Master5

USCIS approval is the easier part. I've made my first NVC document submission in Dec 2021 and the case is still in NVC. This is IR1 case. And it's not like I'm being negligent with the documents being submitted, and our case is clearly approvable. The whole NVC process used to be a simple formality before the interview and it took 3 months at most to complete, but now it became a bureaucratic barrier that is almost impossible to overcome. They don't give a damn about your circumstances, they don't give a damn about US citizen kids being stuck in Russia because their mother's case can't move through NVC. There is no authority to complain, no accountability whatsoever. This is a cold bureaucratic machine, pure and simple. It seems like they only sabotage the cases of Russian applicants, maybe because Warsaw consulate is backed up, hard to tell. More info here:
https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/787962-nvc-discrimination-against-russian-applicants-or-simply-incompetence/

More data:

- Expedite request: rejected

- 2 Case transfer requests: rejected by the embassies

2 hours ago, Peter1025 said:

When they marked it DQ and sent the email, the IV application is still showing "incomplete" because they relabeled her divorce certificate as "other divorce termination documents" and it left the required document as though it had not been submitted.

Yes, they relabeled my wife's passport biographic page like that and now asking for a new one  Also, her original police certificate is now expired (valid for 6 months only) and now we'll have to submit a new one together with translation. Something is going on here, I'm sure on my next re-submission they will come up with something else. At this point I have no hope of getting my family to US any time soon.

I'm preparing my 4th document submission to NVC and I wonder if other people having similar experiences? NVC keeps mishandling my submitted documents, both financial and civil. For example, they improperly titled one of the the documents and now asking for its re-submission. Also, I attached my most recent W2 form that covers Poverty Guidelines many times over and then they ask for my 1099s. It just feels unreal. Every re-submission takes 2.5 months to review, I have my whole family stuck in Russia because of this. On top of that they no longer have a phone line to call them.

Anyone having the similar experience with them? Is it discrimination or just incompetence?

Please share your experience in getting Schengen visa to get to the interview in Warsaw. I've heard that Poland doesn't issue any visas to Russians at all and best chance (50/50) would be Italy. I wonder if the following would help when applying for a Schengen visa from Italy:

• Attaching interview invitation letter from NVC.
• Attaching copy of US passport of a spouse traveling with an applicant.

Related question: when the packet of documents arrives to the applicant before the interview, what it contains? I've specified my US address as a mailing address for that packet because Russian Post Office is notoriously unreliable. Re-sending those packets by DHL to Russia is currently impossible, but they can make the scanned copies for me over there. Will the copies be accepted to get to the interview? Or maybe NVC also emails those documents to the applicant?

Jesus, they designated Warsaw as a processing embassy for Russia and it's impossible to get a visa there, what a joke! That's why I'm thinking about transferring the case, but those other embassies don't even reply. Georgian embassy would be perfect as it's designated for CRBA processing - I need it for my youngest kid.

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

You have to email the specific embassy directly and ask if they will take your transfer case. You'll need to provide a reason why Warsaw doesn't work. Many people here have tried but there haven't been many success stories.

 

You can get a Schengen visa to any Schengen country, it doesn't have to be Poland. Most people here get the visa from Greece, Italy or some other Schengen country and then enter there, and then go onward to Poland.

I already emailed Georgian embassy, no reply

Anyone was able to get a Polish visa? We are a family with little kids and we'd like to minimize the travel, the youngest one will need a Polish visa too.

6 hours ago, jan22 said:

IMO, it will not help -- especially since your case is not yet at an Embassy, in addition to no appointment to enter the vIsa unit.  There is no action another Embassy can take right now.  They cannot agree to accept a case from Warsaw when Warsaw does not yet gave the case. 

 

With your case still at NVC, per the procedure in the link I posted, you should be contacting NVC, not the Embassy.  You should submit the transfer request in writing (e-mail), along with the proof of eligibility for processing at that Embassy (citizenship, legal residency, other documentation -- since yours is a Russian case (per your profile flag) this could include difficulties posed by the closure of Moscow visa operation and inability to get documentation for travel to Poland, etc, or whatever your reason is).  If you qualify, NVC will transfer/assign your case to your requested Embassy.  

Thanks for the reply. About the transfer: I spoke to NVC on the phone and they told me they can't initiate the transfer - the embassy first needs to agree to accept the case. I have emailed an expedite request to NVC, let's see if that helps.

Related question: sounds like getting Schengen visa to travel to Poland is going to be a problem for a Russian citizen, no? Even if one has an interview letter from US embassy?

By "to petition for a wife" I meant "to ask", sorry for confusion. Our I-130 case is at NVC currently and it takes forever for them to review it. Basically my question: will it make any difference if we come to Georgian or Armenian embassy in person and ask them to accept our case and conduct the interview there? I have already emailed Georgian embassy visa unit but they don't reply.

3 hours ago, jan22 said:

Your understanding is not accurate.  The request must be in writing, generally done in an e-mail.  It is highly unlikely that you would gain entry into an immigrant visa unit at an Embassy to make the request in person.

 

The correct procedure to use is described in the "Immigrant Visa Processing -- General FAQs" section of the State Department's website: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/immigrate/national-visa-center/immigrant-visas-processing-general-faqs.html#ivp13.  The last question in the FAQ list gives the procedure to use, depending on whether your case is still at NVC or already at the Embassy. 

 

(If this is about a Ukranian applicant, there is specific information at https://pl.usembassy.gov/visas/humanitarian-assistance-and-visa-information-for-ukrainians/.)

Hi, thanks for the reply! Are you saying they won't let a US citizen inside the US embassy to petition for a wife? I know about the "correct procedure", tried it all already, they just don't reply.

Hello! It would be great to know if anyone was able to transfer I-130 case interview from Warsaw to some other consulate? My understanding is that it's almost impossible to do through email. But what if traveling to Georgia or Armenia and asking the local US consulate directly to accept the case transfer citing exceptional circumstances, anyone tried that?

In short: if only one of the parents is Russian citizen I'd recommend not to apply for Russian citizenship for the child. And yes, service in Russian army (at least in its current shape) is not something young male wants to do, it would be less traumatizing for him to serve 1 year in US county jail instead.

BTW, I'm in Russia now. My wife and son passed the interview, waiting for visa to arrive. Interview was quick and easy but medical was a freakin nightmare, the bitchy female doctor gave us real hard time. Russia is chock-full of unhappy bitchy women, that was one of them, I don't even want to go in all the details.

Nothing special, the cut is small and that man has all the tools to do the job, including a special curved needle. Here is really impressive story:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In%C3%A9s_Ram%C3%ADrez

Master 5 suggested a good idea about apostile. The only thing I don't know if they can put an apostile on the copy..

They can and they will. Just make the photocopy of the document, notarized it with any local notary (notary should be registered with Ministry of Justice), then go to the local office of Ministry of Justice for an apostil stamp on the back of the copy (takes 3 days and 300 rubles per copy). Translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified, but it's the case for any other languages other than Russian.

Master-thank you for your suggestion! So, this will work even if, say the document's origin is Kazakhstan or Georgia? I know this may be a dumb question, but I just have to ask.

And-what is the ministry of justice called in russian, do you know?

I'm not sure if it will work for non-Russian documents. It worked for me with Russian documents though. Ministry of Justice = Министерство Юстиции.

Thank you. Here is what I want to say: The bottom line NVC is making is that they want the ORIGINAL. What has been sent to them is notorized, certified and has an apostile. If they are questioning THAT, I promise you they will question the version you are suggesting as well, simply because they keep repeating like a broken record that they WANT THE ORIGINAL.

the point is- they are idiots, and must understand that I cannot provide an original and they must let it go. What was submitted to them is sufficient and the originals will be brought in to the intervew in Moscow. Period.

Yeah, your situation is kind of unique since the documents are not Russian-issued. They do act as dumb robots in your case, no doubt about it. Try to get the damn certificate into US with somebody who flies from Russia to US.

What I said is that "translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified", it can be a non-certified translation. But I personally made notary certified translations of all documents since it was just a little more $.

I think it's wiser to follow the Embassy's guidelines, not NVC:

http://travel.state.gov/pdf/medical/MOS-ME...L-0001-0903.pdf

I think you are wrong. I will say it again. You are dealing with NVC not the Embassy. The Embassy's rules do not apply to NVC, only to Moscow.

The USCIS's requirements

Translations. Any document containing foreign language submitted to the Service shall be accompanied by a full English language translation which the translator has certified as complete and accurate, and by the translator's certification that he or she is competent to translate from the foreign language into English.

NVC is in the US. They speak English there (and maybe other languages but very little Russian).

I believe you are making a grevious error by not sending translations. Did you send translations with the original petitions?

Hm.. please just re-read carefully what I wrote above

Master 5 suggested a good idea about apostile. The only thing I don't know if they can put an apostile on the copy..

They can and they will. Just make the photocopy of the document, notarized it with any local notary (notary should be registered with Ministry of Justice), then go to the local office of Ministry of Justice for an apostil stamp on the back of the copy (takes 3 days and 300 rubles per copy). Translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified, but it's the case for any other languages other than Russian.

Master-thank you for your suggestion! So, this will work even if, say the document's origin is Kazakhstan or Georgia? I know this may be a dumb question, but I just have to ask.

And-what is the ministry of justice called in russian, do you know?

I'm not sure if it will work for non-Russian documents. It worked for me with Russian documents though. Ministry of Justice = Министерство Юстиции.

Master 5 suggested a good idea about apostile. The only thing I don't know if they can put an apostile on the copy..

They can and they will. Just make the photocopy of the document, notarized it with any local notary (notary should be registered with Ministry of Justice), then go to the local office of Ministry of Justice for an apostil stamp on the back of the copy (takes 3 days and 300 rubles per copy). Translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified, but it's the case for any other languages other than Russian.

that's what NVC says, but if you read Moscow's Embassy rules, it says that they do require translations from Russian into English... Who to believe?

What I said is that "translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified", it can be a non-certified translation. But I personally made notary certified translations of all documents since it was just a little more $.

I think it's wiser to follow the Embassy's guidelines, not NVC:

http://travel.state.gov/pdf/medical/MOS-ME...L-0001-0903.pdf

Master 5 suggested a good idea about apostile. The only thing I don't know if they can put an apostile on the copy..

They can and they will. Just make the photocopy of the document, notarized it with any local notary (notary should be registered with Ministry of Justice), then go to the local office of Ministry of Justice for an apostil stamp on the back of the copy (takes 3 days and 300 rubles per copy). Translation from Russian to English is not required to be certified, but it's the case for any other languages other than Russian.

Get a notarized copy of Birth Certificate and then certify it with apostil at local office of Russian Ministry of Justice, they will accept that.

More info here:

http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ап...;ль

http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3656.html

I just called my wife and she told me she's not taking a child in some filthy apartment

I can guess maybe she has had some bad experience which has turned her off from rental apartments. But as I said, the Arbat Executive suite was quite clean. I would suspect it is not worth arguing the point, but just pay for a hotel room as she wants. I felt fortunate my fiancee wanted to save money and rent a flat rather than to stay in a hotel -- she did not see my pockets as bottomless, but wanted us to spend the money on other things when I visited her. No kid involved, it was a different situation, etc.

My wife is just very picky, she actually saves on everything as long as it's not for our kid I'm the same way as well.

I got to say, I'm from Russia myself, but I find hotel prices in Moscow totally out of control. They don't make that much money in Moscow, most of the Russian population are poor by Western standards and overall quality of life in Moscow and Russia is quite low.

Such a huge disparity between the rich and the poor. You see all these late-model Audis and BMWs in Moscow (and there was a Lamborghini parked outside our apartment), and you hear about how Moscow is so incredibly expensive but most people don't have much. I don't understand it either.

Yeah, disparity is the name of the game in Russia, middle class is still very small. And Moscow is in fact a country inside the country, not representative of the rest of the nation at all.

My Fiance is staying at the New Arabat 22 location, but any of them in that area would be great.

I think that may be the same building where I stayed last time. I booked through www.apartmentres.com. It is called the Arbat Executive Suite. It was very clean and walkable to the U.S. Embassy, if it is not bitter cold. It looks like the rate is maybe 15 or 20% more than the flat Jeff found, but I can vouch for it. Either way, I would go for an apartment rather than a hotel for reasons of cost, personalized service and access to a kitchen and washing machine.

If I were to travel along or just with my wife I'd stay in apartment myself, but since we travel with a small child it leaves us with fewer options. I just called my wife and she told me she's not taking a child in some filthy apartment I got to say, I'm from Russia myself, but I find hotel prices in Moscow totally out of control. They don't make that much money in Moscow, most of the Russian population are poor by Western standards and overall quality of life in Moscow and Russia is quite low.

Eh, not all of us are Cheap. Just Frugal. hehe.

Well I rented her an apartment. In new Arabat. Just a few blocks from the USE.

Here is the information.

http://www.apartmentsmoscow.com/www/www_ap...rc/newarbat.htm

My Fiance is staying at the New Arabat 22 location, but any of them in that area would be great. She is getting there on the 15th staying through the 19th. I think the prices are good, it is convienant, safe location and lots of food places and such around. Anyway, have questions let me know. Oh and they are great to work with, I have used them 2 other times in the past year to stay there. The drivers they send if you request that service are great and the ladies that help you cordinate thigns are just supurb.

I am putting her at the Hotel Milan for her trip on the airline. That is a highly rated hotel near DME airport. So convienant to get out to the airport for her flight.

Let us know what you choose!

Great link, thanks. How clean are those apartments? They look just like regular flats which are rented, those are usually not very clean or secure. We have a 1-year old and my wife is very picky to the point she plans to take our own sheets with us to Moscow Riding Metro is out of question too. So I'm left with ~$400/night hotels in the area. I can afford to pay that much for a few nights, just wanted to see if there are any alternatives since I'm frugal too

You guys just a bunch of cheap Americans, lol

She need to request the Police Certificate in District Police Center (Областной ГУВД) which in turn sends request to Central MVD Information Center in Moscow, it takes up to a month to receive a Police Certificate. And there is no medical St. Petersburg, only in Moscow:

http://moscow.usembassy.gov/physicians.html

Also, see the interview schedule here:

http://moscow.usembassy.gov/iv_dates.html

Any recommendation for decent hotels in Moscow? My main requirement is location - it should be somewhere not far from USE and IOM.

It's been at least a month since they last updated the interview schedule page, are they asleep up there?

I know. Should we e-mail the Embassy to confirm the interview date? what is the best thing to do? I am just a little nervious.

If they are not updating the interview list coming Monday then I think I'll email them to confirm the interview date.