{"id":1521,"date":"2017-02-04T13:39:46","date_gmt":"2017-02-04T21:39:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/?p=1521"},"modified":"2017-02-04T13:39:46","modified_gmt":"2017-02-04T21:39:46","slug":"trudging-through-bureaucratic-thickets-a-visa-saga","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/?p=1521","title":{"rendered":"Trudging through bureaucratic thickets: a visa saga"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"US<\/a>Having lived through the experience of applying for a United States immigrant visa, my heart goes out to those who recently trudged through the bureaucratic thickets, only to be turned away at airport gates by Trump\u2019s anti-immigration order.<\/p>\n

Every immigrant\u2019s story is different, of course. But maybe telling our story, as documented by my letters to parents during that time, will offer some insight into the process which, even in 1966-67, and even with a US company going to bat for us, was exhausting and nerve-wracking.<\/p>\n

Born in New Zealand, we were living in England, where my husband Tony designed and tested disk drives for the rapidly-growing computer industry. He interacted with people from US companies, several of whom had shown interest in offering him a position in the US, where skilled high tech workers were in short supply.<\/p>\n

9 Aug. 66
\np.s. Have you got my B.A. or M.A. certificate? If so, would you please send them airmail.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"New<\/a>A complication was that when we left New Zealand in 1962, we boxed up belongings we didn\u2019t think we needed to take and left them in a friend\u2019s basement. Those friends sold their house and moved, sending the boxes to Tony\u2019s mother, who sold her house and moved, sending them to my parents, who sold \u2026 By this time they were (we hoped) with my sister, Evelyn.<\/p>\n

22 Aug. 66
\nDon\u2019t bother any more about the degrees. \u2026we are going to rely on a statement from the university registrar instead. It is for American visa \u2013 we need proof of special qualifications etc. to get onto special entry list. However, there is no hurry as yet, as American job is still a mirage on the horizon \u2013 needless to say we are both a bit edgy with all this uncertainty.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"US<\/a>An excellent job offer from a Silicon Valley company came through in early October, and we put our house on the market immediately.<\/p>\n

17 Oct. 66
\nThe property market is very depressed here at the moment \u2026 so we can only hope for the best.
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

We don\u2019t expect to leave until after Christmas anyway. The visa will take quite a few weeks to come through, & Tony can\u2019t give his month\u2019s notice until he gets it.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u2026 After so many months of waiting around, we are finding it hard to believe that it has actually happened.
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

31 Oct. 66
\nWe had our first viewer for the house yesterday\u2026.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You may have heard that we have had a delay over visas \u2013 U.S. authorities have stuck over this question of Tony\u2019s degree & they insist on the fancy bit of paper. I wrote to Evelyn last week, so hope she has managed to do something about looking for it. Could you find out how she is getting on? It is possible she may still be assuming that it is in a mailing tube \u2013 it ain\u2019t necessarily so \u2013 it could be flat in an envelope \u2013 or anywhere. Another thought \u2013 has she got all our things, or has Mrs. L. still got some? It really is urgent that it be found.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Apart from these problems, things are going quite well. We had a note from the removal firm the other day asking when we wanted them to come in \u2013 it seems that everything will be packed for us, transported, & unpacked at the other end \u2013 unheard-of luxury!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"New<\/a>Having gone through every box, Evelyn finally found the degree certificate in a box labeled \u201cDining-room stuff.\u201d She registered the package and mailed it with first class air mail postage.<\/p>\n

12 Nov. 66
\nI suppose you will have heard of the latest little crisis \u2013 bloody N.Z. Post Office managed to send the degrees by ship, due to reach us about Christmas! However, it mightn\u2019t be disastrous.\u00a0 B.Sc. sent by Mrs. L did arrive safely, & the firm are cabling the university to send a duplicate of the degree. But it has got to the stage where I am beginning to wonder how much else can go wrong before we actually leave.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

15 Dec. 66
\n\u2026[Have] had another difficult week \u2013 actually, I had been putting off writing until we got our affairs a bit straighter. Anyway \u2013 on Monday we learned that the visa petition had not yet been filed \u2013 they are still waiting for the M.Sc. degree. The ship was supposed to berth yesterday, but as the mails are already in chaos with the Christmas rush, heaven knows when it will turn up. So, having found out where the petition had got to, we thought we might as well check up on the time scale from the embassy. Here we got a horrible shock \u2013 we were cheerfully informed that it was going to take five months from the time the thing was filed in San Francisco \u2013 don\u2019t ask me how they manage to stretch the red tape that far \u2013 that\u2019s just what they said. Contracts half-way through being signed for sale of house \u2013 still legally possible to back out \u2013 just \u2013 but very inconvenient for everybody else, so we are going on with sale, & still negotiating a deferment of the completion date. Even so, we will probably have to find somewhere else to live for a while, which is going to be a bit of a problem. Tony very depressed at the thought of staying at [his current job] for another six months, still waiting to hear whether California are prepared to wait that long.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

30 Dec. 66
\nHow up-to-date are you with our plans? The degree has been sent to America, we haven\u2019t heard yet whether it & its associated papers have been presented to the authorities, we have until the middle of April to get out of the house, & the name of someone in the American embassy whom it is possible (possibly) to push to get a visa sooner, and at present are gathering together all the documents (in triplicate) we require, such as birth certificates, marriage certificate, photographs, etc.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

18 Feb. 67
\nI forgot to tell Evelyn that we have received a letter of apology from the Postmaster-General, though no compensation \u2013 didn\u2019t really expect it!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"US<\/a>Trying to get information about the status of our application proved almost impossible. Before 8:00 am, the phone at the US Embassy would ring and ring. From 8:00 am to 5:00 pm we\u2019d get a busy signal. But finally, one day I got lucky.<\/p>\n

28 Feb. 67
\nYou\u2019ll have to excuse me if my letters are a bit erratic in the next few weeks. We have to be out of the house in six weeks, and it is just possible that we may be leaving for America about then. The papers arrived from San Francisco last week. I don\u2019t think I told you that we had the petition changed a few weeks ago, on the advice of the American consul in London. We had applied for 3rd<\/sup> preference \u2013 for those with degrees, etc., but the waiting list for this category goes back to last September for NZers \u2013 as there are only 100 immigrants a year total [from NZ] and 10% for this preference, this is not surprising. Anyway, he suggested trying for 6th<\/sup> preference \u2013 skilled workers not easily available in U.S., for which Tony, being an electronics engineer, would qualify, & for which there are places available now for NZers. So a frantic dash to London by me, to bring back yet another lot of forms to fill in. Can you remember all the addresses you\u2019ve lived at since you were 16? \u2026<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

15 Mar. 67
\nThe petition has now gone for clearance to Wellington (checking up on our murky past). I don\u2019t doubt there will be another delay, in which case we will have to move into a flat or something here. The estate agent who sold the house is looking for something for us, but I expect we shall have to pay through the nose for it.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"New<\/a>We were lucky to find a furnished flat. On April 14 packers moved in and packed our household goods for shipment to California. We took with us only the clothes for ourselves and the two children (ages three and one) that would fit into suitcases weighing under the economy class limit, and borrowed a few items from friends, such as a cot and stroller for the baby.<\/p>\n

15 April 67
\n\u2026 The clearances have now arrived\u2026\u00a0 Now we only need a quota number from Washington, a medical check & formal interview, and that is the lot. At least we have this place until the end of May, which gives us a breathing space.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

1 May 67
\nBelieve it or not, we now have immigrants\u2019 visa to the United States. We spent all day at the Embassy today. Having got up about 5:30 in order to be there by 8:30 as instructed, eight hours of sitting around \u2013 though I must give them credit for having things reasonably well organised, considering the numbers of people they had to get through. We were through the whole rigmarole by about three o\u2019clock, & they offered to post the visas out to us instead of making us wait around with the kids for another couple of hours while they finished the processing \u2013 offer gratefully accepted. Actually, the kids were extremely good, considering David\u2019s boundless energy & Simon\u2019s lack of sleep. We were well stocked up with sweets & biscuits & story books, & of course there were plenty of other children to play with…
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

We are booked to leave England on Sat. 20th<\/sup> May, flying direct to San Francisco over the pole.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\"US<\/a>My letter of 18 May 67 speaks of farewell visits with many friends. At the last minute I learned that the company was flying us out first class, so I could have had more of the children\u2019s gear with me for the last few weeks. But that was a minor irritation compared with the relief of having the ordeal over with, and gratitude that the Californian company kept the job open for Tony all those months. I wish all today\u2019s visa-holding immigrants and visitors could have an equally happy ending to their story.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Having lived through the experience of applying for a United States immigrant visa, my heart goes out to those who recently trudged through the bureaucratic thickets, only to be turned away at airport gates by Trump\u2019s anti-immigration order. Every immigrant\u2019s story is different, of course. But maybe telling our story, as documented by my letters […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[296],"tags":[428,401],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1521"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1521"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1521\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1535,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1521\/revisions\/1535"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.maureeneppstein.com\/mve_journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}