My CR-1 interview review

[Holliday 4]

This may be the longest review ever. I apologize for that. I am many things, but 'concise' is not one of them.

- I arrived at the Consulate shortly before 7. I was confused, because I was the only one there... I started second guessing everything in my head... am I at the right place? What the heck? Of course I'm at the right place. I checked it out 3 times before! And it says "Consulate" right there. Duuurrrrr.. Stop thinking! Anyway, there was a man sitting on the steps near the Consulate , but I wasn't sure if he was waiting to go in too, but it turns out he was. Then SomberCat and her husband arrived (they are AWESOME people, by the way! We had a lovely dinner last night at the Keg. We were there for almost 5 hours! Haha. Seriously though, this trip would've been so much more stressful for me if they hadn't been around to hang out with. Thanks guys!) Shortly after that, the line started to get reaaaallly long. Yay for arriving early! Thanks to everyone who has posted reviews in the past for that tip! Well, and thanks for all the other tips, for that matter. Without all of you guys, I woulda been screwed!!

- They let us in around 7:30, as expected. The man who had been sitting on the steps got the letter "A". I got "B". SomberCat and her husband were "C". Some other couple had "D". I didn't really pay attention to them. Heh. We were told that someone would come down at 7:45 to bring us upstairs. The man told us that the elevator opens from the rear, but of course we already knew that. Heheh. And yes, the view was lovely.

- Eventually the "A" man was called to window #11 (as an aside, the "A" man was very nice. The poor guy has been waiting a year and a half since he filed! Yikes!). Shortly after, I was called to window #10. There was nobody there when I walked up, but I saw my open file sitting there. The I-130 submission was on the top. I could see that my numbered Post-It flags were still on the papers. I thought that was funny. Then the evil woman arrived at the window. Oh man. She asked me for my medical envelope and passport sized photos (even though the ones I had previously submitted were right in front of her, but whatever). So I gave them to her.

- Then she said she needed my original Marriage Certificate. I told her that the one that was in her hand IS my original Marriage Certificate, but I have another one exactly like it if she wants it too. (I wasn't trying to be snarky... in fact, I was trying really hard to NOT be snarky, but I just didn't know how to answer that question.) And then I gave her another original, which was the one that the Pastor had signed. The one she had was an original too, issued by the County Clerk, but this was the ORIGINAL original. So then she starts on about how it's not a Marriage Certificate, it's a Marriage License. I told her yes, I know, but it becomes the Certificate once it's filed with the County Clerk. That's just how they do it in Texas. She didn't believe me. She said it's supposed to say Marriage Certificate. I told her no, that is what they issue in Texas, and it has the County Clerk's seal and signature and document number on it, and that's what makes it official. She just said something like "well, we'll have to check on that." Okay fine. Whatever. Then she asked "well does it say when you got married?" I said "yes, right there". Then she asked if it says where I got married, and again, I said "yes. Right there."

- Then she gave me my DS-230 form, after circling my husband's address and phone number, and my parents' first names, and asked me to verify that they were correct. I said yes. Then she asked "well did you check?" I said yes. Then she said "did you check the items I circled in red? I said yes. They are correct. Uggghhhhh. Then she picked up my birth certificate and asked "is this your original birth certificate?" I said yes. She said "okay". (YAY! That one was easy!)

- Then she picked up my Police Cerificate and the application form for the certificate. She asked where is your original Police Certificate? I said "in your hand". (I mean SERIOUSLY! How the hell am I supposed to answer these questions without sounding snarky or condescending.) Then she asked about the application. I said I submitted both because the application shows that they checked my married and maiden names. She asked "where does it show your maiden name?" I replied "in the box that says 'maiden name' directly below the box that says 'surname'". "Well how do I know that these go together?" "Because the CPIC serial number on the certificate is the same as the CPIC serial number on the application, and they both have the same RCMP seal on them. She then said something about how she has to check that it was done by the RCMP. I kept my mouth shut.

- Yeah, it doesn't end there... Then she had my husband's 2008 tax return in her hand and she asked me for the most recent tax return. (F'ing SERIOUSLY!?!? Mother of god what is your problem, lady?!) I had no other answer than "well, the one in your hand is my husband's 2008 tax return. Unfortunately, he has not yet filed his taxes for 2009." I swear, I answered every question as politely as possible. Anyway, she then said something like I'd be called back in a while for fingerprinting. I thanked her and walked back to the waiting room and told Sombercat and the "A" man what had just happened. Then the "D" man (who seemed to be either grumpy or nervous) was called up. Shortly after that, Mr. and Mrs.SomberCat was called up to a window (not #10, luckily!), and after a while the "A" man was called back to his window for fingerprints etc. I hadn't been called back by the time he returned, and I figured perhaps the lady at window #10 was sitting there plotting my death. The "A" man was very nice and reassured me that I'd be fine. Yay for the "A" man. I really hope everything went well for him.

- When I was called back to window #10, the lady seemed more cheery than she previously had been, so that was neat. She explained to me that my visa - if issued - would be in my maiden name because I haven't yet changed my name on my passport. I said that was fine. I figured that might happen. She then asked me to read the instructions for the fingerprints, and I did. Then she was waiting for her computer so she asked me some questions. I was having a lot of trouble hearing her, because the guy beside me was speaking loudly, so I told her that. And she said "yeah he is loud". THEN she turned on her speaker! Not until then. My word! Anyway, she asked my husband's address, so I told her his full address, including city, state and zip code. She asked his apartment number, so I told her. She then asked "and where is it?" (I was a little confused here, because I had just told her...) so I said "Tulsa?" She said "yes... so that's in Oklahoma?" I said "yes." Then she said "well you have to SAY it!" In my head I'm thinking #######, lady? I just did! Bah. Then she asked my parents' names. So I said my Dad's full name, then my Mom's full name. She said "uhhh that's not what we have for your Mom". "Okay, but that's her name." Then she started spelling out my Mom's maiden name. And I said yes, that's her maiden name. (YARGH! It hasn't been her name for like 35 years!!! If she wanted her maiden name, she should've said so! On all of the forms, my Mom's married name is written, and her maiden name is noted where applicable.) I just said "oh sorry. I guess I misunderstood." I think that was the end of that ordeal and then it was time for fingerprinting, which went perfectly. So yay for that. She told me to go back to the waiting room and my name would be called shortly to speak to someone else. I smiled and thanked her and walked away.

- Then I got back to the waiting room again, and well... I waited. Very shortly after, I was the first one called to the interview room. I went to room #8. And that guy was REALLY nice. He greeted me and asked me to put my belongings on the chair so my hands would be free, so I did. I swore to tell the truth, etc. and then he gave me back both of my original marriage licenses/certificates... whatever you want to call them, as well as the two passport-sized photos that I had submitted to NVC (they kept the ones I gave to the lady at window #10, I guess, even though they were exactly the same.) He also gave back my original birth certificate. He also explained that they have to use my maiden name on the visa because it has to match the name on the passport, and I said that's fine. He may have said that at the end of the interview. I really don't remember.

- Here is what I remember being asked during the interview... I started writing using the Q & A format, even when they weren't questions. Q is what the man said, and A is what I said. It was such a casual conversation. As you'll see, much of our discussion was about hockey. Haha.

Q: How do you like Montreal?

A: I love it! It's beautiful here.

Q: When did you get to Montreal?

A: Yesterday afternoon.

Q: Where is your husband?

A: In Tulsa. He has to work.

Q: Where do you live?

A: Ottawa

Q: When did you get married?

A: February 13, 2009

Q: Congratulations!

A: Thank you!

Q: How did you meet your husband?

A: We were both on the same hockey message board and my team beat his team in the '07 playoffs (*grin*), and then we started playing NHL 07 on Xbox Live a lot, and then began talking a lot.

Q: Which team does he like?

A: The Stars.

Q: Which team do you like?

A: The Canucks.

Q: It's too bad you aren't being interviewed by my colleague. He's a huge hockey fan. I'm just a casual fan.

A: Oh, well that's cool.

Q: When did you meet in person?

A: April 2008.

Q: Oh, that's not very long to know each other in person.

A: No, I guess not, but we talked A LOT in the year prior and got to know each other very well.

(He started flipping through pictures that were submitted with the I-130, and he stopped at a picture of my husband and I at a Stars game and we were both wearing Stars jerseys (ewwwww!)

Q: Hey wait a minute... you're both wearing Stars jerseys there!

A: Ugh. I know. That was from October. It was Jason's birthday, so I had to. But it still felt wrong!

Q: Hey so your team has those twins, don't they?

A: The Sedins? Yeah! They just signed contract extensions this summer. It's awesome.

Q: I have twin boys, so I have to know these things.

A: Oh cool! Are they hockey fans?

Q: No, they're 5 months old.

A: Oh wow, well congratulations!

Q: So I guess since you're a Canucks fan, you probably don't like the Habs very much?

A: Actually I do. They are my second favourite team.

Q: Ah ok. I wasn't sure about cross-country rivalries.

A: Well, the Canucks are mainly rivals with the western teams because they play each other more often.

Q: How many times have you visited your husband since you've been married?

A: Twice.

Q: How many times has he visited you?

A: Also twice.

Q: What does your husband do?

A: He works as a property manager.

Q: Where do you work?

A: At a video store.

Q: Have you ever had any trouble with the law?

A: No sir!

Q: Have you ever lived in the U.S. for more than 6 months?

A: No sir!

Q: Have you ever had any trouble at the border?

A: No sir!

Q: When do you plan to move?

A: Um... well... if all goes well here, the intention is to move the week after Labour Day.

- That's all I can remember. There may have been a few more questions. But anyway, then he said something involving the words "congratulations" and "approved". I don't know exactly what he said because in my head I was just thinking "F'ING YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!" He handed me the fabled "Welcome to the United States of America" letter, and said that I should receive my passport with the visa in it on Monday or Tuesday, and there will be an envelope that says "DO NOT OPEN", so don't open it. And then he said some other stuff. I don't remember. I just said "THANK YOU!" to everything he said. Heheh. Then I went back to the waiting room and showed my letter to SomberCat and Mr. SomberCat and the "A" man, and they congratulated me, and I don't remember what we all said then. It's a blur. I was out of there before 9:00!

I walked back to my hotel and got my husband on the phone a few minutes later, and I told him I slept in. He said "you did?!?" I said "Yeah I slept in and now they won't let me go to have an interview!" He said "they won't?!?" Hehehe. I am a terrible person. I only left him hanging for a second before I told him that I was lying, and that I was already finished the interview and it went very well. That was payback for him not coming to the interview, I guess. He agrees now that it was funny, so yay.

I suppose that concludes my horribly long review! Wow. Exactly 6 months ago, my husband and I dropped off the I-130 package at the post office. We were so incredibly lucky to get through this so quickly, especially considering we had to wait 3 1/2 months for the interview. Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who helped us along the way.

[trailmix 77]

congratulations again Holliday! That was really an interesting review.

What's with that woman though?? Obviously she is on some kind of power trip.

[Holliday 4]

congratulations again Holliday! That was really an interesting review.

What's with that woman though?? Obviously she is on some kind of power trip.

I'm thinking it was a test of sanity and composure. Heheh. You know how at the airport some people get random extra security checks? I think maybe at the Consulate some people get an extra sanity test, and yesterday I was that person. SomberCat and the "A" man weren't hassled at all, but of course, ultimately I had it easier than them since I was out of there before 9:00, so I can't really complain. I'm actually HOPING that it was a test, and that she doesn't actually lack the ability to read, because yeesh! If it wasn't a test, she should totally not have that job.

[CanAmCharlotte 0]

I think I must have had the same b****, I mean lady back in Sept. '06. She was beyond nasty. She actually denied me my CR-1 visa approval (the actual Consul fixed everything two days later....a long story). I remember when she told me I was denied, she would not tell me why but I kept pressing. Finally out of exasperation I said, "My God, I've never had so much as a parking ticket. I've quit my job, given up my condo, sold all my furniture and you won't tell me why?!". Her empathetic response was, "Well, we tell you not to make any changes until you have the approval." I felt like projectile vomiting onto her little window. I don't think I'll ever forget (or forgive) her for making what should have been a happy day into a nightmare.

[trailmix 77]

I think I must have had the same b****, I mean lady back in Sept. '06. She was beyond nasty. She actually denied me my CR-1 visa approval (the actual Consul fixed everything two days later....a long story). I remember when she told me I was denied, she would not tell me why but I kept pressing. Finally out of exasperation I said, "My God, I've never had so much as a parking ticket. I've quit my job, given up my condo, sold all my furniture and you won't tell me why?!". Her empathetic response was, "Well, we tell you not to make any changes until you have the approval." I felt like projectile vomiting onto her little window. I don't think I'll ever forget (or forgive) her for making what should have been a happy day into a nightmare.

I do hope you complained to the consulate (I hope you will too Holliday - after you have moved of course)!

The consul general is Lee McClenny and the address to contact him via mail is:

P.O. Box 65

Station Desjardins

Montreal (Quebec)

H5B 1G1

[meowmeowmeow 1]

congratulations!!!

[FinnLove 0]

Congrats Holliday! Thanks for the review! Your sense of humor got you through it!

[FinnLove 0]

Oops did I crash a Canadian forum??? I just found this through the "recent posts!" Oh well...I'm only 2 1/2 hours from Canada!

[Holliday 4]

I think I must have had the same b****, I mean lady back in Sept. '06. She was beyond nasty. She actually denied me my CR-1 visa approval (the actual Consul fixed everything two days later....a long story). I remember when she told me I was denied, she would not tell me why but I kept pressing. Finally out of exasperation I said, "My God, I've never had so much as a parking ticket. I've quit my job, given up my condo, sold all my furniture and you won't tell me why?!". Her empathetic response was, "Well, we tell you not to make any changes until you have the approval." I felt like projectile vomiting onto her little window. I don't think I'll ever forget (or forgive) her for making what should have been a happy day into a nightmare.

Well #######! Man, if that had happened to me I think I would've had a total meltdown. I'm so sorry you went through that! Sounds like I had it easy in comparison. What did that woman look like? And if you have the time to write it, I would like to read your long story.

I do hope you complained to the consulate (I hope you will too Holliday - after you have moved of course)!

The consul general is Lee McClenny and the address to contact him via mail is:

P.O. Box 65

Station Desjardins

Montreal (Quebec)

H5B 1G1

I think that's a good idea. Thanks for the address. I can write a polite letter expressing my concerns regarding the woman's ability to read and/or understand words... or something like that. Because if she wasn't just randomly and intentionally testing my patience, or purposely being a jerk, that's a huge concern. The part I wrote in the review about the marriage certificate issue was actually condensed. The whole situation totally threw me off! I was sitting there thinking how the hell was the I-130 approved (in 20 days, no less) and how did I get through NVC if I don't have valid documentation of my marriage? Also I find it really hard to believe that someone who reviews documents at the Consulate in Montreal has never seen a marriage license/certificate from Texas before. That's the part that got to me the most. However, I'm still too happy about stuff to be super pissed off by the way she acted, but yeah, writing a letter after I move is a good idea.

[ddartt1 2]

That was long. Congratulations!

Edited August 20, 2009 by ddartt1

[AbbynSheryl 0]

congrats, thank u for sharing.

abby n sheryl

[Peachey 10]

The doctor that did my medical was like your lady. I told my mom this lady had a horrible memory since she asked some things like 5 times, but my mom said that she might be trying to catch you in a lie. Maybe that's what this lady was doing?

[SonoranSongbird 3]

Woot! Congratulations, Holliday!

About his little twin babies not being hockey fans yet because they are only 5 months old: It's never too early to start!! I love looking at Blues baby gear on line.

[Rehan 0]

Congratulations to holiday and Sombercat and all others who just got their approvals!!!!!!!!!!!!

[CanAmCharlotte 0]

Well #######! Man, if that had happened to me I think I would've had a total meltdown. I'm so sorry you went through that! Sounds like I had it easy in comparison. What did that woman look like? And if you have the time to write it, I would like to read your long story.

The woman was early to mid-thirties, about 5'4", average build, chin length dark hair, glasses, no makeup.....sound familiar?

I said I would never write this story on the forum because I don't want to frighten people so if anyone scares easily, stop reading now! If you decide to forge ahead, just know that I truly, truly believe my story is an anomaly. In fact, the Consul said it had never happened before.

OK, here goes....I met my husband online and after a year of traveling back and forth we decided to go for a K-1 visa and I would move to Charlotte, NC. Neither of us has ever been in trouble with the law AND we had not received any RFE's during the K-1 process. These are important points in the story. We waited nine months for the interview at the Consulate in Montreal. My family lives all over Canada and some of them had not met my fiance so we decided we would ALL make our way to Montreal and have a little family reunion in conjunction with this interview. At this point, I was considering the interview a veritable rubber stamp and I forsaw no problems getting my visa. Boy, was I wrong!

On the morning of the interview, Gordie (my fiance) and I got up early and walked a block past the Consulate. We sat in the Tim Hortons on Rene Levesque Blvd. and suddenly I had a terrible feeling of foreboding. I remember saying that I had a really, really bad feeling and I didn't think it was nerves.

We made our way to the Consulate, went in and waited. (It's been almost three years but if memory serves me correctly I think we had to pay a fee at another window first.) After over an hour, I was finally called to an interview room. The woman asked me a few questions and then hit me with "Have you ever lived in the United States?" followed by "Have you ever applied for a visa before?" I responded that I hadn't but I could tell she wasn't buying it. She kept repeating the same questions over and over and over. I finally asked where this was going because there was obviously something that was concerning her. She wouldn't answer my question. I then asked for my fiance to be brought into the room. Honestly folks, at this point the room was starting to spin. She made me swear again that I was telling the truth about never having lived in the U.S. before. She asked a few of the same questions again and then asked my fiance to leave the room for a minute. Once he left she asked, "Is there something you want to tell me that you don't want your fiance to know?" I was hiding nothing and had no clue what she was driving at. Finally she allowed my fiance back in and announced that I was denied the visa and that was that. She wouldn't tell me why and the interview was over.

To this day I feel bad that I walked out of that room ashen, tears streaming down my face, leaning on my fiance, and probably scaring the s*** out of everyone in that crowded waiting room!

We went back to the hotel, gave the bad news to my very supportive family and started to brainstorm. My Dad suggested that being an American citizen, Gordie probably would not be turned away from the Consulate if he demanded to see someone. So the next day Gordie showed up as the doors opened, said he was an American and asked to speak to the Consul. When the security guard asked what it was in regards to, he said, "It's a matter of Homeland Security and I don't feel comfortable talking about it here in this lobby." (That's my Gordie!) He was whisked in and that's where it gets interesting.

The truth finally came out at this meeting. Apparently my alien # was a recycled number. The previous "owner" was a woman who had illegally tried to bring other people into the U.S. on the back of her visa. This all happened in 1996. That is all the information we were ever supplied. All of this begs the question why I was never asked for more information through an RFE. I could have supplied income tax returns, letters from employers, letters from landlords, any number of things that would have shown that I lived in Canada during the time in question. Also, my fingerprints would not have matched those of the other woman. Anyway, the Consul told Gordie to come back the next day and hopefully he would figure out a way around this mess. By this time, he and many of his staff believed that Homeland Security had made an error.

We tried to relax and enjoy the sites of Montreal but honestly, all I could do was pace, wring my hands, and pray to the immigration gods. When the next day came, off Gordie went to the Consulate where they presented him with a rather surprising proposition. They gave him a list of things to do and said if we were able to get them all done in the next twenty-four hours, they would give me a CR-1 visa the next morning. The list included things like: pay the entire fee for the CR-1 visa in US cash, get more passport-style photos, fill out a mountain of paperwork and oh yeah, get married!

There is a waiting period for getting married in Quebec (I think it's 25 days) from the time you get your license so that wasn't going to work. We rented the biggest van I have ever seen in my life, all piled in and drove across the border to Ontario. We all had cell phones so while driving, we planned a wedding. We bought our marriage license exactly one minute before the door closed at the municipal government office in Nepean and were married in my brother's living room three hours later. We then got back in the van and drove back to Montreal in a driving rain.

We spent the night (my wedding night!) filling out forms. The amazing front desk at our hotel had ALL of its fax machines tied up with our stuff for hours. (We had to get my fiance's CPA to fax us several years of income tax returns.) Gordie went to Western Union at 6:30am to pick up a load of US cash for the CR-1 fee. At the appointed time, we walked to the Consulate, took passport photos in the basement, waited an agonizing hour and then were ushered into a little room where we met with the Manager of Immigration. To be perfectly honest, I really don't think the people at the Consulate thought we would pull it off, especially the getting married part! Several staff came and went into the room and were shocked at what we had accomplished. They gave me my CR-1 visa, no more questions asked. Obviously I was only able to supply them with the bottom portion of the marriage license (where the officiant signs off) and they really wanted the marriage certificate but considering what we had endured, they looked the other way on that particular detail. They did repeatedly insist that we get the official marriage certificate asap which I did. We were also promised a refund for the K-1 fees we had paid nine months earlier but after three letters and a couple of phone calls to the Consulate, I eventually let it drop.

Sorry for the length of this post but trust me, this is the short version! There were a few more funny hiccups along the way but they are not integral to the story. I think if anything can be learned from this, it's that if possible, have your American fiance with you at the interview. In my case, If Gordie had not flown up to Montreal, I can't imagine how things would have proceeded. I suspect an immigration lawyer would have been involved and it might have been another year or so before things got straightened out.

As for that nasty woman who interviewed me, I dare say any of the interviewers would probably have denied me given the information they had BUT she didn't have to be so miserable about it.