appleblossom

😂 Enjoy the coffee!

You said you submitted your I-130 last April (2023) though? This is from 1st April 2024. If you had paid the wrong amount for your I-130 then your application would have been rejected, but you were a year ahead of this it seems.

Yes, I've seen other people who have. When did you submit yours? According to the website, they're currently working on those who submitted their docs around 14th June. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/nvc-timeframes.html Just bear in mind that you need to add a bit of time on to that as mailed documents always take a bit longer, I guess they sit in a pile waiting to be opened for a few days.

The consulate gives the availability to NVC once a month, that doesn't mean they send out the IL's just once a month though. They often do it regularly throughout the month i.e. they'll send out spousal IL's one date, then a week later send out EB IL's, etc. Sometimes it's twice a month for categories, spousal cases have had IL's twice in a month before (usually around Xmas I think). If a bunch of people cancel/reschedule their interviews, then they'll fill those slots with others. Basically, what I'm saying is don't be upset if you think you've been missed in a month as there is still a chance of another batch of IL's going out. There is no rhyme or reason to it and no fixed process, it will depend on demand and availability of slots and staff.

I think it is just your paranoia, I bet when the stats come out they'll have done the usual amount. Not everybody is on social media or forums! 6 weeks is perfectly normal, particularly if it was a transfer, usually takes a while longer. So you may well hear very soon, good luck.

Fee change was implemented from 1st April onwards. https://www.uscis.gov/forms/filing-fees/frequently-asked-questions-on-the-uscis-fee-rule

There is often a summer slowdown, nothing to do with the election but rather the increase in student and visitor visas to be processed, and DV applicants being processed before the Sept deadline. So if interviews have slowed down (personally I don’t think they have, it seems to be carrying on as usual) then that’s more likely to be the reason.

They have done twice a month before.

They’re not usually sent out until the end of the month, I wouldn’t worry unless it reaches July with no IL’s.

If he was under 14 when he got his GC, then he needed to file I-90 within 30 days of his 14th birthday to get a new card. I think that's what the OP is referring to.

Ours offers them to engineers, we have a huge number of people worldwide and people transfer all over the time to work on specific projects. When I said I wasn't sure about the level, I just meant for the full expat package, when you get your house, car etc, paid for - possibly that's only for higher level people who transfer rather than everybody. Not sure what you mean by 'salaried positions' though? You wouldn't get a visa for any other kind of job.

His priority date isn't current yet, so there's no visa available to him. It will be transferred once his PD is current and he's added to the queue for an interview, which will be on 1st July. Yes, personally if he's resident in Italy and can prove it, I'd suggest he does request a transfer as it's likely to be quicker. Good luck.

I assume your current company doesn't have locations in the US? There are tons of engineering companies that do, if the new job offer doesn't amount to anything then it might be worth trying to get a job at one of those, working a year or two then asking for a transfer. My company has at least one office in every state and transfers engineers all the time. Not sure of the level they offer this at, but most multi-nationals will offer a full expat assignment too which has massive financial benefits i.e. housing/car/schooling paid for etc, so if you're senior enough that's another reason to go down that route.

Oh that sounds promising, fingers crossed they can find a visa that suits. Good luck.

Also (just read the thread from the beginning again), make sure your sister petitions for you as soon as she becomes a citizen. Just as back up in case you can't find any other way over, it's a long wait but would be sensible to do asap. You don't want to try and move via employment for the next decade and then decide to go down the sibling sponsorship route as you'd have wasted a lot of time by then. Also, is Canada of any interest? They have a skilled trade route that would be much more feasible.

As above, for EB-3 skilled you need 2 years experience, or 2 years training, for the job. So you don't qualify at the moment, but could do in a couple of years if you get a job doing it in the UK first - https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/permanent-workers/employment-based-immigration-third-preference-eb-3 But if you can give more info about the job and location then somebody can try and help, it may be that there's the option of the unskilled EB-3 instead. Also, just in case you're not aware, the EB-3 takes many years. If you look at the next month's VB then you'll see that those with skilled EB-3 apps who applied before December 2021 are only just eligible to apply for visas, for unskilled it's those who applied before Jan 2021. So 4-5 years ish of waiting as a rough guide once you've added on the LC PERM step. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin/2024/visa-bulletin-for-july-2024.html So do just check that your friend is happy to wait and keep the job open that long for you. Good luck.

I agree that most jobs can qualify with a good lawyer to spin it, but they will have had experience in those jobs. As the bit you've quoted above says, 2 years experience in the job or training for the job is required to qualify for the visa - the OP has neither from what he's said. The OP hasn't said where this job is or what is it, but if it's not in an undesirable location and/or a job that no USC wants to do, then the chances of the LC being granted are slim at best too.

If nothing's changed (i.e. you were US citizen living there last time too, they haven't retired since, etc), then there's a good chance it'll be granted. Best of luck.

Even if the friend is willing to spend a fortune and go through all the paperwork/hassle, there's no chance of an EB-3 for a job that the OP has no experience in IMO. If he can get a job in the UK doing the same thing for a couple of years so that he can show he has relevant skills/experience to the job offer, then that's a different matter. @JEC88, what's the job?

They may well have other routes that got them there i.e. working whilst on a student visa, diversity visa, investment, family based, etc. But for work visas then yes, you do usually need specialist skills, it's just not worth an employer going through all the hassle and spending all the money to hire you otherwise. So if you really want to go to the US then look at it as a long term project and work your way towards it. Get yourself a degree if you don't have one already, find a job in a multi-national company, work your way up until you can request a transfer maybe. Or save like hell until you qualify for an investment visa. Or enter the DV and hope you get lucky (if you're eligible). Good luck.

You don't apply for anything, the company does. If you don't have experience doing the job, then I can't see any visa being granted tbh. It sounds like your mate is trying to do you a favour and giving you a job offer when they could just hire a US citizen with experience to do it, so that won't work. But your friend/potential employer needs to hire an immigration lawyer if they don't have one already, and then they can see if there is any route to a visa for you. Good luck.

Yes, exactly. You apply as normal, same as everybody else - the system will decide if you qualify or not and tell you. If you weren't in the US when your parents last applied, you may find that's a factor, as now they have a relative in the US and may be less likely to be granted a visa.

They do know the process - as above, you don’t apply specifically for an interview waiver. You apply for the visa as normal, and then you’ll be told if you qualify for the interview waiver or not. I had an interview waiver last year for my NIV, I just applied and then had an email telling me my interview had been waived as I met the criteria.

I said above - WOM (suing to force a decision) sounds like the way to go.

Everybody has Admin Processing at some point. My status was only AP for a couple of hours though before it changed to issued (also UK). Hopefully yours will change soon as well. Did the medical clinic not offer to do your missing vaccinations? They usually do and then that would have avoided all this.