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| Vancouver, Canada |  Review on September 23, 2014: |
cabie
Rating:  | Review Topic: K1 Visa
I was quite nervous but it turned out to be a relatively smooth organized process. There were a ton of people lined up outside and the initial security screening was setup outside, if you're too early there's a Starbucks and Timmies a few blocks away on the same street to wait! Someone walked through the line and sorted people into lines depending on their application types. They took my DS-160 cover page and appointment confirmation and made sure I didn't have any electronics or banned items, I didn't. Then it was onto a second outdoor lineup for inside security (seemed like they only let a couple people through at a time). After the indoor security screening (similar to airport security) they gave me a ticket telling me what window to go to and we went up the elevator. There's no bathroom once you go up in the elevator but there is one next to the elevator at the security screening inside if you need it. Once upstairs I went to the window and flipped the switch and a pleasant lady came and collected all my original documents and photocopies (just the ones listed in packet 3 plus a legal name change certificate because I had changed my name years ago, it wasn't listed to bring but they definitely wanted it). She didn't take any of my extra evidence, just said the interviewing officer would ask for it if they wanted it. Then I sat back in the waiting area for 10 minutes. I seemed to be the only one there for K-1, it was mostly interviews for tourist visas going on. There weren't any interview rooms, just a line of windows that you stand at for questioning. They called my name and a pleasant man did the interview. I had my fingerprints taken at the window and read an oath while the computer booted up. He asked a lot of really basic questions like where we met, how long we knew each other, have I met his family, wedding plans, his job & my job, and past problems with border entry (I had a HARD time getting into the US the last time, they said I was spending too much time there) etc. Nothing super in depth but he definitely tried to trip me up. He'd rephrase my answers with incorrect information and see if I'd correct him (we met and worked in Nicaragua and he kept changing the name of the country and the time frame I'd given him). I assume it was just to check our story. He also asked me in depth about how licensing for my job (I'm an RN) works in Canada and how to transfer it to the USA. It's boring so I'm sure it wasn't out of interest. The write-up we gave in the I-129F said I was able to spend a lot of time in the US and abroad with my fiance because of my job and its flexible scheduling, so perhaps he asked just to fact check. It took maybe 15 minutes, and then he said were approved and congratulations! Didn't take any extra evidence, but did say the pictures we originally included from our travels were really nice (the backgrounds, not us). I went back to the first window and the same woman explained how to go about getting the visa. Said it should take 5-7 business days but might be slower because of some computer problems they were having, and she said to email them if I don't hear anything. I ended up getting it in 10 days! Went from initial application to visa in hand in 4 months! I am extraordinarily happy : )
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #15245