CIS Office Notes on Waivers

[Laurel Scott]

Just posted: http://www.visacentral.net/WaiverOfficeNotes.pdf

[kenaly]

WOW!! I am so glad that we managed to get through VSC when we did..they look awful to deal with now!

[gdalicia]

Very interesting. So those of us filing through CDJ should be counting our blessings...it's helpful to be reminded of that.

[corazoncita]

Hmmm... I can't seem to find notes on Tegucigalpa anywhere. I was hoping you would know, Laurel! ;) I've been Googling and researching... all kinds of stuff, but I can't seem to find any type of reputation/rating for that office. If anyone reading this thread knows anything, throw it out there!

Thank you for this list of information!! This is very interesting... and it's also very good news for the many filing through Juarez! :)

[kitkat1]

Have you read this on the Honduras website:

http://honduras.usembassy.gov/english/mission/sections/IV/timeframes.htm

Processing of Waiver Requests for Ineligible Applicants
6 to 8 months

If it is determined that an applicant has an ineligibility for which there is an available waiver, the applicant will need to fill out all of the required forms in order to apply for the waiver.

These forms include an I-212 for deportations, I-601 for other ineligibilities, G-325A for all waiver applications, and a hardship letter from the petitioner describing the extreme suffering s/he will suffer if the waiver is denied. The applicant will also need to provide a full set of fingerprints and pay additional processing fees. Once all forms and the results of the fingerprint check have been received, the case is transferred to the Department of Homeland Security for processing of the waiver application.

For more information regarding the status of a waiver application, please contact DHS Tegucigalpa by telephone at 238-5114, extension 4500; by fax at 236-9107; or by e-mail at uscistgu.inquiries@dhs.gov.

[corazoncita]

Yes, I did read that. At least they are pretty good about keeping their processing times up! :)

I was more concerned about their reputation as far as how strict they are. I see it's pretty difficult to get a waiver approved in European countries. I was hoping to see if there were notes on the Tegucigalpa embassy (if I read the website correctly, they are in charge of processing Guatemala and Costa Rica as well). Maybe after all of of Honduras filers get through, we'll be able to contribute some good experiences... I can only hope!

[kitkat1]

Guatemala handles their own waivers (I thought they went to Honduras too but it turns out they don't).

[Lachulagreeneyes]

Thanks for the updates!

[Laurel Scott]

Guatemala also does Belize.

[ukgirl27]

What about in-country waivers? Chicago in general? Anyone have any idea?

[pen1137]

i was hoping to see some stats on in-countries as well. guess it's just biting bullets til uscis says to stop...very frustrating...

[alyssa]

Laurel- I was wondering if you knew anything about the consulate in San Jose, Costa Rica. I'm still just filing my fiance visa (which will be denied), and I was wondering how strict they are there!! thanks for any help you can give!!!

[palinurus]

This is a good document,

It highlights the "discretionary" component in all it's glory.

P

[emt103c]

The Vermont thing is so discouraging. Are these numbers for 601's AND 212's if filed separately or just 601's??

[Laurel Scott]

There's too much variation for in-country waivers. I also don't do as many of those as the foreign-filed.

[falperb]

is the likelyhood of approval for ahtens is TWO for the new OIC or for her predecesor???

[Laurel Scott]

The new one. She's a Two-Three really. Her predecessor as a One-Two.

[falperb]

we are going thru athens and I believe we have 2 level 2's and a couple level 3's and like 3 level 4's according to your hardship memo on your website. so do you think we have a strong case?

[jpaula]

Am I missing it or is Rome not listed? I remember you having experience with Rome in the past. In general, Thanks Laurel. This is very useful info for many.

[joy&pain]

Laurel,
do you have any waiver experience with Panama City in last 12 months?

How difficult is a "3" considered?

[Laurel Scott]

I do have experience with Rome, but enough time has passed since my last waiver went through there, that I wanted to wait until another one or two went through before posting their info.

[Laurel Scott]

I have a case pending in Panama City right now and we're having disconcerting administrative problems. The last one that went through Panama City was over a year ago and it was only like 3-4 months for a decision.

[djones9714]

For the 2 cases that you had go through Guatemala, was it hard to prove the hardship? Did you have any "great" problems or did the cases stand on their own merits?

[Laurel Scott]

Ok, what does this scale One to Five mean? Let's take a generic borderline case. Hypothetical facts - alien is Honey, USC is Sweetheart. Honey and Sweetheart are in the mid-20s. Neither has been married before. They have one young child. Honey entered without inspection as an adult and stayed more than one year. He has no arrests, no deportations, and has never committed misreprentation. Sweetheart was born in the US. She does not speak her husband's native language. Honey has a pretty good job, but Sweetheart makes more since she has the education and the papers. If Honey leaves the US, Sweetheart will struggle financially, and may have to move to a smaller apartment with the couple's child. Sweetheart's parents, who live nearby, are getting old, but for now they are in moderate health. Sweetheart has one adult sibling who does not live nearby. Honey's home country is a third world nation with few economic opportunities, high crime rate, some political instability and corruption and lower public health, medical and educational standards than the US. They are now volunarily entering the process. Assuming a well-prepared waiver packet (and that's an IMPORTANT assumption), what are their chances of success?

FIVE: 95%-99%
FOUR: 90%-95%
THREE: 75%-90%
TWO: 50%-75%
ONE: <50%

[joy&pain]

Ok, what does this scale One to Five mean?

Thank you for explaining! That helps A LOT!
If you throw in a deportation of Honey (no criminal record otherwise, no f/m, etc) what would you estimate the percentages to be?

[Lulu]

What the heck is up with London? A year ago, they were at 3 months for a decision, and I had seen 1 denial at MOST among LOTS of approvals. Has something changed there?

As for Panama City, the backlog is insane. It was 3 months to a decision when I went through there in 2005. As for communications, the OIC Donna Petree is super, super nice. George Suhr, if he's still there, is also extremely helpful and sympathetic. But Elsie Botello, who does the leg-work for the waivers and is usually the one who you will be directed to, is generally dry, unpleasant, and uncooperative.

[tonyr7]

any news about bangkok?
my waivers have been there for a over a month now

[Laurel Scott]

Thank you for explaining! That helps A LOT!
If you throw in a deportation of Honey (no criminal record otherwise, no f/m, etc) what would you estimate the percentages to be?

Slightly lower, but not substantially.

[MistyB]

That really surprises me about London. We had great dealings with London and Copenhagen. My emails never bounced back. They usually answered within a day or so. I cannot believe they put approval at a 2. As for the backlog...well they are now picking up Scandinavia's stuff so I am sure there probably is. What a difference a year makes! I take that report with a grain of salt.

[Laurel Scott]

I used to love London. I considered it a more lenient post. Communication was great. But over the past six months, emails started bouncing back and multiple inquires on two cases went unanswered. One of the strongest cases I've ever had got denied. Another one that I thought was pretty good got denied. Processing times more than doubled. I don't know what happened to London.

[olafgypsy]

What if Honey and Sweetheart don't have a child together? Does that substantially lower their chances of being approved?

[Aussie-Amero]

That posting Laurel is so helpful and detailed - thank you for sharing and caring basically. I wish there was more information about Bangkok i-601's also....I will be applying through there soon and it is (and remains ) a bit of a black hole for me as far as local consulate culture and any patterns of approval/denials of waivers in general.

Also what would you call the lovechild of Sweetheart and Honey ????
I'm thinking Cavitykid ??

[tonyr7]

aussie-amero,my 601 and 212 are at bangkok now, have been for a month
the last we heard was that fingerprints had cleared and they had my A file
my wife had her congressman make an enquiry 2 days ago, but we havent heard anything at the moment
will keep yall posted

[MistyB]

Wow..Laurel that is awful about London. They were doing so well. I know when our case got transferred over and they finally received it, it only took three weeks to get an answer. They were always so pleasant in the emails. That is really sad. :o

[Aussie-Amero]

aussie-amero,my 601 and 212 are at bangkok now, have been for a month
the last we heard was that fingerprints had cleared and they had my A file
my wife had her congressman make an enquiry 2 days ago, but we havent heard anything at the moment
will keep yall posted

:cool:
Thanks Tonyr7,

Anything you get or that I get for that matter......on Bangkok would be great. I know of a couple of other folk, apart from yourself, with I-601's waiting in Bangkok also.....so all waiting with baited breathe I guess.

Cheers
pete

[corazoncita]

Guatemala handles their own waivers (I thought they went to Honduras too but it turns out they don't).

I was wrong... I was thinking of Nicaragua! Here is what's on the US Embassy, Honduras website.

http://honduras.usembassy.gov/english/mission/sections/uscis.htm

USCIS Tegucigalpa is a regional sub-office with jurisdiction over Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica and is responsible for the immigration and adjudication functions of immigration benefits. The functions and authorities of USCIS Tegucigalpa include:

[Revlon]

hi laurel do u have exp with 212(d)(3) law says they should be lenient but people say OIC genrally looks for extreme hadship

[Laura]

hi laurel do u have exp with 212(d)(3) law says they should be lenient but people say OIC genrally looks for extreme hadship

Revlon - if you want to ask Laurel a question - you should probably wait until her free chat, visacentral.com, 11:00 am central time on Wednesdays, because she's not that likely to respond to a question like this here. Otherwise, pay $100 for a consult, more information at her website.

[cm21om25]

What if Honey and Sweetheart don't have a child together? Does that substantially lower their chances of being approved?

I was wondering that myself..

[Patsy]

I used to love London. I considered it a more lenient post. Communication was great. But over the past six months, emails started bouncing back and multiple inquires on two cases went unanswered. One of the strongest cases I've ever had got denied. Another one that I thought was pretty good got denied. Processing times more than doubled. I don't know what happened to London.

I have never posted here before, I just lurk. But I thought I would let you know about my sister in law, who just got
approved through London. We are all very relieved, happy and excited for her.

[Pinkpig]

I have never posted here before, I just lurk. But I thought I would let you know about my sister in law, who just got
approved through London. We are all very relieved, happy and excited for her.

Thanks for sharing that info, Patsy.

We love to hear about approvals.

We welcome you and any and all other lurkers as well. :)

I hope you have found the site useful.

[Patsy]

Thank you, Pinkpig, it was very helpful not only when I wrote my letter of support for my brother and sister in law, but just to keep up on immigration issues and developments.

I might add that their hardships were mostly 3rd and 4th degree, so I became very worried when I read that the London Consulate had become much more stringent. However, they had a very good (albeit high priced) London immigration attorney.

[MistyB]

I really believe they look at all factors involved as it pertains to each individual case. I believe London is good at this. I know they look at immigration law but I think family and rehabilitation is a big part too.

[Patsy]

In my supporting letter I did emphasize how close and supportive our family is to each other and how difficult it would be to visit our brother in the UK given the expense and our family and job obligations, etc. Also described how my brother spent much time with his two teenage nephews who had mental health and emotional issues. Stated how long I knew SIL (alien) which was at least 8 years, and that we considered her a member of the family, how she spent much time with her nieces having them overnight, taking them shopping, etc. even before the wedding, and how they were all bridesmaids; my kids and nieces and nephews all wrote letters on how sad they were that their auntie could not come back and how they loved her and missed her, etc. Also that we were all born in US and lived within a few miles of each other.

So I like to think my letter helped.