JessM28

I have a friend whose father is stuck in the travel ban (for over two years now). We checked the status tonight and it says "Expiring soon"- this is normal right? Because of the 2 years since his interview and being stuck in Administrative processing? Anyone else with a similar situation? 

Thanks!

So happy my husbands visa was issued today! CR-1 visa from embassy in Madrid. (He is from Iran). We started the process in April 2018. So thankful he will be here to celebrate the holidays with my family and to get settled before our daughter comes in the Spring! God is good! Don’t give up hope. ❤️🙏🏻

Help please: 

We got a second email yesterday (see below)- the question is how should we get the passport to the Embassy? Does my husband have to mail it or is it ok for him to go to the embassy and drop it off? He has his medical scheduled for this coming Thursday so we are hoping that maybe he can get his visa by the end of next week. 

We emailed the embassy to get clarification but they have not responded. So close to the end of the process but still so much to figure out  

Please, send your passport so we can complete the immigrant visa process, also we will need a new medical exam (see instructions attached), as the previous one you presented expired on September.

Good Morning! 

So my husband got the following email from Madrid Embassy this morning: 

To continue with the process of your immigrant visa we need you to send an scanned copy of your passport to this email address, the pages with the biographic data (photo, passport number, issuance and expiration date, etc.).

The Consular officer will review your case once the scanned copy has been received.

Immigrant Visa Unit

Consular Section

U.S. Embassy Madrid

Also his status changed from the "/" to the "or". 

They already have his passport page- so I don't understand why they need it again. Has anyone else received a similar email? Do you think he will get his visa soon. Today is 1 year since we were approved at USCIS and it has been a little over 6 months (April 3rd) since his interview. 

Praying that maybe he will get his visa and be here in the US by Thanksgiving!! 

10 hours ago, Nag & Matt said:

I am not saying that Trump's intentions were not to ban Muslims. But in practice, it is not a Muslim ban. So you can't really defend your case based on intentions that are not being practiced. I am clearly not with the ban. But to solve a problem you need to first identify it for what it really is. And this is the only reason why I am talking about this. The congress reps, with all the good intentions they have and all the hard work they are doing, are just not addressing the issue right. You can't ignore that Christians and other religious minorities from these countries are affected, and this fact by itself is enough to say that this IS NOT a Muslim ban. We can't say, "well, yes.. but..  THE INTENTION FOR IT WAS TO BE a Muslim ban".

I totally get where you are coming from (my husband is in the same boat). I just feel that the tendency of our government is to categorize and group people- and I feel that most Americans look at Iran (and some of the other countries in the list) and say- it is a Muslim country and their all Muslims- when there are very many who are not. 

Certainly the other side (Republicans) of the debate is focused on National Security- which the Democrats attending yesterday made it clear that they care about National Security too. I understand too where the DOS and DHS say they need to be able to have information sharing and reliable information from these travel ban countries- and I feel this is where the Democrats really need to focus in. They need to prove that the DOS and DHS "rubric" for all nations is probably not being equally applied- after all the terrorist attacks that have happened have not been from any of the countries actually on the travel ban list... There was something else I wanted to say- but pregnancy brain just took it away- if I think of it I will post. 

11 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Best of luck to all.  Remember to vote in 2020!  🇺🇸

Oh you don’t need to worry about that- I will be first to the polls! 🇺🇸

26 minutes ago, Jorgedig said:

Based on all the things Trump has said, I definitely think it originated as a blanket ban against muslims.  Politically, it softened the impact a bit to add in the other countries.  Trump has been nothing but open about his abject contempt for muslims.  Remember all the birther stuff?

I was at the congressional hearing and spoke at the storytelling/press conference prior to the hearing. While I agree that many impacted by the ban are not Muslims I feel the intent of the ban was to stop Muslims (or people from Muslim countries) from emerging the US. I think Venezuela and North Korea were added on for the government to save face. Although I am unsure that any of our cases will be directly or quickly impacted by today’s hearing it did show that there are members of Congress who are monitoring this ban and are finally calling out the Departments of State and Homeland Security for their lack of clarity in this situation. Several cases were brought up by different members of Congress and the representative from the DOS was writing down their names- so it will be interesting to see what comes of their cases. It was a long and emotional day but I am happy I got to be a part of it and pray that this Committee will continue to hold these groups to the fire. I would expect an update on the DOS website about the newest travel ban numbers soon. 

7 hours ago, Yazy said:

Congratulations !!

So happy for both of you and hope you will reunion soon

Thank you! I hope for all of us to be reunited with our loved ones soon! 

6 hours ago, NJ515 said:

Congrats to all!  Also... to us!  We were contacted today by the Frankfurt consulate to finalize our visa application. We'll have to get new police certificates, do a new medical exam, mail it in and wait approximately two weeks for the consulate to finish processing. We're right around 11 months of AP and they are asking us to do it swiftly so that we can avoid having to do another interview (necessary if > 12 months).

 

WOO HOO!

So happy for you!! Hope the good news keeps coming! 

8 hours ago, A&M24 said:

Hello jess, congrats, you need to send them email asking for medical emergency expedition.

it happened to my friend, his wife was going to have a surgery, his laywer send the embassy an email asking for this kind of expedition, the embassy accepted  and they issued his visa in 3 weeks, try to get a medical report to support your request , good luck 

I don’t think that they will expedite for pregnancy- but I will look into it. Thank you! 

9 hours ago, Nag & Matt said:

Congratulations, great news to hear about your pregnancy. ❤❤🎉🎉💃💃

Wishing you reunite with your husband soon. 

8 hours ago, JennaL said:

Congrats, that is such exciting news! You and P will be excellent parents and will finally be together before you know it 💕💕💕

Thank you!! We are excited and doubling down on our prayers that my hubby arrives very soon- as we hope that all couples can be reunited too!

Hi all. Happy that people are finally getting good news. My husband and I also got some good news- I am pregnant. 🤰🏻Now the pressure is on for him to come before May. I really hope he will arrive before the baby. We knew it was chancy but I am turning 35 in January and can’t keep waiting to start our family. October 3 (a day after I turn 8 weeks) will be 6 months in AP. 😢

  On a different note- is anyone coming to the Congressional meeting next Tuesday about the ban. My sister and I are going. This is our chance to speak up and show that this ban is hurting real people. If you live near DC I hope you will join me. 

   Praying we can all be with our loved ones soon! 

I reached out to my Senator's rep about a few things (the new automated system and the end of September deadline for reporting on the ban). This is the response I got: 

From my understanding, 5 months of administration processing in travel ban related cases would be at the low end.  I’ve consistently been told that post-interview processing takes 10 months or more.  I have not heard that the automated system would have an impact on wait times, though I truly hope it does.

She also said that someone else from the office is supposed to follow up on whether the September deadline will be extended. I hope it will so that the DOS is held accountable for this travel ban. 

I was surprised by her answer- I really felt the increase in visas was from the new automated system. I am not sure to take her comments as positive news or not. 

Praying we all hear good news soon! 

Anyone in the DC area please consider joining the Congressional Hearing to Repeal the Ban.

https://www.facebook.com/events/533831804092504/?ti=icl

Date: September 24, 2019 

Schedule: 

8 a.m.-9 a.m.  Community Storytelling- reporters will be present 

10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Congressional Hearing 

6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m.- Healing Event led by Justice For Muslims Collective 

Where: Rayburn House Office Building- Washington DC 20515 

Who: Everyone and another is welcome- the hearing will be held with the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship

If I can take off from work I am going to try to go. Reply to this post or send me a PM if you to join me or need more info. 

On 8/16/2019 at 12:48 AM, MonHad said:

Apparently visas were issued a lot in July because some embassies started using the automatic system (remember that email from the Kulalumbor embassy?). It mentioned that it WILL process cases faster.

On 8/16/2019 at 12:45 AM, MonHad said:

We need a response from everyone here who’s is AP. Mention your embassy, last update, and how long ya’ll been waiting. We possibly could figure out if it applies to certain embassies or depending on the length of the case. 

My husband is Iranian and going through the Madrid Embassy in Spain. Our last update was August 5th 2019 (when I emailed the embassy)- that was also when they confirmed that the automated system has started (I sent them a copy of the email from the Kulalumbor Embassy). We have been in AP for 5 months on this upcoming September 3rd. 

On one hand I feel hopeful because two Iranian couples I know received their visas recently- one after 15 months in AP and the other after about 5 months. And at least two of us have received confirmation that the automated system has gone into effect (and that would seem true after the increase in visas with the July statistics).  

On the other hand (and not to be a downer- because trust me I know that we are already worried and worn out by this process)- I hope that the increase in visas is not to boost the DOS numbers before they have to stop reporting on the travel ban (see below). In the past the DOS has not seemed to care about how many visas they issued (especially for Iranians)- so I don't know why they would worry about boosting numbers at this point. I am choosing to believe that the increase in visas is because of the new automated system going into effect and that we will all hear good news soon. 

I plan to reach out to my Senator- Senator Van Hollen- and ask him if he plans to renew the plan with the DOS and require them to continue sharing stastics about the travel ban following September 30 2019. 

P.L. 116-6, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2019, requires a report every 90 days until September 30, 2019 on the implementation of PP 9645 for seven designated countries, which were listed as Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen; however, nationals of Iraq and Sudan are not subject to visa restrictions under PP 9645. Accordingly, the Department of State is providing statistical information related to visa applications made by nationals of the eight countries currently or previously subject to visa restrictions under PP 9645: Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela, and Yemen.

From: https://www.vanhollen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Van_Hollen_Proclamation_9645.pdf

Hi,

  This was just posted on Immigrants United (Facebook group)- thought that some of you newer to the travel ban might find it helpful. Lotfi is one of the lawyers helping to fight the government in one of the cases against the travel ban. 

-Jess 

Lotfi-Legal-LLC-FAQ-Immigration-Travel-Ban-compressed.pdf

1 hour ago, Yazy said:

Hi Jess,

 

My congresswomen did talk to them and they didn't provide any information. But I let the congressional office  knows that there is a new process and what Rio consulate said about the new automated process. They will try to find more information about how the case's been handled.

 

This is what is driving me  crazy.. nothing is clear and everything is vague. our lives on hold pretty much.

I just wish if they at least tell us where are we in the process.

Praying  this nightmare will end soon for all of us

Sounds like you are doing all the right things and trying your best- which is all we can do in this situation. I hope that your Congresswoman can find out more information on your behalf. Just keep on the embassy. 

2 hours ago, Yazy said:

Hi,

 

This is my first post but not my first time in this thread.

I wish luck to all of us who are stuck in this process

My Syrian fiance lives in Brazil. He had his interview for K1 visa on May 2019. He hold  a Syrian passport.

The interview went well but they said due to the travel ban we will need more information.  

They did ask us twice for the supplement  form. We did submit a physical copy during the interview, then they emailed us a set of questions and after that they emailed us the form to fill out and send to them.

Our case hasn't been updated since June. and all of their responses to my emails are general response.

I did ask them whether they did implemented a new automated process and they said :

 

 

(We did not receive any official information about this new mention process.

According to our records, your case is under adminitrative processing which we must conclude before we can adjudicate a visa.)

 

I don't think there are any applicants from the travel ban countries live in Brazil and not sure if the consulate will get an updates about new procedures.

Is there a way to know how the consulate is processing the AP?

Thanks,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Yazy said:

Hi Jess,

 

It seems like not all US consulate know about this process

 

I did sent same email asking about the new process  to the US consulate in Brazil yesterday and they said "We did not receive any official information about this new mention process"

This is Rio De Janeiro US consulate 

 

 

I am afraid I don't have an answer for you- I am completely confounded and ashamed of how this whole process works! I agree that I have not heard of any other Brazil Travel ban cases- so it could be that they are less familiar with the process. The good thing is that you have made them aware- so hopefully they will ask some questions. If I were you- I would recommend that reach out to one of your members of Congress (do a little research and see if there is a Senator or someone who is more supportive of immigrants) and ask them to check in with the embassy and ask the question. The embassies will sometimes provide members of Congress with more information than they do to us... I don't think that you will be able to find out more of your end at this point. I will say when I first contacted the Madrid embassy about this that they did not answer  my questions- but then when I asked the second time and sent the info in my previous post they finally responded and confirmed they had moved to the automated system. So I would wait a month and then contact and ask them again. Hope it helps- all these unknowns are enough to make us all crazy but we have to keep the faith that things will work out in the end! 

3 hours ago, Ali333 said:

My case is CR-1 and I had my interview about 2 months ago .. and a while ago the embassy in Amman where I had my interview called me and asked me to send my passport and I did send it .. it arrived at the embassy 9 days ago and the day they got my passport they changed my CEAC from “ Refused “ to “ Administrative Processing “ .. and since then I’ve got 4 updates and all showed “ Administrative Processing “ . 

Still not sure how long will it take them to return my passport and whether asking me to send my passport means they’re going to issue my visa or not !??!?!?

FYI , they also called me about 5 days ago and asked for some more details about me . 

So what do you think???

It certainly sounds promising. 

I also heard from a friend this morning and their visa is finally ready- it really seems like things are starting to turn for the better. Keep the faith!

1 hour ago, Ali333 said:

Congrats .. did the embassy ask for your passport or do they already have it ??

2 minutes ago, fakeeh said:

excellent please keep us posted in case on any update on your case.

for me nothing so far.

 

No- I think since we are still in AP they won't ask for the passport until they actually clear my husband for a visa. 

I will keep you all posted. I forwarded the email to one of the immigration reps in my local Congressman's office to see if he had any thoughts or had heard any thing. I will let you know if he has any additional information. 

5 hours ago, fakeeh said:

Thank you I emailed my embassy 3 times not a single reply

I just heard back from our embassy (Madrid) and they confirmed that the automated system has been implemented! We are still in AP and still waiting but I am glad that they finally confirmed. I really feel that it must just have started in the past month- because last month they did not respond to my question about the system and then I have heard of an increase in visas- hopefully we will hear good news soon!

Dear Mrs. B.:

That system has been implemented, we are still waiting for the administrative processing pending in your spouse´s case.

We will contact you when we receive any response.

Regards.

Immigrant Visa Unit
Consular Section
U.S. Embassy Madrid

18 hours ago, NJ515 said:

You're right, I haven't seen it specifically mentioned for everyone that has to submit the DS-5535, but I don't think it's a stretch to assume it's used for other applicants than those in AP from the ban. As you know, the State Department isn't very forthcoming in its procedures unless forced, so I will admit it's just my hunch for now.

11 hours ago, fakeeh said:

actually for me i dont believe there is such system things are still manual. other that this email there is nothing official online actually when i search this system was suggested before but was rejected due to the fact that A.I or automatic system could make mistakes.

 

 

I had come across this (see below) a while back from the Department of State. I also figured that it meant it (the new automated system) was a system that would impact everyone but on re-reading it- it does seem to only apply to travel ban cases. Although the document is also specifically about the travel ban so that could be why too. Who knows- but I have been hearing about some Iranians (including a dear friend of mine) finally getting their visas in July- so hopefully we will all hear good news soon. I specifically wrote to my embassy last month and quoted the below information but they did not answer my question. This month I emailed them and sent the passage of the email from the Kuala Lumpur Embassy and asked if they had moved to the automated system too- we will see if they actually answer my question this time or not (not holding my breath). 

From the Department of State:
At the time PP 9645 came into effect, the Department of State determined that, until an automated enhanced screening and vetting process could be put into place, applicants for visas subject to PP 9645 who are being considered for a waiver under Section 3(c) of the Proclamation should undergo a post-interview interagency security review to resolve whether their entry would not pose a threat to the national security or public safety. At present, much of the enhanced screening and vetting process is manual. Currently, there are more than 12,000 PP 9645 cases undergoing this review as part of consideration for a waiver under the Proclamation. Meanwhile, since the March 6, 2017 memorandum, the Department has been diligently working with interagency partners to strengthen the automated screening and vetting process. We currently envision a procedure for PP 9645 cases that will include enhanced automated front-end (pre-interview) screening to determine whether any additional review is required related to determine whether the applicant has satisfied the national security and public safety waiver criterion. When fully operational later this fiscal year, the new automated system should significantly increase the speed and efficiency of the vetting process for both current and future waiver cases while maintaining all security standards.
From: https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/presidentialproclamation/Combined%20-%20Report%20on%20Implementation%20of%20PP%209645%20December%2007%202017%20to%20March%2031%202019.pdf

11 hours ago, Queen1990 said:

Oh I think that’s the new law right they have to provide their social media’s 

11 hours ago, Mnj11 said:

Just checked the DS-260 on the CEAC site, status was "INCOMPLETE" and now I see the following :

 

 

Did anyone else have this issue ?

 

Yes I saw that the DS-260 was being updated with asking for this information- but it is also asked on the DS-5535. Did you (Mnj11) have to complete the supplemental questions (DS-5535) after your interview? 

1 hour ago, fakeeh said:

Can you share the link please 

Thanjs

They had to make a second posting because the first one got so large: 

My email to the embassy: 

Dear Sir/Madam,

    My husband and I wanted to check about his case status (Case Number: ...) and find out how his administrative processing is going. We have seen 7 status updates since his status changed to Administrative Processing and we are anxious to know where he is in the process and the estimated time to receive good news. As we mentioned in our recent interview with CNN the unknowns of this process are so challenging. We pray that you will be able to provide answers and good news soon that we can finally live together permanently as husband and wife and be able to start our family.    

Thank you for your time and consideration in this matter.

Sincerely,

Jessica

Their response: 

Dear Mrs. B:

Your husband´s immigrant visa application is still undergoing administrative processing. We don’t know when this processing will be complete, but we will contact you as soon as we can proceed with his application. There is additional information about administrative processing at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/frequently-asked-questions/about-basics.html.  You are welcome to contact us any time for an update.

Sincerely,

Immigrant Visa Unit

**On a side note- I was happy that it at least seemed friendly and some what personal (not as generic as some I have seen). I was also surprised that they said I can contact them any time (I secretly thought- I wonder if they know what they are getting themselves into...j/k I plan to email them every 2 months). The link had virtually no information- just says to give them 6 months to make a decision... Just wanted to share my experience. 

On 5/31/2019 at 8:32 PM, fakeeh said:

Hi I am Jordanian not on travel ban but yet they gave me ds5535 while they gave my 2 years old the visa and return mine without visa then asked me for ds5535. My visa is ir1 no updates for 2 months still under ap. Is ds5535 for travel ban countries only? 

There is also a separate Visa Journey page for ds-5535 that might be more helpful/relevant to you.