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| Juarez, Mexico |  Review on February 16, 2007: |
AgRo
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
HOTEL:
He is staying at the Holiday Inn Express – about 1 kilometer from the Consulate. I think he meant to reserve at the Holiday Inn Lincoln which is closer, but oh well, the Holiday Inn Express is still very close (he says about a 7 minute walk from Consulate). I wish I could be there with him, but his mom flew to Juarez with him, so I’m glad that he is not alone.
MEDICAL EXAM:
6:50 a.m. He called a taxi and went with his mom to the clinic closest to the Consulate (50 pesos)
- He entered a waiting room with about 50 seats (not too full). When he registered, they asked for his passport and appointment letter received in the packet.
- They took his picture and electronic signature
- After about an hour, they called him and 4 other people to get their blood taken. No problems there; they barely left a mark.
- They sent him to the 2nd floor – another 5 minute wait and they called him and 3 other guys in for X rays; asked him to take off shirt and stand against wall
- He was sent into another smaller waiting room - They took his weight, height, blood pressure and did an eye exam
- Then they called the guys one by one into small exam rooms. They were asked to take off ALL of their clothes. (I guess no leaving the boxers on for this group).
- A 45 year old or so female doctor entered (while my fiancé was just sitting there naked) and started talking to him about where he was born, what he studied, etc. She checked his ears, eyes and asked the following questions:
1. Have you ever had surgery?
2. Have you ever taken drugs?
3. Do you drink alcohol? (he said with moderation)
4. Where does your girlfriend live (it turns out her son is also living in the US)
5. Have you ever been arrested in another country?
6. She asked him about his tattoos, what they mean, when he had them done, and then she examined them.
She gave him a sheet of paper and told him that since he is a K1 visa applicant he does not need vaccinations. My fiancé said that she was friendly and joked around a little (that may be my fiance’s influence though).
He left the room and went to a window to pay 1,600 pesos. At 2 p.m. he is to go back for his results.
In summary, he got to the clinic at 7:00 a.m. and was out of the clinic by 8:40 a.m. It was quick, but it may be because he went on a Tuesday. A lot more people go on a Monday. There were a few people there that went to their interview and were sent back to the clinic. He only saw one K1 applicant. The staff at the clinic was pretty quiet and quick, no chatting or anything. His mom waited in the waiting room the entire time.
PICTURES:
Since so many people have told us that no matter what pictures you present at the Consulate, they still send you to take more across the street from the Consulate, he went to the place in front of the consulate to have his pictures taken, so that he would not be sent there the next day. 2 photos cost him 150 pesos (a bit expensive) but they gave him a guarantee that if they are not what the consulate wants, they would redo them. They also offered to answer any questions he had about the paperwork he was to turn in at the consulate. He chatted with them about the military service question on DS 157 and left.
BANAMEX PAYMENT:
He says that Banamex is 3 stoplights away from the consulate on the right side (pretty close to the Holiday Inn Express actually). He got there at 9:15 and the bank opens at 9:00 a.m. He paid 1,150 pesos and got a receipt. It was very quick.
INTERVIEW:
It was pretty easy and he was out at 3:15 p.m. Here are the details:
7:05 a.m. - He arrived at the Consulate. It was really cold outside. He said that there were fewer people waiting to enter than he saw yesterday as he passed by on his way to the medical exam, so Wednesday must not be as busy as Tuesday.
8:40 a.m. - They let him into the Consulate. He passed through security with no problems. He had to take off his jacket and belt. He had all of his documents in a large expandable portfolio which had different dividers and within that he also had smaller folders. There was no metal in any of that, so he was allowed to take it all.
- He went on to Room C and there they took his appointment letter and gave him a ticket with a number (his ticket said 8:47 am)
- He went on to a waiting room outside (it had a roof over it but it was still cold).
9:40 a.m. – They let him and others enter the building. In that waiting room he had nothing better to do than count the seats (about 170 seats ). Next to him was a K1 applicant who was called very quickly. He was getting worried because everyone was clearing out and he was one of the last ones, but the lady who initially took his appointment letter told him not to worry that K1s always go last because they don’t have an exact appointment time.
11:00 a.m. - His number came up on the screen and he was called to Window 8. My fiancé said the guy (about 28 yrs old) was extremely friendly and took the following: his passport, visa laser, my fiancé’s birth certificate (original & copy), my naturalization certificate & letter that I sent explaining that they couldn’t keep the original (and he returned it right away), my letter explaining why I was not present at interview, intent to marry (mine signed and his unsigned), 2 photos, DS-156, DS-156k, financial info for me and co-sponsor including tax returns, w-2s, pay stubs, letters from employers, bank statements.
He also asked the following:
1. Who is the petitioner?
2. Have you ever been in the US illegally?
3. Where do you work?
4. When was the last time you entered the US? - When my fiancé answered October of 2006, the guy looked confused and asked how that’s possible. My fiancé showed him the I-94 from his last trip and the guy said ok. My fiancé explained that after that he didn’t go to the US because he was afraid that it would cause problems with our visa and the guy said that is very true. He said the fiancé should not visit during the K1 process, but my fiance came even before our petition was approved and I know a lot of K1 fiancés visit, so I’m not sure why he was so surprised by it.
- He had my fiancé sign the DS 156, DS 156k and intent to marry.
11:30 a.m. - They called him and 2 other people to Room 14 where an older and very polite man took his fingerprints (index fingers on both hands)
- They told him to go on to Room B and wait to be called
12:50 - they called his name to Window 31
- His Consul, Molly, was a 26 year old or so woman who was also very friendly. She asked him the following:
1. Where is your fiancée? (He told her I couldn’t come because of work obligations and said that in the paperwork I had included a letter, but she said she didn’t need to see it)
2. When did you meet?
3. Where did you meet? (and additional questions about our study abroad in Madrid, living together in the same dorm, where I studied, etc.)
4. When did she graduate? When did you graduate? What did you study?
5. Why did my family and I move to the US?
6. When was the last time you went to the US? – he said when he gave me the ring
7. How did you propose? (he told her the whole story and it turns out that the Consul is also engaged and had gotten the ring recently and was very excited, so that probably helped us )
8. She was looking at the pictures she had from the petition – and he asked if she wanted to see pictures we had taken professionally the day he proposed. She said yes, and really seemed to like the photos
9. When do you plan to marry? (he explained the 2 weddings, offered to show all of the contracts for our August religious wedding (like the booked reception site, church, photographer, DJ, etc. but she didn’t need to see them)
10. Have you had problems with the law in the US or Mexico?
11. Do you plan to work? – He said yes, with work authorization – she briefly explained the EAD process
- She explained that he can enter the US by any city he wants (doesn’t have to be El Paso)
You have your visa, congratulations on your wedding.
This interview took about 15-20 minutes
2:00 ish – He got a hot dog in the consulate
3:05 p.m. – They called my fiancé and 2 other guys into an area where they had them check the visas to see if their names, dates of birth, and passport numbers were correct. They explained the rules of the visa. They were told to enter through the Cordova bridge if entering in El Paso, otherwise, it didn’t apply. They were given the yellow envelopes and that’s it.
3:15 p.m. – He took a taxi to the hotel. He said beware of the taxis, just as they told him in the consulate – they try to get more money out of you, especially if you have the visa. My fiancé told the taxi driver that he didn’t get it.
Our visa also has “blanket waiver” written on it. I don’t know what that means as we have never had any problems with my fiancé entering the US nor did we apply for any type of waiver (I think Brenda’s visa said the same thing). The visa expires in 6 months. Overall, my fiancé said that everyone was really polite and friendly with the exception of one security guard.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #1297