floyd

My wife arrived last week and she did not need any visa to travel through.

She is an Iranian citizen so whatever rules apply she will have to follow, having a US visa plays no role in the requirements for other countries.(When she gets her green card this will change a little bit). Best to check with the airlines since some say if she doesn't leave the secure area no transit visa is needed, some say yes, you need a transit visa no matter what.

Actually that is not correct. German rules are that if you have a valid visa to US then you don't need a transit visa so having a US visa absolutely plays a role in the requirements.

My question was more about what kind of visa do they stamp on the passport when they issue an IR-1 visa. Is it a normal visa stamp or is it just a notation of successful consular processing.

My wife just got her IR-1 approved and waiting for her passport to be stamped and returned. I have an option of booking flight with Lufthansa since she is carrying a pet (Lufthansa is one of the few airlines that allows in-cabin pets on international flights).

My question is - I am not sure if she requires a transit visa while going through Frankfurt (she has an Iran passport and technically they require a transit visa unless they have a valid US visa).

Does anyone know what sort of stamp they put on the passport and if that is enough to be classified as a visa (they give an additional packet that can be opened only at the POE here so that will not be something that can be used as proof of green card or visa).

I am posting this on the June thread (since the May thread seems to be closing out soon)

Hi everyone!!!!!

I have some very good news - my wife's visa was approved yesterday.

She had her interview on May 9th and they told her that her visa is approved, took her passport and said that it will be sent to her address in a week's time.

They also gave her the note to pay the $165 USCIS Fee before arriving to the US

Thank you everyone for all the help and guidance on this forum.

A special thank you to Saylin - she has really been the best support on any forum I have visited.

Now I just have to wait for her to come here!!!!!!

I will post the review of the interview shortly.

I am not able to hit the IV Registration page, it keeps asking me to first schedule the appointment. Any ideas?

I have a quick question - do we have to do anything with www.usatraveldocs.com.

On the New Delhi embassy page, it says the following:

But when I go to the website, it says that the applicant should go directly to the embassy on the date and time mentioned in the appointment letter.

I am very confused for my wife. Does she need to do anything with this site? Her interview is in a couple of days and while going through some forums , I came across this site. What should I be doing??

I saw this link on a different forum and it says the following:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/428385-ustraveldocscom-not-working-properly/

It says that we don't need to use the site for appointments but we do need to set up a address for the delivery of the passport.

Saylin, on 28 Apr 2013 - 10:24 PM, said:

Just bring an updated G-325A to the interview. You wouldn't have gotten a RFE for that as background checks aren't done on parents or relatives, just the petitioner and beneficiary, so of course that mistake wouldn't have been caught by USCIS or NVC.

Thanks Saylin - as always - I appreciate it a lot.

Do they do background check during the I-130 or NVC stage - I didn't know that they did.

You are right though, they would have no idea that her parents place of birth was incorrect. Actually the city is right but my lawyer's assistant probably got confused between India and Iran.

I will ask her to update a copy of the G-325 A and give it to the officer during the interview.

Saylin and others - I have a question that is bothering me. I spoke to my wife about getting an updated G-325 A (there was a mistake on her parents country of birth that the lawyer's secretary made and we just caught it as we were preparing for her interview). Instead of saying Iran it said India (although the city was right and in subsequent documents like DS-230 etc. it was correctly put as Iran).

You mentioned that I should simply ask her to take an updated G-325A and give it during the interview but my wife is very worried and thinks that she should not give any document and let things be as they are. She is worried that they will ask her additional questions etc.

What do you guys think? If they ask during the interview then she can say that she didn't realize it but most likely they won't ask that.

What I am worried about is if she goes into Administrative Processing (since she is Iranian but interviewing in India so there is a chance that happens), things may get complicated if they use the G-325A to do the background check and find out that the place of birth of her parents was incorrectly put in as India.

We are really confused what to do????

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Just bring an updated G-325A to the interview. You wouldn't have gotten a RFE for that as background checks aren't done on parents or relatives, just the petitioner and beneficiary, so of course that mistake wouldn't have been caught by USCIS or NVC.

Thanks Saylin - as always - I appreciate it a lot.

Do they do background check during the I-130 or NVC stage - I didn't know that they did.

You are right though, they would have no idea that her parents place of birth was incorrect. Actually the city is right but my lawyer's assistant probably got confused between India and Iran.

I will ask her to update a copy of the G-325 A and give it to the officer during the interview.

Hi everyone,

For my spouse, her I-130, NVC etc. all got approved and case completed and her interview date is in a few days - in the second week of May 2013.

I just realized as we were preparing for her interview that our lawyer incorrectly put her parent's country of birth as India instead of Iran in the G-325 A Biographic Information for my wife (the beneficiary) - I am so surprised that the lawyer, myself and my wife all missed this and there was no RFE etc. Now I am freaking out as to what I should we do?

I read somewhere that she needs to just get a corrected G-325A printed out and hand it over to consulate?

Should she do that or just take a chance and see if they ask that or not? Since my wife is from Iran and is going for interview in New Delhi (where she lives for the past several years), it's possible that she has to go for AP so I just want to make sure we are doing the right thing here.

She has a copy of her parent's passport copy that she can also take just as proof.

Please help!!

Hey everyone,

As per the advice of many of you - especially Saylin - I understood that I need to keep calling NVC and then DOS to track the packet and check the status on when it has arrived to the embassy.

My case was complete on April 1st and an interview date was assigned for my wife at the US Embassy in New Delhi on May 9th.

I called NVC yesterday and she mentioned that the package has already reached the US Embassy in New Delhi on April 5th. I asked them if I can get the DHL tracking number either from them or from DOS and she said that they don't give out tracking numbers.

I am surprised a bit that the case was complete on April 1st and the packet reached New Delhi on April 5th - is that the normal time frame. I am also wondering, how did NVC know that the packet reached the embassy? Is that not something that only DOS will be able to tell you.

Basically I just want to make sure that the packet with all the original documents has arrived safely.

Should I call DOS anyways and check or is NVC's information sufficient?

Of course you can get an appointment, but if New Delhi is anything like Guayaquil, USCs are sent to a different part of the building than immigrants, so you probably wouldn't even be anywhere near your wife. Plus, I don't know how comfortable I would feel getting an appointment for something for the mere purpose of entering the building, and then ignoring said appointment. What if someone at the consulate were to realize what was happening? Finding out the USC spouse is a liar doesn't seem like a positive way to start the intending immigrant's interview day. It just kind of smells like trouble to me.

You are right - in fact the embassy responded back to me clearly

With regards to your query, we would like to inform you that, the applicants who applied for the visa are only allowed inside the Embassy/Consulate. You may accompany her till the security gate of the Embassy/Consulate. We will not be able to schedule an appointment for you to accompany your spouse on the date of interview.

So they are saying that only the applicant is allowed for the interview.

That seems pretty clear to me.

Yes that's what I thought too - but then I felt, what if I can get an appointment - as a US Citizen, can I not get an appointment to go into the consulate for any service. I do agree with you to some extent that it seems that petitioners are not allowed in the interview room at new delhi.

I did see some reports on immigration.com from 2007 that said they were allowed to be with their spouse during the interview but could not find anything after that.

I have posted this same question on the April 2013 thread but am posting it here so as to get a bit more audience. Perhaps someone can help me with this question.

My wife's interview is on May 9th 2013 - she is Iranian but living in New Delhi and hence they assigned her to the New Delhi embassy.

My question is - can I join my wife during the interview (I need to know this answer before I can figure out the travel arrangements).

As per suggestion from someone, I emailed the US Embassy in New Delhi and got this response

We understand that you would like to accompany your wife at the time of her visa interview.

With regards to your query, we would like to inform you that, ideally applicants without an appointment are not allowed inside the Embassy/Consulate. please note that a representative can accompany an applicant till the security gate. However, entry in to the Consulate/Embassy is at the sole discretion of the Embassy/Consulate.

The problem is that the email does not seem to answer the question one way or another. I replied to that email to ask for more clarification.

I was hoping someone here can help me out with this question. As a US Citizen, I believe I should be able to enter the embassy but even if I can, I don't know if they will allow me to be with my wife for the interview.

Wohoo I got my visa approved today :dance: , really so happy and wish everyone the best of luck.

Thanks to everyone for their help and a very very special thanks to Saylin and Darnell for their help all the way (F)

Congrats!!!!!!!!!!

:thumbs: :thumbs: :dance: :dance: :dance: :dance:

I think you would use the Immigrant Visa support one. The form I have used is under Immigrant Visas. And that's the department you need to ask.

I sent out an email and this is the response I got. It seems a bit cryptic to me..

Thank you for writing to the U.S. Visa Service Desk.

We understand that you would like to accompany your wife at the time of her visa interview.

With regards to your query, we would like to inform you that, ideally applicants without an appointment are not allowed inside the Embassy/Consulate. please note that a representative can accompany an applicant till the security gate. However, entry in to the Consulate/Embassy is at the sole discretion of the Embassy/Consulate.

It does not tell me whether I can or cannot join my wife for the interview so I have sent another email.

I think lately nearly everyone has been getting the P4 email, since they've been quite prompt with sending it out. I haven't called in almost a week now, but I'm feeling an urge to do so tomorrow, seeing as how we STILL don't have a date and tomorrow's already Friday. and our one month anniversary of case complete.

Are you guys saying you are getting the P4 email without the interview date assigned? I got the P4 email on April 1st and it had the interview date and time in the attached document itself.

On the website for the Embassy in Turkey there is a form you can fill out with your questions. They reply back in 24 hours. But I don't know if all the Embassy's have it.

Doesn't look like there is a form in the US Embassy New Delhi but there are multiple email addresses.

There are two that I could use - still need to decide which one to use (since the query is for an American Citizen, asking whether he can join his spouse who is a non-citizen)

Immigrant visas support-india@ustraveldocs.com

American Citizens Services acsnd@state.gov

Maybe I will send it out to both the mailboxes

It says "Processing at NVC" for me still, so I would call to check

My case was complete on April 1st and it still says "Processing at NVC" on this site. So I would not trust that status that much.

Thanks - I just hope now that the interview goes well and my wife gets her approval and can join me as soon as possible.

I suggest you message the embassy. That is what I did. I was told I would not be allowed in and the interview was just for my husband.

Did you look up the email from the embassy's website or just call them?

Thanks

Nope, that should be the last email from NVC. If you're to get another email, it'd be from the embassy.

You need to call NVC to find out when the case was sent out, and then DOS a few days after it was sent out to make sure it arrived safely.

Some embassies/consulates allow US citizens inside, others don't. In some places (DR if I remember correctly), the petitioners are practically required, otherwise you're not approved. Canada, for example, lets the petitioner in with no issues and they're even allowed inside the interview room. It varies by embassy/consulate, so you'll need to check your country's website as well as any info you can dig up here on VJ. If you can't find info online, contact the embassy directly to get your answer. If you are allowed inside, all you're need is your US passport, along with your beneficiary.

Pros = moral support for the spouse, shows bona fide evidence in a way

Cons = petitioner may get asked questions (in MENA countries, this can mean separate rooms being grilled)

It's ultimately up to and your spouse though (and of course the embassy to let you inside). Personally, for our case, my husband did not join me. It would have been a waste of money as I was in and out within 2 hours. And he probably would have made me more nervous somehow. Plus, he would have been distracting and I wouldn't have been able to absorb as much information as I did But, I'm from Canada, an easy place to interview where the petitioner is definitely not required or needed to be there. Other countries are different.

Thanks Saylin.

I will start calling NVC from this week (got the case complete and interview date on Monday April 1st) so will give it a few days. I will look through the initial thread to see if there is a phone number of DOS that I can call to check if the case has been received. I believe first we talk to NVC and then after a few days we start calling DOS right?

I have not been able to get the information on whether New Delhi embassy allows petitioners in or not. I searched through this forum and other forums as well but could not find that information.

I understand the pros and cons of being there - thanks for your thoughts on that.

Is there an email address to be able to contact them or do I need to just call them to ask this question?

First off: grats!

Typically, one gets those emails separately. But, it isn't impossible to get a case complete and interview scheduled in the same day. I've seen it happen in the past. Consider yourself lucky that you didn't have to spend weeks waiting for an interview!

Thanks everyone!!

I have a few questions.

I received only one email with a pdf that says that the case was complete, interview assigned and case sent to the embassy. Do we expect any more emails from NVC now?

For ensuring that the documents have been forwarded to the us embassy, do we need to call NVC or just trust that the documents will get there before the interview date?

I want to go with my wife to the interview if I can get a few days off. Are we allowed to join our spouse for the interview and if yes, is there some process that we need to go through to actually be allowed in the embassy for the interview.

Are there any pros and cons to being with the spouse physically during the interview?

I just got my interview date as well and have added it to the timeline as well as the signature.

Congrats! Head on over to the May Interviews thread to add your name and date to the list!

Done - thanks!!

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6. Add in order by NVC case complete date.

7. Add the date you received your interview date so others can see from case complete to assignment time-frame.

December Cases Waiting on Interview:

NAME................COMPLETE....INTERVIEW...VISA TYPE..............EMBASSY

Gringa Chapina......12/11/12....xx/xx/13...IR-1/CR-1...............Guatemala

January Cases Waiting on Interview:

NAME................COMPLETE....RECEIVED...INTERVIEW...VISA TYPE...EMBASSY

ik2011..............01/13/13....03/06/13...04/02/13....IR-1........India

ndu26...............01/28/13....03/05/13...04/19/13....CR-1........Nigeria

olumides_wife.......01/31/13....03/05/13...got it......IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

February Cases Waiting on Interview:

NAME................COMPLETE....RECEIVED...INTERVIEW...VISA TYPE...EMBASSY

2HeartR1............02/04/13....03/05/13...04/16/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

dwheels76...........02/05/13....03/05/13...04/15/13....IR-1........Nigeria

A.J.................02/06/13....03/15/13...04/02/13....IR-1/CR-1...Morocco

PARISS..............02/12/13....03/15/13...04/03/13....IR-1/CR-1...Morocco

M&C.................02/12/13....03/13/13...04/15/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

Carlos1986..........02/12/13....03/06/13...04/03/13....IR-1/CR-1...Colombia

PuppyLove...........02/12/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Pakistan

papiakumi...........02/14/13....03/05/13...04/18/13....IR-1/CR-1...Venezuela

sugarbritches.......02/14/13....03/06/13...04/22/13....CR-1........United Kingdom

wellensky/denise....02/15/13....04/01/13...Got it......IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

Carry...............02/15/13....03/04/13...04/17/13....IR-1/CR-1...Canada

LoveyDovey..........02/15/13....03/07/13...04/01/13....IR-1/CR-1...Philippines

elicearea...........02/18/13....03/05/13...04/25/13....IR-1/CR-1...Romania

EmilyS..............02/19/13....03/04/13...04/05/13....IR-1/CR-1...Canada

bluetina............02/19/13....03/14/13...04/04/13....IR-1/CR-1...EGYPT

chuhuchu............02/18/13....03/18/13...got it .....IR-1........SINGAPORE

ebe.................02/20/13....03/06/13...04/17/13....IR-1/CR-1...Chile

regw76..............02/20/13....03/13/13...04/08/13....IR-1/CR-1...Japan

Rezahoss............02/21/13....03/06/13...04/09/13....IR-1/CR-1...Abu Dhabi

Sangita.............02/23/13....03/06/13...04/17/13....IR-1/CR-1...India

RFQ.................02/24/13....03/14/13...04/03/13....IR-1/CR-1...Egypt

God's mercy.........02/25/13....04/02/13...got it .....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

sic2005.............02/25/13....03/07/13...04/17/13....IR-1/CR-1...Bangladesh

Gregger235..........02/25/13....03/07/13...04/12/13....IR-1/CR-1...MEXICO

sonineni............02/26/13....04/07/13...04/04/13....CR1.........INDIA

austex..............02/26/13....03/06/13...04/08/13....IR-1........Australia

flamgirl............02/27/13....03/06/13...04/29/13....IR-1/CR-1...INDIA

PerthtoMass.........02/28/13....03/06/13...04/30/13....IR-1/CR-1...Australia

Mzsitcheron.........02/28/13....04/06/13...04/25/13....IR-1/CR-1...Jamaica

leszeku1............02/28/13....03/08/13...04/04/13....CR-1........Philippines

March Cases Waiting on Interview:

NAME................COMPLETE....RECEIVED...INTERVIEW...VISA TYPE...EMBASSY

meltemapo...........03/01/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Turkey

John & Jeni.........03/01/13....03/29/13...05/14/13....IR-1/CR-1...Greece

JLCANDRLF...........03/04/13....03/07/13...04/12/13....IR-1/CR-1...Brazil

Mrs. AJ.............03/04/13....03/07/13...04/09/13....IR-1/CR-1...Cameroon

lovecyercat.........03/05/13....03/06/13...04/30/13....IR-1/CR-1...Russia

oohpartiv...........03/05/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Ecuador

VikingMamma.........03/06/13....03/06/13...04/10/13....IR-1/CR-1...Iceland

Grace2013...........03/06/13....03/07/13...4/16/13.....IR-5........Guangzhou

sld.................03/06/13....03/14/13...04/03/13....IR-1/CR-1...Philippines

pogipatrick.........03/06/13....03/24/13...04/15/13....IR-1/CR-1...Brazil

smkr................03/07/13....03/12/13...04/17/13....IR-1/CR-1...India

niyapravi...........03/11/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...India

Highyella72.........03/11/13....04/02/13...05/06/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

hamigirl710.........03/13/13....03/15/13...04/30/13....IR-1/CR-1...Morocco

Aladlhassan.........03/13/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Morocco

Judy2Rock...........03/13/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Jamaica

Mntjc...............03/13/13....03/12/13...04/03/13....CR-1........Belgium

TeamMcGregor........03/15/13....03/29/13...05/15/13....IR-1/CR-1...Dominican Rep.

Mina90..............03/15/13....04/01/13...05/05/13....IR-1/CR-1...Bangladesh

martha brown03......03/18/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Kenya

MeredythB...........03/20/13....04/01/13...05/07/13....IR-1/CR-1...Ireland

Vicki&Nanuka........03/20/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

Mar_Wil.............03/20/13....03/30/13...05/02/13....IR-1........Philippines

Sunflower123........03/20/13....03/29/13...05/13/13....IR-1/CR-1...Mexico

Roosha .............03/22/13....03/29/13...05/19/13....IR-1/CR-1...Qatar

kwakuoj ............03/22/13....04/01/13...05/15/13....IR-1/CR-1...Ghana

Oriz................03/22/13....04/01/13...05/06/13....IR-1........Israel

babyjk .............03/26/13....04/01/13...05/08/13....IR-1/CR-1...Barbados

elle13 .............03/26/13....04/01/13...05/02/13....IR-1/CR-1...Malaysia

MikeJill............03/27/13....04/01/13...05/14/13....IR-1/CR-1...UK

Mrs&Mr..............03/27/13....03/29/13...05/24/13....IR-1/CR-1...Greece

ImmigrationReform...03/28/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nepal

RajNav..............03/29/13....04/01/13...05/10/13....IR-1/CR-1...India

April Cases Waiting on Interview:

NAME................COMPLETE....RECEIVED...INTERVIEW...VISA TYPE...EMBASSY

s$susauk............04/01/13....04/01/13...05/28/13....IR-1/CR-1...UK

srloring13..........xx/xx/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Nigeria

teysha..............xx/xx/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Haiti

JandRP..............xx/xx/13....xx/xx/13...xx/xx/13....IR-1/CR-1...Jamaica

floyd...............04/01/13....04/01/13...05/09/13....IR-1/CR-1...India