Liza and Chris

Not sure on the IR / CR process but if it is anything like a K Visa, the NVC is who issues the case number; the US Embassy of Manila does not. They will receive the case packet with the case number from NVC.

You should try to call the National Visa Center to get the MNL case number.

Even as quickly as we were approved, it took about a month for it to finally be tracked as ISSUED and 2 days later it was delivered. I booked tickets for 2 weeks later, and the price wasn't that awful. If it was not for work, I could have booked a week sooner with absolutely no change in price.

As all have stated, wait till that packet is in hand. It's the best advice possible.

Finally issued, late yesterday apparently. I woke up this morning to see the status change. But it has been over a week in the "Ready" status only to refresh and then finalize. They sure know how to make people panic or worry lol.

On an ironic note, it just got updated today, the 17th, to "ready" from status of "ready." How cute, eh?

That looks different from ours. Yours is saying "ready for interview."

Sadly we've been waiting over a month since interview for any change to occur, and we were told approved. They changed us to "ready" on September 8th and yet... still nothing.

Philippines get no Package 3 or 4.

And filed in Feb and early Sept now? You're on time, not late at all. CSC just has nothing to file, unlike Texas and the millions they have to deal with. As soon as you get your NOA2 in mail, send off everything your beneficiary needs so that you speed the process up. Do not wait for a package 3, do not wait for MNL number, do not wait for anything but the NOA2 and then send. You should have everything together already...

But I do know how you feel, watching them FINALLY send cases to CSC for catch up and they getting approved in 2 to 4 months. Meanwhile, we're still waiting on our passport to come back from approval... been 3 weeks... all their damn vacation days they keep taking is enough to irritate anyone.

You can remove your passport/visa and the enveloped package. That package is the one you don't open. You will be needing your passport to open and show at airports and such. They just come sealed for proof of tampering and for protection against weather. The second layer may be which the enveloped is sealed in already, and the passport will be outside of it. But I do know you must make copies of the papers on the backside of that package for CFO seminar, so I doubt it is something that if you open the first layer of plastic that they will deny you.

We are awaiting our package back from the embassy right now, but I already know this process enough to say you have to get your passport out of if, so no worries on that.

Well, now that you have a case number you can track it by CEAC.

Back when I got texted my NOA2 before the papercopy came in, I waited for any kind of notice. By the time I got my NOA2, NVC had my case and had already assigned it a case number. When I called for it, they were in the process of sending it to USEM. Of course, no approval letter ever came, and don't let your beneficiary wait for any packet 3 or 4 either. They are no longer sent. As soon as the CEAC tracker says "READY" for interview, pay and schedule the interview and medical... assuming you are both ready for it.

I have heard there is no extra cost if waiting to have the immunization done at SLEC. That it's included in the cost. Is that correct?

All immunizations at SLEC are included in the medical cost. Doing them before or after will come at your own expense, and doing them state-side is way more expensive than in Philippines. For example, Hepatitis B vaccine, a 3 series shot over 6 months costs about 20 USD per shot in Philippines, where-as in USA, it's 80 USD per shot.

Of course SLEC chooses what you need to have and if you feel you need extra protection against other things, go ahead and get them if you feel the need.

You'll get all the vaccines required at SLEC; my fiancée got a total of 4 shots. One is a triple immunity in one go, so no need to worry.

In Philippines there is no Packet 3 or 4 that will be sent. All information is scattered on multiple sites online. A few people here have very good guides that can fill in the gaps.

Once assigned an MNL case number, the USEM gets the case usually within the week. You can start paying for your interview and medical if you time it correctly, but also make sure the beneficiary has all the documents ready; copy of the I-129F package, I-134 Affidavit of Support from Petitioner, CENOMAR, NBI, Birth Certificate, extra evidence in case if asked, copy of NOA2, Affidavit of Support (if beneficiary is 18 - 21 years of age, not to be confused with I-134 form) or Affidavit of Advice (if beneficiary is 21 - 25 years of age).

Always use the CEAC tracker with your case number to be sure you are safe to schedule interview or if complications arise.

All they will do when you go is hand your fiancée a letter and be told to go to the NSO in Pasay to get it corrected. If they approve they will take passport still, that way you do not have to return. At the NSO, you'll pay fees for Cenomar, hand the letter and be told to go back home. They mail their packages by 2GO carrier every FRIDAY, putting a small delay in everything but it should be no problem if everything else is correct.

Wish I could learn tagalog, or any of the native Philippines languages. However, as an English speaker natively and older, Tagalog is one of the 6 most difficult languages to learn, higher than even Chinese and Japanese. Now if, say, you spoke one of those two languages, you'd find it a little easier to learn. Odd, eh?

For CFO if the applicant is under age of 25 but over age of 21, you need a Affidavit of Advice letter filled out by beneficiary and family, notarized. If they are 18 to 21, they need Affidavit of Support from the family, again notarized. A lot of people don't see that in guides and often causes a roadblock.

All interviews are schedule by the petitioner/beneficiary unless you are rescheduled due to some circumstance.

FedEx, pricy, but at least reliable.

A flight will go up in cost a lot if you want to fly right away. Patience is a virtue that should be learned in this long process, and once that visa is in hand, another month or so of waiting to fly isn't going to kill anyone in my opinion. Ticket prices will shoot up AFTER the end of October, so hope that you can fly before the end of it. In fact, one way tickets right now with 2 to 3 weeks advance schedule cost me about 800 to fly from MSY to MNL, or MNL to MSY either way. If I wanted to fly tomorrow, of course they'd cost like 2000 usd. Additionally as I stated in another post, it's best to fly on GREEN DAYS where travel to the specific country is expected. So on those days you may find a lower price even still.

Thank you! Do you have a link for the checklist of the documents to send to the beneficiary? Tia!

I don't have one made up given I used several guides I discovered here and through google, but Greenbaum's guide is very nicely detailed on everthing you need to do. It is found here http://dennyeyberg.wix.com/filipino-am-visa

Also I found Mrs Presson's guide very useful too, which you can find here http://www.mrspresson.com/

What documents should the petitioner send to the beneficiary ? My US husband submitted all our original copies to USCIS , I am wondering whether he is getting them back later or not ?

He'll get back his birth certificate, but copies of everything sent to the USCIS for the petition should have been made to send to the beneficiary so that in case the embassy asks for them, they are there. But other than that, he will need W2 tax returns, 3 months of pay stubs from his work, he will need to fill out a I-134 Affidavit of support, a formal letter from his employment stating his stability, hourly wage or salary, yearly expected income, and his time with the company; a bank statement of deposits made for the last year, and sometimes even health care info.

My fiancée didn't get asks for much of this, but if you get the interviewer who has had a bad day or has much doubt in your case, it's best to have everything you need.

Gather all the documents you need to send to the beneficiary, have the beneficiary get all the required documents on their end. Have them and double, triple check all requirements before getting cozy. Once you get NOA2, copy it, add it to your documents, send the documents to them.

With the current extremely high visa and passport processing going on in the Philippines, do not book until passport is in hand AFTER interview. They may say 10 working days, but many reports are much longer for the return of passport. Plus the unfortunate RFE or possible denial in interview. Additionally you can be too late to a CFO line up and be turned away to come at a later time. There are many chances for a delay, especially right now.

Remember, the letters from both the beneficiary and the sponsor must be signed by the person the letter of intent is from. This is annoyingly tricky, as when I went visit my fiancée I took a day for us to gather everything we needed and ended up forgetting a couple things, and these letters of intent were one of the things.

Liza did her medical last week, and we also never received a letter with the case number. A copy of the NOA2 works, as well as I had her print out the CEAC tracker screen containing the case number just in case. They did not ask for either during her visit, as long as the number can be provided.

No package 3 or 4 is issued anymore. Everything is on the website. I did not even receive case number in a letter.

You must be proactive in tracking and calling to get the number to do this in a timely manner. Liza just completed the interview and had her medical last week. They do not even seem to require anything in printing besides a copy of the NOA2. I had her print up the CEAC case number on the tracking just in case, but it seems they didn't even ask for anything like that.

^{There's pages you must process and print on the Manila US Embassy website when paying at BPI. They have a validity of about a week or so, and must be paid before they expire, or you will need to print new ones. Go to the BPI branch with one page for each visa application and pay the correct fees, they will hand receipts in return, and then you're set for interview any time you wish to schedule it.}