Des Loves Cindy

Hello All

My fiancee is a Nigerian citizen and we were approved on 01-16-09 but our case was transfered to the worng consulate's office and we have been in contact with Lagos trying to get them to request our case from the other consulates office. We have been told to send an eamil and we have done so (at least 30) with no response. We have called with no help. Does anyone have any suggestions?

NVC has sent our application to the wrong embassy. Does anyone have a working number for Lagos Embassy and any infromation as to how to handle this situation.

Where did it go and where do you want it to go?

It went to Casablanca Morocco. My SO was there however he returned to Nigeria. On our I 129f application question 20 ask what embassy do you want to handle your case and we put Lagos, Nigeria. I brought that to the attention of NVC and they say there is nothing they can do. I have my SO going to the embassy in Lagos on Monday to explain what has happened to see if they can request our records be sent there. I am hoping this is the right move. I have called and called every number I can find with no help. I have sent emails as well so I am still waiting.

NVC has sent our application to the wrong embassy. Does anyone have a working number for Lagos Embassy and any infromation as to how to handle this situation.

i found this on another site. Thought it might be helpful for others preparing for the interview. It is about preparing the documents for interview at embassy.

The Filipino interviewer and the consul were very happy with the organization of my documents, and I do think that it helped show them I meant business. In fact, the consul told me that he’s giving me a gold star for the way I organized them. LOL

I only gave them what’s needed, nothing extra. And all papers were bound in flexible plastic folders. Please note “FLEXIBLEâ€. As Ate G explained before my interview date, “imagine a glass between you and the interviewer. The bottom of the glass touches the table, so it’s a flat surface.†In the middle of that table divider, there is a foot long slot where the papers would go through. It slopes 2-3 inches down, and 2 inches inside and out, except upwards.

Only papers and flexible plastics would go through. The hard side binders, spirals and covers will NEVER go through. So rule of thumb: stack your documents less than an inch, or even half an inch together. DO NOT use hardbound covers for your photo albums and document covers.

I’ve noticed that some interviewers got annoyed at applicants who took forever in submitting their documents and photos, as these applicants had to take out the photos from the albums one by one. It was time consuming. I followed the advices here and taped my photos in bond paper, and put captions below them.

How to Get a Gold Star

In clear plastic separates for easy access: the Filipino interviewers and personnel will take these papers one at a time:

A. Appointment Letter and valid ID

(will be shown to the guards before you enter the embassy)

B. DS Forms

(staple 2 sets of DS 156 and DS 157. DS 156K alone)

- Use the DS 157 form that the bank gave you (if the form is still valid: 2005–2007 version) in set A. The validation numbers are at the back of this paper. And a downloaded version in set B. Detach the pink slip or bank receipt from the form. You won’t need to submit that.

- Handwritten or typed-up forms are both ok. Mine are combination typed up and handwritten. I even had white-tape erasures, and they were ok. If you must correct something, make it neat.

- Paste/glue the pictures beforehand.

- In Nationality, put “Philippines.â€

- Answer the “Do Not Write Below This Line†part with your fiancé/e’s name, your signature and date. Do not write on anything that pertains to the consul’s part – his signature and date.

- Do NOT skip any lines. If any of the numbers are not applicable to you, write N/A or None. In number 40, if you yourself have filled out the forms, put “SELF†and N/A on succeeding lines.

- Failure to do above things will result in more delays. A couple of people have been asked to step aside because their forms were incomplete, and they were put at the back of the line.

C. Identification papers and police clearances

(only the first 3 were asked from me, and they were all together in one plastic separate)

- NSO Birth certificate

- NBI Clearance

- Police Certificate/s from the countries you stayed in for 6 months or more.

Other identification papers that were asked from other applicants

- Baptismal Certificate

- Divorce decrees

- Death certificates

- Annulment papers

In flexible plastic folders with plastic fillers, color-coded for easy reference as well. I took out the spiral side binders of the plastic folders and in its place, I bound the plastic fillers with button fasteners. I was afraid that the long fasteners would not be flexible enough to slip through the slot.

--D. Affidavit of Support

--E. Proof of Engagement

--F. Other Documents for Proof of Continuous Relationship

--G. Proof of Meeting Prior to Application

From me, they only asked for folders D and E. The papers were inserted one by one in plastic fillers, back to back.

D. Affidavit of support papers

Folder 1

- Notarized Form I-134

- Tony’s Employment Letter

- 2004 Tax Copies (Tax Transcripts and E-filing)

- 2004 W2 Copies

- Sample Recent Pay Stubs – Copies

(Originals were available for reference, but they did not ask to see those)

(Those are all I submitted. The 2002-2003 forms were in a separate folder, as I have read that some Filipino interviewers only glance at those to make sure your fiancé pays taxes, and has a stable job, then gives them back to the applicant. I did not want to clutter the folder with unnecessary papers, just in case she was just going to glance at them and return them to me.)

The Filipino interviewer asked me for the 2003 OR 2004 tax files and W2’s. So I assumed she wanted the most recent year. I showed her my folder’s front cover that has the above listed documents. She took the whole folder, and did not ask for the other previous years’ documents. I believe my “packaging†paid off.

Folder 2

- Tax transcripts, e-file reports and W2’s for the last 3 years (I had 5 years included just to make sure. Plus I had it anyway, so why not?)

In clear plastic separates, I also had the following optional papers, JUST IN CASE they asked for it. In my case, they didn’t ask for these. But some applicants were asked for the following:

- Bank letter/statements

- Insurance papers

- Stocks/Bonds, etc.

E. Proof of Engagement Documents and Photos

(in flexible plastic folders, stacked back to back)

- Renewed Letter of Intent to Marry

- Engagement Ring Receipt

- Engagement Photos (with Captions)

- May’s Wedding Dress Design

- Wedding Rings Design

- More Photos (with Captions)

F. Other Documents for Proof of Continuous Relationship

(in plastic separates)

- Snail mails, cards and postal envelopes and waybills (they vary in sizes and bulky when stacked together)

- Electronic Correspondences (bound in folder, with button fasteners)

---> Sample Yahoo! VIDEO Chats (Screen dump, 7 pages)

---> E-mail Correspondences (5 of his, 5 of mine)

---> Screen Shots of Yahoo! Messenger Archive - Everyday Conversations

---> Sample Yahoo CHAT Logs (one per month)

- Money Transfer Receipts (In plastic separates)

- Sample Phone Bills –Tony (In plastic separates)

- Sample Phone Bills – May (In plastic separates)

G. Proof of Meeting Prior to Application

(In flexible plastic folder, stacked back to back)

- Immigration Stamped Passport Page

- PAL Receipt for Tony’s 2 Day Extension

- Tony’s Itinerary from the Travel Agency

- Tony’s Original Boarding Passes

- Tony’s Airline Tickets

- Hotel Receipts during Tony’s visit

***NOTE: Folders F and G are optional! As some interviewers ask for snail mails, emails and chat logs. In my case, my Filipino interviewer did not even ask for anything else, except for our photos, since she said, “Your initial application papers are complete, and is already very thick with your documented proof. So I will only ask for some pictures.†I handed her Folder E and she was very happy with it.

***Another NOTE: They do look at all the pictures closely, and may even ask you about them. So be sure you know the stories behind the pictures. Submit the cheesiest ones you can find. LOL

TIPS in organizing your documents:

1. Make your documents look very presentable and clutter-free. Your organization will make it easy for you and the consul. You may even win some smiles from the grumpiest Filipino interviewers and consuls!

2. Use side tabs for easy reference.

3. Use color-coding, but avoid neons!

4. Use button fasteners, instead of long fasteners.

5. DO NOT stack your papers too thick. They will not pass through the slot. Maximum thickness should be half an inch. And make sure that the stack will be flexible enough, as they will be bent when passing though the slot.

6. DO NOT use hard-bound covers, hard side binders, and thick photo-albums. In fact, drop the idea. You might earn the ire of a grumpy Filipino interviewer if your documents and photos are in hard covers, and you would find yourself taking them out from the binder one at a time.

7. Use paper clips if you don’t have plastic separates. Plastic separates are ideal for thick stack of papers like affidavit of support papers (if you don’t want to put them in folders), snail mails and cards, identification documents, and other papers that you need to take out in haste.

8. Know where your documents are! Don’t mix your proof of relationship documents with the financial documents.

9. Most importantly, your documents should be COMPLETE! Some applicants left the embassy in tears, and were put in AR because they lacked important documents.

These are only tips and suggestions. I may have gone overboard with my document organization (you think? ), but these worked for me. Prettiness and neatness may only be icing on the cake, but the cake sure did look more appetizing with it. I was sure the cake inside it was good enough! But with this icing, I put the interviewer and consul in good moods, and left them smiling. A smiling interviewer is always a good sign. Plus, you might even earn a gold star! LOL

Thanks

Hello Everyone

Just wanted to let you all know that we were approved on January 16, 2009. Went to the mail box today and the approval notice was there. We never got any touches or notices sent to us through email. It's been 155 days! I tell you it is so, so hard to be patient and wait. Can anyone tell me what our next steps are?

Hello Everyone

Just wanted to let you all know that we were approved on January 16, 2009. Went to the mail box today and the approval notice was there. We never got any touches or notices sent to us through email. It's been 155 days! I tell you it is so, so hard to be patient and wait. Can anyone tell me what our next steps are?

Hey I am the Queen of page 308!!!

Congrats on your approval!!!! my NOA1 date is Aug 15th!!! I am so happy for you!!!! wujuuuuuuu

My friend here can tell you a bit more about next steps ... first of all you should start writen or calling NVC to see if they got your case and know when they send it to your embassy!

Thanks so much and I am praying that you will be next!!!!! Thanks for the info too!!

Hello Everyone

Just wanted to let you all know that we were approved on January 16, 2009. Went to the mail box today and the approval notice was there. We never got any touches or notices sent to us through email. It's been 155 days! I tell you it is so, so hard to be patient and wait. Can anyone tell me what our next steps are?

Hello Everyone

Just wanted to let you all know that we were approved on January 16, 2009. Went to the mail box today and the approval notice was there. We never got any touches or notices sent to us through email. It's been 155 days! I tell you it is so, so hard to be patient and wait. Can anyone tell me what our next steps are?

Hey I am the Queen of page 308!!!

gross

mbk

Thanks so much!

Does anyone know that when considering if you have enough income (I-134 Affidavit of Support) for your family size, do they consider your gross or net income? Called USCIS on two seperate occasions and guess what- two diffrent answers?? Can anyone help?

Thanks so much!

I've maintained for a while that the lists look worse then they actually are. A lot of people on Visa Journey make a timeline and then dont come back to update them. Which is understandable if you consider the lag time between filing and getting approved. If your not a regular user to this site, youre likely to forget about a timeline you made 4 - 6 months ago.

I think the key to looking at Igors is not to look at the number of petitions approved but rather at the dates of the petitions being approved, especially with California which goes pretty much in order. Vermont seems to go out of order fairly regularly though. Look at the dates being approved and the number of days passed since submission. For California they are processing people who have about 130 - 140 days passed. This has been consistent for months regardless of the number of approvals week by week. If your Noa is in that date range, its a good guess you will hear from them soon. This is why I think a good many people dont update their profiles right away (if ever). You can even click on the names of people that should have NoA 2 and see a lot of them havent been seen around for months. Its a good guess those people have been approved but just never bothered to come back.

and we must not forget that there are so many more people who are not on visajourney who are receiving approvals. maybe there weren't that many vj applicants getting processed this week but i am sure they are still churning them out at both the vsc and the csc!

like i said, while we were waiting for our noa2 there were plenty of weeks with few to no approvals and i know how disheartening that is but it will happen eventually, just be patient and say positive.

edit: perhaps you could start preparing for the information you need at the next stage. does everyone have their tax stuff in order?

I am done.

Paperwork ready. Documentation ready. Vaccinations complete. Been over the list a 100 times and nothing left to do. All ducks lined up and quacking.

wow! well then all you can do is be patient. your time will come soon enough i am sure.

Hear's hoping!

I have made my own list off Igor's...removing the inactive ones There is a lot of really old ones there never been updated.

Hey

Would you mind sharing a copy of your igor list???

sometimes that is how it goes, sadly. some weeks are more productive than others and i have no idea why but i am sure the elections have had an effect on it this time. i hope there are more approvals for everyone next week. stay positive!

Thanks

do you ever look at igor's list?

http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/igor/vjdata/vsc.aspx

it says someone was approved on monday.

the elections have probably had an effect on the processing but now they are over lets hope they start moving again. don't worry, i know it doesn't feel like it now but you'll get there in the end.

Yes, I have looked at the igor list- only about 1 million times during the day. I was trying to make reference to the amount of approval and its almost the end of the week.

what do you mean by "I don't understand this claim from VSC of working on apps with no later than July 1, 2008."?

They are currently working on petitions that have been filed 3 to 6 months ago.They claim they are working on petitions received 6 months ago.

Where did you get July?

Here is the link- look to the right of the screen and you will see a section that says Approximate Processing Dates

for Common Forms: and then it gives the date of July 1, 2008.

http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/

Approximate Processing Dates

for Common Forms: For VSC it says July 1, 2008

Can anyone help me with understanding this?? On the igor list I see many applications there that are from April, May and maybe even later if I am correct.

I don't understand this claim from VSC of working on apps with no later than July 1, 2008.

Thanks

Cindy

Welcome Cindy and Desmond !

Thanks so much!!!

Hello Everyone

My name is Cindy and my So is Desmond. We would like to join you all hear and get our names on your watch list for those waiting for visas.

Thanks

Just thought I would ask if anyone knows approximately how many people are on the VSC igor list that should not bee there??? I have notice that there are some there that you can not used the link for. I guess because time lines have not been complete. Why are they on the list?

Thanks

Took a look at the Processing Timeframes for Vermont and it says this----- Service Center Processing Dates for Vermont Service Center as of: August 31, 2008. When you look down at the K1 procesing dates it says 6 months. Can anyone tell me what this means?? What six months???

Thanks

Cindy

I just called and asked them that question. This means that the processing time from that date you filed to the date processed is 6 months.

Thanks

I hate this waiting!!!

Took a look at the Processing Timeframes for Vermont and it says this----- Service Center Processing Dates for Vermont Service Center as of: August 31, 2008. When you look down at the K1 procesing dates it says 6 months. Can anyone tell me what this means?? What six months???

Thanks

Cindy

Hello

Just want to know if anyone out there can tell me how trustworthy is the igor list. We are number 255 and I also wanted to know if anyone had a good guess at how much longer it will be. I know its hard to say but just wanted to get some feed back. If anyone can give me some back ground on the list, would be fabulous.

Cindy

Hello,

I've been here for quite sometime now, I've been reading a lot of post to get me familiarized on any situations may occur when my time comes. I've been reading a lot of expriences and stories and mostly good and succesful one. Im also inlove with a man with different culture and he's the greatest for me. Im looking forward for the reality of our dreams and eventually be together. Comes february is our first meeting and plan to get me as his fiance. Hope when that time comes i can ask opinions from all of you here guys.......

Welcome to you and I pray that your journey will be a quick one for you and your loved one!

Cindy

I am pretty sure you will have your NOA2 coming soon! Goodluck guys!

Thanks so much for the encouragement. Boy, the waiting is really hard. I will be praying for you and your SO.

Thanks

Another touch today!!!

We got a touch today!!!

Congrats

Thanks so much!!!

We got a touch today!!!

Congrats

Thanks

congrats

Thanks

We got a touch today!!!