In AP from Montreal Consulate - anyone else?

[O&Z 1]

It's been 5 months for me in AP. they kept my passport at the interview and it's still with them

My status on CEAC changes when they reply to my emails. last time was 3 days ago.

mehr - if you dont mind my asking - is the beneficiary male or female? are they Canadian born citizen or born somewhere else?

were you told why you were placed in AP?

you can request your passport back if you need to travel.

we left ours with them, but they ended up sending it back to us anyways without us asking (within 1-2 weeks of the interview)

[O&Z 1]

Hey All, I hope all is well..

No updates as of yet for me. My wife contacted the senator in her state. His office contacted Montreal consulate. They just said that my case is still undergoing administrative processing..

That’s the last time my case was updated on CEAC (May 23)..

Interesting way of contacting the consulate through FB.. I will try it next time. LOL. How long did it take to reply back?

nabdelwa-

i was surprised they even acknowledged my email quite frankly.

it took them less than a week from my original message on facebook to obtain a reply (back to my regular non-fb email).

they said he's still under AP, but i figured i'm desperate so i might as well try unconventional way.

anyhow - they have a FB page so they must be ok with us contacting them.

i have to be brutally honest - it's a little frustrating seeing them all having so much fun at gatherings, events and parties. kind of makes me think this why our case isn't done. i feel guilty thinking that, maybe that's because i dont see the ppl "diligently working" on our case.

[O&Z 1]

sarah? fez? any updates??? (fingers crossed)

[mehr927 0]

mehr - if you dont mind my asking - is the beneficiary male or female? are they Canadian born citizen or born somewhere else?

were you told why you were placed in AP?

you can request your passport back if you need to travel.

we left ours with them, but they ended up sending it back to us anyways without us asking (within 1-2 weeks of the interview)

beneficiary is a male originally from Iran. They didn't give any reason for the AP but at the interview, they asked more about my work and educational background rather than our marriage. I guess my AP is all about the Technology Alert List !!!

I prefer not to request my passbort because sending the passport back to the embassy may delay the process further and I don't want to wait even 1 more day beyond my AP.

[O&Z 1]

beneficiary is a male originally from Iran. They didn't give any reason for the AP but at the interview, they asked more about my work and educational background rather than our marriage. I guess my AP is all about the Technology Alert List !!!

I prefer not to request my passbort because sending the passport back to the embassy may delay the process further and I don't want to wait even 1 more day beyond my AP.

Gosh that is so frustrating.

The Consulate officer pretty much told us we were in AP because my husband's name. He is Canadian born but has a very Muslim name.

she said it wouldn't take long, but here we are almost 7 months later.

What is the Technology Alert List?

[Adonia214 1]

I've been lurking here for a while - since October 2011 to be exact. My spouse, who was my boyfriend at the time, was banned from the US for 5 years. I'm American, he's Canadian.

Long story short, we're married now and he is on his way to Anjou to get his Visa.

It was a very gut wrenching, emotional, terrifying time that I think could have ripped the strongest couples apart, yet somehow we managed to see this through. Our US immigration process really needs improvement!!

I can tell you that while it took some time, nothing was as horrible as sitting in AP in Montreal.

My husband's I-212 waiver was approved in 45 days. Our attorney was pretty impressed and to be honest, we were too. I expected 90, but 45 from the time it was sent to the time we got the approval, was pretty impressive.

As soon as my attorney emailed me telling me the I-212 was approved, I used the public inquiry form and contacted Montreal right away. They confirmed receipt of the approval and I was told to have my husband send his passport through Loomis and the turn around time was approximately 1 week. We went from one week, to four. The stories changed. At first, we were told that once they had the passport, it would take one week to process. Then, we were told it would be 4 weeks from the time the passport was mailed, then we were told 4 weeks from the time they received the passport, (as a side note: when stuff is mailed to Montreal, there is about a 5 day delay. It goes to an offsite security screening first, then it is delivered), then to "it's in administrative processing and there is no time frame".

When I heard the words "administrative processing" I nearly died. I knew what that meant and that it wasn't good. What I've come to discover is there are two different types of processing. One, is the standard one which is taking Montreal about 4-6 weeks to go through. It takes them about 2-3 weeks just to look at your case and then another 2ish to finalize the Visa, print it, and send it. Then there is the AP that you get the slip for. We ended up being in the first type.

So, the people who told my attorney the case would be finished in 4 weeks from when they received the passport were correct. In fact, the case was finished 1 day before the deadline and the passport was available for pick up the day of the deadline.

I can't tell you if any of my actions made a difference. My attorney told me to be patient. Easy to say when it's not your spouse trapped behind an imaginary line. I inquired about the case weekly to Montreal and nearly daily to DOS. In fact, Montreal got so annoyed with me they sent me an email and literally hilighted the words "We will contact you when there is an update to your case". That didn't stop me, I emailed them once a week anyway. Response time varied from same day to about 5 days. We mailed his passport on May 8th with Loomis confirming May 9th as delivering, but Montreal saying the 14th is when it reached their office. The Visa was issued June 13th - so that was 30 days.

My heart breaks for you that are still going through this. I hope some of my information has been useful and if there are any questions, I will answer as best I can. My husband and I are due to fly to the US on June 25.

Edited June 14, 2013 by Adonia214

[O&Z 1]

Adonia,

thank you for your words of support and sharing your experience.

I'm very happy that things worked out for you guys!

Hope you have safe travels!

i our case, it is the 'mandatory' AP that goes to Washington and doesn't stay local.

so despite my letters to congress, senate and white house - they say that it can't be expedited, waived, etc because he is still undergoing background checks that occur in Washington. I'm sure the sequester isn't helping us any lol.

i know exactly what you mean abt how you felt when you heard those words! I have never cried in front of my husband, but i literally felt like i had been slapped on the face. I started tearing up and felt an overwhelming sadness and anxiety. I explained that I would be moving soon and that this means he can't move with me. She was emphathetic towards me, but here we are still waiting

anywho - wishing everyone well as always!!!

[O&Z 1]

well i check CEAC website everyday.

and today they there was a date change on the status update to today's date.

but still AP.

i'm still comforted by the fact that someone is looking or pushing buttons, lol.

[nabdelwa 1]

well i check CEAC website everyday.

and today they there was a date change on the status update to today's date.

but still AP.

i'm still comforted by the fact that someone is looking or pushing buttons, lol.

I would be optimistic if I see my status changes every so often.. Maybe it is in the last approval process.

I think you will hear something good very soon fingers crossed!!

Mine still don’t change until they answer an inquiry but I am optimistic

[mehr927 0]

My status date is also changed today without any inquiry!!!! This is the first time this happens to my case. I'm very optimistic about this.

Hope we hear some good news very soon.

[O&Z 1]

yay Mehr!

that's great to hear!!!

i'm not completely sure if mine is without an inquiry.

on 6/7,i think it was because of my facebook email

i emailed my 2 senators and the whitehouse on 6/11/13.

i know at least one senator sent an inquiry- because i got a letter back from them.

the other senator sent a consent for privacy/release for information and i DID NOT send that back.

idk the status of the white house email.

but the status was changed on 6/12 and 6/13. so one of those was the senator - or maybe both?

then on 6/18 (yesterday) it was updated again but again part of me wonders if this is from either the other senator or white house inquiry?

maybe it was just their day to go thru cases once a month or whenever to update cases in AP.

who knows.

thanks for all the words of encouragement. it's going to be a year at the consulate in August.. really wish this thing would finish so we can all move on with our lives.

i still dont know what we did so wrong to be treated like this.

-z

[nabdelwa 1]

Mehr and zubi2lute, did you try to call the DOC and find out what the status of your cases? I usually call once a week.

zubi2lute, did the White House reply back to your email?

[O&Z 1]

no I dont really call DOS that often. they never tell me anything new or helpful anyways and dont particularly sound delighted to answer my questions.

i check the CEAC website every day instead.

the other reason i dont call is because their operating hours are usually my work hours, so it's hard to find time to call.

no response from the white house yet, but i guess i wasn't really expecting one. I just felt that i needed to utilize my first amendment rights lol.

[nabdelwa 1]

no I dont really call DOS that often. they never tell me anything new or helpful anyways and dont particularly sound delighted to answer my questions.

i check the CEAC website every day instead.

the other reason i dont call is because their operating hours are usually my work hours, so it's hard to find time to call.

no response from the white house yet, but i guess i wasn't really expecting one. I just felt that i needed to utilize my first amendment rights lol.

I remember seeing a post on VJ when the petitioner contacted the White House after 11 Months in AP. They answered her a month after her initial email. Give it sometime and see what they say.

Any news from anyone else?? Nothing is new for me.

[O&Z 1]

does anyone know if you have to re-do the medical exam and police certificate or other paperwork if it's been over a year.

it's not our fault that they are taking so long and it would really be insult to injury if they force us to pay another obscene amount of time and money to re-do the physical/medical.

it will be a year since hubby's medical in October. and i believe his police certificate was done in May, so a year is already over.