Dia & Noche's US Immigration Timeline
Immigration Checklist for Dia & Noche:
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USCIS I-129F Petition:
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Dept of State K1 Visa:
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USCIS I-485 Petition:
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USCIS I-765 Petition:
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USCIS I-131 Petition:
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USCIS I-751 Petition:
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USCIS N-400 Petition:
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K1 Visa
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| Event |
Date |
| Service Center : |
Vermont Service Center |
| Transferred? |
Texas Service Center on 2013-08-07 |
| Consulate : |
Dominican Republic |
| I-129F Sent : |
2013-06-22 |
| I-129F NOA1 : |
2013-06-28 |
| I-129F RFE(s) : |
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| RFE Reply(s) : |
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| I-129F NOA2 : |
2013-09-05 |
| NVC Received : |
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| Date Case #, IIN, and BIN assigned : |
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| NVC Left : |
2013-10-08 |
| Consulate Received : |
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| Packet 3 Received : |
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| Packet 3 Sent : |
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| Packet 4 Received : |
2013-11-27 |
| Interview Date : |
2014-02-13 |
| Interview Result : |
Approved
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Second Interview
(If Required): |
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| Second Interview Result: |
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| Visa Received : |
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| US Entry : |
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| Marriage : |
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| Comments : |
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Processing
Estimates/Stats : |
Your I-129f was approved in 69 days from your NOA1 date.
Your interview took 230 days from your I-129F NOA1 date. |
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Member Reviews:
Consulate Review: Dominican Republic
Review Topic: General Review
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| Event |
Description |
| Review Date : |
March 11, 2014 |
| Embassy Review : |
Sorry for the delayed posting. Our interview was on 2/13/14 and here’s our review…
We decided it would be best to arrive the night before our interview and stayed at the Jardines del Teatro. Although the accommodations were modest, the rate was very economical and the location (it's literally steps ways from the Consulate) is just priceless. In the morning at around 5am, while I was getting ready my fiancé decided to go and see if a line was already forming and when he returned he told me that there were 27 people in line. By the time we left the hotel at around 5:30 am and walked over, there were over 100 people in line!
When you get there, you want to get in the line marked "IV" which I guess stands for immigrant visa and then you need to be really patient and wear comfortable shoes because the wait feels endless. Not sure when the doors actually opened but the line started to move quickly at around 6:20 but then stalled numerous times. During this time, staff handed out flyers indicating the order the paperwork needed to be organized (passport, police certificate, Banco Popular receipts, any other pertinent documents) and although not listed, make sure you have the interview letter in hand because that is the 1st form asked for while in line and they staple your interview number to it. We were #169 and it was around 7:15 when we finally reached the front of the line. From previous posts, I already knew it was best not to have a purse so when they separated males from females, I was able to stay with my fiancé however when we reached closer to the entrance I was told to stand in between the lines creating a 3rd line. They let a handful of men enter and my fiancé had no choice but to go ahead without me. After a few minutes passed they motioned for me and the rest of us without purses go through and I passed through security quickly to join my fiancé in the waiting room.
The facility is very dated and reminds me of an old run-down bus station. There are numerous rows of steal benches with cushions and dusty fans blowing the warm air throughout. Via loudspeaker, they announce the next number to be served and which window to report to and it's also posted on 2 monitors. So you wait as you hear numbers being called and posted in what appears to be in random order. At around 7:45 our #169 was called to window 21 and a pleasant female CO asked for my fiancé's passport, police certificate, birth certificates, than we were asked if either of us had been previously married and I said yes and handed over my marriage certificate and divorce decree but then when she reviewed our file she saw that they already had copies from our original petition and handed them back to us. She than asked us to go to window 14 to pay the $80 fee and to return with the receipt. We went to window 14 where there was no line and promptly paid the fee and then went back to window 21 handed our receipt and then the CO asked whether or not my fiancé's sons were traveling with us and we explained that one son was already in the States and the other son will be traveling at a later date since he has always lived with his mom. She then proceeded to explain that if approved his son’s visa would only be valid for 1 year and suggested that we file the follow to join paperwork by September to ensure that there be enough time to process the paperwork before the visa expires. Lastly, she suggested that we make sure that our remaining paperwork be organized in a manner that we could easily find during the interview which made me sort of chuckle since my docs and copies were organized in a 7 pocket transparent file folder with labels  She then asked us to return to the waiting room.
So we returned and waited and at 8:45 our number was called to report to window 18 for fingerprinting which was done quickly and then back to the waiting area we went. As we waited we were people watching and I would say it was very pleasant to see the happiness of those that were approved as they stood in line to pay Domex and sad to see those that left without that green ticket 
As we were waiting we were facing windows 20-24 located behind a glass wall and could see the people being sworn in and attentively answering questions. It became apparent that before calling the next number the COs would be reviewing the file of the next case and it was not unusual for 10-15 minutes to go by in between petitioners. As we waited, an hour goes by and then another 30 minutes when I notice that the CO at window 22 has not called a number for some time and is reviewing a file and looking at the computer screen and at times shaking his head. I lean over to my fiancé and point this out and tell him that he must be reviewing our case and wouldn't you know that I was right and 5 minutes later #169 was called to window 22.
When we approached the window we greeted the CO who was Caucasian and appeared to be in his late 30s. My fiancé greeted him in Spanish and I in English so the CO asked if my fiancé spoke English and I said no so he asked him "do you understand what I'm saying" and because my Fiancé didn't I proceeded to tell my fiancé "el te estas preguntando si tu lo entiendes" at which point the CO asked me not to translate and I said "sorry, it's a habit" he said ok and proceeded to tell us in Spanish to raise our right hands in the air and we did and I don't remember the exact words but we basically swore we would tell the truth.
Then the questions began and were directed mostly to me in English and were VERY specific to our case and it was very obvious that he took the time to review our original petition and supporting documents and at one point actually said "I know a lot about you, don't I" and I said "as you should" but please understand that he was not unpleasant, on the contrary he was actually very pleasant and was just trying to make sense of our really complicated case.
So, I will just share the generic questions we were asked since I believe this will be more relevant to the VJ community and unfortunately they are not in order since the CO kind of jumped around different areas of interest as he flipped through our file.
Me:
When did you meet?
When did your relationship start?
Where do you live?
Do you have children?
Has he met your fiancé?
Do you have pictures?
Does he have family in the states?
What is the name of his son's mom?
To my fiancé he asked him to place his right hand over the fingerprinting sensor and then he handed him the 156k form and asked him if he understood the statement below and instructed him to print my name on the form and to sign it.
Did you read the pamphlet and understand it? (I forgot to mention that the 1st CO handed it to us regarding domestic violence and the rights of an immigrant if such abuse occurs)
What is your son's name?
The CO than said he would flip through our shutterfly album and proceeded to ask questions based on the pics. He asked about the places we visited and of some of the other people in the pics. He then handed us back the album and in so doing pinched his fingers. So here's a tip for my fellow VJ members, if you decide to compile your pics into one album choose a soft cover instead of the hard cover. My album was hardcover and almost did not fit through the very narrow window slot. Upon return I asked him what happens when petitioners bring in traditional photo albums and he said in those cases he has them hold the album up to the glass and flip through the pages themselves. He then proceeded to hand us back the original pics we submitted with our original application stating they no longer needed them and that disconcerted me a bit as I squeezed my fiancé's hand and he squeezed back (we had been holding hands beneath the counter for most of the interview).
He then said "felicidades, su visa has sido aprovado" at which point I thanked him and looked over at my fiancé and he hugged me lifting me up as he kissed me. In the meantime, the CO tapped the counter and said "pay attention" and we promptly did and he proceeded to hand us the green ticket and told us we needed to go the Domex counter and pay the Domex fee he then advised us of the follow to join process and told me it was not necessary for me to come back but it was necessary for my fiancé to do so when the time comes. As he's speaking my fiancé twice asks me "preguntale su nombre" so when the CO stopped speaking, I say to him "he would like to know your name" at which point the CO told us “John“ with a smile and my Fiancé said "John, gracias y Dios te bendiga and he placed his hand beneath the narrow slot in an attempt to shake his hand and the CO graciously reciprocated and "shook" his hand at best as he could through the limited space. With big smiles we thanked him again as we walked away and almost skipped over to the Domex counter, paid our $11 fee and by the time we left the embassy it was 10:50 am.
All in all, I would say our interview went well. Our CO was thorough and diligent and I appreciated his straight forwardness and transparency. He conducted the interview in a courteous and professional manner and as it progressed and it became apparent we were a genuine couple he relaxed and joked a couple of times.
As for forms, he did not request any of my financial docs. I hope this review is helpful and I wish the best of luck to all.
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| Rating : |
Good |
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Timeline Comments: None yet, be the first!
*Notice about estimates: The estimates are based off averages of other members recent experiences
(documented in their timelines) for the same benefit/petition/application at the same filing location.
Individual results may vary as every case is not always 'average'. Past performance does not necessarily
predict future results. The 'as early as date' may change over time based on current reported processing
times from members. There have historically been cases where a benefit/petition/application processing
briefly slows down or stops and this can not be predicted. Use these dates as reference only and do not
rely on them for planning. As always you should check the
USCIS processing times to see if your application
is past due.
** Not all cases are transfered
ver 5.0
