dskar

Principal applicant should carry recent pay stubs, last year's tax returns (Federal and State), W-2 as well as tax transcripts issued by IRS and State government.

I had my family's visa interview on 25th and it went well. We are expecting their stamped passports to arrive today via courier. FYI, it was an EB-2/follow to join case where principal applicant's GC had already been processed at MTL two years ago therefore usual timelines of DQ->Interview might not apply. To my pleasant surprise, the the appointment came rather quickly when I requested by sending an email to the MTL consulate - giving us a mere 4 week notice to go through medicals and preparation etc.  The line up outside the MTL consulate was much smaller than what I saw there last time, I'd say about 25% of the normal load.

4 hours ago, F2J_March said:

Hi @dskar: Thank you for detailed reply. I guess your case was already in MTL since you had your interview in MTL so it was easy for them find your case and schedule an interview for your family whereas in my case although its Follow to join, my case is still with NVC and not yet transferred to MTL. Whenever I send an inquiry in MTL, I get response saying that my case is still with NVC and I need to reach out to NVC for next steps. NVC schedules interview based on dq'd date and I am not sure if they prioritizes EB follow to join case.

 

@F2J_March You are correct. But I don't think we can conclude that a "follow to join" case for family is any faster in case of CP vs. AOS. Even in your case (where principal applicant was granted PR via AOS), NVC is only waiting for a signal from MTL to send them the case file for your family - NVC is usually very quick to do so as soon as the priority date is current and/or an appointment is available. So that bottleneck again is in MTL where available interview slots are never enough to keep up with the number of IV applicants

19 hours ago, Pasand said:

hey all. I have another quick question:

Since I was in Canada, in order to land as a Canadian permanent resident I had to go to the US border. now if during the interview the officer asks me whether I've been ever turned around at the border, what should I say? does this PR land count? thank you

@Pasand the question they ask is "have you ever been refused entry to the US" which is done in case someone is found inadmissible and denied entry to the US. You don't fall in that category

19 hours ago, viksaw said:

Congrats. What was the DQ date for your family member?

Also, did you receive invitation today? 

I don't know which date should be considered as their DQ date here since it's a "follow to join" case, but the following timeline might help:

- Sep 2018: DQ for the Principal applicant, EB-2

- Mar 2019: Interview in Montreal and PR at a US/CAN land border few days later. I opted for a C2-Commuter GC therefore only principal applicant was asked to submit a DS-260 and was called for an interview at MTL

- Feb 2021: Contacted the MTL consulate via email (montreal-iv-dv@state.gov) giving them my MTL case number and requested an IV interview date for the family. Received a prompt response within days mentioning Presidential Proclamations 10014 and 10052 (PP10014 and PP10052) and that visa issuance was suspended for now

- 6/28/2021: Received email from MTL asking to submit DS-260 for the family members online. They didn't ask me to submit IV application fee or upload any documents 

- 7/26/2021: Received interview appointment letter for family members for 8/25. Again no mention of uploading soft copies or pay fees online. Only asked me to bring in originals of everything plus one copy of each. IV Visa Application fee ($345 per person) will be collected at the time of interview 

I believe my case was prioritized for some reason. Just guessing but maybe because it's a "follow to join" and therefore fell under family reunion. Either way, it came as a pleasant surprise and now we have less than a month to go through visa prep steps (collect civil documents/police reports, have medical exam done etc.). It's going to be a hectic one month for sure but we are happy.

I received an interview appointment for my family for Aug 25. This is a "Follow to join" case under EB-2, principal applicant already has GC which was approved at MTL in 2018.

17 minutes ago, F2J_March said:

I got GC back in June 2019 via AOS so I can apply for i824 to apply GC for my spouse based on approved i140 petition. Currently, case is dqd in NVC and waiting to get an interview scheduled. Although it employment-based but mean to bring a spouse to US. I have tried reaching out to. MTL consulate but of no help. Hence was checking what did you write in email.

@F2J_March In your case, NVC will schedule appointment at MTL for you. You'll hear from MTL only when an interview slot is assigned to you. Further instructions will be provided by MTL at that time regarding your family's medical etc. 

2 minutes ago, dskar said:

@Stephenc111 My family is not under I-824 since principal applicant was processed via CP. I'd say DQ for them isn't yet available because we just received an invitation to submit DS-260 today.

See #1 below for when not to use I-824.

2 minutes ago, Stephenc111 said:

Hi Dskar,

 

may I ask what is the Document Complete Date for your family? Not document complete date of yourself given they are under I-824

 

my situation is very similar to yours. I’m currently in US and got my GC in Nov 2018, under EB-2. Your family document complete date would be direct benchmark for my son 
 

My son is in Toronto, and I applied for I-824 (follow to join) in early 2019 and was approved in July 2019. And his Document Complete date at NVC is Nov 2019. So he is also in EB-2 category.

 

our plan is for him to finish high school in Canada and come to US for university. Now he got accepted at some good school in US but anxiously waiting fir the interview. School starts in late September. 
 

much thanks. 

@Stephenc111 My family is not under I-824 since principal applicant was processed via CP. I'd say DQ for them isn't yet available because we just received an invitation to submit DS-260 today.

2 minutes ago, F2J_March said:

@dskarHow did you reach out to mMTL consulate to let them know about your spouse and a child?

 

Mine is a follow to join case for my spouse and case is currently at NVC

@F2J_March NVC has no business with cases that were adjudicated at a mission outside of USA. In other words, if the principle applicant's case was processed through CP (Consular Processing), family members declared in his/her DS-260 can get an immigrant visa afterwards through original I-140 approved petition as derivatives by simply scheduling an IV appointment at the same consulate. I'm not sure about your case but if what I said above applies, send an email to MTL's IV unit at Montreal-IV-DV@state.gov with your MTLXXXX case number. They should be able to help. Also note that a follow to join (I-824) process doesn't apply in this case. 

I got the PR in April 2018 and the DQ was 6 months before then. It's not a typical case because it's more like "follow to join" for family members. But I posted this update anyway because derivative family members still fall under EB-2 category and this will give other members an update that consulate is finally looking at EB-2 files now. I'll post in this group when my family gets an interview date.

Good news that things have started to move. I got the following email today from MTL Consulate. Note that I already have the commuter GC, this interaction is for my family to be granted GC under same approved 140 EB2 petition because we plan to move to the USA now as a family. The communication is addressed to my wife.

Good afternoon,

In order to schedule you and your children's immigrant visa appointments please complete the DS260 application forms (Link:  https://ceac.state.gov/ceac/  ) once completed please scan and send us a copy of the bar-coded confirmation page for each family member.  Once received we will be able to schedule your appointments.

Regards,

OP29

Immigrant Visa

U.S. Consulate General

Montreal, Canada

4 hours ago, Stephenc111 said:

Hi all,

 

my son has received acceptance letter from a US university. If he still doesn't get the interview by July, I plan to ask him to apply for student visa, at Toronto Consulate.

- school starts early September

 

do you guy think they would grant him the student visa, while there is an immigration case pending?

 

Much thanks,

 

 

Your son only needs to satisfy the visa officer that he has no intent of "disappearing" in the USA and that he will leave the USA and return to Canada/MTL for his IV interview. I think he should be fine and get an F-1 without a problem. I'd give it a try anyway, since an attempt at F-1 won't hurt his IV in any way. And if he gets it, he will be able to join his new school on time. There are other considerations though which you should keep in mind. In an F-1 status, he'll likely be paying non-resident/higher tuition and not eligible for some scholarships/financial assistance there etc.

2 hours ago, Stephenc111 said:

that was my worry. Damn.

Your son only needs to satisfy the visa officer that he has no intent of "disappearing" in the USA and that he will leave the USA and return to Toronto for his IV interview. I think he should be fine and get an F-1 without a problem. I'd give it a try anyway, since an attempt at F-1 won't hurt his IV in any way. And if he gets it, he will be able to join his new school on time. There are other considerations though which you should keep in mind. In an F-1 status, he'll likely be paying non-resident/higher tuition and not eligible for some scholarships/financial assistance there etc.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/02/24/a-proclamation-on-revoking-proclamation-10014/ 

PP 10014 lifted today.

Hello, I'm returning to this forum after 2 years or so (got my EB2 case processed at Montreal consulate - interviewed on March 20, 2019 -  and got my permanent residence few days after that). This forum provided excellent help at that time both in terms of timelines and what to expect process-wise.

This is my story. Putting it here because it might be relevant to some of you. At the time of my immigrant visa interview, I opted for a commuter GC and didn't schedule visa interview for my wife/kids because they weren't ready for a move then. I continued living in Canada and working in the US as LPR with a C2-commuter status. Now, we are in a position to move together as a family and I'm looking for my options on getting PRs for my family also. I called NVC and they said I don't need to involve USCIS or NVC in this (or submit a follow to join I-824 either) because MTL post already had my approved petition with them. They said all I need to do was contact MTL consulate and ask them to schedule a visa appointment for wife and kids. They will be granted residence under EB-2 dependent category (aka E-22). Looking at this thread it seems EB thread overall is pretty backed up because of several reasons. The only w]ay for me to contact Montreal Consulate is via email provided on their site (montreal-iv-dv@state.gov) which generated the following automated response. It seems immigrant visas are all on hold except in certain categories as mentioned below (highlighted in red). I'll be watching this forum once gain to keep myself updated on how IV interview applications are progressing. Good luck to all of you with your Visa Journey

14 hours ago, AshleyJill said:

@dskar Did you pay for premium processing/delivery or just select the local Canada Post for pick up? My interview was Friday 3/22 and was approved.  The tracking has shown my visa as Issued since late Friday but I am still awaiting tracking information, so just curious if I missed something when selecting the local post office for pick up. Fingers crossed I get the tracking tomorrow.  

I paid extra for so-called "premium service" which delivers the immigrant visa package to your home. I think it was $20 or so, not much. But it saved me another trip to the local post office. The service requires signature upon delivery therefore pretty safe.

On 3/21/2019 at 1:12 PM, dskar said:

vRace, you don't get the passport back right away after interview (or even next day). In case of approval, consulate keeps your passport and returns it via courier only. When you have your interview appointment scheduled, at that point you'll be asked to register your appointment with a courier service (Canada Post). Applicant has two options to choose from, either pick up passport (along with immigrant package) from selected courier location or have it mailed out to a home address of his choice. There's an additional fee of $20 if you opt for home delivery. 

 

The visa officer who approved my case told me delivery of passport/IV package could take up to 2 weeks. But I also read somewhere that it can take as little as 72 hours in some cases. I'd say plan for being "out of passport" for at least 1 week after the interview. If you are already working in the USA, you'll need an alternative to get back in (e.g NEXUS with a valid I-94 - remember to remove it from your passport when interview is done) or maybe work remotely from Canada if your job nature/employer permit. All the best. 

vRace, Some updates on timelines post interview... My interview was on 3/20 and I received my passport along with immigrant package back yesterday (3/25). Tracking shows visa issued on 3/21 and packet picked up by Canada Post on 3/22 at 3 PM. I opted for home delivery therefore package was delivered to my home address around 2 PM on 3/25. Delivery is via express post which means you can expect to receive it within 24 hours once it's been picked up by Canada Post. Week-end does not count.

The passport had immigrant visa sticker in it. I reported at the land border crossing today and had my passport stamped by CBP. That "Admitted under E21 class" stamp is good for one year and will serve as my green card for all practical purposes until the plastic card arrives. The officer removed the I-94 for my previous status and kept it. He asked if I had paid the $220 "immigrant fee" (which is presumed to cover printing of the card itself) and I said yes - showed him the receipt. He said the physical card could take as long as one year to arrive and if I don't get the plastic card before expiry of the current stamp, I'll need to go to a local USCIS office where they will extend it for another year and so on. And there was another "Welcome to the USA, we are glad to have you".

A long journey ends here today (kind of). I'm very happy

The attached instructions document has more details on the MTL process. Note that these steps are to be completed only AFTER your interview has been scheduled at Montreal consulate.

MTL-Montreal-interview instructions.pdf

On 3/20/2019 at 12:53 PM, vRace said:

Congrats !!

Do you get the Passport right away or do they send it to your home address?

vRace, you don't get the passport back right away after interview (or even next day). In case of approval, consulate keeps your passport and returns it via courier only. When you have your interview appointment scheduled, at that point you'll be asked to register your appointment with a courier service (Canada Post). Applicant has two options to choose from, either pick up passport (along with immigrant package) from selected courier location or have it mailed out to a home address of his choice. There's an additional fee of $20 if you opt for home delivery. 

The visa officer who approved my case told me delivery of passport/IV package could take up to 2 weeks. But I also read somewhere that it can take as little as 72 hours in some cases. I'd say plan for being "out of passport" for at least 1 week after the interview. If you are already working in the USA, you'll need an alternative to get back in (e.g NEXUS with a valid I-94 - remember to remove it from your passport when interview is done) or maybe work remotely from Canada if your job nature/employer permit. All the best. 

Had my interview this morning. Approved..

There were more people under family-based category (K) than EB and some of those K's appeared to be refused. My interview seemed like a friendly conversation in a relaxed environment. The entire process from the point you enter the front door up to leaving the building took around 2 hours. There were no surprises.

Good luck folks...

"I was wondering if i can get the test done before and get some paperwork from the doctor stating i am up to date with my immunization ? and can take it along with me for my Medical"

Yes. In fact, this is the only way. Dr. Zatzman, who I went to for my medical in Toronto will not perform a medical unless he as a completed record of immunization. I'm not sure how other designated doctors deal with missing immunizations. You can show a record of administered shot (or result of blood work showing immunity to that virus in lieu of the shot) as proof.

Yes, Raj1970, you need employer's support letter for your EB interview. The letter should state name of beneficiary, current salary, job title and job description. If you are already working for sponsoring employer the letter should mention that as well as the fact that employer intends to use your services in this role once immigrant visa is issued. If you have a lawyer, I suggest you have him/her draft it for you.

The usual wait time for getting interview for EB cases in Montreal is 5-6 months after case complete date.