Inveigh

Same, anxiously waiting for @Daft_Cat and @Canucklehead to be the next ones approved 🤞. That may mean that Mar,Apr, May is up next.

How long has he been in AP. I've noticed you dont have a timeline on the Spreadsheet.

In my experience from talking to a bunch of different firms, I would take 50% of what they say as the truth and 50% as a sales pitch. Respectful firms however usually give you thorough, thorough explanations if they would take your case or not and How & Why they believe it would be in your best convenience and interest TO file or NOT TO file at the current time. AT MINIUMUM I would talk to 3-5 Law Firms before deciding to choose the right representative. Youll usually know what your case is like in reality if a bunch of lawyers start cross referencing what the other lawyers say. Just my healthy piece of advice imo after throwing $4000.00 of my own money into a fire-pit.

Hi @MTLaffectee and welcome to the club. If you want to see a full broken down timeline look at my most recent post. I am about to hit Month 10 and I really don't want others to make the same mistakes I did when Waiting / Filing a WOM. I know the consulate and countries are different but it seems like all outreach and legal action is followed by the same protocols in most DS-5535 / 221(G) AP cases for those that are waiting to clear. The first thing I would advise for you to do though, is to email the consulate and ENSURE they actually got your wife's DS-5535 so that you aren't just sitting and waiting for nothing.

Different Embassy I am aware, but I submitted a FOIA through USCIS and am awaiting a response. If you want to get answers for your specific case I would start immediately as these things take time. I believe they had expedited processing for specific reasonings but only on the FOIA Website.

Absolutely. Urena & Associates. Although the price may have changed

The Judge just dismissed my case everyone. After 8 Months of fighting for this Visa for my Fiance, $4000 is now flushed down the drain. Do not file unless its been 11 months minimum in my opinion. See Below:

The Judge just dismissed my case everyone. After 8 Months of fighting for this Visa for my Fiancé, $4000 is now flushed down the drain. Do not file unless its been 11 months minimum in my opinion

PART 3 for this DS-5535 thread holy hell, welcome to history folks. Its 2024 and some of us still are waiting to be cleared. If you're reading this from the future, I hope the future has been kind to you all and has changed this 221(G)/DS-5535 Policy.

Thats the first time I've EVER heard it being done that way. Must've been that new rollout they were talking about over the Summer.

Holy Jesus, were approaching PART 3 of this Forum at an Alarming rate. I first saw Part 1 before I sent my petition into USCIS And watched Part 2 for the first time when I got my 221(G)/DS-5535 8 months ago.. The fact that this is real feels shocking to my core (as im sure alot of you feel) 💔

Did you get 5535 as well?

From what I've seen Montreal Canada and Ankara Turkey seem to be the top 2 contenders for having the most dreadful experiences with AP. Almost 9 months in with my Fiance, and I feel like hope is slowly slipping away from me at times. But I always to try the very hardest to keep my mind clear and believe this confusing process that has led so many of us up to this point is almost over. I cant even begin to fathom how many people we have lost up to this part of AP for without a good cause and so many beautiful relationships that have died-- metaphorically or otherwise. And I just hope we can all help motivate eachother and help eachother get better through this together

Is there a difference between the two?

Ours was in Early May' 23. You can see my timeline on my page but this thread is about Montreal and I dont want to derail and have my comment removed. I do have a forum for 5535 on my page that does have a ton of useful tips for anyone that needs it though for any country.

Good to see the March/April 2023 interviews are finally getting some love. As an May 2023 Interviewee, this gives me hope. Stay strong Montreal 🙏

Welcome to the club, I wrote a timeline on my most recent post explaining everything you need to know and how to best navigate DS-5535/221(G) Best of luck

Any update?

If you're going to file I would say now is the right time. If you want to wait a little longer for a stronger case I would say that's a good idea but now would be a great opportunity for the both of you to consider.

Greetings all, Here is my latest timeline layed out for everyone to see as promised, I hope this helps you all achieve your immigration goals. I left a bunch of my insights at the bottom to help anyone else out that is struggling with the 221(G) / DS-5535 Process aswell. I hope this helps. Enjoy: -------------------- 08MAY2023 - Interview Date - Ready 09MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - DS-5535 not Submitted 10MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - DS-5535 Submitted CEAC UPDATED - 11MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 22MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 24MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 26MAY2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 06JUNE2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf 20JUNE2023 - WRIT OF MANDAMUS FILED - PETITION FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS and Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief against RENA BITTER, ANTONY J. BLINKEN, JAYNE HOWELL 21JUNE2023 - WRIT OF MANDAMUS CASE ASSIGEND - SUMMONS (5) Issued Electronically as to RENA BITTER, ANTONY J. BLINKEN, JAYNE HOWELL, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General(zrtw) 23JUNE2023 - Refused 221(G) - Contacted my Congressman so the case Updated - Email Response It stated: “Dear [My Congressman’s Name], Thank you for your email inquiry on behalf of [My Congressman’s name]'s constituent, [My name] regarding the visa application of [My fiance's name] [My fiances name] case is pending necessary administrative processing. We have noted your office's interest. Unfortunately, we are unable to predict how long administrative processing will take for a given case. I will note that often this process takes several months to complete. As soon as this process is completed, we will notify [My fiances name] of the decision” 28JUNE2023 - STANDARD ORDER for civil cases signed by our Judge 24JULY2023 (Part 1) - RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint - Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant Summons Returned Executed as to U.S. Attorney General - Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 8/21/2023 26JULY2023 (Part 2) - RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint - Returned Executed as to Federal Defendant Summons Returned Executed as to U.S. Attorney General - Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 8/21/2023 CEAC UPDATED - 28JULY2023 - Refused 221(G) - Initiated Contact with my Senator (NOT congressman) so the case Updated. We received an email back It stated: “Dear [My Name], Thank you for contacting my office regarding your matter. I have contacted the US Embassy Ankara on your behalf. According to the agency: ‘Embassy of the United States of America Ankara, Türkiye Thank you for your email inquiry on behalf of [My name] regarding the visa application of fiancé, [My fiances name] [My fiance’s name] case is pending necessary administrative processing. We have noted your office's interest. Unfortunately, we are unable to predict how long administrative processing will take for a given case. I will note that often this process takes several months to complete. As soon as this process is completed, we will notify [My fiance’s name] of the decision.” 21AUG2023 - MOTION to Dismiss by RENA BITTER, ANTONY J. BLINKEN, JAYNE HOWELL CEAC UPDATED - 4SEPT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 6SEPT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 12SEPT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 15SEPT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 26SEPT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 18OCT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 30OCT2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 6NOV2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 7NOV2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 13NOV2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 23 NOV2023 - Refused 221(G) - ~ Around October 25th - November 1st I contacted the White House through their ‘HELP WITH A FEDERAL AGENCY’ form. We received an email back from the White House with a PDF Letter Directly Connected to The State Department. White House E-Mail Response: “Thank you for writing to President Biden about your visa inquiry. Your letter was forwarded to the Department of State’s Bureau of Consular Affairs for a reply. We apologize for the delay in responding to your inquiry. Please open the attached document for our response to your visa inquiry. For additional visa information please visit our website at (White House Link) & (Travel State Gov Website Link) You may also contact the National Visa Center (NVC) via email through their online inquiry form at [NVC Inquiry Link]. PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THIS EMAIL, THIS IS AN UNATTENDED MAILBOX. Any information in this transmission pertaining to the issuance or refusal of visas or permits to enter the United States shall be considered confidential under section 222(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) [8 U.S.C. 1202]. Access to and use of such information must be solely for the formulation, amendment, administration, or enforcement of the immigration, nationality, and other laws of the United States under 222(f) and as specified in FAM guidance. If you have received such information in error, do not review, retransmit, disclose, disseminate, use or take any action in reliance upon this information, and contact the sender as soon as possible.” State Department Personal Letter Response: “We are writing in response to your letter to President Joseph Biden concerning the immigrant visa case of your fiance. Because the Department of State is responsible for visa matters, your inquiry was forwarded to us for our reply. Thank you for your patience in awaiting a response. We have checked our consular records and learned that your fiance's visa application is still undergoing administrative processing in order to verify her qualifications for the visa. We realize that these extended time periods can cause frustration and we are sensitive to the fact that the purpose of the immigrant visa program is to reunite families. Nonetheless, all U.S. embassies and consulates, must adjudicate visa applications in accordance with the provisions of the law, and, in some cases, this involves extensive administrative processing. While we cannot predict when the administrative processing of your fiance's visa application will be completed, please be assured that the Embassy and the Department of State are aware of your concerns and will take appropriate measures to prevent any undue delay and see that the application is adjudicated as soon as possible, once administrative processing of your case has been completed. We hope this information is helpful. Sincerely, Visa Office Bureau of Consular Affairs U.S. Department of State” CEAC UPDATED - 8DEC2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf CEAC UPDATED - 20DEC2023 - Refused 221(G) - No Action on our Behalf --------------- And here we are today on DECEMBER 28TH 2023 at the end of the year with the current process still awaiting my Fiance’s Visa to be adjudicated. If I would do this all over again here are some things I learned and some tips for all going under DS-5535 below -------------- TIP #1 Timing is Key: Don't Hire a Lawyer Too Soon One crucial factor I realized in dealing with administrative processes is the timing of seeking legal assistance. Hiring a lawyer can be a strategic move, but it's essential to wait until the administrative processing has been ongoing for a significant UNREASONABLE period, typically 8-12 months. This waiting period allows you to gather necessary information, understand the nuances of your case, and maximize your chances of success. Lawyers can navigate the complexities of the legal system effectively, but engaging them at the right time can make a significant difference in the outcome of your case. TIP #2 Congressional Support: Manage YOUR Expectations While reaching out to your congressman or senator might seem like a logical step in resolving bureaucratic issues, it's important to understand the limitations of their power. Congressmen/Senator often have limited influence over administrative processes, and their ability to expedite or intervene in specific cases is constrained. While it's worth exploring all avenues of support, it's crucial to manage expectations and recognize that, in many instances, their impact may be very very very limited. Exploring alternative avenues, such as legal counsel and other advocacy channels, may be equally important in your quest for a resolution. TIP #3 Government Response: Understanding the Realities It can be disheartening when even individuals who have served honorably in the military find it challenging to receive the necessary assistance from the government. Even like me, someone who is a protected veteran for this country and was injured during my duty, they still dont come to my aid. This is because the reality is that administrative processes can be slow and bureaucratic and is forever unfeeling, often leading to frustration. Recognizing that the government might not be as responsive as expected, even in cases involving military service or other crucial impactful areas. is a crucial aspect of managing expectations. While they may prioritize dire circumstances, understanding the limitations of their responsiveness can help you explore additional options and plan accordingly. Additional Tips: a. Document Everything: Maintain a thorough record of all interactions, communications, and documentation related to your case. This organized documentation can be invaluable in legal proceedings or when seeking assistance from elected officials. b. Explore Support Networks: Seek out support groups or communities that may have experienced similar challenges. Shared experiences and advice can provide valuable insights and emotional support during the administrative process. c. Stay Informed: Keep yourself informed about the specific procedures and timelines associated with administrative processing. Knowing what to expect can empower you to make informed decisions and navigate the process more effectively. ---------------- I hope this helps you all in making your decisions in navigating through this process and if you have any questions feel free to DM me or reply on this thread if any of you need more information or clarification on something for you in your own process.

Hey can you keep us posted when you get the visa?

Hey did you get the visa?

Hey did you get the visa?

Greetings, when did you get 221g and how long have you been waiting