Montreal embassy EB-2 interview wait time

[farzady 42]

On 12/31/2020 at 9:12 PM, topman said:

Sad news! Its been such a long wait and still no end in sight. Hoping for the new administration to cancel the ban extension. Fingers crossed!

 

Happy 2021!

is there any chance that Biden removing this? 

[topman 42]

6 minutes ago, farzady said:

is there any chance that Biden removing this? 

There is nothing in the news about cancelling employment based immigration ban by executive action but I'm still hopeful that Biden's day 1 executive actions priorities has it in there. If not, we will need to wait until March 31, that's when the ban expires. 

[PradSim 6]

Read this news! Fingers crossed 🤞

 

"Biden to rescind Trump's pandemic-era limits on immigrant and work visas, top adviser says"

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-immigration-work-visa-limits-rescind/

[topman 42]

1 hour ago, PradSim said:

Read this news! Fingers crossed 🤞

 

"Biden to rescind Trump's pandemic-era limits on immigrant and work visas, top adviser says"

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/biden-immigration-work-visa-limits-rescind/

Positive development! Hoping that this gets signed and implemented, before next months interview letters are sent out.

[VA21202 109]

Thanks for sharing this @PradSim Hoping for good updates soon. Just curious if we have a sense of how many of us are in the Montreal EB backlog with NVC DQ and priority date current so we can try and get a sense of the volume. Assuming things go well with rescinding the orders soon, this info could be helpful. Is there an MTL EB tracker similar to the IR1 tracker? Thanks in advance!

[topman 42]

36 minutes ago, VA21202 said:

Thanks for sharing this @PradSim Hoping for good updates soon. Just curious if we have a sense of how many of us are in the Montreal EB backlog with NVC DQ and priority date current so we can try and get a sense of the volume. Assuming things go well with rescinding the orders soon, this info could be helpful. Is there an MTL EB tracker similar to the IR1 tracker? Thanks in advance!

I believe @CycleSS was maintaining the below table for tracking the Montreal EB backlog. I was trying to get myself added to this spreadsheet, just before the pandemic struck. My details are:

• Case complete date - April 2, 2020
• EB category - EB2

[VA21202 109]

Gotcha, thanks @topman! That is helpful, would be good to see if there’s additions not captured in the list since it’s been a while. Throwing in mine here as well:

• Case complete date - June 17, 2020
• EB category - EB2

[PradSim 6]

And here is my details .. 

• Case complete date - Jan 14, 2019
• EB category - EB1

One suggestion: We should also add a column on "Country of Birth", else it probably won't give the complete picture as some countries has higher number of backlogs.

[topman 42]

22 minutes ago, PradSim said:

And here is my details .. 

• Case complete date - Jan 14, 2019
• EB category - EB1

One suggestion: We should also add a column on "Country of Birth", else it probably won't give the complete picture as some countries has higher number of backlogs.

 

I might be wrong, my understanding is that this list has folks that had their priority date as current. Its interesting that your NVC case complete date is Jan 2019 but you still did not get an interview date.  Just curious, if your interview got cancelled due to pandemic, or it was cause of priority date for the country was not current at the time of CC? 

Edited January 29, 2021 by topman

[Van24 13]

Just curious, before 'in-person interview' rule was introduced back in 2017, how was the consular process conducted for the employment categories? Was the interview mandatory?

[PradSim 6]

@topmanSorry, missed to reply earlier. It was due to the fact that priority date for my country of birth was not current at the time of CC.

Edited February 15, 2021 by PradSim

[Pasand 5]

Hey all,

if anyone has recently contacted the office or has any updates regarding the interviews please let others in this forum know about it.

hopefully in March they'll start re-scheduling our interviews automatically 

[dskar 15]

Hello, I'm returning to this forum after 2 years or so (got my EB2 case processed at Montreal consulate - interviewed on March 20, 2019 -  and got my permanent residence few days after that). This forum provided excellent help at that time both in terms of timelines and what to expect process-wise.

 

This is my story. Putting it here because it might be relevant to some of you. At the time of my immigrant visa interview, I opted for a commuter GC and didn't schedule visa interview for my wife/kids because they weren't ready for a move then. I continued living in Canada and working in the US as LPR with a C2-commuter status. Now, we are in a position to move together as a family and I'm looking for my options on getting PRs for my family also. I called NVC and they said I don't need to involve USCIS or NVC in this (or submit a follow to join I-824 either) because MTL post already had my approved petition with them. They said all I need to do was contact MTL consulate and ask them to schedule a visa appointment for wife and kids. They will be granted residence under EB-2 dependent category (aka E-22). Looking at this thread it seems EB thread overall is pretty backed up because of several reasons. The only w]ay for me to contact Montreal Consulate is via email provided on their site (montreal-iv-dv@state.gov) which generated the following automated response. It seems immigrant visas are all on hold except in certain categories as mentioned below (highlighted in red). I'll be watching this forum once gain to keep myself updated on how IV interview applications are progressing. Good luck to all of you with your Visa Journey

 

Thank you for your inquiry to the Immigrant Visa Unit at U.S. Consulate General Montreal.

 

  Important information for visa applicants regarding the COVID-19 global pandemic:  

COVID-19 Testing Requirement for Air Travel to the United States:  

Information on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) order regarding pre-flight testing for all international travelers to the United States, including answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs), is available at the CDC’s website: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html 

For more on Montreal and Quebec testing options travelers please note: Testing must be done at private clinic, some offer residential service.  List of clinics at: https://www.quebec.ca/en/health/health-issues/a-z/2019-coronavirus/instructions-for-travellers-covid19/ 

The United States Consulate General in Montreal has resumed certain immigrant visa services, including spouses and children of U.S. citizens, K-1 fiancé(e) visa applicants, and other categories such as medical professionals.  All other immigrant and nonimmigrant visa services remain restricted to emergency appointments.  While the Consulate General aims to process cases as soon as practicable, wait times will continue to be lengthy due to the ongoing pangdemic.  

The U.S. Consulate General in Montreal may be able to provide emergency immigrant visa services for categories other than those identified above. Expedited processing is only approved in the most urgent mission critical cases. You may e-mail us with your request for an expedited appointment if you believe your case qualifies. 

                 Thank you for your understanding, and please continue to monitor the website of the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Canada for updated information: https://ca.usembassy.gov/  

Please see these notices for detailed information about the current status of visa services worldwide and visa restrictions related to the COVID-19 global pandemic: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/ea/covid-19-visa-services-and-restrictions.html   

 Thank you for your patience and cooperation, 

  Immigrant Visa Unit 

Consulate General of the United States of America 

Montréal, Canada  

 

  

[farzady 42]

10 hours ago, Pasand said:

Hey all,

if anyone has recently contacted the office or has any updates regarding the interviews please let others in this forum know about it.

hopefully in March they'll start re-scheduling our interviews automatically 

I sent an email to Montreal embassy to follow up on my case and they replied on Feb 17:

 

"According to our records, this case is still at the National Visa Center (NVC). Please note that the US Consulate is not currently processing E2 visa applications as they are not considered mission-critical at this time. Presidential Proclamation 10014 (PP 10014) suspends visa issuance for some immigrant visa types. Mission-critical immigrant visa categories include applicants who may be eligible for an exception under presidential proclamation PP10014 , such as: IR/CR1, IR/CR2, IR/IH-3, IR/IH-4, SQ, SI, certain medical professionals, and certain aliens providing temporary labor or services essential to the United States food supply chain, as well as cases involving an applicant who may age out of his or her visa category.   

 

As this case is still at the National Visa Center (NVC), you will need to contact the NVC for any updates on your case and next steps in processing. The NVC contact details are available here https://nvc.state.gov/ask. "

 

Edited February 19, 2021 by farzady

[Waiver 2019/2020 0]

Hello Guys

 

I have a question and hope you help me

 

I have an approved I-140 based on NIW

 

My paper is still with NVC and US embassy at Montreal is the place where the NVC should transfer my paperwork to 

 

I am done paying the fee and submitting the DS-260

 

My question is, how to I submit the the civil documents to the NVC? My CEAC doesn't have any place for uploading civil documents, so I am assuming that this may be reserved for family based immigration

 

So, how did you guys send your documents? using this address

 

National Visa Center
Attn: CMR/DR
31 Rochester Ave. Suite 100
Portsmouth, NH 03801-2914

 

or the NVCElectronic@state.gov email address?

 

Further, if you sent your civil documents, did you include any photos and how many? I am asking because the document cover sheet I received with NVC welcome package didn't list any photos

 

Looking forward to your answers

 

Thanks