Hi guys,
I was successful on my interview at the US Consulate General in Naples, Italy! So, I want to share my experience with you. Hopefully this can help someone!
Please note that some of the information you read in this post may apply only if you are attending your interview in Naples, Italy.
Let's start from the medical examination:
- In Italy, there's no need to book your medical examination. It is automatically scheduled for the day before the interview (this is nice in my opinion, especially if you don't live near Naples). If you need any information from the medical center, be sure to call them on Mondays and Tuesdays morning. This is the only time they answer DV-related questions.
- You need to bring 4 pictures (no need to be American passport size). Please note that this is a new requirement for DV2015 (only one pic was required till DV2014). Anyway, if you forget to bring them don't freak out: there is an automatic machine nearby where you can take them if needed.
- Bring your passport with you
- Bring your vaccination certificate and any other relevant information about your clinical history (especially if you underwent *significant* surgery in the past)
- The medical examination is scheduled at 8:00 am for everyone. I was there by 7:30am and I was the 6th in line (not only DV winners, also spouses/fiancèes of American citizens). I advise you to be there early (the earlier the better, first-come first-served). The medical center (Istituto Medico Varelli) opens at 7am. There is a dedicated counter for "consulate" medical examinations. When your number is current, you give the passport to the lady at the counter, and then you can sit and wait in a waiting room.
-I was called after 1 hour waiting (it was 8:30am) for the blood test, and for the chest x-ray right after. After that, you are asked to wait in another waiting room (next to the x-ray room) and wait for a first interview with a M.D..
- After another hour waiting (it was around 9:30am), my name was called. There were 2 M.D.s in the room, interviewing one person each. You need to give the vaccinations certificate and the 4 pictures at this time. The M.D. asks you some generic non-medical questions (phone number, email address, address in the US, etc.) and fills some electronic forms (it was actually funny because the M.D. was kinda old, and REEEALLY slow at typing!!!). He then takes a look at your vaccination records. He seemed to care only about Tetanus and MMR vaccinations (this was my case: male, in the 30s, but also the other people there reported this. Probably if you are not too young nor too old you need only these 2, but again I cannot say this for sure). If you're not ok with vaccinations, you can take shots there (it costs you some extra euros though). After that you have to pay (170 Euros in my case as I didn't have any extra shots to take). You can pay either cash (euros only) or credit/debit card.
I have two advices for you at this time: 1- Tetanus vaccination lasts 10 years, after that you need to take a booster. If you don't want to pay extra money, be sure to check this and take a booster prior of the medical examination. 2- Even if you can take shots at the medical center, they may run out of shots!!! They actually did that day. The MD writes a note in the form where he states that the medical center ran out of shots and advices you to take it on your own. I am sure this will not impact the interview with the CO (the person that had this note on the medical form was eventually issued the visa), but I don't know if they are going to question at the POE.
- After this first "screening/acceptance", you go back to the entrance and wait for the medical examination. You have to wait your turn again. Once you're in, the MD asks some questions about your clinical history, then measures your body temperature and blood pressure. Then he measures your height and weight (and calculate the BMI). He then visits you (checks for nodules, hear your lungs and heart, palpates your abdomen). You take vaccine shots at this point, if you need to.
- After that, you're finally done! Total time: 3 hours. At 10.30am I was out of the medical center and ready to visit Naples!
The day after, I was scheduled for the interview at the Consulate at 8:30 am. The Consulate is water front, and there is a really nice view of the Gulf of Naples from there!
I was there by 7:40am but the guard told me that they will let you in just 15 minutes before your interview time. So, you don't need to rush (also because you have to wait outside!).
Anyway, this is how it went:
- at exactly 8:15am I was called at the security check. There they ask for your passport. You have to surrender your mobile phone (they keep it and give you a tag). Then you have to go through metal detector. They give you a number. I was number 10 (but they were not consecutive numbers, there were less than 10 people before me).
- Then you go inside the consulate, 2nd floor. There is a waiting room there where you wait your turn with the other applicants.
- There are many counters there, but only some of them were active. Two for documents checking, one for the CO interview, and one for the cashier.
- When it's your turn, you are first called for documents collection. You talk to a nice lady: I had to give the passport, 2 American size pics, and all the documents needed along with photocopies (birth cert., police cert., proof of education, military records). They asked me for higher education level certificate only (Master's degree in my case). They didn't ask for my high school diploma (but it is safer to bring it, just in case!). They gave me back an envelope (not sealed) containing some papers from the medical examination and a CD with the x-ray. You are advised to bring that envelope with you when you enter the US. If you need to change your US address, this is the right time to do it. They also asked for proof of registration to the courier service. Then, you are given a paper sheet stating the fee amount you need to pay ($330).
- You go to the cashier and pay the fee. You can pay either cash, or credit card (all major credit cards accepted: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Diners), or debit card (note that only US debit cards are accepted). You have to bring the receipt back to the lady that collected your documents, and sit and wait for the interview with the CO.
- After few minutes waiting, my name was called by the CO. I went to the counter where a young kind guy was waiting for me. He said: "Don't worry, the interview is going to last 1 minute only!". He was actually wrong, but it took no more than 3-4 minutes!
. He asked to rise my right hand and swear that all the information provided were true. After that, he asked me:
- what did I do in the US under my J1 Visa some years ago and how long did I stay there
- what did I do after that
- wheter I am currently employed full time and what is my current job position
- what is my relation to the host in the US
He said, "OK, this make sense, so...congratulations!". He then explained me how it works with the courier service and gave me back all the originals of the documents and kept the photocopies and the passport. I also asked him one question about POE and he was happy to help me.
- I wasn't asked any proof of my financial status (even if I was prepared for that), but I guess that asking about my current employment status (I actually felt he was really interested about full-time employement status) and relation to the host was a way to check if I can easily sustain myself for the first period and find a job in the US.
- At 9:30am I was out of the consulate with a big smile on my face, walking through the sunshine and thinking about...everything!
That's it! Pretty smooth. Easier to say once your visa has been issued.
When I was in Naples I couldn't sleep well for the fear of waking up late and miss the appointments time!
Also, as a personal advice, don't worry too much for the waiting times. Just stay relaxed, and use that time to talk to the other applicants. You can learn new things and make new friends.
Sorry for the (maybe too) long post, but I wanted to share my experience with you. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!
I want to thank all the members of this fantastic forum, you have all been very helpful in making the process smoother and letting me go to the interview well prepared. It's good when you don't have negative surprises. BIG BIG THANKS.
Cheers,
Adalb
