The dreaded DS-5535 thread for Montreal. Post here and support each other (PART 2)

[AP_since_May2023 37]

18 hours ago, Bestbest7 said:

Hi everyone and happy New Year,

 

Montreal office requested for my passport after being on AP for 10 months, But unfortunately am still in the U.S with family and was wandering if I can send my passport to a family member in Canada and have them mail it to the visa office in Montreal since I don’t want to be away from my family? Not sure if am over pushing it😇.

Will appreciate your feedback.

 

You had your interview and DS-5535 on Jan 3rd, 2023, and received letter in the mail to send in your passport on December 10th right? So it took 11 months and 7 days?

 

Is it usual that they mail you a letter, rather than contact you via email? Seems like an absolute waste of time since regular mail takes around 7 business days from Canada to US.

[ShawnK 82]

1 hour ago, APRIL2023 said:

Now I’m confused because I emailed them specifically about this and I was told NOT to send this in. Can anyone else confirm this as well??

I agree with the moderator , send in the correct police certificate ASAP.

 

I hate to say this, but that is all they probably ever wanted from you, no wonder they NEVER emailed you the DS5535. 

 

You can't rely on the competence or intellect of these low level consulate officers. No offense, but these aren't the most brightest or "can do" people, they wouldn't take such a lame job if they were.

 

They are largely miserable souls doing a completely useless job that adds nothing of value to the economy or the to the world. It must be pretty soul crushing. Like 99.999% of what they do is basically useless and just adds pain to the world, and/or gets in the way of actual productive folks adding something of value to the economy (think of how many bright/creative people are blocked from accessing the US). 

 

They sent me 2 incorrect DS5535 emails (with someone else's case # and a name kind of like mine but not exactly) before sending me the correct email with the correct name and case#. Think about it, the form is utterly useless and has likely never resulted in them catching anyone. Everyone seems to eventually clear it. It's just pointless paper shuffling work. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[AP_since_May2023 37]

20 hours ago, Phil_K_IR1 said:

Has anyone involved congresspersons in this matter? 

Are they able to force a reply from the consulate/DHS?

 

I have. No, they can only get a generic response. But your CEAC case will show that it has been updated, presumably because someone looked at it.

[AP_since_May2023 37]

17 hours ago, Bestbest7 said:

Appreciate the feed back. I will start by responding to APRIL2023 lol.

 

1, plan on having my wife fly up to Canada and mail my passport together with a return envelope inside so they can have my passport back to me once visa is processed then she can go pick it up for me so I can leave the U.S. before returning with the sealed envelope.

2, I already did my second medical in November since the one I did in January had expired in their system.

3, i don’t have a Nexus card to return back to Canada, But I can use my citizenship certificate with driver’s license if the process takes too long. I don’t return back to work till spring so am home babysitting our 7 month old son.

LETSGOFAST,

I did my second medical already and they only ask for my passport since DS5535 has been completed and all cleared.

Phil_K_IR1,

I was put on AP / DS5535 for having the wrong RCMP clearance letter.
Am praying this last stage goes by fast.

Thanks.

 

 

I would double check with the Consulate if this is allowed before going through with this route.

 

I specifically asked the Consular Officer after learning that my case had been placed on AP if I was able to do this from US, and they said can only issue the Immigrant Visa to someone who is physically present in the Country.

[ak47 33]

January 2023 folks started receiving medical request in nov or dec 2023.

 

So Feb 2023 interviewees should be getting something soon as they have also completed 11 months...

[LetsGoFast 13]

On 12/27/2023 at 12:56 PM, LetsGoFast said:

 

I have a very similar situation as @Bestbest7. Here is my timeline until now. I am still struggling about what's the next steps...

 

My DQ date was 12/01/2021. 

And I received the interview invitation letter on 05/19/2023 for a interview on 07/26/2023.

My case was under EB2-NIW category. I went to the interview together with my husband on 07/26/2023 and received 221g. I received it before for my L1 visa in Dec 2022, so I was not very surprised about that. We was asked to fill out a form online through a link provided on the 221g form and we filled the form out on the same day as the interview. The question were all about the addresses, travel histories in the past years (I don't remember what the form is called exactly). The officer did not collect our passports and told us that we can get back to the US with our valid L1 and L2 visas.

 

So we went back to the US. Then I received the email for mailing back our passports on 10/24/2023. The email is very brief and did not mention what was the time range that we should mail our documents back.

We went back to Canada on 11/01/2023 and mail the passports back to Montreal Consulate upon their instructions through Canada Post.

Then the timeline became strange..

 

11/02/2023 - We mailed passports through Canada Post.

11/07/2023 (Tue) - The tracking showed that the documents were delivered. - Actually the consulate collect the mails from a third-party facility every Monday. So we missed the mail collection for that Monday. And the next Monday is Canada holiday, so our documents stayed in the facility until 11/20/2023. (We confirmed this by calling the third-party facility, my husband found their phone number through Google Map by using their address).

Since 11/02/2023, we sent emails to Montreal-IV-DV@state.gov (usually takes 2 weeks to get a response) a few times to check if they received our passports.

11/21/2023 (inquiry sent on 11/08/2023) - The consulate responded and saying they did not receive the documents yet. They said it takes time to transit from the facility to the visa unit of the consulate.

12/07/2023 (inquiry sent on 11/21/2023) - The consulate responded and saying they acknowledged the receipt of our documents and the documents were pending review by an officer.

12/18/2023 (inquiry sent on 11/06/2023) - The consulate responded and saying they acknowledged the receipt of our documents and the documents were pending review by an officer.

 

In between we really worried that our passports were lost and luckily they were delivered to the visa unit.

However, I did not expect that the process for getting the visa stamp takes that long according to the records in  http://docs/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1jV7rzX2eCRVoEDRhOtN9a6hDoHRLNEf1P3ZGZbQ0_Dc/htmlview. I was pregnant and will have a baby due in June 2024. So I have to go back to the US for some necessary prenatal tests in a certain range of time. Thus, we made a very hard decision to request our passports back.

 

12/13/2023 - we sent an email to the consulate to request our passports back and has not heard anything back since then.

1. Does anyone know that if this can work and how long does it take to get our passports back??? 

2. Is that possible to fly to Montreal to take our passports back directly from the consulate to make it faster???

3. Did we make a correct decision? I found out this forum stream this morning and realize that "mailing back the passports" is almost the last step...

4. Our medical check was done in early June this year so according to the half year validity, it has expired. After asking for the passports, will the consulate request us to do a second medical check?

 

Thank you all and have a wonderful holiday for everyone!

Friends, we finally got our status changed to issued this morning!

 

Since the timeline above, 

12/28/2023: New medical reports requested by consulate

1/5/2023: New medical reports were submitted through eMedical system

1/18/2023: CEAC status changed to issued TAT - finally after such a long journey

 

And for the friends here, do you know - 

1. Now will we receive sealed package with passport or is the package already electronic now?

2. When should I expect to receive the email with tracking number?

3. I plan to drive from Vancouver to Seattle to pass the border, does that sound a valid way? Anything that we should prepare in advance?

 

Thank you all and wish you all the best! And good luck everyone sincerely

 

 

[Ontarkie 14,320]

3 hours ago, APRIL2023 said:

Now I’m confused because I emailed them specifically about this and I was told NOT to send this in. Can anyone else confirm this as well??

After your interview the CO gave you a letter asking for the right PC. On that letter is should say where to send it. 

 

When you email the consulate you are not actually getting a reply from the CO who interviewed you. The person that replied did not know you were given the 221G form for the PC. Get a copy of that 221G for your records and send that asap with your PC. 

Edited January 18 by Ontarkie

[ShawnK 82]

1 hour ago, ak47 said:

January 2023 folks started receiving medical request in nov or dec 2023.

 

So Feb 2023 interviewees should be getting something soon as they have also completed 11 months...

The scary thing to me is those folks actually received their medical requests around September. So it's very concerning that February folks still haven't received a request for a medical. I am hoping it's just our small sample size and that there are some Feb Montreal Ds5535 folks who have gotten medical requests.

 

 I don't know what is going on, I thought after the DV ended they would start to speed up, however, nothing. Their new fiscal year started in OCT, yet these incompetent dip***ts are just sitting on our cases.

 

 

 

 

[ShawnK 82]

14 hours ago, dmitrych said:

On the meeting with their salesperson I asked them whether they see more difficulties recently in handling Motions to Extend or Motions to Dismiss, and they responded no, and added that Joshua Goldstein has a good persuasive response to MTD. They also said the government can request a MTE with a duration anywhere between 60-120 days, but Joshua doesn't like to agree to 120 days and tries to negotiate shorter durations (I don't recall their exact wording, but that's the general idea).

 

That's all I know.

I'm still looking for someone to refer to them for the 10% discount, so if you'd like to ask them directly, please let me know.

Interesting, I would ask for actual examples where they have been successful, especially since the summer.  From my understanding - a MTD doesn't mean it is fully over, you can respond, then they get to respond, then it is up to the judge who can take as long as he/she wants. However, often , before the judge will rule, they will adjudicate. A lot of it seems to be luck, even now, some people quickly clear on Pacer.

 

I will see what happens, if it goes a year without any medical requests, then I think that would be a good time to go the WOM  - because you then run the risk of being in a forever black hole. I do like Goldstein, he seems very enthusiastic and ready to fight, gives you some hope. Some other lawyers don't seem too confident, and very defeatist when it comes to a MTD.

 

 

Edited January 18 by ShawnK

[mam521 2,113]

21 hours ago, Bestbest7 said:

i don’t have a Nexus card to return back to Canada, But I can use my citizenship certificate with driver’s license if the process takes too long. I don’t return back to work till spring so am home babysitting our 7 month old son.

You cannot fly internationally without your passport.  

 

20 hours ago, Superluminal said:

Don't you have to cross the border into the US with the green card to activate it?

 

How are you applying? IR/CR, EB?

Correct.  And his sponsor (wife) has to be either with him or in the US before he attempts to cross the border with the passport. 

[Daft_Cat 136]

So after two extension requests, we received a motion to dismiss. The reasons were the usual - lack of jurisdiction, no claim, etc. Apparently the state attorney's hand was forced by the state department. There's nothing in our profile that would prompt a legitimate DS-5535, so our lawyer just sees this as a continuation of the emerging trend to not budge as a means of deterring future WoMs. 

I haven't figured out what to do yet. On the one hand, given that people in January have begun to receive requests for their passport, my gut tells me I may receive good news sooner rather than later by simply doing nothing (my interview was in Feb 23). Then again, that assumes some semblance of linearity, which is not necessarily a fair assumption. Likewise, if I do withdraw the complaint, I risk losing that means of continued pressure on the consulate, which may prove helpful if what we're seeing now is the beginning of a more extreme slow-down in the consulate's pace.

 

We have a judge that's relatively friendly to the cause, so fighting the motion to dismiss may bear fruit - if only by continuing to make it easier for the consulate to simply issue the visa. 

 

When it comes to others who may be considering the WoM route, I would just reinforce that a motion to dismiss seems to be the rule and not the exception. Even for long-standing cases. Take that extra cost into account up front, and keep in mind that the odds of a significant acceleration in pace appear to be slim (as I mentioned, I'm seemingly at the point where I'm close to the front of the line regardless, despite having filed the WoM 4-5 months ago). 

Edited January 19 by Daft_Cat

[northface 30]

1 hour ago, Daft_Cat said:

So after two extension requests, we received a motion to dismiss. The reasons were the usual - lack of jurisdiction, no claim, etc. Apparently the state attorney's hand was forced by the state department. There's nothing in our profile that would prompt a legitimate DS-5535, so our lawyer just sees this as a continuation of the emerging trend to not budge as a means of deterring future WoMs. 

I haven't figured out what to do yet. On the one hand, given that people in January have begun to receive requests for their passport, my gut tells me I may receive good news sooner rather than later by simply doing nothing (my interview was in Feb 23). Then again, that assumes some semblance of linearity, which is not necessarily a fair assumption. Likewise, if I do withdraw the complaint, I risk losing that means of continued pressure on the consulate, which may prove helpful if what we're seeing now is the beginning of a more extreme slow-down in the consulate's pace.

 

We have a judge that's relatively friendly to the cause, so fighting the motion to dismiss may bear fruit - if only by continuing to make it easier for the consulate to simply issue the visa. 

 

When it comes to others who may be considering the WoM route, I would just reinforce that a motion to dismiss seems to be the rule and not the exception. Even for long-standing cases. Take that extra cost into account up front, and keep in mind that the odds of a significant acceleration in pace appear to be slim (as I mentioned, I'm seemingly at the point where I'm close to the front of the line regardless, despite having filed the WoM 4-5 months ago). 

 

Currently Supreme Court to hear case of Los Angeles man denied visa over his tattoos. 

Interesting , might it has some impacts to all VOs? 

The following excerpt from LA times:

 

“The Supreme Court has never held that U.S. citizens and longtime residents have no right to due process, or even the right to a day in court,” said the couple’s attorney Eric Lee. “That would be a bombshell decision that would just explicitly give all of the consular officers and immigration agents all across the country carte blanche to violate the Constitution.”

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2024-01-12/supreme-court-will-hear-case-of-los-angeles-man-denied-a-visa-over-his-tattoos

 

 

[Maussanais 12]

Hi Everyone, 

 

I recently had my interview on December 15th, during which I received a section 221g notice requesting the submission of the online DS-5535 form AND my passport.

 

I completed the DS-5535 online right away and submitted it on December 17th. However, I didn't receive a confirmation after submission...

Instead, I landed on a thank-you webpage. Is this normal, or should I expect a confirmation by email?

 

Additionally, I wanted to inquire about the passport request during the interview. The officer returned my passport, he mentioned that I would need it for the holidays travel. I sent my passport last week , but I am now unable to travel. I'm curious about the duration they typically retain passports (if anyone experience that) and if there's any information on similar cases where officers listed passport as document to provide.

 

Thank you in advance for any insights or experiences you can share.

 

Best, 

[ShawnK 82]

2 hours ago, Daft_Cat said:

So after two extension requests, we received a motion to dismiss. The reasons were the usual - lack of jurisdiction, no claim, etc. Apparently the state attorney's hand was forced by the state department. There's nothing in our profile that would prompt a legitimate DS-5535, so our lawyer just sees this as a continuation of the emerging trend to not budge as a means of deterring future WoMs. 

I haven't figured out what to do yet. On the one hand, given that people in January have begun to receive requests for their passport, my gut tells me I may receive good news sooner rather than later by simply doing nothing (my interview was in Feb 23). Then again, that assumes some semblance of linearity, which is not necessarily a fair assumption. Likewise, if I do withdraw the complaint, I risk losing that means of continued pressure on the consulate, which may prove helpful if what we're seeing now is the beginning of a more extreme slow-down in the consulate's pace.

 

We have a judge that's relatively friendly to the cause, so fighting the motion to dismiss may bear fruit - if only by continuing to make it easier for the consulate to simply issue the visa. 

 

When it comes to others who may be considering the WoM route, I would just reinforce that a motion to dismiss seems to be the rule and not the exception. Even for long-standing cases. Take that extra cost into account up front, and keep in mind that the odds of a significant acceleration in pace appear to be slim (as I mentioned, I'm seemingly at the point where I'm close to the front of the line regardless, despite having filed the WoM 4-5 months ago). 

 

 

 

Sorry to hear that man...I would say that a motion to dismiss DOES NOT mean it is over. It's just a motion.  I was recently following a class action case from Red Eagle, they filed a group lawsuit for mostly Persian applicants (mostly Iranian Americans sponsoring their parents or spouses)  stuck in Armenia.

 

They too got a motion to dismiss, however, when you look at the arguments made by the DOS -they were quite pathetic, I am no lawyer but they looked pretty silly to me. They tried to argue that it's a final refusal and they don't need to do anything. The lawyer was able to respond and the judge agreed and denied their motion to dismiss (this was a few days ago , in California). The DOS Is now scrambling to adjudicate the cases.  The lawyer shared everything online, now people are getting case updates etc..they are working to clear them.

 

The lawyer also believes this whole DS5535 thing is a big sham, they delay and delay and then all of a sudden when they are forced to respond they start clearing cases. This is for applicants in Iran, I highly doubt Iranian authorities are going to share info with the vetting  people in the US. It's all nonsense, they quickly clear these people when forced to. This is just another travel ban without calling it a travel ban.

 

 

If you have a good lawyer, you've probably already spent 5K +, might as well fight. There is no expectation that they will clear any of these cases anytime soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Superluminal 146]

33 minutes ago, northface said:

 

Currently Supreme Court to hear case of Los Angeles man denied visa over his tattoos. 

Interesting , might it has some impacts to all VOs? 

The following excerpt from LA times:

 

“The Supreme Court has never held that U.S. citizens and longtime residents have no right to due process, or even the right to a day in court,” said the couple’s attorney Eric Lee. “That would be a bombshell decision that would just explicitly give all of the consular officers and immigration agents all across the country carte blanche to violate the Constitution.”

https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2024-01-12/supreme-court-will-hear-case-of-los-angeles-man-denied-a-visa-over-his-tattoos

 

 

I read the whole article and it seems his trouble started when he was living in the US unlawfully when he got married in the US. Either way, a Supreme Court ruling could impact how consulates behave. Sounds like worst case scenario is the status quo.