U S Department of State National Visa Center

U. S. Department of State National Visa Center

The National Visa Center • Opened in 1994 • 700+ employees in public-private partnership USCIS NVC Embassy CBP/USCIS • Accept and approve petition • Case pre-processing • Schedule interview • Visa interview & issuance • Port of entry • Green card

Petition Types I-130 – Family Based I-140 – Employment Based I-730 – Asylee/Refugee I-129 F – K 1 Fiancé/K 3 Life Act I-600/A – Orphans I-800 – Hague Adoptions I-360 – Special Immigrant I-526 – Investment

Petition Intake • Data entry upon receipt • Determine if “current” and can process • Procedure depends upon type – Expedited petitions • K visas • Orphans • Refugees – Welcome Letter with instructions

Applicant Instructions • http: //NVC. state. gov • 6 Steps in IV processing 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Choose an agent Pay fees Submit visa application Collect financial documents Collect post-specific civil documents 6. Submit documents to NVC • Interview preparation • FAQs

I-864 Fee & Application Fee • Two fees paid online – I-864 Affidavit of Support fee (one per case) – DS-260 Immigrant Visa Application (one for each applicant) • NVC issues fee bills • Mail-in payment being phased out

Document Collection & Review • NVC completes administrative review • Requests missing/incomplete information – I-864 Affidavit of Support and attached proof – DS-260 Immigrant Visa Application form – Civil documents and Police Certificates

Visa interviews Embassy NVC NVC Embassy • 144 embassies/consulates give NVC appointment dates • NVC schedules interview • NVC sends appointment letter to all addresses on case • NVC sends case paperwork & electronic file to embassy • Embassy interviews applicants

Processing Times • NVC receives 12, 000 to 14, 000 petitions weekly • Data entry/filing into NVC’s system in <10 days • Review civil and financial documents in <30 days • Recent procedural changes mean faster movement of cases to interview stage

Always Improving • Backlog reduction: procedural changes, equipment, hiring • No Original Civil Documents - Copies Only • I-864 Assessment Letter • Telephone Unit: 8000 calls/day • Online public inquiry form • All-electronic (MIV) processing is coming – Piloting the Modernized IV program for applicants – Faster, easier & greener • Applicants e-mail documents • Electronic forms DS-260 & DS-261 • Adoption cases sent to embassy electronically

Fiscal Year 2014 Volume • Received 709, 000+ petitions from USCIS • Updated 99, 000 newly current Family-Based petitions • 450, 000 cases processed & sent to embassies • 2. 6 million cases at NVC • Received 1. 4 million pieces of incoming mail • Sent 3 million pieces of outgoing mail • Responded to 1, 700, 000 written inquiries • Responded to 1, 600, 000 public calls • Responded to 98, 000 Congressional inquiries

Attorney Inquiries • Contact us – Email NVCAttorney@state. gov – Call 603 -334 -0700 – Must be listed on case as Agent of Record • Research cases, communicate with overseas embassies and USCIS • Expedite or transfer requests: NVC is the “middle man”

Thank You • Questions?