Bogota Rocks

Hey VisaHelpPlease

Did you pay the IV fee online? If so, how long ago? Did the DS-260 come up for you in the system afterwards?

Or did you mean the AOS fee in your post?

Hey Timpoong,

That message is regarding the visa printing problem, for people who are already approved for visas, both immigrant and non-immigrant. As far as I can tell, that problem has nothing to do with the CEAC website problems. The agent I spoke to this morning on the phone said that they were unrelated, though who knows.

The theory that "website problems" are a cover for an extreme backlog caused by USCIS clearing out its own backlog is as plausible as any other theory for why this is taking so long. Too bad whatever is causing the problem comes at the expense of our lives and future plans. Trying to be patient, but it's difficult. I can deal with a delay, but it's so much harder when there is no timeframe ffor a fix or cause given.

The lack of transparency throughout this total breakdown of the NVC's website has been demoralizing. At least the people who had trouble receiving their printed visas these past few weeks have gotten daily updates on the system fixes and worldwide media coverage of the problem. Everyone here looking to fill in their DS-260 or pay their immigrant visa fee on the other hand has been kept in the dark for weeks if not months. When is anybody from the NVC going to level with us about what's going on? Why is there no coverage of this? If it weren't for the fellow commenters here helping to crowdsource info together I'd be going even crazier with doubt and worry.

Hey Juancho,

Did the NVC send you a checklist for not paying the IV fee or filling out the DS-260? Even though it is their fault.

So I called the 603-334-0888 number today, and I got a nice agent to talk to. I asked him about the CEAC website problems, and he said there is no timeline of when they will be fixed right now. So I asked him what my best options were. He said that If someone pays by mail, and the NVC agents can see that it is paid on their end, they can open a ticket for the tech support team to look at the specific case's DS-260 being opened, individually and manually if necessary, to keep the process moving along.

Then again, it can take up to 21 days upon receipt of the mailed IV fee to get put into the system as paid, and then you have to hope that a nice agent will open a support ticket for you, and then that they fix your case and enable the DS-260 in a timely fashion. I'm not exactly holding my breath waiting for that to happen.

Has anyone here paid by mail, called in to get a support ticket opened about their case, and gotten the DS-260 to show up that way? How long did it take? It sounds like an urban legend to me at this point. It's been two weeks since I received the IV fee invoice, and it is still not enabled in the system, but I think I am going to wait until they have these problems fully sorted out and the website is fixed. If everyone is having the same problem, they have to accommodate us all somehow since the problem was on their end this whole time. At least I hope so?

Hi Soncrazed,

Is the IV fee status appearing as PAID for you in the CEAC portal? A lot of people in this thread who mailed in and received confirmation of the IV fee payment have not even seen the status in the portal change to paid after a few weeks. Judging from responses to this thread, it seems that most people see the IV fee enabled to pay in the portal after about three weeks to a month.

I received my IV fee invoice on June 10th, so I am going to wait and see what happens, since those who paid by mail don't seem to be able to continue with the NVC process even after they get a receipt saying they paid from the NVC.

Hey there Chaney,

How long was it between the date you received the IV invoice and the day you first noticed that you would be able to pay in the NVC online system? I know it says in your timeline that you paid on June 21st, but did you see the payment option enabled before that?

I think I am going to wait about a month or so and see if the IV fee gets enabled in the portal first. A few people on this thread seem to have seen the IV fee enabled in the portal a month or so after the invoice email, while none of those who commented here who sent the payment by mail have seen the portal updated to reflect that they already paid the IV fee, even when the NVC acknowledged payment and the money was transferred. It seems like you wait a long time and there's a lot of uncertainty either way. I'll let you guys know what ends up happening in my case.

Sam,

How long after receiving the IV invoice did the IV payment option become enabled in the portal for you?

Hi Ouray,

How soon did your DS-260 appear after the IV fee was marked as PAID?

Hi Chaney,

How long from when the IV was invoiced were you able to see the option to pay it enabled in the NVC website?

It would also be interesting to hear if, in the past month or so, whether anyone was able to access the DS-260 after paying the IV fee, either online or by mail, and how long after the payment was processed that the DS-260 showed up in the portal.

Hey Morgan,

How long did it take from when you received the IV fee invoice until you saw in the portal that it would be possible to pay the IV fee online?

Hi everyone,

I received an IV fee invoice on June 10th to pay the fee for my wife's visa. I have already filled out the DS-261, paid the AOS fee and sent in the AOS and IV documents (which were scanned June 11th). It has been a week, and I am still not able to pay the IV fee in the CEAC portal.

So I called the NVC this morning, and they told me that due to the website issues the NVC has been experiencing recently, the NVC cannot guarantee that I will ever be able to pay the fee online. Ever? Forever ever? That's right, they cannot guarantee that I will ever be able to pay the IV fee online. He said to pay by physical mail, that's it's the only way the process will ever be able to move forward, guaranteed.

I thought this was a pretty drastic response. I have my doubts at this point that mailing my fee to that PO box in St. Louis will be smooth process. So many stars have to align until the cashier's check or money order becomes a PAID status in the CEAC portal. It feels almost as risky as waiting however many days it takes for the website to work again. I also am not sure that I will get the same answer from a different agent if I call back a different day. I am a little torn on what to do next.

Should I wait a little more time to see if the website lets me pay the IV fees, or send the fee by post ASAP? I have heard that even in the best of times, it might take the website up to 2 weeks after the invoice is received to let me pay the IV fee. Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.

So I called the NVC last week to inquire about the DS-261 approval, and yesterday an email arrived registering me as my wife's agent. But the IV fee is still not showing up on the CEAC website. Is there a delay between receiving that email and that fee being invoiced in the portal?

I also sent in my AOS and IV packages on Tuesday, hoping they arrive today or tomorrow.

Hey Everyone,

My DS261 and AOS fee were recorded as submitted and paid by the Department of State on May 17th. I got an email notification about both. On the CEAC website, the DS261 is listed as COMPLETED and the AOS fee is listed as PAID.

I am getting my AOS and IV packages together. The IV fee and DS260 have still not been enabled for me on the CEAC website. If I have my papers ready in the next few days, and the IV fee and DS260 are still not enabled, should I send them anyway? How long after filling out the DS261 should it take until the IV fee and DS260 are enabled? When should I start calling the NVC to ask questions?

Thanks!

Hey everyone,

I seem to have hit another couple of roadblocks, wondering what you all think.

1. I can't download my IRS transcripts off the Internet. It says my information (SSN and address) doesn't match their records. One reason might be that the IRS website actually spells Colombia as Columbia, so that definitely wouldn't match up! Tried ordering by phone, couldn't do that either. Can't seem to speak to a live person at the IRS either. I have my 1040s for the past three years, and my income doesn't meet the threshold for sponsoring my wife all by itself, so my parents will be sending me their transcripts as part of their collection of joint sponsorship docs (they had no transcript downloading issues). The guy who prepared my taxes is also looking into why I can't get my transcripts. But it looks like I may not have transcripts. Is this a big deal? The I-864 says transcripts OR copies of returns, so worst case scenario I can just send my returns, right?

2. I haven't received my NVC package. I finally called a month after NOA2 and got my case and invoice number. I have paid AOS, but the IV fee hasn't been enabled yet. Do I need the NVC package, or is everything I am going to need on the CEAC website?

Thank you and God bless you all.

Would you believe that the NOA1 and NOA2 finally arrived to my residence address and not my mailing address? They stuck them under the door.

Still haven't received my NVC package yet though, but I took the advice on this forum and called to get my case and invoice numbers. On to the next nerve-wracking step...

I did get the email notification, so I have my receipt number.

The RFE scenario is definitely why I am so worried, though I did try to put all the necessary information in my I-130 package. If I change my mailing address to a US address, and I am not living in the US, does that make a difference? Will it look suspicious in some way?

I am also a little worried about changing the address because if the USCIS employees couldn't change the address because the previous one didn't have a US zip code, I am worried the same thing will happen to me in the USCIS online system. I guess it's one of those things where I don't want to pull a thread and watch everything unravel. Am I worrying too much?

Thanks for the prompt reply Proudly Canadian!

Hey guys,

I am new to this forum, it has been a great resource so far in getting my wife's visa package together. My case is a little convoluted, and I wouldn't have written if I could have found the information I am looking for, so bear with me! I think we all know how tense this process can be.

I am an American citizen living in Colombia. My wife and I decided that we want to raise our new daughter in the US, so we started the paperwork to get my wife a spousal visa. I received the email notification that our I-130 package was accepted on February 27th, and it said I would receive a physical receipt within a few days. But it never arrived. The USCIS website said that if it didn't arrive by the end of March, then I should call.

The call center worker at USCIS said that they never send mail abroad. Is this true? I don't recall any mention of this when I was filing the paperwork. If this is the case, then what should I do as far as receiving future documents in the visa process? I called several times, and each time I needed to be transferred to someone higher in the food chain at USCIS, but the only way I could be transferred to another person to resolve my issue was through a callback system that only works with US phone numbers. They couldn't even put me on hold. So I couldn't figure out what I should do regarding the paperwork I need to receive for the visa process. One person I talked to said I needed to send a physical letter to the California processing center that is handling our case, because if the previous mailing address doesn't have a US zip code, then it can't be changed to another in the USCIS system. A letter? I was incredulous.

So anyway, I don't know what I should do. I know it's going to take a while for the NOA2 to come anyway, but I am worried that I will miss something crucial that simply won't get mailed to me, and I have no way to fix it, since all the procedures for the visa seem to be designed for a petitioner that is currently residing in the US. I feel like I can't be the only person applying for a spousal visa from outside the US, but there seems to be no way to get an answer to my questions and concerns without actually being there already. Has anyone else gone through this? What should I do? Is there a thread here that deals with this, or explains how to make sure I don't miss any physical mailings from USCIS?

Thank you so much in advance. Looking forward to interacting with you all!