New K-1 Visa Arrival at Airport

[NDB052714 122]

7 hours ago, PandT said:

Hi Everyone.  I don't know if this is the right place for my question, but please move if needed.  I was just wondering if any K-1 Visa fiancé has entered the US through Wilmington International Airport, in NC?  Please tell me of your experience, how long was the wait, which line fiancé should be in & etc.  I would appreciate any info that you don't mind sharing with me.  Thanks.

Wilmington is a very small airport...it is international because it has customs facilities for private and charter flights arriving from international destinations. Commercial flights are domestic...from places like Charlotte, Atlanta, Newark, etc. 

[Kowatti 189]

52 minutes ago, NDB052714 said:

Wilmington is a very small airport...it is international because it has customs facilities for private and charter flights arriving from international destinations. Commercial flights are domestic...from places like Charlotte, Atlanta, Newark, etc. 

Hi.  Yup!  I found out the hard way, lol.  Honestly, why call it an international airport.  Thank God for VJ members like you educating me, I would have been thinking that fiance will land in Wilmington.  Like a dummy, I was thinking because it's considered international & customs/immigration checking goes on there as well.  Like I always say, what would I do without you guys?  It's getting a little bit closer to the end, providing things go well.  Fiance is putting every possible document they could ask for together + more.  Now he will have to convince the consular our relationship is bona fide.  Talking about stress.  Thanks guys for your input.      

[Jeanne Adil 1,651]

11 hours ago, carmel34 said:

Plan on at least a 4 hour connection time in ATL to allow for processing by CBP and getting to the domestic flight.  Atlanta is a huge airport with long lines.

agree but now they have the new international terminal/ he will have to change terminals for a domestic flight from one to another

atlanta is busy but fast / a lot faster than Miami

but in reality the availabilty of flights change day to day and this decision can not be made till you have that visa and know what is out there

changing in France no longer requires a transit visa with a valid US visa unless there is a change of airports or you have to pick up a new boarding pass there

(make sure the ticket doesn't come in 2 parts like one to France and one to the USA

[Jazzy28 10]

11 hours ago, Ben&Zian said:

 

Luckily it isn't O'hare in Chicago or Newark, terrible airports lol.

😱😱  I have always traveled Gambia > Senegal > Brussels > Chicago and never had a problem at customs so I chose the same path for my fiancé. 😬   

 

My fiance interviewed in Senegal as well and his interview was a breeze.   

PandT -  good luck and hope it all turns out well. I honestly think the interviewers have their minds made up prior to the interview. Or at least a good idea on which direction their leaning based on what they reviewed prior to the interview. 

[Kowatti 189]

4 hours ago, Jazzy28 said:

😱😱  I have always traveled Gambia > Senegal > Brussels > Chicago and never had a problem at customs so I chose the same path for my fiancé. 😬   

 

My fiance interviewed in Senegal as well and his interview was a breeze.   

PandT -  good luck and hope it all turns out well. I honestly think the interviewers have their minds made up prior to the interview. Or at least a good idea on which direction their leaning based on what they reviewed prior to the interview. 

Good morning.  I am very happy to hear from someone who already went through the interview process.  We don't know what to expect & fiancé has been a little stressed out about the unknown.  You hear so many horror stories about Dakar Embassy.  It is good to hear the interview was a positive one & not difficult.  Please, will you share the interview questions with me?  Was it crowded?  I would greatly appreciate   it.  My best wishes to you. 

[Kowatti 189]

4 hours ago, Jazzy28 said:

😱😱  I have always traveled Gambia > Senegal > Brussels > Chicago and never had a problem at customs so I chose the same path for my fiancé. 😬   

 

My fiance interviewed in Senegal as well and his interview was a breeze.   

PandT -  good luck and hope it all turns out well. I honestly think the interviewers have their minds made up prior to the interview. Or at least a good idea on which direction their leaning based on what they reviewed prior to the interview. 

Hello again.  I just saw your comments on the interview questions.  That's a help.  Please, can you tell me what he did with his cell phone since you cannot carry it inside the embassy?  Do they keep it for you until you are ready to leave?  Thanks.

[NDB052714 122]

10 hours ago, PandT said:

Hi.  Yup!  I found out the hard way, lol.  Honestly, why call it an international airport.  Thank God for VJ members like you educating me, I would have been thinking that fiance will land in Wilmington.  Like a dummy, I was thinking because it's considered international & customs/immigration checking goes on there as well.  Like I always say, what would I do without you guys?  It's getting a little bit closer to the end, providing things go well.  Fiance is putting every possible document they could ask for together + more.  Now he will have to convince the consular our relationship is bona fide.  Talking about stress.  Thanks guys for your input.      

You're welcome and best of luck! 

[NicholeT 157]

16 hours ago, celie&joseph said:

Your best bet will probably be Raleigh/Durham airport. It's about 2 hours north of Jacksonville but it's what I used to use for flights when I lived there.

I agree that RDU would probably be the best POE for you to use as that is NCs major airport and international travel is common. My fiance came through from Jamaica (that is also the airport I use to fly international as well) and from what he said POE went smooth. The immigration officer took the sealed envelope, checked his visa of course and just told him to be married & AOS by the 90 days. I didn't want my fiance to use ATL as POE because it is huge and I felt he may not know how to manage being a first time traveler. It was confusing to me and I've flown several times lol.

Edited April 3, 2019 by NicholeT

[Kowatti 189]

1 hour ago, NicholeT said:

I agree that RDU would probably be the best POE for you to use as that is NCs major airport and international travel is common. My fiance came through from Jamaica (that is also the airport I use to fly international as well) and from what he said POE went smooth. The immigration officer took the sealed envelope, checked his visa of course and just told him to be married & AOS by the 90 days. I didn't want my fiance to use ATL as POE because it is huge and I felt he may not know how to manage being a first time traveler. It was confusing to me and I've flown several times lol.

Good morning.  You just sealed it for me.  Thank you so very much.  That is the route I will book his flight.  It's more convenient for me.  The less stress he feels, the better I will feel about his first trip here.  If POE is pretty good & smooth operation, without delaying him too much, that will be a blessing.  I appreciate your input.  Best wishes to you.

[NicholeT 157]

24 minutes ago, PandT said:

Good morning.  You just sealed it for me.  Thank you so very much.  That is the route I will book his flight.  It's more convenient for me.  The less stress he feels, the better I will feel about his first trip here.  If POE is pretty good & smooth operation, without delaying him too much, that will be a blessing.  I appreciate your input.  Best wishes to you.

Good morning, you're welcome. I totally understand, I felt the same way. I wanted to make the travel as easy as possible for my fiance. The POE at RDU didn't take him long to get through at all, less than an hour! Thank you and best wishes to you as well💜

Edited April 3, 2019 by NicholeT

[Paul & Mallory 1,398]

Charlotte or RDU international airports will be the closest ones to you in Wilmington.

 

My husband entered with a K1 at the Charlotte-Douglas airport last May. He was back there, after de-boarding, for a little over an hour. So I would expect there to be a bit of a wait between landing and coming out. Nothing was wrong in his case, they just seemed to be pretty slow interviewing everyone one at a time. He said they were not rude or anything, but very "stoic", was the word he used. Not overly friendly. But of course, that's not where they're there for. Gotta do their job.

 

I think all they asked him was when we plan on getting married, or if we plan on getting married within 90 days, something like that. Checked his papers and stamped his passport. He said the officer became much friendlier once he was cleared and congratulated him on his upcoming wedding.  

[Kowatti 189]

13 minutes ago, Paul & Mallory said:

Charlotte or RDU international airports will be the closest ones to you in Wilmington.

 

My husband entered with a K1 at the Charlotte-Douglas airport last May. He was back there, after de-boarding, for a little over an hour. So I would expect there to be a bit of a wait between landing and coming out. Nothing was wrong in his case, they just seemed to be pretty slow interviewing everyone one at a time. He said they were not rude or anything, but very "stoic", was the word he used. Not overly friendly. But of course, that's not where they're there for. Gotta do their job.

 

I think all they asked him was when we plan on getting married, or if we plan on getting married within 90 days, something like that. Checked his papers and stamped his passport. He said the officer became much friendlier once he was cleared and congratulated him on his upcoming wedding.  

Hi.  That sounds good.  As long as they are not rude & just do their job, that is what I want.  Thanks for sharing.  Greatly appreciated.

[Kowatti 189]

19 minutes ago, NicholeT said:

Good morning, you're welcome. I totally understand, I felt the same way. I wanted to make the travel as easy as possible for my fiance. The POE at RDU didn't take him long to get through at all, less than an hour! Thank you and best wishes to you as well💜

I feel so much better about his final destination here.  He is already a little nervous, although he hates to admit it, lol.  I want to make sure he feels comfortable & remember his first trip to US as a pleasant one.  Thank you for taking time to help me out.  You are an angel.    

[Russ&Caro 1,548]

Many years ago (10?) I flew nonstop for business purposes from Atlanta to Dakar and back again on Delta Airlines. I don't know if Delta still flies that route. As others have stated, Atlanta's airport has a huge immigration facility. Took about 1 hour to get through the lines. Good luck. By the way, have you visited him in Senegal? What airlines did you use?

[NicholeT 157]

1 hour ago, PandT said:

I feel so much better about his final destination here.  He is already a little nervous, although he hates to admit it, lol.  I want to make sure he feels comfortable & remember his first trip to US as a pleasant one.  Thank you for taking time to help me out.  You are an angel.    

I understand and of course he won't admit it lol that's a man for you. Yes that was my thoughts as well, my fiance was leaving everyone and everything he's known his entire life as I'm sure your fiance is doing as well so I wanted to make sure his transition to the US was as smooth as possible! You're welcome, happy that I could help.

Edited April 3, 2019 by NicholeT