The U.S. Department of State has been undertaking a change of immigrant visa application procedures into two directions: One is to require gradually all the immigrant visa applicants to pay immigrant visa application fees and affidavit of support (I-864) fees at the time immigrant visa application is submitted. The second is to centralize visa application forms and documentation processing and interview scheduling duties into NVC. In light of a huge number of visa posts worldwide, the DOS has been designating posts step by step, creating three different groups of visa posts in the interim. AILA has learned that at this time, immigrant visa applicants are going through three different application procedures:
Group I (alpha plus posts): The visa posts in this group have completed the reengineering of the procedures. Thus visa applicants in this group follow the following procedures: (1) Applicant submits the completed DS 230 and affidavit of support to NVC and "not" to visa posts. (2) Additionally, in returning these completed forms to NVC, the applicant must pay $260 of Immigrant Visa Applicant fees and $50 affidavit of support fees to NVC via the St. Louis address. (3) It is NVC and "not" visa posts that schedule interview. Thus applicant receives interview appointment letter not from the visa posts but from NVC. (4) NVC also collects all the original civil documents and police certificates from the applicant. These documents are then forwarded to the posts where visa interview is scheduled. Applicant then travels to the visa posts, completes medicals, and appears at the interview. The original documents are returned to the applicant after the interview. This procedure reduces the workloads at each visa post tremendously. The number of visa posts in this group will grow gradually, but currently only folloing visa posts adopt this procedure: Montreal, Tirana, and all posts on the continent of Africa.
Group II (alpha posts): The visa applicants at the visa posts in this group follow (1) and (2), but for the procedures (3) and (4), they follow the traditional visa application procedures in that it is the visa posts that schedule visa appontment and not NVC and all the original civil documents and police certificates are brought to the consulates at the interview. Some of these posts are expected to move into the Group I in the future, but currently the following visa posts adopt this procedure: New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Guangzhou, Manila, Santo Domingo, Georgetown, Port au Prince, Bogota, Ho Chi Minh City.
Group III (Beta posts): The visa posts in this group follow the traditional visa application procedures. NVC\'s role is limited to sending out the Instruction Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants, and from there on, the visa applicants interacts with the visa posts, including visa interview scheduling. In this group, the fees are also paid at the visa interview. Currently, all the visa posts not listed in Group I and Group II follow this procedure. It is anticipated that a number of visa posts in the Group III will move into Group II or Group I in the future.
During the transition, people may experience confusions. Here is what people need to do: (1) Do not listen to other people\'s experience. It can be wrong because of the changes. (2) Just carefully and meticulously follow the instructions which people receive from NVC in each individual case. Should one have any question, it has to be addressed to NVC or his/her own legal counsel. The foregoing information can change constantly and people should not rely on this information. Take this message as a general guidance and when it comes individual applicant, he/she should follow the NVC procedure for the individual case which is valid during the time.
I talked to the operator yesterday and verified the CP process for New Delhi ... Its exactly as it is said in this article.
Group I (alpha plus posts): The visa posts in this group have completed the reengineering of the procedures. Thus visa applicants in this group follow the following procedures: (1) Applicant submits the completed DS 230 and affidavit of support to NVC and "not" to visa posts. (2) Additionally, in returning these completed forms to NVC, the applicant must pay $260 of Immigrant Visa Applicant fees and $50 affidavit of support fees to NVC via the St. Louis address. (3) It is NVC and "not" visa posts that schedule interview. Thus applicant receives interview appointment letter not from the visa posts but from NVC. (4) NVC also collects all the original civil documents and police certificates from the applicant. These documents are then forwarded to the posts where visa interview is scheduled. Applicant then travels to the visa posts, completes medicals, and appears at the interview. The original documents are returned to the applicant after the interview. This procedure reduces the workloads at each visa post tremendously. The number of visa posts in this group will grow gradually, but currently only folloing visa posts adopt this procedure: Montreal, Tirana, and all posts on the continent of Africa.
Group II (alpha posts): The visa applicants at the visa posts in this group follow (1) and (2), but for the procedures (3) and (4), they follow the traditional visa application procedures in that it is the visa posts that schedule visa appontment and not NVC and all the original civil documents and police certificates are brought to the consulates at the interview. Some of these posts are expected to move into the Group I in the future, but currently the following visa posts adopt this procedure: New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Guangzhou, Manila, Santo Domingo, Georgetown, Port au Prince, Bogota, Ho Chi Minh City.
Group III (Beta posts): The visa posts in this group follow the traditional visa application procedures. NVC\'s role is limited to sending out the Instruction Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants, and from there on, the visa applicants interacts with the visa posts, including visa interview scheduling. In this group, the fees are also paid at the visa interview. Currently, all the visa posts not listed in Group I and Group II follow this procedure. It is anticipated that a number of visa posts in the Group III will move into Group II or Group I in the future.
During the transition, people may experience confusions. Here is what people need to do: (1) Do not listen to other people\'s experience. It can be wrong because of the changes. (2) Just carefully and meticulously follow the instructions which people receive from NVC in each individual case. Should one have any question, it has to be addressed to NVC or his/her own legal counsel. The foregoing information can change constantly and people should not rely on this information. Take this message as a general guidance and when it comes individual applicant, he/she should follow the NVC procedure for the individual case which is valid during the time.
I talked to the operator yesterday and verified the CP process for New Delhi ... Its exactly as it is said in this article.