h1b Visa stamping question-Islamabad Pakistan

[nomadlhr]

Hi Guys ,

I went for the H1B interview last week I had applied for myslef and my wife .
At the end of my H1B Visa inteview visa officer handed me a white paper saying "please wait until further notice".
She also told me that she will inform my company that visa was not issued because they need further processing.
However my passport was not stamped.she was keeping my passport but then she said that I can bring it back later. My wife was not interviewed as the VO told me she can only be inteviewed once some decision is made on my application.

I am really confused ,Does this signify that my visa has been refused?
I was not asked to bring any additional documents so why was I not issued or refused a visa right away ?
Do they stamp the refusal on passport if visa is rejected.?
Shall I expect that I will be called for a second interview.

Tks
Nomad

[waitin_toolong]

This is fairly normal and check the consulate website for more information. This is called admiistrative processing.

[nomadlhr]

But I was not told whether my visa was approved and passports were returned to me.?

[waitin_toolong]

because at this moment the visa was neither refused nor granted. they need to do some further processing before they make a decision and will contact you.

be happy that they gave the passport back some people have been held up upto 12 months before an answer

[sahsan2000]

Fast Processing

I would like to share my latest H1B visa stamping experience from Islambad. My brief background: I came to US first in Aug 2004 on F1 visa with my wife and kid on F2 visas. We visited Pakistan in Jun 2006 while on F1. My H1B status started in Oct 2007. We came to Pakistan in last week of December 2008 and needed to obtain H1B visas to return back to USA. We got our appointment for Jan 9, 2009. VO asked few general questions related to job etc. and examined my original educational documents, letter from my employer, my tax returns and my salary slips. He later gave us a paper saying our visa is subject to additional admininstrative processing that could take upto 2 months or more. I'd been reading on internet that it could take upto several months too so was bit concerned. But alhamdolillah yesterday (Jan 22) we got a call that our passports are ready to be collected from American Express office Lahore. I visited them and collected our passports with visas in them. So I am now believing that may be many people are getting visas fast, but on the forums only those people are posting their comments who have had bad experiences. So I was determined to share my experience with people in my situation so that the positive news should also be available.

[AALI]

I am not sure about the recent time frame at Islamabad consulate but I went through 11 months wait in 2004. I entered in US as H-1B in 2000 and still holding the valid status (received my very recent renewal yesterday). I went to Karachi to get married in early 2004, me & my wife appeared for an interview in Islamabad and the worst was there - VO rejected me, giving my passport back to me saying 'I am not satisfied'. I called my attorney here in US and I was told that nobody can do anything about it, if I'm rejected then its all over. Exactly after 8 days I received a call at 6:00 p.m. from Islamabad consulate that they want to re-interview me. I went in again and this time it was a long interview, about good 40 mins. VO finally kept both our passports and told us that we have to wait for further processing. Long story short we got our passports back with visa stamps after 11 months.

[addyvat]

H1-B July 2009

I would like to share my latest H1B visa stamping experience from Islambad...

They asked few questions ....

What company you are going for work?

What they do?

How do you came to know about this company???

Does your Brother is on h1-b & what he do????

How many Pakistani is in ur US company ?


what are your Current responsibilites?
Develop Business com Objects, Documentation for end-user , testing and data modeling....

How many rounds of interview you had?
Two interviews ....
Dont you think that the name is to long of this company?
Yes it is ...
When This company formed?

Thn the Golden wordsssss came out" I am approving ur Visa you will get your passport in 4 to 8 weeks" Have a nice day bye
""" Thats it.....


Right After 8 weeks i got my passport wd visa stamp

Thank you

All the best
AllahHafiz

[paki]

H1B stamping at ISB consulate

Addyvat first of all congradulation on your successful stamping.
I am also planning on applying for my H1B stamping at ISB consulate in november. i am currently in the US on my OPT period and my H1B start date is OCT 1st.

I was wondering what all documents did you carry with you when you went for the interview? Were you a F1>OPT>H1B candidate? Did you ever work for the company that sponsored your H1B?

What would you recomend me? what all i should i do before i leave from the US and what all should i do when i arrive at ISB?

What was the overall experience at ISB consulate? were there any other H1B candidates at that time? Was anyone denied?

I am sorry i know i am asking too many questions but if you reply it would help me alot as i am really tensed and i would greatly appreciate your help.

Goodluck and have a nice trip to the US.

[sanakhalid83]

verificationby US consulate

hey can anyone tell me are education degree certificates and previous experience letters verified by the immigration authorites?

[shervin143]

Yes. All documents that you submit gets verified. If they need more time, they will issue you a 221g. If they find any forged documents, you can get banned from entering U.S for life.

hey can anyone tell me are education degree certificates and previous experience letters verified by the immigration authorites?

[zahoor357]

Hi Folks,

I just had my stamping done here in Islamabad. I work in the RF industry in US. My employer submitted my petition to USCIS on 16th of March, 2015. I requested for premium processing so I got it in three days on the 20th. I came back to Pakistan and my Visa interview was on 15th of April, 2015. I had the usual set of documents which you can find on any other website. Its a long list and I don't wanna bore you. My case was a little different because I was working for my employer who was working for xxx vendor who was working for the xxx end client. So I had to have a client letter which I could not get due to the client's policy. Keep in mind that this is an in-house project of vendor and I'm working in the vendor's office, not client's. But I couldn't get client letter from either of them because its their policy not to give such letters to contractors. So I took the following documents as alternatives to the client letter:

1. A print of an email from my project manager stating that its a company policy not to give contractors the client letter.

2. A print of same kind of email from the Vendor's HR department.

3. A print of an email from a colleague of mine who works for the vendor at the same office and states that I work with him on the same project at the same office in the same team.

4. A print of the work order contract between my employer and the vendor. This was given to me by my employer.

All the other documents were same as every other case for H1B. So I went to the embassy and there was a huge line of people in front of me. Luckily, I had chosen to be interviewed in english so I didn't have to wait much longer because a lot of people were taking the interview in Urdu and I could cut past them. My number was called and I went to Window # 9. When I got to the window, the Visa officer left the window to get some documents from the back side of the room. My interview started when he came back. Here's how it went:

VO: Sorry for the wait.
Me: No problem.
VO: So Why do you want to go to the US.
Me: I actually work there. I just got my H1B petition approved last year and I'm here to get my passport stamped.
VO: Who do you work for?
Me: xxx
VO: What do you do?
Me: I'm an RF engineer. My main job responsibilities are........
VO: What is RF (cutting me off)?
Me: RF stands for Radio Frequency.
VO: Okay. So what do you do as an RF Engineer?
Me: I design wireless networks for different markets.

Now, at this point, I want to take your attention to my answers to the VO's questions. Note that I didn't talk about anything related to client or that the wireless network belonged to the end client just to avoid him asking me anything about the client letter which I didn't have. So the interview continued:

VO: Where do you live in the US?
Me: xxxx
VO: And how do you like that?
Me: Its a little chilly for me but this winter was much better than the last one.
VO: What are your plans for future? Do you want to settle there or are you gonna come back?
Me: I'm gonna live there for the period of my current H1B. After that, I haven't decided yet.
VO: Do you know your rights?
Me: No.
VO: I have to do some processing and in the mean while, you go through this pamphlet which has all the information about your rights. He did some computer work for about 2 minutes, and then the **** * words

VO: Okay sir. Your Visa has been issued. We'll contact you in 5 business days for the delivery of your passport.
Me: Cool, Tanks a lot.

The whole interview took about less than 5 minutes and he didn't ask me for a single document. I got an email from the american express the next day that my passport is ready and I can pick it up.

[h1binislamabad]

There are very few H-1B stamping stories from Islamabad Embassy available online. Thought I'd add one more, so people searching will find a current timeline example.

I work for a large, multinational engineering firm in the US. Went on F-1, started working under OPT and got selected in the H-1B and ultimately approved in 2014. Had planned a 2015 visit to Pakistan and schedule the visa interview ahead of time. I have had friends get stuck in Administrative Processing for 3-5 months before, so I was very nervous.

Dec 13: Arrived in Pakistan
Dec 14: Went to the US Embassy, Islamabad, having secured an appointment two months ahead of time.

Interview experience: an officer collecting fingerprints and photos had trouble with the photo provided for the visa. I had used the same picture for the DS-160 (Dept of State's online system evaluated and accepted it) but the officer rejected it (it was taken at a Sam's Club photo studio), saying the background was grey-ish and not white. I had a spare photograph taken at another location and he accepted that. I had been ten printed before but had to give fingerprints again. Also, the first counter took the original of the bank fee submission receipt, so take that with you.

Visa officer: So who are you going to work for?
Me: I will be working for X company, where I have been working for two years
VO: How were you working for them before?
Me: I had a F-1 OPT status and the H-1B was approved 1.5 yr ago, so I had the status to work there.
VO: What do you do for the company?
Me: I am a X engineer and my job responsibilities are [brief summary]
VO: Where is the company HQed?
Me: The company is headquartered in X country and I work for their US arm.
VO: How/Where did you complete the professional requirements for the job?
Me: I went to the Univ of X in the US, and graduated with a BS in X Engineering.
VO: Since this petition (I-797, she had asked to see the original) was approved 1.5 yr ago, why are you applying for a visa based on that only now?
Me: I did not travel outside the US for a while and now am applying so.
VO: Congratulations, your visa is approved. You can collect the passport in 5 days. She gave me the green slip with approval summary.

Dec 14: CEAC shows case created Dec 14 and status update date also of Dec 14. The status changed to administrative processing that night.
Dec 15-21: CEAC showed administrative processing as the status.
Dec 22: The status on CEAC remained in administrative processing but the status update date changed to Dec 22.
Dec 23: CEAC status updated to Issued
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated from 'US Embassy/consulate has your passport' to 'Your passport has been received from the consular section and is being prepared for delivery'.
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated to 'Your passport is ready to pick up'.
Dec 29: Collected my passport with visa from AEG in Islamabad

It took 10 business days from the interview to collecting the passport. I had a three week vacation, so got everything in time. Hope it helps future applicants in scheduling their home visit accordingly.

[ffarooq]

H1B Visa Stamping Experience

Asak,
Do you happen to know anyone who recently got visa stamping done? I am currently working in US (on H1B vis) and and this is the first time I will be going to Karachi after my recent 797 is approved so I need to get my visa stamping done. I am hearing some horrible stories these days and I have only 15 days of vacation time. if anyone knows about how it is happening there in Pakistan please let me know.


Thanks

There are very few H-1B stamping stories from Islamabad Embassy available online. Thought I'd add one more, so people searching will find a current timeline example.

I work for a large, multinational engineering firm in the US. Went on F-1, started working under OPT and got selected in the H-1B and ultimately approved in 2014. Had planned a 2015 visit to Pakistan and schedule the visa interview ahead of time. I have had friends get stuck in Administrative Processing for 3-5 months before, so I was very nervous.

Dec 13: Arrived in Pakistan
Dec 14: Went to the US Embassy, Islamabad, having secured an appointment two months ahead of time.

Interview experience: an officer collecting fingerprints and photos had trouble with the photo provided for the visa. I had used the same picture for the DS-160 (Dept of State's online system evaluated and accepted it) but the officer rejected it (it was taken at a Sam's Club photo studio), saying the background was grey-ish and not white. I had a spare photograph taken at another location and he accepted that. I had been ten printed before but had to give fingerprints again. Also, the first counter took the original of the bank fee submission receipt, so take that with you.

Visa officer: So who are you going to work for?
Me: I will be working for X company, where I have been working for two years
VO: How were you working for them before?
Me: I had a F-1 OPT status and the H-1B was approved 1.5 yr ago, so I had the status to work there.
VO: What do you do for the company?
Me: I am a X engineer and my job responsibilities are [brief summary]
VO: Where is the company HQed?
Me: The company is headquartered in X country and I work for their US arm.
VO: How/Where did you complete the professional requirements for the job?
Me: I went to the Univ of X in the US, and graduated with a BS in X Engineering.
VO: Since this petition (I-797, she had asked to see the original) was approved 1.5 yr ago, why are you applying for a visa based on that only now?
Me: I did not travel outside the US for a while and now am applying so.
VO: Congratulations, your visa is approved. You can collect the passport in 5 days. She gave me the green slip with approval summary.

Dec 14: CEAC shows case created Dec 14 and status update date also of Dec 14. The status changed to administrative processing that night.
Dec 15-21: CEAC showed administrative processing as the status.
Dec 22: The status on CEAC remained in administrative processing but the status update date changed to Dec 22.
Dec 23: CEAC status updated to Issued
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated from 'US Embassy/consulate has your passport' to 'Your passport has been received from the consular section and is being prepared for delivery'.
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated to 'Your passport is ready to pick up'.
Dec 29: Collected my passport with visa from AEG in Islamabad

It took 10 business days from the interview to collecting the passport. I had a three week vacation, so got everything in time. Hope it helps future applicants in scheduling their home visit accordingly.

[ffarooq]

Recent H1B Visa Stamping Experience

Asak,

Is there anyone who recently got their visa stamping done in Pakistan especially from Karachi? I am currently working in US. I have my 797 approved but I am planning my visit to Karachi first time after my approval of 797. since I am hearing horrible stories about stamping like people are stuck and they are getting RFEs and it is taking time and I have only 15 days of vacation time, so it would be really really helpful if anyone can share their most recent experience of stamping.

you can also reach out to me on in case if you dont have account here to respond.

Thanks.

[WKH]

Hb Restamping

Do you know what documents to bring along during the H1b visa restamping? My last stamping was done in Canada, but for restamping I'm going to Islamabad. Any tips or experiences?

There are very few H-1B stamping stories from Islamabad Embassy available online. Thought I'd add one more, so people searching will find a current timeline example.

I work for a large, multinational engineering firm in the US. Went on F-1, started working under OPT and got selected in the H-1B and ultimately approved in 2014. Had planned a 2015 visit to Pakistan and schedule the visa interview ahead of time. I have had friends get stuck in Administrative Processing for 3-5 months before, so I was very nervous.

Dec 13: Arrived in Pakistan
Dec 14: Went to the US Embassy, Islamabad, having secured an appointment two months ahead of time.

Interview experience: an officer collecting fingerprints and photos had trouble with the photo provided for the visa. I had used the same picture for the DS-160 (Dept of State's online system evaluated and accepted it) but the officer rejected it (it was taken at a Sam's Club photo studio), saying the background was grey-ish and not white. I had a spare photograph taken at another location and he accepted that. I had been ten printed before but had to give fingerprints again. Also, the first counter took the original of the bank fee submission receipt, so take that with you.

Visa officer: So who are you going to work for?
Me: I will be working for X company, where I have been working for two years
VO: How were you working for them before?
Me: I had a F-1 OPT status and the H-1B was approved 1.5 yr ago, so I had the status to work there.
VO: What do you do for the company?
Me: I am a X engineer and my job responsibilities are [brief summary]
VO: Where is the company HQed?
Me: The company is headquartered in X country and I work for their US arm.
VO: How/Where did you complete the professional requirements for the job?
Me: I went to the Univ of X in the US, and graduated with a BS in X Engineering.
VO: Since this petition (I-797, she had asked to see the original) was approved 1.5 yr ago, why are you applying for a visa based on that only now?
Me: I did not travel outside the US for a while and now am applying so.
VO: Congratulations, your visa is approved. You can collect the passport in 5 days. She gave me the green slip with approval summary.

Dec 14: CEAC shows case created Dec 14 and status update date also of Dec 14. The status changed to administrative processing that night.
Dec 15-21: CEAC showed administrative processing as the status.
Dec 22: The status on CEAC remained in administrative processing but the status update date changed to Dec 22.
Dec 23: CEAC status updated to Issued
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated from 'US Embassy/consulate has your passport' to 'Your passport has been received from the consular section and is being prepared for delivery'.
Dec 28: US Travel Docs updated to 'Your passport is ready to pick up'.
Dec 29: Collected my passport with visa from AEG in Islamabad

It took 10 business days from the interview to collecting the passport. I had a three week vacation, so got everything in time. Hope it helps future applicants in scheduling their home visit accordingly.