BigRedCat

How does this consulate sessions work? They will be in LA during those dates and were you able to get an appointment or something? My wife has expired Russian Passport and valid internal visa/passport so would she be able to renew her passport at this event? I will gladly drive down to LA if that is the case. Doesnt look like we will have an interview anytime soon for AOS so she needs some kind of ID and with the passport being expired now she has nothing valid. 

She was just using the passport as her only ID as we have nothing until she gets her temp green card. We live in Vegas so I guess San Francisco is the closest Embassy although I thought that one closed. It appears they have an option to not travel which is what we would want to do but I dont see a price on that or how that is possible. 

Do you mean you used russianpassportservice.org? 

Yeah that is what I thought too! I guess it is because there aren't many places offering the service for Russians in the US to do it without going back to Russia. I guess I will check around. 

My wife's Russian passport expired and we are waiting for AOS, anyone know if there is there a way to renew it in the US? I heard of an agency that does it. I think its around $1k to do but she doesn't have any other ID so kind of in a bind. Any advise would be really helpful!  

So would I login to the US embassy site as normal and select the Almaty embassy, pay the fee then check for interviews? Thank you for the info, been trying to get this sorted and its been a bit of a nightmare. 

She speaks Russian, Ukranian and Italian but it looks like Khazakastan might be the best option. Do they take and hold your Russian passport or visa during this process like they did in Moscow? I think that is why Khazakastan is supposed to be the best option since they dont take your documents (I heard something like that but not sure). 

So would I look at the US embassy site for Almaty and pay and make an appointment there? How did you get it set up? She can just as easily go to Italy as one of her daughters lives there but seems it might be an easier process in Almaty. 

So it seems the government has removed all COVID vaccine mandates except for AOS. Does anyone know if they will remove this requirement or am I stuck filing a I-601? Does the I-601 add time to the AOS process? Also, what sequence is the best way to do this? File for AOS along with I-603 and let them know you filed the waiver at the medical exam? Not thrilled to have to pay almost another $1k for a waiver but it is what it is. 

I am getting a lot of conflicted info on this. Some say Russians have to travel to Warsaw for renewal, others say you can go to Italy or Khazakastan. But as was pointed out you need to pay for the renewal at the embassy before you can request an interview (and it seems most B2 renewals waive the interview anyway). Totally confused what to advise my mother in law. 

I am trying to help my mother in law renew her B2 and not sure what the best way to do that is currently. She is living in Moscow but can go to wherever to renew it. Anyone know the best way to do this currently? She travels to Italy frequently and Ive also heard Khazakastan is a good option to renew it. Any advise would be helpful! 

Hey guys, after almost a 2 year wait I finally got a B2 interview scheduled for my mother in law in Moscow. I just wanted to ask if she needs to bring a copy of my wife and I's marriage certificate or if they even ask about that at all. She wants to come to the US to visit her daughter obviously so do they require any sort of documentation above and beyond marriage cert? She has a job in Moscow and owns property so I would think the interview should be a simple process however the interview is in a few days so just want to make sure I advise her on what to expect. 

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

Ugh, that is bloody annoying..

 

See if you can at least get the fee back or waived and possibly do the interview in Yekaterinburg?

I am seeing interview slots available in Moscow now this past week but now that want me to pay again. It's really ridiculous!

So USaTraveldocs wrote me back and told me "the majority of applicants we're able to schedule an interview within a year so if you were not able to sorry but you lost your $160 and need to pay again but this time more", are they kidding?! That is beyond absurd. I wrote an email to my senator who assisted me with my wife's k1, maybe they can do something. 

Hey guys, I assisted my mother in law in applying for a B2 14 months ago and have been checking constantly for interview spots - so one comes up today and I now the website is saying my receipt number is invalid. The cost is now higher due to exchange rate so do they expect me to again pay and lose the original money or what? This wait is totally ridiculous at this point and I finally see an open spot (from notification via GoForTravel) and I can't even grab it. Very frustrating to say the least. I sent a message to via the website but I assume nothing will come of it as usual. 

Anyone else been waiting this long for a B2 for Russian citizen? 

Ok thank you for the information, that is very helpful. So after I file EAD/AP with the AOS she will be able to get a drivers license or at least ID? Having to carry around a passport everywhere is kind of a pain. I need to teach her to drive so trying to plan how long she has to study for the driving test etc. 

Side note: It really is absurd how long all these processes take. I am still waiting for the B2 I paid for last year for her mother in law to come visit. Its been a year now (Russian's are pretty much unable to get interview slots for B2 apparently). 

So when does she get the temp green card in order to be able to get a drivers license and work? 

Hey guys, I have a few questions about AOS - I am trying to make sure I understand everything correctly after doing my research. 

So my current situation is I need to file for AOS here in Las Vegas for my wife - we have been married just about a year now (she has a social security card) so I know the visa and medical exam is expired (we will need to do a new one.) We just haven't had the extra funds until now to pay for AOS.

After we pay for AOS we have to wait for an interview and is that when you get the temp green card? I ask because she wants to be able to get a drivers license but cannot do so until she has the temp green card. It looks like for Vegas the interview is over 400 days, is that correct? Is she going to have to wait over a year just to get a temp green card? I am a little confused on the process. 

30 minutes ago, LenaT said:

If you check the visa stats https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-statistics/nonimmigrant-visa-statistics/monthly-nonimmigrant-visa-issuances.html you'll see that they still issue visas every month! 

The only visas being issued are to people who are getting them without an interview (having already been in the US). 

So I am going on about 10 months waiting for B2. It doesn't look like Moscow is processing anything nor will they. I am guessing the money paid for the interview is a loss - we will have to pay again for an interview in another country and pay for flights etc. What a mess. 

On 8/20/2018 at 7:38 AM, LenaT said:

The strangest thing is that there are still numbers in the visa bulletin, which means some people are regularly interviewed!! How does it happen?!

It says the current wait time for an interview is 300 days. I have no idea who is actually getting an interview since none are ever available. 

2 minutes ago, Lalu said:

How so....i do)im still in russia, and my hudsband sends me if i need and i have no problem to do...i tied my bank card to account and withdraw w no problems...strange to hear it...is it new rulles??i did last month and everything was ok

So you signed up for paypal from russia, and your husband in the US can send money to it which you in turn can transfer to your bank? Paypal are idiots so I wouldn't at all be surprised if their own agents have no clue. 

6 minutes ago, Lalu said:

They can creat their paypal account and put information for their card and u can transfer the money on it .And they will withdrawal money to their bank card which they use in russia...but yes..why would u do it...sorry though its not our business.

as per Paypal customer service: "You can send funds to Russia but their paypal accounts do not have the ability to withdraw those funds to a card or bank account."

Hey guys what method are you using to send money to your Russian relatives?  I had great success sending my fiance money by leaving my paypal card with her and having her just take money from the ATM. However now that she is my wife and in the US we find we need to send money back to her family. Western Union is an option but expensive. There is also Transferwise, haven't used that service yet but seems promising. 

Yeah still no openings for interviews - last time I had notice of one in Moscow was months ago and it apparently was filled in a few minutes. What are they doing at the embassy now, nothing? It is totally ridiculous. It appears as though Russian citizens just have very very low chance of ever getting a US B1 visa to visit. 

10 hours ago, CM&KV said:

My husband has both Ukrainian and Russian passports, Ukrainian per birth place, and Russian by Russia taking over Crimea back in 2014 (we hope this won't cause a problem). He does fear if he goes to Ukraine he won't be able to get back to Russia.

That is exactly what my mother in law said - she was also born in Ukraine doesn't want to risk going to Ukraine for the visa interview and not being let back into Russia. Its over 6 months we've been waiting for an interview. 

Trump is meeting with Putin in about a week, hopefully he can smooth things over with Russia and we will start seeing some interviews available again. 

It seems there are interview dates popping up in Kiev and a few other places but nothing in Moscow at all. And from what I've heard most Russians don't want to chance going to Ukraine because they fear they will have their passport taken or something along those lines. Seems risky to travel there now for them. Guess we have to just wait it out.