For those of us ABOUT TO FILE (CSC)

[FherJess 15]

Ok so with all this talk of the long exaggerated wait times for NOA2 at the CSC,

what does it look like for us who are just about to file the I-129F?

Is it even possible to hope that the wait times will improve and return to a reasonable 5 month wait??

[UK-USA-K1 128]

Ok so with all this talk of the long exaggerated wait times for NOA2 at the CSC,

what does it look like for us who are just about to file the I-129F?

Is it even possible to hope that the wait times will improve and return to a reasonable 5 month wait??

Wait times change ALL the time. Just a few months ago, VSC was further behind than CSC. Now they are the speed demons. This far out is too far to know with any amount of certainty at all. I've seen many posts from people talking about how the processing times have changed over the course of an application, some for the better, some for the worse. Since we can't choose where our application ends up, we just have to hope for the best and plan for the worst

[lost_at_sea 995]

It's impossible to say for sure, but I don't expect it'll be good news if you're about to file with CSC. Wait times there are currently only getting longer as they remain essentially inactive on k1s, so even if they get off their backsides and get moving again, they have a huge backlog to move through before they'll be at 5 months again. I can't foresee it getting that low again in the next 12 months.

They could hire more staff or move petitions, so you really can't guess ahead, only use historical data and the current status quo.

I'd consider doing straight CR-1 given the waits now. At least you cut out having to do AOS that way.

[FherJess 15]

It's impossible to say for sure, but I don't expect it'll be good news if you're about to file with CSC. Wait times there are currently only getting longer as they remain essentially inactive on k1s, so even if they get off their backsides and get moving again, they have a huge backlog to move through before they'll be at 5 months again. I can't foresee it getting that low again in the next 12 months.

They could hire more staff or move petitions, so you really can't guess ahead, only use historical data and the current status quo.

I'd consider doing straight CR-1 given the waits now. At least you cut out having to do AOS that way.

I'm pretty much only thinking about this pretty much all the time. I've actually even considered going the CR1 route.

But how long would the wait be for that?

Also, would I have to live in my fiancé's country (Mexico) for a while to prove a bonafide marriage?

So many questions.

[lost_at_sea 995]

I'm pretty much only thinking about this pretty much all the time. I've actually even considered going the CR1 route.

But how long would the wait be for that?

Also, would I have to live in my fiancé's country (Mexico) for a while to prove a bonafide marriage?

So many questions.

The timelines vary, as with the K1. You should visit the CR-1/IR-1 part of the forum and read the guides and experiences there. You don't have to live in Mexico during it, either. You'll show evidence similar to that of the K1.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/110-ir-1-cr-1-spouse-visa-process-procedures/

[FherJess 15]

The timelines vary, as with the K1. You should visit the CR-1/IR-1 part of the forum and read the guides and experiences there. You don't have to live in Mexico during it, either. You'll show evidence similar to that of the K1.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/110-ir-1-cr-1-spouse-visa-process-procedures/

I thought that I DID have to live in Mexico for a while because of what I read in the guides (showing joint bank accounts, joint ownership of house etc)

[stevie b 141]

I thought that I DID have to live in Mexico for a while because of what I read in the guides (showing joint bank accounts, joint ownership of house etc)

plenty of couples here live in separate countries while the paperwork is processing.. don't stress over it. it is a pretty simple and straight forward process, if you don't have things like that the answer is "none or n/a". the hardest part is the wait

[lost_at_sea 995]

I thought that I DID have to live in Mexico for a while because of what I read in the guides (showing joint bank accounts, joint ownership of house etc)

No. If you go to the forum I linked, you'll find that a huge majority of them live apart so cannot show joint accounts/joint home. You'll just show other evidence of bonafide relationship - trips and holidays together, gifts, details of your wedding, letters from family confirming your marriage in good faith. etc. They wouldn't let folks file abroad if they *had* to show joint stuff.

You can look up reviews for interviews for CR-1 in Mexico to learn about bit more about the kind of things you'll be asked about at that stage, too: http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.php?cnty=Mexico&cty=&dfilter=5&topic=IR-1%2FCR-1+Visa

[FherJess 15]

No. If you go to the forum I linked, you'll find that a huge majority of them live apart so cannot show joint accounts/joint home. You'll just show other evidence of bonafide relationship - trips and holidays together, gifts, details of your wedding, letters from family confirming your marriage in good faith. etc. They wouldn't let folks file abroad if they *had* to show joint stuff.

You can look up reviews for interviews for CR-1 in Mexico to learn about bit more about the kind of things you'll be asked about at that stage, too: http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/index.php?cnty=Mexico&cty=&dfilter=5&topic=IR-1%2FCR-1+Visa

Even if I did get married and do CR1, wouldn't my app still be sent to CSC?

wouldn't if still be subject to the horrendous waiting that is the K1?

[lost_at_sea 995]

Even if I did get married and do CR1, wouldn't my app still be sent to CSC?

wouldn't if still be subject to the horrendous waiting that is the K1?

Yes, it'll still go to CSC. Will you have the same wait? Maybe. You can study the timelines for CR-1 and make up your own mind how they're going:

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/k1list.php?cfl=&op3=5&op5=&op6=All

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/irstats.php?cfl=

https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplayInit.do

CSC is under-processing I-129fs in particular at the moment, going on the statistical analysis of others. They are processing different visa petition types at varying speeds.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/423081-uscis-processing-the-ugly-the-bad-and-the-good/

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/421247-i-129f-delay-at-the-csc-a-comprehensive-analysis-of-the-data/

I only suggested CR-1 because if you're going to have to wait ages anyway, you may prefer waiting being married and not having to do AOS upon entering the USA (which takes another 2-4 months for the foreign beneficiary to be able to travel abroad, work and collect a green card).

It's up to you. You asked if you're going to have a long wait, and I think, sadly, the answer either way is "yes".

Edited April 5, 2013 by lost_at_sea

[FherJess 15]

thanks for all the info. I really do appreciate it.

going to have a talk with my fiancé and see what he wants to do.

Thanks again!

[Andreea&Kevin 38]

Even if I did get married and do CR1, wouldn't my app still be sent to CSC?

wouldn't if still be subject to the horrendous waiting that is the K1?

Right now your CR1 would NOT go to CSC. They have all been going to NBC since last year. That means it will be processed by your local field office. If you look on the timelines here you will see a great variety in processing times for NBC, because of this. But on average a CR1 with NBC is much faster then a K1 at CSC right now.

Look here and find your local field office, and see how well they have been doing. It may be fast it may be slow. http://dashboard.uscis.gov/index.cfm?formtype=4&office=2&charttype=1

[FherJess 15]

Right now your CR1 would NOT go to CSC. They have all been going to NBC since last year. That means it will be processed by your local field office. If you look on the timelines here you will see a great variety in processing times for NBC, because of this. But on average a CR1 with NBC is much faster then a K1 at CSC right now.

Look here and find your local field office, and see how well they have been doing. It may be fast it may be slow. http://dashboard.uscis.gov/index.cfm?formtype=4&office=2&charttype=1

I'm going to check that link out.

Thanks so much for posting it.

[Scott and Emy 1]

I'm pretty much only thinking about this pretty much all the time. I've actually even considered going the CR1 route.

But how long would the wait be for that?

Also, would I have to live in my fiancé's country (Mexico) for a while to prove a bonafide marriage?

So many questions.

If you have the ability to live in Mexico for about 4 months, I can help you get your fiance here as a wife with a green card. It is a fairly simple process if you have the paperwork they want and meet the financial requirements.You can read more about the DCF process here in the guides.

Edited April 7, 2013 by Scott and Emy