Likely Chennai CP Interview in July/August 2004
- Thread starter jalabalajings
- Start date
successful cp interview
cp interview experience
BTW i had my interview posponed from feb 04 to july 04 due to my wife's pregnancy.
Landed in chennai on 13th midnight.
went to lister labs 14th morning 7:30 - no queue - just some wait due to some printout problems.
collected the report at 5:35 the same day and went to Dr.Mathai Thomas in Kodambakam - long queue - finally got done at 9:45 pm!! Advice go early to lister labs and collect results - say around 4:30. My wife had got her Rubella vaccinationj 3 months ago and i had a doctor report of that and a blood report stating that she is immune to Mums and measles - but he insisted on giving the MMR - total cost for 2 people Rs. 1400. Make sure u carry passport size photos - u require it in lister labs and at the doctor.
U also require the appointment letter for both places.
I already had photos taken in the US but i got my photos taken again at a konica labs in thirunvanmiyur. Any konica lab does it well - costs R. 87 per person.
15th was a shopping day - thanks to some discounts at most shops due to "Aadi" month.
16th morning we were at the consulate at 7:45 - since my wife was carrying a 3 month old citizen son of ours, we were made to start in the fron of the queue. They let us in around 8:15. Finally the room has AC. Madras whether was not bad - could have been worse. I then sumitted my documents to an indian guy at a counter. Arrage your documents and your wife's documents separately. All originals and a copy along with yours, a copy with your wife's documents. I had just one copy for things like mariage certificate - so i submitted original. Also submitted the Rs. 400 dd to bluedart (for 2 passports) - i had pais the visa fee earlier. They did not ask any other document at that time - I did not submit any wedding photos, but had it handy. I was asked to wait.
at 9 am an american (consular) calls me to another counter. We keeps scanning thru my passport and the forms. I had a typo in one of the dates it was back by one month - he got really furious at that one - so make sure u check the dates - especially the visa dates 2-3 times at least. Also my F1 visa expired in July 1999 and H1 petition was filed in Aug 199 - but i was on OPT - so my lawyers had told me that i don;t need to a visa at that time - the consular officer - totally nailed me on that one - he claimed that i living in the US illegally and i was trying to not follow the rules - he then kept on riling - as to why i always had intentions of immigration and i am not following rules - all baseless arguments - he was very arrogant and told me that that since i was a really sharp guy, i should be able to easily make up a case for me. He told me at one point that he cannot allow me to go into US again. I explained to him how i seeked advice from mulitple immigration lawyers about the same point and all of them had saidthat it was not a problem. But then i guess he saw my academic record and career and he felt he was just wasting his time on that point. Next he turned to my 3 month old citizen son, who had started crying then ( i had taken him along since he was still being brest fed). He asked for his passort and visa (the lawyers never asked me to take this - but thank goodness i had taken all these). He grilled my wife about why she should have had the baby in india and not in US - my wife gave it back to him and he kept quite - then he took at stare at my son's PIO (peronsof indian origin card) and then said we should have not brought the kid to india so early - he gave reasons of infection etc. and that we probably take the advice of pediatrician - i got really mad at him, butcontrolled my temper - i told him that he has had his shots and the pediatrician, (a pretty good one in the bay area) had oked his travel. After that i think he ran out of ideas to irritate me and wife more and said the visa was approved and i would get it my mail in a couple of days.
Finally! Anyway one thing the officer achieved is he convinced me why I shoudl not stay in US for long.
That apart - i thank all the folks in this forum for their help.
cp interview experience
BTW i had my interview posponed from feb 04 to july 04 due to my wife's pregnancy.
Landed in chennai on 13th midnight.
went to lister labs 14th morning 7:30 - no queue - just some wait due to some printout problems.
collected the report at 5:35 the same day and went to Dr.Mathai Thomas in Kodambakam - long queue - finally got done at 9:45 pm!! Advice go early to lister labs and collect results - say around 4:30. My wife had got her Rubella vaccinationj 3 months ago and i had a doctor report of that and a blood report stating that she is immune to Mums and measles - but he insisted on giving the MMR - total cost for 2 people Rs. 1400. Make sure u carry passport size photos - u require it in lister labs and at the doctor.
U also require the appointment letter for both places.
I already had photos taken in the US but i got my photos taken again at a konica labs in thirunvanmiyur. Any konica lab does it well - costs R. 87 per person.
15th was a shopping day - thanks to some discounts at most shops due to "Aadi" month.
16th morning we were at the consulate at 7:45 - since my wife was carrying a 3 month old citizen son of ours, we were made to start in the fron of the queue. They let us in around 8:15. Finally the room has AC. Madras whether was not bad - could have been worse. I then sumitted my documents to an indian guy at a counter. Arrage your documents and your wife's documents separately. All originals and a copy along with yours, a copy with your wife's documents. I had just one copy for things like mariage certificate - so i submitted original. Also submitted the Rs. 400 dd to bluedart (for 2 passports) - i had pais the visa fee earlier. They did not ask any other document at that time - I did not submit any wedding photos, but had it handy. I was asked to wait.
at 9 am an american (consular) calls me to another counter. We keeps scanning thru my passport and the forms. I had a typo in one of the dates it was back by one month - he got really furious at that one - so make sure u check the dates - especially the visa dates 2-3 times at least. Also my F1 visa expired in July 1999 and H1 petition was filed in Aug 199 - but i was on OPT - so my lawyers had told me that i don;t need to a visa at that time - the consular officer - totally nailed me on that one - he claimed that i living in the US illegally and i was trying to not follow the rules - he then kept on riling - as to why i always had intentions of immigration and i am not following rules - all baseless arguments - he was very arrogant and told me that that since i was a really sharp guy, i should be able to easily make up a case for me. He told me at one point that he cannot allow me to go into US again. I explained to him how i seeked advice from mulitple immigration lawyers about the same point and all of them had saidthat it was not a problem. But then i guess he saw my academic record and career and he felt he was just wasting his time on that point. Next he turned to my 3 month old citizen son, who had started crying then ( i had taken him along since he was still being brest fed). He asked for his passort and visa (the lawyers never asked me to take this - but thank goodness i had taken all these). He grilled my wife about why she should have had the baby in india and not in US - my wife gave it back to him and he kept quite - then he took at stare at my son's PIO (peronsof indian origin card) and then said we should have not brought the kid to india so early - he gave reasons of infection etc. and that we probably take the advice of pediatrician - i got really mad at him, butcontrolled my temper - i told him that he has had his shots and the pediatrician, (a pretty good one in the bay area) had oked his travel. After that i think he ran out of ideas to irritate me and wife more and said the visa was approved and i would get it my mail in a couple of days.
Finally! Anyway one thing the officer achieved is he convinced me why I shoudl not stay in US for long.
That apart - i thank all the folks in this forum for their help.
subhasankalp
Registered Users (C)
Hello going_cp;
When and how did you find out about your appointment date?
Thank you,
When and how did you find out about your appointment date?
Thank you,
Hi,
We have opted for cp for green card processing , my interview will be sometime in next month.We have stayed in Netherlands, I stayed for 11 months and my husband for 15 months.So technically I do not PCC from Netherlands but my husband needs one.We have PCC from Netherlands that was isued for immigtation to Canada in 2001, but this too old as they need pcc not older than 6 months.I tried to get PCC from Netherlands, but they have changed there process for issueing PCC.Currently they do not issue PCC to individueals. but they can issue PCC to consulate upon request from consulate.I sent emails to consulate on this and they sent the info posted on
http://travel.state.gov/reciprocity/country_pick.htm
They just wrote the following text
POLICE RECORD
Available. Police records will not be provided by Dutch police to
individuals requesting them, but may be requested by bona fide applicants
for immigrant visas through the United States Consulate where visa
application is made. Dutch police will not provide arrest and conviction
records for outside posts unless requests for such records are routed
through the Consulate General in Amsterdam in a VISAS ALPHA message. United
States consular officers should require the police certificate of good
conduct issued by the Ministry of Justice of The Netherlands. Certificates
of good conduct (Bewijs van Goed Gedrag) issued by municipalities should not
be accepted.
Approximately four weeks are required to obtain the certificate from The
Netherlands Government, provided there is no derogatory information
concerning the applicant. In cases where there is derogatory information it
will take up to two months before the record is received at the Consulate
General in Amsterdam. The certificate, which is in the Dutch language,
covers criminal investigation only. Criminal records are expunged twenty
years following termination of the case (i.e., after service of any prison
sentence) provided no other offense is committed in the interim.
These certificates may be used only in processing visa applications and may
not be given to the applicant or to a private individual. If there is
criminal information, it may be shown on the front or reverse of the
certificate, or in some cases only on the reverse of one copy of the
certificate. The visa applicant may not be informed of the source of any
derogatory information contained in the police certificate.
We kept requesting the consulate whether consulate has the PCC from Netherlands but we kept receiving the same info again and again.So at this point I have no clue on what we will be expecting at the time of inteview.Any help will be appreciated.
We have opted for cp for green card processing , my interview will be sometime in next month.We have stayed in Netherlands, I stayed for 11 months and my husband for 15 months.So technically I do not PCC from Netherlands but my husband needs one.We have PCC from Netherlands that was isued for immigtation to Canada in 2001, but this too old as they need pcc not older than 6 months.I tried to get PCC from Netherlands, but they have changed there process for issueing PCC.Currently they do not issue PCC to individueals. but they can issue PCC to consulate upon request from consulate.I sent emails to consulate on this and they sent the info posted on
http://travel.state.gov/reciprocity/country_pick.htm
They just wrote the following text
POLICE RECORD
Available. Police records will not be provided by Dutch police to
individuals requesting them, but may be requested by bona fide applicants
for immigrant visas through the United States Consulate where visa
application is made. Dutch police will not provide arrest and conviction
records for outside posts unless requests for such records are routed
through the Consulate General in Amsterdam in a VISAS ALPHA message. United
States consular officers should require the police certificate of good
conduct issued by the Ministry of Justice of The Netherlands. Certificates
of good conduct (Bewijs van Goed Gedrag) issued by municipalities should not
be accepted.
Approximately four weeks are required to obtain the certificate from The
Netherlands Government, provided there is no derogatory information
concerning the applicant. In cases where there is derogatory information it
will take up to two months before the record is received at the Consulate
General in Amsterdam. The certificate, which is in the Dutch language,
covers criminal investigation only. Criminal records are expunged twenty
years following termination of the case (i.e., after service of any prison
sentence) provided no other offense is committed in the interim.
These certificates may be used only in processing visa applications and may
not be given to the applicant or to a private individual. If there is
criminal information, it may be shown on the front or reverse of the
certificate, or in some cases only on the reverse of one copy of the
certificate. The visa applicant may not be informed of the source of any
derogatory information contained in the police certificate.
We kept requesting the consulate whether consulate has the PCC from Netherlands but we kept receiving the same info again and again.So at this point I have no clue on what we will be expecting at the time of inteview.Any help will be appreciated.
Urgent help with PCC
Hi,
We have opted for cp for green card processing , my interview will be sometime in next month.We have stayed in Netherlands, I stayed for 11 months and my husband for 15 months.So technically I do not PCC from Netherlands but my husband needs one.We have PCC from Netherlands that was isued for immigtation to Canada in 2001, but this too old as they need pcc not older than 6 months.I tried to get PCC from Netherlands, but they have changed there process for issueing PCC.Currently they do not issue PCC to individueals. but they can issue PCC to consulate upon request from consulate.I sent emails to consulate on this and they sent the info posted on
http://travel.state.gov/reciprocity/country_pick.htm
They just wrote the following text
POLICE RECORD
Available. Police records will not be provided by Dutch police to
individuals requesting them, but may be requested by bona fide applicants
for immigrant visas through the United States Consulate where visa
application is made. Dutch police will not provide arrest and conviction
records for outside posts unless requests for such records are routed
through the Consulate General in Amsterdam in a VISAS ALPHA message. United
States consular officers should require the police certificate of good
conduct issued by the Ministry of Justice of The Netherlands. Certificates
of good conduct (Bewijs van Goed Gedrag) issued by municipalities should not
be accepted.
Approximately four weeks are required to obtain the certificate from The
Netherlands Government, provided there is no derogatory information
concerning the applicant. In cases where there is derogatory information it
will take up to two months before the record is received at the Consulate
General in Amsterdam. The certificate, which is in the Dutch language,
covers criminal investigation only. Criminal records are expunged twenty
years following termination of the case (i.e., after service of any prison
sentence) provided no other offense is committed in the interim.
These certificates may be used only in processing visa applications and may
not be given to the applicant or to a private individual. If there is
criminal information, it may be shown on the front or reverse of the
certificate, or in some cases only on the reverse of one copy of the
certificate. The visa applicant may not be informed of the source of any
derogatory information contained in the police certificate.
We kept requesting the consulate whether consulate has the PCC from Netherlands but we kept receiving the same info again and again.So at this point I have no clue on what we will be expecting at the time of inteview.Any help will be appreciated.
Hi,
We have opted for cp for green card processing , my interview will be sometime in next month.We have stayed in Netherlands, I stayed for 11 months and my husband for 15 months.So technically I do not PCC from Netherlands but my husband needs one.We have PCC from Netherlands that was isued for immigtation to Canada in 2001, but this too old as they need pcc not older than 6 months.I tried to get PCC from Netherlands, but they have changed there process for issueing PCC.Currently they do not issue PCC to individueals. but they can issue PCC to consulate upon request from consulate.I sent emails to consulate on this and they sent the info posted on
http://travel.state.gov/reciprocity/country_pick.htm
They just wrote the following text
POLICE RECORD
Available. Police records will not be provided by Dutch police to
individuals requesting them, but may be requested by bona fide applicants
for immigrant visas through the United States Consulate where visa
application is made. Dutch police will not provide arrest and conviction
records for outside posts unless requests for such records are routed
through the Consulate General in Amsterdam in a VISAS ALPHA message. United
States consular officers should require the police certificate of good
conduct issued by the Ministry of Justice of The Netherlands. Certificates
of good conduct (Bewijs van Goed Gedrag) issued by municipalities should not
be accepted.
Approximately four weeks are required to obtain the certificate from The
Netherlands Government, provided there is no derogatory information
concerning the applicant. In cases where there is derogatory information it
will take up to two months before the record is received at the Consulate
General in Amsterdam. The certificate, which is in the Dutch language,
covers criminal investigation only. Criminal records are expunged twenty
years following termination of the case (i.e., after service of any prison
sentence) provided no other offense is committed in the interim.
These certificates may be used only in processing visa applications and may
not be given to the applicant or to a private individual. If there is
criminal information, it may be shown on the front or reverse of the
certificate, or in some cases only on the reverse of one copy of the
certificate. The visa applicant may not be informed of the source of any
derogatory information contained in the police certificate.
We kept requesting the consulate whether consulate has the PCC from Netherlands but we kept receiving the same info again and again.So at this point I have no clue on what we will be expecting at the time of inteview.Any help will be appreciated.
Namratc:
I received the P4 in India on Monday(7/19). I am currently preparing my paper work. I just need to get notarized Employment letter. I have all the rest prepared. I will post what all I have prepared in a day or two.
Travel arrangements are made: I'm going flying out of Detroit on the 26th July.
How is it going for you?
I have 2 questions though:
1. My lawyer does not want to give me LC, 140 petion approval copies. They said, I need to get permission from the employer. They are empolyer's proerpty. Are these absolutely necessary to carry. Actually, I want to see those for my satisfaction to check the salary and job title are ok.
2. Financial records of the company. WHat are these. Aren't these confidential for the company as well(for a privately held company).
I received the P4 in India on Monday(7/19). I am currently preparing my paper work. I just need to get notarized Employment letter. I have all the rest prepared. I will post what all I have prepared in a day or two.
Travel arrangements are made: I'm going flying out of Detroit on the 26th July.
How is it going for you?
I have 2 questions though:
1. My lawyer does not want to give me LC, 140 petion approval copies. They said, I need to get permission from the employer. They are empolyer's proerpty. Are these absolutely necessary to carry. Actually, I want to see those for my satisfaction to check the salary and job title are ok.
2. Financial records of the company. WHat are these. Aren't these confidential for the company as well(for a privately held company).
Hi Going_cp,
The consulate has already got copy of your I-140 (I saw the blue form) in my file with the officer who was collecting the documents along with the LC, etc. that was sent by NVC. Thus carrying, I-140 approval notice, LC approval, etc. should be redundant information – does not seem to be worth the hassle especially if your firm is reluctant to give you a copy.
For financials for a non-public corporation, you can take the financials in a sealed envelope with a cover letter from your controller or CFO addressed to the Consular Officer stating that in case they need to review the documents, that they open the envelope and then destroy the contents after their review.
Rjain.
The consulate has already got copy of your I-140 (I saw the blue form) in my file with the officer who was collecting the documents along with the LC, etc. that was sent by NVC. Thus carrying, I-140 approval notice, LC approval, etc. should be redundant information – does not seem to be worth the hassle especially if your firm is reluctant to give you a copy.
For financials for a non-public corporation, you can take the financials in a sealed envelope with a cover letter from your controller or CFO addressed to the Consular Officer stating that in case they need to review the documents, that they open the envelope and then destroy the contents after their review.
Rjain.
Going_CP,
I had same situvation. USCIS had sent two I-140 approvals, one original to my lawyer and second copy to my employer, So I wrote a mail to my employer to give me either one of it and got the orignal from Lawyer. All my employer asked from me was a mail to take responsibility of those Doc given to me.
Reg Company Tax transcript, you can ask them to give a copy of latest one, because it is also given as one of the doc's when you apply H1. so it should'nt be a problem to get from your employer.
Hope this helps you.
PhiliMay
I had same situvation. USCIS had sent two I-140 approvals, one original to my lawyer and second copy to my employer, So I wrote a mail to my employer to give me either one of it and got the orignal from Lawyer. All my employer asked from me was a mail to take responsibility of those Doc given to me.
Reg Company Tax transcript, you can ask them to give a copy of latest one, because it is also given as one of the doc's when you apply H1. so it should'nt be a problem to get from your employer.
Hope this helps you.
PhiliMay
rashmi_rau
Registered Users (C)
Chennai August dates published
Chennai August dates have been published on-line.
Total 117 Employment based cases
E1 - 2
E2 - 15
E3 - 102
The cases are evenly spread out throughout the month. This is starting to become the norm from now on. No more just after 15th dates. But as Dilbert suspected long time all E1, E2s are both scheduled on Aug 23rd i.e. after mid-month. Another special this time not just 8.00 AM interview; there are 8.00, 9.00 & 10.00 slots. Close to half of the cases are from 2003 and before. Also found cases from Bombay and other consulates.
Rashmi
Chennai August dates have been published on-line.
Total 117 Employment based cases
E1 - 2
E2 - 15
E3 - 102
The cases are evenly spread out throughout the month. This is starting to become the norm from now on. No more just after 15th dates. But as Dilbert suspected long time all E1, E2s are both scheduled on Aug 23rd i.e. after mid-month. Another special this time not just 8.00 AM interview; there are 8.00, 9.00 & 10.00 slots. Close to half of the cases are from 2003 and before. Also found cases from Bombay and other consulates.
Rashmi
I think there is some kind of Murphy's law I am associated with. Why cant EB2 cases be evenly distributed all thro the month?? 
just like EB3.. maybe the sheer #s necessitate EB3 cases to get more slots than eb2 or eb1
That said, I posted a qn reg other consulates' cases (like BMB) scheduled in chennai in the confirmed aug 04 thread. Are these scheduling errors or have been requested by the candidates.. would we ever know?? If my case # says MDR...., can I safely assume it will go to Chennai?
Dilbert
just like EB3.. maybe the sheer #s necessitate EB3 cases to get more slots than eb2 or eb1That said, I posted a qn reg other consulates' cases (like BMB) scheduled in chennai in the confirmed aug 04 thread. Are these scheduling errors or have been requested by the candidates.. would we ever know?? If my case # says MDR...., can I safely assume it will go to Chennai?
Dilbert
rashmi_rau said:
Hello Going_CP, how did you receive your P4 in india? I have not received the p4 at US address, sent an email to chennai consulate to send the docs by email they responded back saying I should receive my P4 by next week I need to wait and see if I receive them or not.I purchased the tickets for $1815, by NWA.I am leaving from Detroit on 07/31 and will be arriving on bom on 08/01 will be arriving Chennai on 08/02 at 8:30AM.I need to see if I can make to lab on 08/02 before 10:30 or not.Regarding the docs my Lawyer is preparing all of them (I-134, notarized employement letter).I need to check them after collecting them.I am not sure if I get H1B original, copies of LC, I-140 approval or not.We need to request for employer finantial records.
When r u going to lab?Where r u going to stay?We are planning to stay in Woodlands.
When r u going to lab?Where r u going to stay?We are planning to stay in Woodlands.
rashmi_rau
Registered Users (C)
I think BMB, etal. cases are requested ones or forced by NVC later, down the process. Don't think this an extraneous thing. You can safely assume that your case will be with MDR.
Another thing about the dates: assignment of dates looks random. Nothing like FIFO. Maybe you can request the consulate early in the process. Say when the case reaches them and request an early date giving some reason.
Rashmi
Another thing about the dates: assignment of dates looks random. Nothing like FIFO. Maybe you can request the consulate early in the process. Say when the case reaches them and request an early date giving some reason.
Rashmi
dilbert30 said:I think there is some kind of Murphy's law I am associated with. Why cant EB2 cases be evenly distributed all thro the month??
That said, I posted a qn reg other consulates' cases (like BMB) scheduled in chennai in the confirmed aug 04 thread. Are these scheduling errors or have been requested by the candidates.. would we ever know?? If my case # says MDR...., can I safely assume it will go to Chennai?
Dilbert
Namratac said:
Going_CP response:
Since July, my India address has been with the consulate. So, they sent it to India address and it reached unbelievably fast. I'm leaving on the 26th to B'lore by NWA via Mumbai. I could have started little late but I decided to relax a bit before the chennai trip. My ticket is for $1645. Still expensive. Actually I am planning to be in Chennai on the 2nd and go to the lab on 3rd morning. I think that good buffer(2working days before the interview). You think 3rd is too late. My lawyer is preparing Notarized employment letter and I will collect tomorrow and how it looks. Yup, same here, not sure if i can get LC, 14o approval copies. Same thing with Financial records. What re you asking the employer exactly... I will ask for the same.
I asked couple of my work collegues in Chennai office to investigate the hotel arrangements. I will ask them to check woodlands also.
Sending info to the consulate
Hi Raju, others,
Can you please comment on the following? In the link at the chennai consulate http://usembassy.state.gov/chennai/wwwhivpreintview.html, under "Preparing for the Interview", it is mentioned that
. An interview will be scheduled when the applicant notifies the Consular Section that all the required documents are ready.
After you notify us that you are ready for your interview, we will send you the Appointment Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants and schedule your interview
Is there a form or something we should fill to notify the cosulate personally? Can someone please shed some light on this?
Thanks,
Dilbert
Hi Raju, others,
Can you please comment on the following? In the link at the chennai consulate http://usembassy.state.gov/chennai/wwwhivpreintview.html, under "Preparing for the Interview", it is mentioned that
. An interview will be scheduled when the applicant notifies the Consular Section that all the required documents are ready.
After you notify us that you are ready for your interview, we will send you the Appointment Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants and schedule your interview
Is there a form or something we should fill to notify the cosulate personally? Can someone please shed some light on this?
Thanks,
Dilbert
rashmi_rau
Registered Users (C)
May be this is for other Family Based IV. You don't have to worry about this requirement.
Rashmi
Rashmi
dilbert30 said: