EB1A interview wait time in London, UK

[LMax 6]

@appleblossom sorry just wanted to clarify my understanding. With my petition being current in June and my DQ date being June 2024 does that mean i will be immediately in line for an interview slot? Given the big jump in the visa bulletin im assuming there will be a larger pool of people needing to have interviews arranged but technically i could be informed of an interview date in June? 

 

Ultimately im thinking my actual interview date wont be till around September time but just wanted to check my understanding of the relationship between PD and DQ is correct? Do you also know if there is any priority given to interview slots with applicants who have an EB1 vs EB2?

Edited May 26 by LMax

[appleblossom 4,381]

4 minutes ago, LMax said:

@appleblossom sorry just wanted to clarify my understanding. With my petition being current in June and my DQ date being June 24 does that mean i will be immediately in line for an interview slot? Given the big jump in the visa bulletin im assuming there will be a larger pool of people needing to have interviews arranged but technically i could be informed of an interview date in June? 

 

Ultimately im thinking my actual interview date wont be till around September time but just wanted to check my understanding of the relationship between PD and DQ is correct? Do you also know if there is any priority given to interview slots with applicants who have an EB1 vs EB2?

All EB applicants are prioritised the same, and it’s done by DQ date. So you’ll be ahead (for example) of an EB1 applicant that was DQ’ed last month. 
 

You could well receive an IL in June but it’ll depend on how many people are in line ahead of you. There may be tons of EB3 applicants that were DQ’ed well before you and will get priority. 
 

No way of knowing so just don’t make any plans or book anything, but hopefully not long now. 
 

Good luck. 

Edited May 26 by appleblossom

[kennyHM 1]

Does anyone know why it might be taking longer to be DQd? I was RFE on birth certificate which i arrived NVC May 6th and still awaiting DQ. I filled out the public enquiry form last week and they responded few days later with a generic response to either make payment for DS260, submit documents, or continue waiting if all documents has been submitted.

Any insights or advice on what to do next would be appreciated.

[appleblossom 4,381]

1 hour ago, kennyHM said:

Does anyone know why it might be taking longer to be DQd? I was RFE on birth certificate which i arrived NVC May 6th and still awaiting DQ. I filled out the public enquiry form last week and they responded few days later with a generic response to either make payment for DS260, submit documents, or continue waiting if all documents has been submitted.

Any insights or advice on what to do next would be appreciated.

 

If the've told you to continue waiting then I think that's all you can do. As EB applicants we do have to allow extra time because of having to mail docs rather than upload them and extra docs for an RFE will always add more time as they have to match it up to your case. But hopefully it won't be too much longer, good luck. 

 

 

Edited June 13 by appleblossom

[kennyHM 1]

3 hours ago, appleblossom said:

 

If the've told you to continue waiting then I think that's all you can do. As EB applicants we do have to allow extra time because of having to mail docs rather than upload them and extra docs for an RFE will always add more time as they have to match it up to your case. But hopefully it won't be too much longer, good luck. 

 

 

Thanks for always coming through with valuable feedback.

[AndrewBrogan 0]

Hello everyone,

 

Just after a bit of advice, finding something quite confusing. I have just been approved today for an EB1A [PD 9 June 2025, Nebraska] and my attorney is saying I have the choice of consular or trying for the AOS route. He has said that consular can take over a year to clear through NVC before it reaches London Embassy. Alternatively, AOS will be 8-10 months.

 

Having read this forum, I query this as it seems like the NVC process takes a lot less time, then luckily London is fast to process. I think the Attorney has not handled many UK cases before, but I could well be wrong.

 

If someone could give me a clear answer on what the expected timeline to receiving the immigrant visa in my passport, via consular in London, I would greatly appreciate it.  

 

Happy to answer any questions on my journey so far! 

 

Thank you

 

Andrew B

Edited June 18 by AndrewBrogan

[appleblossom 4,381]

On 6/18/2025 at 5:31 PM, AndrewBrogan said:

Hello everyone,

 

Just after a bit of advice, finding something quite confusing. I have just been approved today for an EB1A [PD 9 June 2025, Nebraska] and my attorney is saying I have the choice of consular or trying for the AOS route. He has said that consular can take over a year to clear through NVC before it reaches London Embassy. Alternatively, AOS will be 8-10 months.

 

Having read this forum, I query this as it seems like the NVC process takes a lot less time, then luckily London is fast to process. I think the Attorney has not handled many UK cases before, but I could well be wrong.

 

If someone could give me a clear answer on what the expected timeline to receiving the immigrant visa in my passport, via consular in London, I would greatly appreciate it.  

 

Happy to answer any questions on my journey so far! 

 

Thank you

 

Andrew B

That’s a load of rubbish! 
 

You can point him to the NVC processing times page which set them out very clearly (and are usually pretty much spot on) - https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/nvc-timeframes.html

 

Its usually only 2-3 weeks, you do have to allow a bit of extra time for mailing docs rather than uploading but only an extra week or so. So I’ve got no idea where he’s got a year from. You can look at my timeline for my EB1A case via London. It was a couple of years ago but timelines haven’t changed since then. 
 

But more importantly, where are you right now? Because if you’re not in the US then AOS isn’t possible anyway. 

Edited June 20 by appleblossom

[AndrewBrogan 0]

Thank you @appleblossom, confirms my thoughts. I'm not sure if this was a way of pushing for more business via AoS or something. You are right, I am outside of the US right now, in Europe. They have said that if I return (for business) before the via is issued, it's likely I'd be denied entry for immigrant intent. I honestly can't see why that would be the case, with a return ticket and processing underway for consular route. I will try my luck.

 

Thank you for the advice, I'll keep the forum updated with progress as I go along. 

[appleblossom 4,381]

32 minutes ago, AndrewBrogan said:

Thank you @appleblossom, confirms my thoughts. I'm not sure if this was a way of pushing for more business via AoS or something. You are right, I am outside of the US right now, in Europe. They have said that if I return (for business) before the via is issued, it's likely I'd be denied entry for immigrant intent. I honestly can't see why that would be the case, with a return ticket and processing underway for consular route. I will try my luck.

 

Thank you for the advice, I'll keep the forum updated with progress as I go along. 

So if they think you’d be denied for immigrant intent then how exactly do they think you could do AOS anyway?! Honestly, they sound completely clueless and I’d get rid of them personally. If they think NVC will take a year and they’re telling you to risk a lifetime ban from the US then I wouldn’t trust anything they say.
 

I traveled backwards and forwards for business many times whilst my immigrant visa was being processed, no issue at all. 
 

[Eugeniu 0]

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to check in and see if anyone else is in a similar situation.

I was Documentarily Qualified on March 7, 2025 (EB1A category, London Embassy), and as of today (June 25), I still haven’t received any interview invitation or further update. I’ve seen a few people who were DQ’d in February or even early March starting to get interview letters, so I’m wondering if anyone else with a similar timeline is still waiting?

Would really appreciate it if anyone can share their experience — especially if you were DQ’d in March and have received your IL or are still waiting like me.

Thanks and good luck to everyone in this process!

[appleblossom 4,381]

On 6/25/2025 at 11:17 AM, Eugeniu said:

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to check in and see if anyone else is in a similar situation.

I was Documentarily Qualified on March 7, 2025 (EB1A category, London Embassy), and as of today (June 25), I still haven’t received any interview invitation or further update. I’ve seen a few people who were DQ’d in February or even early March starting to get interview letters, so I’m wondering if anyone else with a similar timeline is still waiting?

Would really appreciate it if anyone can share their experience — especially if you were DQ’d in March and have received your IL or are still waiting like me.

Thanks and good luck to everyone in this process!

IL’s are only sent out once a month usually and you probably just missed the cut off for this month. Assuming your case hasn’t been transferred from anywhere else you’ll hopefully get a IL soon. 
 

Good luck. 

[ChiefB 1]

@appleblossom Greetings. I am sorry to bother you but am really worried and wondering what could be responsible for the delays I have experienced. I applied for EB2-NIW on 13 September 2023 and with PP got approved on 18 September and DQed May 2024. With the last Bulletin it became current.

 

However on January 8 2024 I applied for EB1A and did not get approved until December 31 2024 (1 year). I was DQed on February 28 2025 and my PD is September 13 2023 owing to my earlier EB2  application.

 

I am yet to receive IL and have noted some who got DQed in march have received theirs.  I hope my case has not been forgotten. It’s confusing kindly please help

[appleblossom 4,381]

4 hours ago, ChiefB said:

@appleblossom Greetings. I am sorry to bother you but am really worried and wondering what could be responsible for the delays I have experienced. I applied for EB2-NIW on 13 September 2023 and with PP got approved on 18 September and DQed May 2024. With the last Bulletin it became current.

 

However on January 8 2024 I applied for EB1A and did not get approved until December 31 2024 (1 year). I was DQed on February 28 2025 and my PD is September 13 2023 owing to my earlier EB2  application.

 

I am yet to receive IL and have noted some who got DQed in march have received theirs.  I hope my case has not been forgotten. It’s confusing kindly please help

Just checking, but this is for the London consulate? Which country were you born in? 

[ChiefB 1]

8 hours ago, appleblossom said:

Just checking, but this is for the London consulate? Which country were you born in? 

Yes it’s for London Consulate. I live in the UK but was born in Nigeria

[appleblossom 4,381]

14 minutes ago, ChiefB said:

Yes it’s for London Consulate. I live in the UK but was born in Nigeria

 

OK, was just checking you weren't born in India (so your PD wouldn't be current if that were the case). Did you transfer it to London recently or has it always been a London case? Transfers generally add quite a bit of time. 

 

But I really wouldn't worry yet. It's odd if EB applicants DQ'ed in March have been getting IL's (the official tool, updated just today, says they are currently scheduling interviews for those DQ'ed in February - https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/iv-wait-times.html) but perhaps they're just an anomaly. Are you sure they're employment based cases, and not family based? Immediate relatives (spouses etc) are given priority over employment applications.

 

I'm sure it won't be long until you get yours too though.

 

Good luck. 

Edited July 2 by appleblossom