Susan53011

Yep, the letter from the consulate has your case number which is required to book your medical. The 28 days includes the approval, sending to NVC, processing, sending the petition to Vancouver, and Vancouver mailing me the letter with instructions on packet 3. Not very long actually. I've heard others say it takes longer

My biggest piece of advice is to start getting your documents especially vaccinations together now. The biggest delay I had was getting my vaccinations done so I could book my medical. Woking medical is pretty strict in enforcing the vaccinations.

Glad you liked it. If you have any questions feel free to PM. There aren't too many of us that go through Vancouver!

I was wondering if you could answer a quick question...when i click your link for packet 3 it mentions ds-230 but on the vancouver consulate download packet 3 link it says ds160 and does not mention 156 or ds230. have they made changes? i am ready to send stuff ahead of receiving packet 3 in the mail so I wanted to make sure. Thanks

update...I called DOS this morning and according to their computer "VANCOUVER" sent packet 3 to my beneficiary yesterday. now I am even more confused because I know DOS can also give wrong info sometimes. I am thinking that CEAC saying Montreal is a glitch and the email I received back from Vancouver stating they dont process foreign workers was sent from a kind of call center place that answers emails and put a standard response without fully knowing the correct information. Either way, I will fax all the stuff to Vancouver tomorrow and if its wrong hopefully they will contact me and tell me to quit sending docs to them. lol If we receive packet 4 info then I know all is well. Fingers crossed tightly!!

I am also a worker here in Canada. Our case was transferred to Montreal fron NVC July and my visa and work permit will only be until this Dec31 but I do not have any problem with it regarding my processing in Montreal. I already have my interview this Nov so I am really hoping I can have my visa before my permit and visa expires here in Canada..

Where r u from...me I am from west coast and my fiance is in Saskatchewan so having to travel to Montreal is quite a hardship and twice to three times as expensive as going to Vancouver. Then i read you need to do medical at least a week in advance in Montreal due to the slow process of getting your medical results back. (Takes minimum 3 days i read). So having to spend about 7-10 days in Montreal vs 3 in Vancouver is going to be hard. Not to mention its can be a much longer wait for an interview which is sad. Oh well what can i do now...gotta wait and see. I emailed and faxed a copy of her work visa that is good til May 2015 to Vancouver so maybe they will change their minds. Fingers crossed.

Well if this is really the situation the bad news is that now i need a new case number for Montreal. I cant even submit packet 3 without it. Thankfully it should be assigned by Montreal and not NVC but still, have to wait yet again. I hope this is all just confusion from Vancouver and I get to stay with them. I only hope that no matter the outcome that there is no further delays....soooooo FRUSTRATED

What is your case number - VAC or MTL? We are Vancouver, but the CEAC said ready to book interview at Montreal. I just think that's yet another govt quirk with wrong info. As a matter of fact, our status still says that and we've got the interview & medical booked.

I would go out on a limb and say if you have a VAC number, you're definitely going through Vancouver. Unless Vancouver doesn't realize she has the valid work authorization, I'm not sure. Maybe it's because you, the petitioner, emailed instead of her, the beneficiary? It could also be because of her country of origin, where is she from?

Sorry about the lack of actual help, but I do wish you guys the best of luck!

its a VAC #. NVC was helpful but also specculating so I will email Montreal as well to see what is going on. based off what NVC said, Montreal will issue a new case number etc if this is the case. I am hoping Vancouver will reply and let me know whether or not they forwarded my app or still have it. But you said the CEAC website says the same thing about your case?

Their own email says you can go through Vancouver. And you have gotten a Vancouver email from NVC. Seems like everything is going for Vancouver. What are you getting that says Montreal?

From the CEAC status website....Your case is ready for you to schedule an interview at the U.S. Consulate General in Montreal. If you have already scheduled an interview appointment, please prepare your documents as directed in your appointment letter and appear at the Consulate on the appointed date and time. Otherwise, please wait until you have been notified of your interview appointment. Additional information about how Immigrant Visa interview appointments are scheduled can be found at:http://travel.state.gov/visa/immigrants/info/info_3731.html

Sorry about the caps lol. I used it for the forum title and forgot to take it off. I they emailed me back after an inquiry that says "We do not process applications for fiancée visas unless you are a Canadian citizen, a landed immigrant in Canada, on employment authorization or are pursuing a full-time academic program of at least a year's duration. If you are in one of these categories, please provide evidence from a Canadian authority." I provided a copy of her work visa that does'nt expire until May 2015 so thats why I am so confused. I don't want to schedule an Interview then find out that we did need to stay with Vancouver and have delays etc. I am on hold with the NVC now to see if they have any pearls of wisdom as to what is going on.

Have the benificary send an email to Vancouver. I had B do that as soon as I saw our case update on CEAC. They replied back saying they hadn't received it yet but once they did, they would email packet 3. A few days later he got the packet 3 email and I received a letter in the mail from NVC stating they forwarded the petition to Vancouver.

I emailed per your suggestion and they said that she has to go through Montreal unless she has a valid work visa that has at least a year remaining, which it does, i am confused now. CEAC even says case ready and to schedule with Montreal. This is crazy, i dont know if I should keep inquiring about Vancouver or just move forward with Montreal. I should be happy that it is finally case ready but the trip to vancouver was going to cost 1/3 the price of going to Montreal. ughhhh Plus I was going to drive up from Las Vegas to be prepared to bring her home with me after approved. There goes that plan

I JUST CHECKED MY STATUS ON THE CEAC WEBSITE AND IT SAYS THAT I HAVE TO GO THROUGH MONTREAL, CANADA. MY CASE NUMBER IS ASSIGNED TO VANCOUVER, MY FIANCE AND ME LIVE ON THIS SIDE OF THE COUNTRY, WEST COAST U.S. AND SASKATCHEWAN. WHEN I EMAILED VANCOUVER THEY SAID THEY DO NOT PROCESS FOREIGN WORKERS APPS UNLESS SHE HAS AT LEAST A YEAR ON HER WORK VISA. WHICH SHE DOES, AND WE SUBMITTED A COPY OF THAT WHEN WE ORIGINALLY APPLIED. I AM TRYING TO CONTACT SOMEONE TO FIGURE THIS OUT. END RESULT IS WHAT IS IMPORTANT, HOWEVER, HAVING TO GO ALL THE WAY TO THE EAST COAST FOR AN INTERVIEW IS A MAJOR MONKEY WRENCH IN PLANS. ANY OTHER FOREIGN WORKERS IN CANADA OR CITIZENS THAT MAY KNOW WHATS GOING ON??

yeah your def right. got my nao2 in 42 days and it took another 45 days just to get a case number at NVC. I think it all evens out in the end so don't lose hope. I drove myself crazy waiting and calling everyday. but now....we are anticipating packet 3 and 4 to be complete and scheduling our interview by next friday!! well worth the wait and the headache. Just start gathering docs for packet 3 and be ready to go, just in case CSC gets off their butt and starts moving again! good luck

Ours was sent to NVC within a couple days after approval - however we were at TSC and you are at CSC. I've been reading that apparently CSC gives approvals quite quickly, but then lets the applications sit around for a while after before sending them to NVC - which is unfortunate.

So I think you're kinda stuck at the moment and hope that they send it to NVC soon - I would call and/or email CSC to try and get the ball rolling and have them send your file to NVC.

Who will receive the letter from Vancouver consulate, benneficiary or petitioner, regarding time to download and send back packet 3 and will it be via Email or regular mail? I know Vancouver received app on Oct 15, 2013 and neither one of us have received anything nor has it changed from in transit to case ready.

Thanks

too many pages of posts to go through and i am feeling lazy so if this question was asked and answered I apologize ahead of time. Were the consulates abroad part of the government shut down. I used a trick suggested by another VJer on how to know if your app arrived at the consulate via dhl tracking system. My app (with out knowing 100%) left boston MA on the day after it said in transit from the nvc so I am assuming it is my stuff, it arrived 2 days ago in vancouver and was signed by V Lin however the ceac website still says in transit. Does it take a few days to update on CEAC or were the consulates closed?

I just tried the same thing for my app was sent to vancouver and signed in on the 15. so 2 years later and this process will still work using the dhl express tracking. thanks so much for the tip

Hi Susan53011,

Appreciate u replying to my question. Thanks a lot! I still have work visa until next year December 2014. So I guess we r good to file the visa & get interview/physical here in KSA. We are not married yet coz we decided to file a K1 visa. However, i didn't know neither my fiance that Spouse visa is faster than Fiance visa coz some shared it's not. Thanks for ur info. My US citizen fiance got back to US for another job assignment. He's in military service & we met here Saudi Arabia less than two years ago. That was the saddest part. We are apart for 6 months now.

God bless ur journey & thanks again for ur informative reply.

if your fiance was here stateside it is definitely slower process but when the citizen is abroad it seems to move faster. maybe due to lack of apps at the consulates abroad etc so the interview etc moves faster

Oh, fyi, if you are already married while the US citizen is working abroad the process is much faster. My friend in Kuwait got his wife's visa in 2 months

The embassy should forward it to the proper place no matter where u are. As for you working abroad, my fiance is filipina and working in Canada and as long as you have at least 6 months or more left on your work visa all is well for Saudi consulate etc. They will do interview etc there. Hope that helps.

The date is not provided to you till your embassy receives your packet 3 forms and you would need medical and police cert before interviews. The message is put up in error this is what they told me at dos when I called them. It seems everyone has that same message. At this point you do not have a interview date till packet 3 docs have been sent by your consulate. One your case says ready you will get packet 3 shortly after that from your consulate with instructions.

Thanks so much. I am ready to go with all my docs once the consulate receives my packet so I was concerned that if they already had a date scheduled it would be 3 months away for example. phewww, ready to keep moving not waiting lol

thanks for the feed back but i meant with regards to the smaller print, where it says your interview date has been set by the NVC...does that mean there is already a date set and can we change it if needed

Does anyone know if this is a common statement when you check your app status with regards to the interview date already being scheduled? or is it really scheduled?

"Your case is in transit to the Consular Section. Your interview date was provided to you by the National Visa Center."

Haven't received the hard copy of the case number from the NVC yet so just curious

btw, consulate is Vancouver

lol that is an awesome pic!!! definitely how i pictured it in my head as I waited day after day

I originally got my letter of employment back in early September anticipating a quck transfer to the NVC. With the delay, should I ask for a new one or will that letter be sufficient as long as I provide current pay stubs?

I totally understand your frustration. I waited 47 days for a case number and if I am reading my case number correctly, the NVC might have had my app since 10/04...case number given 10/08. but I could be wrong on how the numbers read in the case number. Anyways, I even received a letter via regular mail from an inquirey I did sith the california service center at 5 weeks and it said they mailed to the NVC so who knows. Its a big finger pointing contest as to where your app really is, Just have faith that soon you will receive your case number

congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Question...my case has finally left the NVC and it says in transit. This is what it says "Your case is in transit to the Consular Section. Your interview date was provided to you by the National Visa Center."

My question: has the interview date truly been set already or is that just an every case statement that is put on the case status thingy? I was under the impression that we could kinda pick a date based off of availability etc once we receive the packet 4 stuff. Consulate will be Vancouver. Thanks

my NAO2 was 8/22. no RFE's!! the ones that folks have been saying they get are, in my opinion, discriminatory!! We shouldnt have to show proof where we intend to marry at this stage of the process. I received my NVC case number last night, FINALLY!!!!!! hopefully will be complete with packet 3 and scheduling the interview soon. I will make sure though, that with all the RFE's happening to same sex couples, that I will bring proof etc of where we will marry to the interview just in case they want to ask it at that point.