The dreaded DS-5535 thread for Montreal Only. Post here and support each other (PART 3)

[Canucklehead 102]

7 minutes ago, APRIL2023 said:

It’s all dependent on the VO as well. Based on what I read so far some are “nicer” than others. The guy that I got clearly hated his job. He told me that no timeline can be given as this a “black hole of wait time”. He can’t give me a reason for AP or why I am flagged as my case “appeared pretty straight forward”. So I’m pretty convinced that the VO has no control over who to place on AP, once they are flagged on the system for whatever reason.  He also rolled his eyes when I asked him to clarify some points he made. Clearly they have to deal with frustrated applicants on a daily basis once visa is denied. 
 

For sure, I'm sure most of them are just as sick of the situation as we are haha.

[APRIL2023 59]

29 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi all, I interviewed at the Montreal Consulate and I was issued a 221(g) refusal worksheet along with a mailing instructions info sheet. I had brought all the required documents and was told that they were "perfect". However, my passport was returned to me on the spot, and I was instructed on the worksheet to mail it back after completing a form online about my travel/residential history. I don't understand what brought on the refusal and extra steps considering that the interview seemed to have gone very well and I had all my documents in check. Not sure if this factors into it, but for reference, I was born in a foreign country and have been a Canadian citizen since I was a toddler. 

 

Does anyone have any idea how long this process will take, especially regarding when I can expect to get my passport back? I'm very concerned because I'm now enrolled in school that will start in 2.5 months in the US and won't be able to travel without my passport. Should I contact the Montreal office about this?

Feeling at a loss for what to do at this point, any advice is very much appreciated, thank you.

Sucks that u are in this situation! 
what visa class are u? It’s hard to tell when you will be cleared as it truly varies. Was the instruction for you to mail in passport after questionnaire is completed? Or mail in passport once you are instructed to do so? Many of us here were I structure to only mail in passport after we received notification that AP is cleared. Some member have to request for their passport to be returned so they can still travel in and out of US. 
 

From what I read in the chat rooms (part 1,2&3), if it’s just missing simple documents aside from DS5535, they would have kept your passport and everything will be processed fairly quickly. If they actually returned your passport and ask u to complete the DS5535, you’ll have to wait for the security vetting process… which unfortunately will take a long time. Some members had their interview from Jan 2023 and are still waiting to be cleared. 
 

I don’t know the detail of your situation, but I will recommend emailing them to ask about the turn around time, since u will need your passport to travel in two months time. See what they’ll recommend. Expected two weeks for email response. They are a bit slow. 

[LYV 63]

7 minutes ago, APRIL2023 said:

It’s all dependent on the VO as well. Based on what I read so far some are “nicer” than others. The guy that I got clearly hated his job. He told me that no timeline can be given as this a “black hole of wait time”. He can’t give me a reason for AP or why I am flagged as my case “appeared pretty straight forward”. So I’m pretty convinced that the VO has no control over who to place on AP, once they are flagged on the system for whatever reason.  He also rolled his eyes when I asked him to clarify some points he made. Clearly they have to deal with frustrated applicants on a daily basis once visa is denied. 
 

Sounds like you actually got the most honest answer even though he was rude. Our VO was super nice and said it was random and that it would likely take 2 weeks. It’s been over 8 months. 

[Canucklehead 102]

38 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi all, I interviewed at the Montreal Consulate and I was issued a 221(g) refusal worksheet along with a mailing instructions info sheet. I had brought all the required documents and was told that they were "perfect". However, my passport was returned to me on the spot, and I was instructed on the worksheet to mail it back after completing a form online about my travel/residential history. I don't understand what brought on the refusal and extra steps considering that the interview seemed to have gone very well and I had all my documents in check. Not sure if this factors into it, but for reference, I was born in a foreign country and have been a Canadian citizen since I was a toddler. 

 

Does anyone have any idea how long this process will take, especially regarding when I can expect to get my passport back? I'm very concerned because I'm now enrolled in school that will start in 2.5 months in the US and won't be able to travel without my passport. Should I contact the Montreal office about this?

Feeling at a loss for what to do at this point, any advice is very much appreciated, thank you.

Sorry to hear you've joined the club. Myself and a few others on here had interviews in February and we have still not even been asked for our passport back (over 1 year).

Once the passport actually gets sent its been looking like about 3 months to finally get it back with visa. If this trend continues you are most likely looking at a year and a half til visa in hand.

However, this may improve and it could be less! If you are starting school in the states soon, are you going to be on a student visa? I wouldn't send your passport back to embassy until they request it (it seems like you currently have it).

[Leo The Great 141]

57 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi all, I interviewed at the Montreal Consulate and I was issued a 221(g) refusal worksheet along with a mailing instructions info sheet. I had brought all the required documents and was told that they were "perfect". However, my passport was returned to me on the spot, and I was instructed on the worksheet to mail it back after completing a form online about my travel/residential history. I don't understand what brought on the refusal and extra steps considering that the interview seemed to have gone very well and I had all my documents in check. Not sure if this factors into it, but for reference, I was born in a foreign country and have been a Canadian citizen since I was a toddler. 

 

Does anyone have any idea how long this process will take, especially regarding when I can expect to get my passport back? I'm very concerned because I'm now enrolled in school that will start in 2.5 months in the US and won't be able to travel without my passport. Should I contact the Montreal office about this?

Feeling at a loss for what to do at this point, any advice is very much appreciated, thank you.

Sorry to hear about that. What is your visa category? It takes few months to more than a year to get clearance from DC once the DS-5535 is submitted for Immigrant and K1 visas. Clearance of DS-5535 cannot be expedited. 

Edited February 19 by Leo The Great

[snowfalls 9]

12 minutes ago, APRIL2023 said:

Sucks that u are in this situation! 
what visa class are u? It’s hard to tell when you will be cleared as it truly varies. Was the instruction for you to mail in passport after questionnaire is completed? Or mail in passport once you are instructed to do so? Many of us here were I structure to only mail in passport after we received notification that AP is cleared. Some member have to request for their passport to be returned so they can still travel in and out of US. 
 

From what I read in the chat rooms (part 1,2&3), if it’s just missing simple documents aside from DS5535, they would have kept your passport and everything will be processed fairly quickly. If they actually returned your passport and ask u to complete the DS5535, you’ll have to wait for the security vetting process… which unfortunately will take a long time. Some members had their interview from Jan 2023 and are still waiting to be cleared. 
 

I don’t know the detail of your situation, but I will recommend emailing them to ask about the turn around time, since u will need your passport to travel in two months time. See what they’ll recommend. Expected two weeks for email response. They are a bit slow. 

Hi, thanks so much for your reply! Sorry I'm actually not sure which visa class I'm in since I didn't have to apply for any when traveling  to the US to visit previously? I also didn't apply for a student visa because I thought this interview process would have gone a lot smoother  

The instructions on the worksheet were written specifically as "Passport (mailed to us when we let you know)", but I also received an instruction sheet from the interviewer about going on the ais-usvisa-info website for instructions on sending documents over. When I followed the steps on that website, my written request for mailing my passport was instantly improved and I got a PDF to print out to bring to the post office. I thought that was considered approval/instruction? I haven't mailed my passport out yet, and I was planning on going out and doing that today.. Is that not the right step to take? Was your AP clearance notification something different? How did you receive it?  

[Canucklehead 102]

2 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi, thanks so much for your reply! Sorry I'm actually not sure which visa class I'm in since I didn't have to apply for any when traveling  to the US to visit previously? I also didn't apply for a student visa because I thought this interview process would have gone a lot smoother  

The instructions on the worksheet were written specifically as "Passport (mailed to us when we let you know)", but I also received an instruction sheet from the interviewer about going on the ais-usvisa-info website for instructions on sending documents over. When I followed the steps on that website, my written request for mailing my passport was instantly improved and I got a PDF to print out to bring to the post office. I thought that was considered approval/instruction? I haven't mailed my passport out yet, and I was planning on going out and doing that today.. Is that not the right step to take? Was your AP clearance notification something different? How did you receive it?  

I would definitely hold off on mailing that passport in until you know for sure what it happening with your application.

 

Is a family member sponsoring you to move to the states (i.e. a spouse?). This would mean you're applying for an IR-1 or CR-1 visa, depending who is sponsoring you. From the sounds of your post (and the fact they asked for a travel history), I'm fairly certain you were given a DS-5535.

 

I'm unsure how you were planning on going to the USA in a few months as a student with no visa though. You are able to travel as a Canadian, but studying in an academic institution would require a student visa.

[snowfalls 9]

18 minutes ago, Canucklehead said:

Sorry to hear you've joined the club. Myself and a few others on here had interviews in February and we have still not even been asked for our passport back (over 1 year).

Once the passport actually gets sent its been looking like about 3 months to finally get it back with visa. If this trend continues you are most likely looking at a year and a half til visa in hand.

However, this may improve and it could be less! If you are starting school in the states soon, are you going to be on a student visa? I wouldn't send your passport back to embassy until they request it (it seems like you currently have it).

Hi, thanks for your input! I'm extremely panicked now hearing that the process is so long... The interviewer gave me the impression that this was just a small hiccup and that the extra form was something that could be easily filled out on a mobile phone. That aside, the mailing instruction sheet said to wait 6-8 weeks from the time they "receive your correspondence" to receive a reply from the consulate. Although I'm not sure which part of the process they meant (form submission or passport mail-in)

I didn't apply for a student visa, and now I'm not sure if I can even get that in time since school starts in a few months and I might not have my passport with me 😰

[Canucklehead 102]

3 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi, thanks for your input! I'm extremely panicked now hearing that the process is so long... The interviewer gave me the impression that this was just a small hiccup and that the extra form was something that could be easily filled out on a mobile phone. That aside, the mailing instruction sheet said to wait 6-8 weeks from the time they "receive your correspondence" to receive a reply from the consulate. Although I'm not sure which part of the process they meant (form submission or passport mail-in)

I didn't apply for a student visa, and now I'm not sure if I can even get that in time since school starts in a few months and I might not have my passport with me 😰

I'm just curious how the school had approved your application to study there without proof that you held a valid visa? Studying in a financial institution without a valid student visa would be illegal.

Edited February 19 by Canucklehead

[Leo The Great 141]

23 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Hi, thanks so much for your reply! Sorry I'm actually not sure which visa class I'm in since I didn't have to apply for any when traveling  to the US to visit previously? I also didn't apply for a student visa because I thought this interview process would have gone a lot smoother  

The instructions on the worksheet were written specifically as "Passport (mailed to us when we let you know)", but I also received an instruction sheet from the interviewer about going on the ais-usvisa-info website for instructions on sending documents over. When I followed the steps on that website, my written request for mailing my passport was instantly improved and I got a PDF to print out to bring to the post office. I thought that was considered approval/instruction? I haven't mailed my passport out yet, and I was planning on going out and doing that today.. Is that not the right step to take? Was your AP clearance notification something different? How did you receive it?  

 

Canadian citizens do not need visas to study or participate in an exchange program in the U.S. However, Canadian students do need to obtain an I-20 (or DS-2019) Certificate of Eligibility from the university, school or exchange program they plan to attend. Upon receipt of the I-20 (or DS-2019), the student will be registered with SEVIS, the student tracking system, will be assigned a SEVIS number, and will be required to pay a registration fee. When crossing the border to begin their study or exchange program in the United States, the student will need to provide the Officer at the port of entry:

1. A Canadian passport;
2. The original I-20 (or DS-2019) certificate;
3. Proof that the SEVIS fee has been paid;
4. Proof of ability to pay school fees and living expenses in the United States; and
5. Proof of ties to Canada.

https://ca.usembassy.gov/visas/canadian-students/#:~:text=Canadian citizens do not need,program they plan to attend.

What is the role of US consulate?

Edited February 19 by Leo The Great

[snowfalls 9]

6 minutes ago, Canucklehead said:

I would definitely hold off on mailing that passport in until you know for sure what it happening with your application.

 

Is a family member sponsoring you to move to the states (i.e. a spouse?). This would mean you're applying for an IR-1 or CR-1 visa, depending who is sponsoring you. From the sounds of your post (and the fact they asked for a travel history), I'm fairly certain you were given a DS-5535.

 

I'm unsure how you were planning on going to the USA in a few months as a student with no visa though. You are able to travel as a Canadian, but studying in an academic institution would require a student visa.

Is the ais.usvisa-info website mailing approval something different? Will they be emailing me about a mailing confirmation instead? My spouse is sponsoring me and I'm applying for CR-1. They did give me a DS-5535, according to the form. 

I was planning on going to study with permanent residency status, but now I think I'll have to apply for a student visa. 

[Crazy Cat 41,844]

3 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Is the ais.usvisa-info website mailing approval something different? Will they be emailing me about a mailing confirmation instead? My spouse is sponsoring me and I'm applying for CR-1. They did give me a DS-5535, according to the form. 

I was planning on going to study with permanent residency status, but now I think I'll have to apply for a student visa. 

I thought Candians needed only a I-20 or something to study in the US...

Edited February 19 by Crazy Cat

[snowfalls 9]

2 minutes ago, Leo The Great said:

This link says Canadian citizen do not need visa to study in US but need to get I20 and financial support to study in US

https://ca.usembassy.gov/visas/canadian-students/#:~:text=Canadian citizens do not need,program they plan to attend.

What is the role of US consulate?

Sorry, I was confused about the studying visa part because I haven't looked into it. I've been planning to go study and live with my spouse as a US permanent resident up until this recent issue from the interview. You're right though, it seems that the school would just need to provide me with an I-20. I would also need my Canadian passport.. Which is proving to be an issue now that I need to send it to the Montreal consulate. 

[Leo The Great 141]

19 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

Sorry, I was confused about the studying visa part because I haven't looked into it. I've been planning to go study and live with my spouse as a US permanent resident up until this recent issue from the interview. You're right though, it seems that the school would just need to provide me with an I-20. I would also need my Canadian passport.. Which is proving to be an issue now that I need to send it to the Montreal consulate. 

It looks like you can go to US to study on Canadian passport. You have to prove your ties to Canada at border since your spouse is in US. Once the DS-5535 clearance is received you can take a study break and return to Canada for few weeks to stamp your visa. Sending passport at this point when the clearance is pending is of no use. The embassy will email you once the clearance is received. They would need your passport at that time to stamp visa.  Your 221g clearly says send passport if requested. 

Edited February 19 by Leo The Great

[snowfalls 9]

5 minutes ago, Leo The Great said:

It looks like you can go to US to study on Canadian passports. Once the DS-5535 clearance is received you can take a study break and return to Canada for few weeks to stamp your visa. Sending passport at this point when the clearance is pending is of no use. The embassy will email you once the clearance is received. They would need your passport at that time to stamp visa.  Your 221g clear says send passport if requested. 

Hi, thank you for letting me know. Do you think it's possible to get the visa stamped while I'm in the US, as in mailing my passport back to Montreal from the US or going to a US-based consulate office?

Or, must I come back to Canada and mail it to Montreal? In that case, roughly how long would the turnover be for passport returns? I'm concerned that I won't be able to take a study break long enough to complete this process.