Ask the Embassy for help during your Fiance visa

Don’t be shy. Ask them for answers.

My fiance had a big problem preparing her paperwork. Back then, the Embassy wanted you to fill out the paper version of the DS-160 and physically mail it back (called the DS-230). The problem was she never got anything in the mail. So, we were stuck.

We waited and waited for almost a month twiddling our thumbs before I decided it was never showing up. While clicking around their website looking for answers, I saw somewhere it said “for questions or concerns, email us”.

So, I shrugged my shoulders and hesitantly wrote an email. I didn’t expect much after hitting the “send” button other than some bland automated message. Besides, I wasn’t sure if I could email them this kind of question.

Strangely I was even more nervous that if an actual person did read my email would they understand — was my message clear? Did I say anything wrong? Would they be offended? (weird thought, right?)

I heard Embassies were tough and unforgiving so I expected nothing less from their email responses. But I wasn’t prepared for what happened next. I got the most helpful response I could’ve imagined.

It calmed my panic attacks that these important answers came straight from the Embassy and not from someone’s guess on an online forum. I’ll tell you all about that in a minute.

Ever since this positive experience, I encourage you to write to the US Embassy with questions — most of whom also have a good outcome. And that’s what I want to talk about today. It’s one of the biggest tips I offer to K-1 visa couples — write to them.

Discuss your K-1 visa with the Embassy

So, let’s make sure we’re clear. You’re allowed to email, write, fax to and sometimes even phone the US Embassy. According to laws, they’re required to respond to your visa-related inquiries as “expeditiously as possible” (Law 9 FAM 603).

That means they’ll make every effort to respond quickly. The same goes for inquiries from Congress, the Dep’t of Homeland Security, or your lawyer, etc. (Is it worth hiring a K-1 visa lawyer?)

Since lots of people send inquiries, the Embassy employs local staff to answer emails. Consular officers generally don’t correspond with you directly. They’re more busy dealing with big matters.

So when you do write to the Embassy, be sure to include your name, NVC case #, visa type, so they know you’re the US petitioner, beneficiary, or an authorized representative like your lawyer.

They sound helpful, right? — and they are, but they’re also under obligation to follow certain rules with their correspondences.

How they’re allowed to respond to you

They balance convenience and legality. First of all, if you ask for an in-depth analysis of why you’re denied– then forget about it. You won’t get it. At the same time, if you ask for sensitive information, you won’t get that either.

What they can discuss with you

● Guidance on procedures – Like what steps come next for you and other general questions. For example, one time I asked the Embassy how they intended to schedule my fiance for her interview. This is how they explained their procedures to me…

● Information on documents still required – if you’re in administrative processing 221(g), then they can say which documents you still need. You can keep in contact and pick their brains.

● Basic reason for visa rejection – a basic reason why your K-1 visa was denied 221(g) or 212. Lack of evidence? No bona fide relationship? But don’t expect them to tell you exactly why.

● Waivers – if you’re denied, they’ll let you know if you qualify for a waiver.

What they can’t discuss with you

●  No legal advice. For example, if you ask “what do I do to get approved?”, they’ll give you a generic response “talk to your immigration lawyer about that”.

●  They also won’t answer specific questions about filling out forms like — “What do I put for DS-160 question # 54 where it asks about x,y,z,…” They consider these legal questions and can’t help you

●  Exact information on your case – You can’t ask exactly why you’re denied (“did I answer a question wrong?”). They consider it confidential information.

●  Information on investigations by other agencies – like if an investigation found out that you were inadmissible (criminal record? Security issue?)

●  Denial due to security-related issues – if you’re a security threat to the US, they won’t tell you about it.

That’s a general idea of what they will and will not answer.

But let’s say none of these are really what you’re worried about. You just have a couple of questions before your K-1 visa interview. So, which questions are okay to ask?

Things you can ask before your K-1 interview

Embassies are overworked. They get hundreds of non-immigrant (usually tourist visa) and dozens of immigrant appointments per day (spousal, fiance, etc).

But they still communicate with you. They listen to you and help with factual matters. Here’s a list of past things the Embassy has helped couples with before their K-1 fiance visa interview.

Medical exam problems

●   Not getting the report in time – sometimes we’re up against the clock and our medical exam won’t arrive in time. Do we reschedule the interview? You can ask the Embassy for advice. They might say you have to reschedule. Or they might say you can still attend. Either way, you’ll have a definite answer.

●   Testing positive for Tuberculosis or some inadmissibility – Generally if you’ve tested positive for an inadmissible contagious disease during the K visa medical exam, then you must get treated and cleared. Just send the Embassy an update about your situation so they’re aware.

●   Unexpected delays in reports. Can you still attend interview or do they want you to reschedule. There’s no harm in asking. What’s the worst– they say reschedule?

Police Certificate problems

●  Similar to medical — what if they’re problems/delays getting the report?
Or you can’t get a particular country’s PPC.

●  For example, one reader had trouble getting his local consulate to give a Police Clearance certificate. I told him to ask the US Embassy for advice.

Fortunately, they told him that during the K-1 interview, they’ll see. Which to me translates to “don’t worry about it”.

K-2 visa following to join

●  Do your K-2 visa kids need to finish up school before flying to the US? Request the Embassy to do a “following to join”. And once you’re approved a K-1 visa, ask if the next procedure be expedited.

Other – Requests

●  Request for change of Embassy – example: “I cannot travel 1,000 miles to this Embassy. Is it possible to get an interview in Embassy X instead?”

●  Extend your approved I-129F so you can have an interview a bit later.

●  Accommodations for your interview — like “I am not fluent in English. Is there an interpreter available language x?”

●  Some technical issues – “I cannot log into the CEAC to fill out my DS-160; is there an alternative?”

Just a tip: Try not to take advantage and or annoy them too frequently or they’ll decline. Also try to keep your questions as factual and relevant as possible.

●   You may ask things like “we are having difficulty with paying our visa fee online. What is our alternative?”

●   You shouldn’t ask things like “should I wear a blue dress or red dress to the interview?”

Things you can ask after your fiance K-1 visa interview

Quite honestly, after K visa approval, the only thing you want to know is “when can I pick up my visa?” But sometimes there are going to be problems. A few situations may come up that get you into trouble.

Administrative processing

●  Administrative processing (AP) is when you’re temporarily denied pending their review. They may need more documents before they continue to review your case. Usually you can submit these electronically 221(g). But in the meantime, you can ask the Embassy all about it.

Travel emergencies

●  Booked tickets – I know excited couples book their tickets in advance. If you’re nervous about cutting too close to the flight but your visa hasn’t shown up yet, you can request them to expedite your visa after approval. Be sure that it’s an actual emergency with proof — not simply that you’re getting impatient.

●  Here’s an example of how an excited K visa couple booked in advance. I told her to let the Embassy know about their request for an expedite. Who knows? Maybe they’ll help her out.

●  Some humanitarian reason for leaving the country quickly.  In rare cases you need to leave the country in an emergency — whether it’s political, social, or even a natural disaster. You can request an expedite.

●  Wrong visa information – you’ll tilt your head back and moan, but don’t despair. Mistakes happen in visa printing. Let the Embassy know about errors on your K visa and they’ll give you a new one. Here’s an example:

After he wrote to the Embassy, they asked to submit the passport back to fix the error. Simple and done.

Confirming procedures

●  A lot of times the instructions aren’t crystal-clear. The Department of State is especially formal and instructions can be confusing. If so, don’t think twice about it; just confirm with them.

For example, I started sweating when my fiance told me her sealed medical packet had a diagonal cut. I wasn’t sure if someone accidently cut it. Worse, I didn’t know if this was going to be a problem at the Port of Entry with Customs. So, I simply asked:

They saved me from a heart attack after saying that it’s a normal cut and shouldn’t be a problem.

Case status updates

●  Probably the most annoying email that they get is from anxious couples like us who want to know the status of their case especially if it’s Administrative Processing (AP). Be prepared for a generic response but don’t give up hope.

But sometimes it’s not a generic response; it’s actually good news:

Don’t be intimidated by asking a question to a big governmental, all-knowing, and fear-inducing agency. What’s the worst that can happen? They say “sorry we can’t help”.

Ask for help during your Fiance K-1 visa process

Remember in the beginning of the story, I nervously asked the Embassy about missing paperwork that never showed up in the mail? So, here’s how it ended up…

I wrote that my fiance never got her Packet 3 / Packet 4 and the DS-230 and we’ve already waited over a month for the mail. I also complained that it was unreliable to send paperwork by mail. So, even if we did receive it, we weren’t sure if it’ll even make it back to them.

The Embassy promptly sent me the forms attached to an email and said that I could print it out, sign it, and email it back to them (they were actually doing me a favor).

I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. In fact, they couldn’t have made it any easier. I did exactly what they said and sent them the forms by email. All was good and the interview was scheduled.

Looking back — by this point, we had already waited 9 months in our K visa process and we were frustrated. So imagine if I had kept quiet. How much longer would we wait?

The point is: if you genuinely feel you have an issue and want to discuss/inform the authorities about it, do it! Chances are you’ll be glad you did.

I encourage you to email the Embassy if you have issues. Don’t be afraid to give them a call (if they allow that). What’s the worst that can happen? They say no?

Do you have your own tips for the K-1 visa process?