JannaB

Was the NZ police check mixed up like the Aussie one? The NVC didn’t recognize the correct one as legitimate? We were together a long while in Taiwan ut I slipped home early summer and hoped the wait wouldn’t be too long. It’s going to be five months, actually, if he does indeed get visa with the interview Nov 29 and hops a flight soon after! Aargh!

I am thrilled for you that Whitney at Sen Merkley’s office really helped. Did she say she knew about the reason code problem? We might’ve been ones to alert her, maybe. Our Oregon immigration lawyer thinks highly of her! It seems only US congress men/women have a phone line directly to NVC. And they WILL try to help. It’s such a LONG trek, legal immigration, and too many hoops! I’m sorry the wait line for interview at US consulate in Australia is long. I’ve heard it’s 8-9 months. Is that what you have? My English hubby is a Taiwan resident and after he was DQd about Sept 29, his interview in Taipei was set two months out. Fingers crossed that we’re together in Oregon before Christmas!! Best wishes to you both for swift results and happy times ahead!! Will you settle in Oregon? We’ll be in a Portland suburb.

Ah, Webber777, I’m so sorry! It’s terrible the way we’re all being treated! US immigration needs MORE employees or a streamlined method! This system now is totally NUTTY!

Webber777 … I’m sorry, I guess I need to clarify. Just because someone needs an Australian police check for US immigration doesn’t necessarily mean that they actually still live in Australia. It could mean that they once lived in Australia for a year or longer. And that’s my husband’s case. He now lives in Taiwan and so his immigration interview is there at the American Institute Taipei, a quasi consulate. Sorry for the confusion. Your situation does not match up in this respect. Our case’s counselor processing will not take place in Australia but in Taiwan. 😎

I’m so sorry about these frustrating difficulties! I just don’t have an answer!!

Dear everyone, Just letting you know that husband finally has been scheduled for his immigration visa (1R1) interview! It’s a bit farther out from now than we’d like at 8-weeks (from end of Sept to end of Nov). Looks like he can join me in the US in time for Christmas!! As I wrote in this thread earlier, the AFP reason code #33 we submitted in the second try after #35 was denied was, indeed, accepted and processing time took anout 68-70 days. We sent #33 electronic version and followed up with scan of hard copy front and back (There was some verbiage on the back.). Blessings to you all and best wishes for speedy processing of all your applications!

Yes. That’s what I remember that we did. We printed both sides; scanned both; sent both via internet to NVC.. Ordered hard copy, also, to come by regular mail and saved it in our file with all the other original documents needed for the immigration interview, eventually.

US Senators don’t charge for their help. An immigration lawyer will. NVC will fix duplicates. Just submit electronic copy. Submit front and back, of course. Why scan and send the hard copy? It’s basically identical?

Oklahoma US Senators are easy to reach by Email or by phone. Senator Inhofe https://www.inhofe.senate.gov/contact/email-jim Senator Lankford https://www.lankford.senate.gov

Anzuu, Your AFP looks exactly like mine! Here’s what I would do now: 1. Attach a small note to the bottom (in the blank space) of the document and write, “This is the correct AFP using reason code #33. It confirms there are NO DISCLOSABLE OUTCOMES.” Scan it. Resubmit it online to NVC right away. 2. Write an Email to both US Senators from your husband’s home state. Tell them what you have shared here about the AFP problem, twice rejected, once rejected by NVC error, that you just submitted #33 to NVC a second time, what kind of visa you seek and what city/state your American spouse lives. Tell them that apparently Australia updated the appearance of their police check documents and you have been told that some NVC agents might not recognize the new one. Ask for help. By the way, in what US state does your husband live? You can look up the names of those two Senators online and Email them I am not an immigration lawyer. I am just a citizen. However, after reading these posts and learning from my own experience, that is what I would do. Please seek advice from a practicing US immigration lawyer who will guide you best and help you avoid mistakes that cause further delays. Best wishes!

Anzuu … my experience is applying for an IR1 immigrant visa. I’m married to a foreign husband over two years. We needed from AFP both a digital police check AND a hard copy. The digital one was sent online to NVC. The hard copy was saved in my husband’s packet of documents he needs to take to his immigration interview at the embassy.

I’m not an immigration lawyer and so I don’t know why your AFP reason code #33 was rejected. If your AFP has the exact same wording as ours, then I think NVC made a mistake. They do sometimes make mistakes, unfortunately!!! We submitted the AFP digital copy because that’s the only way to submit documents to NVC. We also ordered a hard paper copy from AFP sent to my husband he must have it to present at the immigration interview eventually. A hard copy of every document scanned and sent to NVC must be presented in person at the interview. Contact one of your US citizen spouse’s two US Senators from the state in which he lives. It’s a US Senator not a state senator … they are different. Each state has two elected US Senator’s who work in the US Capitol in Washington DC. I’m truly sorry this is been such a frustrating experience for you. I hope you don’t continue to lose any sleep over it. There is nothing I can do to help you sort this out. I am just an American citizen who is married to a foreigner like you. I am trying to help my husband immigrate to the United States. That’s all.

Good luck to you for speedy resolution and opportunity to move forward expediently! My wait time was about 68 days but who knows? Everyone is different. And, by the way, someone on this thread just posted that their #33 was just rejected! What’s wrong with the people at NVC? Aargh!

Cannot share Emails! Unsafe, of course. That makes sense!! The words I sent from our own AFP #33 document are correct. That’s all you need. Compare those words with your AFP document. If it reads the same exactly, then you do have the correct AFP. Contact the US Senator from your/your spouse’s own home state. Look the name and information up online. That’s all I can suggest. Good luck.

Oh! Thank you!!

Oh my goodness! I don’t blame you for your frustration! Totally maddening!! Tell me your Email address and I’ll share with you what I can. Make the subject line about this topic so I know it’s not spam. Meantime, we received the AFP document generated using reason code #33. The top lines read as follows: IMMIGRATION/CITIZENSHIP - AUSTRALIA Name Check Only This is to certify there are no disclosable court outcomes against the name of… NAME born on DATE Contact your US Senator’s constituent services staffer ASAP. They’re about the only ones who can call NVC directly and talk to a human being there on your behalf. One of my US senator’s here in Oregon has been very helpful in this way. Best wishes!

FYI … on Sept 19, we were DQd by NVC and they accepted AFP check reason code 33!

✅ ok!

Oh, got it. You’re busy now getting everything in order so you’re all set to upload as soon as NVC contacts you. We’re well beyond that and considerably slowed down by pandemic issues, misc bureaucracy and then NVC rejecting husband’s AFP because it was the wrong Inquiry code selection. That put our case back into the pile again for another … 70+ days? No idea, really. Good luck. Hope you lovebirds are both together! We’re not. I returned to OR and hoped time gap would be short. Fingers crossed!! Best wishes for smooth and speedy processing!

Great! Curious if you’re applying for fiancé visa or already married? We’ve been wed over two years so ours is a IR1. Have you completed the I-130 and now working on DS-260 like us?

Chanel - You’re also an Oregonian? Our senators are Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden. You do not need to be a registered voter in order to contact them. In fact, you can simply say you are an Oregonian. I contacted Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley and got a rapid response from his staff member for constituent issues. I just wrote her again yesterday on this very question (AFP denials) after reading the Visa Journey latest posts. You may also need to go online to his website to fill out a form. Good luck! That there are two Oregonians facing this SAME concern (NVC and AFP denials), it may even get more attention! Maybe. Here’s the Email address to use and I suggest you create an attention getting subject line: Whitney_NavarroCastillo@merkley.senate.gov

Friends … I’ve no information about NZ police checks because we just need Australia’s AFP. Sorry those NZ ones are also problematic! To verify we had ordered the correct Australia AFP in June (inquiry code #33), we asked my own US Senator Jeff Merkley (Oregon) for help. His Constituent Services Director contacted NVC directly and quickly on our behalf. I imagine all US Senators have such a staffer. Reach out to them; that’s my only suggestion. If you’ve uploaded document from #33 code request and it’s been rejected twice (!!), then I’m truly sorry and worried we may have same result soon!! We used #35 first and received an RFE. We quickly sent in document from code #33 request in late June and it was officially submitted into our case file on July 18, 2022. It’s now Sept 14, 2022. Still waiting! This is the last piece of paper we believe is needed to complete our case and move to an interview date. Thus, we’re also on pins and needles! Maybe NVC simply doesn’t know what the correct AFP document #33 even looks like!!! Our AFP code #33 resulting document reads: “Immigration/Citizenship-Australia. Name Check Only. This is to certify that there are no disclosable court case outcomes recorded against the name of …” FYI … here’s what Sen Merkley’s staffer replied,

It’s September now. They consider October or November as “expedited?” Good Grief! The more I know, the more I grieve for ourselves and all other reasonable people caught up in this absurd maze! So, one of you is Canadian and the other US. One of us is UK and other, me, is US. Always thought that as a US citizen, getting my legal spouse (no funny business) here living with me happily ever after, especially a he’s a Brit, would be a simple slam dunk. Nuts to that dream !! 😳

Any news on how your expedite request is going? We don’t qualify as there really aren’t any urgent or extenuating circumstances that rise to the required level of urgency. Being married and living alone waiting for my husband to get here is a matter of urgency to ME but … well … we wait !

Wow! Good luck with everything!!!