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

[dennisv 23]

11 hours ago, Waitinghere said:

Hello everyone,

 

I was looking for some help here. I had my interview in October and had my passport taken, with officer giving me instructions on what to expect after having visa approved. Later that day I was phoned by embassy informing me that I am to undergo administrative processing with no further requests made. Since then I have been placed under this status, with no passport and no updates to be given. I am now wondering if anyone else had a similar situation, also, can I request to have my passport back and is it a possibility to try to cross the border again with a  while waiting in AP.

 

sorry for the many questions, just a confused person here. It definitely has been a long frustrating journey…

You're not alone @Waitinghere. I had my interview early November, sent back the DS5535 questionnaire within 48 hours but it was a struggle to fill in the 15 yr travel history. I got my passport back, and the only update I have on CEAC is Nov 16 (a week after my interview) so someone opened my file to take a peek or do something.  

[BatmanFlow 481]

On 11/19/2022 at 12:35 PM, Rosinasaur said:

I got tracking information yesterday saying my visa is on its way!

October 4, 2021: Interview. Informed we would get questions by email.
October 10th, 2021: DS5535 Submitted

December 2021 - May 2022: Multiple emails exchanged with consulate saying we were still in administrative processing

March 2022: Congresswoman's office give us a lot of false information and then ghosts us a lot. We also mailed our senator and they never got back to us.

June 2022: Started Lawsuit Process with Goldstein

July 14, 2022: Lawsuit filed

Aug 4, 2022: Lawsuit served

Sept 19, 2022: Motion filed to dismiss lawsuit

Early October: Goldstein submitted counterargument

November 16, 2022: CEAC updated to Approved
Nov 18, 2022: CEAC now Issued, tracking received

 

I would not really recommend filing with Goldstein. We never spoke directly with a lawyer. Our questions were mostly ignored by email or answered incorrectly ("we don't know" would have been a better and acceptable answer tbh). We had to fill in many forms stating what hardship we've been through which took ages. 

 

I'm glad we're almost at the other side. I wish the best of luck to all of you!

congrats! such great news with holidays around the corner

[BatmanFlow 481]

11 hours ago, Waitinghere said:

Hello everyone,

 

I was looking for some help here. I had my interview in October and had my passport taken, with officer giving me instructions on what to expect after having visa approved. Later that day I was phoned by embassy informing me that I am to undergo administrative processing with no further requests made. Since then I have been placed under this status, with no passport and no updates to be given. I am now wondering if anyone else had a similar situation, also, can I request to have my passport back and is it a possibility to try to cross the border again with a  while waiting in AP.

 

sorry for the many questions, just a confused person here. It definitely has been a long frustrating journey…

 

1 hour ago, Tiabeanie said:

Hi there I'm going through the same situation as yourself. I had my interview the end of October and was told I was being placed in administrative processing and they kept my passport and police certificate. The last update on CEAC was the day of my interview. I'm frustrated and feel left in the dark. Just wanted to let you know that you're not alone in this experience and I'm hoping we get back our passports soon.

did you both get an email for DS 5535 from embassy? they ask for more stuff including 15 years of travel history, social media etc. if you did in fact were given DS 5535 then you will need to fill that out and send it back to them. The wait times for those are long. There is an email that was provided in the previous page if you want to request your passport back. takes one week to get a response.

 

however if you werent given DS 5535, then maybe you are in some other AP and that shouldnt take too long? Maybe just regular AP checks. worth following up again next week if you dont receive any updated or an email from them for DS 5535. And also you should hope you dont get DS 5535 cause we've seen that it can taken more than one year for embassy to process those.

[Waitinghere 0]

1 hour ago, Tiabeanie said:

Hi there I'm going through the same situation as yourself. I had my interview the end of October and was told I was being placed in administrative processing and they kept my passport and police certificate. The last update on CEAC was the day of my interview. I'm frustrated and feel left in the dark. Just wanted to let you know that you're not alone in this experience and I'm hoping we get back our passports soon.

 

48 minutes ago, dennisv said:

You're not alone @Waitinghere. I had my interview early November, sent back the DS5535 questionnaire within 48 hours but it was a struggle to fill in the 15 yr travel history. I got my passport back, and the only update I have on CEAC is Nov 16 (a week after my interview) so someone opened my file to take a peek or do something.  

I’m sorry you guys are also going through this confusing situation. Not that it already took such a long time for us to be at this stage, now to get trapped into a black hole of uncertainty. Thanks for sharing your experience

2 minutes ago, BatmanFlow said:

 

did you both get an email for DS 5535 from embassy? they ask for more stuff including 15 years of travel history, social media etc. if you did in fact were given DS 5535 then you will need to fill that out and send it back to them. The wait times for those are long. There is an email that was provided in the previous page if you want to request your passport back. takes one week to get a response.

 

however if you werent given DS 5535, then maybe you are in some other AP and that shouldnt take too long? Maybe just regular AP checks. worth following up again next week if you dont receive any updated or an email from them for DS 5535. And also you should hope you dont get DS 5535 cause we've seen that it can taken more than one year for embassy to process those.

Thanks for responding. I did not get the DS 5535 form. In fact I inquired multiple times via email if there is anything more that I have to submit. Just a generic response of you are under AP and consulate will contact you for any further information. Given that Dec it will be two month since my interview. Is it possible that they forgot to send me the DS 5535? if you dont mind me asking, how long after your interview were you sent one? 
 

also, can I attempt to cross the US border while in AP?

 

 

[dennisv 23]

5 minutes ago, Waitinghere said:

 

I’m sorry you guys are also going through this confusing situation. Not that it already took such a long time for us to be at this stage, now to get trapped into a black hole of uncertainty. Thanks for sharing your experience

Thanks for responding. I did not get the DS 5535 form. In fact I inquired multiple times via email if there is anything more that I have to submit. Just a generic response of you are under AP and consulate will contact you for any further information. Given that Dec it will be two month since my interview. Is it possible that they forgot to send me the DS 5535? if you dont mind me asking, how long after your interview were you sent one? 
 

also, can I attempt to cross the US border while in AP?

 

 

@Waitinghere I got my DS5535 email like 3-4 hours after my interview, while I was sitting at the airport thinking. I sent it back within 48 hours.

I haven't tried crossing while on AP, but I heard mixed info regarding outcomes.

[Tiabeanie 39]

20 minutes ago, BatmanFlow said:

 

did you both get an email for DS 5535 from embassy? they ask for more stuff including 15 years of travel history, social media etc. if you did in fact were given DS 5535 then you will need to fill that out and send it back to them. The wait times for those are long. There is an email that was provided in the previous page if you want to request your passport back. takes one week to get a response.

 

however if you werent given DS 5535, then maybe you are in some other AP and that shouldnt take too long? Maybe just regular AP checks. worth following up again next week if you dont receive any updated or an email from them for DS 5535. And also you should hope you dont get DS 5535 cause we've seen that it can taken more than one year for embassy to process those.

No I wasn't given a DS 5535. When I had my interview, the officer only mentioned that I would be placed in administrative processing. No mention of a questionnaire. I was given a 221g slip and the officer checked off the box on the sheet that said "Additional processing is required. We will contact you when this is complete". It's been exactly 3 weeks since I've had my interview. I did email the consulate last week hopefully I get back a response sometime this week. I wasn't missing any documents when I had the interview, I didn't think it would take this long truth be told.

Edited November 21, 2022 by Tiabeanie

[BatmanFlow 481]

11 minutes ago, Waitinghere said:

 

I’m sorry you guys are also going through this confusing situation. Not that it already took such a long time for us to be at this stage, now to get trapped into a black hole of uncertainty. Thanks for sharing your experience

Thanks for responding. I did not get the DS 5535 form. In fact I inquired multiple times via email if there is anything more that I have to submit. Just a generic response of you are under AP and consulate will contact you for any further information. Given that Dec it will be two month since my interview. Is it possible that they forgot to send me the DS 5535? if you dont mind me asking, how long after your interview were you sent one? 
 

also, can I attempt to cross the US border while in AP?

 

 

got it the next day. my mom was told at the interview she will need to provide more info and wait for the email. however i have seen people here get approved at the interview and get the DS 5535 email the next day.

maybe you are just in regular AP and nothing else is needed. maybe get your congressperson involved.

 

and yes you can cross while on AP. my mom crossed and stayed with me for a few weeks this year while we continue to wait for her visa. the border agents asked for nothing but they could ask about your visa and we were prepared to answer about her AP situation

[PZibran325 112]

On 11/18/2022 at 11:49 AM, ice-qube said:

I guess I am really last man standing here, huh?

No we are also still in limbo. I wonder if I should go ahead and file the WOM at this point since it has been 5 months since the interview

[candyg 33]

On 11/19/2022 at 3:35 PM, Rosinasaur said:

I got tracking information yesterday saying my visa is on its way!

October 4, 2021: Interview. Informed we would get questions by email.
October 10th, 2021: DS5535 Submitted

December 2021 - May 2022: Multiple emails exchanged with consulate saying we were still in administrative processing

March 2022: Congresswoman's office give us a lot of false information and then ghosts us a lot. We also mailed our senator and they never got back to us.

June 2022: Started Lawsuit Process with Goldstein

July 14, 2022: Lawsuit filed

Aug 4, 2022: Lawsuit served

Sept 19, 2022: Motion filed to dismiss lawsuit

Early October: Goldstein submitted counterargument

November 16, 2022: CEAC updated to Approved
Nov 18, 2022: CEAC now Issued, tracking received

 

I would not really recommend filing with Goldstein. We never spoke directly with a lawyer. Our questions were mostly ignored by email or answered incorrectly ("we don't know" would have been a better and acceptable answer tbh). We had to fill in many forms stating what hardship we've been through which took ages. 

 

I'm glad we're almost at the other side. I wish the best of luck to all of you!

Congrats!! BTW did they email you a tracking number, like a separate email after your status said issued? I haven't received a tracking number when they issued my visa 😕 I keep checking but there's nothing. 

[Marbles_ 7]

5 hours ago, dennisv said:

@Waitinghere I got my DS5535 email like 3-4 hours after my interview, while I was sitting at the airport thinking. I sent it back within 48 hours.

I haven't tried crossing while on AP, but I heard mixed info regarding outcomes.

You can visit the USA as much as you want as a tourist during AP, to answer @dennisv and @Waitinghere, you just can't wait in the USA... you have to abide by normal tourism visit rules and only stay a maximum of 6 months. I have visited twice for a month or longer at a time since I got the DS-5535 in February.

[throwitaway 190]

2 hours ago, candyg said:

Congrats!! BTW did they email you a tracking number, like a separate email after your status said issued? I haven't received a tracking number when they issued my visa 😕 I keep checking but there's nothing. 

The tracking will come from from usvisa-info and it will be titled “U.S. DoS Visa system return travel document shipment notice.”

 

You’ll only get it once it’s shipped, which they seem to do usually Thurs and Fri. 

[throwitaway 190]

19 hours ago, Waitinghere said:

Hello everyone,

 

I was looking for some help here. I had my interview in October and had my passport taken, with officer giving me instructions on what to expect after having visa approved. Later that day I was phoned by embassy informing me that I am to undergo administrative processing with no further requests made. Since then I have been placed under this status, with no passport and no updates to be given. I am now wondering if anyone else had a similar situation, also, can I request to have my passport back and is it a possibility to try to cross the border again with a  while waiting in AP.

 

sorry for the many questions, just a confused person here. It definitely has been a long frustrating journey…

 

No 5535 is a good thing, you’ll probably resolve in 60-90 days. 

[BatmanFlow 481]

My case date was updated today. But I think this is an inquiry update my congressperson sent on Friday. 
let’s see if this makes them review case and take next steps or if they send a generic response to congressperson. 
 

really hoping for a thanksgiving miracle here! Would be so nice to get an issued before Thursday 

[Tikitch 21]

Hey everyone, I applied for a spousal immigrant visa around a year ago. Had my interview on October 14th and the offer said my visa was approved and that I would receive my passport back in under 10 days. 3 hours later, I receive an email saying im in administrative processing and that I have to fill out the DS535 form. I've filled it out and submitted it on October 17th. I checked the status of my visa and it says refused and case updated on October 31st.

 

They still have my passport and I have work trips to do next month. What do I? What happens if I ask them back for my passport? anyone knows how to do it and how long it takes to get it back?

Ive read so many horrifying stories in this thread and part 1, I'm so anxious. Obviously we know if someone finds this group then it's because theyre going through this, but Im so concerned. Anyone knows of people in AP and that actually heard back in 2 months and under like they say it usually takes? 

Thanks!

[Tiabeanie 39]

I received an email from the consulate that they're waiting for my police certificate (even though I wasn't informed during my interview that my police certificate was wrong nor did they emailed me to tell me shortly after the interview that I had the wrong police certificate). I'm relieved that's the only thing I'm deficient in. I can kick myself since I probably would've been approved by now.