Got it! Successful CP at US Embassy in Middle East

[dragoman]

If they took your passport, it means that you will get your visa in a short time. As far as I understand they have just asked for approval to issue your visa. That's all..Donnawat.

 

[J&G]

If they took your passport, it means that you will get your visa in short time. As far as I understand they have just asked approval for your visa. That's all..Donnawat.

just now i got UPS tracking information that Embassy handover my passport to UPS and now the cargo is under distribution in istanbul hope they sent me the visa and doc atc..

 

[dragoman]

I am quite sure they have sent the passport with a visa and docs..

just now i got UPS tracking information that Embassy handover my passport to UPS and now the cargo is under distribution in istanbul hope they sent me the visa and doc atc..

 

[dv2007us]

OK, I'm trying to understand admin processing vs approved cases. Approved cases are when they KEEP your passport and ask you to return to the embassy to pick up your passport (or depending on what area you are in, perhaps ask you to pay for courier so that they can mail it out to you). Even if they change the date of pickup (as is the case with me where they called me telling me that they will call me on the day when I was supposed to pick up the passport and then let me know when I can come), the visa at this point has already been approved.

In admin processing, they'll return the passport and give you a sheet of paper describing the situation and then you'll have to wait it out.

Does this sound right to everyone? If they keep the passport, it means it is a done deal, otherwise they would not have kept it, agreed?

 

[Lokas]

I believe you are right dear

OK, I'm trying to understand admin processing vs approved cases. Approved cases are when they KEEP your passport and ask you to return to the embassy to pick up your passport (or depending on what area you are in, perhaps ask you to pay for courier so that they can mail it out to you). Even if they change the date of pickup (as is the case with me where they called me telling me that they will call me on the day when I was supposed to pick up the passport and then let me know when I can come), the visa at this point has already been approved.

In admin processing, they'll return the passport and give you a sheet of paper describing the situation and then you'll have to wait it out.

Does this sound right to everyone? If they keep the passport, it means it is a done deal, otherwise they would not have kept it, agreed?

 

[J&G]

consulate send me my passport without visa additionally sending a green form where it is written as administrative processing is under process about my case
feel very wired and tension about the deadline of 2007dv in september.

 

[Lokas]

consulate send me my passport without visa additionally sending a green form where it is written as administrative processing is under process about my case
feel very wired and tension about the deadline of 2007dv in september.

This is confusing
i advise yyou to contact them by September 1st as they asked me to
today they sent me an email
saying that my case is still pending and they recommend a follow up email after 2 weeks ..

 

[dv2007us]

Congratulations!!!

Some questions, which will also help other middle eastern people...

Where in the middle east you had an interview?
How did you get a police certificate? Was it easy and how long it took?
What was done in the medical exam and how much it cost?

Thank you and Have a safe trip!!!

The interview was held in the Gulf. I got the police certificate a year ago (check with the US Embassy in the country where you're going to do the interview to find out how long they consider the local police certificates to be valid for since the police authorities' validity may differ from the validity imposed by the Embassy). The police certificate is simple enough - you go to the Criminal and Fingerprint Section (or Civil Section) of the police authority in the country in question and submit your fingerprints but you will need a letter from the US Embassy requesting that you need this done. Just go to the US Embassy with your DV letter and they will issue you a letter you need to take to the police authority. The police certificate can be picked up about 10 days later (they should issue you a receipt for the pickup date).

The medical exam consists of a basic checkup done by the doctor, x-ray and blood test. The costs varies from place to place but in total it shouldn't cost you more than $130.
Good luck.

 

[dv2007us]

So I got my immigrant visa (green card) today. I got my passport back with the green card 5 days after my interview (including the weekend). As I had mentioned in my previous posting, you have to look at what outcome your application falls under after the interview. Only if they have kept your passport AND given you some sort of a receipt/sticker stub asking you to return on a specific date to pick up your passport, has your application been approved unconditionally. For all other cases, your application requires some sort of further processing as highlighted in my earlier post.

Good luck to all!

 

[dragoman]

Congratulations..

 

[J&G]

So I got my immigrant visa (green card) today. I got my passport back with the green card 5 days after my interview (including the weekend). As I had mentioned in my previous posting, you have to look at what outcome your application falls under after the interview. Only if they have kept your passport AND given you some sort of a receipt/sticker stub asking you to return on a specific date to pick up your passport, has your application been approved unconditionally. For all other cases, your application requires some sort of further processing as highlighted in my earlier post.

Good luck to all!

congratulation man i am still waiting for result of check..

 

[masoud54]

I wanted to briefly highlight my CP experience. I recently had my CP interview at a US Embassy in the Middle East. My immigrant visa (green card) got approved and here is a brief outline of how it went.

I came into the Embassy and submitted my documents to the Immigrant Visa section. The employee had a checklist of documents and went through each one asking me for the original and a copy. This was not the interview but just the submission of documents phase. The consular who would interview me would show up at a different window later. Here is the list of the documents I submitted/they asked for:

1 recent photograph 5x5 cm, white background
Original Passport + Copy
Original Birth Certificate + Copy
He then asked if I had an Affidavit (I-134) from the US and I did, so I gave him the original
Work experience letters/Offer of employment (I was currently a student in the US and also working as part of the degree so I had this)
Bank Statement + Copy
High School Diploma + Copies
University and Advanced Degrees/Transcripts + Copies
Police Certificates from all countries where I resided for more than 6 months since reaching the age of 16 + Copies
Selective Service Notice + Copy

After collecting all the documents (original and copies) he asked me to go pay the fee after which I'll be called for the interview.

I went to another window, paid the $755 fee and then had a seat. Waited about 30 mins after which I was called to another window.

She was very nice. I came to the window and told her I had additional documents (such as references, letters, etc) she looked at me and smiled and said she didn't need anything else. She made a comment about my educational qualifications and smiled again. At that point it was clear that my green card was already approved and that this wasn't really going to be an interview. So I just chatted with her about when she got moved to this Embassy and where in the States she was from. I then told her I'd been to that State and we went on to have some small talk about touristic destinations in the US. We then talked about my field of study and I asked her if she liked that topic in high school, we joked around for a bit. The system was running slow so she was a little frustrated at that. In any case, she then asked me to raise my right hand, take an oath affirming my answers (on the form) to be true and then took my fingerprints. She asked me if I had any family in the US, I replied and then told her about my family and where they live. She asked me what motivated me to apply for the lottery and I gave my response. Anyways, then she told me what she had watched on Television the night before (related to our earlier discussion on my field of study). She asked me if I had already done the medical (which I had and they were awaiting the results which should've been the next day) and she said my visa will be ready for pickup in a few days.

That's it. I think my case was unique because of my educational background and qualifications but nevertheless it was very smooth running with no problems. I pick up my passport in a few days and then I'm heading back to the US.

My advice to everyone is to not to try to find short-cuts in the documentation. Give them what they ask for and I know from personal experience some of the documents require a lot of work, patience and effort (e.g. certain police certificates as I found out from my adventurous trips) but they are necessary so get them. If you have all your documents in tact and they see you can support yourself, it isn't a problem. If your case number is high I recommend CP. If your case number is low and you are already in the US, maybe AOS is a better option. I did CP and am quite happy with it and would do exactly that if I had to do it all over again (and I have been living in the US for several years now).

Alright good luck to everyone and thanks for those who assisted myself and others in answering questions. This forum has been very helpful indeed.

Dear DV2007US: Thanks for sharing the experience and congratulations. I am currently in US on H1-B visa. My wife is the winner of 2008 with a high case number AS93xx. She is a medical doctor (graduated from Iran and looking for a residency in US and I have got my PhD in US). Given our level of education and the high case number we have decided to do CP in UAE instead of AOS, however we will need a FBI check (for Iranian citizens). I was wondering if you needed a FBI check too. I have heard that they waive it for some people.

 

[dv2007us]

Dear DV2007US: Thanks for sharing the experience and congratulations. I am currently in US on H1-B visa. My wife is the winner of 2008 with a high case number AS93xx. She is a medical doctor (graduated from Iran and looking for a residency in US and I have got my PhD in US). Given our level of education and the high case number we have decided to do CP in UAE instead of AOS, however we will need a FBI check (for Iranian citizens). I was wondering if you needed a FBI check too. I have heard that they waive it for some people.

I did not require an FBI Check. Also, the Embassy instructs people to NOT obtain a police certificate from the US as the Embassy conducts their own background check. So normally police certificates from the US are not required. However, perhaps the case is different for Iranians but I would contact the Embassy to ask them specifically if you require an FBI check or not. Also, as I'm sure you know, you have to choose the Embassy in the right location for your interview, so presumingly you have some ties to UAE for this purpose. I suspect your case number will become current sometime next year in August or September so you have lots of time. I think doing CP is the right and best choice in your case - good luck to you both.