O1 visa journey

[Ssrpk 0]

Hello everyone,

 

A brief introduction about myself.  I am a physician, and I have been in US since 2008. I came on a B2 visa, and took all my USMLE exams, got The ECFMG certification, and started working as a post-doc research fellow on H1b (status change), till 2011. I then began my general surgery training, and again changed my status to J1. I completed my general surgery training in 2017, and took my boards this year to become board certified General Surgeon. At present I am completing my thoracic surgery fellowship (still on J1), and will soon be board eligible for ABTS, this Dec. I now have a job lined up, in a thriving practice, and they specifically hired me based on my expertise in robotic thoracic surgery. I am a published author, with numerous publications, I have given lectures and talks at various national scientific meetings etc.  I hope my O1 petition gets approved soon, filed as premium processing.  I have a family here, wife is undergoing GC processing, and two kids who are US citizens.

 

Heres the the tricky part, and the reason behind multiple status changes in US.  I once, long time back, in 2008 had to undergo administrative processing and lost the residency spot at Cleveland clinic, due to the delay.  Now, having to go through the same process of leaving the country and applying for visa at US consulate in my home country is scaring the out of me.  I gained some good insight from

reading about other people’s experiences here, and I am thankful for them to share it here. I will do the same, and hopefully may help myself and some future O1 applicants. 

 

Thank you you for reading, I wish you luck in your endeavors as well. 

 

Status:

 

07/12/19 - Date of filing O1 petition ( premium processing)

[fs2439 46]

On 7/16/2019 at 7:53 PM, Ssrpk said:

Hello everyone,

 

A brief introduction about myself.  I am a physician, and I have been in US since 2008. I came on a B2 visa, and took all my USMLE exams, got The ECFMG certification, and started working as a post-doc research fellow on H1b (status change), till 2011. I then began my general surgery training, and again changed my status to J1. I completed my general surgery training in 2017, and took my boards this year to become board certified General Surgeon. At present I am completing my thoracic surgery fellowship (still on J1), and will soon be board eligible for ABTS, this Dec. I now have a job lined up, in a thriving practice, and they specifically hired me based on my expertise in robotic thoracic surgery. I am a published author, with numerous publications, I have given lectures and talks at various national scientific meetings etc.  I hope my O1 petition gets approved soon, filed as premium processing.  I have a family here, wife is undergoing GC processing, and two kids who are US citizens.

 

Heres the the tricky part, and the reason behind multiple status changes in US.  I once, long time back, in 2008 had to undergo administrative processing and lost the residency spot at Cleveland clinic, due to the delay.  Now, having to go through the same process of leaving the country and applying for visa at US consulate in my home country is scaring the out of me.  I gained some good insight from

reading about other people’s experiences here, and I am thankful for them to share it here. I will do the same, and hopefully may help myself and some future O1 applicants. 

 

Thank you you for reading, I wish you luck in your endeavors as well. 

 

Status:

 

07/12/19 - Date of filing O1 petition ( premium processing)

Best of luck to you! What country are you from, if you may share? I had the same fear as you wjen undergoing consular processing 

[Ssrpk 0]

Thank you. From Pakistan. 

Edited July 18, 2019 by Ssrpk

[Boiler 45,670]

Everybody goes through AP, Pakistan obviously complicates matters.

[fs2439 46]

7 hours ago, Boiler said:

Everybody goes through AP, Pakistan obviously complicates matters.

The country is racist and doesn't even try to hide it. Hopefully no AP this time. Hopefully it wasnt the case that they confused your name with someone else's in the previous AP? Are you also looking at NIW for physicians as your next step?

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

12 minutes ago, fs2439 said:

The country is racist and doesn't even try to hide it. Hopefully no AP this time. Hopefully it wasnt the case that they confused your name with someone else's in the previous AP? Are you also looking at NIW for physicians as your next step?

Pakistan complicates matters because of its security procedures and specifically, the problems involved in background checks when police, prison and military records are unavailable. This is why AP is an issue. Strange how people are willing to throw racist labels around  (easier than trying to understand procedure I guess) yet still want to move here. 

Edited July 18, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[fs2439 46]

16 minutes ago, SusieQQQ said:

Pakistan complicates matters because of its security procedures and specifically, the problems involved in background checks when police, prison and military records are unavailable. This is why AP is an issue. Strange how people are willing to throw racist labels around  (easier than trying to understand procedure I guess) yet still want to move here. 

It' interesting how that sort of issue never comes up with countries like Sweden, which the president so much admires

[fs2439 46]

3 minutes ago, fs2439 said:

It' interesting how that sort of issue never comes up with countries like Sweden, which the president so much admires

Anyway, if you don't recognize racism in America, I recommend any history book, tv show, radio show, anything really  

Edited July 18, 2019 by fs2439

[Ssrpk 0]

Agree, I don’t think being from Pakistan complicates matters anymore than being from any other countries in Europe or elsewhere. I have had several of my colleagues and friends from Pakistan who never had to go through this AP.  It’s my personal history with it that makes me super anxious.  

[Boiler 45,670]

Everybody goes through AP.

[Crazy Cat 41,981]

1 hour ago, fs2439 said:

The country is racist and doesn't even try to hide it

Yet, millions have come here illegally, and millions and millions more would like to come here.........maybe you should look at the good the US has done over the past 200+ years....rather than paint an entire country with that term.........the news media is often incorrect and sometimes they are  liars.

-Missileman Out!

Edited July 18, 2019 by missileman

[Ssrpk 0]

7 minutes ago, Boiler said:

Everybody goes through AP.

You seem quite adamant about it.  Are you an immigration attorney? If so, please clarify.  My understanding is AP is determined on a case-by-case basis, as stated by DOS:

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/administrative-processing-information.html

[Crazy Cat 41,981]

3 minutes ago, Ssrpk said:

You seem quite adamant about it.  Are you an immigration attorney? If so, please clarify.  My understanding is AP is determined on a case-by-case basis, as stated by DOS:

 

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/administrative-processing-information.html

EVERY case goes through AP......Some cases take longer than others...There are a lot of factors which determine just how long.....It can be hours, days, weeks, months, or even years in rare cases.....

Edited July 18, 2019 by missileman

[Ssrpk 0]

Just now, missileman said:

EVERY case goes through AP......Some cases take longer than others....It's a fact!

The DOS states, “when” AP is required, not that it is required ALL the time. Please provide some references. Thank you

[Boiler 45,670]

It used to be many years ago you could leave the Consulate with your Passport and a Visa in it, not sure how long ago things changed, 10 years? maybe longer.

Edited July 18, 2019 by Boiler