Interview Details

[Katrina]

Ok. We have rested now and are ready to tell everyone about the interview. We stayed in the apartment complex right above the consulate. It was very convienent. We just walked downstairs the morning of the interview.

 

Others have said it before and I will say it again. It doesn't matter what time you get there. I know for a fact my husband went in with another lady at the same time (because I sat and talked to her husband) and she came down two hours earlier than my husband did. So, the time you arrive doesn't matter.

 

After seeing how many people line up everyday for immigration visas (we could see the line outside of our apartment window every morning) I have a new found respect for the Guangzhou consulate staff. Those guys are working REALLY hard. There were so many people there. Four long lines out to the street of immigrant visa applicants and then more lines for non-immigrant visa applicants. These lines are here everyday. If someone from the consulate is reading this I want to say I respect you very much. Your work is very hard. (And, I'm not just sucking up because we have our visa. )

 

Ok, so here is what happens. You line up outside the consulate (immigration visas on the left). Try not to let people push you or cut in front of you. SO will show his/her passport and P4 appointment letter. The guard will want to see the USC passport and remind USC that he/she can only go to the fourth floor. Go inside and up the escalator to the fourth floor.

 

Here is the extremely expensive coffee shop. (15 yuan for one can of coke). SO will have passport and P4 checked again and continue up escalator. USC will sit inside coffee shop with everyone else waiting. I do have to say looking around at the faces in the coffee shop I felt like I was in a hospital waiting room and everyone's wife was upstairs giving birth. Everyone looks EXTREMELY nervous. But, then you see people coming out with smiles and you start to relax.

 

At the fifth floor they will check the SO's passport again. (From this point on you refers to SO. Take your cell phone and go through the metal detector. They will give a card to pick your cell phone back up.

 

Then, you enter the waiting room and wait for them to call your name. After they call your name you will go up to the window and they will give you a number. You will give them the I-864, look at your passport, and the chinese worker opened the medical envelope. They asked some simple questions in chinese. 1. Who is your sponsor? 2. Who is your joint sponsor? Then, they gave the letter to pay the immigration fee and the number for the interview.

 

Then, go to window 16 and pay money. They will give you a receipt.

 

Then, sit back down and wait for them to call you. Everyone stands up and takes the vow in Mandarin and Cantonese. They have you vow that all information from your immigration is true and correct and you have not included any false information.

 

They call your number and you go up for your fingerprints (on that day it was window 17). An American woman took his fingerprints. He said she was very nice and could speak chinese very well. He also says to add it sounds simple but takes a very long time to get to this point.

 

Go back and sit down.

 

They call your number and direct you to a window and this is the interview. The visa officer was a very nice and friendly guy.

 

SO: (Smiles and starts the conversation) Hello.

VO: (Replies) hello. May I see your passport? (Hands over SO passport and USC passport. Then, he started looking at USC's passport.)

VO: Does your wife live in China?

SO: Yes.

VO: What's her job?

SO: Foreign teacher at my universityxxxx.

VO: What does she do?

SO: She is a teacher. She teaches a foreign language.

VO: What do you want to do in America?

SO: Find a job and feed my family is the first thing I want to do.

(Then checks SO's passport.)

VO: Have you entered America or another country before?

SO: No, I have never entered America or another country.

VO: Have you entered Hong Kong or Macou?

SO: No, I have never entered Hong Kong or Macou.

VO: Has your wife been to any other countries before?

SO: Yes, she went to Africa before. She likes to travel.

(He checks USC's passport again.)

VO: Wow, she's travelled a lot. Yeah, she entered Ghana before. (He could see the visa)

(Checks USC's file and found about where I used to work)

VO: I've worked at a place like that before (smiling and joking). Reminds me of when I used to work there. I worked there a long time. Who's your (SO couldn't understand the question)?

SO: Could you please repeat what you said (said it too fast).

VO: (In chinese) Who's your joint sponsor?

SO: My wife's mother.

VO: (In English again) May I look at your pictures?

(Gives pictures. He started from the top of the stack looking at them one by one but very quickly. Seemed like he payed more attention to SO's reaction and not what was actually in the pictures. Chose a picture from our wedding where a close friend had walked me down the aisle) Who's this person? He must be very important?

SO: That's one of my wife's best friends. He also lives in China. He works at xxxx.

(Chose pictures and asked about the people in them and what was going on. All done very quickly. SO could reply and give responses very quickly and fluently. VO even made jokes and was very friendly during the whole time. Then another consulate worker came over to ask him some questions. He turned off the speaker for two or three minutes. SO felt very nervous, anxious, and just waiting. Then, he turns back and turns speaker back on)

VO: (Smiles and says) You know

SO: I understand. There are too many people and it's hard work. No problem.

VO: Let me look at your case again (He had lost his place because of the distraction and needed to figure out where he had left off.) Ok. Everything is ok. I will let you enter America. (Stamped SO's passport.)

Take this paper just over there and they will arrange for you to pick up your visa at the post office.

SO: Thank you very much and wish you have a good day.

 

 

The VO spoke english very quickly. SO says during the entire interview the visa officer was very nice and friendly. SO says visa officer gave him a very good impression. He thinks he is a good guy. He likes making jokes. He payed a lot of attention to his job and SO says he respects him.

 

I would also like to add a note of thanks to all those to CFL. We would have been wondering in the darkness without this site. Thank you to everyone who has helped along the way. This is a great site with a very supportive community! We were well prepared for the interview and this website is the main reason for that. We owe part of our success to everyone here has helped us. Thank you for your encouragment, advice, and support!

Edited April 30, 2006 by Katrina (see edit history)

[Katrina]

I don't know why two of these words have links to them. Don't bother clicking them. It's nothing that I wanted to put there. I tried editing and deleting them and retyping but they didn't go away. Sorry. My computer is in chinese and SO just fell asleep. Don't know how to get it off.

[david_dawei]

thanks for sharing the [DCF] interview... Best to you two

[MikeandRong]

Wow, what a great report. I felt like I was right there watching and taking the interview too. I send the both of you the largest and most sincere CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!

 

[jemmyell]

Congratulations again and thanks for the report. Every bit added to the shared knowledge really helps a lot.

 

-James

[yuehan123]

Congratulations. Good details.

[IluvmyLi]

Thanks much for such a detailed account of what happened in with your interview.

 

Is a K1 an immigrant or non-immigrant? Sorry for the dumb question.

[LeeFisher3]

Sounds like a good time was had by all, except for you sitting in the coffee shop waiting for the eternity of the interview, but then he showed up with a smile for you.

 

Congratulations.

[Yuanyang]

Katrina, Thank you for such a detailed account.

[jim_julian]

Let me add another thank you for taking the trouble to write a detailed report.

[Katrina]

Thanks everyone for the congratulations and we were glad to give the report Before our interview we wanted to read as much detailed information as possible

 

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[Guest ShaQuaNew]

Thank you for sharing. Congratulations on your success, and wishing you both many years of happiness.

Edited May 1, 2006 by ShaQuaNew (see edit history)

[ameriken]

Thanks much for such a detailed account of what happened in with your interview. 

 

Is a K1 an immigrant or non-immigrant?  Sorry for the dumb question. 

211272[/snapback]

That is an excellent question, and everyone, including the people at the POE's, treat it officially as a non-immigrant visa which it really is, because you do not have status when you arrive in the US.

 

However, for the purpose of approving and issuing the visa, the folks at GUZ treat it as an immigrant visa, since the person really intends to immigrate. It is confusing.

[IluvmyLi]

Thanks much for such a detailed account of what happened in with your interview. 

 

Is a K1 an immigrant or non-immigrant?  Sorry for the dumb question.  

211272[/snapback]

That is an excellent question, and everyone, including the people at the POE's, treat it officially as a non-immigrant visa which it really is, because you do not have status when you arrive in the US.

 

However, for the purpose of approving and issuing the visa, the folks at GUZ treat it as an immigrant visa, since the person really intends to immigrate. It is confusing.

211491[/snapback]

So are the K1's going in the immigrant line or non immigrant?

[Katrina]

Sorry for the confusion. K1's go in the immigrant line.