Hello Everyone!
It's been a while since I've checked in with the forum. With all the last minute stresses of the visa, the drama of UPS losing our package in the mail (AHHHHH!!!!!), packing all my belongings into suitcases, saying goodbye to family and friends, I realized I just needed to step away from the internet for a little while. But I am happy to report that our visa was granted and I was successfully able to move to Belfast and am finally reunited with my husband <3
Just thought I would update this thread with a bit of a timeline and share some of our experiences along the way in hopes that it might help others who are applying want to know more, or who are at a similar stage in the visa process:
NOV 7, 2018:- Submitted online visa application form.
NOV 13, 2018:- Attended my biometric appointment and shipped all supporting documents that same day from Duluth (the city where my biometrics were taken).
NOV 18, 2018:- Received an email from the UK Visa Decision Making Centre in Sheffield that read:
"Your online application has been received at the UK Decision Making Centre. Your application is currently being prepared for consideration by an Entry Clearance Officer."
DEC 13, 2018: - Received an email from the UK Visa Decision Making Centre in Sheffield that read:
"The UK Decision Making Centre is currently assessing the application submitted by the above named. Due to a technical error whilst scanning your documents we are unable to conclude the application at this time as we require additional information. We apologise for any inconvenience."
- I absolutely panicked at this point thinking that because of this technical error (that was the fault of their own scanning hub in New York) that my entire visa would be denied. But after reading further into the email I noticed that it merely asked me and my husband to scan the documents ourselves and email them to Sheffield in the next 10 days. THANK GOODNESS I MADE THREE COPIES OF EVERYTHING!!!! (thank you everyone for advising us to do this!!!).
- Later this same day I scanned all of our documents that they requested and sent them by email to the email address they gave us. It turns out the scanning hub didn't even scan 90% of my husbands documentation (proof of employment, salary, housing, passport page, etc.)!
- That same same day I received an email from the UK Visa Decision Making Centre in Sheffield saying that they had received my documents that they had requested.
DEC 18, 2018:- Received an email from the UK Visa Decision Making Centre in Sheffield that read:
"A decision has been made on your UK Visa application."
It also said that my passport as well as my documents would be returned to me by mail. It did not reveal whether or not the visa had been granted in the email.
Now here's where it gets even worse.....
DEC 20, 2018:- Checked the UPS tracking number for my prepaid return label online. The UPS website said that our package had been Dec 20th to Duluth, Minnesota (a city two hours away from us!!!!!).
- At this point I really started to panic. All my important documents, my passport, and potentially our visa was sitting in some random person's house! And of course now that it was Christmas and UPS was absolutely slammed with deliveries, I knew that it was going to be especially difficult to track this down. So I called the main UPS costumer service telephone line. No help. At all. They said they would open an investigation but that it would take at least 2 weeks to figure it out! Argh! So I called the UPS store that I had shipped it from in Duluth and got an absolute ANGEL on the phone who told me she would do everything she could to track the package down, and that she would personally visit the house that my package had beed delivered to, and that she would give me a refund and everything.
To make a VERY long story short......
DEC 22, 2018:
- Our package was returned to the UPS store Duluth and having already traveled to the city and stayed overnight the night before we were able to go straight to the UPS store, pick up the long awaited package, and find a shiny little visa stamped on one of the pages! I'VE NEVER BEEN SO HAPPY TO SEE A PIECE OF PAPER IN MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!
I then began the process of booking flights and packing everything into suitcases and on January 17th I was able to join my husband in the UK. I am so unbelievably thankful! Especially to everyone in this forum who helped my husband and I accomplish what felt like a monumental task at the start. I know there is still more paperwork ahead but we are just so overjoyed that this first difficult phase is over.
Thank you all again! We will definitely be sticking around to keep asking questions and hopefully help others where we can <3
All the best!
