Amoyar_Dever

53 minutes ago, iwantmywaiver said:

Package sent to DOS on October 4th

Embassy sent NOS on October 5th

Documents showed as received at dates in the print screen below

 

I contacted the congressional staff for expedited processing in mid-January. First, I sent a letter from my PI, then DOS asked for a letter from the Department Chair. My Dept. Chair took one month to prepare the letter answering the several questions that DOS raised. I sent this second letter on February 24th, then four days later, they replied:

 

A Waiver Review Division (WRD) analyst is in the process of adjudicating XXXX case and should make a determination within the next few business days.  Once completed, WRD will transmit its recommendation to USCIS and send XXXX a copy.  The outcome will also be posted online at https://j1visawaiverstatus.state.gov/; the website updates once daily.

 

Then on March 17th, I received a favorable recommendation. I think they accepted my expedited processing, even though it was not shown online.

 

I received the Favorable Recommendation letter by mail one week later (March 24th).

 

Now I'm waiting for the USCIS part.

 

Today I contacted Emma chat, and they couldn't find my application yet.

 

 

 

Congratulations buddy. USCIS version of waiver would come soon too!

@etcoflife Wow. Congrats! I don't think DoS would send you hard copy of the decision. 

What is your DS-2019 end date?

Could you please post screenshot of your timeline, please?

8 minutes ago, Rimssk said:

I would also like to know my NoS is updated on website on March 13, 2021. Does DoS updates on the website the FR or it just says recommendation sent?

Based on screenshots posted by others, the table shows recommendation "sent", and the status panel (with label "Advisory Opinion Finding") on the top-left indicates " Favorable Recommendation" if it's favorable. 

I read somewhere on the forum that USCIS take 30 days to issue waiver. But there are several cases where the USCIS waiver was received just in a week. Did you get DoS FR? 

15 minutes ago, etcoflife said:

Whats the present timeline to get final waiver from uscis after DOS FR?

I read somewhere on the forum that USCIS take 30 days to issue waiver. But there are several cases where the USCIS waiver was received just in a week. Did you get DoS FR? 

13 hours ago, waiverstress said:

Hi All,

 

Here's my update from my end: 

My NOC didn't show up on the DOS portal when I checked on Monday (3/21/22). I know from the email 212e sent me, as well as the information that my contact at the local congressman's office received, that the NOC has been sent and received (by march 10th). I emailed the 212e helpline and got a quick response that yes, they have my NOC, but they'll upload it "in the coming weeks". 

Panicking, I replied requesting an expedited review, and they surprisingly emailed the same day granting my request but requiring that I demonstrate "a significant humanitarian need and clear US govt interest" in the form of a letter from my dept chair that addressed their criteria. I got all the documents they required and sent those in, only to be told that the expedite request was denied. As my research is on the virus causing this current pandemic, I am surprised that this is not considered significant, but what can you do? 

My NOC is still not showing up on the portal, and my DS2019 expires next saturday (4/2). 

I have been talking to my local congressman's office and am debating speaking with the state senator's office next week. 

 

Fingers crossed and hoping our forum starts to have good news coming in soon. 

My request for expedited review was denied too! My DS2019 date is end of April 2022. 

Please keep us posted about your case.

Thanks for sharing.

23 minutes ago, Fictions said:

Posting my timeline here even though it was NOT favorable. I don’t mean to alarm anyone.

 

I knew I had very small chances with a No Objection Waiver being a Fulbright Scholar. I thought I had a really strong Statement of Purpose and support from my employer. I sent all the documents on March 15th 2021.

 

Does anyone know if there’s anything else I could do at this point?

 

Thanks and good luck to everyone. 

 

I'm sorry to see this decision after so long waiting. Just curious- did you know whether your sponsor view was favorable or unfavorable?

What is that "support letter"?

Below is my update as of today, March 16, 2022

• Application package delivered to St. Louis- Oct 20, 2021
• Application processing fee cashed- Oct 22, 2021
• All documents, including NOS, marked as "received"- Feb 10, 2022 (YES, the update was on March 16, 2022 indicating that the documents were received on Feb 10, 2022).

My program is sponsored by NIH so hoping WRD would contact NIH soon for the sponsor views.

27 minutes ago, vabhi6 said:

On 2/4/2022 at 2:53 PM, vabhi6 said:

I received favorable recommendation yesterday. My O1 visa has been RFE'd for the waiver. Would love to hear when other people got their letters after the FR.

So after I received my FR on Feb 3, USCIS took until March 01th to finally issue me I612 (USCIS version of the 212e waiver) which finally came on March 06 2022. I started the whole process of procuring documentation in March 2021. It took a full year to complete the process. My suggestion to everyone who is looking at this forum for some hope:

1. Apply for the waiver as soon as possible. It takes a year from the day you start collecting documents to finally get the certificate. 
2. Be patient and only reach out to DoS after the 4 months of applying
3. Some people in this forum get through the process easily and for some it is gruesome. Just be positive and hope that you are among the lucky few who get through the process in a timely manner. 

Congratulations, and thanks for the tips. Could you please mention your nationality? Does it have anything to do with nationality?

22 hours ago, qwerqwer said:

Did you get update?

Not yet..

Is there anyone who had/ require sponsor views from NIH nowadays?

35 minutes ago, BrunoJ1 said:

October - update

 

So I just checked my status and I finally got an update (my documents were delivered to DoS on Oct. 15th 2021):

 

[February 28th 2022]

Except for the NOS, all documents are being displayed as received. The date on the system shows February 24th and 25th for some documents. 

My documents were delivered a week after you. Hopefully, I will see an update in couple of weeks. 

13 hours ago, pales said:

twelve to fourteen weeks or more

What does "more" mean? My Documents were delivered to St. Louis on Oct. 20 (18 weeks ago from today), but no record of this in WRD system. 

8 minutes ago, MariTH said:

I just got an update on DOS and I'm kinda scared,

 

My status went from "Pending" to "Not Subject" and it says 212(e) Finding letter is sent. 

Has anyone experienced this? I found one thing online and they said they received a letter from DOS saying:

 

"The Department has determined that the above exchange visitor is not subject to the 2-year residency requirement of Section 212(e) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended, based on the following data"

I hope you are indeed not subject to this stupid 212e. Keep us posted. 

3 hours ago, Ola87 said:

Just relax, mine took 9 months to be update.

Thanks for the info. Almost 99.9% NOS-based waiver are approved, but still they want everyone to go through this time consuming process. Why? It doesn't make any sense to me. They shouldn't do it if they can't process it in timely manner. 

We are putting food in the plate of the people who process these things, an still they are giving such a hard time. Shame on these people. 

It's ridiculous. They are taking 4+ months just to enter the application in there database. I don't understand why so much time is needed for such a simple thing when everything is online/ electronic. 

Documents delivered to St. Louis on Oct. 20, 2021. Cash checked on Oct. 22, 2021. Not even a first update (documents received) as of now. Is anyone in same situation like me? Any suggestion? I wrote to DoS, but no response as of now. 

Nope! 

1 minute ago, español1974 said:

I am on November 11th. I waiting too...😔

@español1974 I have your record too. But did not include you in the original post because you are November applicant. FYI- @tub77 was also on Nov.11. I will tag both of you in future posts. 

@BrunoJ1 @SomeoneNamedIan @WGLKID @Hdd @qwerqwer We all are October 2021 applicants. Anyone of you have any update on your case? I do not see even a first update (documents received) as of now. 

@iwantmywaiver @etcoflife are also October applicants. @iwantmywaiver was first week of Oct, and @etcoflife is last week of Oct. They both see there case as received on the waiver portal. 

10 minutes ago, Lako said:

I don't have any status right now. I relocated in another country and have no idea what to do with my approved h1b  this waiver is taking forever and have no hope that it get's approved

I think you're in the process since long time. Hold tight.. it will get sorted out soon. Was you in the US at the time of applying for the waiver? How long you have been out of the US? 

1 hour ago, WGLKID said:

Any attempts to contact congressman at this stage?

DoS waiver portal says "Your case will not be considered ready for deliberation until all the required documents and inputs are received, including the request letter from a sponsoring government agency". I might contact congressman once DoS waiver portal shows that all required documents were received. 

1 hour ago, Todd B said:

Thanks for the advice! I actually tried to contact who I thought the sponsor was yesterday. My wife is the one immigrating and my understanding is that she was sponsored by the DoS subdivision called the "Educational and Cultural Affairs Bureau." They got back to me today and referred me back to the Waiver Reviews Division, so either they are not the right folks or they can't help. 

 

Can I ask how you tracked down your sponsor's contact information, was it the government funding organization or the private organization that enabled your exchange?

Usually the sponsor information is available on DS-2019. 

16 hours ago, WGLKID said:

@Amoyar_Dever @etcoflife

 

Did you guys try sending emails or contacted congressman? Any strategies to deal with our current situation?

 

I emailed the 212 address on Jan 6. No response so far. 

Not even a first update (documents received) as of now.
We are couple of days earlier than @etcoflife. As per his/her timeline we should have update by now. 
DoS says they process cases on first in- first out basis. But I don't hink that's true. They are not following their own publicly posted timelines. My employer is waiting for this stupid waiver thing so that they can process H1B. Don't know how long it's going to take. 

We should expect to see the update this or next week as per @palvi07 timeline (fingers crossed!)
 

22 hours ago, Lako said:

I need to change a mailing address. Do I need to ship the physical request to the DOS? or is there any email address I can send it? 
And if anyone here has made a request, how long did it take to get updated?

Please post here whatever you learn/ do about address change. Thanks!

@qwerqwer Not even a first update as of now. When I key in my case number in J1 waiver portal, it says " Currently, there is no information regarding the status of your case. If you would like additional information, please contact Public Inquiries at 212ewaiver@state.gov"

As per USPS tracking system, my application package was delivered to St. Louis on Oct. 20. Bank confirmed and provided a proof that cashier's check sent along with the application was cashed by "DoS- Visa Office" on October 22.