K1 Visa, Case Ready, No Welcome Letter from Manila Embassy

[Ej Valdez 0]

Hello All,

 

My K1 petition was approved and received NOA2 on December 05, 2023. Using the CEAC Tracker, it shows that our case was created on December 22,  last update was January 8, 2024 which shows "Ready" status. It also says "Please follow the appointment schedule provided to you by NVC. If you do not have a schedule from NVC, please wait for scheduling instructions or a notification from the US Embassy Manila." I've yet to receive my Welcome Letter. 

 

I did research for some cases which had the same situation, and they ended up paying for the visa fees and scheduling their interview appointment without receiving their Welcome Letter. Should I do the same or do I wait for the letter?

[J.M. 110]

You do not need to wait for the welcome letter for Manila.  You are free to schedule your medical and interview.  The welcome letter often doesn't even show up.

[Ej Valdez 0]

18 minutes ago, J.M. said:

You do not need to wait for the welcome letter for Manila.  You are free to schedule your medical and interview.  The welcome letter often doesn't even show up.

Hi JM and thank you for your suggestion. I just found out that the email I'm supposed to wait for is the Packet 4. Are you familiar with this? Also is this what I am suppose to wait for before scheduling the interview?

[J.M. 110]

I'm not sure which email you are talking about.  I got 2:  1 from NVC when it was dispatched to Manila, and another one from Manila Embassy when they received it.  The one from the embassy is the equivalent of packet 4.  You do not have to wait for it to complete and pay for your DS-160 though.  All you need for the DS-160 is your case number.  You can complete that now.  All completing the DS-160 does is allows you to start looking for an appointment slot.  Completing the DS-160 does not automatically trigger anything, so I suggest you complete it and pay for it while you wait for the email/letter.  The letter is not mandatory though, so don't let it hold you up.

[IWander 581]

2 hours ago, Ej Valdez said:

Hi JM and thank you for your suggestion. I just found out that the email I'm supposed to wait for is the Packet 4. Are you familiar with this? Also is this what I am suppose to wait for before scheduling the interview?

If you wait for communication from the embassy you will be waiting for years.  Everything you need to do is posted online on the embassy website.  Get movin

[J.M. 110]

If your notification is that they received your petition, the next step is getting your MNL case number.  It will be at NVC for anywhere between a few weeks to a few months before it gets sent to Manila.  Go to the NVC public inquiry form Public Inquiry Form (state.gov) and submit your case number request.  Do this weekly until you get the case number.

 

Once you have your case number, you can fill out the DS-160.

[Ej Valdez 0]

4 hours ago, J.M. said:

If your notification is that they received your petition, the next step is getting your MNL case number.  It will be at NVC for anywhere between a few weeks to a few months before it gets sent to Manila.  Go to the NVC public inquiry form Public Inquiry Form (state.gov) and submit your case number request.  Do this weekly until you get the case number.

 

Once you have your case number, you can fill out the DS-160.

Hi JM,

 

I already received my case number. My fiance and I filled out the DS-160 last night, then we plan to pay the visa fees today. When we have that paid, we'll check to see if we are able to schedule an interview appointment.

Your help is much appreciated!