DENVER — When Bo Ramsey accepted a job in Denver and moved again to the US, he by no means imagined he would nonetheless be ready for his spouse to affix him practically a yr and a half later.
His spouse, Riza, is amongst a whole bunch of 1000’s of individuals ready for his or her likelihood to maneuver to the U.S. legally.
Bo moved to the Philippines in 2016 for work, and met now spouse Riza in 2018. The 2 received married in 2020, after Bo fell in love with each Riza and his new Filipino life. They did not plan to depart, till the nation was hit significantly laborious by the pandemic. At that time, the Ramseys determined they wished to maneuver to Bo’s dwelling of Denver.
“We figured we’d have a greater high quality of life if we got here again,” Bo informed Denver7. “So in September 2021, we began to course of to get an IR1 visa, a wedding visa. It began with me petitioning to sponsor an alien relative.”
Bo accepted a job with Frontier Airways in Denver, and was given a deadline of July 2022 to relocate again to the US. With Riza’s immigration course of began, Bo was hopeful it will transfer rapidly sufficient to not separate them for an prolonged time frame.
“We did not assume it was going to take that for much longer. And so I got here again, left her there,” Bo mentioned.
That was July of final yr. Within the time since, the Ramseys have been informed that Riza’s petition has been authorized and all of her paperwork are full. Nevertheless, she will be able to’t transfer to the US till she has had an interview with the U.S. Embassy within the Philippines. The Ramseys have realized the laborious method simply how lengthy the look forward to an interview appointment might be.
“It is simply been ready,” Ramsey mentioned. “And you recognize, throughout that point, looking for solutions. How lengthy is it going to take, proper? As a result of you’ll be able to’t actually make any choices. You’ll be able to’t transfer. You’ll be able to’t purchase a house. You’ll be able to’t do something everlasting.”
Denver7 reached out to the U.S. State Division to search out out why these backlogs for interview appointments are taking place. A consultant mentioned they’re trying into the subject, and would attain out once they be taught extra.
Publicly accessible information reveals a big and widespread situation, with just below 39,000 candidates with accomplished paperwork scheduled for interviews in October of this yr, and greater than 273,000 eligible candidates left ready.
“U.S. embassies and consulates overseas present routine visa providers to 1000’s of candidates each day,” the U.S. State Division states on its web site. “We’re dedicated to resolving the immigrant visa backlog and transparently sharing the present standing of our worldwide visa operations.”
Bo mentioned his requests for extra info on his spouse’s standing have yielded frustratingly little info, resulting in “hopelessness” for each of them. He’s now beginning to remorse his transfer again to the US, and is contemplating returning again to the Philippines so he might be together with his spouse full time once more.
Although he understands the immigration vetting course of, Bo mentioned he anticipated extra clear details about how lengthy it will take.
“I’m a citizen of this nation,” Ramsey mentioned. “I feel I deserve one thing extra than simply an automatic response saying, ‘We’ve what we want. You could wait.'”
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