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

[Leo The Great 141]

22 minutes ago, snowfalls said:

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. 

Montreal CO will issue you the visa. They may ask you for new medical from panel doctor if the case cannot be cleared before the expiry of medical (6 months). The processing time varies from 4 - 6 weeks or more once all documents are received by the consulate. 

Once you receive your visa then you need to activate by crossing the border..

Given the process involved you need to return to Canada from US and you need passport for that unless you have Nexus.

Any advice from other experienced VJ members in this regard?

Edited February 19 by Leo The Great

[Canucklehead 102]

50 minutes ago, Leo The Great said:

 

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?

Never knew this! Thanks for sharing.

Edited February 19 by Canucklehead

[APRIL2023 59]

7 minutes ago, Leo The Great said:

Montreal CO will issue you the visa. They may ask you for new medical from panel doctor if the case cannot be cleared before the expiry of medical (6 months). The processing time varies from 4 - 6 weeks or more once all documents are received by the consulate. 

Once you receive your visa then you need to activate by crossing the border..

Given the process involved you need to return to Canada from US and your need passport for that unless you have Nexus.

Any advice from other experienced VJ members in this regard?

Once you started your petition via consular processing you are required to exit Canada and re-enter US in order to received your CR1 visa. 
 

The only way to apply visa from within US is through adjustment of status and that’s a lot of things to look into. Also will result in you abandoning your petition and start over again. 

[Ontarkie 14,218]

7 minutes ago, APRIL2023 said:

 

The only way to apply visa from within US is through adjustment of status and that’s a lot of things to look into. Also will result in you abandoning your petition and start over again. 

This does not apply to the OP she is not in the US and cannot enter the US with this plan it is fraud. 

[northface 30]

7 minutes ago, APRIL2023 said:

Once you started your petition via consular processing you are required to exit Canada and re-enter US in order to received your CR1 visa. 
 

The only way to apply visa from within US is through adjustment of status and that’s a lot of things to look into. Also will result in you abandoning your petition and start over again. 

Also,  IV application DS-260 valid for 2 years , can find the expiring date from NVC login. Whereas NIV,can apply again after denied to avoid some tough Consulates.

 

[Pending DS5535 22]

7 hours ago, Canucklehead said:

The person who responded to you never said that they never tell anyone. They said it is rare that they give out this info, which it is.

 

Don't bring negative energy into this forum.

Excuse me, you are bring this negative energy in this forum, by commenting so rude. 

[tas005 4]

I have one question:
If case is in AP after interview, at the time of Interview applicant was Permanent Resident of Canada, and during this long AP processing time, if applicant apply for Canadian citizenship if qualified and then get Canadian citizenship before passport request or re-medical for IR1, will this cause an any issue in current ongoing IR1 process if one become Canadian? I mean in this scenario, do we will have to inform USCIS, NVC OR Montreal consulate that we just got Canadian citizenship.

I just checked I-130 form and DS-260 forms, it was not asked any where which citizenship you hold.
Can we do this like if we get Canadian citizenship then just hold Canadian Citizenship certificate but dont apply for Canadian passport and then migrate to US once IR1 visa approved.

Sorry if its out of way question, but i thought you guys have great knowledge so someone of them will reply here. thank you

[APRIL2023 59]

9 hours ago, Ontarkie said:

This does not apply to the OP she is not in the US and cannot enter the US with this plan it is fraud. 

Yes u are absolutely right. Sorry I wasn’t suggesting to enter the US with the intention to AOS as it is fraud. I see how my post is misleading.
 

When I say “a whole lot of things to look into” I mean more research needs to be done about AOS in general with an ongoing immigration petition. 
 

 

Edited February 20 by APRIL2023

[CarmenD 150]

14 hours 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 😰

At the interview (Montreal) my husband was refused under 221(g) and the Consular Officer (CO) said “it’s just a hiccup, not a denial”. Must have been the same CO 😆 

[CarmenD 150]

15 hours ago, LYV said:

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. 

Two weeks 😂 .. Right 🙄 Just over 6 months for us.  Immigration lawyer advised since in AP to wait until 9 months have passed from DS-5535 submission to file a WOM lawsuit

[cala2023 70]

35 minutes ago, CarmenD said:

Two weeks 😂 .. Right 🙄 Just over 6 months for us.  Immigration lawyer advised since in AP to wait until 9 months have passed from DS-5535 submission to file a WOM lawsuit

The officer ended my husband's interview by telling him: "we'll get you to the US as soon as possible." It's been almost 10 months for us. 

[Leo The Great 141]

5 hours ago, tas005 said:

I have one question:
If case is in AP after interview, at the time of Interview applicant was Permanent Resident of Canada, and during this long AP processing time, if applicant apply for Canadian citizenship if qualified and then get Canadian citizenship before passport request or re-medical for IR1, will this cause an any issue in current ongoing IR1 process if one become Canadian? I mean in this scenario, do we will have to inform USCIS, NVC OR Montreal consulate that we just got Canadian citizenship.

I just checked I-130 form and DS-260 forms, it was not asked any where which citizenship you hold.
Can we do this like if we get Canadian citizenship then just hold Canadian Citizenship certificate but dont apply for Canadian passport and then migrate to US once IR1 visa approved.

Sorry if its out of way question, but i thought you guys have great knowledge so someone of them will reply here. thank you

You can apply for Canadian passport from US later if you want to use your country passport for US immigration.

Check this page and complete the wizard(questions) to see how you can get Canadian passport from US

How to apply for an adult passport in Canada - Canada.ca

[TeamSariff 3]

Hello everyone,

 

I had my interview on January 22, 2024, during which I was verbally approved (they advanced my interview, which was originally scheduled for January 25th). However, the officer retained my passport because my medical dossier had not yet arrived. It was received two days later, on January 24th. They didn't give me any paper, 221G or so...

 

Since then, there have only been two actions taken on my file, on January 24th and February 6th. It's been nearly a month since then, and I haven't received any further communication (tried to email them but the answer is generic). I've heard that under normal circumstances, I should expect to receive my passport after 6-8 weeks. Is this still the case? Has anyone recently gone through a similar experience?

 

My biggest concern is that I'm moving on March 15th. The person taking over my lease will be in touch with me in case they receive my passport (I requested delivery via Purolator). However, if my case gets stuck and takes longer than 6 months, do you know if it's possible to request a change of address or arrange for pickup of the visa delivery?

 

I've asked around, but no one seems to have been in this situation before. Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you all for your help and support. And good luck to you all ✨

Edited February 20 by TeamSariff

[northface 30]

43 minutes ago, TeamSariff said:

Hello everyone,

 

I had my interview on January 22, 2024, during which I was verbally approved (they advanced my interview, which was originally scheduled for January 25th). However, the officer retained my passport because my medical dossier had not yet arrived. It was received two days later, on January 24th. They didn't give me any paper, 221G or so...

 

Since then, there have only been two actions taken on my file, on January 24th and February 6th. It's been nearly a month since then, and I haven't received any further communication (tried to email them but the answer is generic). I've heard that under normal circumstances, I should expect to receive my passport after 6-8 weeks. Is this still the case? Has anyone recently gone through a similar experience?

 

My biggest concern is that I'm moving on March 15th. The person taking over my lease will be in touch with me in case they receive my passport (I requested delivery via Purolator). However, if my case gets stuck and takes longer than 6 months, do you know if it's possible to request a change of address or arrange for pickup of the visa delivery?

 

I've asked around, but no one seems to have been in this situation before. Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you all for your help and support. And good luck to you all ✨

you could monitor the MTL web page to estimate time frame :

https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/consular-operations-updates/

As of Feb 15,2024, they touched the cases of Nov, 2023, 3 months ago. for high piority IR1 class

 

[TeamSariff 3]

18 minutes ago, northface said:

you could monitor the MTL web page to estimate time frame :

https://ca.usembassy.gov/embassy-consulates/consular-operations-updates/

As of Feb 15,2024, they touched the cases of Nov, 2023, 3 months ago. for high piority IR1 class

 

Oh wow... so does that mean it could take about 6 months to process my case (as my interview was on Jan,22)? Even if I haven't been given a form or documents to send over? 😨