Applying for Fiance Visa "In Person"

In a little less then two weeks, FH and I are traveling to the British Embassy in NY City to apply for (and hopefully receive) my fiance visa.   [smiley=sweatdrop.gif] We're getting our little "relationship" scrapbook all set with airlines ticket receipts, photos, letters, emails, etc. etc. to prove we're truly a couple and not scamming anyone!  We're going to make a fun couple of days of it and hopefully get off the plane, travel right to the Embassy, deal with the red tape and then enjoy ourselves in the Big Apple for a day and a half!  My understanding is, unless there is some sort of problem with the application, we should receive the visa the same day we apply.  They don't accept appointments, only walk-ins from 8 - 12:00 M-F.

Any tips or hints from anyone who has applied in person or anyone else in the know?

Thanks,

Sandy

hi sandy;
i applied in person for my fiance visa in NYC on feb 13th. it was not a painful experience at all. yes, providing there are no snags with your application, you should receive your visa that same day. (we received a ticket with a numbered sticker on it to bring back with us in an hour to get my passport.). - we did the same, prepared all our documents, proofs etc..and when we went to the window to speak to the immigration officer (a very lovely gentleman named Steve), he ended up handed me back much of the proof of mine and sean's relationship..
i would believe that if your case with your partner is "cut and dry", and you provide the $ proof they wish, you should not have any problem obtaining your visa.
best of luck to you and your fiance!  and your application process!

now happily settled in st.albans,
trish

I got my fiancee visa in Chicago, so the following post won't apply 100%, but still, the process is the same. I found my old post from January and am just copying and pasting. My situation: David in England in in the US, applying for fiancee visa alone a few weeks before I flew.

Here's the post (minus completely irrelevant bits):

My parents drove me up to Chicago yesterday morning, we left here at 4 am to arrive at the door of the Wrigley Building at 9. It was so cold I think we all nearly died. We got to the building at 8:45 and they let us wait in the lobby to go up the elevator at exactly 9:00. We went up (they let my parents come with), through security, and into the teeny room. I took a number (3). When I was called up to the window I was frantic with nerves, but had everything organized in a binder, and thought I had all my ducks in a row. I was nervous because I didn't have bank statements from either one of us, because the fine letter of the documents I read said I needed either bank statements proving he could support me, or a letter from his company proving the same thing. We had a letter from his company, but at the last minute I was paranoid it wasn't enough. So anyway, the lady at the window was really nice ... it was a bulltproof window like at a gas station, no private room like I had imagined ... and took:

My passport
David's passport
My new passport photos
My letter of intent
David's letter of intent
Application forms
Letter from David's employer
David's divorce papers
Letter from his parents saying we could stay there

They didn't care about my phone records, photos, or anything like that... but I'm really glad I brought them anyway! It helped that I had an engagement ring on as well, she asked if I had one and thought it was lovely.  

The one snag was that I didn't have the deed (or a copy of it) to David's parent's house - that they own. So I had to call DAvid right there from the office and have him get the deed from his mom and fax it over, the lasy said if they received the fax before 4 we'd be fine. So I called back at 2:00 to see if they had the fax, they did, and everything was peachy.  

The most annoying part of the day though was when we got back to the South tower at 3:50... ten minutes early to pick the bloody thing up... and they wouldn't let us wait in the building at all! They did in the morning, but nooooo... not now! Not in the freezing cold weather! So we had to go back outside and stand outside the window for 10 minutes until we could go back in and get on the elevator. A-nnoy-ing. But oh well.  

Anyway... Good luck, I'm sure it will be no problem as long as you've got the documents, and it never hurts to bring more than you need. Let us know how it goes!

Since Keith is coming with me to the British Embassy, will we still need letters of intent?

Also, do you think they'll accept Keith's paystubs and his contract nstead of a letter from the company?  It's not  problem getting the letter, it just takes forever to get something from HR in a company as big as BT.

-Sandy

We did David's letter of intent because we had to, since he wasn't there. I did one just in case and they didn't care about it... but it only took me 2 minutes to come up with on in Word so it can't hurt to just have one saying who you are and why you're there. Can't hurt - but you probably won't need it. Him being there in person is enough proof that he exists, so they won't need a letter from him.

As far as the pay stubs go, I don't see why that would be a problem either. David (the big silly man) didn't keep him paystubs at all until I cam along and so we had very little record of his income, so that's why we brought the letter from his company. If you can get one from BT do it, just as back-up, but all they really care about is proof you won't go on public funds, and pay-stubs should do just fine for that. I'd bring more than one or two though... for my FLR visa in London we brought the oldest stub we could find as well as the newer ones, that way they saw that he hadn't *just* bagged the job, you know?

Hope that helps...

Thanks for the info. Sara and Trish.  I'll be very happy to have my fiance visa and check off one more biggie on my to-do list!

Thanks for the info. Sara and Trish.  I'll be very happy to have my fiance visa and check off one more biggie on my to-do list!

best of luck to you sandy:)


-trish

Thank you Trish!