What can be done about stalled multi-year I-130s?

[darth vader 131]

3 hours ago, Boiler said:

Let us call it the V visa for simplicity, I would expect that to be of greater interest to hose waiting for a Priority Date. The numbers applying will be in the millions.

Well I do not know what they are thinking sooner rather than later those people will come in anyway. Perhaps they can use loss of population due to covid to justify infusion of more folks in to the workforce?

 

@vtstang66 - Anyway let us do a good job at this petition. There was a guy from 2011, who started a change.org petition in 2011 or so and got ~3k signatures and sent the copy of it along with letters to every leader, senate/house committee/subcommittee that was relevant to immigration, white house etc. It didnt result in any systemic changes but his case got approved right after. Make what you will of that!

[vtstang66 65]

32 minutes ago, darth vader said:

 

@vtstang66 - Anyway let us do a good job at this petition. There was a guy from 2011, who started a change.org petition in 2011 or so and got ~3k signatures and sent the copy of it along with letters to every leader, senate/house committee/subcommittee that was relevant to immigration, white house etc. It didnt result in any systemic changes but his case got approved right after. Make what you will of that!

I'm about it!  I'm literally packing the truck to move right now so can't devote any time to this but as soon as I can sit still long enough I will give it my best!

[vtstang66 65]

Just a little update (I'm still not having any free time):  I did get a call back from one of my congressional representatives that I wrote to the other day.  Well, from someone in his office anyway.  This guy made a distinction between legislative policy (laws, which Congress can do something about), and internal policies of departments such as DOS (which they can't).  Basically he said the DOS and the consulates set their own internal policies for how they will comply with the laws, and Congress has no say in those.  The interview process is such an internal policy.  He said that the DOS and/or consulates are having discussions about doing something about the interview queues, such as doing the interviews remotely, but he doesn't know what will happen with that.

 

Two things came to my mind:  1)  Are they in fact complying with the laws?  Is there anything in the law that says we have the right to a less-than-several-years processing time?  I don't know the answer to that, and he didn't either.  And 2)  Let's work on the law, since that's what you can do.  I told him that, and he said "well it doesn't happen fast, these things take time."  Kind of implying that it wasn't worth working on because it wouldn't help me immediately.  I said yeah, that's why you need to get on it now, because if you had told me a year or two ago that I'd be looking at 3-4 years in this process I would not have believed you, yet here we are.  If we don't start working on this now, I might be sitting here in 2 more years having the same conversation for all I know.  He said he'd "pass the concerns on to the congressman and make sure he's aware."  I felt like he was more interested in getting rid of me than in helping at that point, but we'll see.

 

So anyway, that's how that went.  I'll keep pressing the other parties and working on this petition when I have time.  Keep the comments coming!

Edited February 11, 2021 by vtstang66
Grammar and clarity

[Boiler 43,563]

1. no law on time line

[vtstang66 65]

On 1/22/2021 at 11:58 AM, JFH said:

The interview cannot be held by Zoom. The law states that each applicant is interviewed and fingerprinted in person.

Can you cite this law please?  Or at least point me to where the body of immigration law is so that I can read it?

 

The representative's aid that I talked to said that the policy of the consulate to do in-person interviews is their own internal policy, not law, but maybe he didn't know what he was talking about.

[vtstang66 65]

13 minutes ago, vtstang66 said:

Can you cite this law please?  Or at least point me to where the body of immigration law is so that I can read it?

 

The representative's aid that I talked to said that the policy of the consulate to do in-person interviews is their own internal policy, not law, but maybe he didn't know what he was talking about.

(can't edit post)

So I did find this:  https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/3df4be4fe.pdf

On p. 186, section (d) says:

Prior to the issuance of an immigrant visa to any alien, the consular officer shall require such alien to submit to a physical and mental examination in accordance with such regulations as may be prescribed. Prior to the issuance of a nonimmigrant visa to any alien, the consular officer may require such alien to submit to a physical or mental examination, or both, if in his opinion such examination is necessary to ascertain whether such alien is eligible to receive a visa.

This is the only thing I could find that said anything about the actual issuance of the visa by the consular officer.  It mentions a "physical and mental examination," but I understand the physical exam would be the medical exam and the mental examination doesn't say anything about having to happen in person.  Is there something else I'm missing?

[HRQX 4,145]

23 minutes ago, vtstang66 said:

Can you cite this law please?

INA 222(a): "Every alien applying for an immigrant visa and for alien registration shall make application therefor in such form and manner and at such place as shall be by regulations prescribed. In the application the alien shall state his full and true name, and any other name which he has used or by which he has been known; age and sex; the date and place of his birth; and such additional information necessary to the identification of the applicant and the enforcement of the immigration and nationality laws as may be by regulations prescribed."

 

The "regulations prescribed" are codified in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). See 22 CFR § 42.62(a): "Personal appearance of applicant before consular officer. Every alien applying for an immigrant visa, including an alien whose application is executed by another person pursuant to § 42.63(a)(2), shall be required to appear personally before a consular officer for the execution of the application or, if in Taiwan, before a designated officer of the American Institute in Taiwan, except that the personal appearance of any child under the age of 14 may be waived at the officer's discretion."

Edited February 18, 2021 by HRQX

[Katelyn_Wray 34]

3 hours ago, vtstang66 said:

Can you cite this law please?  Or at least point me to where the body of immigration law is so that I can read it?

 

The representative's aid that I talked to said that the policy of the consulate to do in-person interviews is their own internal policy, not law, but maybe he didn't know what he was talking about.

The foreign affairs manual (FAM) outlines a requirement for an in person interview. 

 

The FAM itself can be found here: https://fam.state.gov/Fam/FAM.aspx?ID=09FAM

Section 504 details interview requirements here: https://fam.state.gov/FAM/09FAM/09FAM050407.html

 

What I don't know, because I honestly don't understand U.S federal law well, is whether or not this is policy/interpretation of regulations, or an actual regulation. If it is actual law, we should petition to have this amended to allow alternatives to consular interviews or put a statutory minimum timeframe on the process, because the current system just isn't working for so many.

 

Another thing I'm curious about, regardless of whether the requirement is law or not, is whether the declaration of a national public health emergency due to COVID gives officials some further authority to change these requirements, even on a temporary basis. Similar to the interview waiver offered for students who had a valid visa in the last 12 months, does the state department have authority to waive interviews for immigrant visas as well, under the authority of an officially declared national emergency? That's definitely just a band-aid fix, but it would help to at least alleviate some backlog while other solutions go through the motions of being approved and implemented.

 

I'd appreciate insight from anyone who's knowledgeable on the subject!

[SalishSea 16,809]

3 hours ago, vtstang66 said:

Can you cite this law please?  Or at least point me to where the body of immigration law is so that I can read it?

 

The representative's aid that I talked to said that the policy of the consulate to do in-person interviews is their own internal policy, not law, but maybe he didn't know what he was talking about.

How would oath/fingerprinting be done via Zoom?  

[Katelyn_Wray 34]

2 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

How would oath/fingerprinting be done via Zoom?  

It couldn't, but the actual interview could. I've submitted "oaths" (digitally signed that information submitted was truthful) and fingerprints via mail before for multiple jobs for the U.S government in the U.S. in order for them to verify my identity and check my background. It was no problem, and I don't see why in this age of technology they couldn't use a similar system for the immigration process. Or, They could also still do that part in-person.

[vtstang66 65]

10 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

How would oath/fingerprinting be done via Zoom?  

I would think those could be done at the POE.

 

That's what's so ridiculous about all this...if it's for safety, why can we still travel commercially?  I just went to see my wife; returning to the country involved a face-to-face interview with a CBP officer.  He does this probably hundreds of times a day, every day.  But the consular officers can't?  He was behind a plexiglass shield.  They can't get those at the consulate?

Edited February 18, 2021 by vtstang66

[SalishSea 16,809]

3 minutes ago, vtstang66 said:

I would think those could be done at the POE.

 

Already is, but still required before visa issuance.

4 minutes ago, Katelyn_Wray said:

It couldn't, but the actual interview could. I've submitted "oaths" (digitally signed that information submitted was truthful) and fingerprints via mail before for multiple jobs for the U.S government in the U.S. in order for them to verify my identity and check my background. It was no problem, and I don't see why in this age of technology they couldn't use a similar system for the immigration process. Or, They could also still do that part in-person.

Wonder how that would work for immigrants living in rural, 3rd world villages with no access to wifi or computer.  

5 minutes ago, vtstang66 said:

He was behind a plexiglass shield.  They can't get those at the consulate?

They have them at consulates, and have done since long before COVID.

[Katelyn_Wray 34]

3 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Wonder how that would work for immigrants living in rural, 3rd world villages with no access to wifi or computer.  

Hmm, kind of a strange concern. They'd figure it out - probably go to the closest place with wifi and a computer. That's what lot's of people do for the DV lottery applications, I know quite a few people personally who were very poor and living rurally and managed to do it that way. I was living in that exact scenario (rural village, without even running water) when we submitted our application, online, and I figured it out... I just went to the nearest big city, sat in an internet cafe, created our documents, and submitted everything. You also need a passport to be able to travel, and presumably where there are passport services there are fingerprinting services, notaries, and scanning/printing services for signatures on documents.

[SalishSea 16,809]

1 minute ago, Katelyn_Wray said:

Hmm, kind of a strange concern. They'd figure it out - probably go to the closest place with wifi and a computer. That's what lot's of people do for the DV lottery applications, I know quite a few people personally who were very poor and living rurally and managed to do it that way. I was living in that exact scenario (rural village, without even running water) when we submitted our application, online, and I figured it out... I just went to the nearest big city, sat in an internet cafe, created our documents, and submitted everything. You also need a passport to be able to travel, and presumably where there are passport services there are fingerprinting services, notaries, and scanning/printing services for signatures on documents.

DV applicants don't interview and get fingerprinted at the consulate?

[SalishSea 16,809]

2 minutes ago, Katelyn_Wray said:

Hmm, kind of a strange concern. They'd figure it out - probably go to the closest place with wifi and a computer. That's what lot's of people do for the DV lottery applications, I know quite a few people personally who were very poor and living rurally and managed to do it that way. I was living in that exact scenario (rural village, without even running water) when we submitted our application, online, and I figured it out... I just went to the nearest big city, sat in an internet cafe, created our documents, and submitted everything. You also need a passport to be able to travel, and presumably where there are passport services there are fingerprinting services, notaries, and scanning/printing services for signatures on documents.

Why is it a strange concern?  There are practical reasons why candidates for US immigrant visas need to appear in person for an interview.   Just because you can be vetted for jobs in the US remotely, doesn't mean that visa applicants worldwide can be vetted for visas remotely.

Maybe someday, but not in the immediate future.