Hi all,

Unfortunately we have been caught up in this DCF new law and it looks like our I-130 is on its way to the US to restart the process which will add at least 6 months to a year to our process.

Can we file K-3 now that this is happening? I'm thinking that the K-3 might get him here earlier. I guess I will now feel what the IMBRA people when through. Any suggestions would help.

thanks

Ooh Tracy , Im so sorry........


Im not familiar with the DCF process and what takes place regarding processing of the petition at the consulate. Does none of that count? They literally make you go to the end of line?

You could file a k-3 petition however Montreal ( if thats your consulate) is sooooooo slow. We're approaching month 6 in the I-129F process with no end in sight. I personally cant imagine filing a K-3 at this point and going through Montreal being any faster.......for what's it worth.

All of our best wishes for you!!!!

Yes unfortunately that is what it is looking like. Due to a new law that was put into effect the 24th I-130 applications will be sent to the nearest USCIS office to be reapproved. Basicly i'm taking it to mean starting over. We were just waiting for packet 4.

Since we don't know what this is going to do to our IR1 which is what we were on with the DCF i was hoping K-3 would be a little quicker. Yes Montreal is where we are going.

I feel like i've been hit by a brick trying to figure out where o go from here and what kind of time this is going to cost us. I've been crying all morning. Since i am a PR of Canada I suppose I could go back but we were both really wanting this to go through for us.

Do you have a NOA1 for your I130? I'm not sure how it worked with DCF, because you wouldn't be able to file a I129F without it.

I am really really sorry this is happening to you.

Are you sure that your consulate is Montreal for a K3 - I noticed that you had your local office listed as Calgary - if that's true the consulate with jurisdiction would be Vancouver for the K3 (it's different than for the IR1).

If the I130 is basically starting over again, you would basically be in the same position of anyone else at the beginning deciding whether to file the I129F. It is still often faster (and through vancouver significantly faster) - the biggest difference being that entering on the K3 one can't work for about 3 months.

At this point it might be worth it still, I really hope that you get special treatment at USCIS it's so frustrating when things like this happen

When one DCF"s my undersatnding they are doing a cr-1/ir-1, so their consulate would be Mtl!!

I'm lost. I have no idea what DCF is. But I am glad we have decided to go the K3 route, and it will be Vancouver for us. The whole I 130 has been a nightmare for us anyway.

If I were you, I would file for a K3 provided that you had some sort of NOA from your I-130. You'd go through Vancouver for your K3 but Montreal for CR-1/IR-1. It's worth a shot to pursue a K3 if you want to try and get reunited faster.

Maybe, if finances, job, etc. allow, you could go back to Canada to wait out part of the process so you wouldn't be separated for too long?

Thanks for the suggestions. We would be montreal all the way. Hubby lives in Manitoba we had to go to Calgary to submit the I-130. Since I got to skip the whole first process i'm not sure on a few things. If NOA1 is the receipt then i have that along with a letter from Montreal that they are now processing my husbands immigrant visa and listed IR1 so I think I have NOA2 also. I think once I get notice what USCIS center we are being transfered to I will start a K-3. It is worth a shot just to see how it all turns out.

I'm so lost because I haven't followed the K-3 process and going through USCIS. I'm gonna need help! I'm going to contact Montreal on Monday to find out what in God's name is going on and where we are being transferred. What a mess. To be so close and then have to start from scratch. If I knew this then we would have started with the K-3 to begin with and be 4 months closer instead of starting again

If you have the NOA1 from the I-130 and have a couple hundred bucks to spare, then you can file for K3 right now. Where are you currently living now? In the U.S.? If so, what state are you in?

K3 is more expensive in the long run (about $1,000 in total including AOS) but worth it for faster reunions.

Remember if you are calling Montreal, call between 2-4 p.m. EST. Press 4 immediately when you dial the main number.

Yes I'm currently living in the US in Illinois. I saw it will cost more. I looked up all the forms already and printed them off. I have all the documents needed and what not but i'm just not sure where my I-130 is right now. hopefully i will get an answer on Monday

I am not sure if yours would go to Vermont (after being transferred) or to California. Hopefully Vermont. Their processing is much much faster.

I'm going through K3 right now and a few other Canadians here have too. So feel free to check out my timeline and ask questions.

Good luck!

Thanks! I may be tapping your minds a lot. Good luck to everyone on their journey and I hope this doesn't happen to anyone else.

Keep us posted on how Canada is handling the whole DCF fiasco (and also what you decide to do next).

So I spent some time over on the DCF forum reading the 19 page thread on this topic <sigh>

What I gathered (and please anyone correct me if I'm off base) was this..........

The purpose for the current discontinuation of DCF was due to the fact that the consulate/embassy did not possess the ability to do the appropriate background checks on the USC and that violates this new law. Pending cases will be sent to appropriate USCIS office so the checks can be done and they will be sent back to the consulate once that has completed. Assumably the NVC stage will be skipped since the DS-230 and AOS form/payment have been sent in with packet 3? So again I assume once the USCIS process is completed, you will pick up where you left off at the consulate? So maybe it won't be as bad as it initially seems..........just my guess.


Thoughts?

That is what i gather that the security checks have to be done...which i have no problems with. If they do the checks and send us back great. If we have to "start over" that is bad. Yes my DS-230 is sent in but you don't pay for the visa until the day of your interview...a little different...just like the I-864 has not been done yet it goes with you the interview etc. I'm hoping Montreal will be able to tell me something more...if this is going to take 3-4 months okay fine i will deal but if it takes a year....well geez i don't know what i will do then.

I know there is a lot more people worse off than myself but this was quite the shock to say the least

I don't have any advice to add, but wanted to send some good vibes your way We are here when you need to vent.

I wish you would not think/post that as a fact--it is not.
Don't cause yourself unneeded stress. There is new information coming out daily, including the impact on K-3 petitions.

People do NOT need to start over, or from the back of the line.