Waiting for a future date to open up for interview

[LittleLeaf 38]

Hello,

Just looking for some advice from those who have booked their interview on the online scheduler.

I'm from Manitoba and to avoid high costs of booking flights last minute for Montreal I've booked myself to Montreal June 27-July 7th, aiming for July 5th for the interview and some wiggle room for the medical (willing to push my flight home if needed).

Got things submitted a little earlier than expected, and at the moment all available appointments are for June; if I keep waiting, will early July open up or are you stuck with only the 4 week window after you've registered?

I'm getting anxious to get it booked, and figured Id ask while waiting.

[Leafsfan 54]

Truthfully it's a bit of a shot in the dark to guess when your interview appointment will be made for you. There's always a possibility they will request additional documents before it gets to that point. In my case, my original birth certificate from 1982 was not acceptable, and I had to order and submit a copy of a new one. Like most government agencies a deadline is more of an educated guess, and less of a hard date like it is in the private sector (I say this being a former public servant myself).

 

What I can tell you is:

- I had 5 weeks of lead time from notification of appointment, to the appointment date.

- Medisys in Montreal told me (at the time) they could not guarantee results of the medical for my interview in fewer then 5 full business days. What this meant for me was having the exam done the Thursday a week before my interview on Friday, or 9 days in Montreal counting travel days. I had my exam in hand the Wednesday before my interview as it turns out, but did not want to chance it. It sucks being thousands of kilometers away from any of the approved panel physicians, but you will need to get it done at one of them. My request to have it done at a USCIS approved physicians office an hour away in Montana was denied.

- You can contact them to reschedule your interview once your date is assigned, but I was basically told it's a ####### shoot and you lose any priority I would have as a CR1 and it could push me back months.

- I found flights to Montreal from Calgary stayed steady until about a month before the date, and went up pretty drastically from 3 weeks out.

- You might be able to get a better deal on accommodations through AirBNB. I got an apartment two blocks away from Desjardins centre with a full kitchen for a third less then any nearby hotels. There's a grocery store in Desjardins. If you're on a shoestring budget, you could save a little more in a hostel.

 

Best of luck! This is by far the most expensive and difficult part of the journey for anyone who doesn't live in southern Ontario or Quebec, but it's also the end of it

[LittleLeaf 38]

Thanks for the reply!

 I should have specified I'm a K-1 so I get to choose my interview timeslot.

 

I assume you need to wait until some of the other days fill up before they open new ones. Im just worried they only give a 4 week window to choose from and I registered to early to have July 5th be applicable to me.

Guess I'll just breathe and be patient lol.

 

I'm definitely going to use AirBNB. The consulate is right by the university, and being the summer there are lots of vacant student rooms, so I luckily found some pretty cheap accommodations. That website is a blessing! Also kind of pumped Im there over Canada Day (if it works out), so It'll be a fun trip!

[pajobra 1,395]

1 hour ago, LittleLeaf said:

Thanks for the reply!

 I should have specified I'm a K-1 so I get to choose my interview timeslot.

 

I assume you need to wait until some of the other days fill up before they open new ones. Im just worried they only give a 4 week window to choose from and I registered to early to have July 5th be applicable to me.

Guess I'll just breathe and be patient lol.

 

I'm definitely going to use AirBNB. The consulate is right by the university, and being the summer there are lots of vacant student rooms, so I luckily found some pretty cheap accommodations. That website is a blessing! Also kind of pumped Im there over Canada Day (if it works out), so It'll be a fun trip!

Ah a fellow Manitoban yay! lol Hopefully that window works for you.  I am just gonna wait and see what happens. I don't expect our NOA2 approval til end of June anyway. But I also planned on staying in Montreal for a week doing both the medical and the interview and staying in an Airbnb as well. Argh it sucks being that we have no really close places for our medical though. I am expecting to go my interview in September. 

[LittleLeaf 38]

Pajobra - You'd be surprised, I got my NoA2 within 3.5 months, so it may be quicker than you think (I was expecting it in June @ around 6mo)!!

To my luck, when I checked yesterday (May 30th) all the weeks of July finally opened up for interviews, so I was able to then book for July 5th; yay!

Yeah, it would be so much easier if they had someone in MB who was certified.

But this morning I made my medical in Montreal for June 28th which the man on the line said would be just enough time to process (being that there's a rolled over holiday for Canada day). So a week should be perfect for you. The medical office was great about confirming how many days advance you'll need for the results, so it should be easy enough for you to plan.  He also said the price atm with taxes is $453.00 CAD

 

As for my original question, I did find an answer:

I gave the 'visa appointment services' a call (numbers found here: https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-ca/iv/information/contact_us ) and they confirmed the appointment openings are a little random, and you just have to wait for dates to open up.  You can wait as long as you'd like with no cut offs, just make sure your NoA2 doesn't expire (they give you 4 months which can be extended, you just have to call the consulate).

 

[pajobra 1,395]

On 5/31/2017 at 6:55 PM, LittleLeaf said:

Pajobra - You'd be surprised, I got my NoA2 within 3.5 months, so it may be quicker than you think (I was expecting it in June @ around 6mo)!!

To my luck, when I checked yesterday (May 30th) all the weeks of July finally opened up for interviews, so I was able to then book for July 5th; yay!

Yeah, it would be so much easier if they had someone in MB who was certified.

But this morning I made my medical in Montreal for June 28th which the man on the line said would be just enough time to process (being that there's a rolled over holiday for Canada day). So a week should be perfect for you. The medical office was great about confirming how many days advance you'll need for the results, so it should be easy enough for you to plan.  He also said the price atm with taxes is $453.00 CAD

 

As for my original question, I did find an answer:

I gave the 'visa appointment services' a call (numbers found here: https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-ca/iv/information/contact_us ) and they confirmed the appointment openings are a little random, and you just have to wait for dates to open up.  You can wait as long as you'd like with no cut offs, just make sure your NoA2 doesn't expire (they give you 4 months which can be extended, you just have to call the consulate).

 

Even if it was in Saskatoon it would be better or something. They really need to do something about us prairie people but like my Mum says "The things you will do for love". LOL Well we are hoping we get it soon. If we do get it the third week of June and I can schedule something in August I will. My Mum is planning on coming with me to make a holiday of it as she has also not been to Montreal before. She works for herself so she has flexible time off. My boss is like you go when you go we will be fine. Whew. Yeah I have that $453 dollars already sitting in my savings ready for that and should have my plane ticket saved up by the end of June. My Mum is going to pay for the airbnb as a present because she feels we have already spent so much on this process that its ridiculous. 

 

Thanks for the information on appointment openings. I had been wondering about that.

[Nathan&Amy 204]

It sounds from this post like Montreal interviews are being booked about a month out, is that correct? I read somewhere they have really long waiting times and are booked up for about 4 months so was really worried about that... but that was not the case for you?

[LittleLeaf 38]

2 hours ago, Nathan&Amy said:

It sounds from this post like Montreal interviews are being booked about a month out, is that correct? I read somewhere they have really long waiting times and are booked up for about 4 months so was really worried about that... but that was not the case for you?

I found the wait was almost none, so I'm not sure if things have improved recently, or if it varies by time of year.

 

When I could start viewing the scheduler in May I could book as early as about 2 weeks out, to a month being the farthest. Since I was waiting for a July date (just got approved! ) I did end up waiting a few weeks for those later dates to open up. Dont worry if a week or two passes and another date isn't added; it was a little random that way. So if you're aiming for a specific date in the future, just hold out, it will open up eventually. If you're looking to get it done ASAP though, you should be in luck!

[jle2234 68]

I received my Case Complete on June 22nd and still have not received further information regarding an interview date. I was wondering if interview notification is usually sent via email or regular mail, and how long you waited from Case Complete to having an interview date.

[LittleLeaf 38]

9 hours ago, jle2234 said:

I received my Case Complete on June 22nd and still have not received further information regarding an interview date. I was wondering if interview notification is usually sent via email or regular mail, and how long you waited from Case Complete to having an interview date.

 

It depends what type of VISA youre applying for. K1 you choose your own appointment time, and I believe CR1 it's assigned - others can correct me if wrong.

VJ has some awesome stats pulled from users though if you want a more specific answer: CR1 for ex: http://www.visajourney.com/timeline/irstats.php

 

If it is K1, it should be pretty fast once youve sent in your packet 3 to the consulate by email (They autoreply with it taking up to 8 weeks to respond, but I got a reply in 48 hours). Once received, you get a packet 4 email and can go into their booking website and choose your slot. I'll note you can sign up ahead of getting your packet 4, but they'll cancel any interview you schedule if you're not at the right stage.