Reschedule Your Appointment YOURSELF

[TJL 89]

Hi!  Anybody who may have had an appointment scheduled at an Embassy that is now closed/delayed due to COVID-19 may find this helpful.

 

We were notified that our appointment was canceled due to the virus and that they would reach out via e-mail.

 

Who knows how long THAT will take and/or in what order they will do so.

 

So, on a whim, I logged into the visa appointment system (ustraveldocs.com) and although there were no appointments near our originally scheduled appointment, I *WAS* able to schedule, and confirm, an appointment in late April.

 

Get 'em while they're hot, folks - before everybody else snatches them up and the next thing you know you're waiting until November.

 

Perhaps I'm wrong - but so far, so good. 

 

 

Edited March 22, 2020 by TJL

[Quarknase 1,072]

10 minutes ago, TJL said:

Hi!  Anybody who may have had an appointment scheduled at an Embassy that is now closed/delayed due to COVID-19 may find this helpful.

 

We were notified that our appointment was canceled due to the virus and that they would reach out via e-mail.

 

Who knows how long THAT will take and/or in what order they will do so.

 

So, on a whim, I logged into the visa appointment system (ustraveldocs.com) and although there were no appointments near our originally scheduled appointment, I *WAS* able to schedule, and confirm, an appointment in late April.

 

Get 'em while they're hot, folks - before everybody else snatches them up and the next thing you know you're waiting until November.

 

Perhaps I'm wrong - but so far, so good. 

 

 

I don't believe that this is how it works - especially for immigrant visas where embassies and NVC make the appointments.

Good luck!

[bolero_pa 34]

I rescheduled a few weeks ago. Appointment now in late April. Hopeful, but don’t expect embassies to magically open unless people are effectively self-isolating everywhere. Short of that, the USCIS will keep kicking the interview can down the road. If we could all pull together and come up with the results China has today, then I think governments across the globe can be more flexible with travel and opening businesses. We won’t know how effective we are dealing with this for another couple weeks. And if the numbers spike up, then there’s going to be more clampdowns and more delays. 
 

So yeah, reschedule if you can, but more importantly, make sure you’re healthy. 

Edited March 22, 2020 by bolero_pa

[TJL 89]

1 hour ago, Quarknase said:

I don't believe that this is how it works - especially for immigrant visas where embassies and NVC make the appointments.

Good luck!

Hi!   

I actually thought the same thing as you... only NVC can schedule appointments for Immigrant Visas, however, I was corrected.

 

Here's how:

 

Our original date was February 7th, which was only about two-weeks after it was scheduled.  Because Manila typically allows US Citizen Spouses to join the applicant at their interview, I wanted to fly out and couldn't do so with such short notice.

 

I emailed the Embassy to ask about rescheduling, and they directed me to the USATravelDocs website where I found that I could, indeed, reschedule the appointment right on there.  There is an option for scheduling Immigrant Visa interviews there and print the confirmation.  We successfully rescheduled to March 30th.  (But it has been canceled and we have rescheduled again.)  

 

I was just as surprised as you seemed to be that this was an option, but apparently, the NVC is only responsible for scheduling the very FIRST appointment, somewhat as a courtesy, because they are able to "jump the line" for available slots not publicly available via the website.  But, for those who need to reschedule (for whatever reason,) using the website is what the Embassy directed us to do.

 

Hope that helps anybody else in the same boat.

 

 

Edited March 22, 2020 by TJL

[MovingToFlorida 71]

3 hours ago, TJL said:

Hi!  Anybody who may have had an appointment scheduled at an Embassy that is now closed/delayed due to COVID-19 may find this helpful.

 

We were notified that our appointment was canceled due to the virus and that they would reach out via e-mail.

 

Who knows how long THAT will take and/or in what order they will do so.

 

So, on a whim, I logged into the visa appointment system (ustraveldocs.com) and although there were no appointments near our originally scheduled appointment, I *WAS* able to schedule, and confirm, an appointment in late April.

 

Get 'em while they're hot, folks - before everybody else snatches them up and the next thing you know you're waiting until November.

 

Perhaps I'm wrong - but so far, so good. 

 

 

Which consulate?  We were supposed to have our interview tomorrow in Montreal but got cancelled. when I went on the website it said no appointments available. 

 

We are a family based visa too. Not sure how it works for all visas. 

Edited March 22, 2020 by MovingToFlorida

[TJL 89]

46 minutes ago, MovingToFlorida said:

Which consulate?  We were supposed to have our interview tomorrow in Montreal but got cancelled. when I went on the website it said no appointments available. 

 

We are a family based visa too. Not sure how it works for all visas. 

This is Manila, Philippines.

[geowrian 22,337]

Manila does let you self-reschedule even for IVs, IIRC. For K-1s (NIV, but handled by the IV unit), all cases are self-scheduled via the process stated.

 

Hopefully they 1) are open by then, and 2) honor the rescheduled date.

[TJL 89]

UPDATE:  (This is for MNL Embassy.  Unsure about others.)

I've been logging on to the CGIFederal (USATRAVELDOCS) site to try to see the appointment situation.  Today, there has been a change.

Our appointment is still scheduled, but they have removed ALL ability to schedule appointments for the future.  The calendar doesn't even display.  I did confirm that our current appointment is still booked, but we'll see what happens.

 

 

[stech786 236]

April is too early. Things are getting worse

[SalishSea 17,928]

Not all consulates allow for self-scheduling.  

[HDia 105]

To add to this, NVC just scheduled our first interview appointment on May 11th.

[Wuozopo 4,293]

Some in London rescheduled last week. Their process is the original appointment date has to pass (so you can’t move up to an earlier one than NVC scheduled). Once the date has passed, you have to choose “I missed my appointment” and it will open up what is available (if any at this point). Things change daily. They are May appointments.

Edited April 3, 2020 by Wuozopo

[TJL 89]

10 hours ago, Wuozopo said:

Some in London rescheduled last week. Their process is the original appointment date has to pass (so you can’t move up to an earlier one than NVC scheduled). Once the date has passed, you have to choose “I missed my appointment” and it will open up what is available (if any at this point). Things change daily. They are May appointments.

Have you tried to check your appointment on the USATRAVELDOCS website?  If your appointment is listed, you should be able to cancel it manually and reschedule a new one.  

[Mark Weston 3]

I had a look at the usvisa-info.com site, where I booked my original appointment as part of DCF, tried editing and rescheduling the appointment but all I'm seeing is "There are no available appointments at the selected location. Please try again later".

 

It would be cool to get a date booked in May if they do re-open, but I'm sceptical of finding the "one weird trick" to get ahead of the queue.

[TJL 89]

UPDATE:

 

Received the following email this morning:  

Immediately went on to USTraveldocs website and successfully booked an interview slot on May 4 at 6:35am:

 

 

I'll keep you updated.  But yes, you can reschedule a CR1 on the USTravelDocs online web portal - at least for Manila.

 

Edited April 6, 2020 by TJL