US Embassy in Moscow shutting down almost all consular services (merged)

[Just Paul 4,591]

8 minutes ago, Corp668 said:

What do they mean "age out" in reference to immigrant visas?  Do they mean visas that are in danger or expiring because they haven't been processes quickly enough?

Aged out means the visa category would change.   IE beneficiary turning 21 on a CR1/IR2.

[TBoneTX 43,038]

I looked at the U.S. Embassy site for Mongolia to see if there were any hope:

https://mn.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/

 

It looks exceptionally restrictive (by the government), but May 8 seems to be a re-evaluation date.  By next weekend, maybe those interested can shoot an e-mail of inquiry to the Immigrant Visa unit (see bottom of above link) to find out if anything can be done about K-1 / CR-1 interviews.

[DaveAndAnastasia 2,078]

On 5/2/2021 at 9:33 AM, millefleur said:

I'm not sure if it's possible to get a Schengen visa to say, Greece, and then just enter Poland using that.

It's legal in normal times (not sure about now), but if you get a Schengen visa from country X, use it to enter country Y, and never enter country X, country X may decline to issue a visa to you in the future (this has happened before), so doing that isn't recommended.

 

Or, why back in 2018 we spent a couple of nights in Riga before moving on to Vienna the last time we met prior to Anastasia coming to the US. It was a lot easier for her to get a Schengen visa from Latvia than from Austria (since she'd had a Schengen visa previously from when we went to Italy, she could get one for Latvia without having to go to Moscow in-person).

[Dashinka 23,229]

On 5/2/2021 at 12:33 PM, millefleur said:

The problem with Poland is Russian citizens require a Schengen visa to enter the country. Getting a Schengen visa for Russians has always been a bit of a pain, and now it's much worse due to Covid. I'm not sure if it's possible to get a Schengen visa to say, Greece, and then just enter Poland using that. I'm not

 

The best thing to do is just contact the embassies directly. Now that the Moscow Embassy will be effectively closed as of May 12th, the other embassies may be more willing to accept Russian citizens.

Ulaanbaatar has been used by some in the past.

[Dashinka 23,229]

On 5/2/2021 at 10:45 PM, TBoneTX said:

I looked at the U.S. Embassy site for Mongolia to see if there were any hope:

https://mn.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/

 

It looks exceptionally restrictive (by the government), but May 8 seems to be a re-evaluation date.  By next weekend, maybe those interested can shoot an e-mail of inquiry to the Immigrant Visa unit (see bottom of above link) to find out if anything can be done about K-1 / CR-1 interviews.

Wow, quite restrictive.  Looking at the data from Worldometers, it appears Mongolia is in a spike or just coming out of a spike, so I doubt there will be much change at least in the very near future even though the numbers themselves are very low.

[TBoneTX 43,038]

Well, wait till May 8 or 9, then check for updates.  Desperate times call for desperate actions, so I would even e-mail the consulate in a week or so, just to explore the possibilities.  If nothing else, inquiries would make them aware of the need to be filled when they possibly can.

Edited May 6, 2021 by TBoneTX

[millefleur 5,035]

11 hours ago, TBoneTX said:

Well, wait till May 8 or 9, then check for updates.  Desperate times call for desperate actions, so I would even e-mail the consulate in a week or so, just to explore the possibilities.  If nothing else, inquiries would make them aware of the need to be filled when they possibly can.

I agree with TBone that normally it's a no go to "consulate shop" but in the case of the Moscow Embassy essentially shutting down for now, then it makes sense. I would just email as many embassies as possible (assuming the Russian applicant can get into the country of said embassy) and cast the net wide.

[redbird1991 0]

Hi! I just wanted some clarification. It is possible to send both K1 or CR1 visas to third countries since the Moscow embassy will be closing? And to do so, you have to contact these third countries' embassies and get written approval from them that you can send your request to them? Or what other steps need to happen for the transfer to occur. 

 

I'm also worried that these requests going to Moscow and then having to be transferred will get backlogged since it will be operating with such a small staff. Will they bypass Moscow completely? 

 

Sorry for all the questions! I've tried cross-referencing multiple pages and forums. I'm hoping someone has found better answers than I have!

 

I'm so sorry for everyone having to deal with the headache!

[millefleur 5,035]

28 minutes ago, redbird1991 said:

Hi! I just wanted some clarification. It is possible to send both K1 or CR1 visas to third countries since the Moscow embassy will be closing? And to do so, you have to contact these third countries' embassies and get written approval from them that you can send your request to them? Or what other steps need to happen for the transfer to occur. 

Mu understanding is reach out to reach embassy individually, via email or even phone if possible. Each one operates quasi-independently so you will get different responses. Some will flat out say no, others might have weird requirements, some might be tricky because of the Schengen visa requirement.

 

29 minutes ago, redbird1991 said:

I'm also worried that these requests going to Moscow and then having to be transferred will get backlogged since it will be operating with such a small staff. Will they bypass Moscow completely? 

Pretty sure it will not bypass completely. I assume they would only do that if they officially designated another Embassy as the new Embassy for Russian citizens/applicants in Russia waiting for Moscow, which has not yet happened as far as I know. There will be a big backlog of applicants and where they all end up is anyone's guess. I don't think the DoS has any kind of a plan yet as this is all unfolding right now and starts May 12th. I would hope they are discussing it as Moscow has always had so many more applicants than say Mongolia, Uzbekistan, etc and other neighboring countries. The one that people here on VJ have had success with is Warsaw but you need to get a Schengen visa and travel due to Covid there is now a bit trickier but it is doable.

 

 

[HKS 169]

This happened in Iraq. The US makes arrangements with several other Embassies. They then transfer your case to one of the other Embassies. You may ask another country’s Embassy to be transferred; however, it is up to that Embassy and country rules.  Our case was transferred to Doha automatically due to Baghdad being closed. We asked to be transferred to Ankara. They only accepted due to proving we have ties to Turkey. 
 

I have no idea how long it would take for US to make arrangements with other Embassies.  Somehow, and I could be wrong, I feel that finding a place for the cases to be transferred isnt a high priority. Plus, there will be a backlog. I feel really bad for the situation this has placed Russians in. I feel your pain. 
 

Something to consider..... if you transfer to another country, make sure you can get a visa to that country. 

[Amerussian 19]

On 5/2/2021 at 8:10 AM, redbird1991 said:

Hi! Could you attach the links you found about Poland and Kazakhstan processing spousal applications? I tried searching myself with no luck. Thanks so much!

There's no official links, just anecdotal evidence. 

 

My husband is Russian and our case was successfully transferred to Kazakhstan earlier this year.  He is in the US now, less than two months after first contacting them.  We know of at least one other Russian who has recently had success transferring there, with an interview later this month, and many couples who have had success with Poland.  

 

Kazakhstan --- visa free, quick, very easy for Russians to access.  Downside is that their standards seem very strict, most people who try them get rejected.  

 

Poland --- Extremely high likelihood of successful transfer, main downside is getting the Schengen visa, there are different methods to do it but they are either expensive or not always reliable. 

 

If you want to try transferring, you'll need to contact embassies directly.  If they agree, they'll take care of the rest.  

[millefleur 5,035]

13 hours ago, Amerussian said:

He is in the US now, less than two months after first contacting them. 

Wow, that is quite fast! How long was wait overall?

 

13 hours ago, Amerussian said:

Kazakhstan --- visa free, quick, very easy for Russians to access.  Downside is that their standards seem very strict, most people who try them get rejected.  

Can you go into more detail about what was strict? I know that spousal visas tend to get less scrutiny than K-1's, just curious.

[Milasa 19]

On 5/6/2021 at 10:53 PM, HKS said:

This happened in Iraq. The US makes arrangements with several other Embassies. They then transfer your case to one of the other Embassies. You may ask another country’s Embassy to be transferred; however, it is up to that Embassy and country rules.  Our case was transferred to Doha automatically due to Baghdad being closed. We asked to be transferred to Ankara. They only accepted due to proving we have ties to Turkey. 
 

I have no idea how long it would take for US to make arrangements with other Embassies.  Somehow, and I could be wrong, I feel that finding a place for the cases to be transferred isnt a high priority. Plus, there will be a backlog. I feel really bad for the situation this has placed Russians in. I feel your pain. 
 

Something to consider..... if you transfer to another country, make sure you can get a visa to that country. 

I agree that such transfers will not be of high priority, especially taking pandemic into account. The ones who really want to transfer soon have to email multiple embassies and ask.

[zolotinka 47]

An update on ustraveldocs in “Notification on current status of services in Russia” field:

We are currently making arrangements for alternate processing locations for immigrant visa applicants who do not meet these criteria. We will provide updates shortly. 

 

[Caboose29 172]

2 hours ago, zolotinka said:

An update on ustraveldocs in “Notification on current status of services in Russia” field:

We are currently making arrangements for alternate processing locations for immigrant visa applicants who do not meet these criteria. We will provide updates shortly. 

 

Something is better than nothing....