(edit title) Visa/Permit/Citizenship Support Group A quarantine for those of us losing our minds Options

[mjennin2]

When my SO visited the migration board three months ago, he was told that sambo visa (I am non-EU) will take 1 - 1.5 years to process. 10 days ago he contacted the migration b ... (show full quote)

When my SO visited the migration board three months ago, he was told that sambo visa (I am non-EU) will take 1 - 1.5 years to process. 10 days ago he contacted the migration board and was told that cases like ours are expected to take more then 9 months to process. The 4-9 months period they posted on their website is a lie. Their lack of communication and consistency is very embarrassing and torturing ... (hide full quote)

@empty, this is exactly why I started this thread. Not only is the Great Wait bad enough, but the miscommunication / conflicting information out there is even worse. And to be honest, in MV's defense, I think they are "winging it" and trying to figure it all out themselves. I know in years past, the system worked perfectly fine and was reliable and such. But with the masses of refugees being processed, it has turned the whole system upside down.

I have gone back and forth a million times trying to figure out what "bucket" we are in, in terms of the new wait times that have been posted as of April this year. One MV officer in Stockholm told us 4 months from the date of our application. Another told us that was incorrect, and we can expect 4-9 months AFTER the date of our interview. All the rest of the MV people we have spoken to, said that for non-EU applicants, it's 9-14 months starting the day you submit your application, but that time frame could vary based on how long it takes you to schedule an interview at your home country's embassy.

Further, we were told that the process should get quicker now that they have hired a bunch of new MV officers, but then we were told that those new employees are dedicated solely to processing asylum cases, and with those cases now increasing given recent events, that we can expect the wait time to increase over the next several months as a result.

The best and most honest advice I can give, is expect to wait 1 - 1.5 years. We are all in the 9-14 months bucket, despite the website describing that as people missing information or needing much more investigation. It is very disheartening, but take advantage of using this time to get your affairs at home in order, earn / save up as much money as you possibly can, and study study study STUDY (!!!!!) your Swedish. This wait will not be time lost; I know you miss your loved one (trust me, I do), but in several months you will look back and be quasi-thankful for this period to get yourself in as best a circumstance as possible to be stable upon your arrival. <3

[fincastles]

Adding my timeline here since I have benefited from info posted on TL. Thanks to everyone.

Applied for: Sambo residence permit (PUT)
Applied on: Aug 14, 2015
Email for interview received:
Interview:
Decision:
Applied from: USA (NY)

Unlike many here, we're in no hurry which is probably a good thing. ( 12k applicants in Aug 2015 ) fwiw, my story:

I'm from the USA. In June 1979 arrived in Stkhlm to visit friends and to start a 12 week Europe backpacking trip. Sep 79 arrived back in Stkhlm, applied for and received work permit at a US based company. ( I was a 20 yr old having a blast and didn't want to return to the USA ) Dec '79 met a gal in a pub, we hit it off and I moved in with her in Mar '80. We married Oct '80 and had out first son in Stkhlm in '83. We moved to the states in '87 and currently reside there. I had a job with a Swedish company from '81 - '87.

We've visited Sweden often over the years and my wife ( of now 35 years ) wants to return to Sweden to live close to her sisters who now live in Skane and I'm looking forward to it as well. My Swedish is about 95% and hers is of course better than that ( she talks with her sisters frequently and we both watch svt.se ). We retired a bit early in anticipation of the move, sold our biz and our house and currently rent. Our sons are adults and will continue to live in the USA.

We're 57 and I'll probably look for a part time job to keep me active, I know it won't be easy to find ( my hobbies are stock trading, I'll trade with IB-UK, computer building, woodworking, furniture making and general handyman comfortable with most tools since I've owned several homes and restaurants) ( wife's hobby is anything to do with horses ). Of interest, the retirement benefits we'll receive in a few years from Sweden after working there 8 years in the '80's will be equal to what we'll receive in USA Social Security after being self employed here for 25 years. Go figure. Also I anticipate that, like many, I'll get frustrated with FATCA and will apply for Swedish citizenship after three years of residency and will, if approved, revoke my USA citizenship. That is one cumbersome and inefficient law.

I wanted to post this since our story is a bit different than many here and I'll try to edit it with the dates as time goes on. Good luck to all with your applications.

Here are a few links some might find helpful

Reviews of international movers
http://www.movingscam.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=9

Power cable for electronics with a transformer 110v - 240v - Monoprice has good prices for cables, these are $2.02
I'll probably build new desktop computers and buy new screens to bring with us. Ours are 6 years old.
http://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=7692

US tax prep, I've seen these guys mentioned favorably on several forums but have no personal experience with them
http://www.greenbacktaxservices.com/

[emptywithu]

[quote name='mjennin2' date='5.Sep.2015, 02:49 PM' post='871564']
@empty, this is exactly why I started this thread. Not only is the Great Wait bad enough, but the miscommunication / conflicting information out there is even worse. And to be honest, in MV's defense, I think they are "winging it" and trying to figure it all out themselves. I know in years past, the system worked perfectly fine and was reliable and such. But with the masses of refugees being processed, it has turned the whole system upside down.

Thanks for the information! It makes me feel better that people understand my frustration because we are all going through the same process. I am currently trying to look for temporary jobs to earn money but short enough that I can visit my SO. It is difficult to find a temporary job that pays enough for my plane tickets lol but I will keep trying

Sorry I do not know how to reply to someone else's post, there is no "reply" button, I am new here

[Cooneybren]

Hello everyone,

Just thought I would add a brief summary of my experience to the pot as yet another point of reference. I'm in New York moving to my wife of 4 years. We started the application in October 2014 and I was interviewed in May 2015. A decision is still pending. The latest news I've received in response to an E-mail I sent to MV a couple of weeks ago basically stated that our case was sitting in a pile at the ?rebro office awaiting to be assigned to a case worker.

I should also add that after my interview in May I went to Sweden for 6 weeks in July/August. You are allowed to travel to Sweden during the application processing period as long as you make it known to the MV and you accept that your application will be placed on HOLD during that time.

Hopefully my situation will offer a sliver of insight for some of you.

Good Luck.

[Ladyturtle]

Hello everyone,

I

[lebanese-91]

has anyone got his residence in this period of time? or has anyone heard anything from the MV?

[axiom]

I remember when Migrationsverket stated that processing times for online applications would be no more than 3months from submission to response. Now it seems to be anyone's guess.

I am not for this different times based on different types of application. Everyone pays the same application fees and should be given the same processing times. Now if a case officer picks up your application and realises that it requires more information, send an email or letter and request it and put it away until you get the information.

You don't need to wait 10 months to ask for the information you knew were missing the first time you look at the application. I just can't get my head around this. At least the applicant knows why there's a delay and feels engaged in the process and is aware why it is taking a longer time. Read of people waiting 10 months and then being asked "how long have you been outside Sweden in the last two years". I just cant understand that that information required a 10month wait!

[mjennin2]

@Fincastles, thank you for those links! Your story was lovely, and I hope FACTA doesn't turn out to be too messy (although I feel your pain; I see our international clients struggling with it left and right over here).

@LadyTurtle, when was the last time you followed up with MV? We're personally just not even bothering to contact them until early November (which will be 10 months, for us). We've just been waiting our turn since 2 weeks after our interview in July. It's frustrating because some people here on TL say to keep pestering MV adn pressuring them for information, but I feel like that's sort of bullying... as if any one human at Migrationsverket -- or, perhaps more appropriately, Migrationsv?rket -- has the power to control anything in any of our cases. Sometimes I wonder if they are keeping notes on how often we all call/email, what we say, etc...

@Axiom, the only possible explanation I could think to justify it all is if they are so backed up that they can't even pick up a case file until a great length of time later, to decide what is lacking or not. BUT... if it is taking them nearly a year just to pick up a file, just for the sake of ensuring it is complete... then the system is broken. And not just in the "this sucks!" kind of way, but in the real way. It needs a comprehensive and immediate overhaul.

And on that note, I really worry for all of us. We are already such a low priority, and now with the massive influx of asylees combined with Sweden's apparent desire to make a public statement about how welcoming they are, I just don't know how many additional months we will have to wait, and what future we are going into. I've been trying to not read the news or expose myself to it because I need to find a way to manage my stress and anxiety better, but it is weighing on me. Heavily. But, maybe I just need to go have a coffee with some strong booze poured into it to lift my spirits a little today

[fincastles]

I couldn't find a TL post regarding the amount of employees at Migrationsverket and if they were hiring more this year. I did find this blog post.

Warning: This info is from a blog relating to the cost of Migrationsverket employees and a certain slant of opinions/comments regarding that cost. My intent is not to start a discussion regarding those costs, or if the increase in employees is enough to handle the traffic, rather it's to give an idea of the employee count increase of Migrationsverket.

If I could find, "just the facts" info I would post it but nothing is coming up in my search.

"Migrationsverket anst?ller 100 nya medarbetare varje m?nad. Under de senaste 12 m?naderna har Migrationsverket anst?llt hela 1 200 personer

" I augusti 2014 skrev jag ett blogginl?gg n?r antalet anst?llda p? Migrationsverket f?r f?rsta g?ngen ?versteg 5 000 anst?llda. Ett ?r senare ?r nu antalet anst?llda ca 6 200 personer."

This person claims that Migrationverket has employed approximately 100 per month in the last year with a total of around 6200 currently.

http://www.exponerat.net/thoralf-alfsson-1...grationsverket/



Here are a couple of other links regarding employee count increases

http://www.publikt.se/artikel/migrationsve...ler-manga-17527

http://svenska.yle.fi/artikel/2015/09/08/m...ersonalen-i-abo

[molntuss]

I've gone through most of the replies on this forum within the past year and sort of compiled an average time you are expected to wait before being contacted for an interview or receiving your decision. I personally don't put much faith in the expected processing time posted by MV, and I would rather base my expectations on how long people are actually waiting. This is for the sambo visa.

Clearly there are a lot of variables affecting it, particularly the availability of interview slots in the country you are applying from.

It would however seem like you are expected to wait anywhere between 4 to 7 months before being contacted for your interview, with the median time being at 6 months. People who applied in September 2014 would have had their interviews in March 2015, for example.

After which, it takes an additional >5 months to receive a decision. This would mean, ceteris paribus, that you will in the very best scenario only take 10 months for the whole process from start to finish. However, I would peg the average at >11 months. It is hard to say as a lot of people who applied late last year have not received a decision yet, so it could easily be 12, 13, or 14 months. This would put the lot of us neatly in the >10 months group.

Basically, if you are non-EU and have no extenuating circumstances, expect to wait 10-14 months without exception. For people who applied in 2015, these times may be even longer because MV is understandably strained at the moment. Hope this can put as rest to all the "But MV said only 4 months!" comments because evidence clearly show that this is not the prevailing trend.

Personally, applied April 2015, have not been contacted for interview. Don't hold your breath that you will be one of the Chosen Ones

[lebanese-91]

@molentus Sorry to hear you're so frustrated but if it makes it easier my country has a long waiting time for an interview and i had my interview 1 year after i applied online. So now i am 1 week waiting after my interview and 12 month after i applied and i am currently waiting for a decision so hang on in there you're not alone

[Lamora]

Hi everybody! I read all of the posts in this thread and a question popped up into my head when I saw people talking about their cases being moved to another city; do you have to apply to MV in a certain Swedish city? My boyfriend will go to University in Sweden and by the time we apply for the sambo visa we won't know which school in which city he will be accepted to.

Thankful for a response! And good luck to all of you with getting your approval as soon as possible

[mjennin2]

[quote name='molntuss' post='872295' date='15.Sep.2015, 10:49 AM']Don't hold your breath that you will be one of the Chosen Ones

[Ladyturtle]

@mjennin2

hello,

We called MV in Sept 9, 2015 hoping to hear any feedbacks considering that was few days before our 10th month, and my husband decided not to bother them anymore because it is totally waste of time. We waited already for 10 months now and waiting for another 2 - 3 mos more will be alright.

May I know if anyone has an idea if there is a expiration for the biometrics, I had it in June 17, 2015. Is it true that biometrics expires after 6 months.

Tack and ha en fin dag.

[mjennin2]

Hi @ladyturtle!

Hmm. For biometrics, that is unfortunately a question I simply cannot answer. At least, yet. Where I come from, I do not have to give biometrics until I have already arrived in Sweden with my decision letter.

I tried googling around, but I can't really find anything in English that explains the situation. Where have you heard they expire in 6 months? Where did you get it done? What did the office tell you when you booked the appointment and had your fingerprints/photograph taken?

I dug around the MV website to find this page, but the only detail it gives is that if you require a tourist visa to visit Sweden, you should have your biometrics done at the Swedish Embassy in or near your home country; and if you do not require a tourist visa, you just bring your decision letter with you straight to Sweden and have the card made there. It does not say anything about timelines or expiry dates.

One thing I did find curious on that page, is the following section:

When the card is ready

If you have been photographed and fingerprinted at an embassy or Consulate General, you will receive the card there. Please ask the embassy or Consulate General if they will send it to you or if you will need to collect it. It can take up to four weeks, from the time you have received your decision, for the card to be made and sent to the embassy or Consulate General.

If you have been photographed and fingerprinted at a Swedish Migration Agency office, your card will be sent to your home within a week.

The residence permit card will be produced at the time the decision is made, but no earlier than three months before the residence permit becomes valid.

We cannot speed up the production or delivery of the card.

All of this makes normal sense except for the bold, underlined part. I cannot think of an instance where you would get a decision but need to wait 3 months before the card is valid? I suppose maybe if you were going to Sweden for work or studies...but that particular page I linked up to, is specifically for people moving to Sweden on a Sambo permit. And it seems almost as if to indicate that people can indeed get their biometrics done before the decision... and then the resident permit will be created when your decision is final?

But... I don't know. I am interested in finding out, though. Does anyone else have any info on this? Particularly those from countries that require a visitor's visa?