Immigration Process

Two steps closer! 

1) We've been approved by the USCIS for immigration of George Mason to the United States. This means that when we arrive home at the airport and our feet touch US soil that Mason is automatically classified as a citizen of the United States. :)

2) The USCIS forwarded our approved petition to the NVC (National Visa Center) and they've processed our petition and forwarded it to the US Embassy in Guangzhou.

Three more steps to go...

1) Now we are waiting for the Embassy to process the petition for his US Visa which takes 2 weeks. AAC said their representative in Ch*n@ will be picking up the completed paperwork on July 4th (YaY!) and then mailing it to the C C A A in Beijing.

2) Once it has been filed with the C C A A in Beijing - we wait for them to issue our Travel Approval (TA). This wait time varies - anywhere from 4 to 6 weeks. We are praying that our TA is issued prior to August 1st (this is the deadline for families wishing to avoid the new rules for additional post-placement visits).  Also, we our praying that God will move mountains and allow us to embrace our son before his 2nd birthday on July 30th! It is in His hands and His timing is always perfect, but oh how our hearts long to hold Mason before he turns two. :)

3) Upon arrival of our TA - we wait for our agency to schedule our appointment with the Consulate (Embassy) - this is the swearing in ceremony where we officially receive Mason's US Visa. It is the last step that we complete in Ch*n@ and our travel dates are scheduled backward from that appointment date. So once we have our CA (consulate appointment), we can plan our trip, purchase airline tickets, and GO BRING MASON HOME!