c.georges

Hi C. Georges,

Thanks so much for the info. I have to ask though, the tax return papers from the past 3 years, were they Colombian or American? The thing is my wife has been overseas for more than 10 years and we didn't realize she still had to file tax with the US. We're working on that now but if it can wait until we get to the US then that will be better.

They were to the IRS, I filed online.

Every US Citizen has to file a tax return with the IRS every year regardless of where you live.

I just want everyone to know that we were approved for our visa today. I'm kind of tired right now, will post more later.

Congratulations! I am curious to read your review! I definitely sympathize with the being tired!

Hi C. Georges,

Congrats on the approval! My wife (who is from the US) and I (Australian) will be filing DCF through Bogota as well. Did you have to provide IRS Tax transcripts for you? Also, did you have to have a joint sponsor or fill in any forms for affidavit of support? And lastly, how long does your wife have to enter the US?

Thanks,

Johan

I did not provide IRS transcripts, just my tax return papers for the past 3 years (they really only require the last years, but I like to give them too much than not enough). We did have a joint sponsor and filled out the I-864 (me and the joint sponsor). The immigrant visa is a one time entry visa that you have to use within 6 months of it being issued. Once you enter the USA they will stamp your passport with a temporary green card (I believe its called I-155) and then they will send the green card to the address you filled out on your forms where you said you would be living.

Sending out best wishes to Evan & Gina who are having their interview on Wednesday 1/12.

I'm leaving for Bogota on Thursday for our interview on Wednesday 1/19, so best wishes in advance to David & Luisa who are having their interview on Tuesday 1/18; we will see you both on Sunday. Best wishes also to Jose & Claudia, who also have their interview on Tuesday 1/18.

Best luck to all of you! Just remember to relax and breathe and know you all love each other very much and make sure you show it! I really believe they were watching us while we waited that long just to see how we reacted to the pressure and the wait.

We will have the POE on February 8th in Ft. Lauderdale, we then have an 8 hour layover until our flight to Chicago, can anyone here suggest any good things to do during that time in Ft. Lauderdale?

Visa in hand! (wow that was REALLY fast!)

Domesa delivered the visa to our address (in Bogota) today! It only took 3 days from the interview to deliver, not sure if its because it is the new year so they were able to process it fast or what! Regardless we are happy and are starting to look for flights to take!

Thanks for the review Christopher. I wish you and the misses all the best on your life together.

I have been pretty calm throughout this process and have had to on occasion encourage my fiancee and assure her that everything will be OK. I am now shamelessly letting everyone know that I am terrified. I leave for Bogota next week Thursday.

Thank you Robert!

Everyone goes through the moments of being terrified, so don't worry it is natural. Like I told my wife, just pretend like you are going to meet a friend and tell them about your relationship. LOL

Best wishes to you guys at the interview! Just be patient and know that you guys love each other and it will all be worth it and pay off in the end!

Thank you! We were approved!

You can find the review here

I have posted our review at the Embassy & USCIS Office Review Section

Best wishes to anyone doing their interview soon! Also note that the Embassy is doing construction work on the waiting area!

Sending out best wishes to Christopher and Melissa who are having their interview on Monday 1/3.

Thank you Robert! We are happy to say that we were approved! I will post more after the celebration!

@grangkm you should look at Google Maps to see the best route for you... it doesn't seem that hard, I would just stick to main roads. Also it seems Ciudad Juarez has Google Street View, wow the Consulate there looks like a prison! It is not much better here in Colombia though. Best of luck to you and your husband! Stay safe!

I heard previously that the Bogota embassy processes a smaller amount of visas in December due to the holidays. I hope you guys make it in under the wire. If you travel in January, your flights will be less-expensive, but I know you both wish you could line things up prior to the conclusion of the calendar year. My only thought is that if David received confirmation of his Packet 3 on 10/29, and he is not on the list yet, things must be seriously backed up there. I hope you guys can somehow request an interview or something.

This is no doubt the case. If you look at the interview list it is only 17 pages compared to the 20 something of last months. We should have received a December interview date but since there are less days available in December we got it the very first day they will be open in January (the 3rd). I received the interview date by asking them via e-mail, the embassy and IV unit has always been very helpful for me and always answered back within 48 hours, reaching them via e-mail is a lot better than via phone.

You will want to view the DCF Information Page in order to see if you qualify. This all depends on quite a number of factors.

When you do a DCF you pretty much by pass all of the NVC stuff, however they do need to send off your I-130 to have it approved at the nearest USCIS field office. After filing the I-130 and getting it approved we received Packet 3 (which are the Instructions on how to apply for the visa interview along with forms DS-2100 and DS-230) then we will receive Packet 4 once the interview has been scheduled. It may be different for the Embassy where you are doing the DCF at. The embassy website for Colombia has all of the documents and packets available online to download, I would first check with the website for the embassy where your at. Also you can check the embassy info at http://www.visajourney.com/consulates/

Hope everyone is doing well.

So at the end of October we received the Package 3 in the mail and submitted the forms DS-2100 and DS-230 Part I. We just received an email today telling us that our appointment has been scheduled for January 3rd! We will take the medical exam at the end of this month and then go to visit my wife's family before we come back to Bogota for the interview!

Real Dumb Question: What night is ABC's Modern Family on TV?

It is on Wednesdays at 9PM EST and it is a great show! Me and my wife love it!

Hello everyone,

It seems like most of the cases here are for the K type visa, mine is a IR/CR-1 visa and a DCF.

Before I ask my question(s) I first want to give some information. I am the USC Petitioner for my wife who is Colombian. We were married in Colombia and I have been living here for over a year. On October 5th we filed the I-130 with the embassy here in Bogota (Direct Consulate Filing for a CR-1 Visa) and received the "Packet 3" at the embassy with the DS-2100 and DS-230. The next day (October 6th) we sent the embassy the forms via e-mail and received an email back stating that they received it. Last week I called the embassy and received my case number (they did not give this to me at the embassy) and the lady on the phone told me that they were waiting on something from the USCIS office in Panama City. Today I emailed them again wanting to confirm that we had the correct case number and wanting to get an update on what was going on. They told us that the case number was correct and that they were still waiting for information from the USCIS office in Panama to finish the process to schedule the interview for my wife.

My question(s) are:

Has anyone heard about this before? That they send things off to be checked in Panama City? Does anyone know about how long this can take?

Does anyone know about how long from sending them the DS-2100 that the interview will be scheduled? (I know this varies on a case to case basis) The USCIS officer at the embassy told us that the average time is 30-60 days, just wanting to get a feel for what others have experienced.

I realize that it has only been 2 weeks since I filed the I-130 and sent off the DS-2100/DS-230 but this process is.... well I don't have to tell all of you how it is! You know!

Thanks in advanced everyone. Feel free to ask me any questions you have of my experience.

I would first like to thank MattCali for posting his DCF Guide/Walkthrough for Bogota, Colombia it was very useful and made me prepared for what we would be in for today.

Today we filed the Petition I-130 for my wife. The experience was a bit nerve racking as I wasnt 100% sure what to expect but it was still easy and painless non the less. The staff at the embassy were really friendly and nice.

I will not review over the papers require as this is already explaned in MattCali's post. I will just let you know the whole process that I went through with my wife.

We arrived at the embassy entrance at Av Carrera 50 and walked south east between a viaduct and the fence of the embassy. Before you go into the security checkpoint they will line you up by the reason you are there. This day we waited in the 3rd line and it was raining really bad and it was really cold so I spoke with the person who was checking the passports of the people in the 1st line and she let us right through (this was around 12:30, they tell you to arrive to the embassy 30 minutes before the appointment)

We waited at the line for the security checkpoint to speak with a lady behind glass through a telephone, she asked the name that we had the interview under and checked my passport and handed me a folder with a sheet of paper attached to it of all the documents to put in a certain order (however this really didnt matter as the person later on asked me to give them the papers as they asked for them). The lady gave us two silver stickers to wear and be seen on us at all times and a green card with a number on it (the colors can vary, probably day by day and depending on the type). We then went through the security check point, which is basically like going through airport security, however at this point they take your phone from you and give you a piece of wood with a number on it to reclaim your phone later.

Once through the security checkpoint we finally walk into the grounds of the embassy and towards the waiting area. They have a separate area for the Immigrant Visa applicants, this is windows 2-6 (window 1 is a cashier). All of these windows are very thick glass and you talk to the person via the phone. We sat down and organized our papers according to how they asked us to, and then a lady came along and told us all to line up by a certain color and our numbers. We were called up to the window and presented the lady with our card first and then she asked us for the documents. I proceeded to hand her the folder with all of the documents they requested in the order they requested. However, she pulled out a new folder with a checklist and told me to just give her the documents as she called them off and that we would go down the list (I think that's a better method honestly). She said that it looks like everything is fine and that we will now need to go pay the cashier and then wait for an "interview". I went and paid the $355 filing fee and the nice man told me about the $404 that I would have to pay when we come back (thanks for the reminder guy!).

We then went and sat back down and waited for our name to be called over the loud speaker (you will need to have VERY good ears to listen for your name). We waited and waited and waited until finally my name was called and I didn't hear what window they called me to. Thankfully the lady called again and clearly said the number of the window. I went to the window and apologized and said I couldn't hear well through the speakers. She was very friendly (I believe a US citizen and a immigration officer) and told me not to worry about it. She told me that everything was in order and gave us the DS-2100 to fill out and send back to them (I plan to e-mail it, she said that would be the best) and the DS-230 I and II and the list of documents. She then asked if I had any questions and I asked about how long it would take after we send in the DS-2100 and it is received before we are given an interview date, she went away for a bit and then came back and told me the average time is 30-60 days. I then also asked her how the interview was done when my wife comes back and if I could come with my wife. She said that it was fine that I came but the person who is doing the interview may not want to speak with me (she said she prefers it when she conducts the interviews as it gives her a better idea of the relationship). She told me the interview is done through the phones and the glass and we joked a bit about how impersonal it is.

All in all it was a great experience and day and I wouldn't have changed anything about it (except for the rain).

Everyone whom I have had contact with so far has been really friendly and helpful.

I think that covers everything. Once we go on to the next step I will update this post....

MattCali, thanks for the information! I will be filing the I-130 for my wife here at the start of next month at the Bogotá Embassy. I am also living here in Colombian and working for a company online in the USA. I am wondering if they will require the Affidavit of Support also, I do not qualify but I have someone who is willing to joint sponsor with me. What was the $404 dollars for when you return? Make sure to keep us updated!