IR-1/CR-1 Montreal DQ'd private message group goes public CONTINUED

[Leah123 40]

48 minutes ago, Leah123 said:

Yes it does. I planned to work too but never did as I couldn’t focus lol. 

I forgot to say, I wouldn’t plan on working the internet the whole time. It’s spotty. 

[burmel 34]

1 hour ago, Leah123 said:

I forgot to say, I wouldn’t plan on working the internet the whole time. It’s spotty. 

Great idea, the Train.  How far was it from the Via Rail Station to the hotel ?  I am staying at that Best Western too.  Were you able to find any food service, take out, etc. near the hotel ?  Was Via serving anything on the train ?  I'll do some research on my own but very interested in your personal experience.

[Leah123 40]

33 minutes ago, burmel said:

Great idea, the Train.  How far was it from the Via Rail Station to the hotel ?  I am staying at that Best Western too.  Were you able to find any food service, take out, etc. near the hotel ?  Was Via serving anything on the train ?  I'll do some research on my own but very interested in your personal experience.

It’s like a 10 min walk. I took Uber there cause I arrived the day the phones were all down and not familiar with the area. I took Uber back cause it was snowing, less than $9.

 

The Embassy is right beside the bank there, no signs on the door but people were standing there at my interview time. I walked the day before just to check out the area. It’s so close to the hotel, it’s perfect! 

 

Tons of food options. I used skip the dishes for dinners and Cora is in the hotel so I ordered my breakfast online and walked down to get it. You could walk and pick up dinner as well but just did delivery. 

 

There’s tons of shopping too so leave room in your suitcase if you want to do any shopping. 
 

Feel free to message me if you have any questions as well.

[Kai G. Llewellyn 837]

2 hours ago, irisheyes123 said:

what does AP mean? 😕

Stands for Administrative Processing which is a refusal under Sec.221(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act because the Consular Officer could not make a decision based on the information at the time of the interview. However, unlike other refusals, it is one that can be overcome by the Consular Officer being furnished with the information needed to make an ultimate determination whether the visa should be issued. The Officer might be waiting on information from the State Department (i.e. a security opinion) or other areas of the US Government or from the applicant (i.e. police certificate, medical etc). .

 

There is no fixed time when AP will end, however for Montreal it is most often because of a document delay whereby the applicant needs to provide an updated document, these are usually resolved quite quickly. If the Officer is waiting on something like a Security Opinion or further background checks these can take months or even years. This is regularly an issue in embassies of high-fraud countries and countries with security issues, and where reliable civil documents cannot easily be confirmed.

Edited April 21, 2021 by Kai (CanadaDude)

[DGF 730]

3 hours ago, i5love said:

Anyone have any issues getting their SSN upon arrival? I just called SSA and found out that mine hadnt been issued or processed despite being checked off on my application. Given the experience I had crossing, I wasnt surprised if something didnt get done properly. I've been scanning posts and seeing most people in Washington receiving them within 7-14 days of arrival usually. 

 

Any others able to chime in on this? 

It happens. If it's been more than 3 weeks since POE you'll need to call your local office to make an appointment so you can apply in person. It can be a bit of a pain getting the appointment (they'll put you on a list and call when one is available, which can take a few weeks), but once you get one it's fairly quick. I got a call for a same day appointment and I believe my card came within a week (my local office is downtown Seattle so ymmv). 

[burmel 34]

3 hours ago, Leah123 said:

It’s like a 10 min walk. I took Uber there cause I arrived the day the phones were all down and not familiar with the area. I took Uber back cause it was snowing, less than $9.

 

The Embassy is right beside the bank there, no signs on the door but people were standing there at my interview time. I walked the day before just to check out the area. It’s so close to the hotel, it’s perfect! 

 

Tons of food options. I used skip the dishes for dinners and Cora is in the hotel so I ordered my breakfast online and walked down to get it. You could walk and pick up dinner as well but just did delivery. 

 

There’s tons of shopping too so leave room in your suitcase if you want to do any shopping. 
 

Feel free to message me if you have any questions as well.

Thank you very much and congratulations on passing this hurdle in this long journey.  Best of luck and thanks again.

[bcollins94 17]

Hi all,

I’m hoping someone can help me with this because I can’t find the answer anywhere. My husband has his interview on Friday but his passport expires in July, about 3 months from intended entry.  I know they say it has to be valid for 6 months after intended POE to the US but does anyone have experience with this?  Also -  does he need an original copy of MY (the petitioner) birth certificate or will a photocopy do?

thanks in advance!

[YYZ&MIA 117]

17 hours ago, chanel167 said:

I had cancelled my Feb 22 interview and recently emailed the consulate to reschedule. They responded in 3 business days with the following message: We have received you request to reschedule, once we have a date the Visa Unit will contact you. 

 

I'll let the group know once I receive a new date! 

Hey, did you register the interview and then miss it or never registered it and missed it?

[Hawk Riders 814]

10 hours ago, bcollins94 said:

 ...[passports have] to be valid for 6 months after intended POE to the US...

...your spouse should have already renewed his passport, knowing well in advance this requirement. Good luck!

10 hours ago, bcollins94 said:

 does he need an original copy of MY (the petitioner) birth certificate?

No. No one has been asked for this in recent times.

[plvt 21]

Apologies if this was already asked. Has anyone rented a car for POE at the peace bridge? If so, how was the process? 

 

I will be making POE in early June to tie up some loose ends in Canada. Ideally I would like for my spouse to come to Canada to pack his car, but given the 2 week quarantine rule, it is highly unlikely. Trying to figure out the best way to cross. All input is appreciated!

[NAZK 2]

Anyone in the April batch of interviews still waiting on their passports?I had my interview on the 9th and was approved by the officer and my passport was taken and said i would get it back in 2-3 weeks. Two weeks later my status is still Refused. I heard refused just means administrative processing if they don't ask for any additional documents but now I'm getting worried. Any insight would help.

[Prairiegirl3 67]

Hi all, I've been settling in here in the States and just spent the past hour catching up on posts. I'm so sorry the consulate has seemingly haulted interview scheduling as of May 19th. I'll be praying that they will start sending things our again for those still waiting. In the meantime, here is a timeline of my immigration experience. 

 

Started process: Dec, 2019

DQ date: June 19, 2020 

interview: March 12, 2021 (Put in AP for delayed medical and a prior issue my husband had crossing the border. See my consulate review for details)

Visa received: April 4, 2021

crossed border: April 14 2021

SSN card received: April 21, 2021

Green card received: still waiting

 

If there's anyone planning to fly to the US via Calgary airport, that's how I crossed, and wow, it was the easiest US border crossing experience I've ever had! Everything went very smoothly and for the first time in this process, the authorities actually convinced me that they care about my situation. The officer actually said, "We just want to get you through to your flight so you can be with your husband." 

[Hawk Riders 814]

@NAZK, please complete your immigration timeline here: https://www.visajourney.com/timeline/profile.php?id=337773

[Travelingpharm 33]

42 minutes ago, NAZK said:

Anyone in the April batch of interviews still waiting on their passports?I had my interview on the 9th and was approved by the officer and my passport was taken and said i would get it back in 2-3 weeks. Two weeks later my status is still Refused. I heard refused just means administrative processing if they don't ask for any additional documents but now I'm getting worried. Any insight would help.

We weren’t in the April batch, but we had a similar situation in January. 
 

I highly recommend emailing the consulate. My husband’s visa was held up due to an error that was made at the consulate. He was approved at the time of the interview as well,  but status remained “refused.”  It wasn’t until his email was addressed that his file was corrected. His visa was issued immediately afterwards. 
 

Good luck!

[NAZK 2]

7 minutes ago, Travelingpharm said:

We weren’t in the April batch, but we had a similar situation in January. 
 

I highly recommend emailing the consulate. My husband’s visa was held up due to an error that was made at the consulate. He was approved at the time of the interview as well,  but status remained “refused.”  It wasn’t until his email was addressed that his file was corrected. His visa was issued immediately afterwards. 
 

Good luck!

Thank you so much for your feedback! May I ask what error they had? Could you specify what the email is to contact the consult. Thanks so much!