Process after NOA2

[SMcNally 37]

Hi,

We're in the process of applying for a K-1 visa. We got the first NOA on 11^th September. Our case has been sent to the California Service Centre. We are expecting the petition to get approved mid March 2018 (assuming everything goes well and we get no RFEs). I'm based in Bangalore at the moment.

 

While I am clear about the broader process of how things work once we get the second NOA, I'm not completely sure on the specifics. I'd like to get prepared as much as I can with the paperwork beforehand, so that things don't get delayed due to an oversight on our part.

 

Here is how I understand it. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

1) The case gets forwarded to the NVC. The NVC does its own processing.

2) The NVC forwards the case to the embassy, which in India would be Mumbai, and they get in touch with me.

3) The embassy sends me some forms to fill out. I courier the forms back to them. Once they finish processing that, then I am ready for the final processing i.e. the interview.

4) I get my PCC.

5) I schedule the two interviews and fill out the DS-160, and make the payment.

6) I schedule the medical check-up which should be at least 7 days before the interview.

7) Go to the interview.

 

If the above is correct, I have a few questions:

 

A) When the NVC is processing the application do they contact my fiancée (the petitioner) to submit any more forms or do we just wait for them to forward the case to the embassy? At this juncture, do we have to submit or fill out anything?

 

B) Mumbai is the only embassy in India where K1 visas are processed, right? When the embassy contacts me, do they contact me electronically or via snail mail? There is a possibility that there will be no one at home to collect my mail. Do I contact the embassy first or just wait for them? What is Packet 3 and Packet 4? I've read a lot of forums posts referring to them.

 

C) Are the results of the medical checkup given to me to take to the interview? Seems like the medical checkup can in done in Chennai, Mumbai or Hyderabad. Since I am based in Bangalore, does this mean I have to stay in Mumbai for at least 7 days (medical + interview)?

 

D) Regarding vaccinations, I got the Tdap and MMR shots as a kid. So, what further vaccinations did you get to get your K1 visa? Is it worth getting some of these vaccinations done now? I have no proof of my previous vaccinations.

 

E) On the traveldocs website, it says the PCC is valid for a year? So, can I get my PCC for India now and save some time? Has anybody done this i.e. get the PCC months in advance? Do I need multiple copies of the PCC?

 

F) Also, I have to get PCCs from 3 other countries, two of which require me to show a “Photocopy of document from relevant consulate/immigration authority/government bodies or other requester to establish that the certificate is required by such authority.” When in the K1 process am I officially notified that I need a PCC? I think the PCCs are what is going to take some time and the sooner I can apply for them the better.

 

G) The I-134, Affidavit of Support can be filled in my someone other than my fiancée, right? She's going back to university and is not employed as a result. Can I have multiple I-134s?

 

Thank you,

Siddharth

[KozmicBlues 592]

19 hours ago, SMcNally said:

Hi,

We're in the process of applying for a K-1 visa. We got the first NOA on 11^th September. Our case has been sent to the California Service Centre. We are expecting the petition to get approved mid March 2018 (assuming everything goes well and we get no RFEs). I'm based in Bangalore at the moment.

 

While I am clear about the broader process of how things work once we get the second NOA, I'm not completely sure on the specifics. I'd like to get prepared as much as I can with the paperwork beforehand, so that things don't get delayed due to an oversight on our part.

 

Here is how I understand it. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

1) The case gets forwarded to the NVC. The NVC does its own processing. Correct. They assign a case number and forward it to the embassy.

2) The NVC forwards the case to the embassy, which in India would be Mumbai, and they get in touch with me. Correct. Effective this month all K1 cases are now handled by Mumbai only, no longer process in New Delhi. 

3) The embassy sends me some forms to fill out. I courier the forms back to them. Once they finish processing that, then I am ready for the final processing i.e. the interview. For Delhi, this is not correct. They send a notification, yes, but there is nothing to fill out and send back. They sent my fiance a 'packet' which was basically just a letter advising a petition has been filed on his behalf by me and provided the next steps/instructions. It also included a copy of the I-129F that I filled out and sent with the petition. 

The instructions received by mail looked exactly like this: https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Supplemental/NWD - New Delhi.pdf 

4) I get my PCC. Correct. 

5) I schedule the two interviews and fill out the DS-160, and make the payment. If I remember correctly, you have to complete the DS-160 and make the visa fee payment before you can schedule an interview. Your first step before completing this should be to create a profile on UStraveldocs.com/in site. The site won't let you schedule an appointment without the DS-160 confirmation and the fee payment receipt. 

6) I schedule the medical check-up which should be at least 7 days before the interview. Correct. After you schedule the visa appointments you can book the medical. They require the appointment confirmation page at the medical. It has to be at least 7 days in advance so they have enough time to process the report. Depending on the embassy, the medical office may send the results directly to the embassy or you may have to pick them up and take them with you to the interview. 

7) Go to the interview. Correct. 

 

If the above is correct, I have a few questions:

 

A) When the NVC is processing the application do they contact my fiancée (the petitioner) to submit any more forms or do we just wait for them to forward the case to the embassy? At this juncture, do we have to submit or fill out anything? The NVC will send the US petitioner a letter with the NVC case number just notifying them that the case has been forwarded to the embassy. At this stage, nothing was required to submit or fill out. Make sure you have your fiance send you a copy of all the notifications received, when we contacted UStraveldocs for help they always asked for various copies of letters - either from the NVC or the one received from the embassy. 

 

B) Mumbai is the only embassy in India where K1 visas are processed, right? When the embassy contacts me, do they contact me electronically or via snail mail? There is a possibility that there will be no one at home to collect my mail. Do I contact the embassy first or just wait for them? What is Packet 3 and Packet 4? I've read a lot of forums posts referring to them. Correct, as of Dec 1st Mumbai is now the only embassy to handle K1. I know this for sure since ours was pending at New Delhi during the change and it caused a huge hassle for us. For New Delhi, Packet 3/Packet 4 was basically the same thing...the letter that gets sent by the embassy with the instructions that I linked above. You don't need to contact the embassy unless it goes a long time without hearing something. Technically once you have your NVC case number and it shows ready on the CEAC website then you can begin the process of filling out the DS-160 and scheduling interviews. 

 

C) Are the results of the medical checkup given to me to take to the interview? Seems like the medical checkup can in done in Chennai, Mumbai or Hyderabad. Since I am based in Bangalore, does this mean I have to stay in Mumbai for at least 7 days (medical + interview)? Depends on the place/embassy, I think. For my fiance, they are sending the results directly to the embassy but his required sputum testing so I'm not sure if that's the reason they are sending it directly. The medical office you go to for the exam should be able to tell you if they send the results directly or not. 

 

D) Regarding vaccinations, I got the Tdap and MMR shots as a kid. So, what further vaccinations did you get to get your K1 visa? Is it worth getting some of these vaccinations done now? I have no proof of my previous vaccinations. I can't remember all of the ones they required my fiance to get, but it was 3 or 4 at least. Check with the medical place first to see if they will accept your record of getting them before you do. They did the vaccinations on the same day as the medical exam so it wasn't any hassle for my fiance. 

 

E) On the traveldocs website, it says the PCC is valid for a year? So, can I get my PCC for India now and save some time? Has anybody done this i.e. get the PCC months in advance? Do I need multiple copies of the PCC? When my fiance got his PCC, they did ask him what the reason for getting the PCC was. I know he took the support for the K1 case, but he can't remember if they actually asked for the proof or not. So I think you should be able to get it ahead of time but I wouldn't recommend more than a couple of months in advance since things can always happen. 

 

F) Also, I have to get PCCs from 3 other countries, two of which require me to show a “Photocopy of document from relevant consulate/immigration authority/government bodies or other requester to establish that the certificate is required by such authority.” When in the K1 process am I officially notified that I need a PCC? I think the PCCs are what is going to take some time and the sooner I can apply for them the better.

I think you technically will not be notified officially until you receive that letter from the embassy with the instructions. You could try providing the instructions I linked above, but they might not accept that if it doesn't specifically say that the embassy has a visa application for you. Maybe the letter from NVC to your fiance (US petitioner) could work too. 

 

G) The I-134, Affidavit of Support can be filled in my someone other than my fiancée, right? She's going back to university and is not employed as a result. Can I have multiple I-134s? Well, it has to be filled out by your fiancee no matter what, even if she doesn't meet the income requirements. If you are going to have a co-sponsor then yes you can have multiple I-134s. You would just have theirs in addition to your fiancee's. I don't think they even asked my fiance for the I-134 yesterday at his interview, but I'll double check with him. 

 

Thank you,

Siddharth

Hi...me and my fiance are currently going through the K1 process in India. His embassy interview was just yesterday at New Delhi, but it is in AP due to pending medical results (he was required to go for sputum testing which takes 8 weeks for processing). I did my best to answer all of your points, but keep in mind these are just my observations based on our recent experience with New Delhi embassy. We found out that Mumbai is now the only embassy handling K1 visas, so the process may be a bit different with Mumbai. 

[SMcNally 37]

Thank you for taking the time out to answer my questions. I hope your fiance's interview went well and your case is not in AP for too long

[RoamingTheNet 9]

On 12/29/2017 at 6:11 PM, KozmicBlues said:

Hi...me and my fiance are currently going through the K1 process in India. His embassy interview was just yesterday at New Delhi, but it is in AP due to pending medical results (he was required to go for sputum testing which takes 8 weeks for processing). I did my best to answer all of your points, but keep in mind these are just my observations based on our recent experience with New Delhi embassy. We found out that Mumbai is now the only embassy handling K1 visas, so the process may be a bit different with Mumbai. 

Hi KozmicBlues, 

I just saw your timeline and noticed it took 4 months to schedule an interview. Is that the normal or were there delays on your end to schedule an interview after you got Packet 3? Also was Packet 3 sent by the New Delhi Embassy to your fiance?

Also some people mentioned getting a packet 4. Did you receive that, if so when?

 

Thanks!

[KozmicBlues 592]

5 hours ago, RoamingTheNet said:

Hi KozmicBlues, 

I just saw your timeline and noticed it took 4 months to schedule an interview. Is that the normal or were there delays on your end to schedule an interview after you got Packet 3? Also was Packet 3 sent by the New Delhi Embassy to your fiance?

Also some people mentioned getting a packet 4. Did you receive that, if so when?

 

Thanks!

Hi! There were delays on our end. When we got our NOA2, my fiance was still pending his passport to be sent to him. There were some issues with the police clearance part of granting his passport so it took much longer than expected. Then once we finally were able to schedule his interview, he went to the medical exam and was sent to the lab for sputum testing. That added an additional 7 weeks since they wouldn't let him schedule the interview until the medical was almost done. 

 

There was only one packet/communication sent to my fiance by the New Delhi embassy - I'm still not really sure if its considered packet 3 or 4 since it didn't say either. It was just a letter saying they received a petition for him to apply for the K1 visa and included a copy of it. It also listed instructions for next steps (submitting DS-160, paying visa fee, police clearance cert., scheduling appointments, medical exam, etc.)

 

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions. 

[RoamingTheNet 9]

23 hours ago, KozmicBlues said:

Hi! There were delays on our end. When we got our NOA2, my fiance was still pending his passport to be sent to him. There were some issues with the police clearance part of granting his passport so it took much longer than expected. Then once we finally were able to schedule his interview, he went to the medical exam and was sent to the lab for sputum testing. That added an additional 7 weeks since they wouldn't let him schedule the interview until the medical was almost done. 

 

There was only one packet/communication sent to my fiance by the New Delhi embassy - I'm still not really sure if its considered packet 3 or 4 since it didn't say either. It was just a letter saying they received a petition for him to apply for the K1 visa and included a copy of it. It also listed instructions for next steps (submitting DS-160, paying visa fee, police clearance cert., scheduling appointments, medical exam, etc.)

 

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions. 

Thanks for all the information!! I see our case was just received at the NVC today. Looks like all K1 cases will be processed at the Mumbai Consulate now as my case was assigned to them.

[KozmicBlues 592]

On 12/30/2017 at 6:42 AM, SMcNally said:

Thank you for taking the time out to answer my questions. I hope your fiance's interview went well and your case is not in AP for too long

Thanks! He was approved and the visa was issued one week after he dropped off his passport at the embassy. He's picking it up from the embassy tomorrow and he will be flying here in 2 1/2 weeks.  

 

All the best to you and your partner for the process as well!

[KozmicBlues 592]

On 1/12/2018 at 5:01 PM, RoamingTheNet said:

Thanks for all the information!! I see our case was just received at the NVC today. Looks like all K1 cases will be processed at the Mumbai Consulate now as my case was assigned to them.

Yep, that's right. Now all K1 cases are being handled only at Mumbai. Keep in mind that if everything is approved same-day at the interview then it will take about 1 week (at least) to get the visa issued and be able to collect it from the embassy. So if you're planning on collecting it from the embassy then you will either have to stay in Mumbai until its issued or travel back again to collect the passport. Not sure how far you live from Mumbai, but figured it was worth mentioning as a FYI. My fiance lives in Delhi so we were lucky on that part, but I kept thinking how much more stressful it would be for someone who lives far away from the embassy!

[RoamingTheNet 9]

29 minutes ago, KozmicBlues said:

Yep, that's right. Now all K1 cases are being handled only at Mumbai. Keep in mind that if everything is approved same-day at the interview then it will take about 1 week (at least) to get the visa issued and be able to collect it from the embassy. So if you're planning on collecting it from the embassy then you will either have to stay in Mumbai until its issued or travel back again to collect the passport. Not sure how far you live from Mumbai, but figured it was worth mentioning as a FYI. My fiance lives in Delhi so we were lucky on that part, but I kept thinking how much more stressful it would be for someone who lives far away from the embassy!

My fiance is from Delhi as well. I was hoping that they would courier the passport back. If we have to stay in Mumbai that's a lot of uncertainty on when we're going to get the passport back.

 

Do you recall if for the Medical, the consulate sends a form to fill out and take to the Clinic. I received the Invoice ID, Beneficiary ID and Case No. from NVC. Also, do we go for the medical after the appointment is booked?

[KozmicBlues 592]

2 hours ago, RoamingTheNet said:

My fiance is from Delhi as well. I was hoping that they would courier the passport back. If we have to stay in Mumbai that's a lot of uncertainty on when we're going to get the passport back.

 

Do you recall if for the Medical, the consulate sends a form to fill out and take to the Clinic. I received the Invoice ID, Beneficiary ID and Case No. from NVC. Also, do we go for the medical after the appointment is booked?

Oh that's right, I forgot about the courier service they offer! So yeah you could just do that instead of having to wait until the passport is issued. 

 

The consulate did not give any kind of form to take to the clinic. My fiance just took his appointment confirmation letter to the clinic. They sent the results to the embassy on their own, my fiance didn't have to take anything from the medical to his interview. But remember my fiance had to go for the sputum testing which added 8 weeks so his process was a bit different - I'm not sure if that is the normal process for medicals that go smoothly or not. You can call the medical place and ask if you can book the appointment, I think they will require the appointment confirmation when you go to the medical exam. Just keep in mind your visa will only be valid for the length of how long the medical is valid, so you don't want to do the medical too far in advance. 

 

Feel free to message me if you have any other questions!  

[SMcNally 37]

On 1/13/2018 at 5:31 AM, RoamingTheNet said:

Thanks for all the information!! I see our case was just received at the NVC today. Looks like all K1 cases will be processed at the Mumbai Consulate now as my case was assigned to them.

When the embassy gets in touch with your fiance, could you please post the details of what they send? It seems like they only send one packet now, as opposed to the Packet 3 and 4. 

 

I'm 100% sure they will courier the passport back to your Delhi address. I've gotten multiple US visas (B1 and J1), had my interview in Chennai and they've always shipped it back to Bangalore (usually in 3 working days). I don't think it'll be any different for the K1.

 

And congratulations KozmicBlues

[RoamingTheNet 9]

1 minute ago, SMcNally said:

When the embassy gets in touch with your fiance, could you please post the details of what they send? It seems like they only send one packet now, as opposed to the Packet 3 and 4. 

 

I'm 100% sure they will courier the passport back to your Delhi address. I've gotten multiple US visas (B1 and J1), had my interview in Chennai and they've always shipped it back to Bangalore (usually in 3 working days). I don't think it'll be any different for the K1.

 

And congratulations KozmicBlues

Sure. I'll do that. So far the Case is still at NVC since the 12th. Should be sent to the Consulate by Friday.

[SMcNally 37]

Since I started this thread, I just wanted to post my experience here for other folks in case they have the same questions:

- We got our NOA1 on 11 September 2017. Based on the timelines, I applied for my PCCs (I needed 4) in January 2018. It's good to get this out the way, in my opinion. My India PCC experience is here: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/661388-pcc-experience-in-bangalore-2018-split-topic/

- I also only have a birth certificate from the hospital and my government one doesn't have my name. So, apart from my school leaving certificate, I also got an affidavit from my parents stating that I was their son and when I was born. This was done in January too.

- We got our NOA2 on 13th March after 183 days. We waited for 10 days or so and then began to call the NVC to check if they had received our case. The third time we called, the case had been received (26th March). A couple days later we had our case number.

-Now we went to the CEAC website and waited till it said our case was ready. It was a few days later.

-Once the case is ready, do not wait for the embassy to contact the foreign fiance. Just fill the DS-160 and pay for the visa on the US Travel Docs website. All this takes a few days. Once all this is done, you can look at interview dates. Getting the dates you want requires patience. By the first week of April, I was looking at dates. Due to our circumstances, I was looking at an early July date. After a couple weeks, I got the date I wanted.

- In the meantime, we got our I-134 stuff ready, and our photos, tickets and statements of intent (not signed until just before the interview). You'll have to bring the original copy of the statement of intent and I-134, not photocopies.

- I wasn't home at the time but maybe the end of April, the embassy sent me a letter (by snail mail, not email) along with a copy of our I-129f. Keep this letter and take a few copies. You'll need this at the medical and the consular interview. To ensure you have this letter, try to get your interview at least a month after the case gets transferred to the embassy (or just call the embassy and see if they can expedite the sending of the letter). 

- And that's that. Do your medical, VAC stuff and the consular interview.

- If your case is strong, you might think about buying your plane ticket beforehand. It could be cheaper buying a ticket months in advance and changing the date (in case you have to) than buying a ticket one week before you leave.

[A_R 191]

23 hours ago, SMcNally said:

Since I started this thread, I just wanted to post my experience here for other folks in case they have the same questions:

- We got our NOA1 on 11 September 2017. Based on the timelines, I applied for my PCCs (I needed 4) in January 2018. It's good to get this out the way, in my opinion. My India PCC experience is here: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/661388-pcc-experience-in-bangalore-2018-split-topic/

- I also only have a birth certificate from the hospital and my government one doesn't have my name. So, apart from my school leaving certificate, I also got an affidavit from my parents stating that I was their son and when I was born. This was done in January too.

- We got our NOA2 on 13th March after 183 days. We waited for 10 days or so and then began to call the NVC to check if they had received our case. The third time we called, the case had been received (26th March). A couple days later we had our case number.

-Now we went to the CEAC website and waited till it said our case was ready. It was a few days later.

-Once the case is ready, do not wait for the embassy to contact the foreign fiance. Just fill the DS-160 and pay for the visa on the US Travel Docs website. All this takes a few days. Once all this is done, you can look at interview dates. Getting the dates you want requires patience. By the first week of April, I was looking at dates. Due to our circumstances, I was looking at an early July date. After a couple weeks, I got the date I wanted.

- In the meantime, we got our I-134 stuff ready, and our photos, tickets and statements of intent (not signed until just before the interview). You'll have to bring the original copy of the statement of intent and I-134, not photocopies.

- I wasn't home at the time but maybe the end of April, the embassy sent me a letter (by snail mail, not email) along with a copy of our I-129f. Keep this letter and take a few copies. You'll need this at the medical and the consular interview. To ensure you have this letter, try to get your interview at least a month after the case gets transferred to the embassy (or just call the embassy and see if they can expedite the sending of the letter). 

- And that's that. Do your medical, VAC stuff and the consular interview.

- If your case is strong, you might think about buying your plane ticket beforehand. It could be cheaper buying a ticket months in advance and changing the date (in case you have to) than buying a ticket one week before you leave.

Hi @SMcNally  Thanks so much for the tips . It will help people like me a lot !!!

I have a question regarding the I-134 Part 3 question 38 what should my petitioner check -  "I intend" or “I do not intend”  

If he checks " I intend" then what should be the explanation for that in Part 2 of the question ?

[SMcNally 37]

18 hours ago, A_R said:

Hi @SMcNally  Thanks so much for the tips . It will help people like me a lot !!!

I have a question regarding the I-134 Part 3 question 38 what should my petitioner check -  "I intend" or “I do not intend”  

If he checks " I intend" then what should be the explanation for that in Part 2 of the question ?

I did stress over this question a little bit. In my fiancee's form and our co-sponsors form we ticked do not intend...because we didn't have a specific plan of money being given. I'm sure when I go to the USA my fiancee will pay for a few things for me and I'll pay for a few things for her but since there are no specifics, we checked do not intend. Of course, if you're fiance is going to pay for rent, food etc, then you may want to check the other box and write some details down on the last page. 

 

I don't think it really matters what you check as long as there are no inconsistencies for example if your fiance earns $25000 a year and she's paying $5000 rent a month for you...there's an obvious point here where she and you will be broke at some point. To me it seems like the consular officers are looking for the story that you present with your paperwork, and if there are holes in that story, then that's a problem.