ribki

Hi,

I saw you filed DCF in Kyiv. I was just told by USCIS to file there and I'm not 100% sure of the process. How should I go about submitting the I-130? Do I need to call the "Call Center" for an appointment?

Thanks so much

we did this 3 years ago and it is possible that the process has changed. it would be best if you read US Embassy's (Kyiv) website for the most current instructions. they have it outlined there step by step.

I did DCF in Kyiv summer 2007. They did ask me to prove

i had lived there six months. The problem is that in Ukraine it's so hard to register with OVIR to prove that you are a resident and not a tourist, it's very hard for the embassy to require a formal registration like in many countries. The consular did, though, look through my passports at all the stamps, border crossings stamps, etc. to see that I had lived in Ukraine a while. When you submit the first set of papers, they have a little checklist they methodically go through. I guess you can just call and ask, but it's highly unlikely you will get any kind of definitive answer. You will never get any kind of guarantee. I think it will just be the call of the consular that you get at that moment. But since you won't have been married long, I guess they will look on that with a little suspicion. I know that Ukraine used to be a haven for these quick marriages and doing DCF. When the rules changed last year, I just haven't heard if this stopped because of the residence requirement. That's all I know.

DCF results in a CR-1 GREEN-CARD visa, this results in a green-card upon entry to the USA, NO Adjustment of Status like a K-Visa has to do. Adjustment of status costs $1010.

DCF is much less expensive.

DCF for the most part is the quickest route to a visa.

Thanks. This is what I'd read elsewhere, but I was worried the posts might have been outdated and invalidated. I guess the best thing for me to do is to contact the US Embassy in Kyiv tomorrow to see if they are "receptive of short-term residencies" and from that information begin to hash out a plan. If anyone knows from experience what I can expect from the US Embassy in Ukraine, please chime in.

Edit: I'm good on my tax returns and I do still have a permanent address in the US.

When do they begin to start FBI name check - from the time the I-130 is filed at the consulate or do they wait until after the interview?

Thanks....

As much as I understood, checks were made after the I-130 was submitted. Then, when you get email approval, you can make the interview through the Call Center. Then, after the interview and visa application, it is possible that there could be further checks. Even though they promise to mail you the visa, there could be delays, so don't make too many travel plans until you get your visa in hand.

Let us know if you have more questions about the Kyiv embassy. We completed DCF there this summer.

To update our Kyiv DCF experience, after our I-130 petition was filed and playing phone tag with the Call Center and the embassy, we were finally able to make a visa interview appointment for June 11, the earliest date available--a 5 week wait for the interview.

They still seem to be having problems with the Call Center. Finally, someone at the embassy said to call again but to push 3 to talk to an operator, not the normal route for making the appointment, the route of not buying another $12 pin code for 8 minutes of talk time. Through that person we were finally able to make the appointment. Two other times we were told our info had not been sent to them by the embassy and we couldn't make the appointment. They then asked for our pin code. My wife gave her the old pin code and she took it. She thought there was no money left on it. Anyway, good luck to anyone who works with this Call Center. Hopefully, they will soon work out all the bugs.

I don't know if it would help you any, but still... I had the same problem here in Ukraine when I applied for my international passport after taking my husband's family name. At first the lady refused to spell the family name the way I wanted her to spell it in English. I started telling her that it just had to be spelled that way. She had to make a couple of phone calls to get some advice from other bureaucrats. Finally, they came up with the plan. I wrote a "zayavlenie" (it kind of a petition) that said that I am asking them to spell my family name this certain way and we attached a copy of my husband's Ukrainian visa where (fortunately) the embassy of Ukraine in America spelled both Ukrainian and English names correctly.

Maybe it would be worth going back to that office and demanding they would do it the right way.

I'm really sorry to hear that this happened. Let us know how it goes though. I have lived in Ukraine for many years and have encountered problems with names being spelled different ways because of translation. I have never heard of the US government being bothered by it. Hopefully, they will sort it out quickly, though.

My wife had her medical exam on Friday in Kyiv. This post adds some info not detailed earlier in case there are others who might benefit. Before all this, my wife did not have any vaccination records with a stamp from a medical clinic but she did have her medical records and from them compiled a list of the vaccinations. And with a little "encouragement" from her mother, the polyclinic in her hometown agreed to compile the list and put the clinic stamp on it. Thanks to this, my wife had an official document that showed her immunizations even though the polyclinic didn't really want to make this document. They, too, had some records but they often don't want to do their jobs unless you provide some financial encouragement. Fortunately, my wife didn't have to have any additional vaccines. The vaccines, though, can cost as much as 600 hryvnya (more than $120) if some are required. The exam now costs $75 and should be paid in US dollars.

My wife called before going, and it was basically that she could come any day she wanted but some days had a lot of people signed up already. This clinic does medical exams for four embassies. So she asked for a day that not many people were scheduled to come but still around 80 or so people were there when she got there. It seems there is no sense in trying to get there very early because if they let you in the line (they stop accepting people at noon or so), they will do your exam. They basically just stop taking people in the line and make sure everyone gets through who is in line. I don't recommend coming very late, though. They might just turn you away. Test results are then made available by 3:00 or a little later. So no matter what, you are going to have to sit there and wait. This clinic is not very conveniently located so plan to just stay there until results are ready. The taxi-van #198 goes straight there from the main train station.

There are four basic exams: a blood test, X-ray (which they give you in a big envelope), a simple physical exam (listening to hearts and lungs only), and a simple eye exam. She did not have a urine test. There may be something different for other kinds of visas. We are applying for an IR-1. They do ask what kind of visa you are applying for.

They asked if she had ever used drugs, been suicidal, ever been in the hospital.

They gave her a sealed envelope to take to the interview and we got a copy of the vaccination chart in English which we may need in America for some other bureaucratic hoop to jump through. Except for the blood test, she was told everything was fine. Since you have to wait for blood test results, they just hand you the sealed enveloped and you don't see a doctor after that. I guess you have to assume everything is OK.

In other matters, the Call Center they are now using for appointments is becoming a pain. We have called twice trying to make an appointment but they say they still say our info is not in the computer even though the embassy has said they sent the info. So, once you get approval of your petition, don't try to make the appointment the day you get the approval. Otherwise, you'll get to donate $12 to the Call Center.

A little update on the call center in Kyiv, Ukraine. DO NOT CALL them the same day you got your I130 approval notification, especially, if it was emailed to you. I did and they told me that our information was not passed to the call center by the embassy yet. That took about 4 minutes of my 8 minute card. The lady took all of my info before she informed me of that.

By the way, if you are paying with the credit card be prepared to wait a long time before they give you an option to do that. It took about 5-6 minutes for me to finally get the prompt. Thankfully, you are not starting to pay until they connect you to the operator.

Apparently, the call center workers were not prepped for this transition from email to phone interview scheduling properly. The lady on the phone did not know much about different kinds of immigration visas. I am going to call them again today or tomorrow and will update this thread again.

You have to pay to make an appointment? Jeeeeeeez.

Oh yeah we have to pay. In fact when I called to make an appointment and went through a maze of punching through the menu (finally was able to pay with the credit card for a pin code), after about 4 minutes of my 8 minute card I was told to call back today because they did not have my information on file yet. So DO NOT TRY to set up your appointment the day they email you from the embassy. I am thinking now about waiting till tomorrow to give them some extra time and to send my docs from the embassy to the call center.

We just received an email notification from the US Embassy in Kyiv that our I-130 petition was approved and we can now make a visa appointment through their new Call Center ($12 for an 8 minute call). It took about 14 days from DCF submission of the I-130 to their saying they had received all the security checks (the Adam Walsh checks, I guess).

We used this call center already to make an appointment to submit our I130. It was free back then. You have to make sure your phone can handle going through a menu. Not all phones in Ukraine are capable of that. It's related to tone and pulse dialing.

They prompt "If you want to speak English press 1". "If you want to schedule a non immigrant interview press 3".... They might have improved it, but at the time there was no English menu even if you chose it. So it might be easier to just call from Ukraine.

My husband called them twice. The first time he spoke to a lady who did not really speak English well. The second time he spoke to another lady and she was much better. He had to give his passport number, but maybe they ask for a case number instead when you have it.

They accepted our new petition with no problems.

Tokyo embassy approved my I-130 on 4/12; only took 7 days.

That's great news! How did they notify you? Email? I hope we will have the same kind of luck... It's going to be 7 days tomorrow...

Sorry to hear about your situation. I am certainly no immigration expert, but in some ways, our situation was similar. We filed our I-130 in March 2007 in the US even though I, a US citizen, live in Ukraine where my wife is from. When DCF returned, we too wanted to re-file DCF in Kyiv. The embassy here (at least whoever answers the email) told us we can't refile because we have a pending case in the US. I asked if we could withdraw and the person said that was possible but I would have to submit some kind of proof that it was withdrawn. I asked, "What kind of proof?" He said he didn't know because that was USCIS. I would have to talk to them.

Anyway, we refiled in Kyiv April 10 and I did "withdraw" our petition through a letter to USCIS but it still shows our case pending. When I filed our I-130 at the embassy, they didn't ask me anything about it even though I was very concerned about it. I know on another thread here at VJ the Tokyo embassy doesn't require you to withdraw the petition and I did find on the US Embassy website in India that they require proof that you sent a letter withdrawing the petition.

So it does seem that every embassy is handling this in slightly different ways. Many people have said the USCIS website is always/often not up to date so even if they did somehow withdraw your petition, it may not show on the computer for a long time.

Did you talk to the same person at the embassy each time? I know the Kyiv embassy sometimes gives conflicting information. I think Ukrainian staff answer the phone and email but the consulars are Americans and may have a slightly different view of things.

I might be completely wrong on this but another option is to just try to file the I-130 and hope the consular takes your registered letter as proof of withdrawal. But again, the person giving you information on the phone or email very well may not be the person who reviews your petition. Just a thought. It could also be a waste of money.

That's what I was afraid of...

I have also noticed that your interview date is May 3. Is it the wait time at the embassy or did you just pick it yourself?

Thanks again.

Thank you, fwaguy, for your response.

I have a question about #2. Was it really necessary to arrive that early? Are there that many people? Or is it just because she came from Lviv on the train and went directly to the clinic? I kind of hoped they would just tell me what time to come. Is it one of those places where people who come first get served first?

Thanks

I am looking for some information about medical exams in Kyiv, Ukraine. We are filing for I130, so the medical will be a little different than for K1, but still... helpsmilie.gif

I would like to know the following

1. How long did it take to schedule an appointment? Is it a week time wait or more?

2. How long did the medical last?

3. What was done during the medical? Tests? General medical history? Any tricky questions asked?

4. What vaccinations did the doctor say were absolutely necessary and which ones were waved?

5. When did you get the results?

6. I know the embassy gives a list of things to bring to the medical. Did you need anything extra?

7. How long the medical is good for? I am trying to decide whether to schedule an appointment before we get an official notification from the embassy about our I130 approval. My husband got the case number when he applied and was told that the Adam Walsh check will take about 2 weeks.

Thanks a lot.

I am looking for some information about medical exams in Kyiv, Ukraine. We are filing for I130, so the medical will be a little different than for K1, but still...

I would like to know the following

1. How long did it take to schedule an appointment? Is it a week time wait or more?

2. How long did the medical last?

3. What was done during the medical? Tests? General medical history? Any tricky questions asked?

4. What vaccinations did the doctor say were absolutely necessary and which ones were waved?

5. When did you get the results?

6. I know the embassy gives a list of things to bring to the medical. Did you need anything extra?

7. How long the medical is good for? I am trying to decide whether to schedule an appointment before we get an official notification from the embassy about our I130 approval. My husband got the case number when he applied and was told that the Adam Walsh check will take about 2 weeks.

Thanks a lot.

I realize Yana was getting a K1, but how did her medical go? What do they do there? How long did it take her to schedule an appointment? Vaccinations?

We are applying for I130, but I think the medical is about the same

Thanks

I filed our I-130 DCF today in Kyiv, Ukraine. The process went just as the Kyiv website said. Our petition was accepted and approved, pending the security checks. The consular person told me that basically everything is approved but I have to wait about 2 weeks for a security approval from the US. They sent my info electronically to the US for the Adam Walsh check, and if there are no "hits" on my name, I will be sent an email telling me I can then make an appointment for the visa interview. My case number was assigned today though the Kyiv website says that it may take up to 30 to open the case.

I think the big change for DCF after Adam Walsh is that the US citizen must be a resident of the country for at least 6 months where they are filing and there is now this delay of about 2 weeks for these additional security checks. Before I submitted any documents I had to show proof of my residence in Ukraine. Otherwise, I think DCF works about the same way it did before, at least in Ukraine. We are already married so I don't know if anything has changed for fiance visas, etc.

For anyone interested, I just filed my I-130 petition in Kyiv, Ukraine . I had made an appointment about 10 days ago. I had also filed CSC mid March. I had been told by the Kyiv consulate that I needed to withdraw my petition (which I did by USPS letter). At the petition submission, I was not asked about withdrawing the petition but the first thing they asked was about my residence in Ukraine. They did look through my passport for stamps to indicate residence for longer than 6 months. I've lived here 11 years so it wasn't hard to prove, but I do think they are going to enforce this residence requirement. They took my papers, no surprises--everything as their website indicates except they did ask for a copy of my passport though the website doesn't say to have a copy. I had extra copies of everything just in case. Then, after paying the fee, I had to wait a while for a very brief interview with the consular (he asked questions like where did we meet? how long have you lived in Kyiv? Do I speak Russian? when are we planning to move? he asked about one of the pictures I had submitted as proof of relationship, asked if we had children?). Then he said the petition was approved. I went back to the window where I submitted my documents and there I was given a case number. She said the background checks brought on by Adam Walsh take about 2 weeks. They send info electronically to the US for approvals.

Another American was there who had gotten caught up in Adam Walsh. He had had an interview Jan. 21 but it was canceled. They got their immigrant visa approval today. While I was there, no one was rejected it seemed. It also seemed everyone's process took at least two hours, or longer. So be prepared for that.

Back from the embassy. It was a breeze, except for waiting to go through the security checkpoint.

On page 2 of my I-130 I answered yes to the question if I had ever filed a petition for this or any other alien, and so they asked me only two questions about that:

1. "So, USCIS is taking a long time to process, around 6 months?" I said yes....

2. "You do understand that you have to pay the filing fee again?" I said yes.... and that was it.

They told me it would be approved in about 2 weeks.

That's great! Thanks for telling us what happened.

From another VJ thread, I found this link to the US Embassy in India. This is what they have to say about re-filing DCF:

If you have already filed an I-130 petition for this Alien Relative in the US, the US citizen petitioner must provide us with proof that that specific petition has been withdrawn or that processing on that petition has been terminated. We will accept a Notice of Action (form I-797) from US CIS offices to such effect. We will also accept a photocopy of a certified and/or registered letter to the US CIS office processing that petition in which you request termination and/or withdrawal of that petition. Such receipts or letters must note the complete receipt number of the petition filed in the US.

Good luck to the Japanese filers! It's very odd (and frustrating and sort of humorous all at the same time) that the Kyiv embassy explicitly told me in an email and over the phone that you cannot file DCF in Kyiv if you have a petition pending in the US. I have an appointment to refile April 10. I will report back. I think it's possible that one person answers email and the phone but other people actually deal with and receive the petitions. Or it may be that Kyiv is just trying to keep people from filing DCF.

Hey Ribki..

Good luck...and did they say HOW LONG IT WOULD TAKE TO GET YOUR VISA VISA DCF??? Im trying to decided if I should cancel and go with DCF or wait out my k3/130 in the states in CA!!!

I hear that DCF isnt faster now but I dont know!!

I didn't ask because the call center people don't know anything. I guess it's still too early to tell how long DCF will take in Kyiv. I assume that each embassy will be different so it's impossible to tell at this point how DCF will work post Adam Walsh.

We hadn't filed an I-129F in the US and our I-130 had only been at the California center for three weeks or so when DCF returned. For me, even if it takes the same amount of time, I would rather do all the paperwork through the embassy since I live just 20 minutes from there. I can't imagine the frustration of doing all the NVC documents from Ukraine, mailing back and forth, etc., and the cost for faster mailing. Personally, it seems that DCF will still be faster than waiting for an I-130 to be approved in the US. California seemed to be processing some applications in 2-3 months but it may slow down at any point. And then there are possible delays in going from the processing center to Vermont then to the embassy. But if you don't live near your embassy, I can imagine that would add expense and time too.

In case anyone is interested in DCF in Kyiv, we decided to withdraw our petition in California (via letter by USPS) and today I called their new call center for an appointment. This time they knew how to schedule an I-130 submission but she was very reluctant to make the appointment. I had to convince that I legally am resident in Kyiv before she would go further. They offered lots of appointment times in April. I got one for April 10. They only accept I-130s two days a week at 10:00AM. Good luck to everyone else who may be re-filing their petitions through DCF.