Recently, the Department of State (“DOS”) issued a cable to advise that as of November 12, 2014 the National Visa Center (NVC) will no longer require applicants to submit original civil documents (such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, police certificates, etc.) during the immigrant visa (IV) process (i.e. permanent residency application via a Consulate abroad). This exemption from submitting original documents does not apply to the Affidavit of Support; original Affidavit of Support forms are still required to be submitted to NVC.
Previously, civil documents were required to be submitted in original to the NVC for preliminary evaluation, but now, applicants may submit photocopies of their documents to the NVC instead. Applicants are responsible for carrying their original documents to their assigned interview at the Consulate for final processing.
The NVC expects this change will “maintain the integrity of the IV process, reduce customer wait times and improve the customer experience overall.” The new procedure will significantly shorten the processing time for the NVC to complete its initial review before forwarding the case file to the Consulate for final processing.