Hokie97

Hi folks,

It's been 5 weeks since i sent away my packet with all the forms.. and i can honestly say the waiting is really wearing thin now.. i mean i dont even know if they got the package, in this day and age is it too much to ask for a simple acknowledgement, i dont think so.

I don't have experience with calling to check the status, but I am wondering how you shipped it? This is my timeline regarding getting an interview letter:

When I mailed mine I sent it next day and had confirmation that it was signed for. It was exactly 4 weeks after that that we got a letter saying I'd missed a form (there were three applications I was sending in - I was so mad at myself!). I had that delivered to the embassy two days later and it was another 4 weeks until I got an interview date - 8 weeks later. I called and got the email and moved my interview date up to 4 weeks away instead of 8.

4 weeks seemed to be the average when I was looking at other people's timelines, but of course that can change from month to month. I mailed it next day and it took 4. If you sent it regular mail, you could easily add a few days to a week on to the delivery, upping the 4 weeks to 5.

I hope that you hear something soon.

Just checked the DX website and our passports are due to be delivered tomorrow

Hokie you are sooo organised.

Yay for you!

I've always been fairly organized, but this process has made me more so. The visa stuff as well as going from single to running a house of four. I'm just so afraid of screwing something up or forgetting to do something.

I'm finding this waiting part really hard.

I understand. {hugs} I am not a good "waiter" in the best situations - the doctor's office, the post office, anywhere! - but this constant waiting for the next step is killer. I was just looking back on our timeline, and we mailed our first document Nov 6th I think. It's been waiting since then. And even now, there is the waiting until we move, because our lives are in limbo. And even when we finally do move, then there is still in the back of my mind that we need to remember the AOS in 22 months ($$$), and hopefully naturalization in 36 months ($$$). And then their UK passports need renewing in 5 years ($$$), and by then hopefully they'll be US citizens, so those passports will need to be renewed ($$). I have lists and timelines and reminders in the computer. It never ends, the waiting and the expense.

Hokie, have you received yours now?

Yes, they delivered mid morning today.

So sorry about that Rito. Hopefully it'll be the first thing on their to do list tomorrow.

ohlpomr - That sucks. Did they have instructions for getting it redelivered?

So you mean that if you never had any MMR done as a child, and only have the one jab as an adult, they'll ask you to do an immunity test? I'll have to ask when I call tomorrow to book ours.

My husband went in with no history at all and they gave him one there and that is all that he needs to meet his requirements. He assumes he had one (or two) as a child, but obviously doesn't know. I think the immunity test is just if you would rather not get an extra vaccine that you don't "need" to protect you. If you don't mind, they'll give you one and that should be all you need.

We just got a text that said the courier will be delivering tomorrow between 8 and 6. That will be the third business day. There was also an option to upgrade to a specific time of day delivery(which you also could have done at the embassy), but we'd made plans to be here all day anyway so no sense in spending the extra money.

Welcome W+M!

We just got a text that the courier will be delivering tomorrow between 8 and 6. Yay!

But other than that it was okay. The staff were really nice and I was out within 40 minutes. I had an appointment at 3.30 and there were only 2 other people there when I arrived and no one when I left so that may be the last appointment of the day. If you don't want to wait around I'd say the later you can get your appointment the better. The surgery was really easy to find - their map is good and it's easy enough to get around on the tube.

Lucky you! Our appointment was at 1:10 and we were there for over three hours

Which one did you go to? We found it very difficult to find the Bentick Mansions one based on their map.

Congratulations Vanessa! I just read your review. It's good you could go out and get the extra $$ you needed without having to wait again.

Plus, your experience at the interview is a really good reminder to all of us awaiting interview to make sure we prepare our proof of intent to reestablish domicile. Some people have said that London is being more strict on that issue recently. My husband definitely now knows what to anticipate being asked, and how he should answer.

I was surprised that all they wanted from me was my lease (it was an email print out, nothing official) and a photocopy of my voter registration card. I offered the lease, he asked to see the voter card (it was listed the statement I handed him). To me, having a voter registration card in my possession does not prove anything as far as my intent to return to the US. I had all this stuff ready and he didn't want any of it. Honestly, his tone was almost apologetic, as if to say you meet all the requirements, but I have to get you to prove this because they make me... I don't know, it's just how it seemed to me.

Congratulations Hokie97! That's great news, I was thinking about you yesterday, and eagerly checked in this afternoon to see if there was any news from you or londonhornet. Thanks for the thorough review-- I'm happy that everything went smoothly. Will you please post it over in the UK DCF Thread, to help some of the other London DCFers? Also, would you mind updating your timeline again when you actually get the passports back in hand, as that's very helpful information for those of us who want to move ASAP after the interview.

Yay! Have a great weekend!!!

Thanks. I feel this huge weight off my shoulders right now. Now I can focus on all the other stuff we have to get done prior to the move.

I just posted it over on the other thread. Thanks for reminding me. I will update again when I get the passports back. They said we should expect them in less than a week.

Hi everybody. We just got back from London today and our interview yesterday was great. The word "interview" really doesn't describe it... the only question they asked was directed at my husband, and was "where are you moving to?"

I posted my review on my timeline here: http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=70063

They said we should have the passports back within a week.

Thanks Y&E. Congrats on finishing your website.

I just posted my review on my timeline: http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=70063

We just got back from our trip to London. We were approved and now all we've got to do is pick a moving day (and a shipping company, and get rid of the rest of our stuff, lol). Will be back later with a full write up. You all were right, when it's over I really did go "that's it?" As we walked away from the window both kids said "now what?" and we told them, we're done, we just have to move

Thanks so much to everyone here. What a weight off my shoulders!

Thanks everyone for the well wishes. Will see you all here on Saturday.

Tomorrow night we leave for London for our interviews Friday morning. My nerves are getting the best of me, even though I know that we haven't done anything wrong or left out anything. This whole process is so frustrating, and I'm up to my ears in boxes.. walking around them, tripping over them, knocking them over. I know it's best to have everything packed and ready (so I can get a good estimate of size for shipping companies), but living another 60+ days like this is going to drive me nuts (as if I wasn't nuts already!).

That's quite a turn around... going back the other way. How were you with raising your kids here by the way? Fiance's said to me if we ever have kids, they're being raised here in the UK. (I disagreed because I hate our system... but she knows best )

Mm. It's surprising what you find and realise what you can live without. Well I've got a few spares... I don't know how I'd get them to you, mind. Is there anyone you know that might be able to get hold of some for you?

Our original plan was to stay here about four years, I'd get British citizenship, all that. But then we had an offer in the US that we could not refuse. My kids are my step kids (husband is a widower) and they are 12 and 14, so I can't really give an insight into raising kids here. Other than to say that I do regret that if we have kids I won't have the social groups that they have for parents here. England seems like a nice place to have small children. But as far as education, I can't wait to get the kids to the US. I know part of it that I just don't understand the system here, and I've had my husband, the kids, and their teachers try to explain it to me. I don't know how kids learn with no homework and tests where the grades don't matter.

I parted with a lot of things before moving here, but kept the basics that I could store at my parent's house for the eventual move back. Wish I'd kept more now, but we've got enough to furnish our place. My husband has come a long way in his ability to part with things, I am so proud of him. What I am most amazed by is the kids. At first they didn't want to leave anything, but after talking with them and explaining (what it's taken me years to understand) that memories aren't things. We told them, if you want to keep this the rest of your life (or at least until you live on your own), we'll take it with us. But if you're never going to read that book again, or wear that favorite shirt, if you're not going to display that trinket, how much do you really love it? Love it, use it, wear it were our mottos. If it's going to sit in a box for years, leave it. It really worked for us.

The company I contacted today has a special with boxes, you have to buy them, but then they take the price off in the end. I know we'll get a hold of enough, it's just the not being able to drive up to a store and take them away. You really take that for granted when you don't have to worry about it.

I tried 1st Move and put an email across to them, however they indicated that they'd need to consult their agents in Seattle, and haven't got back tome since. (Some 3 days ago.)

I'm actually considering taking with me exactly what I'll want/need first of all, then having everything else shipped out later on. Even if it's a single box or I cram it all into my two suitcases.

Thanks for letting me know how they were with you. I had thought we'd go with Upackweship, but then I contacted Pickfords and their estimate with them packing was within £200 of the pack it ourselves place. I moved here a year ago and just brought two suitcases with me. Now we're moving my husband and two children to the US. We've gotten rid of almost everything, are only taking a desk and boxes with us. In fact, if it wasn't for the desk, I'd probably go with a DHL's cheaper alternative, I forget the name right now.

The most frustrating part for me (right now) is getting boxes. A year without a car and that is my biggest frustration with not having a car, go figure! We don't have anyone here in England that could keep our stuff for us, so we've got to send it before we leave. We've still got about 8 weeks, so I'm hopeful. I'm really impressed with what we've already tossed and packed up.

jhphi I will probably take a few photos now that you mention it. What will it hurt? Besides my back carrying all this stuff in Better to have it and it not be looked at than to have to send it later. I've gotten so anxious now that I started making my husband read the instructions as well just to make sure I didn't mis-read something.

I have a question for you all. It's regarding the Leaving The UK forms. Does anyone have any experience with these? I printed out the P85 today, but none of it applies to my husband. He does not own property or have insurance and is not leaving to work. He has been on benefits, so his taxes are already paid for... Is there anything else that we need to fill out? We will contact all the benefits people as soon as we set our move date so all of that can be canceled.

We used 1st Move International because we were impressed with how they put everything on a pallet and super wrapped it. And they band & tag it when it's packed so you know it can't be pilfered through without you knowing. See the sequence of pictures across This link. We picked up our own things since we live near the port of Houston, so got to see our actual pallet. It looked just like the last picture and was still sealed with the band they put on it so we know nothing was opened enroute. A guy brought it out on a forklift and loaded it in the pick-up truck. Then because it was so tall, they helped cut it open and stack the boxes in a more reasonable way in the truck. Everything arrived in perfect condition, but we packed carefully and used a lot of bubble wrap on anything fragile. Do fill your boxes so things can't jostle around in free space. If a box seems too heavy full of CDs or books, then half fill it and stuff some t-shirts or jeans to fill up the empty space.

Here's a link to a document that explains alot about moving your household goods to the US written by the Customs and Border Protection. It is a 35 page word document and is where I learned a lot of information http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/newsroom/publications/travel/moving_goods.ctt/moving.doc

I hadn't run across their name before, but I like them! The video on the website about how they pack and palletize explained a lot about how this stuff fits on the boat and how it doesn't get mixed up with other people's things. I requested a quote. Did you take advantage of the rebate on the boxes you can order from their "prefered partner?" We don't have a car, so getting a hold of boxes has been a challenge.

Sorry guys, just a quick question that doesn't really require its own thread. I called/emailed the embassy on the 6th and I was just wondering how long they usually take to reply to emails?

Thanks, Tom.

I emailed on a Tuesday early afternoon and got a reply that Friday. Hope you hear something soon.

Congratulations musikgal06! I'm glad that everything went well with him today. That's an early morning call I'm sure you didn't mind

My husband had his medical in January and he had to get more information to send to Knightsbridge because he had an abnormal ecg prior to a surgery in Feb 2009 and he had high blood pressure the day of the medical. He had to make an appointment with his GP, go to the hospital for a new ecg and then go back to his GP three times for recheck blood pressures. When everything was normal, his GP photocopied the ecg and wrote on there "all normal, no follow up needed" and he just wrote the 4 blood pressure checks at the bottom of the Knightsbridge form requesting the information. We zeroxed them and mailed them off. I called three days later to make sure that was all they needed (since none of it was formally written up) and they said they'd received it the day before and already sent it to the Embassy.

Unless they find something (like the blood pressure the day of) it all depends on what you tell them about your history. I would never suggest not telling the truth, but if there is something that you will tell them, you can always go ahead and have something from your GP that says you're well managed or do not need treatment. If there had been a problem with my husband's ecg or blood pressure, then all we would have needed was a treatment plan. It wouldn't have kept him out of the US, they just want to know a plan is in place for treatment, etc.

Thank you so much Hellojulie for that detailed report!

It's good to know that we should wait until they ask for things and don't shove them all at them. I know I'm going to be so nervous, even though there should not bee a problem with our application. Other than asking about your clients, did they ask any other questions? About your relationship or intentions when you get there?

This is was helpful. Thanks again! And congratulations again