part IV, the big IR1/CR1 DQ'd message group...

[lemurianelf 19]

8 minutes ago, michael_n1988 said:

Thanks, yea we’ll be flying too. 
 

That makes sense as crossing via land border has higher potential of an over stay, having your car and likely more belongings..

My perception is that most people flying are generally more well off and the agents seem less on edge and more chill. They interact with businessmen, people flying on vacation to Vegas and just plain people who have more money. The car is a cheaper mode of travel and the agents are very on edge and trigger happy. I crossed twice by land and decided against it in order not to jeopardize my petition.

[kryptonite 43]

10 hours ago, lemurianelf said:

We must have seen each other in the wait room. I was very surprised how some people spend 2 mins with the officer and some were 20 + minutes. Hope it's quick for you. 

We definitely did see each other lol just didn't know who was who. The person I got was spending a lot of time with each applicant. I've read people's reviews and experiences at the embassy and have seen the questions they ask. It's almost like they have a list of 10-15 questions and they choose 4-5 of them to ask. It felt like my officer was asking all of them. I saw people coming out of the other side of the room in 3-5 minutes. I hope things go quickly for me as well. It's frustrating that each step is so long. They said I don't have to do anything and it's all on them and I just hope they just do their part quickly rather than in 3-4 weeks.

[hilaryb 11]

11 hours ago, michael_n1988 said:

Getting a bit concerned with these border denials while visa is processing. 
 

I have a US vacation planned next month. Though my spouse and family all live and work in Canada so we have ties. Would they actually deny me entry bringing one backpack and clearly only crossing for pleasure/vacation?

It’s definitely worth bringing any documentation you have proving ties to Canada, but it also unfortunately depends on who you get at the border as I have learned. I crossed 3 times without issue since applying for the visa (2 by air, 1 by land) and was denied the 4th time (land border) because the CBP officer I had told me that you’re not allowed to enter the country after filing the I-130. As for the 3 previous times I was allowed entry, he told me that I should consider myself lucky. Didn’t want to see any documentation I offered that would show ties to Canada. Even told me that I could be barred from the country if I tried to enter again before getting my visa. Was a really upsetting situation that I would have loved to avoid! Flying has always been a much smoother experience. 

[lemurianelf 19]

28 minutes ago, hilaryb said:

It’s definitely worth bringing any documentation you have proving ties to Canada, but it also unfortunately depends on who you get at the border as I have learned. I crossed 3 times without issue since applying for the visa (2 by air, 1 by land) and was denied the 4th time (land border) because the CBP officer I had told me that you’re not allowed to enter the country after filing the I-130. As for the 3 previous times I was allowed entry, he told me that I should consider myself lucky. Didn’t want to see any documentation I offered that would show ties to Canada. Even told me that I could be barred from the country if I tried to enter again before getting my visa. Was a really upsetting situation that I would have loved to avoid! Flying has always been a much smoother experience. 

That's crazy. Totally not my experience. I disclosed my I 130 each time I was asked and they barely cared or just asked where I'm at in the process or even joked about it.

 

Where did you fly from? Which airport?

[hilaryb 11]

1 hour ago, lemurianelf said:

That's crazy. Totally not my experience. I disclosed my I 130 each time I was asked and they barely cared or just asked where I'm at in the process or even joked about it.

 

Where did you fly from? Which airport?

The time I was refused was at the land border. Port Huron, MI. Funny thing is I’d been allowed to cross there once before this time. Also, I’ve gathered that before your case is at NVC they won’t see anything about your application when they scan your passport. The first time I crossed after getting my case number I was flagged right away and they could see everything. They pulled me into the customs office and asked where I was at in the process and some questions about previous travel and my marriage, and sent me through.

Edited November 4, 2022 by hilaryb

[lemurianelf 19]

2 hours ago, kryptonite said:

We definitely did see each other lol just didn't know who was who. The person I got was spending a lot of time with each applicant. I've read people's reviews and experiences at the embassy and have seen the questions they ask. It's almost like they have a list of 10-15 questions and they choose 4-5 of them to ask. It felt like my officer was asking all of them. I saw people coming out of the other side of the room in 3-5 minutes. I hope things go quickly for me as well. It's frustrating that each step is so long. They said I don't have to do anything and it's all on them and I just hope they just do their part quickly rather than in 3-4 weeks.

I was the woman in the green and red sweater sitting by the bathroom! I expected way more people. There must have been less than 30 spousal visas that whole day.

 

And I guess you were called to booth 11. There was a young guy who would grill everyone for over 15-20 minutes including a woman who had a baby and her husband was waiting outside. I was called to booth 1 and it took legit 2 minutes. Just goes to show how that plays a part in it too.

 

I read stories of people who got denied at border and the consular officer didn't care and granted visa anyway.

[ToddD 23]

18 hours ago, kryptonite said:

I was shocked too when the officers told me that I couldn’t cross. I live in a border city and would cross regularly just to shop, go out for dinner, etc. Regardless, I assumed it was for good reason and did not want to argue or fight it out of fear that my entire process will be ruined. 
 

5-6 weeks is quite long and I really hope it doesn’t take that long. That’s almost as bad as being put at the end of the line after uploading a document on to CEAC. He said “a few weeks” and people have varying definitions on what “a few” is lol.

 

So other than FedEx notifying you, the embassy didn’t send anything to confirm they received your document? Did they send you anything saying they’ve sent out your passport? I’m just trying to figure out what I should be checking or expecting. Am I to wait for an email from the embassy saying we finished with administrative processing, we’ve sent out your passport? Should I keep checking the CEAC status to see it change from “Refused”? Am I going to get some sort of tracking info? Or do I just one day check the mail and my passport is there lol?

I didn't receive any indication they received my document or looking at it. Some advice I received on the forums here was keeping on eye on the status web site. It might say Refused for a long time, but pay attention to the date. If the date changes, then someone touched your case or maybe looked at your case.

 

After 5 weeks, the status changed, and then a couple days after that, the status changed to Approved. After it was approved, I received a notification through email the passport is being returned and received a tracking number. The passport arrived within 2 days. The 5-6 weeks is what I was told from another person on the VJ forums and it was accurate in my case, so that might be true with yours as well. 

[ToddD 23]

4 hours ago, hilaryb said:

It’s definitely worth bringing any documentation you have proving ties to Canada, but it also unfortunately depends on who you get at the border as I have learned. I crossed 3 times without issue since applying for the visa (2 by air, 1 by land) and was denied the 4th time (land border) because the CBP officer I had told me that you’re not allowed to enter the country after filing the I-130. As for the 3 previous times I was allowed entry, he told me that I should consider myself lucky. Didn’t want to see any documentation I offered that would show ties to Canada. Even told me that I could be barred from the country if I tried to enter again before getting my visa. Was a really upsetting situation that I would have loved to avoid! Flying has always been a much smoother experience. 

It's also a good idea to bring any proof of the vacation... like hotel reservation proof, tickets to an event you're attending, etc.  We have friends visiting next week in a similar situation and we are writing an email to them saying we are looking forward to them staying with us on specific dates. They will print the email and take it to the border when crossing. I recommend bringing anything that can help provide weight / evidence of a limited trip and your intent is to return to Canada. Another recommendation is bringing utility bills, pay check stubs, and anything that shows ties to Canada to return. 

[ToddD 23]

15 hours ago, michael_n1988 said:

Thanks, yea we’ll be flying too. 
 

That makes sense as crossing via land border has higher potential of an over stay, having your car and likely more belongings..

I agree. Flying was always easier for my wife coming from Canada. She was pulled into the office several times when driving, but she brought all sorts of proof of still working and living in Canada, which they often asked for. She was never denied though. 

[CanadianGirl3 2]

I have been DQ’d since August 23rd. Is there anyone from that timeframe who has received their interview date? I am past 10 weeks for waiting and wondering how much longer it will take to receive an interview date. Hopefully not much longer.

[NYQC 5]

17 hours ago, CanadianGirl3 said:

I have been DQ’d since August 23rd. Is there anyone from that timeframe who has received their interview date? I am past 10 weeks for waiting and wondering how much longer it will take to receive an interview date. Hopefully not much longer.

we were DQd september 2 so hopefully you and i are in the same boat and get our letters this month! i haven’t seen any dates for october interview letters. keep us posted! 

[kryptonite 43]

On 11/4/2022 at 11:27 AM, lemurianelf said:

I was the woman in the green and red sweater sitting by the bathroom! I expected way more people. There must have been less than 30 spousal visas that whole day.

 

And I guess you were called to booth 11. There was a young guy who would grill everyone for over 15-20 minutes including a woman who had a baby and her husband was waiting outside. I was called to booth 1 and it took legit 2 minutes. Just goes to show how that plays a part in it too.

 

I read stories of people who got denied at border and the consular officer didn't care and granted visa anyway.

The guy I went to was very nice but yes he did ask a lot of questions and took a very long time. I coincidentally was sitting right in front of his booth and heard all the interviews lol. I was answering the questions in my head as he was asking them to the others. However, I don’t remember any kids or families going to that booth they were going to another person. 
 

While I was waiting there and listening to the interviews, he put a LOT of cases into AP. If I’m being honest, all of them were for valid reasons though. Mine seems the most unreasonable but even that I understand that they have to match my story in case I was denied entry for some other reason. 
 

Anyways, I do remember seeing you and I remember you walking out just a few minutes after being called up and I was wishing so bad that I got called to the same person as you but I didn’t lol. Happy yours went well though!

[kkeys 40]

I wonder what time the consulate opens? my appointment is for 730am Wednesday so I am assuming I'm near the beginning of the day! 

[lemurianelf 19]

4 minutes ago, kryptonite said:

The guy I went to was very nice but yes he did ask a lot of questions and took a very long time. I coincidentally was sitting right in front of his booth and heard all the interviews lol. I was answering the questions in my head as he was asking them to the others. However, I don’t remember any kids or families going to that booth they were going to another person. 
 

While I was waiting there and listening to the interviews, he put a LOT of cases into AP. If I’m being honest, all of them were for valid reasons though. Mine seems the most unreasonable but even that I understand that they have to match my story in case I was denied entry for some other reason. 
 

Anyways, I do remember seeing you and I remember you walking out just a few minutes after being called up and I was wishing so bad that I got called to the same person as you but I didn’t lol. Happy yours went well though!

Yeah I remember you.  You had a good spot to listen in. What were the reasons people were put in AP if you remember?

[kryptonite 43]

1 hour ago, lemurianelf said:

Yeah I remember you.  You had a good spot to listen in. What were the reasons people were put in AP if you remember?

Yeah it truly was a good spot. Not really a private interview though lol. 
 

Off the top of my head, one lady stayed in the US over 6 months and they wanted to look into that, one person had their police certificate from another country that wasn’t the right one, another person’s story was all over the place and she was also missing some documents so they needed those submitted.