Visa Application - Japan Trip Day 4 (Feb. 19th, 2008)

This was the most depressing day in our trip. Biajee had an 8:30 am appointment to apply for H-1B visa back to the US. We all went to the US Consulate in Osaka. The officer was kind enough to let me wait inside the building with Arnold.

The visa office is on the 3rd floor of the building. Biajee came out at around 9:30 am and told me that he got security checked. I think the reason was he mentioned non-destructive testing. Anyway, the lady told him it'd take about 2 weeks.

We were shocked. Arrangements had to be made so that he could extend his visa in Japan in order to wait for US Visa. I had to be prepared to come back to US with Arnold alone. We had to email and call his boss in the US to fax over the documents required. The most important document was I-129, the petition form for H-1B visa.

He got a phone call from the US Consulate in the afternoon when we were resting in our room. This time it was another lady telling him that he need to apply for extension of stay in Japan from the Immigration Office in the airport because the security check could take 3 or 4 weeks. Then he need to rent a cell phone so that the Consulate could reach him at any time.

The regulation is that nobody can call the US Consulate. They can only accept FAX as the communication method. If they feel necessary, they would contact Biajee.

We emailed Biajee's immigration attorney in Atlanta requesting for the documents and then faxed to the US Consulate indicating that Biajee would need his passport back in order to apply for extension of stay in Japan.

The US Consulate asked Biajee to drop off all the documents he had on hand the next day at the office, including the I-129. They suggested that we drop the files off between 11 am and 2 pm when they were not interviewing applicants for visas.

I cannot remember what we had for dinner that night. All I know is it completely ruined our day. But we decided to go to Himeji the next morning before we drop off the documents at the US Consulate.

If you're interested in this at all, Biajee is still in Osaka as of today waiting for his visa. I'm nursing my wound by taking care of Arnold on my own.