Help - Photographs for Interview & DS230 Part II

Hello Everybody,

We're now waiting for our interview date.  We've mailed the document checklist so hopefully it will be soon.  (Unfortunately, we weren't fast off the mark getting our police certificate and it slowed us down a bit...)

In the meantime, Tony and I were hoping that some of you who have been through this process might be able to clarify a couple of things.  First, we assume that they are particular about the 3/4 frontal photographs.  We have the name of a place in London that apparently do lots of these photos.   It sounds pretty straightforward, but is there anything we should know about them?

Also, when does the DS 230 Part II come into play?  We sent in Part I as instructed, but we can't see to find anything about when Part II is needed.

There are so many instructions and papers to sift through, I'm worried that I might be missing something.

Any information and insight would be most appreciated.

Thanks!

Kellie

you dont need to have a photographer do the photos. a regular passport photo booth will do equally well and its cheaper too! Just follow the pictures and as best you can. They need the 3/4s view but they arent hard and fast about it being PERFECT. Its only identification. I think 3 goes in their reccords and one goes on the green card. If they dont like them for any reason - no fear. There's a booth in the lobby of the Embassy just incase.

DS-230 - have that filled out but dont sign. As Jemima said, you need that for the interview. Your interviewer will be the whitness. There arent any notary costs involved.

Take care!!

We went to www.passportphotos.co.uk for our photos for the initial app, its all they do and you just tell them what you're doing at the embassy and they give you the right photos, within 5 minutes or so, and cheaply. They are right around the corner from the embassy as well, across the street from Selfridges.

I agree that its cheaper and easier to do it in a standard passport photo booth. I did this and im in the US now so theres no need for those overpaid passport photographers

The reason I didn't use a photo booth is just because I wanted to be extra special super duper careful that I got it exactly right, with the whole turn-your-head-3/4-and-show-us-part-of-your-ear thing. Plus, it only cost about £5.

Thanks everybody for all of your information.

I've used that pharmacy by the Embassy to get the pics for my kids when registering their births and passports.  The specs on the ones for the interview, though, were a bit different and being the worrier that I am, I don't want to get things wrong.

Since we will be going down to the Embassy to get the I-864 Affidavit of Support notarized, we'll probably get the pictures sorted out on the same day. 

All of these little details seem like such a big deal now, but when it's all over, I'm sure that we'll wonder what the fuss was all about!

Thanks so much again, everybody!  I hope we get notice of an interview date soon.

Kellie

Just a note - you dont need to have your affidavit notarized before the interview date unless the american sponsor wont be present at the interview. If the american sponsor WILL be present, they can sign the affidavit in front of the interviewing officer and they'll sign in the whitness box. Its no hassle and its free. Just thought Id mention that incase London is out of your way like it was for us. Best wishes in either case.

Hi Sarah,

Thanks for the information on getting the affidavit notarized by the interviewing officer.  London is out of our way; we live in South Warwickshire. 

Were you nervous about the interview?  We know that they will check all of the documents, etc. but apart from that, don't really know what to expect or how long it takes.  Hopefully, we'll get that interview date confirmed soon.

Thanks again.  You're info is truly helpful.

Kellie

Martin and I were a bundle of nerves. I could barely touch my KFC at lunch and thats a real unusual occurance! But its really straight forward.  If you do a search in the Repat forum for Interview experience you'll find some recent stories. The most recent was King Beast's, before that it was Missy's. You'll be able to hear how it goes for Mel and Laurie soon too.

About the affidavit - just pop an email to the embassy to make sure you can still sign them in front of the interviewing officer on the day. Like I said it was fine when I went in October but I wouldnt want to lead you astray unintentionally. I doubt its changed but it would be good just to make sure. Let us know what they say so we can keep up to date.

Were you nervous about the interview?

Well as Sarah said, yes we were nervous. Both of us. In retrospect you feel very silly for having worried so much over something so obviously "in the bag", but it's definitely a bit different when that hurdle is in front of you, not behind.

The hardest part is the waiting. You do a lot of that on the day. Waiting at the Embassy, then waiting at the docs for the ritual humiliation that is the "cough" test (amongst other things), then waiting again over lunch, then back to the Embassy for - you guessed it - more waiting!

It's not a nice day. But it's only a day. It'll be over soon enough, and then the real work starts - actually getting there!!

You'll be fine. Just make sure you're as organized as we were - Sarah being the organized one and me just looking bemused and British most of the time - and everything will go swimmingly. Good luck!

Thanks for the reassurance.  It's strange because logically, I feel that we are probably as "straight forward" of a case as you can get.  But emotionally, I can't help but run the whole thing over and over and over about all of the "what if" scenarios.

Tony is far more pragmatic than me.  I think I'm driving him nuts, poor guy.

I have a feeling that this will be a telling week, both with the interview date and the house sale.  Once we have real dates to work with, I think I'll finally be able to focus my energies into something real instead of hypothetical timescales.

Thaks to you both for your sensible encouragement and advice.  I hope that you get your house sold soon so that you get on with your plans.  You've made so far already!  I don't know what you and Sarah do for work, but it has occurred to me that you guys could probably start a very lucrative business consulting people who are repatriating to the US ! 

Kellie

That's it! We'll make a million!!

Hi everyone!

Posted this in "our interview date has been scheduled" but then saw this thread...

I am back in London, I have been going through the packet 4 from the embassy and just wanted to say, (you may already know this), but there are new requirements for the photos you need to take to the interview.

As well as the two ¾ frontal view pictures you now also need:

"Two remaining photographs must be:

_ a full face photo and taken within the last six months;

_ 2 inches (50mm) square with the head centred in the frame;

_ the head (measured from the top of the hair to the bottom of the chin) should measure between 1 & 1 3/8 inches (25mm to 35mm) with the eye level and between 1 & 1/8 inches to 1 & 3/8 inches (25mm and 35 mm) from the bottom of the photograph;

_ in color or black and white against a white or off white background (photographs taken in front of a busy, patterned or dark backgrounds are not acceptable)

_ unmounted, full face, with the face covering about 50% of the area of the photograph. In general, the head of the applicant, including both face and hair, should be shown from the crown of the head to the tip of the chin on top and bottom, and from hair-line side-to-side. It is preferable that the ears be exposed."

This is new as of May 17 2004.

We had the ¾ frontal view pictures, but didn't know about the others until we got the pack from the embassy, so I only have a couple of days to get these!   

Just wanted to give anyone else who didn't know a heads up on this.   

Laurie