Good morning House,

Please how do i re-schedule an appointment for a minor who was not allowed in for the VISA interview due to bar code issues.

Please help with info.

Dear AbujaNIV, LagosNIV,

I have a very long standing issue with my application. I applied for a US visa(filled the DS160) for myself and my Son in March after we were denied in November last year.
When i tried to schedule an appointment, i couldn't as my profile was showing "Schedule follow-up appointment".I already attended the interview for which this "follow-up appointment" in November.Please note that for the follow-up appointment we used my wife's profile to schedule this appointment.

My application has been stuck since then as i can't move forward.I have sent several mails to "ustraveldocs" to no avail.They keep requesting for my 221g letter. I have sent the last 221g as was requested and my passport data page on all occasions.
I tried to create a new profile to ee if i can schedule an appointment,but since my profile details matched the already existing profile,i could not progress.

Kindly assist me.

Dear AbujaNIV, LagosNIV,

I have a very long standing issue with my application. I applied for a US visa(filled the DS160) for myself and my Son in March after we were denied in November last year.
When i tried to schedule an appointment, i couldn't as my profile was showing "Schedule follow-up appointment".I already attended the interview for which this "follow-up appointment" in November.Please note that for the follow-up appointment we used my wife's profile to schedule this appointment.

My application has been stuck since then as i can't move forward.I have sent several mails to "ustraveldocs" to no avail.They keep requesting for my 221g letter. I have sent the last 221g as was requested and my passport data page on all occasions.
I tried to create a new profile to ee if i can schedule an appointment,but since my profile details matched the already existing profile,i could not progress.

Kindly assist me.

P.S This is my wife's profile

Ilohoffor:
Hey people,

I had my baby a few months ago and came back with so much baby milk as I didn’t want to buy at the outrageous prices here. However, I’ve recently switched my baby to Aptamil. I have loads of similac for sale at a giveaway price. It’s the 30oz (873g)tins and I have about 20, Expiration is from January 2020. Pls just make me a reasonable offer. I’m in Abuja but I don’t mind sending it down anywhere.

Hi, I tried to send u a PM but got an error msg. I am interested.

ogekad:



Hi,

My hubby paid in Naira.

Thanks alot.i appreciate.

Hello,

Please for those who had to go to the consulate for notarial signature; Did you go with the cash of 50usd or paid to the bank first?

Kindly respond.

Chinemeze17:

I just got a mail from the US passport office too now...Same notarization problem...My hubby is in Ph and im scheduled to leave US next week Thursday...
How do i fix this quickly? Have you done anything bout urs? U guys shud help me o

Please which state are you in? Texas?

Hello Chinemeze,
Was the Notorization done at the embassy by hubby? I hear this is the new law. I might be wrong though.

[quote author=jenyjay
All our passports were returned.....
Existing visas cancelled.......
Hubby was not given....
LO was not given......
Follow

VO:Hello
US: Good day.
Passports please.
VO: so what are you going to Houston for.
ME: To have my last baby.
VO: He turned to my toddler and said you had him in the US?
ME:Yes.
When did you have him?
ME:February 1st 2016
So on your last application you said you were going to stay for 3weeks and you stayed for 2months...
.........TBC

[/quote]

That was when I knew there would be trouble.
ME: Yes it was a mistake as I applied with my family and we all indicated 3weeks.
VO: Looks to me like you did it on purpose.
ME: OH no I didn't.In this current application i indicated I will be staying for two months. Told him of the calls I made....
VO: I dont see that.How much did you spend on your last trip?
ME: $13,150
VO: You ? You spent that?can I have the receipts for your payments.
ME: hands him all my medical receipts $8000 (3000 hosp fees,3300 Doctors fees, 1200 epidural, 200 pathology 250 pediatrician + ....followup visit) for medical $4500 accommodation, about $650 for my baby's documents (birth certificate, passports, visa)
VO: Flips through and was like, I don't see evidence of those payments ,I don't see it,I don't see it.. repeatedly..(that was when o knew he had made up his mind and didn't really want to see anything else.
DH tried to cut in and explain to him.... No way.
VO: How much do you have fofor this trip?
ME: I already have xxxxxx in my dorm account. And will get more from PTA.
VO: Can I see that?
ME: Hands all my statement to him.He scanned through the dorm statement,says nothing, flips to my account statement and picks on one month where the closing balance was 34k..
VO: You only have 34 000 naira in your account.
ME: Am like NO! I have xxxxxxxx in seven digits in that account plus another savings account statement with Bleep xxxx in it.plus my payslips.....
DH: passes his statement to him,here is mine......
VO: I have seen enough,
DH: still tries to talk to him to take a look at the documents.
VO: I have seen enough and Will ask for more documents if I want to see them.
He was already typing on and on......Brings out the blue slip and says sorry.........................
DH&I: Thanks.
All of us denied.

We came out and saw one young well dressed man who was just denied with medics around him.taking his BP. The guy was crying and lamenting and demanding to know the justification for his refusal

We got back to our hotel thanked God for how it went. I was sad yes but I thanked God from my heavy heart.....

That day I filled another DS160 and we decided that i apply alone this time as hubby was due back for work., . So i applied to Lagos In case I needed to travel by road for the interview. Ph to Abuja for a preggy was unreasonable. DH managed to accept LAGOS.

The following day being 1st of December I scheduled an appointment for late January which was very unreasonable as *I would have put to bed*
I then e-mailed our dear Peace on this forum and she explained how she went about her expedited appointment.

On the 5th of Dec,I applied for the expedited appointment and got an approval that same day.i was amazed at how fast the response came. God did it.I called DH that night and told him,we have thanks and slept.this time I was relaxed.

Fast forward to 8th December
Interview post: Lagos
Appointment: 6:30am

VO:

This is my story........

In 2013 DH, LO and I applied for a Visa.I went on the US embassy website, did my enquiries and filled out all three applications. The information I didn't know about DH,I called him to get and updated on his profile since he was at work and busy.when I finished,I sent him his DS160 code,he went through and confirmed okay.we submitted our applications and went for an interview i Abuja.
Transcript........

VO: Hello
US: Good morning
Passports please
Hubby passed on our passports.
Why do you want to go to the US?
DH: To take my family on a vacation.
She was looking at our profile and typing.
Where do you work.?
DH: Xxxxxxxxxx
How much do you earn?
DH: Xxxxxxx
Have you travelled before?
DH: Yes to France and Spain.
ME: No
Turns to me and asks,what do you do for work?
ME: XXxX xXxX
How much do you earn
ME: Xxxxxxxx per annum
No average per month.
ME:XXxX without allowance xXxX with allowance. However the allowance does not come in every month.....
She nods in understanding.
When did you go back to work after having him(points to LO)
MENever expected that kind of question). I replied immediately Oct 26th (I remembered cause I didn't want to resume work)
When did you have him LO?
ME: July 31st
She picks up the calendar and says,you had 3months of maternity leave?
ME:Yes
Don't you think he (LO) will be too young to go on vacation?
ME: we plan to go sometime in the summer and he will be about one.i think that's a good time.
She turns to DH and says where in the US do you wanna go?
DH:Dallas (TD Jake's ministry) and Newyork.
Types for a while.Hands US the white paper and says enjoy your vacation.
Not one document was checked.the interview lasted less than 5mins.

We went on the vac.Had plenty fun for 3 weeks,Visited the UK fpr one week and came back home.
I came back pregnant. Lost the baby at the beginning of my 2nd trimester and lost the next pregnancy too.

I took in again and refused to let go ooooo. God kept and saw us through. So DH and I decided to have the baby abroad.my visa was still valid. My EDD was in Feb 2016,visa was to expire in march. Then i didn't know that would not be a problem.
We then decided to renew the visas, I went to the embassy site and saw we could renew 6 months to expiration and we didn't have to appear for an interview. This was in Oct 2015. So we applied again and filled 3 weeks as duration of stay.(This was the blunder I referred to).I should have indicated 2 months on mine.Was a mistake.

I discovered this group and from my findings then you just had to declare at POE.However I called the embassy and I was asked the category of the visa I applied for B1B2 covers both medical and shge said "s he didn't think it was a problem provided I inform the Border officer of my intent and add how evidence I could pay my bills.

At POE I told the officer sharp sharp I was there to have my baby.
He looked surprised and said I didn't look it.stamped me in and that was it.

Fastforward to 2017.... pregnant......
I applied for Dropbox again (ist mistake) this time I filled in 2 months as duration of stay.i expected a follow-up interview. And like I expected was requested to schedule one.

All our passports were returned.....
Existing visas cancelled.......
Hubby was not given....
LO was not given......
Follow up date was December........
EDD in January.......
was a struggle to change my follow-up date to suit DH's work schedule and so local airlines can take me n my belly........
finally got November 30th........
I went with the mind of showing evidence I paid my bills.......
*Calls you make are not logged into your profile.

Location: Abuja
Transcript......

VO:Hello
US: Good day.
Passports please.
VO: so what are you going to Houston for.
ME: To have my last baby.
VO: He turned to my toddler and said you had him in the US?
ME:Yes.
When did you have him?
ME:February 1st 2016
So on your last application you said you were going to stay for 3weeks and you stayed for 2months...
.........TBC

[/quote

Applying again? may have to do this but its really a hard thing for me and my reason for ranting and infact confused. I reside in far north where to get flight to Abuja when you have ur money sef is wahala, i need to take at least 3days leave from office again to attend interview, lodge in a hotel, etc.

I just want to know if we have to opt for the insurance residents payment to be able to renew our visas.
[/quote]

Hello Omodadi, so sorry for your denial. I also went for a follow up interview and was denied too.

I think the Abuja VO's mind have been made up before you came.the possibility of changing her mind was slim *talking from my experience* and that depends on what was written on your file pending your follow up interview..

I suggest you reapply depending on how close your EDD is.This time to Lagos.i don't think you should change anything. The VO had made up her mind not to give you the Visa that's why she didn't look at your other receipts.

Most importantly calm down and don't get too discouraged. Will post my transcript today as their are some similarities .

All d best.

Omodadi2:
Hello house, my profile was updated after several calls and email. I have finally booked an apointment, I even got December. Thanks to all that contributed and gave me relief, I apreciate.

That's good to hear. When in December did you get?early mid or late. All the best though.

Omodadi2:



This is a relief. Thank you so much. Will keep sending messages and calls. Infact, no date again on my profile right now.

This should be your strong point. there should be a date on your profile. send a mail to abujaconsulate....state why you need an earlier date..

My reason was flights not taking me.i would have had to modify my due date for any airline to carry me. I really didn't want to do that,as it would give a a clean conscience.

All the best to us. Cos getting a good date is not a guarantee to Visa being granted.

AroOkigbo:

Use the "Apply for an Expedited Appointment" option. Give them a range of dates/times you think you can make the appointment. Attached the appointment letter from your US doctor.
They will respond after a day or two and a slot (date) will then be available for you to select.
Then schedule an appointment with the slot.


updated.
Maybe your case is different.
As at this time, January 3 is still available. e careful how many times you change your appointment, you may end up paying another visa fee

Well, from my experience, you cannot apply for an expedited appointment if you fall under 221g.

AroOkigbo:

This is one of the reasons I always prefer attending the interview. Just imagine the time wasted!

Yes i think it's best not to use dropbox if your last visit was to have a baby or if your present reason is to have one.Saves from a lot of stress.

Omodadi2:


Thanks for the information. But i didnt sleep all night and there was no time it changed on my side. Also, does thisnalso include follow up apointments? someone should please help me. Infact no date again now

Hello Omodadi,

I was in the same situation few weeks ago. It was crazy and in-fact.......i know what you are feeling.

I called and called they kept saying "appointment dates is given at the discretion of embassy" i sent mails and there was nothing they could do.

221g appointment dates is different from the regular calender dates.

I wanted to book a fresh appointment pay the visa fees again and i was advised by an embassy officer whom i spoke to not to do that.

Just when i had given up hope,the date on my followup appointment calender changed and i was able to get a date in November. Hopefully i will get the Visa by Gods grace.

My advise is call them,send mails,explain that you will be passed your due date by the ist available appointment you can see on your profile. Hope for the best.

Lesson learnt was never to delay till you are close to your due date again.
I wish you all the best.

Hello VO,
Please i have a constraint.My Hubby and I have been asked to schedule a follow up appointment post our drop box application.I went to my account and scheduled an appointment.That earliest date i saw was December 6th which i booked. We really would like to reschedule our appointment to an earlier date. My hubby can see from his profile "Next available appointment date" as November 7th.What is the guarantee that if we cancel my current appointment of Dec 6th and we book with my hubby's profile we would get an earlier date? and we do not need to pay the MRV fees again?

akelvin:
Give God d glory for the birth of my baby,miracle baby indeed.unplanned Csection,Dr E was wonderful n was praying wit me thru out d surgery cos of what she was handling.Got BC ,ssn(less than two weeks),got passport today remaining visa to go n porting things back home.

Congrats to you dear.safe journey back.

Banks stop use of ATM cards abroad
By - December 20, 2015


Deposit Money Banks have commenced a process to stop all customers from using their payment cards, popularly known as Automated Teller Machine cards, for dollar-denominated transactions when they travel abroad with effect from January 1, 2016.

SUNDAY PUNCH’s investigation also revealed the banks would not allow their customers to use naira-denominated ATM cards locally for transactions denominated in forex.

This means bank customers will not be able to use their cards to buy products from foreign e-commerce sites like e-bay and amazon.com in which payments are made in forex.



The development follows the lingering scarcity of foreign exchange, especially the dollar, to settle obligations arising from customers’ use of the ATM cards for forex-denominated transactions.

Already, Standard Chartered Bank has notified its customers that from January 1, 2016, they will not be able to use their naira-denominated ATM cards for transactions that are denominated in foreign currencies, either locally or when they travel abroad.

In a notice to its customers, Standard Chartered said, “This is to notify you that from January 1, 2016, your naira card will no longer be enabled for international use. This is as a result of the limited foreign exchange supply in the financial market.”

Asked how long the suspension of cards from international transactions would be, the spokesperson for Standard Chartered Nigeria, Mrs. Dayo Adurogbo, said, “We cannot give a definite date. It depends on how soon it is available. We will do everything to meet our customers’ demand once it is available.”

Further findings showed that a number of other banks had stopped customers from using their ATM cards abroad but had yet to officially communicate this to them.

Some customers told our correspondent that when they notified their banks of plans to travel and the need to enable their cards work overseas, they were simply informed that the cards could not be enabled for now due to issues relating to forex scarcity.

SUNDAY PUNCH findings showed others banks might issue notices similar to that of Standard Chartered Bank before the end of the year.

“We had some discussions recently and some top bank officials said they would stop customers from using their naira-denominated cards for international transactions due to the serious challenges in getting forex to settle their international partners,” a top bank official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said on Friday.

The current situation means customers travelling abroad for Christmas and New Year may face severe payment challenges, a situation that may mar their shopping plans.

The fall in prices of crude oil, the main earner of foreign exchange for Nigeria, has made the nation’s forex income to reduce drastically, creating dollar scarcity crisis for the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The CBN has been rationing dollar to banks, importers and other forex users as the nation’s foreign exchange reserves continue to deplete, hitting $29.4bn on December 7, 2015.

The PUNCH had exclusively reported on Thursday that banks had cut the amount that their customers could spend using their debit and credit cards abroad by between 70 and 90 per cent. This took effect during the first week of December for the majority of the banks.

Specifically, banks cut customers’ card spending in foreign currencies from the annual $50,000 allowed by the CBN to between $5,000 and $15,000.

According to findings by our correspondent, Ecobank Nigeria Plc has reduced its limit from $50,000 to $5,000, with a maximum of $500 monthly and $100 daily expenditure.

Skye Bank Plc, in a notice to its customers via email, also slashed its international card spending limit from $50,000 to $12,000 annually, a maximum of $1,000 monthly and $100 daily.

Wema Bank Plc also slashed spending on its payment cards from $50,000 to $10,000 annually, $1,000 monthly and $100 daily.

Although other banks have yet to confirm their new international card spending limits, findings b

omodadi:
Good evening all. I must confess I got a lot of information on this forum because I never had any info about this topic despite the fact that birthubg in the state is my dream. But I realised that the trend in the choice of hospitals and cities have changed over the years; 2011 to 2015. Moreso, from this forum I realised I suppose to have started the whole process before now. All I have is a Virgin naija passport, though I was supposed to go to Dubai last month but couldn't make it because hubby's visa wasn't ready till my leave days got exhausted. We only have tickets that we can amend to go if we have the time.
Now, my questions.
I don't mind if I can have any aspiring mum that will be due in May so we can plan together, my email is azeezatsule@yahoo.ca
I also need to know the hosp, doc, poe, in trend now. Cos at first I thought the El paso/doctoesparati was ok, but in the later post am seeing oakbend and others. Pls asist me with updated info.
And now I need to start to apply for visa itself, how do I go about that please. You can asist me with sharing the link here. Thanks so much.

Well for me I don't think you must have a travel history especially when going for the interview with DH. US was the first to disvirgin my passport.I went with hubby who had a good history.He had been to France like 4 times ,spent 3months on one of the ocassions,been to Barcelona as bar a fan and so.


I think if ur hubby has a good travel history,you are working,and have personal ties here,with prayer you will be given
My opinion though.

Tobermom:

I suggest you send the change of intent mail as a back up to show youve covered all bases. Its just by way of information it doesnt matter when you contacted the hospital or doctor. They usually reply within reasonable time. You should have a response before that two weeks.
N/B they may not even ask for documents at POE but its always best to be overprepared.
All the best

Thanks Tobermom.

Abeg no vex dear mamas I have my own question.

My own is almost here ooo.

My Visa was supposed to expire Jan end. I am due Feb ist week.so I renewed via drop box .purpose of travel: Vacation. This was done just early last month .

Am thinking I should have indicated vacation and childbirth on the drop box application.A friend of mine now in Houston(she travelled for the same purpose) asked me to write a change of intent.
DH feels there's no need as we will be traveling together,i should have faith and stop being worried. .

My doctor and hospital correspondence dates as far back as Oct before drop box application.If I write a change of intent,will it not be regarded as falsifying initial information.

If I had read and followed this thread before now I would have indicated vacation and childbirth on the DS 160 form during the drop box app.

Should I be worried?Am leaving in less than 2 weeks.

Do you think I should write a change of intent to the embassy? Or just arm myself with my documents.

Newbie Alert : I am one of those who have been reading and following this forum .I have read through pt 1 till date. .
I finally decided to join today.

This has been informative.

Congrats to all the mamas in d house.
Those when Don Waka go come ,and those in the process.

I hope to share my POE experience in two weeks time.