Attending the Interview

[griz326]

I understand that you cannot attend the interview with your SO. My question is...does it matter at all to the visa agent if you are in Guangzhou to offer moral support?

[IllinoisDave]

Oh man have you opened up a can-o-worms. B)

Sit back and enjoy the ride. I plan to.

 

I'll stop being a smart-ass long enough to offer my very personal opinion.

I think it can't hurt.

Good luck.

Edited September 13, 2007 by IllinoisDave (see edit history)

[tywy_99]

I understand that you cannot attend the interview with your SO. My question is...does it matter at all to the visa agent if you are in Guangzhou to offer moral support?

It doesn't really matter. Many applicants have gotten their visas without the petioner being present. In most cases, not being present has no bearing at all.

[tywy_99]

Sorry. I read your post wrong. What I said goes for those not present but for those who are present, I think it helps but not a considerable amount, I mean, you sure can't go wrong by being there and I'm sure the VO's notice that.

[rondrum42]

I agree with Dave.

#1 it cant hurt, #2 it shows GZ that you care & she can prove that

by showing them your passport, #3 it (in my case, will count as

my second visit) will allow SO to use this as a true statement.

Seems like most VO's all ask that......"how many times has he been here?

#4 speaking for most, we WANT to be there with her!

Good Luck to you.

[credzba]

I'll add to the question.

 

Does it make a difference for k1 that it doesn't make for k3/ IR-1 ?

 

I read about many things to "prove the relationship" but it seems like those only apply for k1. For k3, assuming you have visited a few times, it seems pretty obvious you are enjoying your relationship.

 

So, being there for the interview, is it more or less important for fiancee visa versus marriage visa?

[SinoTexas]

To the Visa Officer, no. To your fiance(e) or spouse, probably so.

 

As aye,

 

Jim

[tsap seui]

For us, my being there didn't help out for the interview. But then again, my girlfriend didn't have a VO that was "a walk in the park, couple of questions, here's your pink slip" type interviewer.

 

Did my being there and going to ACH the next day to talk to a VO help our case? The VO I talked to said "it's very good that you are here talking to me. It shows you are very committed and interested in your fiance's case. I'm putting this fact in the computer."

 

When I call the DOS now, the last entry in the computer about our case is my visit to ACH, the day after the interview.

 

Was my being in GUZ important to my girlfriend? Oh man, way more than a mere probably, let me tell ya.

 

To me, the interview was the single most important day of our relationship...to that point. Can you imagine my exasparation if I had sat at home and missed the opportunity to attend ACH and voice my concern and ask my questions?

 

Besides the point that it might have helped with the VO, I could never have sat at home and missed the jubilation and joy of my girlfriend getting her visa...and...likewise I would hate myself for not being there to help my girlfriend through her bitter grief and the shock of a blue slip that asks for nothing.

 

In way more ways than just the simple fact of being there to help finalize preparations for the interview and maybe help get the visa with my presence in GUZ, my girlfriend now fully understands the depth of my devotion to her.

 

I'll be beside my girlfriend, holding her hand, for the good....and the bad. I would not have missed the interview for anything.

 

If you are confident you have an airtight, walk in the park case, and the visa is a certainty, then don't bother yourself in going. Just know that not everyone, no matter how well prepared, gets the pink slip.

 

tsap seui

[SirLancelot]

I understand that you cannot attend the interview with your SO. My question is...does it matter at all to the visa agent if you are in Guangzhou to offer moral support?

 

It's not a make-or-break kind of deal. If you can make it--finances and time permitting--then by all means try to make it to the interview with your SO. If you can't, then don't sweat it. Time and again, it's been shown that some applicants still get BLUE slipped even though their USC SO is sitting outside, nervously sipping coffee. That pretty much proves that just being there alone won't guarantee a successful interview. It's all the evidence for the totality of the relationship.

 

In my own case, I did not attend my fiancee's K-1 interview and she did NOT have my original US passport on hand. Her interview lasted less than 5 minutes and she received a PINK slip.

 

In my opinion, it doesn't matter, but I would still urge anyone to go if finances and time permits.

 

Good luck all.

[michaelt]

For us, my being there didn't help out for the interview. But then again, my girlfriend didn't have a VO that was "a walk in the park, couple of questions, here's your pink slip" type interviewer.

 

Did my being there and going to ACH the next day to talk to a VO help our case? The VO I talked to said "it's very good that you are here talking to me. It shows you are very committed and interested in your fiance's case. I'm putting this fact in the computer."

 

When I call the DOS now, the last entry in the computer about our case is my visit to ACH, the day after the interview.

 

Was my being in GUZ important to my girlfriend? Oh man, way more than a mere probably, let me tell ya.

 

To me, the interview was the single most important day of our relationship...to that point. Can you imagine my exasparation if I had sat at home and missed the opportunity to attend ACH and voice my concern and ask my questions?

 

Besides the point that it might have helped with the VO, I could never have sat at home and missed the jubilation and joy of my girlfriend getting her visa...and...likewise I would hate myself for not being there to help my girlfriend through her bitter grief and the shock of a blue slip that asks for nothing.

 

In way more ways than just the simple fact of being there to help finalize preparations for the interview and maybe help get the visa with my presence in GUZ, my girlfriend now fully understands the depth of my devotion to her.

 

I'll be beside my girlfriend, holding her hand, for the good....and the bad. I would not have missed the interview for anything.

 

If you are confident you have an airtight, walk in the park case, and the visa is a certainty, then don't bother yourself in going. Just know that not everyone, no matter how well prepared, gets the pink slip.

 

tsap seui

Amen to that! You just read my mind too...

[RainDrop]

Being there with your SO during the interview should be taken as a show of support for your SO, but should not be considered too much as a show of evidence of your strong relationship. The VO is more focusing on the evidence you have already presented in your case instead of waiting to see if you are present or not during the interview. The VO reads your file and makes up his mind most of time before your SO walks into the interview. If you still need to demonstrate your strong relationship at the moment of interview, it might be too late! The timing of an interview is difficult to predict, and as a result, it is not easy for a USC to get out of work and to make to the interview in a short notice. The VO probably understands that, and will not place too much importance whether or not you are present during the interview. For those who want to use the interview to count as a second visit, it is most likely too late. So, if it is feasible for you to go with your SO for the interview, go for it. On the other hand, you should not worry too much of getting a blue slip simply because of your absence during the interview. Your presence will not strengthen a weak case, but your absence will not weaken a strong case either.

[chilton747]

Excellent first post

[david_dawei]

Being there with your SO during the interview should be taken as a show of support for your SO, but should not be considered too much as a show of evidence of your strong relationship. The VO is more focusing on the evidence you have already presented in your case instead of waiting to see if you are present or not during the interview. The VO reads your file and makes up his mind most of time before your SO walks into the interview. If you still need to demonstrate your strong relationship at the moment of interview, it might be too late! The timing of an interview is difficult to predict, and as a result, it is not easy for a USC to get out of work and to make to the interview in a short notice. The VO probably understands that, and will not place too much importance whether or not you are present during the interview. For those who want to use the interview to count as a second visit, it is most likely too late. So, if it is feasible for you to go with your SO for the interview, go for it. On the other hand, you should not worry too much of getting a blue slip simply because of your absence during the interview. Your presence will not strengthen a weak case, but your absence will not weaken a strong case either.

Nice post.. I generally agree.. but as all cases are looked at on the basis of that case, one has to know when to hold'em (visit) or fold'em (don't visit).

 

I think there are a few situations it could work to help but very few.. particularly thinking of, if the USC has not visited their SO in close to a year, their continued absence sends anything but a silent message to the VO...

 

There was a very small trend in denial cases a few years back when I started collecting the interiews, I noticed that those undergoing multiple denials often get the pink once the USC finally went over... whether it was the first, second, third, or fourth overcome.. it seems to sometimes break the ice... I would not put a strong statistical basis to it, but an observation none the less.

[IllinoisDave]

Being there with your SO during the interview should be taken as a show of support for your SO, but should not be considered too much as a show of evidence of your strong relationship. The VO is more focusing on the evidence you have already presented in your case instead of waiting to see if you are present or not during the interview. The VO reads your file and makes up his mind most of time before your SO walks into the interview. If you still need to demonstrate your strong relationship at the moment of interview, it might be too late! The timing of an interview is difficult to predict, and as a result, it is not easy for a USC to get out of work and to make to the interview in a short notice. The VO probably understands that, and will not place too much importance whether or not you are present during the interview. For those who want to use the interview to count as a second visit, it is most likely too late. So, if it is feasible for you to go with your SO for the interview, go for it. On the other hand, you should not worry too much of getting a blue slip simply because of your absence during the interview. Your presence will not strengthen a weak case, but your absence will not weaken a strong case either.

 

Yes, nice thoughtful post.

Welcome to CFL.

[rogerinca]

Yes, this is an excellent and very thoughtful post !!

 

Moreover, I am also with Jim (Sino-Texas), and Lance on this specific topic and on the more broad view of how the process works; which seems to get revisited and rehashed every 6 to 8 weeks or so. As a K-3 filer, who has enjoyed a relationship with his wife for over two years and will have been married for over one year by the time her interview takes place; I plan on being at my Lao Po’s interview. I will do this, not to demonstrate, this late in the game, any bona fides to the VIO; but primarily to provide emotional support for her and our young daughter at a very important time in our Visa process. My personality dictates that I must be there !! I also realize that each of us here, have our own unique budgetary issues and work/career commitments which may or may not make this possible. This factor may be the bottom line for an individual’s decision to attend or not attend.

 

Next, I am among those who subscribe/opine to the school of thought which strongly feels that most of the decisions, on which ‘path’ the interview will ultimately take, are pretty much triggered/pre-determined up-stream in the process, at the Service Center, and the NVC, prior to being submitted to the Consulate for action and implementation. IMO, the job of the Consulate staff is to act upon and/or implement the recommendations/findings/determinations of the previous six to eight months of investigation and review, which took place prior to arrival of the case file at the Consulate. It is obvious, that further investigation may still be conducted within the Consulate, by specialized staff, as warranted and/or [tasked] by the previous cadre of reviewing officers in the US, based on the individual circumstances of the case file at hand.

 

The Consulate staff will do the follow-up and any additional investigative work, as necessary, on those cases wherein the previous reviewer determinations are either somewhat inconclusive or strongly conclusive, as to an absence of bona fides for the relationship. Keep in mind, based on David’s great statistical base; in the case of the K-3’s, nearly 91% are a pass, and thus only about 9% come up on the first attempt, as a no pass. Those are pretty great statistics for success, for most members here.

 

I base all of my opinions on my review of a lot of anecdotal information supplied herein by other members over the many months, including recent post-interview briefings; as well as, my experience and understanding of similar types of investigative processes, through my professional career for over 33 years.

 

Well, I am heading out the door now.

Edited September 15, 2007 by rogerinca (see edit history)