Mexico City Interview Experience (K1)

[GringoHombre 3]

I just wanted to give an update on some things related to the experience.

 

1. On the Facebook group some people were freaking out about their interviews being cancelled because they had travelled in the previous 14 days.  We did not see this until after my fiancé came to the US for her vaccine and went back.  She got a negative COVID test in hand just to be safe and hedge bets and in the end they have things designed so you are never face to face with anyone (bank teller-style booths) and never mentioned anything about COVID.

2. On the instructions they ask for the petitioners birth certificate and then the birth certificate OR US passport.  When she went in the day before to turn in the paperwork she was given grief for not having a copy of my passport.  I quickly got her one for the actual interview and they didn't care.

3. They don't seem to understand how originals work, but that doesn't seem to make a difference other than their attitude.  If something is digital, bring in two copies (even though they are identical) and be prepared to explain that some places (such as Mexico City) are not providing non-digital original copies.

4. There seems to be a backlog on giving out visas after the interview, right now seems to be something like 7-10 days though we are still on day 8 of waiting so it could be longer.

5. The biometrics appointment was a huge PITA to schedule because there's some kind of disconnect between the embassy and the third party they use; you try to schedule an appointment and pay the visa fee and it simply doesn't allow you.  It seemed like her record hadn't been updated yet in the right place for the 3rd party system to work.  We ended up having to call every day for nearly a week before we got the right person who knew what to do to fix the issue.

 

If you have any questions I can do my best to ask my fiancé and answer. Ultimately it is apparent that they are not used to this process and struggling a bit with it, but its awesome they've opened up in Mexico City because it's pushing things through a lot faster as a result for K1/C1's I think across the board.

[TBoneTX 45,522]

Very enlightening.  Be sure to post your insights in your Embassy Review when you're ready to do so.

[GringoHombre 3]

Got the visa today after ~9 days (hough my Fiancé also tested positive for her COVID test so her return is a bit up in the air at the moment  

 

Will do TBoneTX

[Russel1995 163]

7 hours ago, GringoHombre said:

Got the visa today after ~9 days (hough my Fiancé also tested positive for her COVID test so her return is a bit up in the air at the moment  

 

Will do TBoneTX

Before you come to the US.  Make sure to grab plenty of copies of important documents such as birth certificates, divorce certificates, (if needed), or anything else.   I had my wife grab 5 copies of her Birth certificate for her and her son.

 

Copies are alot cheaper in Mexico than getting copies from a Mexican consulate here in the US.  As well, never know when you can make a trip back to Mexico.  My wife's "HS diploma" equivalent is still there which has caused some issues proving education for jobs here in the US.  Luckily my employer allowed her to skip that requirement and just present it when we can get it.

[TBoneTX 45,522]

7 minutes ago, Russel1995 said:

Make sure to grab plenty of copies of important documents such as birth certificates, divorce certificates, (if needed), or anything else.

Absolutely.  The "anything else" includes medical/dental records, vaccination records (get at least 2 copies on clinic letterhead and stamped), educational transcripts, and legal documents that would be expensive/difficult/impossible to obtain later.

 

In addition, if there's time, renew the Mexican driver's license for the longest term possible.