FulanoDeTal

Sukie and Julie,

Congratulations to you both! It's great to see that your process is moving along, and best wishes as you get into the home stretch!

Peter and Bonieke

We are so happy to say our visa was approved today in London! Next stop marriage!

Congratulations on your approval! Our best wishes to you both!

We're so happy...the visa arrived today! They also indicate the petioner's name on it, which is pretty cool. To think that a year ago we couldn't even get a tourist visa! Next stop, POE on February 5.

Continuing good luck to everyone!

Hi, and welcome!

I'm no expert on the I-130 process (we just got our fiance visa approved in Brazil last week), but I agree with Norris SF. If you can possibly do DCF, go for it, because otherwise you'll likely be in for a long wait if your petition is processed in the U.S. It doesn't look like France offers DCF, but it appears that Belgium does. You may want to find out if there's a residency requirement in Belgium and if you can somehow meet it, try to do DCF through Brussels. Just a thought, and I'm sure you'll get some other views as well.

Bonne chance!

De donde eres?

Soy de Washington DC, y mi novio es Brasilero!

Interview today....and APPROVED! We couldn't be happier. They asked some rather odd questions, considering I was married previously (to a man)...as in they asked how did my fiancee know that I wouldn't go back to men. I would have been offended, but my fiancee just laughed it off and said "trust me, she's gay!" Anyways....very happy to have it over with. Now we just have to get the visa and get her to the U.S. A month from now she'll be home and I can't wait!!!!

Awesome answer! Felicidades!

Congratulations, eh! Best wishes to you both!

David,

Sorry to hear about the mix-up. Things will be fine on Thursday for sure. In the meantime, take a little time to enjoy Rio and get yout minds off of this craziness!

Peter and Bonieke

If you are doing the initial I-129F petition you don't really need to be submitting proof of your relationship at this point. You just need to show that you have met your fiancé once in person within the last two years, and that you both intend to marry within 90 days of your fiance's entry into the United States on a K-1 visa.

The emails will be relevant when your fiancé goes for his interview at the consulate in Rio de Janeiro and he can bring then to the interview. You will not need to have them translated, the Rio consulate accepts proof of relationship documents such as your emails (as well as most other documents) in either English or Portuguese.

Your mutual letters of intent to marry should be signed originals, as well as the biographical forms.

Good luck with your process!

We are thrilled to report we got our interview date - Jan 23, 2014 at 8am @ London Embassy! DOS was able to tell me on the phone.

Congratulations! It's great to see everyone making such good progress!

We're happy to report that our visa was approved this morning in Rio de Janeiro! The information that we have received on this site was invaluable. Thanks to everyone for their encouragement and support. And a special shout-out to Edie Windsor, without whose bravery and determination none of this would have been possible. We'll post a fuller report later, but right now we're off to the beach to celebrate!

Thanks everybody!

Peter and Bonieke

Hello everybody/

I am applying in January of next year for an 129F for my (same-sex) fiancé. I have some questions if you who have had experience with this can answer

1. I am being told the approval of the K1 can take anywhere from 3-9 months depending on circumstances..ours is pretty clear cut...no prior marriages, no criminal record(s) etc...what is the average time?

2, Can I attend the interview as well? I know security is pretty tough so I wouldn't want to fly all the way there for the interview to be not allowed in?\

3. Can the embassy interview take place in a private room rather than at the window. The fiancé is from a very homophobic country and he is afraid of being overheard by the waiting applicants there

Kind regards

David

Hi David,

Here are some thoughts on your questions:

1. The wait time from filing to interview for us in Brazil will be about 180 days. You may want to check your country-specific portal on this site, as that will give you the timelines for other 129-F applicants in your country.

2. Embassies are all over the map on whether the petitioner is allowed at the interview. In Brazil it seems that they prefer that the petitioner attend, while in other countries it's forbidden. Again, if you check the embassy reviews on this site for your country that should provide some information.

3. Your privacy concern is the first time that has come up here to my knowledge. If you check the embassy reviews that may be helpful to understand how the interviews are conducted. If you have a concern about security or harassment from locals following the interview I would get in touch with embassy prior to the interview to confirm that the interview arrangements will be appropriate. If the embassy isn't responsive I wouldn't hesitate to elevate this to DOS directly, because this is a genuine concern and you will probably be setting a precedent here for how LGBT interviews get handled in homophobic countries.

Good luck with your process!

Hello guys

i had interview this morning and i got approved i am sooooo happy just cant express it with words

i wish you all to be as happy as i am now

merry christmas to you

Ivanalex, congratulations! You made it! We're so happy for you guys and wish you all the best now that you can truly be together!

Elisenda,

I had responded to your original post about this. I wouldn't worry about the NOA-2 expiration assuming that you attend the sheduled interview. If you explain the situation to the CO at the interview they he/she has authority to extend the expiration date.

Hi Elisenda,

I'm sorry to hear that things have gotten a little complicated, but I can tell you that the consulate apparently does let you go forward with the interview subject to receipt of the medical examination. Another VJ member who had her interview in Rio shortly before Thanksgiving was required by the doctor to have some additional tests, and he told her to go ahead with the interview. She did so, and was told at the interview that she was approved, subject to the consulate's receipt of a satisfactory medical exam, at which time they would issue her the visa. So that should be helpful for you to know.

The "chain of custody" problem relating to your test results is a tough question. If possible for you, one option might be to see if there is a lab in Rio or elsewhere that is acceptable to the consulate where you could have the tests done on-site. It sounds like it's a three-day process, but if you can afford the time and the money there are worse things in life than spending three days in Rio just to get it over with. I'm sure others may have some suggestions as well.

Best of luck and stay calm, you may need to dar um jeito but everything will work out.

Hello guys

my interview is on December 26, next week

please please wish me good luck

thanksssss muchh

That's great you've gotten your interview scheduled so quickly. Good luck and we'll be pulling for you!

Felicidades! Parabens! Congratulations! This is such great news!

hello every one

or case number status changed and now it says READY

does it mean the embassy received it?

thanks so much for you inputs

Hi again! Yes, that means your package is at the embassy. You will now need to find out how your embassy schedules the interview, because it can vary quite a lot from country to country. Good luck!

Hey guys!

Just wanted to share my big news. Today we received an email saying our I-130 has been approved.

There's still a long way to go to join my spouse in the US, however, now we are unconditionally happy.

Great news! Congratulations!

Thanks! We actually just received a second welcome letter, so I guess they really mean it.

Ah, the good old USA...the country so nice, we welcome you twice! Congratulations!

We have our interview tomorrow and I can't believe we've already come this far! Can't describe how exciting and nerve-wracking it is, but I will be so glad to finally have this process behind us.

Hang in there guys & girls - I'm so happy to see more approvals coming through. It's just a matter of being patient and soon everything will get moving. I waited 2 weeks before calling NVC to get my case number, and once I had it - everything moved extremely fast after that.

Wishing you all good luck with your cases!

Good luck tomorrow! You've made it this far and the finish line is in sight...we're pulling for you!

Bonieke and Peter

Hi there,

My fiance had his physical with Dr. Duarte (your doctor) in October. Both the x-ray and the blood test are done at labs near Dr. Duarte's office in downtown Rio on the same day as the examination, and those results are sent directly to Dr. Duarte's office. The entire medical examination package is sent over to the consulate via SEDEX, for which you will pay directly at the doctor's office. That said, you're timing may be tight to actually have all of the results at the consulate by January 6. Our appointment was on a Friday, and the blood test results were not available on-line until the following Thursday, six days later. I don't know if Dr. Duarte had access to them earlier, but this gives you some idea of the timing. Also, be sure that your wife brings her vaccination booklet to the examination if she has it available. This will potentially save time and expense, because the doctor will be able to confirm immediately whether any additional vaccinations are necessary.

Apparently in Rio it's not the end of the world if the medical examination is not complete at the time of the interview. Another member had her interview in Rio last week, but her medical examination was not yet complete due to some additional testing that the doctor ordered. Everything else was in order at her interview, and the consulate told her that her visa was approved, subject to the arrival and confirmation of the medical examination. Once the consulate gets the medical examination they will send her the visa.

I hope this helps, and good luck!

Sorry if my previous post was not formatted right. Congrats Nadia, kmiami and Ivanalex!

Am excited am on my way to London for a visit to my fiancé!

Yes indeed congratulations to all and safe travels if you're traveling for the holiday. I drove from DC to Connecticut last night and the weather on the East Coast is really nasty!

Sorry if my previous post was not formatted right. Congrats Nadia, kmiami and Ivanalex!

Am excited am on my way to London for a visit to my fiancé!

Yes indeed congratulations to all and safe travels if you're traveling for the holiday. I drove from DC to Connecticut last night and the weather on the East Coast is really nasty!

Hi folks. My fiance's interview is scheduled for January 7th in Manila. We are a same sex couple. My fiance's town was essentially destroyed by Typhoon Haiyan, so he has temporarily moved in with his cousin in the Manila area. It's essential we have good internet and communication capabilities as we approach the interview date.

I'm looking to see if there are any other same sex couples on this site that are also being processed in Manila. To date I have been impressed with the speed our petition and interview date have been handled. I mailed our I-129F on August 2nd. Does anyone know of any same sex success stories out of Manila?

I have been to the Philippines 3 times over the last 2 years for 3 weeks each visit. I really do not believe we have any problems establishing our relationship. You just can't help but be a little nervous.

Hi there,

Thus far I'm only aware of two same-sex fiancé visa interviews, one in Indonesia (only beneficiary attended) and one in Italy (both petitioner and beneficiary attended). Both couples were approved and reported that the interview experience was positive. We have our interview in Rio on January 7. I think that the best advice would be to review the interview reports from the Manila Embassy, so your fiancé will be familiar with the type of questions that are typically asked, and think about his responses. He should also familiarize himself with all of the paperwork associated with your petition, so he can respond to any questions about the documents.

I'm sure that the added stress of a relocation hasn't been easy, but please know that you have our support and best wishes!

Good luck!

Peter and Bonieke

Hi there,

My fiancé had his medical exam with Dr. Duarte in Rio in October. His office is across the street from the consulate. His secretary, Joice, is very knowledgeable and will send an email with the details for the medical exam when you make an appointment. I would not count on getting everything done the day before the exam. We had to go to two separate labs downtown that same day for the chest x-ray and a blood test. This was on a Friday, and the blood test result wasn't available online until the following Thursday. The blood test results and the x-ray are sent directly to Dr. Duarte's office and included in the package for the consulate. The doctor's office sends the package directly to the consulate before the interview. You pay a Sedex delivery fee at the doctor's office so you don't need to bring a pre-addressed envelope. The one thing your fiancé should definitely bring to the exam if he can is his vaccination booklet. It will save you time and money if the doctor can immediately identify the vaccinations that your fiancé may need.

Our day at the doctor took about six hours including the lab visits, and I would definitely not have wanted to deal with all of that the day before the interview (even if it were possible). So my advice would be try to get the exam done well in advance of the interview to reduce the stress and be sure that everything is complete in advance of the interview.

Good luck!

As the petitioner, you will receive all the correspondence and have on-line access to information for everything until your file reaches the Rio de Janeiro consulate. At that point, you can email the Rio de Janeiro consulate and they can provide you with the interview date via email (the interview date is generally no more than two months from when Rio receives your file). The consulate may send a letter to your fiancee at her Brazil address as well, but as long as you have the interview date all of the other information and instructions that you will need are available on-line, so the physical letter is not actually necessary. Remember that your fiancee will need to have her medical examination in Brazil and get copies of her police records as well, so she will probably want some lead time back in Brazil prior to the interview.

Hope this helps, and good luck!