LetsGoBo

UPDATE: My F-1 Student Visa has been issued! Just checked CEAC. Perhaps they make an exception for the conflicting DS-260/DS-160 if you are part of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) ?

I just received an email today saying that the Consulate “has released document related to your Visa application to our courier” and they gave me a tracking number. I hope this means my visa has been approved! But they gave no further information so I guess I will have to wait and see.

What kind of backup plan though? Using the F-1 to overstay? I can literally go to the US with ESTA (which I have done numerous times) if my plan was to overstay. What I hope the CO realizes is that I would much rather be in the EU or UK legally than in the US illegally...

It's not because I applied to the DV, it's because I got selected and submitted a DS-260 to continue the process.

My degree will be an M.S. in Business Analytics so my plan is to find a job in business consulting in London. I have pre-settled status in the UK meaning that I have full living and working rights, but I lose the status if I leave the UK for more than 2 years. I would tell the CO that I do not wish to lose this status as I want to work in London and eventually become a British citizen.

I will make sure to follow-up with the outcome.

Thanks for sharing! Gave me some hope.

Thanks for the reply! When I applied for the DV I wasn't sure what I wanted to do after finishing my undergrad. It was my first DV application and I did it because, yes, I would like to live in the US, but what I meant to say was that I don't feel compelled to move to the US for any economic or financial reasons. If I am given the opportunity through DV, then I would seize it because I like the country, but it isn't something I see as I "absolutely must figure out a way to move there". So if I got the F-1 and no green card then I would just study there and come back to Europe, I wouldn't use the visa with the intention of immigrating there. I applied for the Master's program an entire year after I applied to the DV2023, so a lot had changed since then as well. I guess I really didn't think about the immigration law implications when I submitted the DS-260. I understand what you mean with my actions not matching my words but I guess what I am trying to emphasize is that while I would live in the US given the opportunity, it isn't something I would ever violate any visa conditions for given that I have a good life and strong family ties back home.

Hi! I was selected for further processing in DV2023 and immediately submitted my DS-260 back in May 2022, for consular processing. However, my case number is very high EU34XXX and it is still not current even for the month of July and there is only August and September left. Anyways, I have been accepted to a Master's program at the University of Virginia and I require an F-1 student visa as the program starts in early August and I probably wont even get my DV interview. I have already applied for the F-1 visa. As I am a citizen of Belgium, which is part of the Visa Waiver Program, they made me send the documents (such as my passport, I-20, etc.) by courier because I was found eligible for the "Student Interview Waiver". However, they "reserve the right to request an interview" after reviewing my documents. I am really stressed out that I will be denied the F-1 visa because of my submission of a DS-260 over a year ago. The only family I have in the US is my brother who is also on an F-1 visa doing a Master's, otherwise my entire family is in Belgium and UK, so I have strong ties here. I have also shown more than enough financial support on my I-20 and I have a valid ESTA with which I have traveled to the US numerous times without any issues. I currently live in the UK as a resident (EU Settlement Scheme before Brexit), if that makes any difference, and I just finished a Law undergrad. I know that I have shown immigrant intent with the DS-260, but does anyone know of any instances where people have been granted the F-1 Visa despite having a DS-260 application from the DV on file? If I get called to an interview what can I say and what evidence can I show to convince them that I genuinely just want to do the Master's program and return to Europe right after? I submitted the DS-260 because I got selected for the DV, yes, but I genuinely don't feel any need to move to the US for economic/financial/etc reasons. So I would never even think about overstaying my F-1 visa or using it in any way that isn't intended to, such as illegally working, as I am not going to be financially stressed. And even if I got a DV interview (unlikely) in September, it is through consular processing so I would leave the US and come back to Belgium for the interview, meaning that at no point will I have entered the US with my F-1 with the possibility of converting it to a green card. This situation is stressing me out so much I am finding it difficult to sleep. I have no clue what I am going to do next year if I can't get this visa. I have already paid my deposit to the school as well as the off-campus student housing I am going to live in.

If the VB says 'CURRENT', do lower case numbers still get priority? Do they still give out interviews in order of case number?

So is there anything I can do at all to increase my chances of getting interviewed earlier? I am very grateful to have been selected and I do not want to miss out on this opportunity just because of my high case number.

I really hope so but everyone I have talked to in the EU region has a lower case number than me. I literally have not seen a single one higher than mine for EU But I am still hopeful. I have already submitted the DS-260 and prepared all the document needed! I am just waiting for their email telling me to send the documents.

I was selected on my first attempt!!!! I'm a bit worried though because my case number seems to be high and I heard that makes it very unlikely to get an interview. My case number is: 2023EU342XX It has been my dream to move to the US for as long as I can remember. I really hope this works out!!