lorella

i have experienced this with my fiance - he was told to return on 10/14...the visa was not ready. on 10/14 he was told to return three weeks later. but i have been in contact with the office in Havana and they said that they cannot give me a timeline for when the visa will be ready. so clearly the "three weeks" instructions my fiance received was not good information.

my fiance said that the people who have been telling him "one week" "three weeks" are cuban workers - not consular officers. i feel like they just say whatever they want without any regard to what is actually going on. he was told twice by cuban workers that his visa was approved and he just needed to wait. which was clearly false information. it is very frustrating to say the least!

however, you may be in a better position than me. since your fiance's visa didn't go into "AP" after the interview. i feel like we are stuck in a large pile of AP cases waiting to be reviewed.

i'm not sure how far your fiance has to travel to get to havana. but if you live far away, maybe consider confirming that the visa is ready for pick up before your fiance makes the trip.

today is one month post-interview for us - still in AP. although, i don't start counting our days in AP until October 6 - which is when my fiance turned in the document requested at the interview. so we're really only talking about 2-3 weeks.

we haven't seen much progress - only an occasional "status date" update on CEAC - which i believe correspond to email inquiries (from me or my senator) about our case. my senator is supposed to be following up again today - so maybe we will get some news next week.

i try not to get upset about things out of my control. the waiting sucks, for sure, but i'm confident that we'll get the visa. hopefully sooner rather than later.

and congrats to sweetswinks and jfgk! happy to hear that you are both together with your loved ones.

Hello evryone,pls I dnt undstand dis ,each time I type in my case number it yells mw invalid Visa Number...........what is happning?

mine status said the same thing when i first received my case number from the NVC. it takes a few days for your case information to be updated in the system. keep trying over the next few days - it should update soon.

hello everyone. i returned from cuba today after being there for my fiance's interview this week. our interview result was administrative review due to missing documents. it was frustrating since i was so confident in our preparation of the documents and relationship evidence.

in truth, we had everything listed here on VJ - but the consulate asked to see court documents for an item appearing on my fiance's police report. the infraction happened when he was 17 but he was 18 when he went to court (which is the age listed on the police report) so they are requiring that my fiance provide the full court sentencing. it is not a major infraction and i do not expect it to prevent the approval of his visa. it's just going to take an extra week or two to obtain the document and travel back to the consulate to give it to them.

my fiance returned on october 6 to provide the missing documents - and was given a pass to return today (oct 14) to pick up the visa. the visa was not ready today and my fiance was told to return in three weeks (nov 4) to pick up the visa. in the grand scheme of things, three weeks isn't that long. but i am still disappointed. and i feel like it was misleading to tell my fiance to return today (it is a 12 hour bus ride one way for my fiance to travel to the consulate).

as soon as i got off the phone with my fiance, i called my senator's office. they had actually already inquired about my fiance's visa earlier this morning. i hope that they can get some additional information for me. i'm ready for my fiance to be here already!

Can someone tell me how should I answer this question on the DS-160? Do you have documentation to establish that you have received vaccinations in accordance with U.S. law?

i'm pretty sure the medical examination will include a review to ensure that the individual has the appropriate vaccinations. your fiance will need to bring his/her vaccination records to the medical appointment.

if your fiance has their vaccination records...i think you can answer "yes".

Well, I just finished packing the last of my suitcases, moving to the USA tomorrow!! I'm nervous about POE, hope it'll go fine. Wish me luck!

very exciting! good luck!

I am wondering when I should expect my fiance's visa status to change from "AP" to "Issued". We were put into AP following our interview last month due to a missing document. My fiance returned the requested document on Monday, Oct 6 and was told to return on Tuesday, October 14.

Maybe I am getting stressed for no reason but I am worried that the visa will not be ready for my fiance (who is traveling from Holguin) on the 14th. Our status on the CEAC website is still AP. And the Interests Section is closed today and Monday for holidays.

For those who have already received their visas, could you share when your visa status changed on the CEAC website? Was it the day you were told to come pick it up? Or did it change before the assigned pick-up date?

As of September 2014...

The fee for the I-129F, Petition for Alien Fiance, is $340 - which is paid/submitted with the I-129F petition application.

The visa fee is $265 and will be paid at the interview date.

Adjustment of status (AOS) fees are around $1000 - and will be paid/submitted with your AOS paperwork.

Anyone else want to chime in on exact amount of the adjustment of status fees? I know it's close to $1000 but i'm not sure of the exact amount.

hello everyone. i returned from cuba today after being there for my fiance's interview this week. our interview result was administrative review due to missing documents. it was frustrating since i was so confident in our preparation of the documents and relationship evidence.

in truth, we had everything listed here on VJ - but the consulate asked to see court documents for an item appearing on my fiance's police report. the infraction happened when he was 17 but he was 18 when he went to court (which is the age listed on the police report) so they are requiring that my fiance provide the full court sentencing. it is not a major infraction and i do not expect it to prevent the approval of his visa. it's just going to take an extra week or two to obtain the document and travel back to the consulate to give it to them.

After waiting for 245 days, doing my routine case check on the USCIS website, I am estatic to say USCIS has approved our case and we should be received the NOA 2 in the mail soon. still in shock and tears, but so so so so so Happy!

Need to get my head straight to determine what are the next steps, I had all that sorted out a few months ago and have seem to forgotten it. no worries, I have you all to guide me as always. Thanks all for your support. Will update my timeline now.

it's about time!!! congrats!

I am having difficulty tracking my package from nvc to the nigeria consulate. Nvc stated it left sept 04, 2014. I tried inputting the info to dhl n cant get nothing.

Moreover what doez the A stands for after the year.

So I did:

Exp 04 sep 2014A

03 09 2014 to 04 09 2014

N got nothing.

Use sept 3rd (the day before NVC shipped) in the shippers reference. That is what worked for me.

i think the NVC representative gave you false information - i am planning to be there with my fiance later this month. check out this link for more info about the interview http://havana.usint.gov/family_based_immigrants.html

Copied from that link: "Only the applicant will be admitted to the U.S. Interests Section, except when the applicant is a minor or is disabled and requires assistance; also, in some IR1 and K1 cases, the petitioner will also be admitted."

the quote says "some" but from what i have read here on VJ, petitioners have always been allowed to attend IR1 and K1 interviews in cuba. best of luck!

Thank you soooooooooooo much for your help!!!! I am super excited as I followed your advice and we have our interview on 10/14!!! Thanks also for the link to track, and you were right that day before was what had been needed to find the package. I also looked on the CEAC website and it showed that it was "In transit" however, it also said your interview date has been provided by the NVC. Did your message also look the same? I had thought that at Cuba--we the petitioner call for the date. I'm so grateful to have this date so close, but hope that we don't have two. Also any advice for where your fiance went for the medical exam? My fiance also has been seeing a counselor in Havana who helps people prepare for all the documentation and the interview (he found this counselor through a friend); however, the counselor told him that his documents do not need to be translated. I thought all documents in Spanish had to be translated to English--was this your experience too??? Sorry for all the questions and I so appreciate your help. I feel that without Visa Journey I wouldn't know where to turn.

I am again very grateful for your help, and also very excited for you--in some small way I feel that we are together on this as our dates for interviews are very close and I know from your timeline you and your fiance have been waiting for a long time. I'm happy you both will be reunited soon!!! I'm sending a lot of positive energy both your ways!!!

Take care!

that is awesome! i am happy that other people have been able to schedule interviews within a couple months of NOA2.

do not worry about the NVC message about "you interview date has been provided by the NVC". that is a standard message for immigrant visas. K1 visas are exempt from that - like you said for cuba, the petitioner calls to schedules the interview. you will not have two interviews.

have you seen the Cuba Wiki here on visa journey? here is the link: http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/Cuba_K1#Frequently_Asked_Questions_Specific_to_Cuba

that page has examples of the packet 3 documents - including a list of hospitals that can perform the medical examinations.

i am not sure about the document translation. i have not read anywhere that the documents obtained for interviews in cuba (police certificate, medical examination, etc) need to be translated. i'll do a little research and let you know what i find out. but my initial thought is that they do not need to be translated. could be wrong though.

you are very welcome. this website has been a great resource for me so i am happy to help others who are going through the same process.

Hi Lorella,

Congrats on your upcoming interview!!!! I hope that it goes very smoothly. I just learned that we have our HAV # and am waiting for the letter from the NVC. I am wondering when did you call to schedule the interview for your fiance? Once you had the letter in hand or when it got to Havana? Also how did you track it thorugh DSL? I've been trying to read other posts on the process and it seems conflicted to some degree.

Thanks much for you help in advance! And again, congrats on the Interview date! I hope it goes smoothly and perhaps hear how it goes as well!!!!!

hello. thanks for the well wishes.

i called the day after i received my HAV# to schedule my interview. i did not wait until i received the letter from the NVC nor did i wait until our case got to havana. they allowed me to schedule it with just the HAV# (as well as the other information about my fiance....name, passport info, DOB, etc). i would definitely try calling as soon as you get the HAV# to schedule the interview. i also read here on VJ that you need to wait until your case reached Havana - but that is not the case...or at least it wasn't for me. be sure to post your interview date on VJ once you get it. the interview wait for cuba has been closer to 5 months over the last year. somehow, i got one 2 months from the day i scheduled it. i'm curious if i was lucky or if 2 months is the new normal.

the tracking through DHL can be a little confusing to figure out. if you know when your case has been shipped, use the instructions found in this thread: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/302190-dhl-tracking-from-nvc-to-us-embassy/. I had to enter the day BEFORE the NVC said my case shipped in the shippers reference to find my package. if you have trouble figuring it out - send me a PM and i can help you.

best of luck! feel free to message me with any other questions you may have.

Awesome to see another approval!

I just got off the phone with NVC. Almost fell asleep waiting! I have our new case number and she said it was shipped today. Does my case appear in the CEAC system when it reaches the embassy?

you should be able to track your case in the CEAC system from the NVC to the embassy (the CEAC system will update from "At NVC" to "In Transit" to"Ready"). it may take a few days for your case number to be updated in the system though. so if you get an error message - keep trying until it works. also, make sure you enter your case number in the "Immigrant" section on the CEAC website.

Was less than a full week after the notice of August 8, so I must be one of the first to get the official letter. We will see......

I think it makes sense that those living in Texas would receive the transfer notices first. Since the notices are being mailed from Texas.

Ok called NVC it's the right case number, they said can't track it at NVC, have to wait till it move to embassy, she said call back in two weeks from day they revived it.

you can track it at the NVC. however, it normally takes a few days for you to be able to see updates on the CEAC website. I received an error message for the first 3-4 days after i received the case number from the NVC. So just keep trying until it works...it may take a few days.

NVC recieved my case on August 8 how long before they assign my new case number??

The NVC assigned my case number the day after they received it. i remember them telling me "it takes 30 days to process" or something like that - but from what i have seen...the norm is no more than 1-2 days to assign the case number after it is received. some are assigned a case number the day it is received.

Maybe try calling them again on Monday night to see if there have been any updates.

could anyone who recently petitioned for a cuban fiance tell me when the DS-160 can be completed online? my case was delivered (confirmed via dhl) on 8/5 but the CEAC site still says "in transit". do i need to wait until the CEAC status is "ready"?

also, the cuba wiki page says that there are multiple DS forms (230, 156, 157, 156K) that need to be completed and brought to the interview. Are these forms still required? or is it just the DS-160 now?

Still no letter from the NVC, a letter I was told I would "most definitely" get. Apparently the people doing my fiance's medical need it. Has anyone who went through the NVC gotten a letter from them? How long did it take?

I haven't received my NVC letter either. Case was shipped to the consulate about a week ago.

The last 15 approved for CSC has been only 1 -2 per day. Then look at TSC, they've been approving 10+ per day recently!! Seems they have a night shift working because a lot of approvals are received after 10pm.

Hope that brightens someone's day out there waiting anxiously!!

TSC has been approving more lately!

however, i believe their computer system is set to update each night for the approvals granted that day. the computer system update triggers the case status update on the USCIS website and sends the emails/texts. which would explain why most people receive approvals around the same time each night and not spread out during the day. i don't think it's that people are working until 10 or 11 each night.

yesssssss yayyyyy I received mine july 31, after 7 1/2 months!!

congrats!

update your timeline when you get a chance!

Yeah! Montreal had every date open (except Sept 1 Labor Day), I could've made it sooner but I want time for my fiance to do the medical without worrying about results not getting back in time. I see you got your interview too!!

oh, nice! yeah, better to schedule it a little further out than be stressed about getting everything in time.

yes, i'm very excited about my interview date. i was able to schedule with just the NVC case number. recently, the trend for cuba has been closer to 5-6 months. so i was happy about september (only 2 months!).

Oh man I just booked the interview, it doesn't even feel real!

awesome! and for aug 29! that will be here in no time.

Thanks for the congratulations! I just updated my profile so hopefully it will be better to follow. I'm just wondering how much longer till the NVC receives this... tick tock...

TSC sent mine on 7/14 and it was received/logged into the system at the NVC on 7/22 - 8 days later.

sometimes it can take longer for the NVC to acknowledge receipt of your case and enter it into their system if they receive a lot of petitions at once. so just keep calling them!