Canadian DCFs Waiting for Interview in Montreal

[birdnerd 5]

1. I called the DoS yesterday, and they said packet 4 was mailed to me "this week", but I have yet to receive it in the mail. I called Seiden and Associates in Toronto to schedule my medical appointment, but they wouldn't schedule unless I have the packet 4 information in my possession. Do you recommend waiting until that arrives to schedule my medical?

Hi and welcome, blackjasmine.

Wow, they're really on the ball with sending out all these P4s! Whoo! I spoke to Seiden's office also, I explained that the new P4 doesn't actually have an interview date printed on it, she said it's ok, just bring a letter with your case number on it, and the P4 letter. You should be getting your P4 soon. Mine just arrived today (and I already booked my interview online a few days ago), it was dated Sept 9.

2. On the US Visa service website where we can schedule the appointment in Montreal, I go to the login page, and the first thing it asks for is the passport number, date of birth, and nationality "using information in the applicant's passport". Who is the applicant in this case? Is it my USC husband, or me the Canadian citizen beneficiary?

More importantly, if we enter the wrong one, does the system have a feature to inform us that we should actually be entering the information of the other spouse?? If not, might we go through the entire process entering the wrong person's name, only to find out our mistake when we get to the Montreal interview?

Beneficiary = Applicant = Canadian. Petitioner = American.

3. I tested out the service yesterday using my own information (Canadian passport number, etc), and it listed October 26 or 27 as the earliest appointment date, which won't work for me. As I proceeded through the screens, I got scared that I would inadvertently be confirming that date for my interview. Is there eventually a screen that lets us choose from a list of dates?

Yeah, that login screen seems like a bug. It appears that if you press back to get back to the applicant information screen, then try again, it should work after a few tries. Or try a different computer. I think it's supposed to be an internal page, for the contractor and consulate staff. Just ignore.

It shows you the 'first available' date, you select 'schedule appointment', then, when the system isn't being buggy, you should see the calendar with all the available dates. Then book. Easy peasy.

Thanks for being the unofficial organizer of the Canadian DCFs for these past several months.

Thank you! It feels weird, being the DCF guru, as most DCFers are only on the site for a few weeks, then they're visa'd up and gone. So I guess that's one benefit of it taking us 9 months to get to the interview stage.

[birdnerd 5]

Oh, I should also ask, what did you guys choose for "TYPE OF VISA" when doing the self-schedule booking?

I picked "Permanently Immigrate to the US (Ready to Schedule)". Is this the right one?? Is this why I am getting the login screen and everytime I go back to ths site it still tells me "no appointments are currently scheduled, what would you like to do next?" and then gives me the option to schedule in the 1st available date... which ultimately takes me to that login screen which I mentioned above...

Should I try to click on the "forgot password" link at the login screen to see if I can have a password mailed to me? How do I know what my login should be (if any)..

Thx, Choles

That's awesome, choles.

Yes, that is the right option. See the post above for my explanation of the 'login' page. It's just a software glitch. Ignore it, go back to your applicant information page, then try again. Might have to do it a few times.

Good luck.

[birdnerd 5]

Hi birdnerd,

I'm one of the Canadian citizens who's been mildly depressed and waiting seemingly forever for this process to get moving to be reunited with my husband. Now it's moving for everyone, which is great!

Also, it would be great if you could fill out your timeline.

Select 'Immigration Timelines' at the top of the page, then 'add/edit my entry'.

Cheers!

[birdnerd 5]

Name..................................I-130 Filed...........................DS-230 Returned............................Interview Date......................DTI

tauruslady..........................May -- 2009................................Oct -- 2009..................................Oct 26 2010.....................390* (rescheduled from Jan 2010)

dawnlinnet ........................Oct 27 2009................................Feb 15 2010................................Sept 29 2010...................226

superspur..........................Nov 21 2009................................Feb 15 2010...............................Sept 24 2010....................221

pinguino_41.......................Jan -- 2010..................................Mar -- 2010.................................Sept 29 2010...................~212

birdnerd.............................Jan 25 2010.................................Mar 26 2010................................Oct 20 2010....................208

Adichiwa............................Jan 5 2010..................................Mar 27 2010................................Sept 24 2010....................181

choles................................Mar 1 2010 (?)............................Apr 23 2010

leonsgal70.........................Mar 18 2010................................Apr 26 2010

kimberlyk21.......................Mar 19 2010................................May 10 2010................................Oct 27 2010......................170

bscobrown.........................Mar -- 2010.................................May -- 2010

aimal................................Apr -- 2010...................................Jun 2010

canok................................Mar -- 2010.................................Jun 28 2010

dabigbass..........................May 18 2010................................Jul 12 2010

Shimmer4554.....................????????.....................................Jul -- 2010

sammy060382...................Feb -- 2010.................................Aug 5 2010

Still to come:

Abike...................................Sept 2009

Saad & Sumera.....................Mar 2010

tablespin...............................May 2010

digoman..............................May 27 2010

mllover................................Jun 11 2010

Erdestino............................Jul 21 2010

AMERICAN/CANADIAN........Jul 8 2010

housewife...........................Jul 13 2010

Stephen&Kim

Edited September 18, 2010 by birdnerd

[housewife 1]

ok packet 3 letter received on Sept 15 (I guess this is the new stuff)

This office is processing the below referenced immigrant visa case. In order to continue processing this case please visit canada.usvisa-info.com to obtain information online or via telephone concerning the next steps you must take to pursue your application for a US immigrant visa at the US consulate General in Montreal

you must have Passport Number, date of birth, nationality, MTL case number and visa catagory for each applicant (principal applicant and all familymembers including chilen) ready in order to access the website. When pompted to select "Trip Purpose" you must choose "permanently Immigrate to the US". After entering your info, you will be prompted to select a DHL courier location. You will use DHL to provide documents to the Consulate and the Consulate will return documents to you via DHL only. The courier ervice is provided to you at no cost. Please be sure to regiter for each applicant including children. Please do not schedule an internivew appointment at this time; appointments can only be scheduled once the consular serction has reviewed your ce.

Once you have registered at the above website please foloow the link to montreal.usconsulate.gov to compllete and return to the Immigrant visa (IV) Unit the required application forms and checklist of documents to gatyher for the interview. Please compelte the forms according to the visa category yo are applying for; once checklist per family is sufficient. Please return the forms and checklistto the US consulate via the DHL courier location that you previsously selected. This service is provided to you at no additional cost. Courier services are provided within Canada only.

Upon receipt of the required documents, please allow six weeks for the review of your case. Please make sure you ahve provided your e-mail address on the form DS 230 (field # 13). Upon completeion of the review, we will instruct you via the e-amil address you provided to us to request an interview appointment throught he website canada.usvisa-info.com When your case has been seceduled for an interview you will be provided with information regarding the interview appointment and the required medical examination.

If your visa is approved at the time of the interview, it will be returned to you via DHL at the DHL office designated by you. Should you be required to submit additional documenttation you will follow the same procedure.

If you have any questions yo may submit your inquiry to canada.usvisa-info.com. In all correspondence, please include your name and case number noted at the end of this letter.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Then it has personal stuff like name, categaory case # dofb

[housewife 1]

That was 2 pages long.

Page 3

Documents requrid for Immigrant and K visa applicants

Acceptable documtns Documetns must bear the seal o the issuing office. A copy is acceptable only if the original document with a seal is also presented for inspection. if you are unsure wheather a document meets the requirments listed below, please consult the dept. of state visa reciprocity and country decouments finder online at travel.state.gov/visa/reciprocity/index.htm.

|Translations. All dcoumetns not in english must be accomplanied by certified translations into english translations must be certified by official translator and notarized.

requesting documetns. please consult the appropriate governmental agency the embassy or consulate for the country involved or the visa reciprocity and country documents finder website at travel.state.gov/visa reciprocity/index.htm.

[passport a passport valid for at least one year from the date of your visa interview copy the biographical information page.

photographs. FIVE identical photos taken within 6 months of the date of your visa interview, each two inches square (50mm x 50mm) Three of these photos will be used for your medical exam and will be requried at the time of the medical exam. Two fo the photos will be used by teh US consulate in preparing the visa and will be requested at the time of the inteview. The requirments are the same as those of Canadian passport photos.

Birth cerificate. Original civil no religiou birth certif. which shows it is an extract from the official records and bearing the seal of the issuing authroity. The certificate must include the date and place of birth and the names of both paretns. Info regarding the proceure for obtaining birth cert. is usually availalbe formt he embassy or consulate of the coutnry concered.

For births in Canada, certificates are available thorugh the appropriate provincial office or through a registry agent which can be located on the websites of the provincial governments. Requesst the long form certificate which includes the names of both parents.

Evidence in lieu of unobtainiable birth certifice in rare caes it may be impossible to obtain a birth certifcae becuase records have been desroyed or the governmen does nto issue them. In such a case the consulte general will consier secondary evidence (if you need more stuff let me know I'll type the rest but its long and prefer to skip for now)

Adoptions certificates, if an applicat was adopted obtain the original or a court certifiy copy of the certf.

Marriage certificates Original civil (not religious)

Police Certificetes ( I thinkt his is the same as before) For Canadians: contact your local police or RCP regarding criminal record check procedures (again if you need me to type it all out I will just ask me)

Medical exam (same as others stated)

Evididence of Domicile. Documents which evidence the Petitioner (1) resides in the US or (2) is residing abrouad temporarily, has a principal residence in the US, intendes to maintain that residence for the forseeable future and has continued ties to the US. A Petitioner may restablish domicile in the US by taking a combination of credible steps to make the US his or her immediate principal place of abode. Such steps may include finding employments, purchaing or renting a palce to live, registering children in school, obtaining a professionaL LICENSE FOR A SPECIFIC LOCALITY, ENOROLLING IN A FULL TIME EDUCATION PROGRAM AND OTHER INDICATIONS OF RESIDENCE. (SORRY AOBUT THE CAPS DIDNT REALIZE)

Affidavid of Suppot For K visa aplicants form I =-134 AOS compelted by teh Petitioner and availalbe at www. uscis.gov provide the original affidavit and one copy for each derivative applicant.

For all other immigrant visa applicants form I 864 completed by the Petitioner and any joint sponsors. Provide the original affidavit and one copy for each derivative applicant. Please note if the Petitioner of join sponsor files taxes jointly also requird is either a)evidence of the Petitioner's or join sponsor's individual income or (6) form I864A contract between sponsor and household member, cpmpleted by the person with whome the petitioner files taxes jointly. Thse forms are availalbe at travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3730.html.

For children under 18 and the beneviciary of a petion filed by a US citizen parent form I864W available at travel.state.gov/visa immigrants/info/info/3730.html.

[housewife 1]

continued.

The following to join derivative beneficiaries of an employed based petition form I134 complted by the princiapl applicant and availalbe at www.uscis.gov Also provide a current letter form the princiapl applicant's employer stating the position and sary of the princiapl applicant.

Evidence of Support. current documents (e.g. most recent US tax return and record of income received in the previous calendar year, current pay record, evidence of any assets stated on affidavit) whiche vidence the financial support stated by the person who compelted the affidavit of support. Pleas note evidence of additional support may be required depending on th facts of the individual case.

Intent to Marry letter For K1 vissa a letter signed by your US citizen fiance(e) within 90 days of the date of your visa inteview and stating he or shie is legall y fre to marry you and tha you and yoru fiance() intend to marrye adh other within 90 days of yoru admission into the US

Offer of Employment (for employment visas) if you need let me know and I'll type.

Criminal Records (court and prison) Let me know if you need and I'll type

Military record, divorce or annulment decreese, immigracation records and documetns for children (if you need me to type these out I will just ask) But I think they are already covered elsewhere.

The above takes care of the other pages.

The last page is about the photographs, size, appearance etc. if you need I'll type it out but I think it's the same as already stated before.

I hope this helps someone.

Please excuse typos I typed fast and if you need me to retype or explain something, just ask and I'll check and redo. Sorry I can't scan.

[AMERICAN/CANADIAN 0]

I have a question for all of you who have used the new scheduling system:

According to what the new P3 says (from Housewife's previous posts) it takes 6 weeks after the 230 is sent back to them before you can schedule your appointment. My question is how far forward you can book it? The reason I ask is because I would like to schedule our appointment for over spring break, but I would like to schedule it quite a bit in advance. Thanks Yall.

[birdnerd 5]

I have a question for all of you who have used the new scheduling system:

According to what the new P3 says (from Housewife's previous posts) it takes 6 weeks after the 230 is sent back to them before you can schedule your appointment. My question is how far forward you can book it? The reason I ask is because I would like to schedule our appointment for over spring break, but I would like to schedule it quite a bit in advance. Thanks Yall.

Hi A/C,

I don't think you can book too far ahead (yet), when I looked at the calendar, I think only October and November dates were available. They maybe allow you to book 6-8 weeks ahead.

You should be able to find out when you're eligible to schedule your interview by calling DoS and asking if your packet has been logged, which means you're ready to schedule. I sent my DS-230 back March 26, was logged Apr 27. That's when I became eligible, been waiting till now for an interview date.

[choles 0]

We've been trying a ton of times using different browswers (firefox, IE, chrome), and we're not getting anywhere...after we click to schedule an appointment, it takes us back to the choose a DHL branch page, and then it goes to a log in page that looks like this

Visa Information Service

Appointment Scheduling System

Username:

Password:

Forgot Password?

Site:

There's no username or password associated with this site right? Are we doing something wrong?? Did any of you guys schedule your appointment by calling DoS or calling someone else directly?

Thanks guys

[birdnerd 5]

We've been trying a ton of times using different browswers (firefox, IE, chrome), and we're not getting anywhere...after we click to schedule an appointment, it takes us back to the choose a DHL branch page, and then it goes to a log in page that looks like this

Visa Information Service

Appointment Scheduling System

Username:

Password:

Forgot Password?

Site:

There's no username or password associated with this site right? Are we doing something wrong?? Did any of you guys schedule your appointment by calling DoS or calling someone else directly?

Thanks guys

Hey choles,

That screen appears to be a bug in the system.

If you can't get through to the calendar, you might want to call. Yes, there is actually a phone number now!

This is from the consulate web page:

Please visit http://canada.usvisa-info.com/

or send an e-mail to contactus_en_CA@usvisa-info.com

Or call Montreal - 514.400.2591

Calgary - 403.800.1194

Halifax - 902.982.2191

Ottawa - 613.800.0917

Toronto - 647.955.3736

Vancouver - 604.800.2794

Quebec City - 418.800.1751

Toll-free number in Canada 1.877.341.2441.

Toll-free number in the United States 1.877.341.2441.

[bscobrown 0]

Does anyone know anything about how newborns factor into immigration?

I made an I-130 petition for my wife and son back in March. Late March/beginning of April, I was excited to learn my wife was pregnant. At the time I figured the historic DCFs were going, she would have her interview before delivery (in which case the newborn could have easily gotten over the border).

Now it is late September and she is due in the middle of October. We just recieved packet 4 so we are in the process of booking interviews and medical. Since we did not have a due date, or a name it was impossible to get an I-130 for my new child. To complicate things, I am a birth-abroad American and have not lived in the States for 5 years so a consular birth abroad certificate would be problematic.

Any suggestions?

[choles 0]

Or call Montreal - 514.400.2591

Calgary - 403.800.1194

Halifax - 902.982.2191

Ottawa - 613.800.0917

Toronto - 647.955.3736

Vancouver - 604.800.2794

Quebec City - 418.800.1751

Toll-free number in Canada 1.877.341.2441.

Toll-free number in the United States 1.877.341.2441.[/i]

Looks like all these numbers lead to a centralized phone queue... I tried a few of them and got the same result...

I actually called on Friday, but when I chose an option to "stay on the phone to talk to a representative" (to the effect) it paused for a few seconds and then just hungup the phone, almost as if all reps were either busy, or again there is a bug in the phone system too ;p

I guess I'll call again Monday and sort it out hopefully this time!

Thanks all.....

Choles

[birdnerd 5]

Does anyone know anything about how newborns factor into immigration?

I made an I-130 petition for my wife and son back in March. Late March/beginning of April, I was excited to learn my wife was pregnant. At the time I figured the historic DCFs were going, she would have her interview before delivery (in which case the newborn could have easily gotten over the border).

Now it is late September and she is due in the middle of October. We just recieved packet 4 so we are in the process of booking interviews and medical. Since we did not have a due date, or a name it was impossible to get an I-130 for my new child. To complicate things, I am a birth-abroad American and have not lived in the States for 5 years so a consular birth abroad certificate would be problematic.

Any suggestions?

Sorry, bsco, I can't help you. I think there is a member on the Canada forum in kind of the same situation - mtlgato. You might want to message her to see how she's handling the birth. I see your issue with not having lived in the US though, that is tricky.

Maybe send an email to Mtl consulate?

Congrats on your P4, and the impending birth!

[housewife 1]

can anyone give me the DOS phone # please