George Judea

We sent off our packet just yesterday! 
I'm so scared for a RFE since I want this to be as smooth as possible of a process but, good luck to everyone in the beginning of this tough journey 

Hi everyone! I mailed in my I-129F to the USCIS Lockbox today since I didn't want to send it on April Fool's... We're very excited!
 
Here's to hoping everyone's process goes quickly and smoothly!

What’s going on!!!
 
I thought I’d start the new April 2019 129F thread 
 
Best of luck to all new filers 🥳 Currently it takes at least 6-8 months to receive the NOA2 for I-129F. (Yes it could be less)
 
Helpful links:
 
The United States Postal Services (USPS) has cool tool that lets you know a hint what is comming to your mail box. This way you can track NOA1 and NOA2.
 
https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/pages/intro/start.action
 
United States Immigration Services (USCIS) has new way to track your case open an account.
 
https://myaccount.uscis.dhs.gov/
 
And lastly created your VJ timeline so we can see your process and celebrate with you.
 
Its a long process but at the end it will be worth it. Let the waiting games begin and may the odds be ever in your favor! Have Faith!
 
The boat has come to port to start your visa journey... All aboard!!! 

Hi all,
 
I wanted to share my quick story and recent updates on the K1 visa process I am going through with my Panamanian fiancee. I used this site quite a bit to gather information so I feel it is prudent to give back to the community and hopefully save some other people from searching for answers. I did not use a lawyer for any of this and simply used my best judgment in gathering resources from the internet. Please be careful with pulling information from potentially unreliable sources (a lot of the YouTube videos I saw were full of fluffy baloney like putting everything in a colorful binder with some silly heart-covered front page, remember these are government employees, any extra work for them is probably annoying) or sources that are outdated. Below is a (hopefully) short summary:
 
-I met my fiance in the United States as she was here under the Au Pair program on a J-1 Visa where she stayed for a year and a half (from November 2016 to June 2018)
-I proposed to her on my second trip to Panama about 4 months after she returned home (proposed early October 2018)
-I submitted the paperwork for the I-129F mid-November 2018 and received the NOA1 about 2 weeks after (late November 2018)
-Just yesterday (April 1st, 2019), I received the NOA2 showing that our request was approved (about 4.5 months total)
 
Hopefully, this gives good hope to those in the middle of waiting for their response. It is literally some of the worst anxiety I have ever experienced in my life and receiving this great news well ahead of time was a major relief.
 
Some notes that I believe helped our case go so quickly and smoothly:
 
-She is from Panama, a country that demonstrates a very low occurrence of visa overstays and fraud (from what research I have done)
-She already spent a year and a half in the US and, despite meeting through Tinder, we had spent plenty of time together face-to-face in the two years prior which continued even after she moved back to Panama
-She did not have any immigration issues between her visit in 2015 as a tourist and her stay as Au Pair; she left on time and did not get in any trouble with the law while here
-We had known each other for about two years by the time I had filed the I-129f paperwork
-Despite me having a criminal record (misdemeanor marijuana possession in 2007, served unsupervised probation successfully), I still had all of the original paperwork which I included in the submission (and made copies for myself to keep), and I wrote a letter specifically describing the circumstances and outcome (because, really, the whole thing was not a big deal)
-Included original documentation to prove legitimacy of the relationship and having seen her in the past two years (boarding passes, hotel reservations, receipts for the necklace and engagement ring, dinner receipts)
-The packet was organized by section with an outline included for easy searching and all papers with photos were labeled with date, location, and names of everyone
-The entire packet was two-hole punched at the top and I used ACCO prong fasteners (apparently, this is how they will file it anyway, it saves them time)
 
One major thing I want to mention is double-check, double-check, double-check your work!
 
I spent about two whole months on this and I am glad I took my time to do it correctly. I gathered documents that I had been collecting for quite some time and information from her and her family. It was very arduous, but it is incredibly important to be accurate in your submission. I probably rewrote parts of the I-129F form 10-15 times because I kept doing it incorrectly or I would later realize that I misinterpreted what was being asked of me (it's not straight-forward in all parts of the form).
 
Another major thing I want to mention is MAKE COPIES OF EVERYTHING BEFORE YOU SEND IT! Your fiance(e) will need to know what's going on and it doesn't hurt to have copies of the exact submission to verify what USCIS and the NVC have.
 
I very well may have overdone it, but I prefer the extra time put forth to getting an RFE or being outright denied.
 
Good luck to everyone else out there and I hope this helps. I was surprised to know that even with declining approvals for I-129F applications in the past two years, some of us can still be lucky to have their process move quicker than the 7+ months that we have been told.
 
-Panamerican

Yay!

Yes dear it’s true. I wish you all the best as well. May God be all of our helper. I followed you so we can stay in touch occasionally, and I’ll definitely be sure to update my timeline 😊, I saw that they have withdrawn the $535 filing fee just yesterday, hopefully NOA1 will come any day from now. 

You're Welcome. Us March filers gotta look out for each other. Let us know when your NOA1 comes through and dont forget to update your timeline.

Going forward, just make sure to read everything you can about every step of the process before submitting anything.  The binder question is definitely addressed here on VJ and in the USCIS instructions.

Money order. I saw a lot if horror stories too, don't worry about it tho.

Per page 11 of the instructions it says the name should be printed with pencil or light felt pen. Me and my fiancé both signed our names and dated it on the back. If you go to the USCIS website, click forms, select I-129F and then click form details it will show the actual I-129F form and instructions underneath. I’d read through that thoroughly.

Mine was recieved on the 1st of March, the SMS came in on the 6th of March. Yours should come in b4 the week runs out. Welcome to the waiting club. 

Ooo okay. Thank you so much! I have a long journey ahead so I guess patience should become my newest best friend 😬

Ooo okay. Thank you so much! I have a long journey ahead so I guess patience should become my newest best friend 😬

Can take up to 30 days, but usually 1-2 weeks is normal.
 

Per page 11 of the instructions it says the name should be printed with pencil or light felt pen. Me and my fiancé both signed our names and dated it on the back. If you go to the USCIS website, click forms, select I-129F and then click form details it will show the actual I-129F form and instructions underneath. I’d read through that thoroughly.

Hello vj FAM! I'm glad to announce that I got approved for my k1 visa. I want to sincerely appreciate everyone who God has used to answer my questions here as well as the experiences of those who have gone ahead of me in this whole process, thank you for sharing. So my interview was on the 8th of march 2019 I got there after been rescheduled, the immigrant queue were asked to go in perhaps because we were been rescheduled. I wasn't lucky enough to hear that as I was so far back in the midst of the crowd. Oh well I asked the security lady, she said there would be a recall. I didn't wait for long, I joined the general queue, they asked me why I had just my appointment letter, I told them I was been recalled and had submitted my documents already together with my passport. I went pass security checks. Finally it was my turn to be interviewed. I saw about two other k1 applicants there. We weren't many at all. I was asked about 4 questions
When did you meet in person?
What year did you meet
Where did you meet?
Why do you want to get married to him?
What do you love about him?
Tada! She approved me even while I was still talking about why I loved him
 
 
Wish everyone else a successful interview!
God Bless.

yeah i have been calling, its been 3 weeks!  Ill give it another week.  Our I-129F was approved in 116 days which was surprisingly quick

Thank you.  I'm going to wait.  My doctors letter is very brief, states shes treated me for depression, what medication I'm on, I'm stable and not a threat. If they require it then so be it.  I need to stop being in such a rush. What will be will be.

Just wanted to throw in a few extra.. Wait,Wait,Wait.... To help keep it accurate. LOL.

Yes, the I-129F is just the petition which needs to be approved to show that your fiancé is eligible to apply for a visa. Once it is approved, it is sent to the NVC and your fiancé is then invited to apply. An approved petition is not an approved visa, nor is it a guarantee that the visa will be approved. 

Exactly as above. USCIS just gives approval of the I-129f petition, which then gives the eligibility to apply then for the actual K-1 visa at the embassy level following NVC.

It’s a background check in the petitioner to evsure you are not excluded from filing for s fiancé. 
 
It’s also to check you meet the requirements to petition: 
 
- that you are a US citizen
- that you have met the immigrant face-to-face within the last 2 years
- that you are both legally free to marry each other
- that you are both willing to marry within 90 days of the immigrant’s arrival  
 
 

LOL I was about to say something along that same line!!!
 

Lol no worries!