ginstwin

Is it possible to book the medical in London without having an interview date?

Long story but i may only be in uk for a few days inbound and outbound and dont yet have an interview date for my visa.

My thought process is this, could i book my medical and then wait for the interview which may be 3 or 4 months after the medical?

thanks

meauxna

Do you have an LND case number yet?

You must have that number to book the medical.
An interview will not be set until the medical is complete and returned to the Embassy.

ginstwin

I don't have anything yet. My paperwork is with my
Lawyer getting ready for filing.
It's an eb5 application and it's a slow long process.

Do i get the number when we file ?

If so that could work well .

Many thanks

meauxna

You can ask your lawyer how long to expect before you get your Dept of State (NVC) case number.. that is the one that starts with LND.
I expect it will be a while yet.

You will get 'a number' when you file the first part of your case, but that will be tied to the petition (USCIS). You don't get the LND number until well after petition approval, when you have started the immigrant visa application.

GeoffM

I got my LND number about a month after I-140 approval (I assume it's about the same for other approvals). I don't know what the lead time for EB-5 is but you won't get an LND number until after (if) that is approved.

When I browsed through the Kensington Doctors website it did ask for the interview date on the application form but I didn't get as far as seeing whether that field was actually required. From what I've read here and elsewhere, the results get sent through to the embassy within a week and you can book an appointment within a few weeks.

But if you haven't even filed yet, I wouldn't bother. If it does expire (either 6 months or a year, I can't remember) then you'd have to do it again at £200+ per adult.

ginstwin

Thank you both for your concise info.

My situation is a little complex I guess.

Basically I have submitted my paperwork and my lawyers
Expect to file in the next 10 days.
My problem is I am out of the uk (my lawyers are in the us)
For the next 10 months at least.
I will be travelling from sept until at least feb and am currently in the USA .

I was hoping to have a medical in the uk in sept
When I pass through the uk and then return for my interview
Whenever they give me an appointment which I hoped would be in march.

From what you are saying it seems I will
Have to come to the uk fir the medical and then await an interview.

I'm typing this in my iPhone so hope it makes sense!!

ginstwin

So that i fully understand the process is this how the timeline works.

Assuming all is ok with application etc etc.

1. Lawyer files I-529
2. NVC provide case number
3. approx 5-6 months later Petition approved and LDN number issued
4. I assume i am then contacted and told to book medical and embassy appointment.

So if i have understood it correctly i can only book the medical and the interview when i have the LDN number.

There is a minimum of 4 days from Doctors exam to receiving the results at embassy.

So if i am really lucky i could plan to have a medical and then perhaps 6 days later have the interview? if i book at the same time .

Sorry to be a pain here but i am going to be in various different continents and want to have my very best guess-estimate as to procedure etc.

Really appreciate it.

Havnfun

The lawyer files the I-526 with USCIS it says 6 months for approval on the website but that certainly can vary (ours took 14 months).

Then it goes to NVC and that can take another 2-4 months before you get an appointment for your interview.

Our I-526 petition was filed with USCIS in August 2007 and we had our interview in February, 2009. It really depends on who your EB-5 is with and if the project has already been approved. We are with American Life and the Marriott hotel in Seattle and when we filed that project still had to be approved by USCIS which is what took so long. We are from Canada so had our interview in Montreal. We were living in California already so went to Montreal and had our medical 4 days prior to our interview. We couldn't schedule the medical until we had an interview date - this may be different in London.

Who is your EB-5 with?

GeoffM

You will get a USCIS case number shortly after filing but you won't get an NVC case number (LND for London) until around a month after your petition is approved. Other timescales sound similar to other threads I've read.

ginstwin

Got it Geoff, thanks , understood.

So final question (i think) do you know how long from getting told to book the interview at the embassy to actually getting an interview is ?

I appreciate it s the "how long is a piece of string question" but I am trying to juggle stuff from the other side of the world and just want to at least give myself a clue as to where i will need to be and when.

meauxna

I-529 is the petition; it is filed with USCIS. It will take several months to be approved.

Once it is approved, you case is transferred to the NVC. That is when you will get your "LND" number (the one that allows you to book the medical).
Read more about that portion of the application here: http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigra...info_3731.html

That step is many several months out.
It is impossible for us to say when it will be appropriate for you to get your medical.
We had to make multiple trips to the main city for our overall visa petition + application; you may just have to suck it up and make an extra trip. There's simply no way to know at this point.


Also, #4.. you do not book your own interview. You take what the NVC schedules for you. It's your responsibility to have the medical done before that date.

meauxna

You do not book your own interview. The NVC sets your interview date. Usually you get about a month's notice.

ginstwin

FUlly understood now.

Meauxna you have been a great help, i really appreciate it.

The problem i have is that i will be in OZ for probably 4 or 5 months and can see knowing my luck an interview being scheduled halfway through that trip. I know its possible to request a change of embassy but i think it will confuse things and paperwork will go missing etc.

As you say i will have to suck it up and fly back to the uk. if necessary.

I intend to document everything here once the application has been filed etc so hopefully it can be of use to others.

Many thanks

GeoffM

There is a bit of to-ing and fro-ing with the NVC paperwork so allow time for that. IIRC you can reschedule if you don't like the date, though I guess you're trying to squeeze the medical and interview into one short trip? Personally I wouldn't make any plans until the petition is approved, as others have said. Lookup the LingChe shortcut which may speed up the NVC process after that but note that it's written for family-based immigration, not employment, so some of the sections are irrelevant. Or, alternatively, if NVC don't hear from you for a year then they'll abandon the case - in other words you could stretch out the process by several months (with care!).

meauxna

Or his damn lawyer should be doing all that for him.. .honestly, at this level of immigration, he's paying for concierge service and he should get it. Grub around on the discussion groups with the rest of us plebes, but it should be to gather information to pummel the lawyer with IMO.

The LingChe shortcuts (and all the other ones out there) are written from a 'get her there as fast as you can!!!' POV. The shortcuts may be of limited value in a case like this AND I think it is very important to remember that those shortcuts have never been written for the average user.. they are directed to the very involved, studied the minutia of the process sort of person. This thread would not lead me to describe the OP that way (not that there is anything wrong with that!). It's just that some things suit some people better than others.
ginstwin needs to decide which sort he is. It reads to me like he wants the results of the people who spend their miserable days studying this sort of thing, without putting the book time in. Again, no offense intended, but that is what you're paying the lawyer for. Tell him your expectations and that you hope he will meet them. IMO, he should have explained all this to you ages ago.