EXsoon2wed

Hi there! Tomorrow will be my AOS interview in Newark, NJ. Hubby is coming with me as required. I received my EAD card October 15 though it was approved October 5. Just finalizing needed documents for tomorrow and hoping it will be an easy interview.

Wish us luck!

Guys I received my EAD last October 15, just passed my NJ roadtest today and driver's license on hand... YAY! Now we are preparing for our AOS interview on thursday November 18. Hope everything turns out well.. Goodluck to everyone

Tanya,

Congrats on your marriage!

We bought a puppy to keep Carol company while I am at work. Also, she chats online with family and friends to occupy her time.

Try to find a chat room either here on Visa Journey or some where else that has the same interests as you.

Good luck with your AOS process.

Thank you Mark!

Yes most of the time that my husband is away, I chat with my friends and family online. The idea of a puppy crossed our minds but too bad we are not allowed to have puppies as we are staying in an apartment. I also keep myself busy by cooking good food for him, but he is gaining weight! LOL!

Just one bit of advice for those who are about to file their AOS. I had my full medical back in the Philippines but I had to get a TD shot here to complete my vaccinations. It was a challenge finding a civil surgeon who will do the shot and just fill in the vaccinations part of the I-693 as most of them insist that I should have a full medical again. Some of them are not aware that medical exams done outside the US are valid within one year but some just want to make more money from you. Finally we were able to find a Portugese civil surgeon in Newark, NJ. The receptionist at first insisted on the full medical, good thing I printed out the instruction pages of the I-693. She said that I should just tell the doctor about it coz she never encountered such case as mine. The doctor was very nice and he knew exactly what to do, without any hesitations. We only paid $61 for the shot and medical transcriptions compared to a full medical that can cost more than $200. Hope this info helps.

Goodluck to everyone and best wishes!

Tanya

Hi Guys!

Guess my name is no longer applicable to my status.. We just got married last Aug 4 Anyway, we are sending my AOS application tomorrow. I sure do hope this process will go faster. It has been more than a month since I arrived here and I am loving every moment I am with my husband but I'm starting to get bored at home when my husband is at work. I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for the help with the K1 process. Goodluck to all of us.

Tanya

Hi Guys,

Just an update... We are finally together! Fiancee arrived last Sunday. Now preparing for our wedding in August. Thank you for all your support, VJ especially this forum helped us a lot. Wishing everyone positive outcome soon. Best wishes to all!

To everyone one this thread, thanks for ALL your input/responses. Especially to soon2wed for providing the "first hand" information during the recent visa interview visit. I guess it's safe to say that the DS-156, 156K, 157 forms are still the "golden papers". Even after reading everyone's replies, I'll still have my fiancee complete a DS-160 just for peace of mind. Better safe than sorry. Anyways, good luck to everyone still in process.

Glad to be of help. Goodluck to all those who are about to have their interview. Just relax and the key is to be prepared with all of your documents and everything will be a breeze.

I had my interview last June 3 and they did not ask for DS 160. They even had a sign on the counter where you submit your forms that for K1 visa applicants, DS 156, 156K and 157 are to be submitted. When you arrive at the embassy for your interview there are a lot of vendors who will tell you that you need DS 160 for K1, do not believe them. They are just trying to make money because they will convince you to have your DS 160 downloaded and printed with them. One applicant did that and she paid 650 for doing so, only to find out that she doesn't need it after all. If you want you can bring one copy of DS 160 for your peace of mind. But it is just a waste of time and effort. There were a lot of applicant who just brought DS 160 during the interview and they ended up cramming to fill out old forms in the embassy. Good luck!

OK this is getting to be confusing and frustrating. What are we suppose to use now? The DS-160 or the other DS-forms?

They did not ask for my DS 160, they asked for the old forms. When you get inside the embassy, first step is submission of DS forms. They have a note by the counter that states for K1, DS 156, 156K and 157 are needed.

I just had my interview last June 3, for K1 visa petition DS-160 is not to be used. They still require you to submit DS 156, DS 156K and DS 157. But you can still bring a copy of your DS 160 if you want. But honestly it would be a waste of time and effort.

Hi I just want to share the good news. I just had my interview June 3 and my fiance and I are so happy that we made it! Just waiting for the visa to be delivered hopefully within the coming week. The long wait is finally coming to an end. It is definitely worth the wait. For those still waiting for their approval, I am so sorry to hear that and VSC should really do something about it. I really do hope things will fall into place for all of us.

Good afternoon all. Did any of you received Packet 3 from the embassy or did you just download all the forms online from the Manila embassy site? I received a letter a couple of days ago with are MNL Case# and how to schedule an interview but my fiance havent receive anything from the embassy. Should she expect a package with all the forms to fill out? When should I schedule her interview? Salamat po.

Hi, I didn't receive packet 3 from the US embassy. As soon as you have your MNL case number, your fiance can go to St. Luke's for medical anytime she wants as long as she doesn't have her period. You or your fiance can call up the embassy to schedule for an interview whenever you are ready with your documents. The interview should be at least a week after the medical to give them ample time to submit the medical results to the embassy. Goodluck!

According to my fiance they didn't even take his DS160. We did it just in case they wanted it (not a user friendly site, always got timed out and had to start all over) but they said they only wanted the DS 156, DS 156K, and DS157

Thank you so much for the reply. Now the issue is clarified but it is a good idea to bring a copy of the DS 160 though... I'll do the same. My interview will be on the 3rd, just finalizing all the documents needed. Congratulations again!

Congratulations!

I just want to ask one thing though. I will be having my interview on the 3rd and the DS 160 form issue has been confusing a lot of people lately. Since your fiance already had his interview, I just want to know which form he used. Did he use DS 156, DS 156K and DS 157? or the new DS 160?

Thank you so much and congratulations again!

Thank you so much!

Congratulations to all who received their visas. On our part, after all the hassle and bustle having to transfer our case from Hong Kong to Manila.. finally I will be having my medical on May 17-18 and interview on June 3. Getting a bit nervous now. Hoping everything will go well.

Hi, I will be having my interview on June 3 at 7 am. Anyone having their interview the same day? I will have my medical on Monday and Tuesday May 17-18. Hope everything will go well.

I wonder what is the solution to that…That is a mess. Did you notified NVC that you will be in Philippines for good and filed Change of address also?

My fiance called up NVC and they said that it is no longer their responsibility as it was sent out already last April 2. When he called up both embassies they just asked him to send an email to request for transfer but until now we didn't get any reply. We are lost as of the moment, no idea what to do next. So frustrating. Thanks for your replies guys! Really appreciate it.

The question is: what address did you put in your application?

If you put philippines address, then it should be Manila.

If it is macau, then it is Hong Kong embassy.

My fiance specified in the form that the preferred consulate is Manila, Philippines. NVC said they sent it to Hong Kong because I'm in Macau. Next week I'll be back in the Philippines for good. He called both embassies and they said to send an email and so he did, but I'm just afraid it will cause such a long delay on the process. I will keep you posted on the developments. Thank you so much.

If there is anyone else who had the same experience please shed some light on this.

Thank you.

Wow...just wow! What a horrible thing to happen to you. I'm sorry to hear it.

I don't understand why the National Visa Center was not more helpful, since it was their fault that your packet was sent to Hong Kong. Maybe you guys should talk to a supervisor there.

Also, maybe you would have better luck if your fiancé called the Immigrant Section of the United States Embassy Manila (USEM) directly. They handle all of the K-1 visas. Their phone number (from the U.S.) is 011-63-2-301-2000 extension 5184 or 5185. Possibly they could take care of your problem in a timely manner. At the very least, they may be able to tell you who you need to talk to (or email) about this mix-up.

Also, it may be possible that the U.S. Department of State may be able to help you.

I hope you get this sorted out soon.

Best of luck...

Thank you so much for the info, I'll tell my fiance to call up Manila US Embassy. I really wish this won't cause too much delay on our case. Thank you

Hi,

My fiance called NVC and we got our new case number, but the problem is they sent the petition to the wrong embassy. They sent it to Hong Kong! My fiance specifically stated that the consulate should be in Manila but still they sent it to Hong Kong. We assumed they did this coz I am working in Macau now but I will be heading to the Philippines for good next week. We have everything planned and I am supposed to do my medical next week but I can't do this with no MNL case num as I have Hong Kong case number. NVC said they can't do anything about it and advised him to call Manila US embassy. The operator told him to email the chief of immigrant visa dept, but they said it will take 2-3 months til the problem will be solved. It is very frustrating and disappointing. We made sure everything was done properly and I already submitted my resignation from my current job coz I can't get a leave from work to attend to this petition. Now with just one week left at work I am scheduled to go back home and do what???? I can't believe they will mess this up like this.

My fiance just called NVC, they gave us our new case number but instead of Manila they gave us Hong Kong number maybe because they saw that I work in Macau which is very near Hong Kong. They said they already sent the papers to HK April 2 and it's out of their hands already. What do we do? I am planning to have my medical in Manila next week as I will be heading back to the Philippines but without the Manila case number there is no way I can do this. It's pretty messed up and frustrating that they did this when my fiance specifically stated that the consulate should be in Manila. Don't know what to do.

Guys we just received our NOA2!!!! We are so happy! Congrats to the rest as well

Thanks guys! It's starting to feel like a very long journey but with the help of this forum at least we manage to keep our sanity. Thank you! Looking forward to next week, hope it will be our week.

It's nice to hear that everything is moving fast for most of you. I'm sorry to be off topic but we are getting kind of worried coz until now no news on our NOA2. It's weekend again, two long days again until monday. The wait is getting harder and harder.

No touch....nada....straight to Post-Decision Activity...NOA2!!! can.not.stop.shaking!!!!!!!!!!

os brasileiros are on the way!!!omgomgomgomg

Wow congrats! Til now we are waiting for our NOA2 and still no touches. Reading your post gave us more hope