Tweet
I am currently in the US working with a company here and have an H1B visa. I have my I-140 approved and wish to apply for consular processing. My city of domicile in India is Calcutta and so I believe I shall have to apply to the US Consulate in Mumbai for the same.
These are my questions and I shall really appreciate it if you could clarify my doubts at your earliest convenience.
1. My H1B visa is valid until July next year and my date of application is already current for 485. My labor certification was approved for EB2 category. I did not indicate my intention of going for consular processing when I applied for my I-140. Do I need to get Packet 3 for applying for COnsular processing or can I just download the required forms and send those? My date of application is September 1999, so my labor certification and I-140 have been done rather quickly. Is there any risk of Mumbai consulate not accepting my case in this situation (as there isn't any substantial hardship clause applicable)?
2. If I apply for consular processing now, how long should I expect it take for me get notified for the date of interview. Is it 3-4 months?
3. I do not have a birth certificate. But I have a court affidavit sworn by someone who has known me all my life. Is that enough or I need some other document along with that? I saw a mention of a document from some goverment offical stating that the birth certificate does not exist. Is that essential?
4. I plan to get married in January-February time frame, next year. My priority date is current with the INS but I have not applied for either a change of status or consular processing yet. If I apply for consular processing and get married in the above mentioned time frame, can I get my would-be-wife included in the application after the wedding takes place? If so, what do I need to do so that she can appear for the interview at the consulate along with me? I would obviously like to avoid the situation where my wife will not be able to join me here in the US for immigration laws, which would be the case if I get my green card before getting married. I wish to apply for consular processing as soon as possible to minimize delay but at the same time would to make sure that my would-be-wife gets to appear for the interview at the consulate with me. This is of course in asusmption that my application for the immigrant visa will be accepted as I think I satisfy all the eligibility criteria for the same. So it would be ideal for me if I could apply now for myself and apply for my wife after the wedding but before the interview. I am not very comfortable with the idea of waiting until I do get married as it is 3-4 months away and I don't know how much delay the process would accumulate in the mean time.
5. If I apply sometime in October this year and if my interview date comes back in Januray for example, shall I have enough time to apply for my wife then so that she can take the interview with me?
I shall be grateful if anybody could answer my questions so that I can start the process as soon as posssible.
Thank you,
These are my questions and I shall really appreciate it if you could clarify my doubts at your earliest convenience.
1. My H1B visa is valid until July next year and my date of application is already current for 485. My labor certification was approved for EB2 category. I did not indicate my intention of going for consular processing when I applied for my I-140. Do I need to get Packet 3 for applying for COnsular processing or can I just download the required forms and send those? My date of application is September 1999, so my labor certification and I-140 have been done rather quickly. Is there any risk of Mumbai consulate not accepting my case in this situation (as there isn't any substantial hardship clause applicable)?
2. If I apply for consular processing now, how long should I expect it take for me get notified for the date of interview. Is it 3-4 months?
3. I do not have a birth certificate. But I have a court affidavit sworn by someone who has known me all my life. Is that enough or I need some other document along with that? I saw a mention of a document from some goverment offical stating that the birth certificate does not exist. Is that essential?
4. I plan to get married in January-February time frame, next year. My priority date is current with the INS but I have not applied for either a change of status or consular processing yet. If I apply for consular processing and get married in the above mentioned time frame, can I get my would-be-wife included in the application after the wedding takes place? If so, what do I need to do so that she can appear for the interview at the consulate along with me? I would obviously like to avoid the situation where my wife will not be able to join me here in the US for immigration laws, which would be the case if I get my green card before getting married. I wish to apply for consular processing as soon as possible to minimize delay but at the same time would to make sure that my would-be-wife gets to appear for the interview at the consulate with me. This is of course in asusmption that my application for the immigrant visa will be accepted as I think I satisfy all the eligibility criteria for the same. So it would be ideal for me if I could apply now for myself and apply for my wife after the wedding but before the interview. I am not very comfortable with the idea of waiting until I do get married as it is 3-4 months away and I don't know how much delay the process would accumulate in the mean time.
5. If I apply sometime in October this year and if my interview date comes back in Januray for example, shall I have enough time to apply for my wife then so that she can take the interview with me?
I shall be grateful if anybody could answer my questions so that I can start the process as soon as posssible.
Thank you,
