrk and Darnell - im a bit confused, ate the visas printed in the embassies or does DOS do it and send them to embassies? In any case, should the DOS have all the last minute info on the visa or is it only the Embassy? Id like to at least have some way to get updates but of course there is no way to call the consulate, so is calling DOS my only option?

The visas are printed at the Embassies or Consulates but sometimes they have printing issues of one kind or another. They'll print and send your visa when they resolve those issues.

[Darnell 8,478]

Well, there is a VISA, then there is the 'VISA PACKET'.

The Visa is printed then attached to the inside of the passport,

but

it's the VISA PACKET that is SENT OUT from the IV Unit to the Human receiving the Visa.

It contains:

1. yer passport with the VISA attached inside and

2. yer casefile, in an envelope that clearly states 'DO NOT OPEN'. It's the entire casefile. You become a personal courier for the Department of State, dropping off yer casefile with a CBP officer at a POE sometime in the future.

So, DoS Hotline knows of current casefile status, strongly suggest you call them TODAY, nowish, and inquire for current casefile status. Whilst you got that DoS Human on the phone, also ask 'Was my casefile put in Administrative Review or Administrative Processing?' as it's best to know this info early.

There are timeticks after interview day - you can learn of them by calling the DoS Hotline and inquiring for casefile status with a Human.

Good Luck !

[lemayz 2]

Ramey & Lo: thanks for posting your experience. I think I saw you at the interview then...were you wearing a flower in your hair and a pink shirt? In any case, congrats! So they told you two weeks tops? Perhaps it's different because it's K1 but I still find it strange... I'm going to get in touch with you via the personal messenger system, so perhaps we can keep in touch and you can update me when you get your visa...? I wish I could call in but I have no contact number for the Embassy, do you? All I have is the email address...

Pushbrk...thanks again for the response.

Darnell...thanks for your response. Will call DOS today and report back here what they tell me. Found the number in your profile. Just a question...what do you mean by "timeticks"?

Thanks!

[chrismanilyn 4]

Don't quit your job, don't buy tickets, don't do anything to make the move to the US without the visa in hand.

Just because a visa has been approved (even informally) doesn't mean it will be 100% correct when you get it. I know it's hard, you want to move on to what you both have been waiting for...but doing anything before you know the visa is correct (by verifying it with your own eyes) puts you at risk and you could have to deal with rescheduling your flight/go without employment until you get the final visa in hand.

I was also trying to think of things I could do to shortcut and make definitive plans when our visa issuance was delayed about 5 weeks, but VJ'ers consistently posted that I just need to wait until I have the visa in hand. They were correct.

[lemayz 2]

Thanks, Chrismanilyn.

I just called DOS...the woman told us they have not made a decision and that our visa is under "Administrative Processing." How is this possible if the man told us yesterday in person that we were approved? What can we do at this point? Any advice, suggestions, good vibes?

Thanks