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Firstly , a huge thanks to the immihelp forum , taking guidance from it , Me and my husband were able to successfully get our US B1 B 2 visa without the help of any agents whatsoever!
I am sharing my experience here so that it is of help to future applicants and help reduce their anxiety.
Two experiences were particularly worrisome hence I was a little anxious about the process
1. Incorrect form DS. 160 - after submitting the form and getting our biometric done I realized that I had made an error in the form. The error was that I had missed mentioning a country (amongst many that I had traveled to in the last 5 years).
I figured that the solution here is to go to your application's last page where you get an option ' create a new application ' . Once you select this option you get your filled form and you can make changes as you require. The form will have to be submitted again and you get a new confirmation slip. Save that and use it as the new application number.
2. We had to reschedule our appointment since my husband had to travel on an important conference , however since we had already done our biometric there was no ways that we could cancel the appointment . The only option was to do a ' no show' .
I figured through the immigration website that ' no show' is a situation that is not so uncommon and in fact there are provisions for more than 1 no show..,( please check the correct number with the embassy)
In case of a no show , after 2-3 days you can take an appointment again ,there is no need to pay visa fees again.
You will have to go through bio metrics again in case of a no show.
When we went for our second bio metrics, only my metrics was taken again and not my husbands. We could not understand the reason for it. My guess is that could be because I had filled a new application after my earlier bio metrics and my metrics had to be mapped to the new application
1.Experience at the OFC for bio metrics
We had an appointment at 9 a.m, and reached around at 8.50. The first time we got done in exactly 5 minutes as there were no crowds at all.
At the OFC , all that you need is
1.appointment confirmation letter
2. Passport
3. DS 160 confirmation slip
We had carried all other document as well but nothing is checked here at the OFC.
The staff is very cordial and helpful,
At the OFC a sticker is generated and stuck on the passport , please do not remove this sticker as they tally it at the interview venue.
The officer asks basic question like when is your interview and takes your fingerprints and a digital pic. That's it.
Not more than 5 minutes
The second time around the queue at the bio metrics office was longer and it took us around 15 minutes.
2. THE interview - our interview appointment was at 9 am , and again we reached at around 8.50. There was a queue , and the security guy called all the guys in the 9 a.m queue inside ( there were other people whose appointments were at 1030 and later in the queue as well ahead of us , however they all were asked to step out of the queue and wait in a separate queue)
Once inside , we had to go through a scanned security check like ( like at the airports) after that we were at the waiting area... Which is a a lovely courtyard like lobby open from all four sides, but with a roof. Here you are made to sit in queue depending on your type of visa ( student/ visitor/ business etc) . There are washrooms and drinking water facility provided here.
From here people are called in lots inside an enclosed office , where once again your finger prints are taken . Then you are made to stand in an interview queue. There were talents 6- 8 operational interview counters.
Our interview experience was as follows
Officer - good morning
Us - good morning
Officer - why do you want to travel to the U.S.
Me - to celebrate our marriage anniversary
Officer - When do you want to travel
Me - in March to New York , San Francisco , Washington
Husband - Vegas , San Diego in March
Officer - Where do you work
Me - **** *** specified desig
Husband - **** ** specified desig
All this while the officer barely glanced at us, and was typing away at his PC. He continued typing for a few more seconds and the said
Officer - Your visa has been issued , you can pick up your passport from your specified location when ready
THATS IT!!!! The entire interview lasted for not more than minute... Not a single document asked for... Not even any specific questions.. We were done at 1020... So a total of 1.5 hours wait and interview included, the only advantage of coming early is that you are ahead in the queue of your time slot .. All in all the process was very smooth and efficient ...
That's not all, we got an alert same evening that passport was ready to be picked up, and we picked it up the next day itself! Now that's was super prompt and efficient
Needless to say we were happy! And are now looking forward to go and celebrate our anniversary in US
So some summary tips
1. Be confident
2. Be honest
3. They embassy helpline number and email are very helpful and responsive so please do not hesitate to write in to them for any queries ... Don't waste your money on the useless agents since there is nothing that they can do to assure you the visa... It all depends on your intent and honesty .
Me and my husband are both working in media for 10 years and have traveled quite a bit... So for us it was breeze! All the best to immihelp members and hope this helped.
I am sharing my experience here so that it is of help to future applicants and help reduce their anxiety.
Two experiences were particularly worrisome hence I was a little anxious about the process
1. Incorrect form DS. 160 - after submitting the form and getting our biometric done I realized that I had made an error in the form. The error was that I had missed mentioning a country (amongst many that I had traveled to in the last 5 years).
I figured that the solution here is to go to your application's last page where you get an option ' create a new application ' . Once you select this option you get your filled form and you can make changes as you require. The form will have to be submitted again and you get a new confirmation slip. Save that and use it as the new application number.
2. We had to reschedule our appointment since my husband had to travel on an important conference , however since we had already done our biometric there was no ways that we could cancel the appointment . The only option was to do a ' no show' .
I figured through the immigration website that ' no show' is a situation that is not so uncommon and in fact there are provisions for more than 1 no show..,( please check the correct number with the embassy)
In case of a no show , after 2-3 days you can take an appointment again ,there is no need to pay visa fees again.
You will have to go through bio metrics again in case of a no show.
When we went for our second bio metrics, only my metrics was taken again and not my husbands. We could not understand the reason for it. My guess is that could be because I had filled a new application after my earlier bio metrics and my metrics had to be mapped to the new application
1.Experience at the OFC for bio metrics
We had an appointment at 9 a.m, and reached around at 8.50. The first time we got done in exactly 5 minutes as there were no crowds at all.
At the OFC , all that you need is
1.appointment confirmation letter
2. Passport
3. DS 160 confirmation slip
We had carried all other document as well but nothing is checked here at the OFC.
The staff is very cordial and helpful,
At the OFC a sticker is generated and stuck on the passport , please do not remove this sticker as they tally it at the interview venue.
The officer asks basic question like when is your interview and takes your fingerprints and a digital pic. That's it.
Not more than 5 minutes
The second time around the queue at the bio metrics office was longer and it took us around 15 minutes.
2. THE interview - our interview appointment was at 9 am , and again we reached at around 8.50. There was a queue , and the security guy called all the guys in the 9 a.m queue inside ( there were other people whose appointments were at 1030 and later in the queue as well ahead of us , however they all were asked to step out of the queue and wait in a separate queue)
Once inside , we had to go through a scanned security check like ( like at the airports) after that we were at the waiting area... Which is a a lovely courtyard like lobby open from all four sides, but with a roof. Here you are made to sit in queue depending on your type of visa ( student/ visitor/ business etc) . There are washrooms and drinking water facility provided here.
From here people are called in lots inside an enclosed office , where once again your finger prints are taken . Then you are made to stand in an interview queue. There were talents 6- 8 operational interview counters.
Our interview experience was as follows
Officer - good morning
Us - good morning
Officer - why do you want to travel to the U.S.
Me - to celebrate our marriage anniversary
Officer - When do you want to travel
Me - in March to New York , San Francisco , Washington
Husband - Vegas , San Diego in March
Officer - Where do you work
Me - **** *** specified desig
Husband - **** ** specified desig
All this while the officer barely glanced at us, and was typing away at his PC. He continued typing for a few more seconds and the said
Officer - Your visa has been issued , you can pick up your passport from your specified location when ready
THATS IT!!!! The entire interview lasted for not more than minute... Not a single document asked for... Not even any specific questions.. We were done at 1020... So a total of 1.5 hours wait and interview included, the only advantage of coming early is that you are ahead in the queue of your time slot .. All in all the process was very smooth and efficient ...
That's not all, we got an alert same evening that passport was ready to be picked up, and we picked it up the next day itself! Now that's was super prompt and efficient
Needless to say we were happy! And are now looking forward to go and celebrate our anniversary in US
So some summary tips
1. Be confident
2. Be honest
3. They embassy helpline number and email are very helpful and responsive so please do not hesitate to write in to them for any queries ... Don't waste your money on the useless agents since there is nothing that they can do to assure you the visa... It all depends on your intent and honesty .
Me and my husband are both working in media for 10 years and have traveled quite a bit... So for us it was breeze! All the best to immihelp members and hope this helped.
