JennaL

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/canadian-affected-trump-travel-ban-refugees-immigrants-1.3957059
 
So it looks like Canadians with dual citizanship with a banned country are not affected by the ban/extreme vetting and can freely enter the US with their Canadian passport like anyone else.
 
Does anyone know if there is any truth to this? I’m totally shocked if this is accurate. 

Thanks, @Mike_usa_eng for posting the link for in-it.  I know a few of us here have posted our videos to the app - I hope many more here on VJ will be prompted to do so as well.

I encourage everyone here to take a listen, and also share the above on your social media.
 
Also, please consider uploading a quick video to the in-it site regarding your specific situation.
 
If everyone puts their voices together, we can help make a way to get our loved ones here to the US  

Ok thanks..I thought that made no sense  

Hi All,
   Update on the In-it campaign: A group went on Friday to speak with Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's legislative assistant. He said that the videos that have been made so far for the in-it campaign are super useful and will be used in congress hearings dealing with the ban. We are currently at 73 videos- and our goal is 100- we are so close!! The video should be less than 2 minutes (just over 1 minute is ideal). You can do it in anonymous mode where your video image will be distorted. It would be really great to get some more stories from other nations impacted by the travel ban (we have mostly Iranian). Please feel free to send me a private message if you have any questions or want more details. 
 
Remember- things don't change if we don't make our voices heard! 
 
https://in-it.com/travelban
 
Thanks!
 
-Jess 

Sharing some good news!  My fiance's visa was finally issued after 11.5 months in AP with DS-5535.  Now waiting to receive his passport from the embassy and book tickets to the US! Hang in there --- it still feels like a dream!

Thank you so soo much. Best of luck to you.

Receiving a 221g is not "normal" administrative processing. It indicates they are doing further background checks than they would normally do otherwise. There's really no way to find out what the hold up is, or when they might be ready to issue the visa. My fiancé received the 221g at his interview in September 2018 and we have had no updates since. I would guess in your case, it may have something to do with your previous marriage. I wouldn't stress about it, many are receiving 221g's right now. It will just take some extra time, but the visa should eventually be issued.

heeeeeeeey! awesome! we dakotans have to stick together. We are few and far between here!

The great thing about American history is that it has shown that change is possible- but history has also taught that it does not come easy (American Civil War, women’s suffrage, Civil Rights Movement). The end of slavery, the rights of women and African Americans in the US were all made possible (in some cases still not perfect) because people raised their voices again and again and demanded that things change. Remaining silent will certainly get us no where- we have to start somehow. The in-it campaign is trying to make a narrative about family separation and bring this issue back to the public attention. We are all on this page because we have someone we know and love going through a very difficult situation- let’s remember to support and encourage each other as much as possible- this journey is tough enough. 

Ron, the ban doesn't apply to dual nationals but the "extreme vetting" (DS 5535) still does for most from these countries. We even have a forum member with a Norwegian passport who isn't allowed to travel to USA because it says he was born in one of the banned countries.  So in essence it's still taking way too long to receive a visa. Right now the extreme vetting process takes anywhere from 4 months for some lucky individuals to more than 20 months and counting, for others. 

Thanks for sharing. I uploaded mine as well.  

Right, it supposedly does not apply to dual nationals, but through these efforts, we are trying to effect change in how people associated with the MENA region in general are processed when attempting to enter the US to be with their American spouses and fiancés.
 
It should not take multiple years for someone like my fiancé to attempt to receive a visa to join me here or simply visit the US, especially when he has already been thouroughly vetted like everyone else.
 
My fiancé was able to visit the US freely back in 2012 using only his Norwegian passport, no visa required. He is no longer able to do that, so clearly something has changed in the past two years since applying.
 
By encouraging this ban to be overturned, we are hopeful that the current process for MENA area citizens will not be so abhorently difficult, especially as it relates to those simply waiting to be reunited with their American fiancés, spouses, and immediate family members, whether caused by the current ban or not.
 
May I ask what your personal experience has been with this ban? Thank you for the comments.
 
Attempting to effect change may not always have the results we hope for but it’s always worth a try, right? 

Right, he is not banned so does not get a waiver, however, as he has a connection to a banned country by being born in one, he requires extra vetting which is what the 221g is for.
 
Also, the last time he was here in the US was in 2014. Back then, he did not need a visa, just his Norwegian passport. Two years ago he was planning a trip to visit me here in the US and found out the rules had changed and he would need to apply for a visa since his Norwegian passport lists his birthplace as Iran. We never have heard anything from the embassy in the past two years and his visitors visa has been in AP since then as well.
 
I'm beginning to become a little suspicious of any "exceptions" like being a dual citizen, etc. It seems if you have any connection at all to a banned country, you are indefinitely on hold from entering the US.
 
Hopefully there is an end in sight and fiances and spouses will soon be allowed to be reunited with their loved ones in the US  
 
 
 
 

Thanks Jenna for making your video! You did a great job and I really do believe it will make a difference. 
 
If people are nervous about being seen in a video- you can do it  anonymously- and have it so your face is blurred. Please consider speaking up and sharing your experience of how the ban has impacted you and/or a loved one. Please feel free to message me with any questions. 
 
-Jess 

Just wanted to mention I just uploaded my video to https://app.in-it.com/missions/StopTheBan - it was very easy to do and only takes a couple of minutes of your time.
 
If each one of us affected by the ban here on VJ would take the time to contribute a short video, in-it would be able to reach their goal and use our experiences to make a difference and hopefully allow us all to be reunited with our loved ones sooner rather than later. 
 
Happy recording! 

https://app.in-it.com/missions/StopTheBan
 
This could be a helpful link for US citizens looking to get their stories heard about their struggles to get their banned spouses or fiancés here to the states. 
 
It looks like they want to hear from anyone affected by the travel ban, stuck in administrative processsing or waiting on waiver info. 
 

Hi all,
  I just posted my video today for the in-it website. They are trying to collect videos to share with Congress and other stakeholders to get rid of the ban. The videos have to be short- like 1-2 minutes and explain how the ban is impacting you or someone you care for. They want to try to use these in the first 100 days of the new Congress so the sooner the better. They are making great social media pieces around this issue to bring public attention to it again. Right now all the videos deal with Iranians so it would be great to get some other diverse voices on the site- anyone impacted by the ban!! 
 
Please spread the word and please post a video. You can make it anonymous if you prefer. Check out the other videos and post your own! 
 
 
https://app.in-it.com/missions/StopTheBan
 
 
Thanks! 
-Jess

https://app.in-it.com/missions/StopTheBan
 
This could be a helpful link for US citizens looking to get their stories heard about their struggles to get their banned spouses or fiancés here to the states. 
 
It looks like they want to hear from anyone affected by the travel ban, stuck in administrative processsing or waiting on waiver info. 
 

Not knowing this information is fine - just fill in his first and last name. For the rest of the information on him, just write "unknown."
The important part is to fill in the boxes with at least something, just so it doesn't look like you accidentally missed a question.

Hey there, please keep us posted on how it goes. I'm also Iranian (unfortunately no Norwegian citizenship lol) and considering all that's going on would love to know how other Iranian cases go.

Hello everyone. Merry Christmas to all of you.
I know that the holidays, since they are family time, are the hardest on us. 
So, to all of you who are meeting for the holidays have fun.
And to the rest of us who couldn't meet this year, believe that it will get easier.
 
My best wishes to all of us to be able to live near our family members next year. 
 
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 

I didn't know if this was allowed or recommended, as I have noticed that a lot of cases have gone into 221(g)/Administrative Processing in the last few months. Rather than everyone freaking out all over everyone else's thread, I wanted to try and consolidate something  into one main post, and keep this first post updated with a table of what we're experiencing. I can't promise that I'll always be around to do this, but I will try to update this very regularly while my case is still pending, and then periodically afterwards (unless someone eventually takes it over). Please feel free to add all status reports and updates here, and I will add them to the main thread. Feel free to use this thread to ask questions and give advice, I will be checking regularly, but if you're providing new information , please tag the top of the thread in red with ***NEW INFO PLEASE ADD***
 
Username Date of interview Time of Interview Result: 221g Given? Document Requets Reason Given Time Frame Given Last CAEC Update Last Contact Medical Date Medical At Consolate? Police Cert Status Possible Red Flags NearEthereal 12/14/2018 11:30 Administrative Processing Y N None 7-10 Working Days 18-Dec N/A 24-Oct Y No Live Trace No Live Trace (Traffic Offenses) , Military contract background, Military dependant, moved a lot before age 16.

Update: my husband received a call from U.S. Embassy to renew his medical & send his passport...he’s a national of one of the travel ban countries!!!

Yes there are quite a few of us who have finished the AP and gotten visas. I know this thread is soooooo long but all that convo has happened here in previous pages. I agree that this endeavor is most likely (purposely) understaffed and things probably get more complicated when more countries and less efficient ones are involved.
Look back a bit in the thread for the link for the spreadsheet of people's data. 
(Which needs to be updated)
Best of luck to those waiting. I'm not going to lie and say that it will happen soon. It will probably not happen for several months, though it might be shorter for some countries,  and yes, though your government representatives definitely need to know, they can't seem to speed things up for most cases.