L-1B Visa Interview
Aug 6th 2014, 6:05 am
#31
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2013
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 263
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Passports arrived at 7am this morning!!!
Aug 6th 2014, 12:11 pm
#32
Just Joined
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 28
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Fab!
I've just had an email to say my visa will be delivered tomorrow. Superb service from USCIS throughout my application.
I've just had an email to say my visa will be delivered tomorrow. Superb service from USCIS throughout my application.
Aug 7th 2014, 1:59 pm
#34
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 32
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Thank you to the OP for the detailed review, we visited the embassy on Tuesday this week for our L1B/L2 and planned to write a similar post, but it would be almost identical, I hope you don't mind, but I'll add our experience to this one to keep them together.
We arrived at 8.45am and there was already a big queue (I heard 7am would get you near the front of the queue and out of the embassy in under an hour). looking out of the window from the waiting room, the queue had cleared by 10am with everyone for that day inside already waiting.
Have your DS160, Passport and Appointment instructions handy, it's required several times.
The numbers ran to N400 (NIV presumably) for that day and ours were in the high 200's. At first I thought the numbers were random but after watching for a while it was clear that they were being called up in two groups, first for the screening and that was in order, they were being called at about 2 a minute in the morning. Then for the second interview they were called not in order (as some were processed quicker than others).
The real problem seemed to be if you're still in there at midday (N200 or above), you have to wait over the very slow lunchtime period where it only called one number every 5 minutes, so I think it definitely pays to arrive earlier so you can be out before lunch. Eventually the speed improved after 1pm and we were seen by 2pm.
After a few questions about the job/myself she said "you're good to go". I don't know what I was expecting, perhaps a congratulations banner, streamers and a big "APPROVED" stamp on an official bit of paper and a photographer to capture the moment?!! But yes as everybody else has said, it's quite the anticlimax after no doubt a lot of preparation and time.
In the waiting hall there is a selection of drinks (hot & cold - pepsi, coke, water etc) and very limited selection of crisps and chocolate bars, plus they had some hot pastries/sausage rolls, but that's it. It didn't look like you could leave, so you're kind of stuck therefore I'd recommend bringing something if you can, a chocolate bar and coke (sorry, "candy bar & soda") isn't a great lunch!
The best news was I read a recent post that mobile phones are allowed in the waiting area and they sure are, with almost everybody using them to surf, and we had 4G on Three mobile, so that helped the time pass a bit quicker. A lot of people had in-ear headphones too listening to music/video.
Also, small bags were permitted (large handbags, laptop bags, small backpacks, small overnight bags etc), so it didn't seem as restrictive as the website suggested.
There are two Photo-Me booths inside the room - they charge the standard £7 (Coins only) for visa photos - we already did ours not knowing of their presence, and turned out not to require them as the digital ones on our DS160 were acceptable.
So, that was Tuesday, visa check online said "Administrative Processing" which got me worried as it mentions about taking several weeks, but a check on here calmed me down a bit, and this morning (Thursday) it changed to "Issued" and we got an email saying it will be ready to pick up from the courier tomorrow, so couldn't be more pleased with the speed of it. As posted already on this thread - great job USCIS/DOS. The recent computer glitches had prepared me for a longer wait, but they're obviously working very hard to sort it.
The petition was only put in mid-late July, it was approved three days later, I797 FedEx'd in two days from US, the longest wait was for an appointment at the embassy, but looks like the whole visa process will take less than a month and despite being an anxious time for a worry'er like me, it was very smooth.
Good luck to others out there.
We arrived at 8.45am and there was already a big queue (I heard 7am would get you near the front of the queue and out of the embassy in under an hour). looking out of the window from the waiting room, the queue had cleared by 10am with everyone for that day inside already waiting.
Have your DS160, Passport and Appointment instructions handy, it's required several times.
The numbers ran to N400 (NIV presumably) for that day and ours were in the high 200's. At first I thought the numbers were random but after watching for a while it was clear that they were being called up in two groups, first for the screening and that was in order, they were being called at about 2 a minute in the morning. Then for the second interview they were called not in order (as some were processed quicker than others).
The real problem seemed to be if you're still in there at midday (N200 or above), you have to wait over the very slow lunchtime period where it only called one number every 5 minutes, so I think it definitely pays to arrive earlier so you can be out before lunch. Eventually the speed improved after 1pm and we were seen by 2pm.
After a few questions about the job/myself she said "you're good to go". I don't know what I was expecting, perhaps a congratulations banner, streamers and a big "APPROVED" stamp on an official bit of paper and a photographer to capture the moment?!! But yes as everybody else has said, it's quite the anticlimax after no doubt a lot of preparation and time.
In the waiting hall there is a selection of drinks (hot & cold - pepsi, coke, water etc) and very limited selection of crisps and chocolate bars, plus they had some hot pastries/sausage rolls, but that's it. It didn't look like you could leave, so you're kind of stuck therefore I'd recommend bringing something if you can, a chocolate bar and coke (sorry, "candy bar & soda") isn't a great lunch!
The best news was I read a recent post that mobile phones are allowed in the waiting area and they sure are, with almost everybody using them to surf, and we had 4G on Three mobile, so that helped the time pass a bit quicker. A lot of people had in-ear headphones too listening to music/video.
Also, small bags were permitted (large handbags, laptop bags, small backpacks, small overnight bags etc), so it didn't seem as restrictive as the website suggested.
There are two Photo-Me booths inside the room - they charge the standard £7 (Coins only) for visa photos - we already did ours not knowing of their presence, and turned out not to require them as the digital ones on our DS160 were acceptable.
So, that was Tuesday, visa check online said "Administrative Processing" which got me worried as it mentions about taking several weeks, but a check on here calmed me down a bit, and this morning (Thursday) it changed to "Issued" and we got an email saying it will be ready to pick up from the courier tomorrow, so couldn't be more pleased with the speed of it. As posted already on this thread - great job USCIS/DOS. The recent computer glitches had prepared me for a longer wait, but they're obviously working very hard to sort it.
The petition was only put in mid-late July, it was approved three days later, I797 FedEx'd in two days from US, the longest wait was for an appointment at the embassy, but looks like the whole visa process will take less than a month and despite being an anxious time for a worry'er like me, it was very smooth.
Good luck to others out there.
Aug 8th 2014, 9:54 am
#35
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 32
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Our passports and I797 were ready at the DX office at 7am this morning, so 72 hours after queuing outisde the embassy, we have it in our hands, I'm very impressed.
The DX guy at the depot said yesterday a bloke picked up his passport early in the morning as he had his flight booked that afternoon, talk about cutting it fine!! We played it safe, but we'll be in Michigan in a few weeks.
I hope our Social Security and Drivers Licence paperwork is as smooth when we arrive
The DX guy at the depot said yesterday a bloke picked up his passport early in the morning as he had his flight booked that afternoon, talk about cutting it fine!! We played it safe, but we'll be in Michigan in a few weeks.
I hope our Social Security and Drivers Licence paperwork is as smooth when we arrive
Aug 8th 2014, 10:07 am
#36
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 87
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Our passports and I797 were ready at the DX office at 7am this morning, so 72 hours after queuing outisde the embassy, we have it in our hands, I'm very impressed.
The DX guy at the depot said yesterday a bloke picked up his passport early in the morning as he had his flight booked that afternoon, talk about cutting it fine!! We played it safe, but we'll be in Michigan in a few weeks.
I hope our Social Security and Drivers Licence paperwork is as smooth when we arrive
The DX guy at the depot said yesterday a bloke picked up his passport early in the morning as he had his flight booked that afternoon, talk about cutting it fine!! We played it safe, but we'll be in Michigan in a few weeks.
I hope our Social Security and Drivers Licence paperwork is as smooth when we arrive
I am on day 13 out of the maximum 15 waiting for my response. I think i might explode with anticipation and nerves at this point. Anyone know if they provide responses over the weekend?
Aug 8th 2014, 10:48 am
#37
Account Closed
Joined: Aug 2002
Location: Kentucky
Posts: 38,865
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
Outstanding!
Where in Michigan are you headed? My wife grew up in Detroit, and I did my undergraduate degree in Windsor, just across the river in Ontario.
SSA is usually efficient... the DMV, not so much!
Ian
We played it safe, but we'll be in Michigan in a few weeks.
I hope our Social Security and Drivers Licence paperwork is as smooth when we arrive
Ian
Aug 8th 2014, 11:10 am
#38
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 32
Re: L-1B Visa Interview
We're headed for Ann Arbor, I was there last year on a short term project and they decided they could really do with my skills longer term.
Thanks Ian for your hard work on this forum, it's been a great source of information and research and am sure it will continue to be for us when we arrive.
