columbusdude007
Registered Users (C)
I posted a Topic on a forum inviting Visa hopefuls who had an appointment at Nogales on the 17th April to gather and exchange information. I received responses from almost 8 people. My first concern was about the BANAMEX Receipt and the Mexican Permit. I initially saw a post by a member offering to sell an unused BANAMEX receipt that he had bought but did not use because he had gone to India for stamping instead. Since I did not know any better at that time, I sent him $ 130/- and he mailed me the BANAMEX Receipt. When I saw the receipt, I noticed that there was a Ref: number on the Receipt, which looked to me like a Passport Number 
. I also noticed the rubber stamp which was in bright red color and dated somewhere in December, 2005. Based on the feedback from the members on this forum, I decided not to use that receipt. I told about my decision to another Visa hopeful(Ragi) who had also contacted the BANAMEX Receipt seller (he had 2 receipts) and he also decided not to use that receipt. One of the 8 people that contacted me was a Romanian (Grig). He was even more nervous than me! He lived in the LA area and he decided to drive to the Border with a Citizen friend of his and get the BANAMEX receipt from there. He was generous enough to buy the BANAMEX receipts for me and Ragi without getting paid in Advance!
I got calls from Shashi and also Pradeep and Rudra, we were in touch throughout. They (not Rudra) had bought the receipts from Mexico Immigration Consultants. I reached Phoenix on 15th and stayed in the Extended Stay of America. Met my personal friends in Phoenix on 15th and 16th. Ragi arrived in Phoenix on 16th afternoon. Grig drove into Phoenix from LA at 7:00 P.M. Shashi and Pradeep flew into Tucson on the 16th. I had dinner with Grig and Ragi at the Radisson and he gave us our receipts. He then drove in with his citizen friend to Nogales, AZ and checked into a Motel for the night.
I woke up at 4:00 A.M on the 17th and got ready by 4:30. Ragi came down at 4:45 A.M and we started driving to Nogales. We reached Tucson at 6:30 A.M and had breakfast at Mcdonald’s. Here Shashi joined us. Rudra told us that he did not have the BANAMEX Receipt. So, he would first get that Receipt from BANAMEX and then come to the Consulate. We all drove into Nogales, AZ and we met Grig and Pradeep at the Border at 7:30 A.M . Parked our cars at the Border Parking lot ($4). We walked across the border through the Border Crossing. No Mexican Immigration authorities were in sight. We did not have to turn in our I-94 to the US Immigration authorities (actually they were nowhere in sight either). We took 2 cabs ($7 each) and reached the Consulate.
There was already a big que of about 200 standing outside the Consulate in the hot sun. We joined the Que. We all put our cell phones and laptops and car keys with the burrito hawker across the street from the consulate ($ 2 per bag). While standing in the Que, Shashi discovered that he had not got his Photos! He went to the nearby Photo studio (it opens at 9:30 A.M) and got his pics. After a while, I saw a flustered looking Raja coming out of the Gate (he had gone in a lot earlier). I asked him what happened. He said he had his Car remote keys in his pocket and that set off the alarm and he was asked to keep it outside and come back. He did not know what to do, so I offered him one of our bags to keep his keys in. Please note that we were standing in the Hot Sun outside the Consulate till 11:30 A.M!! So, if you don’t have a photo or BANAMEX Receipt, don’t worry. You will have plenty of time to get it on the day of the Appointment itself. Make sure that you fill up and take with you DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158!! Filling out the DS-158 is a pain!! As per the website, H Visa Applicants are not required to submit DS-158, but they were asking us to fill it up! The guy at the gate will give you one if you don’t have it with you.
We were finally let in at 11:30 A.M and the lady at the first counter checked and arranged our BANAMEX Receipt, Photo, DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158. Arranged them in the Passport and gave it back to us with a Token Number. They are checking the Passport Number with the Ref. Number printed in the BANAMEX Receipt!! So, make sure that your BANAMEX Receipt has your Passport Number printed on it!
You sit in the waiting area for about 30 mins – 60 mins before you go to the next stage - the Bio-Metrics. They fingerprint you and take your picture and once you are done, you have to wait for your interview, the wait could be between 30 mins – 60 mins. I could see the Token numbers 350 flash on the Bio-Metrics board by the time I was called for my Interview. I had arranged the Documents in Insertible Dividers in a Flexi View Binder.
I was called for the Interview at 1:45 P.M (my token number was 285). This was one of the pleasant talking lady VO’s (just because she was talking pleasantly does not mean she was not asking the tough questions). I stuck the BANAMEX Receipt, Photo, DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158 through the window. She asked me for the I-797, LCA, I-129, and Company Letter. Since I had arranged them in that order, I could quickly pull them out and hand them over to her soon as she asked. She asked me if I was traveling to India. I said probably in the next month, but not sure. While she was doing her Data Entry (that is the time consuming part of the Interview Process), she asked me if I had my Master’s. I tried to avoid that question because I did not have it, in fact I had not completed it. She asked me again and I said that I do not have it, but I had an Educational Evaluation which testified that my qualifications and experience were equivalent to an MBA and an MCA. She said that was what she was looking for. She asked me twice about what kinda work my company did. I said it was a consulting company. She asked me what kind of Clients my company served. I told her that it served other big Consulting companies and some Fortune 500 companies. Then she asked me what kind of business those client companies were in. I think she was setting me up for a TAL. Luckily my company letter mentioned some companies which did not look like they were in the High-Tech area. In the meanwhile I made small talk about how crowded it was today and how she must be having a bad day after a good Easter Weekend! I also complimented her on her diamond ring! Told her I wanted to buy my wife one of them! Then she checked in her computer and said there is a refusal on my record. I said I am not aware of any ‘Refusal’. She asked me how many years I had put in on H1. I said 4 .5 yrs. Then I had remembered the RFE that I had got before my current petition was approved. I asked her did she mean an RFE? She said yes. I told her what the RFE was about – It was about the number of years I had spent on H1. I had submitted that I had spent 2 yrs outside the US during the previous 6 yrs that I had been on H1 and hence the current petition was approved. She said that was what she was seeing on the Screen! She then asked me to finger print and pay the $ 50/- fee and come back at 3:00 P.M to collect my Passport!! It was 2:00 P.M by the time I had paid the fee.
All 5 in my group were told that our visas had been approved. I was the last one to be interviewed actually. The others who got out of the Consulate a good one hour earlier than me, were waiting for me by the Burrito Vendor. We had some Instant Noodles and a health drink in the nearby Bus Station Cafeteria and came back and qued up at 3:00 P.M outside the Consulate. I noticed hardly 50 – 60 people in the Que this time! Almost everyone of them looked like a H1 guy! I think they rejected all the Mexicans who had applied for tourist Visa! Out of these 50 – 60 successful applicants, only 5 – 10 looked like Non-Indians!
While we were standing in the que to get our Passports back, 2 guys names were called (Raja was one of them) and asked to go in ahead of us. They were told that they their cases would need some additional processing and were asked to come back the next day to get their Passports. There was 1 lady who got a 221(g) for a check on her Employer. She was later given a temporary Visa and told that she would have to come back later for her H1 Visa after they checked on her Employer. I think only 1 guy got stuck up for Security Check or TAL check.
All of us got out of the Consulate around 4:30 P.M and got into the Cabs and were at the Border at 5:00 P.M. It took us 2 hrs to get our I-94. Soon as we got our I-94, we split up. Grig and his citizen friend drove to LA. Shashi and Pradeep drove to Tucson. Me and Ragi drove into Phoenix by about 9:30 P.M. That was the end of a Happy Journey!!
Any Questions? Feel free to ask.
. I also noticed the rubber stamp which was in bright red color and dated somewhere in December, 2005. Based on the feedback from the members on this forum, I decided not to use that receipt. I told about my decision to another Visa hopeful(Ragi) who had also contacted the BANAMEX Receipt seller (he had 2 receipts) and he also decided not to use that receipt. One of the 8 people that contacted me was a Romanian (Grig). He was even more nervous than me! He lived in the LA area and he decided to drive to the Border with a Citizen friend of his and get the BANAMEX receipt from there. He was generous enough to buy the BANAMEX receipts for me and Ragi without getting paid in Advance! I got calls from Shashi and also Pradeep and Rudra, we were in touch throughout. They (not Rudra) had bought the receipts from Mexico Immigration Consultants. I reached Phoenix on 15th and stayed in the Extended Stay of America. Met my personal friends in Phoenix on 15th and 16th. Ragi arrived in Phoenix on 16th afternoon. Grig drove into Phoenix from LA at 7:00 P.M. Shashi and Pradeep flew into Tucson on the 16th. I had dinner with Grig and Ragi at the Radisson and he gave us our receipts.
He then drove in with his citizen friend to Nogales, AZ and checked into a Motel for the night. I woke up at 4:00 A.M on the 17th and got ready by 4:30. Ragi came down at 4:45 A.M and we started driving to Nogales. We reached Tucson at 6:30 A.M and had breakfast at Mcdonald’s. Here Shashi joined us. Rudra told us that he did not have the BANAMEX Receipt. So, he would first get that Receipt from BANAMEX and then come to the Consulate. We all drove into Nogales, AZ and we met Grig and Pradeep at the Border at 7:30 A.M . Parked our cars at the Border Parking lot ($4). We walked across the border through the Border Crossing. No Mexican Immigration authorities were in sight. We did not have to turn in our I-94 to the US Immigration authorities (actually they were nowhere in sight either). We took 2 cabs ($7 each) and reached the Consulate.
There was already a big que of about 200 standing outside the Consulate in the hot sun. We joined the Que. We all put our cell phones and laptops and car keys with the burrito hawker across the street from the consulate ($ 2 per bag). While standing in the Que, Shashi discovered that he had not got his Photos!
He went to the nearby Photo studio (it opens at 9:30 A.M) and got his pics. After a while, I saw a flustered looking Raja coming out of the Gate (he had gone in a lot earlier). I asked him what happened. He said he had his Car remote keys in his pocket and that set off the alarm and he was asked to keep it outside and come back. He did not know what to do, so I offered him one of our bags to keep his keys in. Please note that we were standing in the Hot Sun outside the Consulate till 11:30 A.M!! So, if you don’t have a photo or BANAMEX Receipt, don’t worry. You will have plenty of time to get it on the day of the Appointment itself. Make sure that you fill up and take with you DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158!! Filling out the DS-158 is a pain!! As per the website, H Visa Applicants are not required to submit DS-158, but they were asking us to fill it up! The guy at the gate will give you one if you don’t have it with you. We were finally let in at 11:30 A.M and the lady at the first counter checked and arranged our BANAMEX Receipt, Photo, DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158. Arranged them in the Passport and gave it back to us with a Token Number. They are checking the Passport Number with the Ref. Number printed in the BANAMEX Receipt!! So, make sure that your BANAMEX Receipt has your Passport Number printed on it!
You sit in the waiting area for about 30 mins – 60 mins before you go to the next stage - the Bio-Metrics. They fingerprint you and take your picture and once you are done, you have to wait for your interview, the wait could be between 30 mins – 60 mins. I could see the Token numbers 350 flash on the Bio-Metrics board by the time I was called for my Interview. I had arranged the Documents in Insertible Dividers in a Flexi View Binder.
I was called for the Interview at 1:45 P.M (my token number was 285). This was one of the pleasant talking lady VO’s (just because she was talking pleasantly does not mean she was not asking the tough questions). I stuck the BANAMEX Receipt, Photo, DS-156, DS-157 and DS-158 through the window. She asked me for the I-797, LCA, I-129, and Company Letter. Since I had arranged them in that order, I could quickly pull them out and hand them over to her soon as she asked. She asked me if I was traveling to India. I said probably in the next month, but not sure. While she was doing her Data Entry (that is the time consuming part of the Interview Process), she asked me if I had my Master’s. I tried to avoid that question because I did not have it, in fact I had not completed it.
She asked me again and I said that I do not have it, but I had an Educational Evaluation which testified that my qualifications and experience were equivalent to an MBA and an MCA. She said that was what she was looking for. She asked me twice about what kinda work my company did. I said it was a consulting company. She asked me what kind of Clients my company served. I told her that it served other big Consulting companies and some Fortune 500 companies. Then she asked me what kind of business those client companies were in. I think she was setting me up for a TAL. Luckily my company letter mentioned some companies which did not look like they were in the High-Tech area. In the meanwhile I made small talk about how crowded it was today and how she must be having a bad day after a good Easter Weekend! I also complimented her on her diamond ring! Told her I wanted to buy my wife one of them! Then she checked in her computer and said there is a refusal on my record. I said I am not aware of any ‘Refusal’. She asked me how many years I had put in on H1. I said 4 .5 yrs. Then I had remembered the RFE that I had got before my current petition was approved. I asked her did she mean an RFE? She said yes. I told her what the RFE was about – It was about the number of years I had spent on H1. I had submitted that I had spent 2 yrs outside the US during the previous 6 yrs that I had been on H1 and hence the current petition was approved. She said that was what she was seeing on the Screen! She then asked me to finger print and pay the $ 50/- fee and come back at 3:00 P.M to collect my Passport!! It was 2:00 P.M by the time I had paid the fee.All 5 in my group were told that our visas had been approved. I was the last one to be interviewed actually. The others who got out of the Consulate a good one hour earlier than me, were waiting for me by the Burrito Vendor. We had some Instant Noodles and a health drink in the nearby Bus Station Cafeteria and came back and qued up at 3:00 P.M outside the Consulate. I noticed hardly 50 – 60 people in the Que this time! Almost everyone of them looked like a H1 guy! I think they rejected all the Mexicans who had applied for tourist Visa! Out of these 50 – 60 successful applicants, only 5 – 10 looked like Non-Indians!
While we were standing in the que to get our Passports back, 2 guys names were called (Raja was one of them) and asked to go in ahead of us. They were told that they their cases would need some additional processing and were asked to come back the next day to get their Passports. There was 1 lady who got a 221(g) for a check on her Employer. She was later given a temporary Visa and told that she would have to come back later for her H1 Visa after they checked on her Employer. I think only 1 guy got stuck up for Security Check or TAL check.
All of us got out of the Consulate around 4:30 P.M and got into the Cabs and were at the Border at 5:00 P.M. It took us 2 hrs to get our I-94. Soon as we got our I-94, we split up. Grig and his citizen friend drove to LA. Shashi and Pradeep drove to Tucson. Me and Ragi drove into Phoenix by about 9:30 P.M. That was the end of a Happy Journey!!
Any Questions? Feel free to ask.
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