Visa approved!!! (And yes, you can now take mobile phones into the embassy)

[stevensane 10]

Title says it all really, I got approved at about 9.15am this morning! And yes, you can now take mobile phones into the embassy as long as it is switched off at reception and at the interview.

The in interview was about 5 minutes long with a very pleasant woman who put very polite and friendly. I will write a full review, including application process (I had a few very specific situations that others may find helpful), over the coming week for other member's to read and gain perspective from.

I just want to say a massive THANK YOU to everyone who helped, especially Nich-Nick, Wheatly (especially for their joint information thread!) and AleGwi! This forum really is an incredible source of information and assistance!

[MikeAndMolly 1]

Congratulations!!!

[scottym27 19]

Congrats!! And having this forum is really useful. Thanks also for confirming about mobile phones, I first reported it on Friday but I wanted to make sure I hadn't imagined things ;-)

Well done and start counting the days!!

[KASH2011 382]

Fantastic news! Congrats to you

[Natonstan 129]

Congratulations!! I have mine on thursday

[shell20 746]

Title says it all really, I got approved at about 9.15am this morning! And yes, you can now take mobile phones into the embassy as long as it is switched off at reception and at the interview.

The in interview was about 5 minutes long with a very pleasant woman who put very polite and friendly. I will write a full review, including application process (I had a few very specific situations that others may find helpful), over the coming week for other member's to read and gain perspective from.

I just want to say a massive THANK YOU to everyone who helped, especially Nich-Nick, Wheatly (especially for their joint information thread!) and AleGwi! This forum really is an incredible source of information and assistance!

Congratulations!! Go celebrate. I have mine on Thursday and I would love to hear your experience of the embassy. Glad we can take our mobiles with us ,I'm going in the Embassy by myself, my brother will be at the hotel waiting and my fiance will be anxiously waiting to hear news, so the sooner I can inform them the better! Once again congratulations I am so happy for you.

[Hotter Otter 1,211]

Congratulations and thanks for finding out the mobile phone info

[rhirhi 35]

Congrats! Very pleased about the mobile phones info, I got a bit lost when I was walking to my medical and had to use the map feature on my phone to find where I was so I was worried about the same thing happening when trying to find the embassy

Is it JUST mobile phones? I notice that they don't allow larger electronics like laptops, but what about something like an iPad? Or even an iPod? Both would be handy on the long bus rides to and from London but I might leave them behind as I'm trying to get away with just packing one handbag of bits and pieces for the overnight stay so I won't have to leave items behind at Gould's or the hotel.

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Scottym27 reported seeing iPads inside on Friday.

The link to "Security Information" on the London website has a list of prohibited items. Laptops are still on the list http://london.usembassy.gov/visas_security.html

[rhirhi 35]

Ooh that's interesting

I've seen that list, it's the words 'such as laptops' that are making me wonder. I'm guessing the 'such as' bit refers to the size of the electronic device...hopefully a few more people will report on this but it does sound promising.

[stevensane 10]

Congrats! Very pleased about the mobile phones info, I got a bit lost when I was walking to my medical and had to use the map feature on my phone to find where I was so I was worried about the same thing happening when trying to find the embassy

Is it JUST mobile phones? I notice that they don't allow larger electronics like laptops, but what about something like an iPad? Or even an iPod? Both would be handy on the long bus rides to and from London but I might leave them behind as I'm trying to get away with just packing one handbag of bits and pieces for the overnight stay so I won't have to leave items behind at Gould's or the hotel.

As far as I am aware it is just mobile phones. I went to Gould's to hand in my bag (it had my lunch for work in it and thought it would be odd to take the constituent parts of ramen into the embassy!) and they told me there I could take my phone with me and this had been the case since last week.

However the guy in front of me was told he had to hand his iPad in, so he did.

That said, this is a very new rule (they still have all of the "no mobile phones allowed" signs up) and Gould's are providing us with second-hand information so it may be that they are wrong and that iPads are allowed and that the full information has just not filtered through to them yet.

I am not sure about iPods, I am afraid.

[rhirhi 35]

Ah, interesting! I will keep stalking threads in the run up to my interview to see everyone's experiences as the new rule settles in