I can imagine how anxious you and your Fiancé(e) are after you filed all the necessary paperwork with the Immigration Service Center. You cannot wait to see your Fiancé(e) in the United States where you are going to be united and spend the rest of your lives together.
First, you will receive a Notice of Action (Form I-797) from the USCIS. This form will include a receipt date, a case number, an estimate of proceeding time and address and phone number of the Service Center that you can contact in case if you have any questions or concerns.
Second, as soon as the adjudication officer receives your application package s/he will review it by determining the eligibility of you and your Fiancee for K-1 process and whether all the necessary forms and supporting documents are in place. If so, the USCUS will mail you and your attorney an Approval Notice (Form I-797). But it does not mean yet that your whole process has been approved. It means that you are eligible to apply for a Fiancee visa on behalf of your Fiancee, that you have submitted all required documents and your Fiancee is eligible to obtain a Fiancee visa abroad. However, the final decision will be made at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in home country of your Fiancee.
If some of the documents are missing, USCUS will return the WHOLE package back to you or your attorney with explanation of what is wrong. Of course, it will delay the process quite a bit.
Once the petition has been approved, it is sent to the National Visa Center (NVC). From NVC cases are forwarded to the U.S. Embassy or Consulate abroad. In Russia, all I-129F petitions are sent to Moscow; in Ukraine, they are all sent to Kiev.
As soon as the consulate has received the approved petition they will notify your Fiancé(e) and schedule an appointment for her. They will also send her a packet of information and the necessary forms she will have to complete for her interview. She will be given directions as to what supporting documents she will need for the interview including a police report stating that she has no criminal history, and a medical examination performed by an approved facility. The sooner she has all the “embassy documents” ready, the sooner she will have her interview!
