Need info on Tijuana H4 renewal experiences in 2006

[avisap]

Hi all,

I want to go to Tijuana to renew my wife's H4 visa. I and my wife have been in the US for over 7 years and are still on H-visas. My renewal was done last month in Europe.

Following are the details of my wife's case:
- current visa in passport expired in May 2005.
- I-797 and related paperwork (new I-94, etc.) available for visa renewal till May 2007.

I have read reports from prior years of people who simply drove over to Tijuana to get their visa stamped and returned the same day. I would highly appreciate the sharing of such experiences in Tijuana in this year (2006).

What I want to know:
- should I get an appointment for this visit to the Tijuana Consulate ? I know of www.visa-usa.com.mx as one website to get the appointment from. Is there any other site ?
- can I reasonably expect to drive into Tijuana on a morning and expect to return the same evening with the passport stamped with a new visa?
- given that the visa in my wife's passport has expired, but she does have all paperwork to continue to live legally in this country, is she out of status? Such out-of-status cases are not handled by the Tijuana US Consulate authorities, as per their website. (I was in the exact same boat and my visa renewal was done easily in Germany).
- since I plan to accompany my wife into Tijuana TPF for the visa renewal, will both of us need a Mexican visa ? (This might come in handy in the - hopefully - unlikely event that the visa renewal gets rejected or held up and we have to stay in Tijuana till either it gets processed or travel back to India from there itself).
- in the event that there is a delay of some sort in getting the visa when in Tijuana, coming back is, of course, not possible for my wife. What are the places recommended to stay in, in Tijuana that are safe and reliable ?

Thanks a ton for your responses !

 

[avisap]

Reply to my own query

Hi all,

Just read two other recent posts about Tijuana experiences and am grateful to read about them. Many thanks to those who posted them.

My questions are now more specific to the preparations for the trip:
- how is an appointment to be made for an interview for a visa renewal at the Tijuana facility ? Is it simply to be made over a website ? Do I need to speak with someone about it ?
- Isn't it required to file a DS-156 with the consulate at the point of making the appointment ? The VFS in Mumbai require it before getting an appointment - personally I think this is an extremely inefficient service being operated in Mumbai. The US Visa wait times as mentioned on the State Government website for Mumbai is 18 days - I challenge anyone to get an appointment within 3 months there !
- how long does it take to get a Mexican visa ?
- Anyway, is there anything (other than getting the appropriate documents) that I should know before I go to Tijuana ?

Thanks for your responses !

 

[rspr]

My questions are now more specific to the preparations for the trip:
- how is an appointment to be made for an interview for a visa renewal at the Tijuana facility ? Is it simply to be made over a website ? Do I need to speak with someone about it ?

Just the website. No need to talk to any one.

- Isn't it required to file a DS-156 with the consulate at the point of making the appointment ? The VFS in Mumbai require it before getting an appointment - personally I think this is an extremely inefficient service being operated in Mumbai. The US Visa wait times as mentioned on the State Government website for Mumbai is 18 days - I challenge anyone to get an appointment within 3 months there !

Take the filled form on your day of appointment. During appointment reservation, it asks for some basic info like passport #, etc.

- how long does it take to get a Mexican visa ?

Approx 4 Weeks. Check with your nearest Mexican consulate.

- Anyway, is there anything (other than getting the appropriate documents) that I should know before I go to Tijuana ?

Good Luck.

 

[avisap]

Thanks for the info...

Hi RSPR,

Thanks for your information.

I guess I made a major mistake - I believed in the Visa Wait times information given by the US State Dept website (www.travel.state.gov/visa....) and ended up booking non-refundable tickets to india assuming that visa interview wait times in india are 18 days as the website says - its almost 4-5 months now

Called up VFS in Mumbai and they told me that they cannot allocate any dates and I need to keep checking on the website to see if new dates open up. I don't understand why they show 18 days as the Typical Visa interview wait time for All Other Non-immigrant visas (under which my wife's case falls - H4 renewal) but there is no date till October ! It is extremely frustrating !
(check: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/wait/tempvisitors_wait_result.php?post=Mumbai+(Bombay)&x=0&y=0)

By the same token, Tijuana TPF visa interview wait time shows Same Day ! The website of the company that schedules interview dates for Tijuana TPF does not have dates before September !

So, I am basically scr@*ed from all sides.

I am checking the websites for both India (all 4 consulates) and Mexico (preferably Tijuana only) for dates but am not getting the dates I need.

Guess this is major loss month for me.

Regards.

 

[rspr]

We faced the same problem too. We had to cancel the tickets at an expense of $700.

Sorry man. got to live with this delays.

- rspr

Hi RSPR,

Thanks for your information.

I guess I made a major mistake - I believed in the Visa Wait times information given by the US State Dept website (www.travel.state.gov/visa....) and ended up booking non-refundable tickets to india assuming that visa interview wait times in india are 18 days as the website says - its almost 4-5 months now

Called up VFS in Mumbai and they told me that they cannot allocate any dates and I need to keep checking on the website to see if new dates open up. I don't understand why they show 18 days as the Typical Visa interview wait time for All Other Non-immigrant visas (under which my wife's case falls - H4 renewal) but there is no date till October ! It is extremely frustrating !
(check: http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/wait/tempvisitors_wait_result.php?post=Mumbai+(Bombay)&x=0&y=0)

By the same token, Tijuana TPF visa interview wait time shows Same Day ! The website of the company that schedules interview dates for Tijuana TPF does not have dates before September !

So, I am basically scr@*ed from all sides.

I am checking the websites for both India (all 4 consulates) and Mexico (preferably Tijuana only) for dates but am not getting the dates I need.

Guess this is major loss month for me.

Regards.

 

[avisap]

Yahoooo !!!

Guys ! All's well that ends well....well, almost well.

I got an appointment for July 12th ! I had to sit up late night and keep refreshing my screen for a new date to appear and one for Delhi did appear !

What I don't understand is that ALL VISA CATEGORIES HAVE THE SAME WAIT TIME ! I was under the assumption that visa renewals in the H-category get priority and have a much lesser wait time ! At least the US State dept visa wait times website would have you believe that !

I think this is all rather poorly managed ! The US Consulate needs to have some oversight into the manner in which the VFS service is managed ! I guess the same problem exists in Tijuana and elsewhere at the other centers in Mexico and even Canada !

My experience in Germany was in sharp contrast to all this.

While we all need to learn from this experience that the earlier we plan our activities, the better, I think there is something for the Consulates also to learn here ?