How long after I-130 approved do we have to get everything ready?

[bigGlasses 0]

Hi all, thanks for such a helpful site.

My husband (USC) and I (UKC) are considering starting the process of moving to the US from the UK imminently. We would be applying for IR1 using DCF London. I've read the DCF London guide very carefully and it's so helpful but I still have a question related to the process.

Once our I-130 is approved, is there a maximum amount of time I can take to do the medical, collect evidence, submit DS-260, etc?

Basically if the answer is 'no' we would choose to submit I-130 ASAP now and get the process started. But if the answer is 'yes' we need to consider more carefully exactly when to submit giving ourselves enough time to be prepared for the next stage. I do understand that the longer we take, the longer it will take me to be in the US.

[Wuozopo 4,293]

2 hours ago, bigGlasses said:

Once our I-130 is approved, is there a maximum amount of time I can take to do the medical, collect evidence, submit DS-260, etc?

London will give you a year. I've seen it in an email, forwarded to me from a friend who got it from the Immigrant Visa Unit in London. So in writing straight from the horse's mouth, I tend to believe that.

 

They may send you a letter after six months of no response toward applying and ask if you are still wanting a visa.  You can also wait a few months, submit the DS-260, then wait a few more months to submit the medical, then wait some more before picking your interview date online. That way they know you are working on it and haven't abandoned your plans. You have to use your visa within six months of the medical exam or the exam will expire.

[bigGlasses 0]

Thank you! This is so helpful. We certainly won't need a year, it's just good to know that we won't feel rushed during the process. We'd better get started!

[Mr_B 3]

My embassy (Brussels) quoted 4 to 6 weeks for the entire exception DCF procedure.

I needed a 3 extra weeks because of traveling on my passport (which one has to leave for 1-2 weeks at the embassy after the interview, for processing the VISA). 

They were totally fine with it. 

If you've lived in many places since age 12, getting all the documentation together can be a pain. If not, it's fairly straightforward and not a source for worry. 

The only other potential delay I can think of is if your husband hasn't been filing his US taxes, you need the most recent tax return before the final interview.

In that case he'd have to hire a CPA to do a streamlined filing and that can easily take a month or more. 

[Wuozopo 4,293]

3 hours ago, bigGlasses said:

My husband (USC) and I (UKC) are considering starting the process of moving to the US from the UK imminently. We would be applying for IR1 using DCF London. I've read the DCF London guide very carefully and it's so helpful but I still have a question related to the process.

 

The guide on Visa Journey may be out of date. This is the embassy instruction page. https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/how-to-apply-2/

 

Scroll down to the third paragraph where your procedure Steps 1-4 are found. Then back to the top to go to the information links numbered 6-10...medical, documents, what to expect at interview, etc. The FAQs and Additional Resources in the right column are useful too.

[Bombayy 7]

The instructions for the U.S. consulate in Mumbai said applicants generally have one year from the date the applicant is notified to start the application process (see the header "How quickly do I need to apply for my visa?"): https://photos.state.gov/libraries/mumbai/1057584/senkx/BMB IV Packet 4 Oct 2015.pdf

 

I think as long as you file the DS-260 within a year of being notified to start the process, you can take more time to finish everything. My husband filed his DS-260 about three months before the one-year mark, but we didn't finish the process until after the one-year mark because of unexpected delays due to his medical exam.

 

 

Edited February 27, 2018 by Bombayy
added more information

[Bombayy 7]

Actually, scratch that: We got our approval before the one-year anniversary of the consulate's instruction letter, but I don't think they would have canceled our application even if we needed more time to finish it, as the process was well underway.

[sachaerin76 1]

We completed the petition with the London field office in July last year and and were basing all of our timings off of the 10 months you should give from start to finish so were surprised when the petition was approved in 7 working days and then we had the LND number 4 working days after that. We started to panic because we weren't planning to move until this year and were worried this approval would only be valid for a certain amount of time. We had an appointment for our son at the embassy and asked them while we were there about this and they said the petition is valid indefinitely but you need to maintain contact with the embassy if it's going to be longer than a year. She said that the DS-260 is valid for a year once completed. We paused our process in July and picked it back up at the end of December and had the visa in hand 2 weeks ago (mid-Feb). So had we just continued the process in July we would have probably had his visa in hand in late August - that would have been less than 2 month turnaround! 

 

I've been reading that the petition approval is taking longer right now since the embassy moved.

 

[bigGlasses 0]

On 26/02/2018 at 3:18 PM, Wuozopo said:

 

The guide on Visa Journey may be out of date. This is the embassy instruction page. https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/family-immigration/how-to-apply-2/

 

Scroll down to the third paragraph where your procedure Steps 1-4 are found. Then back to the top to go to the information links numbered 6-10...medical, documents, what to expect at interview, etc. The FAQs and Additional Resources in the right column are useful too.

Thank you, I will read this carefully too.

 

And thanks all, it seems like I should have plenty of time!

[dekedwin 52]

Correct me if Ian wrong, but the wayo understand it is that once your Petitions are approved you have one year to complete the process. What it says is once you are ordered to go ahead, you have one year. Also if the interviewer asks for more documentation you have to produce that within one year. Once they give you the visa, the visa expires within six months, which means that you have to land with the airplane at your port of entry and go through customs within six months.