Waiting for our passports from Montreal

[NikLR 13,227]

Hi Trenz, my visa showed up as "issued" this morning thank goodness. I think K-1s go to AP temporarily before they get issued. I expect yours to be issued very shortly. Take good care!

Yes they do. that's why it normally takes a little longer for K1 to get their visa back than CR1/IR1.

[Trenz 52]

Yes they do. that's why it normally takes a little longer for K1 to get their visa back than CR1/IR1.

Just out of curiosity, NLR, what has been the average wait time (that you've seen at least) in AP for someone waiting to receive their K1 visa in hand?

Edited June 4, 2015 by Trenz

[NikLR 13,227]

About 2 weeks would be average for a K1. It's been upward of a month on average sometimes in the year (more holidays etc..) I'd say getting over 6 weeks is strange. Montreal is nothing but slow however. Contacting the US representative (senator for instance) is about what you can do at that point.

If you had to send anything in, for a 221g. It seems like 8 weeks is about the average for something to happen.

[Trenz 52]

About 2 weeks would be average for a K1. It's been upward of a month on average sometimes in the year (more holidays etc..) I'd say getting over 6 weeks is strange. Montreal is nothing but slow however. Contacting the US representative (senator for instance) is about what you can do at that point.

If you had to send anything in, for a 221g. It seems like 8 weeks is about the average for something to happen.

Wow, 2 weeks from now on top of the time I have already waited would put me north of a month from my interview date. A month from now would be putting me close to the 2 month mark since my interview. Alas, all I can do is sit here and hope I breeze through the AP stage and onto the "Issued" phase quickly.

Just a real shame they claim 2 weeks in total for the visa in hand and many of us are sitting here months later without it being issued.

[NikLR 13,227]

I mean total from visa interview, not from your point onward.

[YVRDualCouple 5]

Hey there… that's really really tough. I am finding THIS wait tough, I can't imagine yours. I am just wondering, as I am not convinced those status updates mean ANYTHING at all. Have yours been updating through all these 7 weeks? Also, did you lawyer contact the consulate and get any useful information? (I am assuming not, since you said he/she was baffled as well). I don't think it's the same sex thing - I've seen plenty of people here get approved and get the issued thing right away.

I am really hoping the congressperson will come through for you!!!!

Howdy all,

Tomorrow (Thursday) marks SEVEN full weeks since our MTL interview; nothing yet. Our congressperson's office has not yet responded, but they claim the mail got lost earlier.

Our lawyer is of no help at this point, lawyers have no contacts beyond the same email address as the rest of us.

Also, our case still says "ready," and the last touch was May 15. We have not been moved to AP, let alone issued. Hoping that the congressional office can help. Otherwise we're really getting confused.

[Trenz 52]

Howdy all,

Tomorrow (Thursday) marks SEVEN full weeks since our MTL interview; nothing yet. Our congressperson's office has not yet responded, but they claim the mail got lost earlier.

Our lawyer is of no help at this point, lawyers have no contacts beyond the same email address as the rest of us.

Also, our case still says "ready," and the last touch was May 15. We have not been moved to AP, let alone issued. Hoping that the congressional office can help. Otherwise we're really getting confused.

I think it is absurd what has happened with your immigration situation. If I am under this kind of stress with my time line, I shudder to think how well you and your partner have been coping with yours. It is equally absurd that in your situation (or anyone else for that matter) there is little to no recourse, let alone an actual person we can speak with to get answers.

At this point I really do hope your congressperson's office does come through for you in some way or another.

While I am happy my status has progressed, I am certainly getting an eye opening experience in what others have to go through but on a magnitude even greater than mine. Here's to hoping something positive comes your way very soon.

[Mshp 0]

My husband's interview was on May 5/2015, which I companied him. The officer asked for all the docs. which I had them all ready, at the end of it he said you will receive your visa in 3 weeks. Today is 5 days after that 3 weeks. CEAC website showed AP after a week. I emailed them and they told me we have to wait until they do their job! if we want, we can ask for the passport to be returned to us and whenever the visa was ready they will ask us to return it to them! I feel so hopless, there is nothing anywhere to give you any time frame for this AP thing. I searched about it and found some PDF format information which is from Penn law school in that they explain what can cause and send some case to this stage! We have to wait 60 days and if there was no answer contact them and wait another and another and..

It is cruel! all of us waited more than a year_we waited more that 1 year and half_to get the interview day and they where doing all the security things done the whole time, what this means now!? our life means nothings! It is not right realy. ((((

Edited June 5, 2015 by Mshp

[Trenz 52]

My husband's interview was on May 5/2015, which I companied with him. The officer asked for all the docs. which I had them all ready, at the end of it he said you will receive your visa in 3 weeks. Today is 5 days after that 3 weeks. CEAC website showed AP after a week. I emailed them and they told me we have to wait until they do their job! if we want, we can ask for the passport to be returned to us and whenever the visa was ready they will ask us to return it to them! I feel so hopless, there is nothing anywhere to give you any time frame for this AP thing. I searched about it and found some PDF format information which is from Penn law school in that they explain what can cause and send some case to this stage! We have to wait 60 days and if there was no answer contact them and wait another and another and..

It is cruel! all of us waited more than a year_we waited more that 1 year and half_to get the interview day and they where doing all the security things done the whole time, what this means now!? our life means nothings! It is not right realy. ((((

I am very surprised your process has taken this long considering your visa entered the AP stage so quickly. To put it in perspective, I had my interview on May 14th and my visa status on the CEAC website remained in the "Ready" stage until June 3. It is discouraging to say the least, especially when I was told I would only have a 2 week wait in total. Yesterday marked the 3 week point since my interview. It is doubly frustrating you don't have any recourse on this, as you mentioned. The feeling of helplessness you mentioned is something a lot of us know so well.

It is astonishing that we as applicants are expected to have things done in a complete and orderly manner, but time lines on the other end of this can be totally misguided and not honoured.

Here's to hoping that we all get some good news and eventually see that "Issued" status on the CEAC website.

[canuckmoran 7]

Hey everyone.

I am sorry to hear the troubling stories about people not getting their Visa's in the time specified by the embassy.

My interview is on June 30th and if all is approved what it s likelihood mine is going to be delayed??? Mine is for CR1/IR1.

We were hoping to move by the July 18th.

I wonder why the huge delays, since people in December were getting theirs quite quickly and now it seems people in April/May are struggling to get their back.

[YVRDualCouple 5]

CanuckMoran:

Based on our experience, you should not make ANY plans, especially not moving to the States by mid-July.

Go back in the thread and read my suggestion about questions you should ask during your interview.

We are now approaching 8 weeks since our clean interview, and nothing. We had many plans--I and our cats already are living in the States as domicile had to be established. My husband remains back in Canada.

Our congress person is now involved, and we are awaiting the information they can obtain.

[Trenz 52]

Hey everyone.

I am sorry to hear the troubling stories about people not getting their Visa's in the time specified by the embassy.

My interview is on June 30th and if all is approved what it s likelihood mine is going to be delayed??? Mine is for CR1/IR1.

We were hoping to move by the July 18th.

I wonder why the huge delays, since people in December were getting theirs quite quickly and now it seems people in April/May are struggling to get their back.

Hey there,

To be perfectly honest I do not think anyone here could give you a solid answer to that question due to the widely unpredictable nature the Montreal consulate has become known for as of late. I have seen people offer advice on here that have gone through the process before, but even their experiences varied wildly from what is occurring at the moment, unfortunately.

I know there are some big differences between the CR-1 and K-1 visas (I'm applying for a K-1 at the moment) but in my experience the two week time frame they have offered is totally inaccurate. For instance, I was told I would have my passport and visa in hand within two weeks (not two weeks worth of business days, but two weeks total as I clarified this); my appointment was May 14th and my visa has just made it to the "Administrative Processing" stage on June 3 (there are three stages: Ready, Administrative Processing, Issued).

To say that the consulate is slow this past month would be an understatement. There are others within this thread who have actively been waiting 7 weeks or more for their visa as well (CR-1 I believe). Anecdotally, people on here have said that CR-1 visas tend to go quick than others, but thus far in my experience I have not seen that.

My suggestion is to not bank on leaving by July 18th if you can avoid it. I know you have to make solid plans and the like, but if you are flying, think of the wasted money being spent on tickets that may potentially be non-refundable. I know it stinks to have to be at the mercy of the consulate, but you will end up stressing far worse if you make plans and they fall through because of a delay in receiving your visa.

[canuckmoran 7]

Does anyone think that there is a difference in the timeline of receiving their passports between those with CR-1 (less than 2 years married) and IR-1 (more than 2 years married)?

Edited June 7, 2015 by canuckmoran

[Trenz 52]

Does anyone think that there is a difference in the timeline of receiving their passports between those with CR-1 (less than 2 years married) and IR-1 (more than 2 years married)?

I am basing this reply purely on my own research I have done, but I do not think there is much difference between the two in terms of visa processing time post-interview. Both essentially enter through the same process once it has worked itself through the system to get to the interview stage. Again, purely anecdotally from what I have read I have read very sporadic time differences between people seeking those types of visas. I do believe that receiving one's passport back from Montreal is entirely dependent upon their workload and/or other factors involved with them physically printing your visa and entering it into the system.

I could of course be entirely wrong here so please take this with a grain of salt. As I am sure you have seen, these processing times vary so wildly it is almost a craps shoot guessing when yours will be processed. I would suggest having a look at other threads to see if you notice a pattern for that type of visa being issued out of Montreal.

[Danielle and Jake 24]

Well this thread has definitely opened my eyes to some of the horrors of waiting for your passport to come back...my interview is June 25th, and now I'm just about ready to scratch off all my travel plans on July 12th which for my situation are kind of vital I stick to.

It seems that depending on the month really determines your fate for how long it will take. People with their interviews in December/January seemed to have their's in no time while looks like May was a horror show....I guess I can only hope that the end of June will be better, but I'm learning to not keep my hopes up for anything.