L1, L2 Visa

Hi all,
    Just wanted to share my experience in the consulate.

Location: Chennai.
Slot: 10am.

As everyone else have mentioned, do not go to that place earlier than 15 mins. It is very humid. And if you arrive exactly before 15 mins, you can approach the police and they will get you joined to the queue for your slot.

First, once you step in, they make you wait and a staff member helps with the papers. He/she helps you order the "8 pages of I129S and first page of I797" and makes 3 bundles from it, along with the passport and the DD if you are paying the Fraud Prevention fee with DD. Please fill your name and passport number on the back of your DD.

Once you are done with this, they guide you to the payment counter where you can either pay by cash or DD or Credit card. Please check the conversion rate online before you purchase the DD. Once the payment is done, they provide two copies of the receipt and staple one with your papers.

Now you will be guided to the bio-metrics section to verify your prints.

After this comes the interview. I would suggest you to refrain from hearing the other interviews that are going on so that you attend yours with a calm mind. Below are the questions that were asked to me in the interview.

VO: Which Visa are you applying for?
Me: I am applying for L1-B blanket.

VO: Which company do you work for?
Me: I work in XYZ corporation.

VO: Where will you work in the US?
Me: I will be working in XYZ, State.
VO: Oh! so you would be working in the head quarters.
Me: Yes, with a smile.

VO: How long have you been working with this company?
Me: I have been working for 6+ years.
VO: Ahh, thats a good number.

VO: Whats your job title?
Me: I am Senior software engineer.

VO: What would be your salary there?
Me: I would getting $ 1XX K per year.

VO: So, why are you special?
Me: I have gained expertise in certain proprietary SDKs and tools that are essential for my team.. (she didn't let me continue)

VO: What does your day to day work look like?
Me: I design and develops services and features for... (she didn't let me continue)

VO: How can I understand your product? What is the product you work on?
Me: I work on the product 'ABC' which helps our customers do ...
VO: (She is familiar with the product) Oh! You work on 'ABC'.

(Silence for few seconds)

VO: Your visa is approved. Please hand over one of these bundles to your HR and have one during your travel.
(She returned two of the bundles I gave with the approval stamp and date. She also kept the passport which she mentioned would be delivered within 5 working days)

I could clearly see that the VO was asking the question based on what she is seeing on her computer and verifying if what I am saying matches. So, we just have to be thorough with the information in the DS-160 and the petition.

Now that my interview is done, it is easy for me to say, "Just be confident and answer with a smile". But I know I was extremely nervous and sweating when I went in. The first two questions you answer, you will understand how lengthy or short of an answer the VO expects of you. So, just focus on the VO and maintain eye contact. With the first few answers, you will get your rhythm.

All the best to everyone trying!