Ukvac!!

[Eljohno]

Maybe Pete has this on somewhere but i emailed the ukvac office in the Philippines and asked them what the waiting time will be now for interviews for Settlement visas. They said if my wife does not need an interview then between 6-15 days. If an interview is needed then a max of 2 months. This would take it to the middle of April which would work out well as i will be over with my wife nearly the whole month of April.

On another note Rhea was just telling me that a girl from her church who just got married to a guy from America in December has already got her visa and leaves this week. I always thought it took longer for those married to Americans as my friend who is from Dallas applied on the 19th August has still heard nothing about an interview.

John

[ginapeterb]

Originally posted by Eljohno@Feb 15 2006, 11:32 AM
Maybe Pete has this on somewhere but i emailed the ukvac office in the Philippines and asked them what the waiting time will be now for interviews for Settlement visas. They said if my wife does not need an interview then between 6-15 days. If an interview is needed then a max of 2 months. This would take it to the middle of April which would work out well as i will be over with my wife nearly the whole month of April.

On another note Rhea was just telling me that a girl from her church who just got married to a guy from America in December has already got her visa and leaves this week. I always thought it took longer for those married to Americans as my friend who is from Dallas applied on the 19th August has still heard nothing about an interview.

John

Quoted post

John,

I did make a note of it, they say up to 2 months, if the Embassy decides your wife needs to be interviewed, they may have streamlined things, and tried to get rid of the backlog, I heard recently where some are getting visas, without interviews, there may be pressure on the Visa Section to clear some of them, if they decide to take an internal risk, and clear some without interviews, all the better for you, but dont hold your breath, sods law says, she will have to be interviewed, it also depends on how you met her, if its via internet, you can bet your bottom dollar she will be called in to be interviewed, if you met her working in Phils, possibly they may take a view that she doesnt need it, to be honest, no one really knows how they make these determinations.

Ive been researching the Embassy procedures for 2 years, and I am still no closer to knowing how they think, political pressure, maybe from the foreign office and other government departments, may have a bearing on what happens from time to time, you might get lucky, and get through the system quickly, some of us had to wait a long time, from 6 months to the worst which is 13 months in one case, at least you have someone to e mail you back, at one stage you could not get anything out of them.

I wouldnt try and speculate too much on the forum John, most of the guys here, know full well, its how long is a peice of string, my suggestion is not to speculate or get opinions on how long it should be, thats when the professional applicants network starts up, and the trolls get involved, the worse thing that happens, is when the professional applicants start opinionating to you, you find half of them are talking about the K1-K3 visa's for a totally different country, !!

Guess which one ??

Anyone who has been through this, will always tell you, getting through the system is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get, but Keith always sums it up perfectly, when he has posted in the past

"97 Per cent of visa's are approved and Issued"

So the odds are definately in your favour, the only thing to note, is that waiting can be irritating, waiting outside the British Embassy, is even more irritatating, ask Rob ! he will mark your card, he should know, ask me ?? I have done it also, and I bet countless others, I bet also you will end up outside, sharing a conversation or two with the Marines outside, no doubt in months to come, as you will be there in April, but when she comes bouncing down the steps to the LV Locsin Building with a big smile on her face, you can relax and go over to Ayala centre for a well earned drink.

PeterDavid, another contributor on this forum, once told me " Pete when you look back its a blip on your life"

At the time, I did not share his enthusiasm !! Now looking back, of course he was right, and now Gina and I laugh about it, especially our good freind Ben Croucher, but more often than not, we tend to LOL at night about Jacqueline Lewin, Entry CLearance Manager, " She should eat more happy meals"

John, trust me, its a blip, keep your head down, keep busy, go with the flow, stay on the forum,

hahaha, best of luck

[Eljohno]

Originally posted by ginapeterb@Feb 15 2006, 07:43 PM
John,

I did make a note of it, they say up to 2 months, if the Embassy decides your wife needs to be interviewed, they may have streamlined things, and tried to get rid of the backlog, I heard recently where some are getting visas, without interviews, there may be pressure on the Visa Section to clear some of them, if they decide to take an internal risk, and clear some without interviews, all the better for you, but dont hold your breath, sods law says, she will have to be interviewed, it also depends on how you met her, if its via internet, you can bet your bottom dollar she will be called in to be interviewed, if you met her working in Phils, possibly they may take a view that she doesnt need it, to be honest, no one really knows how they make these determinations.

Ive been researching the Embassy procedures for 2 years, and I am still no closer to knowing how they think, political pressure, maybe from the foreign office and other government departments, may have a bearing on what happens from time to time, you might get lucky, and get through the system quickly, some of us had to wait a long time, from 6 months to the worst which is 13 months in one case, at least you have someone to e mail you back, at one stage you could not get anything out of them.

I wouldnt try and speculate too much on the forum John, most of the guys here, know full well, its how long is a peice of string, my suggestion is not to speculate or get opinions on how long it should be, thats when the professional applicants network starts up, and the trolls get involved, the worse thing that happens, is when the professional applicants start opinionating to you, you find half of them are talking about the K1-K3 visa's for a totally different country, !!

Guess which one ??

Anyone who has been through this, will always tell you, getting through the system is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your gonna get, but Keith always sums it up perfectly, when he has posted in the past

"97 Per cent of visa's are approved and Issued"

So the odds are definately in your favour, the only thing to note, is that waiting can be irritating, waiting outside the British Embassy, is even more irritatating, ask Rob ! he will mark your card, he should know, ask me ?? I have done it also, and I bet countless others, I bet also you will end up outside, sharing a conversation or two with the Marines outside, no doubt in months to come, as you will be there in April, but when she comes bouncing down the steps to the LV Locsin Building with a big smile on her face, you can relax and go over to Ayala centre for a well earned drink.

PeterDavid, another contributor on this forum, once told me " Pete when you look back its a blip on your life"

At the time, I did not share his enthusiasm !! Now looking back, of course he was right, and now Gina and I laugh about it, especially our good freind Ben Croucher, but more often than not, we tend to LOL at night about Jacqueline Lewin, Entry CLearance Manager, " She should eat more happy meals"

John, trust me, its a blip, keep your head down, keep busy, go with the flow, stay on the forum,

hahaha, best of luck

Quoted post

Hi Pete,
thanks once again for taking the time to write a thorough and honest reply. I am just glad to have got this far, although i will always try and be optimistic i will try to be patient at the same time.


I look forward to being able to explain to others what it is like waiting for your wife coming out of the embassy with a big smile on her face.


I am always thankful for guys like you, keith, Rob etc for not only having gone through all this but taking the time to help others. This site started out as simply looking for visa advice but now it is good that it is turning into friendships.


I will have to stop now as it is getting sentimental...I will go now and put on a chick flick

John

PS i met my wife while in the Philippines...

Did the pizza ever arrive?

[Admin]

A Bloody BIG Blip at the time though eh?

It's strange the the embassy out on the edge of the world Manila, is run by back in the community ex-crack heads who are intent on making life as miserable as possible for everyone else. The problem is, they don't realise that although it's a pain, we have love in our lives, unlike those miserable buggers

Maybe they are just jealous because their wives back home are on a 'increase your weight to 30 stone 'diet, smoke 60 rollies a day, and shave their breasts

...and yet any other British Embassy in the world are run by helpful, polite people who know that Eton, is not something you do with a curry on a Friday night after 12 pints of lager.....

[Pauldo]

Originally posted by admin@Feb 15 2006, 09:00 PM
A Bloody BIG Blip at the time though eh?

It's strange the the embassy out on the edge of the world Manila, is run by back in the community ex-crack heads who are intent on making life as miserable as possible for everyone else. The problem is, they don't realise that although it's a pain, we have love in our lives, unlike those miserable buggers

Quoted post

I felt lucky, relieved, proud, glad, boastful, surprised, shocked, devastated, emotional even, I'm still not sure, but my wife got both her tourist AND settlement visas in one day each.

I'm the kind of guy who worries himself sick about that $hit for weeks beforehand, convinced that the power of the Philippines would rise up and somehow trash all our carefully plans, but things went surprisingly smoothly.

The peripherals, like getting the certificate of non impediment, collecting the actual stamped passports, accrueing certified copies of genuine documents, etc, were sullied by the usual Filipino don't-give-a-damn, bahala-na, I-don't-care-as-it's-not-mine stuff, but the BIG day: applying for the visa, was almost totally painless.

She got the visas four and six years ago consecutively now, but it shows that anything is possible, even in the Philippines.

As with the visa we just got for the mom in law last November; long, careful study and planning of the application is essential. You can destroy your case with just one missing document, one lost letter, one wrong word on a statement. Swamp them with paperwork and evidence, and they'll get bored of trying to dig holes in your life.

[andypaul]

HI John

Pete and keith have written some wise words already. My Wife and I met on the net, and had no Interview. So like Petes says its hard to say what is required of you both.

We were one of the first to use the system they brought in around september 2005. After much worry, hard work and frustration, my wife came running into the room with a jiffy bag and inside was all her paperwork. No letter saying you now have a Visa, just a a5 checklist which had the requirments for a us visa on the rear :unsure: only by checking her passport did my wife know for sure.

From what i have read your Wife and you have worked hard on paperwork and ensuring you do everything correctly. You also have a real loving and warm relationship,which to me is plain to see from both of your posts and photos on here.

Like Pete writes don't worry to much and i hope everything goes fine for you both.

[Eljohno]

Originally posted by andypaul@Feb 15 2006, 10:22 PM
HI John

Pete and keith have written some wise words already. My Wife and I met on the net, and had no Interview. So like Petes says its hard to say what is required of you both.

We were one of the first to use the system they brought in around september 2005. After much worry, hard work and frustration, my wife came running into the room with a jiffy bag and inside was all her paperwork. No letter saying you now have a Visa, just a a5 checklist which had the requirments for a us visa on the rear :unsure: only by checking her passport did my wife know for sure.

From what i have read your Wife and you have worked hard on paperwork and ensuring you do everything correctly. You also have a real loving and warm relationship,which to me is plain to see from both of your posts and photos on here.

Like Pete writes don't worry to much and i hope everything goes fine for you both.

Quoted post

Hi AndyPaul,
it is great that things went so well for you without to much hassle. How long for you did it take from sending the visa off until you knew that it had been accepted?

We have worked hard and have a big file of evidence and it will just be a matter of waiting but it is encouraging to hear stories like yours....

John

[andypaul]

Originally posted by Eljohno@Feb 16 2006, 12:13 AM
Hi AndyPaul,
it is great that things went so well for you without to much hassle. How long for you did it take from sending the visa off until you knew that it had been accepted?

We have worked hard and have a big file of evidence and it will just be a matter of waiting but it is encouraging to hear stories like yours....

John

Quoted post

Hi John

Well Me and the good lady have just tried to remeber exactly but it seems so far away already and it was only the end of september that My wife recieved the jiffy bag back. We think it was about a week that we waited maybe a litle longer. Sorry to sound so vague so 7 to 9 days from pick up by the Cava courier.

But please remeber my Wife lives in Laguna quite near Manila so it may tak a day or two longer to reach Cebu.

Make sure your Wife has everything ready Photocopies of all evidence that you want returned. Literally you should have to version orignals and copies the Embassy can keep.
You may find like us you have to much to fit in the jiffy bag supplied (things may have changed with the new system) so be prepared to edit the files if required.

Im not sure if the system has changed but make sure that you have someone in the address given to return the paperwork back to you.

As i wrote before the jiffy bag was returned the day after i had landed in phill and we were saying my Wife aunts house which was the other side of town to where my Wife was living day to day. Luckily My wifes Lolo po got the delvivery driver to drive over to where we were. The guy was just writing a note to say where we could pick up the parcel!!


Keep planing and be prepared for anything, even on the first night i was in phill we were
already preparing in case we had to go to manila for a Interview.

Just yell if we can help in any way

Andy

[andypaul]

Originally posted by Pauldo@Feb 16 2006, 06:04 PM
As with the visa we just got for the mom in law last November; long, careful study and planning of the application is essential. You can destroy your case with just one missing document, one lost letter, one wrong word on a statement. Swamp them with paperwork and evidence, and they'll get bored of trying to dig holes in your life.

Quoted post

Well said that man