Consular Processing

Last Updated on: 11th October 2025, 11:05 am

Greene County Immigration Attorney: Consular Processing

Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group. We’re a second-generation immigration law firm managed by Todd Spodek – with over 40 years of combined experience handling consular processing cases throughout Greene County and New York. You might know us from the Anna Delvey case that became a Netflix series, or our representation in the Ghislaine Maxwell juror matter. Your family-based or employment-based immigrant petition was approved by USCIS – but you’re waiting for NVC to create your case, you’re not sure what documents to submit, or the consulate put your case in administrative processing under section 221(g). This article covers the NVC process timeline and fees, DS-260 application requirements and common mistakes, affidavit of support income requirements, consular interview procedures and 221(g) administrative processing, and interview wait times by consulate.

NVC Process Timeline And Fees

After USCIS approves your immigrant visa petition – Form I-130 for family-based cases or Form I-140 for employment-based cases – your case transfers to the National Visa Center. NVC collects civil and financial documents and manages your online case through the CEAC portal.

Four Stages Of NVC Processing

The total time from USCIS approval to consular interview ranges from 4 to 9 months, assuming no delays or errors. USCIS approval to NVC case creation takes 2 to 6 weeks. As of October 6, 2025, NVC is working on cases received from USCIS on September 9, 2025 – approximately a 4-week backlog.

Case creation to welcome letter takes 1 to 3 weeks. Once NVC creates your case, they send a welcome letter with your case number and invoice ID number. You use these to access the CEAC portal and pay fees.

NVC review of submitted documents takes 2 to 4 months. As of October 6, 2025, NVC is reviewing documents submitted on September 24, 2025 – approximately a 2-week processing time for document review. Interview scheduling after document approval takes 1 to 4 months depending on consulate capacity and backlogs.

Required NVC Fees

Two required fees total $445 for family-based cases: the State Department’s application processing fee ($325) and the financial support form fee ($120). The application processing fee is $345 if applying for an employment-based green card – making the total $465 for employment-based consular processing.

You pay these fees through the CEAC portal using a credit card or electronic bank transfer. NVC will not schedule your interview until all fees are paid and all required documents are submitted and approved.

DS-260 Application And Common Mistakes

Form DS-260 is the online immigrant visa application you complete through the CEAC portal after paying NVC fees. Every applicant – including derivative beneficiaries like your spouse and children – must complete a separate DS-260.

Critical DS-260 Requirements

All answers must be in English using English characters only. Applications submitted in any language other than English may be rejected. Every mandatory field must be completed – the application will not allow you to submit a form with mandatory fields left blank.

The information you provide must align perfectly with supporting documents like passports or previous visas. Any inconsistencies trigger further investigations, delaying your application. If your DS-260 application is idle for approximately 20 minutes, CEAC logs you off and any data entered after clicking “Save” is lost.

Most Common DS-260 Errors

Misspelling names, entering incorrect dates of birth, or errors in passport numbers are frequent mistakes. Data entry errors that don’t match supporting documents cause problems at the interview. Failing to disclose all previous visits to the United States or prior visa refusals is a serious error that can result in visa denial or fraud allegations.

Uploading a photo that doesn’t meet official requirements delays processing. The photo must be recent, in color, taken against a white or off-white background, with your face directly facing the camera.

If you discover a mistake after submitting your DS-260 – you can inform the consular officer at your interview about the mistake and ask to have it corrected at that time. Always print the DS-260 confirmation page and bring it to your visa interview.

Affidavit Of Support I-864 Income Requirements

For family-based immigrant visa cases, the petitioner must file Form I-864 Affidavit of Support proving they can financially support the intending immigrant at 125% of the federal poverty guidelines. This is a legally binding contract with the U.S. government.

2025 Poverty Guidelines

The 2025 HHS Poverty Guidelines became effective March 1, 2025. A sponsor must earn at least $26,437 per year to support a two-person household – the sponsor and one immigrant. A household of four requires about $40,187 per year, representing 125% of the poverty line.

Alaska and Hawaii have higher poverty guidelines due to elevated cost of living. The 125% threshold for a household of four is $50,237 in Alaska and $46,225 in Hawaii, compared to $40,187 in the 48 contiguous states.

What Counts As Income

Income includes salary, wages, dividends, and certain other sources shown on your most recent federal income tax return. The sponsor must provide IRS tax transcripts for the most recent tax year – tax returns alone aren’t sufficient.

If the sponsor doesn’t meet the income requirement, they can use a joint sponsor who meets the income requirements independently, or they can count assets. To qualify based on assets, the total value must equal at least five times the difference between total household income and the federal poverty guidelines – or three times the difference if a U.S. citizen is sponsoring their spouse or child 18 years or older.

Active Duty Military Exception

Active-duty military members sponsoring a spouse or child need only meet 100% of the poverty guidelines instead of 125%. This reduces the income requirement significantly – for a household of two, the requirement drops to $21,150 instead of $26,437.

Consular Interview And 221(g) Administrative Processing

Once NVC approves all your documents, they schedule your consular interview at the U.S. embassy or consulate in your home country. Interview scheduling depends on consulate capacity and current backlogs.

What Happens At The Interview

The consular officer reviews your application, asks questions about your relationship to the petitioner (for family-based cases) or your job qualifications (for employment-based cases), and examines your supporting documents. The officer verifies information under oath and assesses whether you’re eligible for an immigrant visa.

Most applicants receive a decision immediately. If approved, the consulate keeps your passport to print the immigrant visa. You receive your passport back within a few days to a week, and you can then travel to the United States.

Section 221(g) Refusals And Administrative Processing

A visa refusal under section 221(g) means the applicant didn’t establish eligibility for a visa to the satisfaction of the consular officer – but this doesn’t mean the visa is permanently denied. A 221(g) refusal indicates there’s been a refusal of the application until specific required documents are presented and reviewed, or until additional administrative processing is completed.

Administrative processing may involve further investigation into an applicant’s background, security clearance checks, or verification of documentation. Additional time is required for background checks or security clearances, particularly common for applicants from certain countries or industries where there might be concerns regarding national security.

How Long Administrative Processing Takes

Processing times vary based on individual circumstances. Administrative processing can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months, with cases involving security clearance or background checks taking longest. Some people get their visa cleared in a few weeks, while others wait for months.

There’s no way to speed up the processing time for a 221(g) refusal – all applications undergo the same administrative processing regardless of region of origin, visa category, or date of application. If documents are requested, an applicant has one year from the date the visa was refused to submit the additional information. Filing a mandamus lawsuit is the only way to push the government to make a decision when facing unreasonable delays.

Interview Wait Times By Consulate

The State Department updates visa wait time information monthly. Interview wait times vary dramatically by consulate – some consulates have no backlogs, while others face waits exceeding two years.

Consulates With Significant Backlogs

As of December 2024, three consular offices – Abu Dhabi, Dhaka, and Accra – would take over two years to clear their backlogs. Some consular offices had no backlogs at all, while other offices expect to take over two years to schedule an interview.

The specific visa category, the country you’re applying from, and consulate workload all impact waiting times. Priority goes to applicants based on the date NVC determines you’ve paid necessary fees and submitted all required documents.

Checking Your Consulate’s Wait Time

The State Department provides an Immigrant Visa Scheduling Status Tool that gives you an idea of when you might expect to hear about your immigrant visa interview. This tool shows when NVC is scheduling interviews at specific U.S. embassies or consulates.

Generally, NVC tackles most cases in about 2.5 months, though each case is unique and can vary. The State Department provides no public data for immigrant visa applicants broken down by consular office, even though they track this data internally.

Why You Need A Consular Processing Attorney

Consular processing involves navigating NVC document submission through the CEAC portal, completing DS-260 applications without errors that trigger delays, proving income requirements for I-864 affidavits of support or finding qualified joint sponsors, preparing for consular interviews with proper documentation, and responding to 221(g) administrative processing refusals. Our immigration attorneys handle NVC case management, DS-260 preparation and review, affidavit of support issues with joint sponsors or asset calculations, consular interview preparation, and mandamus lawsuits for unreasonable administrative processing delays.

Todd Spodek grew up in Brooklyn working for his father’s law firm before attending Northeastern University and Pace Law School. Our law firm has handled thousands of immigration cases since 1976 – including cases featured in major media outlets, like the New York Post, Newsweek, and Bloomberg.

If NVC is requesting documents and you’re not sure what to submit, if you made errors on your DS-260 application, if you don’t meet the income requirements for Form I-864 and need a joint sponsor, if the consulate refused your visa under 221(g) and you’re stuck in administrative processing – contact our immigration attorneys. We’re available 24/7 at our offices throughout Greene County, Westchester, Rockland, NYC, and Long Island.