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Hi Guys -
I am a great fan of this forum and i decided to post my H1B stamping experience at Chennai. My friends also recently appeared for H1B Stamping at chennai and succesfully cleared the visa process.
I have been on H1B status since Oct 2006 ( never had a H1 stamp , was on F1 status before ). My friend 1 was on L1 status until July 2008 and now in India has a approved H1B petition with a start date of Oct 1,2008.( yes a real one
with a real project )
My friend 2 for a MNC in India , got his H1 sponsored with a reputed consulting firm ( yes a real one with a real project )
And we are all SINGLE Filers.
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Here is what we went through
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Case - 1 : Myself
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VO = Verification Officer
Me
My interview was scheduled for 1115 hrs at US Consulate in chennai and after the initial screening , i went in to the counter where there like 20 people in the queue waiting for all kinds of US visa ( H1 , H4 , F1 , B1 , L1etc )
Only 2 coutners where open and one counter had a lady , and the other counter had a guy. From my statistics , the lady was rejecting cases 70% of the time and she was requesting more documents to be submitted via drop box. The other guy was very cool and he approved cases 90% of the time.
Here is my experience.
VO : Hello Sir , How are you ?
Me : Hello Mam , I am doing good. Thank you. How about yourself ?
VO : Good , Thanks. Please hand me over your I797 , LcA and other paper work
Me : Here it is
VO : So i see you went to " School name" . What did yo study there ?
Me : I did my Masters in computer Engineering at " School name"
VO : That is a very impressive curriculum , I have heard a lot about " School name" !
ME : Smiles !
VO : How long have you worked with the petitioner ?
ME : I have been working with petitioner since March 2006 as a Full Time Software Test Engineer
VO : Can you please provide me a copy of your W2 for 2007 ?
ME : Yes mam , sure. Here it is.
VO : Thank you sir. Did you work on your OPT - Optional Practial Training Period after your Graduation from RIT.
ME : Yes Mam , i worked with a company called "b" in Upstate NY during my OPT
VO : Sir , your visa is approved. Have a safe travel back.
ME : Thanks Mam. Can i collect the passport later today.
VO : I am not sure , please call this number ( gives me a number ) and enquire before stopping by to collect the passport. If not , it will be
usually be couriered to your home address in 2-4 business days.
ME : Thank you
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Case - 2 : Friend 1
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VO - Hello Mam , how are you ?
ME - Hello Madam , I am doin good. Thanks for asking.How about you ?
VO - Doing good , thanks. Please hand over your I797 , LCA , and other documents.
ME - Here it is
Vo - So how do you know this Petitioner ?
ME - I was refered to this company , through a good friend of mine who is currently working with them
VO - Very well. Do you know if you will be working on a in house project or client project ?
ME - Yes , i know i will be working on a client side project
VO - Ok , do you have any client letter or project description ?
ME - Client side , showed client verification letter
<VO starts looking at the computer for like 2 mins >
VO - What was the interview process at this firm ?
ME - I had a initial phone interview followed with 2 rounds of technical panel followed by one more round of managerial interview
<VO starts looking at the computer again for like 2 mins >
VO - Mam , your visa is approved. It shall be couriried to you in 2-3 business days
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Case - 3 : Friend 2
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VO - Hello Sir, how are you ?
ME - Hello Madam , I am doin good. Thanks for asking.How about you ?
VO - Doing good , thanks. Please hand over your I797 , LCA , and other documents.
ME - Here it is
Vo - So how do you know this Petitioner ?
ME - I was refered to this company , through a good friend of mine who worked with me on a project during my stay in UK
VO - Very well. Do you know if you will be working on a in house project or client project ?
ME - Yes , i know i will be working on a client side project
VO - Ok , do you have any client letter or project description ?
ME - Client side , showed client verification letter
<VO starts looking at the computer for like 2 mins >
VO - How do you know this a real company ?
ME - I talked about the company's previous projects , clients and also added that i have been provided company photos , wage report and additional doc's to show that they dont keep their employees on bench
<VO starts looking at the computer again for like 2 mins >
VO - Sir, Can you explain about the project and your role ?
ME - I will be a BA ( blah , blah ) ....
VO - Very good , your visa is approved sir. Have a safe travel
ME - Thank you , do you know if i can collect my passport over the counter ?
VO - Hmm.. It depends , please call this number at around 3 pm today and get a update on your passport.
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PIMS Delay
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But from what we heard , there have been some DELAYS in handing over the passport ( although my visa is approved ) because of PIMS - Petition
Information Management System verification. I have heard that the US
Consulate is taking up to 10-12 business days in handing over the passport with the visa stamp and this delay is due to PIMS verification.
Also please note that the PIMS delay is caused mostly for canditates who were on H1B status before November 2007 because Nov 2007 is when this PIMS system came in to effect.canditates who applied in 2008 , for a non immigrant work visa have their PIMS automatically verified and their passport is given back to the canditate almost the same business day or the following business day.
I can say this because , my friend 1 who also appeared for H1B stamping ( and successfully cleared the interview ) got her passport back the next day. She applied for H1B in March 2008.
So if you have anybody who has a H1B visa stamping in India , and has been on this status before on or Nov 2007 please ask them to make sure they can dedicate enough time for their stamping process.
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** *
Conclusion
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Be very confident in your answers
Dont stumble , relax
If VO starts staring at the computer , relax as this is normal
Be clear and precise to the point
Understand your role and responsiblities on the project
Most of all , never lose eye to eye contact with the VO
Take care guys !
I am a great fan of this forum and i decided to post my H1B stamping experience at Chennai. My friends also recently appeared for H1B Stamping at chennai and succesfully cleared the visa process.
I have been on H1B status since Oct 2006 ( never had a H1 stamp , was on F1 status before ). My friend 1 was on L1 status until July 2008 and now in India has a approved H1B petition with a start date of Oct 1,2008.( yes a real one
with a real project ) My friend 2 for a MNC in India , got his H1 sponsored with a reputed consulting firm ( yes a real one
with a real project ) And we are all SINGLE Filers.
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
Here is what we went through
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
Case - 1 : Myself
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
VO = Verification Officer
Me
My interview was scheduled for 1115 hrs at US Consulate in chennai and after the initial screening , i went in to the counter where there like 20 people in the queue waiting for all kinds of US visa ( H1 , H4 , F1 , B1 , L1etc )
Only 2 coutners where open and one counter had a lady , and the other counter had a guy. From my statistics , the lady was rejecting cases 70% of the time and she was requesting more documents to be submitted via drop box. The other guy was very cool and he approved cases 90% of the time.
Here is my experience.
VO : Hello Sir , How are you ?
Me : Hello Mam , I am doing good. Thank you. How about yourself ?
VO : Good , Thanks. Please hand me over your I797 , LcA and other paper work
Me : Here it is
VO : So i see you went to " School name" . What did yo study there ?
Me : I did my Masters in computer Engineering at " School name"
VO : That is a very impressive curriculum , I have heard a lot about " School name" !
ME : Smiles !
VO : How long have you worked with the petitioner ?
ME : I have been working with petitioner since March 2006 as a Full Time Software Test Engineer
VO : Can you please provide me a copy of your W2 for 2007 ?
ME : Yes mam , sure. Here it is.
VO : Thank you sir. Did you work on your OPT - Optional Practial Training Period after your Graduation from RIT.
ME : Yes Mam , i worked with a company called "b" in Upstate NY during my OPT
VO : Sir , your visa is approved. Have a safe travel back.
ME : Thanks Mam. Can i collect the passport later today.
VO : I am not sure , please call this number ( gives me a number ) and enquire before stopping by to collect the passport. If not , it will be
usually be couriered to your home address in 2-4 business days.
ME : Thank you
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
Case - 2 : Friend 1
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
VO - Hello Mam , how are you ?
ME - Hello Madam , I am doin good. Thanks for asking.How about you ?
VO - Doing good , thanks. Please hand over your I797 , LCA , and other documents.
ME - Here it is
Vo - So how do you know this Petitioner ?
ME - I was refered to this company , through a good friend of mine who is currently working with them
VO - Very well. Do you know if you will be working on a in house project or client project ?
ME - Yes , i know i will be working on a client side project
VO - Ok , do you have any client letter or project description ?
ME - Client side , showed client verification letter
<VO starts looking at the computer for like 2 mins >
VO - What was the interview process at this firm ?
ME - I had a initial phone interview followed with 2 rounds of technical panel followed by one more round of managerial interview
<VO starts looking at the computer again for like 2 mins >
VO - Mam , your visa is approved. It shall be couriried to you in 2-3 business days
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
Case - 3 : Friend 2
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** **
VO - Hello Sir, how are you ?
ME - Hello Madam , I am doin good. Thanks for asking.How about you ?
VO - Doing good , thanks. Please hand over your I797 , LCA , and other documents.
ME - Here it is
Vo - So how do you know this Petitioner ?
ME - I was refered to this company , through a good friend of mine who worked with me on a project during my stay in UK
VO - Very well. Do you know if you will be working on a in house project or client project ?
ME - Yes , i know i will be working on a client side project
VO - Ok , do you have any client letter or project description ?
ME - Client side , showed client verification letter
<VO starts looking at the computer for like 2 mins >
VO - How do you know this a real company ?
ME - I talked about the company's previous projects , clients and also added that i have been provided company photos , wage report and additional doc's to show that they dont keep their employees on bench
<VO starts looking at the computer again for like 2 mins >
VO - Sir, Can you explain about the project and your role ?
ME - I will be a BA ( blah , blah ) ....
VO - Very good , your visa is approved sir. Have a safe travel
ME - Thank you , do you know if i can collect my passport over the counter ?
VO - Hmm.. It depends , please call this number at around 3 pm today and get a update on your passport.
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** *
PIMS Delay
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** *
But from what we heard , there have been some DELAYS in handing over the passport ( although my visa is approved ) because of PIMS - Petition
Information Management System verification. I have heard that the US
Consulate is taking up to 10-12 business days in handing over the passport with the visa stamp and this delay is due to PIMS verification.
Also please note that the PIMS delay is caused mostly for canditates who were on H1B status before November 2007 because Nov 2007 is when this PIMS system came in to effect.canditates who applied in 2008 , for a non immigrant work visa have their PIMS automatically verified and their passport is given back to the canditate almost the same business day or the following business day.
I can say this because , my friend 1 who also appeared for H1B stamping ( and successfully cleared the interview ) got her passport back the next day. She applied for H1B in March 2008.
So if you have anybody who has a H1B visa stamping in India , and has been on this status before on or Nov 2007 please ask them to make sure they can dedicate enough time for their stamping process.
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** *
Conclusion
**** **** **** **** **** **** **** **** *
Be very confident in your answers
Dont stumble , relax
If VO starts staring at the computer , relax as this is normal
Be clear and precise to the point
Understand your role and responsiblities on the project
Most of all , never lose eye to eye contact with the VO
Take care guys !
