New Hampshire: National Visa Processing Center (NVPC)

When your case is finally approved it will be first transferred to New Hampshire and then to the Embassy in the alien’s country.

The NVPC will note the approval of the petition and determine whether or not an actual visa is available for the beneficiary (alien fiancé (e)). With the exception of spouses, fiancé (e) s, parents and children of US citizens, all other family visas are subject to annual quotas. When these quotas are reached no further visas can be issued until new quotas are available. For many beneficiaries the wait can be years. For the above list of immediate family members and fiancé (e) s there are no quotas so these cases should clear NVPC processing very quickly before being sent to the Embassy for visa issuance.

Allocation of Your Visa Number

When your petition is approved you will be given two key numbers. The first is your ‘A’ number, the number that will ultimately track with your case and end up on your green card. This number can be found on your approved petition. Secondly you will have a NVPC case number. Your case number is the number that the Embassy will reference when processing your K1 visa application. As with all reference numbers it is a very good idea to double-check these numbers on any correspondence to make sure it has been copied correctly since a typo could result in an unnecessary delay in your case.

Embassy Phase

There is a lot of anxiety around this time as clients are aware that the petition has been approved and all that is required after that is the formality of going for an interview. On the other hand this will be the first opportunity that US Immigration will have to inspect the alien who is about to be granted immigrant status and a permanent right to live in the US. The alien could have communicable diseases, have a criminal past or have criminal intentions. All these potential threats have to be removed as far as possible before any alien will be allowed into the US.

Firstly, there will be more forms to complete. As soon as you get your Embassy package in the mail you should quickly make a copy of it and send the original documents to your attorney. Your attorney will then review the documents and guide you through the Embassy requirements.

Your attorney will review the documents to see if there have been any recent changes in Embassy processing procedure since the last case was filed.

The Embassy will also offer advice and in many cases make the process sound very simple. You should know that their objective is to screen you, to protect their interests and not yours. So it’s important to follow all the instructions given by your attorney as he or she is watching every aspect of your case, and has only your interests at heart.

Medical Requirement

You will need to have a medical before your Embassy interview. The purpose of this medical we are told is to screen for communicable diseases. However, it is perfectly possible that they could be screening for absolutely anything. This having been said, even if you have genuine medical issues such as diabetes, arthritis, asthma, etc these are perfectly acceptable and would not pose a bar to admission as they are not communicable.

Within the Embassy package you will receive detailed instructions about your medical appointment.