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| London, United Kingdom |  Review on July 20, 2013: |
Stuart and Katie
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
I attended my K-1 visa interview on Friday 19th July at 8:30am.
After reading the advice of others, I decided to arrive at 7:30am. I was right to do so because even at this time there was a long line to get into the embassy. It took about 30 minutes to get through this line, first of all showing my appointment letter and passport to one guard filtering the line, and then past the first security station (a small room glass enclosed room outside the embassy itself). I had a bottle of water in my bag which the security guard asked me to taste, once I did he was satisfied it was OK.
Once past this security checkpoint I walked around the side of the building and up some steps (past a guard armed with a machine gun who I cheerfully bid good morning to and received an equally cheerful greeting back!) into the building. Here there is a desk where you show them your interview letter and passport and they print off a ticket giving you a unique number (mine was I906) which is called when they are ready to see you.
Then you go into the main waiting room. There are plenty of chairs which are pretty comfortable, and even in the middle of July when the embassy was very busy (almost all the chairs were taken up!) with no air conditioning it wasn't too hot inside. There is a huge screen at one end of the room which all the chairs face which beeps when a new number is called. Needless to say whenever there was a beep everyone's heads were focused on it!
It took about 40 minutes before my number was called, upon which I went to Window 13 and chatted with a friendly British woman who asked for my passport, birth certificate and photocopy, police certificate and photocopy, and affidavit of support. She also asked a few basic questions liked had I ever lived in another country before handing me a copy of my chest x-ray on a CD and a pink form to fill out to hand to the courier desk at the end and informing me I would be called again for my interview. This whole process took between 5 and 10 minutes.
After about 30 minutes or so I was called again (somewhat to my surprise as the two numbers before mine, 904 and 905 had not been called!) to Window 16 for my interview. I was met by a smiling American woman who handed me back my original birth and police certificates and then proceeded to ask a few questions about my intended marriage. First of all she asked about my fiancee's work and she was satisfied with the financial support provided, then asked how we met, if I had met her parents and how soon after we met in person that we discussed marriage. My interviewer was satisfied with my responses to these questions and we even laughed and joked about a few differences between the USA and the UK before she said "OK I'm pleased to tell you you're approved"  I was in a daze for a moment because it was all so easy before she added "Yeah we don't like to mess you around" with a cheeky smile So even though I had brought a ton of additional evidence of our relationship with me I didn't need any of it!
After she wished me good luck and informed me about the envelope I will receive with my passport which is not to be opened by me but by the customs agent at my POE, I bid farewell to my interviewer and went to the courier desk to arrange delivery of my visa. The chap there again reminded me not to open the envelope that comes with my passport and that it would take 10 days, and I paid the £14.80. I was given a piece of paper with a tracking number on it and that was that!
All in all I was there for 2 and a quarter hours, not bad at all, I was very pleased with the informal and chatty nature of the employees there (like I said even the guard with a machine gun wished me a good morning!) and obviously delighted to be approved for my visa so easily
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #12375