Karam and Jamie

Hoping it means they scheduled the interview and will hear something soon or see it on the website

The Embassy said they received our Packet 3 papers awhile back and then said they have not scheduled the interview yet, but I just checked the CEAC website and it says updated May 28th. Does this mean anything?

Some might say I'm crazy. Some might say I'm OCD. But I'm really just going crazy trying to distract myself because my sweetheart's interview is in under 24 hours! Augh!

SO ... I check the VJ timelines all the time to see if I can get a handle on how quickly things happen at the Cairo Embassy. I'm always frustrated by the very small sample size. But then today I realized I have ALL OF THE MONTH'S interview results at my fingertips through the CEAC website. The Cairo embassy lists all the case numbers for the interviews for the month. There is nothing "stalkerish" about going through those case numbers because there is ZERO personal information attached to them, so I copied and pasted into a spreadsheet and sorted by date.

I plugged in every single CRO YEAR DAY XXX case number for May so far. (Case numbers are, for example, CRO2014865001 meaning: CRO = Cairo, 2014 = the year, 865 = subtract 500 to get the day of the year so this would be December 31st (which obviously hasn't happened yet in 2014...), and then the last three digits are the number that was created for that embassy on that date.) I disregarded the other format case numbers because I want to compare simple apples to apples. I wish they still listed the visa type on there, but, alas, they stopped doing that last month.

It took me a couple hours to go through the 220 case numbers that have had interviews this month so far and met the requirements above. The results were really very surprising and I wanted to share them here for the sake of others like me that just love information and statistics and a brainy approach to a process that seems so arbitrary! Here are some highlights of what I found. Tell me if you want more details and I'll figure it out or put my results on a Google Drive Spreadsheet for others to look at.

(1) Apparently, NOBODY was denied. The only statuses I saw were "Ready," "Administrative Processing," and "Issued." I did a little research and "ready" seems to be a GOOD sign after the interview. It appears to be cases that are done with processing and are waiting to have the actual visa printed. Feel free to correct me if anybody has more info.

(2) Some days, about 15-20% go into AP. Other days, it's closer to 50%. Different employees? Or just the way the dice was rolled that day as far as paperwork needed, etc? Who knows. But remember I'm looking only at the CURRENT STATUS--some of those cases were undoubtedly AP at first and now say issued. So I'd have to follow the cases every day and check them again to really know.

(3) They print the visas FAST if they aren't in AP. Like FAST fast. For example, I saw 12 cases today. Of those 12, 5 are currently in AP, 2 are "ready," and 5 have already been issued the same day! Of yesterday's 13 interview, 2 are in AP, 1 is "ready," and 10 are already issued.

In comparison, the most recent seven cases listed here on VJ had wait times of 4 days, 5 days, about two months, about 5 weeks, about 3 weeks... something like that. It's definitely possible that the statistics here are skewed because people who have PROBLEMS with their visas are more prone to coming to the website to seek advice. People with smooth sailing just keep on sailing past.

(4) If you go back to the first interview date of the month, there were 11 cases. 10 have been issued now (3 wk + 2 days later) and only one is still in AP. The one in AP has a case creation date of 2010, so likely that's a case that's been plagued with problems for a long time for one reason or another. So we'll consider that a statistical outlier. However, if we look at one day later, there are again 11 cases but four are still in AP.

Anyway, there is a little more data that can be analyzed there but it's 11:30 pm and I already feel like a freak for digging this deep. However, if anybody wants more info, just let me know. If you love numbers like me, please reply and tell me I'm not a total freak.

Oh my gosh! I'm sitting on the edge of my SEAT at work reading this lolol We sent our packet 3 in recently and I received a confirmation email from the Embassy that they received it but they stated they have not scheduled the interview yet. Waitinggggggggggg UGH Waiting for June to come so they can refresh that interview page to see if his interview happens to be on there. Also waiting for an email or a letter or a phone call for the interview date. This is killing us

Some might say I'm crazy. Some might say I'm OCD. But I'm really just going crazy trying to distract myself because my sweetheart's interview is in under 24 hours! Augh!

SO ... I check the VJ timelines all the time to see if I can get a handle on how quickly things happen at the Cairo Embassy. I'm always frustrated by the very small sample size. But then today I realized I have ALL OF THE MONTH'S interview results at my fingertips through the CEAC website. The Cairo embassy lists all the case numbers for the interviews for the month. There is nothing "stalkerish" about going through those case numbers because there is ZERO personal information attached to them, so I copied and pasted into a spreadsheet and sorted by date.

I plugged in every single CRO YEAR DAY XXX case number for May so far. (Case numbers are, for example, CRO2014865001 meaning: CRO = Cairo, 2014 = the year, 865 = subtract 500 to get the day of the year so this would be December 31st (which obviously hasn't happened yet in 2014...), and then the last three digits are the number that was created for that embassy on that date.) I disregarded the other format case numbers because I want to compare simple apples to apples. I wish they still listed the visa type on there, but, alas, they stopped doing that last month.

It took me a couple hours to go through the 220 case numbers that have had interviews this month so far and met the requirements above. The results were really very surprising and I wanted to share them here for the sake of others like me that just love information and statistics and a brainy approach to a process that seems so arbitrary! Here are some highlights of what I found. Tell me if you want more details and I'll figure it out or put my results on a Google Drive Spreadsheet for others to look at.

(1) Apparently, NOBODY was denied. The only statuses I saw were "Ready," "Administrative Processing," and "Issued." I did a little research and "ready" seems to be a GOOD sign after the interview. It appears to be cases that are done with processing and are waiting to have the actual visa printed. Feel free to correct me if anybody has more info.

(2) Some days, about 15-20% go into AP. Other days, it's closer to 50%. Different employees? Or just the way the dice was rolled that day as far as paperwork needed, etc? Who knows. But remember I'm looking only at the CURRENT STATUS--some of those cases were undoubtedly AP at first and now say issued. So I'd have to follow the cases every day and check them again to really know.

(3) They print the visas FAST if they aren't in AP. Like FAST fast. For example, I saw 12 cases today. Of those 12, 5 are currently in AP, 2 are "ready," and 5 have already been issued the same day! Of yesterday's 13 interview, 2 are in AP, 1 is "ready," and 10 are already issued.

In comparison, the most recent seven cases listed here on VJ had wait times of 4 days, 5 days, about two months, about 5 weeks, about 3 weeks... something like that. It's definitely possible that the statistics here are skewed because people who have PROBLEMS with their visas are more prone to coming to the website to seek advice. People with smooth sailing just keep on sailing past.

(4) If you go back to the first interview date of the month, there were 11 cases. 10 have been issued now (3 wk + 2 days later) and only one is still in AP. The one in AP has a case creation date of 2010, so likely that's a case that's been plagued with problems for a long time for one reason or another. So we'll consider that a statistical outlier. However, if we look at one day later, there are again 11 cases but four are still in AP.

Anyway, there is a little more data that can be analyzed there but it's 11:30 pm and I already feel like a freak for digging this deep. However, if anybody wants more info, just let me know. If you love numbers like me, please reply and tell me I'm not a total freak.

Oh my gosh! I'm sitting on the edge of my SEAT at work reading this lolol We sent our packet 3 in recently and I received a confirmation email from the Embassy that they received it but they stated they have not scheduled the interview yet. Waitinggggggggggg UGH Waiting for June to come so they can refresh that interview page to see if his interview happens to be on there. Also waiting for an email or a letter or a phone call for the interview date. This is killing us

The K 1 is used to enter the USA for marriage within 90 days. You could marry quickly and the next day file the AOS with the other docs to get the EAD card as well which if done at the same time is free. The EAD card should come in about 90 days, allowing the person to work until the green card is approved and issued.

There is no need to sit at home doing nothing. Better to start now to figure out what else can be done that is productive.

I hope you read enough of those posts to discover how difficult the K 1 process is in India. It can be done but sometimes it is very difficult if there is any question about the relationship. Religion, cast ect always come up. Prepare your case carefully.

Marry quickly and file the next day? Doesn't it cost over a thousand dollars to file for AOS? lol Man, I wish I could just hurry up and file once my fiancé and I are married

This is WEIRD and I would like to know too since my fiance lives in Egypt too. What did they say to him when they came there?

That's ok. What's important is that they received it and you are well on your way to being done with the first phase. Hang in there and stay on top of it and before you know it, he will be here and your lives can start anew....together

Thank you very much! Wasn't sure how important those 2 dates were for the Timeline. I guestimated hehe

It does actually...thanks. You were processed at the California Service Center (CSC).

To update:

1. Click on your profile name in the upper right corner (located next to Sign Out).

2. Select "My Timeline"

3. Next to your photo, Select "Edit/Add Entry"

4. A new screen will appear...Select "Edit Timeline"

5. Look about 9 boxes down (Under USCIS & Consulate Filing Locations) and select the Lewisville, Texas location

6. Next box down is "USCIS Service Center.....select "California Service Center"

7. Below that, select "NOT Transferred"

8. Select US Embassy below that (I am guessing Egypt?)

9. Fill in your NOA dates below that and then scroll all the way to the bottom and on the left hand side, select "Submit Changes"

This accurate information will help the rest of us with out estimates and will be greatly appreciated.

Congrats on your approval and best of luck with the remainder of your journey

Ok. I changed it. Had no idea I was processed at the California Service Center lol. I'll be honest I have NO IDEA of the exact date that the NVC received our petition or the exact date that the Embassy received it

Hi Everyone,

This website has helped me through my AOS process and I just want to share my experience with you all and maybe I can help people who are going through what I went through to get my green card. I just received my green card today and couldn't be happier! Here is my story. I was brought to the U.S. as a child on a tourist visa that had expired 25 years ago. Been living here illegally and afraid to come out of the shadow ever since. Eight years ago I met my future wife, we started dating and we got married last year. The first 7 years our relationship, she didn't know about my illegal status as I was too embarrased to tell her. Well I finally worked up the courage to tell her about it and here is the timeline of our journey through the AOS process which was very quick and very painless:

10/12/2013: Got married in Vegas (my wife is a U.S. Citizen)

2/21/2014: Sent in my AOS packet to the Chicago lockbox, USPS certified mail (I-130, I-765, I-485)

**Tip: do not staple any of the paperwork, just use paperclips. It makes it easier for the folks at the USCIS to look through them. We got complimented on how neat and organized our packet was**

2/24/2014: Notification from the USPS that my package was delivered

3/2/2014: Received an e-mail notification from the USCIS that they have received our packet

3/8/2014: Received a letter for a biometric (fingerprints, picture) appointment for 3/26/2014

3/26/2014: Went in for my biometric at 8:00am, was out of there by 8:20am

4/11/2014: Received a notice for an interview for 5/13/2014

5/5/2014: Noticed of my I-765 (EAD) approval

5/9/2014: Received my EAD

5/13/2014: THE BIG DAY, our interview at 12:30pm (San Francisco office), was approved on the spot

5/17/2014: Received welcome letter. Status on the website changed to 'card production'

5/19/2014: Received a notice on the website that my green card has been sent out

5/20/2014: RECEIVED MY GREEN CARD!!!!!

It only took us 89 days from the packet being sent to receiving my green card which I find to be relatively fast and it was extremely painless. Everyone from the biometric place to the Immigration Officer who interviewed us were very professional, helpful, and friendly.

From my experience, as long as you have nothing to hide, your marriage is legit, and you have all your paperwork organized then you have nothing to worry about. We live in San Francisco, and in a city with so many immigrants I thought our case would take much longer but as you can see it took less than 3 months to complete the process.

I don't want to bore you with all the little details but please feel free to ask me any questions and I will try to help answer them and give you an insight of what we did, and how we did it. If you have questions about our interview experience please let me know and I'd be more than happy to answer them. Again, this site has helped me tremendously at the beginning and throughout my journey so I just want to pay it forward.

Good luck to you all

Congrats to you!!! I have a question. I am seeing it costs 985 dollars to apply for this? Is that true?

50 days would indeed be fast for TSC (other than Philippines and other expedites). Please do not take this the wrong way, but are you sure you were processed at the TSC? Many people mistakenly believe that they were simply because they mailed their petitions to the Texas Lockbox. Did your file number start with a SRC or WAC? I am asking because I am putting together a color coded map to show where petitions go based on geographical locations and all others I have seen from Michigan have gone to CSC. Thanks in advance and congrats on your speedy approval.

There was no option for the Texas Lockbox on the Timeline and I don't know how to do my own timeline on here. I sent it to the Texas Lockbox. It starts with WAC. Hope that helps your map!

Wow, 50 days is a lot!

Actually, after all the timelines I have read concerning Texas, 50 days was FAST!

Everyone's timeline is different. Got our NAO2 in 50 days

idk what they're waiting for . I called DOS and they say everythings at the embassy nothing was sent back ?! like wth is taking so long.. Some people had interviews after us and were approved !

I have read on here that people contact their congress (senators) when this happens? Have you tried this?

I know thats whats happening to me everysingle day a little part of me dies everyday just waiting and thinking that my one year old has to leave his daddy soon :'( ! its just toooo muchhh !!

I don't understand these people and this process sometimes. It's terrible :'( So sorry you are going through this.

I got to see my fiance a few days in October and a few days in March. We have known each other a year. I want him here already!!! Getting ready to send necessary paperwork to the Embassy and I am hoping it does not take 3 - 5 months for a friggin interview like I have been seeing on here for Egypt. UGH

I really do appreciate your responces. And I will inform my Fiance about his account, so that he can check it today and for some reason we havent discuss about the cash check.

And yes, he called USCIS Customer Service(he talked to real person) several times and the only thing that they are saying is that they can see the name of my Fiance in their system and we'll just for the response or something. But how come, he didnt received any confirmation yet?!.

Did he go to the USCIS website to receive email and text if there are any updates to the status of the petition?

That's what I'm saying. So tired of providing evidence and I've only done it for the petition so far lol I provided 3 chat conversations from each month that we've talked, phone call records, letters we wrote to each other and sent in the mail and pictures. Passed through USCIS in 50 days just wonder about the Embassy now.

Oh my gosh, I would die :'( Sorry to hear thisss

Can someone please inform me if they suppose it would be an issue that we have only met in person one time? I flew to Ghana in February but was only able to stay for 9 days. We are in love but my demanding job and the fact that I am a single father makes it very difficult to get there again. Financially it is nearly impossible, and I have nobody to care for my daughter and make sure she makes it to school. I had my mother fly down from NY to care for my daughter for the 9 day visit in February. I'm just concerned that one visit for nine days may not be enough for the CO in Accra to justify our petition. We have chat logs and communicate everyday. We have several photos, receipts for dinner when I proposed, hotel receipts, and she has an engagement ring. Should I try and take out a loan to get there again before the interview? I'm torn because I love this woman and want to spend my life with her, but I don't want to start off in debt when she will not be able to work for about six months after she arrives. Can anyone share with me their thoughts?

I know someone who was approved and she only saw her fiance for 3 days one time.

Congratulations!! Can't wait for our day to come

Not sure how different Egypt and the United Kingdom are but my fiance got his police report after our case was sent to the Embassy. He has to send a police report to the Embassy soon (along with all the other paperwork they said to send in the email). They are good for 3 months and he will have to just get a new one anyways if it takes longer than 3 months to get an interview.

I just called NVC about 10 days after I received our NAO2 and they told me it was transferred to Egypt and gave me our case number.

What is AOS fee? We don't pay anything until my fiance goes to his interview.

I do figure it will help me to appreciate my honey even more though

I have known my fiance for a year this month. Our case started on February 14th. Our petition was approved in 50 days but from what I am hearing on here it will take 3 to 5 months to get an interview with the Egyptian Embassy. We are both miserable without each other so I feel your pain!!!! We want this process to be DONE.

My fiance filled it out before we got any email from the Embassy. They just want you to print the confirmation page at the end to give to them.

It only took 50 days for me to receive NAO2 from Texas