Montreal taking so long

[Peachey 10]

Ok, so you may or may not have read that I called DOSlow this morning and they were closed.

Well Varba just called and apparently the reason they were closed is because they were having a staff meeting about the consulate in Montreal.

Apparently the consulate is VERY understaffed. A lot of people quit over the summer or just stopped coming in to work. They are currently backlogged 4 months and are trying their best to push everyone though.

I hope this helps alleviate any concerns.

They also told Varba I should be right on the edge of getting my interview date

[INK 0]

Ok, so you may or may not have read that I called DOSlow this morning and they were closed.

Well Varba just called and apparently the reason they were closed is because they were having a staff meeting about the consulate in Montreal.

Apparently the consulate is VERY understaffed. A lot of people quit over the summer or just stopped coming in to work. They are currently backlogged 4 months and are trying their best to push everyone though.

I hope this helps alleviate any concerns.

They also told Varba I should be right on the edge of getting my interview date

This fully explains the situation that I'm in. 7 weeks waiting after evidence for domicile was sent - typically it take about 4.

[Rhiannercakes 14]

I hope they hire and train more people.

I mean, we probably wouldn't see results for it by the end of the year, but for future people's sake.

[Lenie7 0]

Ok, so you may or may not have read that I called DOSlow this morning and they were closed.

Well Varba just called and apparently the reason they were closed is because they were having a staff meeting about the consulate in Montreal.

Apparently the consulate is VERY understaffed. A lot of people quit over the summer or just stopped coming in to work. They are currently backlogged 4 months and are trying their best to push everyone though.

I hope this helps alleviate any concerns.

They also told Varba I should be right on the edge of getting my interview date

I guess that explains things. It seems like interviews started slowing down in July and have become worse over time. They really ought to start using other consulates in Canada for interviews like they used to in order to speed things along. At least they're trying to find a solution!

[Dan and Ali 3]

I guess that explains things. It seems like interviews started slowing down in July and have become worse over time. They really ought to start using other consulates in Canada for interviews like they used to in order to speed things along. At least they're trying to find a solution!

I agree! Oh, how I would love to have my interview in Calgary as opposed to Vancouver ...

[Malrothien 6]

It'd be great if they decided to have Calgary take on some of the interviews. That would be so much better for us.

[lgg 2]

Okay, I guess that makes sense and for future peoples' sake I hope they get it together.

BUT... it's not like it's freaking Burger King where people quit/ stop coming in and well, they just sluff off and burgers don't get made! It's the freaking US consulate...

Anyway... thanks for sharing your info...

[trailmix 77]

Interesting info you got there Peachy, it's not surprising they are understaffed, I kind of assumed that, what is interesting is that they gave you the other info!

If you think about it, it's kind of silly to have all of certain types of visas interviewing at Montreal, not just because it's annoying for Canadians to travel all that way, but also because they have no back up plan.

If a bunch of people quit or were transferred etc etc - they have no back up, the waiting list just keeps getting longer and longer. It's really no way to run anything.

Unless they nominate another consulate for interviews I can't see the backlog disappearing anytime soon - unless of course they can drag some people from other posts, which is entirely possible I suppose.

[Ron/Sharon 0]

Oh boy, not good news. I wonder how that will affect my getting my visa back. If I don't get it in the next 30 days I'll have to send a change address and that will further delay things. This is one more thing that makes life interesting.

[darkchilde794 5]

Oh man that so sucks Its like we are all being punished for something that we have no control over. I really hope this situation is fixed bec my fiance and I estimated we would get our interview by this month but the NVC people said it would be at least Dec when we will HEAR of our interview date. This is really depressing me

[lgg 2]

Yep -- depressing is the exact right word. And on that lovely note -- I would expect that since they are disseminating such news that A. It is true and B. Now they have an official excuse for being so behind and this is another way of saying, Tough #######, Canadians -- suck it up.

IMHO....

[SapphireDreams 71]

I wonder how many people just work there, like in adminstrative processing type jobs that are Canadians and how many Americans actually work there.

I'm guessing they must have some sort of management/operations problem if so many people are quitting like that in this economy.

If they are having a meeting about it, it seems they are trying to fix the issue, but government agencies aren't exactly efficient and speedy when it comes to these types of issues...

I hope they speed things up soon for the benefit of everyone waiting!!

[Varba 0]

Honestly, at this point I don't care WHERE it is, just give me one and I'll be happy.

K1's are supposed to be the fast immigration method.

As it is, I guess I'll have enough time to build a mini death star and fly it to our frickin interview. At least I'll have my revenge!

Wait... that was just my dream. #######.

[Krikit 1,164]

I wish they'd have a staff meeting about the VSC and fix their staffing problems also.

[thedawghouse86 0]

I wouldn't like to do their job, that's for sure. If you're working the visa section, I would imagine that you would have to do the same thing over and over and over again. Who would want to go into work knowing that everyone sitting in the waiting room is big time on edge?

I was surprised when I found out that it was just Montreal that did my type of visa issuance. It would make a heck of a lot more sense to have the Toronto consulate and even the embassy in Ottawa do this as well. For those out west, it sure gets pricey when there's an interview in Montreal when you're living in Moose Jaw or Canmore.

Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton would be some other choices I would make as the Interview Czar or whatever they're calling themselves now. And I'd take pains not to have anyone get interviewed in Winni"stab."