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L1 B Blanked approved with Family @ Chennai
Guys, I had my L1 Blanket Interview scheduled at Chennai on 16 Sep 7:30am. It was approved for me & my family. As everyone has already mentioned, this site has helped me a lot in every sense. THIS SITE ROCKS & IT’S A Dictionary FOR US VISA. I browsed more than 100 pages back of this site, from past 45 days, everyday for 30mins reading the experiences of people during my free time. This kept me boosting everyday towards my goal & ultimately helped in mental preparation too. And trust me enjoy reading the experiences, whatever the case may be.
I’ll just briefly explain my entire journey from preparing the documents to Visa stamping. I won’t cover the general procedure as everyone here has already mentioned that very nicely. But I would include some key points which I experienced during my process & are very very important & should be kept in mind
Preparing the Project role document is very important. Make sure you yourself prepare it without taking anyone’s help. Let it get reviewed later by you peers/Attorneys/etc. & you can make changes to it based on their inputs. Though this document is nowhere required in the entire process or during interview. It’s just a supporting document if incase VO demands for it. But the reason I asked to prepare the document yourself is, while you create the document you understand why I’m going to US & how important it is & what special skills I possess etc.
Filling DS-160 – Very very important. As people have already mentioned that the DS 160 should contain specialized skill information only & not generic information which our resume has. You can give your best in filling this form. As VOs do look at it & not sure, but I feel there might be someone in the back office doing some sort of homework on the visa applications before granting them. I might be wrong, but this is what I strongly think.
I-129s – I won’t explain about the generic questions in this document. But only one important section i.e. ‘Job Title & detailed description of duties to be performed’ Here my company has a practice to write (Please see attached statement). And this line refers to the Project role document which you had prepared earlier. Conclusion is, let’s not write the history of our life & job role in the 1-129s, let’s keep it a short & sweet document (4 page document or 5). Even VOs find it very handy while stamping & looking for anything during the interview. I experienced this during my interview. VO asked me which project you are working on without looking at me & he was looking for the Project name in my I-129s. He found it so quickly that he right away typed that name in his computer & started stamping my VISA. I realized that, he was just looking for that Project name from document & he really didn’t intended to ask me. So the conclusion is, I feel even they find it very comfortable while handling our I-129s if its short & less pages, because they don’t have to put an effort in searching anything within the document. And if VO asks, you can have your project role document. You can write all those details in the PRD, as it’s just a supporting document which you keep. So sky is the limit. Just make sure to recall what is written where. And you could immediately show to VO if required.
Most important thing. While filling the DS 160 you place of birth in the passport & DS 160 should match. I faced a issue for my daughters Place of birth in DS 160 was Pune while in Passport it was different. Though it was same city but still OFC people won’t allow you to proceed. A Big Thanks to Chennai Autowala’s, trust me they are genius. My OFC was at 4:30 & OFC people told me about this issue at 4:45. I was completely panicked, as time was less & had a doubt in my mind that OFC might close till I go & make the change to the DS 160. But I just came out, the Autowala’s said ‘Sir, you don’t even need to tell us what the problem is, you just sit in the Auto we know what needs to be done’ And he simply cruised his auto & took me to a nearest cyber café, which was again perfectly managed by smart people. I went inside, one guy simply took my DS 160, opened it & made the change to place of birth gave a printout & all was done within 15-20 mins & I reached back the OFC and was allowed inside without standing in the line. Auto took Rs.150 to & fro, Internet café person took Rs. 100. But the help these people provide is simply PRICELESS. OFC is altogether your luck, people say it finishes within 15 mins, some say it might take longer time. For me it took more than 2 hours though I was with my family with a 3 year kid. If you have a kid with you, trust me don’t at all hesitate for skipping the queue & asking for a priority, as this is a rule imposed may be by the US Embassy or may be by OFC. I don’t know exactly, who created this rule, but it works. I was allowed to go inside though there was a big big queue of at least 150-200 people standing. OFC, you need to stand in multiple queues outside the OFC door. No fans, full humidity, sweating etc. If you’re with kids, dress them very lightly.
Make sure you remember the answer for the security question for retrieving you DS 160 if incase you need to make any change during OFC. Or you can write it down somewhere
Now the Interview:
My appointment 7:30am. I reached there at 7:23am, keeping in mind I had my kid with me and they allowed me to skip the line. So as said earlier, Kids do all the magic. I got a P token, which is given only for Family. Family is Self, Wife & Kid. But if you are alone, I would advise to reach atleast 30 mins before appointment. Coz, I saw queue outside the Embassy, It was crazy. The kids magic continues inside too, I was given priority in all counters & queues. No standing everywhere I was asked with all due respect to proceed & skip the queues. I was very happy for this. So kids ROCK again.
Dos & Donts @ Interview
- Must wear a company badge round the neck tag. It gives a very good impression
- When you are in queue standing for your number, be serious about it, don’t look here & there, VO is watching for all those people standing in queue which he will be interviewing
- Check VOs body language & greet him accordingly. He might be in a hustle. If it’s a morning & VO had a bad day/weekend earlier, then asking him ‘How are you/How are you this morning/ etc.’ might drive him crazy. Just imagine so many people greet him after every 5 mins, VO might be going crazy about it. So I strongly believe in simple greeting ‘Good Morning’ & you can add a line after that introducing yourself like ‘Good Morning Sir, I’m <Your Name>’ & incase of family, Good Morning Sir, I’m <Your Name> and this my wife & our daughter/son. I might be wrong, but I feel this works well. Guys, it’s a visa interview, you know how many applicants apply for US Visa, you know well by analyzing those long queues. So let’s pull our socks, try to be SMART, DIFFERENT and ENERGETIC, use your best gesture during the interview. Be out of the box. Don’t be over smart though lol……
- Transparent folders only. Maximum two, one for required documents & other for supporting documents like PRD, Marksheets, certificates. Guys you know what, the way you are organized matters a lot. VOs interview window is wide enough & he can see everything. So better keep yourself organized with only two transparent folders, which looks perfect. You can place them on the slab (which is infront of VOs glass window, youside) during your interview.
Finally sharing my interview questions & answers
VO dint ask me my company name at all, I believe my company badge did all that work.
Which company you are going to work for?
YYYY X (mentioned only company name, no location, no city)
Since how long you are working with the company?
XX Years XX Months (guys tats all, and please please please don’t say 3.6 or 4.8, coz decimals is not the right way, this is our Indian way of telling, but here VOs are Americans)
Whats your Indian Salary?
YYYY Lakhs
Whats your US salary?
ZZZ US Dollars
City where you are going?
ZZZ CITY & YYYY STATE (that’s all)
How long you plan to stay?
ZZZ months (trust me short sounds really sweet, I mentioned 12 months) but its should be in sync with your documents DS 160, blanket petition etc
Which project you are working on?
Guys trust me, when VO was asking me all above questions, I was wondering when will he ask about specialization or job responsibilities. I was just waiting for that question & was ready with my answers. But he dint ask me this & he asked me the name of the project. Finally I made up my mind for this question & made sure that I will now cover my specialization here with some job duties, as you know there’s no second chance & questions can be tricky too
I mentioned about my project name, he verified the same in my blanket petition, & I mentioned about my expertise, my role in US etc & VO stopped me by saying tats okay you don’t need to go so far & smiled. I stopped & smiled back.
How long you both have been married (Looking at both of us)
I mentioned xx years
He waited for sometime & he started writing something on my petition, took a stamp & before stamping he mentioned your visa is approved. I knew it that he is going to approve my visa.
We thanked him , & little daughter (3 yrs) even thanked him, & he was so amazed to hear that, that he gave a wide smile & giggled. Even we never expected my daughter will Thank him. Anyways you know kids, they are little angels & sweet magicians, they can turn your mood to any level.
So the conclusion is, give your best, Family people with Kid (95%+ is the conversion rate) Guys I’m very sorry, neither I’m encouraging Families nor I’m discouraging Bachelors, but this is what I feel. If you are with kids, Trust me spend some quality time with your kid during the entire process & it will keep you so relaxed, that you could never take up any tensions building around you. BTW, you know kids, right, they can make us forget everything in this world lol…. So be with them, chat, play etc… with them they enjoy, we enjoy & ultimately your face reflects the joy when VO see’s you.
Anyways, I thought I would write a brief experience but its prolonged now, so ending it here.
All the best people…..Chill the world is Yours….
I’ll just briefly explain my entire journey from preparing the documents to Visa stamping. I won’t cover the general procedure as everyone here has already mentioned that very nicely. But I would include some key points which I experienced during my process & are very very important & should be kept in mind
Preparing the Project role document is very important. Make sure you yourself prepare it without taking anyone’s help. Let it get reviewed later by you peers/Attorneys/etc. & you can make changes to it based on their inputs. Though this document is nowhere required in the entire process or during interview. It’s just a supporting document if incase VO demands for it. But the reason I asked to prepare the document yourself is, while you create the document you understand why I’m going to US & how important it is & what special skills I possess etc.
Filling DS-160 – Very very important. As people have already mentioned that the DS 160 should contain specialized skill information only & not generic information which our resume has. You can give your best in filling this form. As VOs do look at it & not sure, but I feel there might be someone in the back office doing some sort of homework on the visa applications before granting them. I might be wrong, but this is what I strongly think.
I-129s – I won’t explain about the generic questions in this document. But only one important section i.e. ‘Job Title & detailed description of duties to be performed’ Here my company has a practice to write (Please see attached statement). And this line refers to the Project role document which you had prepared earlier. Conclusion is, let’s not write the history of our life & job role in the 1-129s, let’s keep it a short & sweet document (4 page document or 5). Even VOs find it very handy while stamping & looking for anything during the interview. I experienced this during my interview. VO asked me which project you are working on without looking at me & he was looking for the Project name in my I-129s. He found it so quickly that he right away typed that name in his computer & started stamping my VISA. I realized that, he was just looking for that Project name from document & he really didn’t intended to ask me. So the conclusion is, I feel even they find it very comfortable while handling our I-129s if its short & less pages, because they don’t have to put an effort in searching anything within the document. And if VO asks, you can have your project role document. You can write all those details in the PRD, as it’s just a supporting document which you keep. So sky is the limit. Just make sure to recall what is written where. And you could immediately show to VO if required.
Most important thing. While filling the DS 160 you place of birth in the passport & DS 160 should match. I faced a issue for my daughters Place of birth in DS 160 was Pune while in Passport it was different. Though it was same city but still OFC people won’t allow you to proceed. A Big Thanks to Chennai Autowala’s, trust me they are genius. My OFC was at 4:30 & OFC people told me about this issue at 4:45. I was completely panicked, as time was less & had a doubt in my mind that OFC might close till I go & make the change to the DS 160. But I just came out, the Autowala’s said ‘Sir, you don’t even need to tell us what the problem is, you just sit in the Auto we know what needs to be done’ And he simply cruised his auto & took me to a nearest cyber café, which was again perfectly managed by smart people. I went inside, one guy simply took my DS 160, opened it & made the change to place of birth gave a printout & all was done within 15-20 mins & I reached back the OFC and was allowed inside without standing in the line. Auto took Rs.150 to & fro, Internet café person took Rs. 100. But the help these people provide is simply PRICELESS. OFC is altogether your luck, people say it finishes within 15 mins, some say it might take longer time. For me it took more than 2 hours though I was with my family with a 3 year kid. If you have a kid with you, trust me don’t at all hesitate for skipping the queue & asking for a priority, as this is a rule imposed may be by the US Embassy or may be by OFC. I don’t know exactly, who created this rule, but it works. I was allowed to go inside though there was a big big queue of at least 150-200 people standing. OFC, you need to stand in multiple queues outside the OFC door. No fans, full humidity, sweating etc. If you’re with kids, dress them very lightly.
Make sure you remember the answer for the security question for retrieving you DS 160 if incase you need to make any change during OFC. Or you can write it down somewhere
Now the Interview:
My appointment 7:30am. I reached there at 7:23am, keeping in mind I had my kid with me and they allowed me to skip the line. So as said earlier, Kids do all the magic. I got a P token, which is given only for Family. Family is Self, Wife & Kid. But if you are alone, I would advise to reach atleast 30 mins before appointment. Coz, I saw queue outside the Embassy, It was crazy. The kids magic continues inside too, I was given priority in all counters & queues. No standing everywhere I was asked with all due respect to proceed & skip the queues. I was very happy for this. So kids ROCK again.
Dos & Donts @ Interview
- Must wear a company badge round the neck tag. It gives a very good impression
- When you are in queue standing for your number, be serious about it, don’t look here & there, VO is watching for all those people standing in queue which he will be interviewing
- Check VOs body language & greet him accordingly. He might be in a hustle. If it’s a morning & VO had a bad day/weekend earlier, then asking him ‘How are you/How are you this morning/ etc.’ might drive him crazy. Just imagine so many people greet him after every 5 mins, VO might be going crazy about it. So I strongly believe in simple greeting ‘Good Morning’ & you can add a line after that introducing yourself like ‘Good Morning Sir, I’m <Your Name>’ & incase of family, Good Morning Sir, I’m <Your Name> and this my wife & our daughter/son. I might be wrong, but I feel this works well. Guys, it’s a visa interview, you know how many applicants apply for US Visa, you know well by analyzing those long queues. So let’s pull our socks, try to be SMART, DIFFERENT and ENERGETIC, use your best gesture during the interview. Be out of the box. Don’t be over smart though lol……
- Transparent folders only. Maximum two, one for required documents & other for supporting documents like PRD, Marksheets, certificates. Guys you know what, the way you are organized matters a lot. VOs interview window is wide enough & he can see everything. So better keep yourself organized with only two transparent folders, which looks perfect. You can place them on the slab (which is infront of VOs glass window, youside) during your interview.
Finally sharing my interview questions & answers
VO dint ask me my company name at all, I believe my company badge did all that work.
Which company you are going to work for?
YYYY X (mentioned only company name, no location, no city)
Since how long you are working with the company?
XX Years XX Months (guys tats all, and please please please don’t say 3.6 or 4.8, coz decimals is not the right way, this is our Indian way of telling, but here VOs are Americans)
Whats your Indian Salary?
YYYY Lakhs
Whats your US salary?
ZZZ US Dollars
City where you are going?
ZZZ CITY & YYYY STATE (that’s all)
How long you plan to stay?
ZZZ months (trust me short sounds really sweet, I mentioned 12 months) but its should be in sync with your documents DS 160, blanket petition etc
Which project you are working on?
Guys trust me, when VO was asking me all above questions, I was wondering when will he ask about specialization or job responsibilities. I was just waiting for that question & was ready with my answers. But he dint ask me this & he asked me the name of the project. Finally I made up my mind for this question & made sure that I will now cover my specialization here with some job duties, as you know there’s no second chance & questions can be tricky too
I mentioned about my project name, he verified the same in my blanket petition, & I mentioned about my expertise, my role in US etc & VO stopped me by saying tats okay you don’t need to go so far & smiled. I stopped & smiled back.
How long you both have been married (Looking at both of us)
I mentioned xx years
He waited for sometime & he started writing something on my petition, took a stamp & before stamping he mentioned your visa is approved. I knew it that he is going to approve my visa.
We thanked him , & little daughter (3 yrs) even thanked him, & he was so amazed to hear that, that he gave a wide smile & giggled. Even we never expected my daughter will Thank him. Anyways you know kids, they are little angels & sweet magicians, they can turn your mood to any level.
So the conclusion is, give your best, Family people with Kid (95%+ is the conversion rate) Guys I’m very sorry, neither I’m encouraging Families nor I’m discouraging Bachelors, but this is what I feel. If you are with kids, Trust me spend some quality time with your kid during the entire process & it will keep you so relaxed, that you could never take up any tensions building around you. BTW, you know kids, right, they can make us forget everything in this world lol…. So be with them, chat, play etc… with them they enjoy, we enjoy & ultimately your face reflects the joy when VO see’s you.
Anyways, I thought I would write a brief experience but its prolonged now, so ending it here.
All the best people…..Chill the world is Yours….
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