u.s. department of state national visa center. opened in 1994 700+ employees in public-private...

U.S. Department of StateNational Visa Center

• Opened in 1994• 700+ employees in public-private partnership

USCIS

• Accept and approve petition

NVC

• Case pre-processing• Schedule interview

Embass

y

• Visa interview & issuance

CBP/

USCIS

• Port of entry• Green card

The National Visa Center

Petition Types

I-130 – Family Based I-600/A – OrphansI-140 – Employment Based I-800 – Hague AdoptionsI-730 – Asylee/Refugee I-360 – Special ImmigrantI-129F – K1 Fiancé/K3 Life Act 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. Choose an agent2. Pay fees 3. Submit visa application4. Collect financial documents5. Collect post-specific civil

documents6. 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

• 144 embassies/consulates give NVC appointment dates

NVC

• NVC schedules interview

NVC

• NVC sends appointment letter to all addresses on case

NVC

• NVC sends case paperwork & electronic file to embassy

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?