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| Montreal, Canada |  Review on January 4, 2023: |
kryptonite
Rating:  | Review Topic: IR-1/CR-1 Visa
Interview November 2, 2022 at 9:45 AM
o Arrived at the consulate at 9:15 AM
o There was a line up of people and they seemed to be running behind. The security guard stepped out and asked if anybody had interviews at 8:45 or 9 AM and some people raised their hand.
o I finally got in at around 10:15 AM and went through security. They need your passport at this stage and they give you a ticket number which will be your number to look for on the screens. Do not bring your laptops. I only brought my wallet, phone, and my binder with me. I put my phone in the small lockers that they have and you take the key with you. All the security guards are very nice. You then take the elevator to the first floor and this is where you enter a large room with a lot of chairs and a screen to read your number.
o I waited until 10:45 AM and then I went up to one of the booths. At this stage, the lady collected my passport, original birth certificate (long version), original marriage certificate, and original police certificate and basically created a file for me which would later go to the interview officer. She also took one of my passport photos and scanned it and also took my fingerprints at this point as well. When I was DQ’d, there was a Case Review Note left on my case to bring joint sponsor documents. The lady did not ask me for it however, I presented it to her myself and said that I was told to bring these in. I asked her if I should provide these now or later. She said she will take them now and she added them to the file. She gave me a domestic abuse pamphlet and asked me to sit down and wait for my number to be called up again.
o I was then called up at 11:50 AM to one of the booths. It was quite a long wait. There are washrooms and a water fountain in the room if you need. Some people brought books with them.
o I was greeted by the officer who was very kind and pleasant to speak to. He apologized for the wait and thanked me for my patience. He started with an oath where I swore that everything I have submitted is true and everything we discuss at the interview is true. He took my fingerprints again which acted as a signature for that oath.
o The following questions were asked but, I should mention that it was more conversational rather than being grilled. We even joked around a bit in between.
 Who is your petitioner?
 When and how did you meet?
 When did you get married?
 What is your wife’s address?
 Is your wife a US citizen?
 What is your date of birth?
 What does your wife do for a living?
 What do you do for a living?
 Did you receive a domestic abuse pamphlet? Any questions about that?
 Where have you travelled outside of US and Canada in the last 5 years?
 What has been your longest stay in the US?
 Have you ever been denied entry into the US?
o As you can see there were a lot of questions that were asked but, again it was more of a conversation rather than a back-to-back-to-back questioning process.
o He looked at my joint sponsor documents and asked me what they were? He then mentioned that my wife’s recent tax return is sufficient and a joint sponsor is not needed. (At the time of filing, my wife’s income wasn’t sufficient however, her updated tax returns with new job was more than enough)
o He then said I will be right back I have to print you out a letter. At this point, I knew what the outcome was. He returned and said unfortunately he cannot issue the visa at this time as they need to do some additional administrative processing on their end. He said there is nothing I need to do or need to submit, just have to wait for them to do their additional processing.
o The reason for this was his question about me ever being denied at the border. My wife had moved states to be closer to me in Canada while our immigration process was on going. I live in a border city and the US is just 10 minutes away from me. She was visiting me in Canada and we were both crossing to the US with the intention of helping her move to her apartment, buying some household items, building some furniture she ordered, etc. The border officer pulled us in for questioning and said that while my immigration process is still going, I cannot cross. It shocked me because I had been going back and forth regularly from Canada to US for shopping, eating out, etc. I think it became an issue because it was the first time we were crossing together and an apartment was mentioned and the officer said he could not let me cross. He said if I cross, who’s to say I just don’t come back? He repeatedly said that I’m not doing anything illegal – it is just the law and I just have to wait it out until the processing is complete. I respected their decision and had not crossed since that day. I did not want to do anything that would even remotely jeopardize my case as we all know how lengthy and mentally draining it already is.
o I had explained this whole story to the interview officer and he seemed to be very understanding and when I said “they told me I can’t cross until the process is complete†he joked and with a smile said “and this is why you’re here today! The final step.†So I thought everything was good. But when he came back with the letter he informed me that they have to make sure on their end. He said from your story, there doesn’t seem like there’s an issue but, we just have to confirm ourselves. He said he can’t say for sure but it could take a few weeks hopefully. He suggested that he keep my passport because when they complete their processing, they can just process the visa and return the passport to me but he also gave me the option to take it with me if I wished. I had them keep it to avoid any further delays.
o I was out by 12:15 PM – a total of 3 hours for everything in and out.
o There were other people in the waiting room who were being interviewed by other officers who were done with their interviews in 2-5 minutes. Mine took around 15 minutes or so. Perhaps another officer with the shorter interviews may not have asked all these questions and the question of ever being denied might not have been one of the questions on their list to ask and I could have been approved on the spot. Or perhaps even in those shorter interviews, they were still asking about ever being denied and I would have been put into AP regardless. It is tough to say but, in the end, you just have to trust the process and go with it.
o My CEAC status changed to “Refused†due to the AP status.
o CEAC status changed to “Ready†on December 19, 2022 and then “Issued†on December 23, 2022. I received tracking information on December 29, 2022 and had my passport in hand January 3rd, 2023. I crossed to the US on January 3rd, 2023.
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Consulate / USCIS Member Review #31685