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

[appleblossom 2,556]

12 hours ago, JamesTan said:

also i see in the google sheet doc that most of the cases were in the fiance/spouse/eb categories and non were in the family based categories, f1, f2, f3, f4 etc. Are these categories more likely to be served a ds5355 compared to family based categories?

 

I think it's just proportionate to the amount of interviews done for each category. If you look at the monthly visa stats you'll see that there are very few family based visas (non immediate relative) issued each month compared to other categories so presumably a lot less interviews too.

[dj222 1]

So I've been to about 50 different countries in the past 5-10 years. Will this raise some red flags? How likely will I be ds5355ed? I've also traveled to Turkey and UAE in the Middle East. I've had jobs where I was extremely successful and was able to negotiate more vacation time and travel on my dime. World travel is always an aspiration for me and don't regret it. I doubt anyone working for the government would be able to relate to my situation or else they will probably not be working there.

 

Just curious, why is Montreal more likely to receive ds5355? I mean there are embassies in parts of the world that I would assume are more likely to be vetted for security threats. If anything Canada is one of the US's closest allies and shares a lot of intelligence. I doubt the Iranian government would share information about their citizens trying to immigrate to USA.

 

Is there actual evidence rather than anecdotal that Montreal is special when it comes to ds5355?

 

Also once a ds5355 form is submitted, does anyone know where it is processed? Is it processed in Montreal? Or does it get sent to be processed in a central agency in the United States?

 

 

 

Edited February 26 by JamesTan

[ak47 32]

On 2/23/2024 at 3:16 PM, APRIL2023 said:

Also expect at least a 2 weeks wait for a response. That’s the case for me as well! Good luck!

Its been 21 days and i have not heard back on the email enquiry. Earlier it used be around 2 weeks.

[Leo The Great 141]

31 minutes ago, JamesTan said:

So I've been to about 50 different countries in the past 5-10 years. Will this raise some red flags? How likely will I be ds5355ed? I've also traveled to Turkey and UAE in the Middle East. I've had jobs where I was extremely successful and was able to negotiate more vacation time and travel on my dime. World travel is always an aspiration for me and don't regret it. I doubt anyone working for the government would be able to relate to my situation or else they will probably not be working there.

 

Just curious, why is Montreal more likely to receive ds5355? I mean there are embassies in parts of the world that I would assume are more likely to be vetted for security threats. If anything Canada is one of the US's closest allies and shares a lot of intelligence. I doubt the Iranian government would share information about their citizens trying to immigrate to USA.

 

Is there actual evidence rather than anecdotal that Montreal is special when it comes to ds5355?

 

 

>> Also once a ds5355 form is submitted, does anyone know where it is processed? Is it processed in Montreal? Or does it get sent to be processed in a central agency in the United States?

It is processed in State Department DC involving different agencies

You can go to redeaglelaw web site and read the Blog "Administrative Processing Backlog of 66,000 Visa Applicants" to understand the high level process. 

Edited February 26 by Leo The Great

[AP_since_May2023 37]

3 minutes ago, ak47 said:

Its been 21 days and i have not heard back on the email enquiry. Earlier it used be around 2 weeks.

If you contact them too quickly, they start ignoring you. This was my experience.

[AP_since_May2023 37]

32 minutes ago, JamesTan said:

So I've been to about 50 different countries in the past 5-10 years. Will this raise some red flags? How likely will I be ds5355ed? I've also traveled to Turkey and UAE in the Middle East. I've had jobs where I was extremely successful and was able to negotiate more vacation time and travel on my dime. World travel is always an aspiration for me and don't regret it. I doubt anyone working for the government would be able to relate to my situation or else they will probably not be working there.

 

Just curious, why is Montreal more likely to receive ds5355? I mean there are embassies in parts of the world that I would assume are more likely to be vetted for security threats. If anything Canada is one of the US's closest allies and shares a lot of intelligence. I doubt the Iranian government would share information about their citizens trying to immigrate to USA.

 

Is there actual evidence rather than anecdotal that Montreal is special when it comes to ds5355?

 

Also once a ds5355 form is submitted, does anyone know where it is processed? Is it processed in Montreal? Or does it get sent to be processed in a central agency in the United States?

 

 

 

 

I suspect it is because Canada/Montreal processes more dual citizens, or have more highly educated workers.

Edited February 26 by AP_since_May2023

[dj222 1]

2 minutes ago, Leo The Great said:

>> Also once a ds5355 form is submitted, does anyone know where it is processed? Is it processed in Montreal? Or does it get sent to be processed in a central agency in the United States?

It is processed in State Department DC involving different agencies

You can go to redeaglelaw and read the Blog "Administrative Processing Backlog of 66,000 Visa Applicants" to understand the high level process. 

State department DC means its sent to USA? If so there is no reason why DS5355 should be process slower for montreal cases compared to other countries.

[AP_since_May2023 37]

5 minutes ago, JamesTan said:

State department DC means its sent to USA? If so there is no reason why DS5355 should be process slower for montreal cases compared to other countries.

 

Montreal is a bit delayed compared to other Consulates because they may be slower to process the case AFTER DS-5535 has been completed, but it should not be too different from others overall (± 1-2 months)

[ak47 32]

47 minutes ago, AP_since_May2023 said:

If you contact them too quickly, they start ignoring you. This was my experience.

Not sure what you mean by 'too Quickly'....I have been in  AP for 11 months now.

[Daft_Cat 136]

2 hours ago, JamesTan said:

So I've been to about 50 different countries in the past 5-10 years. Will this raise some red flags? How likely will I be ds5355ed? I've also traveled to Turkey and UAE in the Middle East. I've had jobs where I was extremely successful and was able to negotiate more vacation time and travel on my dime. World travel is always an aspiration for me and don't regret it. I doubt anyone working for the government would be able to relate to my situation or else they will probably not be working there.

 

I would say it's highly likely based off everything you've shared. Safe bet is to plan as if you will get it, and pivot later if you manage to slip by unscathed. Otherwise you risk having to disrupt your plans mid-flight.

If asked about your travel history, I would be more delicate than you are being here. An officer may be off-put by your tone around career success enabling extensive travel and the inability of Government employees to relate. 

 

Quote

Just curious, why is Montreal more likely to receive ds5355? I mean there are embassies in parts of the world that I would assume are more likely to be vetted for security threats. If anything Canada is one of the US's closest allies and shares a lot of intelligence. I doubt the Iranian government would share information about their citizens trying to immigrate to USA.

 

Attorneys have different theories. Mine is of the opinion that Montreal was always one of the most inefficient consulates in the world, and covid made it worse by accelerating an already substantial backlog of clients waiting for interviews and visa processing. The DS-5535 is a useful tool in this regard in that it removes mandatory processing timelines. This essentially gives the consulate the power to kick the ball down the road for a certain percentage of clients, reducing the immediate bottleneck. He thinks they're essentially misusing it beyond its original scope. 

 

Quote

Is there actual evidence rather than anecdotal that Montreal is special when it comes to ds5355?

 

There has been plenty of "actual" evidence shared in prior iterations of this thread, so those would be good places to start. In particular, I seem to remember a stat that ~40% of Montreal Applicants are put through some degree of AP compared to the global consulate average of ~15%. My numbers / interpretation of this data point may be off, so someone please correct me if I'm wrong. 

Edited February 26 by Daft_Cat

[Phil_K_IR1 83]

5 minutes ago, Daft_Cat said:

 

I would say it's highly likely based off everything you've shared. Safe bet is to plan as if you will get it, and pivot later if you manage to slip by unscathed. Otherwise you risk having to disrupt your plans mid-flight.

 

 

Attorneys have different theories. Mine is of the opinion that Montreal was always one of the most inefficient consulates in the world, and covid made it worse by accelerating an already substantial backlog of clients waiting for interviews and visa processing. The DS-5535 is a useful tool in that it removes mandatory processing timelines. This essentially gives the consulate the power to kick the ball down the road for a certain percentage of clients, reducing the immediate bottleneck. 

 

 

There has been plenty of "actual" evidence shared in prior iterations of this thread, so those would be good places to start. In particular, I seem to remember a stat that ~40% of Montreal Applicants are put through some degree of AP compared to the global consulate average of ~15%. My numbers / interpretation of this data point may be off, so someone please correct me if I'm wrong. 

Re: kick the ball down indefinitely...

 

What about those few that haven't gotten a 5535 (like for us we were just asked for a CV only). I understood it as there's still no timeline given. AP is AP, 5535 or not, doesn't change it. 

[Daft_Cat 136]

3 minutes ago, Phil_K_IR1 said:

Re: kick the ball down indefinitely...

 

What about those few that haven't gotten a 5535 (like for us we were just asked for a CV only). I understood it as there's still no timeline given. AP is AP, 5535 or not, doesn't change it. 

Yeah, someone may know more about the various nuances, but my understanding is that it's all variations of the same delay tactic. Though if you were only asked for a CV, perhaps it's more aligned to the standard pre-DS5535 SAO process.  

Edited February 26 by Daft_Cat

[Phil_K_IR1 83]

1 minute ago, Daft_Cat said:

Yeah, someone may know more about the various nuances, but my understanding is that it's all variations of the same delay tactic. Though if you were only asked for a CV, perhaps it's more aligned to the standard pre-DS5535 SAO process.  

Yeah I figured as much. It's still absolutely a delay tactic that removes the need for a finite timeline. And of course there's nothing they'll tell you about your case or what's happening. 

[Canucklehead 102]

21 minutes ago, Daft_Cat said:

 

I would say it's highly likely based off everything you've shared. Safe bet is to plan as if you will get it, and pivot later if you manage to slip by unscathed. Otherwise you risk having to disrupt your plans mid-flight.

If asked about your travel history, I would be more delicate than you are being here. An officer may be off-put by your tone around career success enabling extensive travel and the inability of Government employees to relate. 

 

 

Attorneys have different theories. Mine is of the opinion that Montreal was always one of the most inefficient consulates in the world, and covid made it worse by accelerating an already substantial backlog of clients waiting for interviews and visa processing. The DS-5535 is a useful tool in this regard in that it removes mandatory processing timelines. This essentially gives the consulate the power to kick the ball down the road for a certain percentage of clients, reducing the immediate bottleneck. He thinks they're essentially misusing it beyond its original scope. 

 

 

There has been plenty of "actual" evidence shared in prior iterations of this thread, so those would be good places to start. In particular, I seem to remember a stat that ~40% of Montreal Applicants are put through some degree of AP compared to the global consulate average of ~15%. My numbers / interpretation of this data point may be off, so someone please correct me if I'm wrong. 

Great response. 

 

Also has anyone who has emailed Montreal in the last few months gotten an email response? My last 3 emails have not been responded to, nor has my case been updated.

Edited February 26 by Canucklehead

[Crazy Cat 41,888]

2 hours ago, JamesTan said:

Is there actual evidence rather than anecdotal that Montreal is special when it comes to ds5355?

I think the fact that this thread exists is evidence.