Trkmc85

Thank you very much for this. 🙏🏻

I am currently in US now with my family. Embassy asked me to submit my passport, new medical report  and 2020 tax return from my wife which i did in January 2022. The embassy held my passport till the Ban expire in April 2022. My visa was issued in May 2022. I think you have to wait for the Ban to elapse. Once the ban is over your visa will surely be issue. Just hold on and have faith. 

@etrangais thank you because my interview was only july 19th 2022 and my case has been updated every week since. The dates:
July 28, 2022
Aug 03, 2022
Aug 10, 2022
So im hoping i will hear from the consulate soon, because the Visa Office told me to wait 2-3 weeks after receiving the 221g form. 

4 years ago, I was refused entry and handed a 5years Ban  which will end December 2021.
I had my IR-1" visa interview March 24th 2021. Every question went well  After the interview the CO told me she'll keep my Passport but will not approve my visa now, in the next 3-4 days decision will be made concerning it. She handed me Form 221G ( i was expecting the CO to ask me to fill form 212) and another paper showing my right in US.
Still have not heard from the Embassy. My application was updated  on the 26th March, 9th of April, 19th and May 17th 2021. I was expecting My status change to "Administrative process" or "Refused" but still showing "Ready" for interview Up till date.
I have called( I was asked to hold on) and send the Embassy message but no reply.
My wife called NVC last month NVC told her that Lagos Consular ask them to send some documents to them which have been forwarded to them.
Please i just want to know if someone have been through this route. What steps should I take. Thanks
 

Thanks! It was ready-administrative processing-issued, but it was all done very fast to be honest...couple of days
The issued to getting a call to pick up the passport (which I am still waiting for) is the one that's the longest hahah

My status changed to issued on june 30th, but I still haven’t gotten a call about the visa and it’s been 12 days…I am thinking about writing an email to the Embassy…

Yes we were notified last week that retrogression has taken place and our priority date is no longer current. So they have returned our passports to us and will contact us again once the priority date becomes current. I have no idea when that will be. New fiscal year only starts 1 October. So maybe some time after that.

That’s a relief.. He told me that there is a good chance that I will be approved even though I stated about my overstay on my DS-260 application, and answered truthfully when he asked. If he is the one that will make the determination about the bar, then he possibly would have made it then. (I’m just motivating myself) Thank you for all the help! Also big thank you for letting me know about the FOIA, which came back clean. 

The CO determines if you have a ban, there is no central registry

Thanks for the insight. But I wonder why he would tell me that there is a high chance that I will be approved and keep my passport? As far as I know for an F-1 visa overstay to be considered as an illegal presence there should be a formal finding by an immigration judge. In that case my entry bar should already be in the system and I should have received 212 (A) not 221 (G). 

Not entirely sure how the D/S thing works or what was the then-law at the time OP left - presumably this is what the CO is investigating too. If there is a finding of unlawful presence greater than one year, then there is a ten year ban triggered on departure, so if that applies to OP there would still be a couple of years to work out or a waiver needed.
 
Waiver is generally applied for after the CO refuses you and tells you if it is an option.

You question previously was along the lines of  “how could they say that everything looks good but put me in AP? / Can they still find that I need a waiver even after they kept my passport/said everything looks good”. I’m addressing that part, that even if they say “everything is good” they might later say you need a waiver.
 
I have never commented on what is the likelihood of you receiving a ban and needing a waiver. I don’t think anyone here can make that prediction; CO is the one who will make that determination.

never know for sure how long AP will last. sometimes days, weeks, or months. 
do you hire a lawyer?

I understand. Thank you. I will keep you updated.

Ok,  as I 94 says d/s ,  the date on your I 20 that states when your program of study will finish is the important thing
 
D/S on your Form I-94/admissions stamp means that you may remain in the United States so long as you maintain your nonimmigrant student status, which includes finishing your program by the program date listed on your Form I-20, "Certificate of Eligibility for Nonimmigrant Status

you overstayed 3+ years or you overstayed 3 years ago?
what does the notice say on your visa about when u should leave the US?
AP can be never ending or seem like it
and do not worry if CEAC says Refused instead of AP
refused is the term they now post instead of AP / it can change anytime to issued or denied or ready for interview (we have even seen this for some who already interviewed)u 
Why did he say u would be approved?   because your case is strong and the CO will approve it /  he can tell  u or USC spouse for a waiver if one is needed
What can u do at this point ?  pray and wait 

I understand. Thank you. I will keep you updated.

Weeks, months, or even years in some cases. If they are trying to verify the duration of your unlawful presence to see if it triggers the bar, it could take a while.
 
I think the CO couldn't determine if your entire overstay is unlawful presence due to the nature of D/S on the i94 for f1 status. So it is very likely they'll figure out that first. They may the pose the bar then if they determine you have sufficient duration of the unlawful presence.

From what I read, USCIS can also make the determination when the person is applying for an immigration benefit.   I'm not sure if the following is current.
 
https://isss.temple.edu/students/current-students/f-1-student/maintaining-legal-status/visa-overstay-and-illegal-presence-us

Hello everyone. We submitted our documents to CEAC (IR-1/CR-1) on January 19th, but yesterday (March 18th) after reading some posts about required financial documents, we uploaded additional pay stubs and some other financial supporting documents, and submitted them. My question is; Would this delay or reset our processing time for NVC? There was no warning or anything that states any delay on CEAC, and we couldn’t find any information on this matter online, so I wanted to start a new topic and ask my VJ friends. 

We uploaded and submitted 2021 tax returns and 1099s as additional documents just in case, hopefully they won’t reset our process. Our first submit date is January 19th, additional documents submitted on March 25th. It would be awful if we have to wait 3 more months just because of this.

Submitted documents on January 20, received DQ today!

DQ’ed today. I will write some information that I thought can be beneficial for some. 
 
1- We submitted our documents 19th of January.
2- We kept uploading whatever “additional” (NOT MAIN) document we thought could be needed until 3rd of March, so you can be sure that it DOES NOT put you back of the line.
3- I wish as smooth of an experience as we had for everyone! We didn’t get RFE or any delay throughout our process.
 
Thanks VJ family. You guys were always there to help. 

DQ’ed today. I will write some information that I thought can be beneficial for some. 
 
1- We submitted our documents 19th of January.
2- We kept uploading whatever “additional” (NOT MAIN) document we thought could be needed until 3rd of March, so you can be sure that it DOES NOT put you back of the line.
3- I wish as smooth of an experience as we had for everyone! We didn’t get RFE or any delay throughout our process.
 
Thanks VJ family. You guys were always there to help. 

We were DQ'ed on March 4, got our appointment letter on March 18, and our interview is on April 4, for reference. The petitioner is a Turkish citizen.