07/29/10
Visa delays at U.S. Embassies and Consulates worldwide are increasingly possible over the holidays
The U.S. State Department announced on November 25th that before issuing an H, L, O, P or Q visa, Embassy and Consulate Officials MUST obtain a Petition Information Management Service (PIMS) report confirming whether or not an employer's petition was approved and under what circumstances.A recent DOS cable states, "[f]or visa processing purposes, only the PIMS record constitutes verification of petition approval."
In other words, the original approval notice (form I-797) is no longer sufficient evidence of petition approval. Nevertheless, it should be available when making an appointment at the Embassy and presented at the visa interview.
On the day of the interview, some applicants may discover that no PIMS report is available or that the CCD (Consolidated Computer Database) has no information about their petition approval. In that situation, the Embassy will contact USCIS for confirmation.
USCIS may then need an additional two business days to research and update the CCD before an H, L, O, P or Q visa may be issued.