Mad & J

They also just released a report, which I pasted last week into this thread concerning how K1s are not "prioritized" petitions. I was surprised when it got no traction... I guess no one has seen it?

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/540306-official-document-shows-de-prioritization-of-family-based-immigration-petitions-by-uscis-responses-to-questions-in-12215-letter-from-senators/#entry7519264

I hadn't, thanks for that link! I haven't been checking the NVC forums... I spend too much time of VJ already!

Well, from a brief glance at those tables, looks like the number of pending petitions was increasing until the 3rd quarter of 2014 (up to 20K petitions pending!), but the "pile" has gone back down a little bit since, to 18.5K at the end of FY2015 QTR1. That means they aren't slowing down further, at least. I'll be curious to see the next quarter. These are for both CSC and TSC combined, right?

Kyle: I totally understand the desire to track/analyze all the information to keep from going crazy. I have a tendency to over-research everything, so I get the feeling. Thanks for the detailed answer! That's really interesting and your argument is quite convincing. If only USCIS were this transparent about their data!

Hopefully the TSC will keep working at a steady pace (or faster!) on these petitions and your prediction will come true. I would love an August approval.

I assume that the 40-something approved petitions in October to December are mostly Filipino expedites? They make up a pretty big proportion of the total numbers for those months, nearly a quarter! I had no idea before coming to VJ that there were so many K1 Filipino beneficiaries.

That's neat, thanks!

It's based on the assumption that VJ members join around the time of their NOA1, though, right? I wonder how accurate that assumption is, since I figure some people (no idea on percentage) might stumble upon the site weeks or months after their NOA1 when they start wondering why the wait is so long. Or people who lurk without an account while checking the guides, and make an account later. I guess what I'm saying is that 4-5 months from now, there may be a lot more January and February filer timelines available, so that the numbers between August '14 and January '15 wouldn't be that different.

Would there be a way to account for that in your comparison? Like when you compare the number of applicants between August and January, you could weed out the August filers whose accounts were created more than a month after their NOA1? That might be a more representative sample to compare January with. But maybe you already considered this? I'm just curious as to whether it would have an effect.

Either way, I'm definitely going to cross my fingers that you are right!

In our case, our first meeting in person was nearly 4 years before our petition date. For that reason, it didn't seem enough to say "I met (same) on (date)," because it was more than two years ago. Even though we had included more recent boarding passes, I didn't want anyone to assume from that question that we'd only met once, 4 years ago!

So we wrote a statement, about 3/4 of a page, that gave the date we started talking online, the date we first met in person, then a list of times we visited each other or went on trips together. Nothing flowery, but I felt it painted a better picture of our relationship and made it clear that it was ongoing. It might've been superfluous, but I figured too much is better than too little.

Hello hello!! Goodluck with your application

Don't worry it's sooner than you think. Ours was approved last year on our 2nd anniversary. I even cried cause we were expecting to get an answer from them around 6 months but thank God we got approved after 2 months.

Btw, we're already married and living here in Florida.

Congratulations on your wedding! What part of Florida are you living in? I hope married life is treating you well.

I'd be reallllly surprised if we got approved in 2 months. From what I understand, Filipinos get auto-expedited, which would explain your 2 month approval. I suspect mine will be around late September and I've mentally prepared myself for a long wait. If by some miracle it happens sooner than that, I'll be really happy!

My fiance and I were hoping he could be here before I start grad school in August, but we had a few delays and filed about a month and half later than we thought we could...which itself was already about six months after when we thought we would file (before we realized how extensive and time-consuming it was to prepare everything while working and being a full-time student). Now we're hoping he can move up in December, so we'll just have to see. It seems you got your NOA1 just two days after we got ours, so hopefully we'll all move forward together at an appreciable speed.

Good luck with grad school! I just finished my PhD this last November, and it was like emerging from a deep and endless jungle. XD Now I'm not even sure I want to stay in my field because academia has drained me. For now I'm putting off any serious career decisions until I move to the US and get my work authorization.

Anyway, I'll be following your timeline. I hope both of us can spend the holiday season with our loved ones.

Just got the electronic version of NOA1. Kinda gave me a bit of a start when I saw the text message.

How have you all handled the agonizing waiting? Especially at the Texas Service Center where it's about seven months?

We have very similar timelines! We're just a day ahead of you guys, it seems. We should get out approvals around the same time, unless something unexpected happens.

We survive by talking on Skype every day and by visiting when we can. It's not ideal but we've been doing this for 2.5 years, at least now that we've started the paperwork it means there is light at the end of the tunnel!

In the meantime, we're planning for her to visit me for a week in late June, and I'm considering a visit down there in early May, even though it's probably not the wisest move, financially speaking...

Just found this thread!

My girlfriend and I have known each other for 5 years and been together for about 2.5. We've had a lot of discussions about which one of us should immigrate, but finally decided that it would make more sense for me to do it because of our respective living situations (I've just finished grad school, she has a steady job and a house). However, the fact that Florida recently legalized SSM definitely helped with this decision! As a Canadian, I was uncomfortable with the idea of living somewhere that wouldn't recognize our marriage, but things are changing in the US for the better. Northern Florida is never going to be as liberal as my home country, but I will try to adapt!

Anyway, we filed for a K1 visa at the end of February and got our NOA-1 on March 5th. As we are at TSC, we are in for a long wait. I'm hoping I'll get to move in with her by Christmas, but that may be wishful thinking on my part!

How about an all-inclusive resort somewhere warm? You can get good deals depending on timing sometimes, and at least food and lodging is included so you can spend the week just relaxing together. I'd suggest Cuba but I think that's still out for Americans? If not, Cancun/Riviera Maya in Mexico, or Dominican Republic?

Also does anyone know how I can get my timeline to display below my text like everyone else has?

Thanks

Levy

You have to type it in manually (at least that's how I did it). Go to the drop down menu where your account name is (top right corner), click on "my settings", then select "signature", There will be a box where you can type in whatever you want.

I see hope here, but will it mean 60-90 days faster? Maybe? For us February TSC filers I am hoping we may drop from 200+ to closer to 150. That is welcome news for me.

That's interesting stuff, thank you! I wonder if they always get fewer submissions in the latter half of the year? Anyway, anything that hints at a chance for my case to be processed before late September is good news to me. We are NOA1 buddies, btw!

Something is going to happen which will result in June becoming the month for February filers!

That seems unlikely based on current timelines, but hey, I hope you're right!

I got all the vaccines prior to leaving Canada for myself and my kids. They had a much more extensive list to go through than I did, poor babies...

I had my family doctor do all of them. She did titres tests for the antibodies for me for the MMR and chicken pox. It was sufficient at the medical.

Good luck to you.

Thank you, that answers my questions!

We haven't even got our NOA1 yet and I'm already having second thoughts as to whether K1 was the right choice. Going by the timelines, wouldn't it have been better to get married and file for the spousal visa? We did K1 cause we thought it would get us together faster, but I'm beginning to doubt that, judging by the ridiculous wait times at TSC. At least if we had done the spousal visa, I'd have been able to work immediately and leave the country without waiting for the authorization to be issued.

Since we already sent them our packet (and our money), it's probably useless to wonder about these things now...

Thanks, that helps! I knew I could wait until I was in the US to get the vaccines, but I'd rather do that in Canada before I leave if at all possible, just so it's one less thing I have to take care of before I can file for AOS.

I will ask for a blood test from my family doctor, hopefully that will be sufficient to prove I'm covered as far as MMR/chicken pox goes. My medical will likely be sometime next fall if the timelines remain close to what they are now, so I'll prob have to get the flu shot then... But that one is easy to take care of, at least!

Hi guys!

I have a long wait ahead of me before I even get to my medical in Montreal, but I thought I'd start researching this stuff in advance.

What vaccines are typically required from Canadians? I've found MMR, Tetanus and proof of having had chicken pox or the vaccine. For those of you who have done the medical, is that accurate? Do they also require a flu shot?, HPV, anything else?

I've had chicken pox as a kid, but I don't know how I can prove it, and I'm not sure I have a record of my MMR vaccine since it was so long ago. Are these things tested with a blood test, or do you need to bring some paperwork?

I have to get an appointment with my family doctor soon for other reasons, so I figure I'll get the Tetanus booster while I am there, so at least that part will be taken care of.

Exactly! I know it's not the fault of the CSC filers and I wish them all the best in their immigration journey, but I'd rather not be confronted with "what might have been" on a daily basis.

Signed the petition, for all the good it will do. Also started a thread just for TSC filers cause seeing NOA2 approvals already coming for this month for CSC filers is going to get real frustrating real fast. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/538619-february-2015-filers-texas-service-center/

I'm happy for CSC filers and wish them all the best, but not having to look at their 15-days approval times is better for my sanity.

I though it might be useful to have a thread just for the TSC filers, especially seeing as CSC approvals are already coming in for Feb! This way those of us who are in for a looooong wait have our own place to commiserate and vent our frustrations.

Application sent in yesterday. Whee! At least I have the NOA1 to look forward to until the looooong wait to NOA2 begins.

Hey everyone! My fiancée (USC) and I are getting all our paperwork ready to file before the end of the month, so I guess this thread will be my "home". Sadly I think Florida goes through TSC, so I'm arming myself with patience.

We've been together for over 2 years (with multiple visits) and known each other online for 5, so this is a long time coming. We've gone back and forth over who should immigrate but we've finally made up our minds... Helps that same-sex marriage is now legal in Florida!

Anyway, I'm very glad I found this website, it has been super helpful in getting our application package ready and I'm sure it will continue to be helpful in the months to come.