throwitaway

11 minutes ago, Butziee said:

Hello, I have a question regarding length of stay as US citizen married to a former Filipino citizen  now turned US citizen. We are planning to go back Home to Philippines and stay more than 30 days. if within those 30 days we travel to  japan and come back to Philippines, does that reset the 30 days allowed to stay in the Philippines? 

 

Thank you! 

If I’m not mistaken, you are eligible for the Balikbayan visa at Philippine Port of Entry by virtue of your spouse (unless you are a same sex couple), as such you can stay for one year visa free. 

4 hours ago, Tikitch said:

Hey everyone! 

Sent in my 3rd congressman request, still no news although they have been updating the dates. Last one was jan 17, no idea what that means..

I'm going to attempt crossing into the US to spend 2-3 weeks with my husband because his work won't let him travel for another 3 months and the distance is getting too much. Any idea what happens if they dont let me in? Would it affect my papers?

Also in the hopes of being somehow optimistic, does anyone know anyone who has gotten their green card under a year after they received ds5535?

 

I know several that cleared under a year, but it was DV so that may have played a role. 

6 minutes ago, topman said:

Thanks! I'm planning to have a consult with them. So, from a timeline perspective, we are potentially looking at 2 months + another 2 months of extension, so a total of 4 months.

 

And hopefully if approved, redoing the medical - another 30 days? By the time I have a stamped visa on my passport could take a total of 5 months from WOM file date? Am I summarizing this tentative timelines correctly?    

Yes, in typical WoM cases that timeline looks good. 

In worst case scenario the timeline can be much longer if the government fights. If I’m not mistaken, judges have no deadlines for ruling on a motion+countermotion. This is rare. 

1 hour ago, topman said:

Folks that got their WOM filed by the lawyer, what are the normal steps of progression & anticipated timelines after the lawsuit has been filed? Just trying to understand what does the complete end-to-end process look like?  

 

I'm planning to file WOM with PIC law. I believe the cost is similar to Hacking law group but the payment needs to be made in full at the start, no payment plan option. 

If you do a consult with them they can explain the process to you in depth. Once the lawsuit is filed the government has 60 days to respond. It’s not uncommon for them to ask for an extension which can push their response a month or two more. Hopefully their response in the end is to issue the visa. 

Just now, farzady said:

No, my eMedical account is closed and it needs to get open

I have no idea what that is, hopefully someone else does. Good luck

7 hours ago, farzady said:

Hi All,

 

I did my second medical yesterday but the doctor said he cannot submit the results on-line because my account needs to reactivate again. Does anyone of you who did the second medical have the same issue? if so to whom should I contact for reactivation.

Is your DS260 expired? 

22 minutes ago, BrownM said:

Hello,

 

first and foremost, I am thrilled that @ice-qube is finally getting some traction on his case!!!

 

for ones that file a WOM, obviously a lawyer is now involved.  But did any of you enlist a US lawyer at the start of the application process or did you apply on your own?  
 

if you enlisted with a US lawyer from the start, and got thrown into AP, were they able to help?

 

thanks 

A lawyer from the jump only helps with paperwork and prep. There’s no advantage to having one when thrown into AP, unless you’ve already decided you will immediately sue. 

Just now, Montreal514 said:

Thanks. Does this mean anything extra? Or just a coincidence? 

It’s all the same in the end. 

57 minutes ago, Montreal514 said:

It seems for most people that your passports were kept/held when given the DS5535. Is it uncommon for your passport NOT to be held and given back on the spot?

This varies by embassy. At Montreal it’s usually kept. I only know of one person where it was given back at interview.

12 minutes ago, ice-qube said:

The main reason I signed with Hacking, aside from their good reputation in this forum, was they offered a payment plan instead of forcing me to pay everything up front. That’s really what it came down to. In addition, Goldstein Law, which I also contacted, was less responsive and wouldn’t even talk to me unless my wife was also on the call at the same time, and that annoyed me.

Oh, totally, I’m not questioning why you went with Hacking, I just got a chuckle out of how the conversation unfolded. You should be in sales if you’re able to close like that all the time haha

18 minutes ago, addpeace said:

Hi everyone-

 

I have mostly been a lurker in this thread since my husband and I got put into AP and given the DS5535 on August 1st 2022. We are officially signing with Hacking Law firm tomorrow, but I just wanted to let everyone know all the steps we have taken and our timeline so far.

Steps:

Emailed Montreal consulate every week since interview on Aug 1st.

• Same copy paste emails
• Only email that actually was different was when I requested for our case to be reviewed by a manger or higher official.
  • This email stated that asking for our passport back does not stop our case from processing. (We have never requested it back though)
• Let them know 2 weeks ago that we were contemplating filing a Writ of Mandamus. (no response so far)

Contacted our MN senator and local congresswoman:

• Senator (never responded)
• Congresswoman
  • They sent 2 inquires to Montreal
    • 1 was the same copy paste response
    • 1 they never got back to them
  • Gave me a list of immigration lawyers I could reach out to.

Mailed hand letters to:

• POTUS* (3 weeks to respond)
• VPOTUS* (1 month to respond)
• Sec. of State* (3 months to respond)
• US Consulate General of Montreal (No response)
• Homeland security* (2 weeks to respond)

All the * letters were forwarded to USCIS who contacted us saying they would look into our case and we would receive a response in 14 days. The response came 5 days later saying they could not help us since this was a state department issue. They gave us a link to put in a email inquiry to the State department, which we did. 10 days later we got a response from the state department saying this is a consulate issue and to try contacting them. (These are all sent from No reply emails as well, so you can never talk to the same person or respond to them)

 

We have spoken to 3 local immigration attorneys who have basically all said the same thing. "Trinidad, Islamabad, and Montreal are the worst consulates to immigrate through right now." they also said "AP is getting out of hand, and with so many illegal immigrates coming in the families in DS5535 are pushed back because the illegal immigrate checks use the same system for background checks. (since they are in the country already I guess theirs take priority)"  They have all reviewed our case and found no red flags or any reason that we should have triggered AP let alone DS5535.

 

Thus with our 6th month mark coming up on Feb 1st Lex and I have decided to go the WOM route. Hacking Immigration has quoted us $5000 for the process. With 2 different payment options. $3000 down payment and the final 2000 paid over 4 months ($500 a month), or Pay full upfront and get $500 off, so $4500. Hopefully we are able to get out of this before the end of summer as my husband is in school and transitioning in the middle of a semester will be rough.

 

I wish everyone luck with their cases and their status updates.

 

Good luck! 

14 hours ago, Montreal514 said:

Can I start moving some items and spend the 6 months a year outside Canada while I wait through this process?

No.

14 hours ago, ice-qube said:

https://hackinglawpractice.com

Ice-qube: I had to really fight to even speak to a lawyer and have them sort something out even though I paid lots of money. 

Jvisa: Cool cool, gonna sign with them. 

34 minutes ago, Kanja said:

Is that just her thinking? It seems from post she was explicitly told that she wasn’t?

Consulate officers explicitly tell you that you’re approved at interview and then throw you into 221g AP for months. Happens all the time. What you’re told is meaningless compared to your actual visa status - and in this case I imagine they’re both refused. 

I think the confusion comes from thinking that because your mom wasn’t asked for additional documents or 5535, that she isn’t in some form of AP. Evidently she is, although it’s nowhere near Dad’s extreme vetting. Hers will likely resolve sooner.

7 hours ago, AnimeLover89 said:

Ok guys just wanna update that my CEAC status is literally updating every single day now since the 6th. I have been seeing a date change everyday. Can someone tell what this exactly means?

Nobody can tell you exactly what it means but if I remember correctly, you didn’t even get 5535, so it’s quite likely you’re nearing the end of your wait. AP without 5535 usually resolve faster. 

3 hours ago, EB2-NIW said:

All,

Late December Consulate requested us to redo our medicals, update our DS-260, mail our passports and new photos which we did immediately. Using their courier service (Canada post express) we mailed our passport, it was suppose to be delivered on Jan. 3rd and Canada post tacker last update shows package arrived at Montreal on Dec 30th but does not show it was delivered. As of last week, we have been following up with Canada post to see what is the actual status is, first they said they'll look into it and opened a ticket for us, when, we called back the next day to follow-up, we were told since we are not the Sender and this is actually a return label, they are not providing information to us and they closed the ticket . Although these are our passports, we have the receipt of online payment and sender address is our home address, they still consider consulate as the Sender. They said to ask Consulate to follow up with them!!!! Just wondering if anyone heard of a situation like this. One nightmare after the other.

Get real Canada Post, geeze.

13 minutes ago, Tikitch said:

Hey guys!

 

I was reading through some of the newer posts, and someone mentioned we shouldn't have any attachment to the DS5525 email. Ive travelled extensively for the past 15 years so it's impossible to add those in one email. I attached an excel file with all my travel records. Im freaking out now.

 

Any advice on what to do? Will this be a problem? 

 

This visa process will seriously be the end of me..

 

I get the feeling DOS would be hesitant to open an excel file in an email. But if there were an issue I also think they would have told you by now to re-do. If it’s really bothering you, maybe send them an email asking if the 5535 response was acceptable? At least this way you’re getting ahead of a possible “please re-send your response without attachments” months later. If it helps, I know people who have sent in 5535 with errors (like not listing all previous passport numbers) and they were notified immediately to re-do. 

1 minute ago, familyapart said:

Have you had any updates since filing the lawsuit? 

We were issued already, back in September.

On 1/8/2023 at 6:24 PM, familyapart said:

Hi all-

 

I’m looking for anyone in a similar situation. My husband was denied at his interview in June of 2022 at the Consulate in Montreal. We received the dreaded ds5535 and submitted just days after our interview. Our case is still reading as refused and in administrative processing. We are so frustrated and overwhelmingly exhausted. My husband is separated from our children and we living apart. Looking for hope!

We interviewed in June as well, we had to sue to get things moving. It was just so awful being stuck. I’m sorry your family is going through this. 

8 hours ago, PZibran325 said:

In similar boat as you except our interview was a month after yours in July of 2022. I hope this is the month for us

Did you end up filing WoM? 

20 hours ago, Gha said:

Hi

I am looking for any one same experience.I have received questionsair mail after 2 month but in the mail no metion it’s 5535 

just metion in the mail just metion we need some more information to processing your case

Thank you 

 

Same experience in what way? If you received a questionnaire about 15 years of history, that’s what is being referred to here as 5535, which is the experience of almost everyone on this thread. 

2 hours ago, likethefox said:

We filed a WOM with Hacking Immigration Law in late October after being given the DS 5535 on July 14 (DS 5535 came one day after my interview in Montreal).  The initial 60 day deadline was December 27... however, as expected from other reports and stories, the department of state filed a 30 day extension request on December 20 (new deadline of January 26)

 

CEAC hadn't updated since July but we've recently had updates on December 28, January 5, and now today, Jan 9.  Also today, the consulate requested a new medical and two new passport photos (my 1st medical expired like 3 weeks ago... argh!)

 

I'm wondering if anyone has a recent experience or an estimate of a timeline for visa approval AFTER the second medical is sent to the consulate.  The second medical appears to be the last hurdle before in the consular officer's words they can "finalize processing" of the visa.  

 

Thanks in advance! 

Get those in ASAP, they’ll want to issue it before Jan 26 so you‘ll withdraw the suit. 

Bring lots of treats for your cat, it’ll be a round trip. 

13 hours ago, mam521 said:

Correct. My interview was CR-1. We crossed the border the day after our 2nd anniversary and my received GC was statused as IR-1. If it had been incorrect, an I-90 could have been filed to fix this error. 

Thanks for the clarification

Just now, Ytsephill88 said:

Did you have this issue? What was your experience? My spouse is in the process of trying to change it on my BC to match her passport before the consulate interview. 

No, but I have a really long name with many parts, and some of my documents had to be corrected as it’s best that everything matches. There is some flexibility when middle names, or multi-part middle names are sometimes switched or omitted. Much stricter with surnames.

BC is usually considered the oldest and truest of the documents, so everything else should follow the BC.